Ironman champion Shannon Eckstein says he will attack his first Coolangatta Gold in a decade the same way his mate Dean Mercer would have the surf marathon.
On October 8, the 34-year-old will line up for the first time since 2007, hopeful of a strong finish after radical surgery in April to remove muscle from both his calves.
Eckstein says he will be pushing it to be fully recovered in time for the gruelling 42km multi-discipline event, combining swimming, paddling and running.
But he said Mercer's recent death had convinced him it was worth a shot.
"A couple of weeks ago I was thinking I was 50-50, but after what's happened, you think you've got nothing to lose," Eckstein said.
"I'll do it just like Dean did; go out hard and see if you can hold on."
The 47-year-old Mercer, a father of four, was farewelled last Friday after suffering a heart attack while driving home from the grocery store.
A nine-time Kellogg's series winner, eight-time Australia ironman champion and six-time world champion, Eckstein is regarded by most as the greatest surf lifesaver of all time.
But, just like Mercer, he has never won the Coolangatta event despite dominating the ironman arena.
"I relate a lot to it too," Eckstein said, referring to Mercer's unexpected death.
"As an older athlete, still pushing hard, and with two kids as well ... you definitely think about it and get comments from a lot of people that you should get your heart checked.
"So you've got to listen to your doctor."
Eckstein will push those thoughts aside on race day though, confident he has the stamina and fitness after falling short in previous attempts - third in 2005 and second in 2007. Mercer also never won the event he craved, with a third in 2006 and a second placing in 2009.
For Eckstein, his performances were affected by a medical condition known as 'popliteal artery entrapment syndrome', that limits blood supply below the knees and often leads to cramping and calf pain.
Knowing it only impacted him over longer distance races, Eckstein opted to put off surgery until this year and get the most out of his ironman career.
Now sporting two sizeable scars behind his knees, Eckstein is confident he will have the ability to handle the final 7.1 km beach run to the finish line on October 8.
"The three times I did it I led halfway through the run, but start tripping over my feet," he said.
"Once diagnosed it made sense.
"I didn't want to risk the operation and not be able to do the Kellogg's Series and ironmans. So I focused on that for 10 years and have done everything I want to there and now I can focus on this."
Defending champion Ali Day will start as favourite, having won all four times he has raced, while Shannon's brother and five-time winner Caine will not compete.
"He's four from four and he doesn't have a weak leg, Ali's pretty hard to beat over this format from what I've seen," Eckstein said.
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