Muskoka Ironman 70.3 - Triathlon1/2 Ironman

We were kept in a "holding pen" until our wave time so I didn't really get to see the pros start which was disappointing. We were let onto the beach and while waiting for the start I saw Dave, who I chatted to briefly before we started. Well I didn't make it more than 100m when I took a heel square onto my right goggle. Came up briefly to make sure my eye was still in my head and kept going, thinking that this is going to be a really nice black eye and a good story. I also learned that I do not swim anywhere close to straight. I ended up being way off course and kept having to correct myself. Began to sight more often which helped and actually came very close to the buoys on the turns. On the last leg of the swim, we actually came apon a sand bar and a few people were walking this section which didn't seem to be any faster so I decided to keep swimming. The closer to the exit that we came the murker the water became until I could barely see my elbow in the water anymore and my hand disappeared into the murky abiss. Trying to get out of the water at the exit was also interesting. The lake bottom was full of algae and mud which you just sank into. There were volunteers to help pull you out, which was great, up the stairs and onto the 18th green.

Learn to swim in more of a straight line and sight more often. I probably swam an extra 150 m due to my zig- zagging all over the course. Overall a good swim for my first HIM.

The wetsuit strippers were awesome!!! Straight out of the water and two people were helping me out of the suit. I think "we" had the wetsuit completely off in about 6 seconds! The run up to transition was very long, 400 m and all of it was up hill! I walked about 20 m or so in the middle to catch my breath. Finally made it to my bike and spent some extra time making sure I had all the sand and stones off of my feet before I put on the bike shoes. Helmet on, grab my nutrition and "run" out of transition. Running in bike shoes is not as easy as it seems and definitely slowed me down as my bike was on the far right of the transition zone and the run over to the bike course was pretty long.

nothing really. Learn to mount the bike with the shoes already attached.

Out of transition the hill started straight away. I had already ridden the bike course and knew this, so I just kept an easy effort for the first 20 mins or so. Everyone seemed to be really bunched together for the beginning of the ride due to all of the hills but it strung out as the kms went by. Really stayed on top of my nutrition as I knew the run was going to be my weak point. The bike went off without a hitch, except for my chain falling off as I shifted down to my small ring during a climb. Cost me a little time but there is nothing I could really do about it. I tried to grab a gatorade bottle during one of the aid stations as I had never done this before. Well, needless to say, it was an experience. I ended up swatting the first bottle right out of the volunteers hand without even getting a chance to wrap my hand around it!! :) Yelled "Sorry", and tried again... Success!!!
I was glad I grabbed it. Later in the ride a guy rode up along side me and asked if I had any fluids that I could unload. He had dropped his spare gatorade, and without water he was dying on the bike. He didn't think he would make it as we still had 15 km to go. I asked him if gatorade was ok as I didn't have any water left and I handed over the extra bottle that I had grabbed. I felt great helping out a fellow athlete and he was in my age category as well.

I learned later that he ran a 1:40 half marathon and ended with a 5:29 total time.

Nothing...learn to run better so I can push it more on the bike as I know I am capable of a faster bike time but then my run would have suffered, more than it already did.

Running again in bike shoes was a little slow, and the distance to my spot was far. Emptied my pockets of empty gels and bar wrappers, run shoes on and out I go. Had to use the bathroom but the two near me were occuppied. So I used the first one on the run course which as 50 m outside of transition.

Nothing. T2 went really smoothly... again learn to dismount and leave shoes on the bike to speed things up.

Out of transition and into the bathroom. Out of the bathroom and onto the course. A quick kiss to the Finacee and I was off. She had been up with me since 5:30 and had taken photos all day for me. She was great and I figured a big sweaty kiss was a good reward!! She did not share my sentiment. :D During the first 4 km, my stomach was still full from the nutrition that I took in on the bike. It was really slowing me down as I had to walk a couple of times, at least every km for a minute or so. The first 3 km was long steady hills and was very hot as there was little to no shade on the main highway. Finally hit a rhythm around 5.5 - 6 km and was able to keep it going until the 14 km mark. I decided to walk every aid station to make sure to get water and a gatorade, but run again after I passed the last volunteer. The Fairy Vista trail was hilly and there were steep short hills that people were running and walking up at the same speed. I decided to walk up them and run the flats. The last 4 km were defintely "mind over matter". I was running on fumes by the 2 km to go mark. On the last hill, I just couldn't keep running and started to walk again. This is when a spectator started cheering and told me I was less than a km from the finish and I couldn't walk now! That was all I needed to get my butt running again. I was neck and neck with another guy in my age category all the way to the finish. We actually caught another athlete in our division and the three of us tried to sprint for the finish. I just didn't have it in me to out kick either of them and hung on to get 3rd by only one sec. A little disappointed with the sprint but I had finished in under 6 hours, which was my super optimistic goal for this race.

Learn my nutrition so that I can run better off of the bike and definitely put in some more run training as I had never run more than 15 km at any one point in my life before. The half marathon was hard and I definitely know that it was my limiting factor but it was a great effort/race for my first time.

I recieved my finisher's medal, t-shirt, hat and banner. Got some water, powerade shake and gatorade and went to sit down. I was exhausted!!! I was sore all over and just sat on the grass and chatted. Went and got some food and cleaned up my transition zone. Went back to the motel and stretched and lay on the bed for a very long time.


The run, as well as my nutrition on the bike which slowed my running down due to a full stomach. Overall a great result and I am super pumped that I broke the 6 hour mark as I know this is a very tough HIM espicially for my first one.


Great race!! Everything ran really smoothly, the volunteers were great espically the kids on the run course who offered me more water even though I had a gatorade in one hand and a water in the other. I had to tell them that I didn't have anymore hands for it. One boy was having way too much fun asking athletes if they wanted to be sprayed with a garden hose and if they did, he would soak them.