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MightyMan Montauk - Triathlon1/2 Ironman


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Montauk, New York
United States
Event Power
65F / 18C
Sunny
Total Time = 6h 24m 1s
Overall Rank = 283/385
Age Group = 30-34
Age Group Rank = 59/68
Pre-race routine:

Wow - little did I know this was going to be a race day I'll never forget.. Got up around 5:30 in the hotel within walking distance of transition. Had some recoverite which has been working good on race mornings. Filled all the bottles with water and grabbed the bike and off we went in the dark. About a 8 min walk with my wife. My mother and friend stayed at the hotel and planned to be there to see me exit the swim.
Event warmup:

Nothing other than walk over to transition and the swim start.
Swim
  • 42m 4s
  • 1931 meters
  • 02m 11s / 100 meters
Comments:

Other than really no time to get down to the swim after the race briefing, it was a good swim. It was narrow path to the "beach" which is barely 50ft wide.. so all the waves were in the water. Unforutnaly b/c of the location, no spectators could watch down at the water and bascially could only see us exiting up the path to T1. The water was great, and fresh is always nice too. I got into a pretty good pace - I coould have pushed a little harder, but the point of this race today was to finish since it was my first HIM so I took it a little easy. B/c there were plenty of swimmers ahead, it was realatively easy to sight, and I think I improved quite a bit in my line compared to other swims this season. I checked my watch exiting the water and was right at 40 min so I was happy.
What would you do differently?:

Next HIM I'll push a little harder in the water to get a better time.
Transition 1
  • 03m 29s
Comments:

I was really surprised to see it was only 3:29 in T1. The entire day I planned to take kind of conservatively, so I was pleased with that time considering.. Now comes the the fun part of the day..
What would you do differently?:

Pick things up a bit next HIM.
Bike
  • 3h 24m 7s
  • 56 miles
  • 16.46 mile/hr
Comments:

Whoa.. here we go. Well, I started out pretty well. There is a climb right at the start and I felt pretty strong. Of course the big guys on their scream machines started to fly by pretty quickly. Man I love the sound of those things. I was all smiles and thanking the police and race staff and probably avg around 18mph which I was quite happy with.. Anyway, things were going well up until about mile 22 (I think). On a nice open stretch of flat, wide residential road some rider calls out a loud "on your left" which is great.. but I took a quick look back and to my amazement she was right on my back wheel - so to, uh avoid an accident I swerved pretty hard right and lost it. Several expletives and a few seconds later I was on my way down, hard on my right side.. THUMP, WHACK.. I couldn't believe I was crashing. BAM, my head was the last thing to hit and I saw a nice white flash and stars - I thought wow, a helmet really WORKS! I'm down. Then the adrenaline kicked in and I popped right back up and a couple of riders asked if I was okay on their way by. Of course I said "yeah I'm fine". In reality I had no idea. I was pretty concerned about the bike though b/c I HAD to finish this thing - even with 35 miles and a half marathon to go. One rider was awesome and stopped (Runners Edge gear on - thanks!), she said she told an official to radio transition that there was a crash, and that rider was riding like an idiot and was screwing with everyone back there. I don't know who she thought she was - we were in the bottom 3rd of the pack! I later learned that my wife and mother heard the call back at transition and of course thought it was me. :) I told her I think I'm okay, and going to get going again if I can. She said, okay just take it slow.. Then a spectator came over, and helped me gather up some parts that broke off the bike and my helmet and asked if I'm okay also which was nice. I shook my head to clear it (hoping I didn't have a concussion) and then I swung my battered and bloody arm around and said "guess it's not broken!". I put the chain back on, checked the wheels, and said thanks and hopped back on. He was with a bunch of kids on the side and when I started up I heard some of them say "look, he's going again!" so that got me pumped. After that, the worst part was not being able to get down in aero b/c my arm was killing me. I finished lap 1 and passed the fam, hoping they couldn't see the "damage".. They didn't, and I decided to keep rolling.
What would you do differently?:

Hmm, not CRASH maybe? I figure I lost around 10-15 min with the crashing and the slow going for a few miles after. Too bad, I was doing surprisingly well but either way I'm happy I was able to finish.
Transition 2
  • 03m 3s
Comments:

I took my sweet-a$$ time coming into this T. I can't belive it was only 3 minutes. I was moving in slow motion in there. I walked my bike to the rack, and checked myself over. Seemed okay considering, so off to the run and "murder hill" it was..
What would you do differently?:

