We caught up with endurance athlete Simon Cochrane to talk through two decades in endurance sport, what it takes to coach athletes juggling full-time jobs and big goals, and what's next on his own race calendar (hint: it involves a horse track, 1 miles, that one ULTRA epic triathalon).
Two decades in, and still plenty left to go
Simon's been in endurance sport for over 20 years now, though he didn't actually get into it until his early twenties — "which nowadays seems quite late," he says, "whereas Ironman athletes, and even people running marathons, are getting into it quite young now."
True to form, he didn't ease in. "I jumped straight into the deep end. I did a half Ironman, and then three weeks later, an Ironman." From there, it was steady progress — and a clear direction forward.
Learning from the best, then becoming one for others
Early on, Simon looked up to Cameron Brown — the 12-time Ironman New Zealand champion. Over the years that admiration turned into something closer: training alongside him, getting to know him, and eventually racing him in the later stages of his career. "He was definitely one to look up to for his hard work ethic, and hard training and racing."
These days, inspiration comes from a different direction — the athletes he coaches. "I get a lot of motivation from them, seeing the hard work they put in and the improvements they get. They've actually got it harder, because they've got busy full-time jobs as well as trying to improve their athletic performance on the side."
Advice for anyone wanting to push further
For people wanting to step up into longer events while juggling family, work, and everything else life throws in, Simon's advice is simple: start small.
"There's so many cool events out there now, and it is getting crazier and longer — but a 5K trail run is good fun and good training too. Start small, work that into your normal schedule, and before long you'll work out how much extra time you've got for training and recovery — while still keeping the balance with family, work, and a bit of a social life."
Training the mind as much as the body
Ask Simon about the mental side of enduring long days on the body and mind, and he's clear it's a skill built the same way physical fitness is — through repetition and exposure.
"By ticking off harder training sessions, and putting yourself in situations you haven't been in before, that builds confidence — and the mindset that you can do hard things. Even little tricks like choosing harder times to train, getting up at 2am and going out when it's raining and snowing and blowing a gale, when other people aren't out there — that adds another layer of confidence. So when you get into a race, nothing new is going to pop up. And if something hard does come up, you're probably going to deal with it better than most people out there."
No secrets, just slow adaptation
On coaching, Simon's philosophy is refreshingly unfussy. "There's no real secret to endurance training. It's slow adaptation across months and years. There's the fuelling side, the mental side, the physical side — and then bringing in running, cycling, all sorts of sports into that recipe. What I enjoy is that everyone's so different, and everyone adapts and enjoys different things, but there's so many ways to build endurance."
His athlete roster spans a wide range — trail runners and adventure racers, fast road athletes from 5K up to the marathon, 24-hour world championship competitors, and multi-day adventure races like Coast to Coast. "I think everyone's got a fairly similar mindset — really wanting to push themselves. That's what draws them to me."
Why he rates his Suunto gear
For both his watch and headphones, battery life is what stood out first. "Before these products I was forever charging them, or things were dying mid-session. The ease of charging is great too — you can just drop the headphones into the portable charger after a session, and when that gets flat, plug it in as well, so you've always got an option to keep it topped up. The watch gives you a 20%, 10% warning, but usually you've still got hours and hours left."
Accuracy has impressed him too — particularly wrist-based heart rate, something he hadn't trusted from other devices before, along with GPS, maps, and treadmill running settings.
Sleep tracking and HRV have become an unexpected favourite. "I've never used that side of things on other watches before. First thing in the morning it tells me what time I went to sleep, what time I woke up, what the quality was — I'm way more aware of how my sleep has been. It gives you a week-long average too, and I was up over eight hours a night on average, which was good to see. Little things like that just keep you honest."
He's also a fan of the built-in safety lights on his headphones for running in the dark, and is looking at adding waterproof headphones into the mix as he ramps up pool training ahead of Ultraman New Zealand.
What's next
First up, next week, he's heading to Melbourne for a new race - Harry's Longest Miles format — essentially an extended beep test on an 800m horse track. Athletes run one-mile repeats, starting with a 15-minute cutoff that drops by 10 seconds each lap, continuing until only one athlete remains. With 2–300 athletes expected on the line, it's shaping up to be a long day. "It should go for 8 or 9 hours, and by the end you're running four-minute Ks or something for the last ones. There'll be a lot of people out there who can run a mile faster than me — but maybe not with 80K already in the legs."
Once back he'll be turning his focus to Ultraman New Zealand in December — a three-day triathlon based in Wānaka, and the first time the event has been hosted in New Zealand.
Simon's no stranger to setting the bar high at Ultraman — he smashed the world record on debut in Australia in 2023 by 80 minutes, then broke it again later that year in Hawaii. Now he's bringing that form home, aiming to leave his mark on New Zealand's inaugural Ultraman course.
By his account, New Zealand's format will be the hardest Ultraman course yet: day one climbs over the Crown Range on the bike, day two rides all the way up to Hāwea and back, with roughly 4,500 metres of elevation gain across the event and a 12-hour cutoff each day.
Looking further ahead into next year, Simon's eyeing a return to Tarawera, hoping to defend his win — preferably in drier conditions than this year's edition.
