A scintillating second place at Ironman Mallorca on 26 September has James confident his rebuilding strategy is paying dividends.
"Ironman Mallorca was a really positive race for me. Second place is never great, but I have been working on specific areas of my race lately, and all of those went really well. There's still plenty to improve on as we move forward, but after Mallorca I am more positive than ever about the future.
"Now I find myself in Kona playing a supporting role for Jodie [Swallow] at Ironman World Champs. I am also using my time on the island as a 'recce' mission for next year. Although I have raced here a few times I will see a lot more from the sidelines. It will be constructive to have that perspective of the race for a change."
After World Champs James plans to spend time with Jodie on Big Island "decompressing". James will then prepare for the late-season races in Bahrain and may compete at 70.3 races in the US in October and November en route to the Middle East.