Legend Free State 70 - Triathlon1/2 Ironman


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Lawrence, Kansas
United States
Legend Endurance
83F / 28C
Sunny
Total Time = 5h 20m 12s
Overall Rank = 30/405
Age Group = 35-39M
Age Group Rank = 3/51
Pre-race routine:

This was my fifth time racing this course, but my first not camping on site the night before. As such I was up at ass crack o'clock (3:45) to get ready and out the door. Normally, I give myself at least 30 minutes to chill and eat some breakfast, but today I tried to maximize sleep so instead I made some breakfast to go and ate it in the car on the way to Lawrence.

I arrived at the park around 5 and waited about 10 minuntes to get parked. I biked down to transition with the guy who parked next to me. He was a fairly new triathlete so he peppered me questions and I tried to give the best advice I could on the course and what he could expect.

I hadn't seen transition yet (no separate T1 and T2, btw) so I was pretty awed by the sight of the water up into the parking lot. I got lucky again with my transition spot as it was relatively close to the bike out and not further down the long rows of bikes. It was a pretty relaxed transition set-up, and then it was time to make my way down to the start and get the butterflies going. Nerves are good; at least that's what I tell myself.
Event warmup:

None. I didn't make time for it either. I did manage to sit down in the parking lot/lake and let in some water into my wetsuit. Not too cold at all, just about perfect.
Swim
  • 30m 38s
  • 2112 yards
  • 01m 27s / 100 yards
Comments:

Unlike prior years, and probably due to the lake level, we started corralled on the boat ramp between two short docks. I was up front treading/standing on my tip toes while guys at the back were standing only knee deep. While we waited I chatted with Jeff Francis about swimming and competing in high school. We were about the same speed back then, but he gets more training in than me nowadays so I hoped to just hang with him for a bit before I lost sight of him.

Unlike the 100/Oly/Sprint folks, who swam straight ahead, we started with an immediate, hard right turn after the dock for short swim out to a buoy. This was to add the 0.2 to the 1 mile swim course. This part and the swim away from shore was pretty tough. The wind was blowing towards the shore and the water was very choppy. Nothing horrible for me as I just kept my head down, let the water roll over me, and made sure I kept breathing to the right. A good friend of mine in the sprint race got pulled (along with a group of 10 other girls) after wave pushed them all well below the water so I know not everyone had an easy time of it.

After that first buoy I pretty much lost the few other guys at the front with me. I think we pretty much took our own path back towards the main swim course, plus I was swimming wide right, so with waves coming at my left and only breathing on the right I had no chance of seeing them. There was plenty of time between our wave and the female 100 wave so I had clear water in front of me, free of triathlete bodies. Near the half way point I told/yelled (politely) at one boat that had drifted in front of the last red turn buoy that they were blocking people's sighting ability. They may have heard me, they may have flipped me off, I'm not sure. I had enough of a general idea where I was going anyway.

Coming back home was obviously much faster and more comfortable going with the waves. I still had very few people swimming with me until I came across more of the 100 swimmers at the end. In a triathlon first I had to swim around a half exposed light pole before exiting the swim.
What would you do differently?:

I was a little liberal in following the buoy lines, swimming well right of them coming back to shore. I may have added on some extra yardage to my swim as a result.
Transition 1
  • 01m 36s
Comments:

Great transition. I was one of the first half dozen people out of the water, so it was an empty transition; which helps when running down the long, narrow transition aisles with a bike.

1/51
13/405
Bike
  • 2h 50m 9s
  • 56 miles
  • 19.75 mile/hr
Comments:

Getting out of the park I'm just trying to get my act together and get up to speed. I'm disoriented, I'm trying not to hit pedestrians, it dawns on me that I never checked my swim time, I have an annoying ticking noise coming from my bike, and my Garmin won't pick up my speed/cadence. What was it I supposed to be doing again?

First I'm really not pleased to hear this noise from my bike, but it doesn't appear to be affecting anything and I'm 75% sure it's coming from my disc wheel cover. As long as nothing snaps, breaks, or flies off my ride I'm good. Next, my Garmin is pissing me off. You were working just fine the other day, but race day was just too much for it to handle. So I fudge with that for the next 4+ miles, devoting half my brain to making sure I bike in a straight line and the other half to turning off the fubar'd sensor that is preventing the numerous satellites in space to track me. Once I've completed this technical mastery I find myself about ready to fly down dam hill.

At this point we're going into the wind and my average speed is healthily above 20 mph. But as we continue to ride west and south into the SW wind I slowly see my average go down, down, down. On the plus side I'm only getting passed by the known fasties and I'm keeping myself from looking like I'm moving backwards. Once I hit the first turn around at Shawnee Heights Rd, with the wind at my back, I feel like I'm floating. Uphills are effortless as I'm pushed up them at 22 mph and holding 28 mph on the flats. I tempted to yell out to the fellow riders coming the other way, battling the wind, that it gets better. There is hope. But the phrase "it sucks to be you" also came to mind.

