Eighty-eight Aussies toed the line in Kona, and as expected the great majority rode like ditzy blonde high school girls, which is to say, shallow. Exactly two-thirds rode that way, compared to only half of the general Kona population, and only a fourth of the pros.

They also choose to ride mainly with drop bars, but only at a rate of 53.5% to 46.5%, tighter than expected. Almost four out of five Aussies chose 700c wheels, compared to about 57% of the entire field.

Almost three out of four riders chose aluminum, with most of the rest on carbon. Only a pair of riders were on ti bikes, and another pair chose steel.

Aero bar choices were significantly different here than just about everywhere else. While Syntace is the first choice in most countries, Profile Design was tops among Australians by almost double, 41 to 22. Usually, these are the only bars that even register on the radar, however there were a surprisingly large number of 3T bars, fifteen of them. Perhaps a bike sold in Australia is featuring this bar original equipment. There were also fifteen Cannondales in the race. Are any of these spec'd with 3T out the door? We don't know.

Cannondale was the best-represented bike among Aussies in Kona, and in second place was Giant, with eight. Third place was a surprise, Griffen. Maybe Aussies are honoring the choice of Chris Legh, who is perhaps the most solid among this country's ultradistance athletes. Trek is actually tied with Griffen, also with seven. Just behind is Cervelo with six, followed by Avanti with five, and Quintana Roo with four.