Laurence O'Toole - round 3 preview

O'Toole looking to capitalise on American success

Round 3 see's the 2016 STIHL TIMBERSPORTS Championship pass the half way mark and our reporters caught up with Laurence O'Toole to see how his preparations were going ahead of the round at Ipswich Supercars on 22-24th of July.

You're currently sitting fourth on the championship ladder, what have you got to do to get into first?
LAURENCE: I really need to string together some rounds and get some momentum going.

Did you expect you'd be higher after two rounds?
LAURENCE: Yes and no. I don't deserve to be higher. I've underperformed both rounds. I haven't done enough.

You've been competing over in the USA for the past two months, how have you been going?
LAURENCE: Pretty good. Won a fair bit. I've competed at seven different shows, a few in Canada and the States. I won a US title event, the US Championship in the Underhand and won the South Eastern Spring Board Championship.

Where do you feel you can most improve in STIHL TIMBERSPORTS?
LAURENCE: Physically. I've been lacking energy. In Spain I had a crack at marathon wood chopping and maybe haven't recovered. It left me flat and unexplosive, which is the opposite of what I need for STIHL TIMBERSPORTS. I need to work on some explosive stuff.

What are your thoughts on how you have been competing in the competition so far?
LAURENCE: Don't think I've been on my game. It's hard to be good all the time.

How have you been training for Round 3? Have you changed your technique, added anything new to your regime, focused on a particular discipline?
LAURENCE: No. I have been using the competitions as my training. Less is more for this round. I have also been concentrating on the Single Buck quite a bit to try and get better.

How many hours a week are you training?
LAURENCE: Train every day across all disciplines.

What is your biggest concern going in to Round 3?
LAURENCE: No concerns, I'm excited – ready to go.

Who do you see as your greatest threat?
LAURENCE: Any of the three above me. We've had a different winner each round.

What does it mean to you to win the title of Australian Champion?
LAURENCE: A great honour. But I'll focus on wining Round 3 first!

What does it mean to you to make it on the Australian Team and compete in the World Championship?
LAURENCE: It's always a great honour to represent the country and be part of the team with something to look forward to at the end of the season.

Has anything extraordinary happened in your life outside TIMBERSPORTS – got married, had a child.
LAURENCE: No, nothing recently to speak of.