The New Zealand women's kayak team is preparing to trade winter weather for warmer shores as they head across the ditch to continue their preparations for the world championships in Portugal.
For the first time the K4 is travelling with a reserve paddler - a luxury that comes from an ever strengthening programme.
Elite kayaker Kayla Imrie says everything is naturally starting to click.
"I think having a women's programme that's starting to get depth and be able to get the results across multiple events overseas is kind of encouraging those kids that anybody can do it."
Rebecca Cole used to be one of those kids.
But now the under-23 paddler from Taranaki has been named in the elite team for this year's world championships.
"I thought, 'maybe' based off what I'd been doing but I definitely wasn't sure and to get the call up was really exciting," she said.
She'll compete in the non-Olympic K1 1000 metres but also be a reserve for the K4 - the boat she won World Cup gold in last month.
Cole’s unbridled excitement is reminding some of the K4 regulars just how far they've come since their breakthrough World Cup gold in 2015.
This season alone, their team boats have claimed six World Cup titles – an achievement elite kayaker Caitlin Ryan admitted she had to process for a moment.
"I thought, 'when did our 10th medal become less than our first?' and I think [Cole winning her first last month] brought that freshness to it."
Cole is part of a group of development paddlers who are now challenging the incumbents for elite spots but when you're trying to create a legacy, that's hardly a problem.
"We need to have everybody pushing each other and keeping each other on their toes and honest at training," Imrie said.
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