5 Minutes With Simon Cochrane
We caught up with endurance athlete Simon Cochrane to talk through two decades in endurance sport, what it takes to coach athletes juggling full-time jobs and big goals, and what's next on his own race calendar (hint: it involves a horse track, 1 miles, that one ULTRA epic triathalon).
Two decades in, and still plenty left to go
Simon's been in endurance sport for over 20 years now, though he didn't actually get into it until his early twenties — "which nowadays seems quite late," he says, "whereas Ironman athletes, and even people running marathons, are getting into it quite young now."
True to form, he didn't ease in. "I jumped straight into the deep end. I did a half Ironman, and then three weeks later, an Ironman." From there, it was steady progress — and a clear direction forward.
Learning from the best, then becoming one for others
Early on, Simon looked up to Cameron Brown — the 12-time Ironman New Zealand champion. Over the years that admiration turned into something closer: training alongside him, getting to know him, and eventually racing him in the later stages of his career. "He was definitely one to look up to for his hard work ethic, and hard training and racing."
These days, inspiration comes from a different direction — the athletes he coaches. "I get a lot of motivation from them, seeing the hard work they put in and the improvements they get. They've actually got it harder, because they've got busy full-time jobs as well as trying to improve their athletic performance on the side."
Advice for anyone wanting to push further
For people wanting to step up into longer events while juggling family, work, and everything else life throws in, Simon's advice is simple: start small.
"There's so many cool events out there now, and it is getting crazier and longer — but a 5K trail run is good fun and good training too. Start small, work that into your normal schedule, and before long you'll work out how much extra time you've got for training and recovery — while still keeping the balance with family, work, and a bit of a social life."
Training the mind as much as the body
Ask Simon about the mental side of enduring long days on the body and mind, and he's clear it's a skill built the same way physical fitness is — through repetition and exposure.
"By ticking off harder training sessions, and putting yourself in situations you haven't been in before, that builds confidence — and the mindset that you can do hard things. Even little tricks like choosing harder times to train, getting up at 2am and going out when it's raining and snowing and blowing a gale, when other people aren't out there — that adds another layer of confidence. So when you get into a race, nothing new is going to pop up. And if something hard does come up, you're probably going to deal with it better than most people out there."
No secrets, just slow adaptation
On coaching, Simon's philosophy is refreshingly unfussy. "There's no real secret to endurance training. It's slow adaptation across months and years. There's the fuelling side, the mental side, the physical side — and then bringing in running, cycling, all sorts of sports into that recipe. What I enjoy is that everyone's so different, and everyone adapts and enjoys different things, but there's so many ways to build endurance."
His athlete roster spans a wide range — trail runners and adventure racers, fast road athletes from 5K up to the marathon, 24-hour world championship competitors, and multi-day adventure races like Coast to Coast. "I think everyone's got a fairly similar mindset — really wanting to push themselves. That's what draws them to me."
Why he rates his Suunto gear
For both his watch and headphones, battery life is what stood out first. "Before these products I was forever charging them, or things were dying mid-session. The ease of charging is great too — you can just drop the headphones into the portable charger after a session, and when that gets flat, plug it in as well, so you've always got an option to keep it topped up. The watch gives you a 20%, 10% warning, but usually you've still got hours and hours left."
Accuracy has impressed him too — particularly wrist-based heart rate, something he hadn't trusted from other devices before, along with GPS, maps, and treadmill running settings.
Sleep tracking and HRV have become an unexpected favourite. "I've never used that side of things on other watches before. First thing in the morning it tells me what time I went to sleep, what time I woke up, what the quality was — I'm way more aware of how my sleep has been. It gives you a week-long average too, and I was up over eight hours a night on average, which was good to see. Little things like that just keep you honest."
He's also a fan of the built-in safety lights on his headphones for running in the dark, and is looking at adding waterproof headphones into the mix as he ramps up pool training ahead of Ultraman New Zealand.
What's next
First up, next week, he's heading to Melbourne for a new race - Harry's Longest Miles format — essentially an extended beep test on an 800m horse track. Athletes run one-mile repeats, starting with a 15-minute cutoff that drops by 10 seconds each lap, continuing until only one athlete remains. With 2–300 athletes expected on the line, it's shaping up to be a long day. "It should go for 8 or 9 hours, and by the end you're running four-minute Ks or something for the last ones. There'll be a lot of people out there who can run a mile faster than me — but maybe not with 80K already in the legs."
Once back he'll be turning his focus to Ultraman New Zealand in December — a three-day triathlon based in Wānaka, and the first time the event has been hosted in New Zealand.
Simon's no stranger to setting the bar high at Ultraman — he smashed the world record on debut in Australia in 2023 by 80 minutes, then broke it again later that year in Hawaii. Now he's bringing that form home, aiming to leave his mark on New Zealand's inaugural Ultraman course.
By his account, New Zealand's format will be the hardest Ultraman course yet: day one climbs over the Crown Range on the bike, day two rides all the way up to Hāwea and back, with roughly 4,500 metres of elevation gain across the event and a 12-hour cutoff each day.
Looking further ahead into next year, Simon's eyeing a return to Tarawera, hoping to defend his win — preferably in drier conditions than this year's edition.