ECKSTEIN SAYS IT'S EVERY MAN FOR HIMSELF IN OPENING ROUNDS OF THE KELLOGG'S NUTRI-GRAIN SERIES

January 12: Four-time Kellogg's Nutri-Grain Ironman Series champion Shannon Eckstein says the opening rounds of the 2010 Series this weekend at Kurrawa will be a case of "every man for himself."

The new look Series, with $250,000 in prizemoney on offer, will kick start off with a "Dash For Cash" on Saturday and the exciting "Accumulator" round on Sunday and Eckstein knows he's going to be a wanted man.

"There are some new formats and we haven't really raced them too often. It's going to play out a lot tactically and you're going to have to think about what you do with these new formats as well - they're going to be quite exciting," said Eckstein.

"There's two run legs, a long run leg and a short run leg (in the Dash For Cash) which I haven't done before so the key (in the opening two races) is to try and get through using the least amount of energy as you can and then go hell for leather in that last one. I'm pretty confident with that. I've done it over the years a lot.

"The Accumulator format when you go off at different times in the final iron man race (after the individual swim, board and ski races) is going to be interesting.

"You won't see much wash riding. It's going to be every man for himself. You're going to have to think before the race and think about what you're doing during the race as well."

For the first time since his first Series win in 2003, three-time champion Zane Holmes, will be missing, after succumbing to a long-suffering back injury but arch rival Eckstein knows he'll be the one with the target on his back.

"Zane has battled that injury for a couple of years now and I think this winter he wasn't able to do the work he needed to and these last couple of months we knew something was wrong," said Eckstein.

"I have raced the last seven years with Zane, I've won four Series and he's won three so it's been a pretty good domination by us and I think we've created a bit of an aura and it's going to be pretty hard for the ironman series to cope with but we have a few guys coming back like Rhys Drury and Ky Hurst that have created interest with the Series.

"There may be a few guys gunning for me on my own; I've done it for a while now so I'll just go out there and look after myself.

"Ky races a little bit differently; he's got a very good swim leg so we'll have to watch out for that and Rhys Drury has got a very good ski leg as well and I think that's very underestimated.

"Everyone's got their strengths and weaknesses and it's just about working them out before the race and hopefully being aware of what everyone can do."

With Hurst in the Series, Eckstein said he has played more attention to his swimming, under master swim coach, Denis Cotterell.

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"My attention to training certainly stepped up a little bit and I have put a little bit more emphasis on my swimming. The last couple of years I've had some trouble with tendonitis in my shoulder but haven't really had to deal with that this year so I'll be able to get a few more kilometres under my belt.

"I'm swimming well in the local carnivals so I'll see how I go on the weekend." 

Meanwhile five-time Series runner-up Kristyl Smith will take some solid form into the opening rounds after winning the open ironwoman at last weekend's Ocean's 38 carnival at North Burleigh ahead of fellow Series competitors Alyce Bennett and Allira Richardson.

Smith will be gunning to break her drought but knows it's not going to be easy.

"It would love nothing more than to win a Series before the end of my career," said Smith, who has a powerful ski-swim combination, to match her board leg.

"But there are so many good girls in the Series, like Liz Pluimers, Naomi Flood, Alicia Marriott and Courtney Hancock, it is not going to be easy."

At the Queenscliff carnival on Sydney's Northern Beaches on Saturday, it was Terrigal's Series rookie Amy Nurthen who dominated, winning the open Ironwoman and the open and under 17 board finals as well as playing her part in the winning open board and taplin relay finals.

Nurthen, at 16, will make her Series debut at Kurrawa on the weekend.