I’m Mark Bowstead, a triathlon coach based in Auckland. I raced professionally from 2012 to 2020, won IRONMAN 70.3 Buffalo Springs, and took an engineering degree with First Class Honours from the University of Auckland before coaching became the job. I coach time-pressured professionals through Ironman, 70.3 and marathon builds. Every coached week is written for the athlete’s actual week.
Who I coach
Most of my athletes work 40 to 60 hour weeks. Some are building toward a first 70.3. Others are chasing Kona and World Championship slots. What they share is limited hours, and a need for every session to count. Most of them are Auckland based. I am one of the coaches listed with Auckland City Triathlon Club, so I know the local race calendar and the routes these athletes actually train on. What that looks like from the athlete’s side is in their own words on the testimonials page.
That’s the coaching problem I like. An athlete with 20 spare hours a week doesn’t need much craft from a coach. An athlete with 9 hours, two kids and a Monday flight to Wellington does. My piece on training for Ironman New Zealand on 10 hours a week covers the same trade-offs, from an Auckland training week.
How the coaching works
Plans live in TrainingPeaks and I rebuild each week from what you actually did, your session data, your comments, and how you’re recovering. If life blows up a week, the plan bends with it.
You get every session written out with clear targets, comments on the sessions that matter, and straight answers on progress and fatigue. Read more about the approach on the Ironman and 70.3 coaching page, or the marathon plan for busy professionals if running is your race.
The races Auckland athletes build for
Most of my roster targets the NZ long-course calendar: IRONMAN New Zealand and IRONMAN 70.3 New Zealand, both in Taupō in March, the Tauranga Half in January and the Challenge Wānaka 100 in February. I’ve raced these courses myself, including fastest bike splits at the Taupo and Tauranga halves, so pacing plans come from having ridden the roads myself.
Offshore goals work the same way. I coach athletes remotely across NZ, Australia and further afield, so an Auckland base is a bonus rather than a requirement. If the full distance is the goal, there’s more on Ironman coaching across New Zealand.
Common questions
Do you coach in person in Auckland?
No. Coaching runs entirely online through TrainingPeaks, so I watch every session instead of just the ones I could attend in person. Being Auckland based means I know the local races, the training roads and the pools, and catch-ups over coffee happen when useful.
How much does a triathlon coach cost in New Zealand?
Most quality 1-on-1 coaching in NZ sits between $200 and $500 a month. My current pricing and what’s included is on the coaching options page.
Can I train for a 70.3 while working full time?
Yes, and most of my athletes do exactly that. A well-built 70.3 plan on 8 to 10 hours a week beats a poorly structured 14-hour one. The plan has to respect your recovery and your calendar, which is the whole point of individual coaching.
How is this different from a downloaded training plan?
Coaching is rebuilt every week from your own training data, so a cold last week or a good FTP test changes what’s next. A plan, mine included, stays as written. If a fixed plan suits your year, my training plans start at NZ$69.
When should I start with a coach before my A race?
For Ironman NZ or 70.3 Taupo, 6 months out is ideal and 4 months is workable. Later than that and we’re managing what’s already there rather than building. If your race is further out, earlier is always more useful.
How do I choose the best triathlon coach in Auckland?
It depends on what you’re after. Every coach has their own skills, history and style of sessions. If you want group sessions, find a squad that runs plenty of them. If you want an individual programme that changes week to week, find someone who writes that kind of programme.
My advice is to make a short list of coaches who look right and have a chat with each of them. You’ll usually know from how they answer your questions whether they’re the one for you. You could even ask to be put in touch with one of their athletes and ask what the training is really like.
You have to put a lot of trust in a coach, so do that pre-work and take your time. The more trust you have going in, the better the programme goes. It’s a hard sport, part science and part art and experience, and you want someone you’ll back on both.
Questions last updated September 2026.
Talk to me
If you’re in Auckland (or anywhere else) and weighing up a coach, get in touch or read about my background first. No hard sell, just a conversation about your race and your week.