With the wind at my back I became acutely aware that the sweat on my skin was beginning to sizzle. The upcoming run was going to be fun. But first the real fun part: south on 550 rd. I hate this stretch of road, it's mostly uphill and usually always into the wind. A small blessing occurred when the turnaround was moved further down a hill from its usual spot ending my pain a tad bit sooner. Heading back down 550 I was a bit dismayed to find out we weren't riding down through Lone Star. That was probably my favorite piece of the old course, but I understand why it was removed.

It was easy sailing until the bottom of the dam hill. I managed to time my approach perfectly so that I found myself directly behind a nervous student driver, a slower BOP rider, and a few signs in the middle of the road preventing me from passing the car or the rider. Momentum killed. After I got up the hill, and across the dam it was just about time to start riding into the park and begin cursing at my bike, the wind, and my legs. All three tried their hardest to keep me from ever detaching my taint from the saddle and starting my run.
Transition 2
  • 01m 40s
Comments:

It would have been a pretty sweet transition, but I ran down the wrong row, I was one off, so I had to hunt for the next aisle opening and then back track. Mikec123 came into T2 right on my heels but left in front of me because of my goof.

5/51
33/405
Run
  • 1h 56m 14s
  • 13.1 miles
  • 08m 52s  min/mile
Comments:

I was about 25 feet behind Mike coming out of T2. Since "asphalt beach" was flooded over we started with a small run going down a paved path - whose existence I have failed to notice despite the number of times my presence has graced this fair course. I stayed behind Mike up the hill and into the campground through mile 2. At this point I knew I wasn't going to be able to hold the 7+ min/mi splits, it was just too hot for me to do so. I also had to pee, and since I knew no course PR was happening I ducked into port-a-potty to take care of business.

For the next 11 miles all I recall is doing a lot of walking. In fact, if I didn't have a Garmin tracking my mile splits I would have sworn up and down that I walked 80% and ran 20%. Apparently I did find time to do some running while I was out there, it just felt like I did a lot of the opposite. I walked every aid station, mostly grabbing ice and water. At mile . . . whatever, I got an ice cold wash towel that I draped over my head and secured with my visor, which was a nice help. The 3-4 people through the campsite with hoses spraying people were great. So was the enthusiastic guy blaring music to keep us going. The Team Banana Hammocks tent was a bit annoying, a bunch of random dudes running around in banana costumes. Who does that? :)

There were some studs in the 70 race that looked great, but most seemed to be in the same boat as me. The guys ahead of me never put any more distance on me, and the dudes behind me never gained much either.
Post race
Warm down:

I met up with my wife who was a champion spectator. Talked with Jeff, who took 6th. Then I relaxed and hung out with the guys at the Hammocks tent for bit.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

The same thing I say every year in this box. More training. More heat acclimating.
The reasons are the same on why it doesn't happen and so I stick with one 70.3 a year.

Event comments:

The volunteers were amazing, both on the bike and run course. The race had its challenges with the weather, the lake, and parking, but it pulled off 4 different distances of races on the same morning pretty well. I'm pretty impressed all things considered.


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Last updated: 2014-12-30 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:30:38 | 2112 yards | 01m 27s / 100yards
Age Group: 4/51
Overall: 30/405
Performance: Good
Suit: Xterra Full-sleeved
Course: Counter-clockwise rectangle that began with a small swim parallel to shore before swimming back onto the main course.
Start type: Wade Plus: Waves
Water temp: 65F / 18C Current: Medium
200M Perf. Good Remainder: Good
Breathing: Good Drafting: Average
Waves: Navigation: Average
Rounding: Average
T1
Time: 01:36
Performance: Good
Cap removal: Good Helmet on/
Suit off:
No
Wetsuit stuck? No Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: No
Getting up to speed: Good
Biking
02:50:09 | 56 miles | 19.75 mile/hr
Age Group: 8/51
Overall: 47/405
Performance: Good
Wind: Some with gusts
Course: Old IMKS 70.3 course without the bke through Lonestar.
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence:
Turns: Good Cornering: Good
Gear changes: Good Hills: Average
Race pace: Hard Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 01:40
Overall: Average
Riding w/ feet on shoes Good
Jumping off bike Good
Running with bike Good
Racking bike Good
Shoe and helmet removal Good
Running
01:56:14 | 13.1 miles | 08m 52s  min/mile
Age Group: 9/51
Overall: 45/405
Performance: Average
Course: Two loops. Path by the lake, up the hill, through campground #3.
Keeping cool Average Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Good
Mental exertion [1-5] 4
Physical exertion [1-5] 4
Good race? Yes
Evaluation
Course challenge Just right
Organized? Yes
Events on-time? Yes
Lots of volunteers? Yes
Plenty of drinks? Yes
Post race activities: Average
Race evaluation [1-5] 4