Pick up the pace after a better ride hopefully.
Run
  • 2h 11m 20s
  • 13.1 miles
  • 10m 02s  min/mile
Comments:

Okay, I made it off the bike in mostly one piece, so now just had to get through this run and I can put my first HIM behind me! I started out amazingly strong. I thing I did pretty well with nutrition (perpetuem) and hydration on the bike, so I was feeling pretty good (minus the knee, hip, arm, and back that I banged up on the bike). I hit the "hill" and was really taken back by the view of the crystal clear water at the top of it. It pretty much made it worth it. I thought about my family, and baby boy on the way (Nov 10th) and teared up I think. I knew at that point I was going to finish this thing. I finished the first loop in about 60 min so I was at 5:15 with 6.5 miles to go. I was hoping to keep up the same pace for lap 2, but the hills and the day caught up with me a bit and slowed down bit - I finished lap 2 in about 70 min so still pretty good. Amazing finish in 6:24. I was pumped.
What would you do differently?:

More training with some big bricks to be able to keep up or better yet negative split the second half of the run.
Post race
Warm down:

Cold water, 1/2 banana, and a bunch or oranges. I stretched out a bit and packed up transition. I was dreading tell the fam about the crash, but knew it would be okay now that I was done..

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Uh, let's see.. maybe falling on my a$$ on the bike? :)

Event comments:

Wow, what can I say? I did it. Finished a HIM in my "second season" - although my first season, I only did 1 sprint.. so I was happy. I was down about the crash, but in the end I was just happy to be able to get back on and keep moving it made it all worth it. The next day, I felt like I fell out of a tree. I'm pretty banged up - nothing a little time and advil can't fix. What a day - I guess this is what Ironman is all about. 3rd marathon in Jan coming up... and can't wait for next season! What a season.. I love this sport.




Last updated: 2007-06-28 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:42:04 | 1931 meters | 02m 11s / 100meters
Age Group: 0/68
Overall: 283/385
Performance: Good
Suit: TNT Orca Sleeveless
Course: Counter clockwise "upside down triangle" Fresh water, calm and warm.
Start type: Wade Plus: Waves
Water temp: 65F / 18C Current: Low
200M Perf. Good Remainder: Average
Breathing: Average Drafting: Average
Waves: Navigation: Good
Rounding: Good
T1
Time: 03:29
Performance: Average
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
03:24:07 | 56 miles | 16.46 mile/hr
Age Group: 0/68
Overall: 355/385
Performance: Below average
Wind: Some with gusts
Course: 2 loop with a bunch of little out and backs which was annoying. All those roads and we're going in and out of side streets. Some pretty good hills - "rolling" mostly and some wind.
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence: 80
Turns: Average Cornering: Average
Gear changes: Average Hills: Average
Race pace: Comfortable Drinks:
T2
Time: 03:03
Overall: Average
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike Average
Running with bike Below average
Racking bike
Shoe and helmet removal Good
Running
02:11:20 | 13.1 miles | 10m 02s  min/mile
Age Group: 0/68
Overall: 258/385
Performance: Average
Course: 2 loops - half way through you hit "murder hill" and "the pits" which is a ton of hills.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Average
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

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2007-10-02 9:11 AM

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Subject: MightyMan Montauk


2007-10-02 9:30 AM
in reply to: #987189

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Veteran
162
1002525
Virginia
Subject: RE: MightyMan Montauk
Wow, congrats on your first HIM!  Way to gut it out after the wreck!  You da man!
2007-10-02 6:44 PM
in reply to: #987189

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Veteran
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Allen, TX
Subject: RE: MightyMan Montauk

Great job Rob!! Congrats on your first HIM; that is quite an accomplishment,  especially since it involved a crash. So glad to hear your weren't seriously hurt.

2007-10-02 8:30 PM
in reply to: #987189

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Expert
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Pittsburgh
Subject: RE: MightyMan Montauk

Congratulations Rob on that finish - especially after that tumble you took.  That was great determination and willpower to keep going!  I also love your positive attitude you had afterwards.

Congrats also on the great season you had!

2007-10-05 8:29 AM
in reply to: #987189

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Master
2235
200010010025
Pacific Northwest
Subject: RE: MightyMan Montauk

Wow, Rob, great story and congrats on doing the HIM!  I am glad you didn't get seriously hurt, as I think we all fear that on some level!!

Also, congrats on the upcoming new son!  That is wonderful, too!!!!

2007-10-05 9:05 AM
in reply to: #987189

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Veteran
228
10010025
Brooklyn, NY
Subject: RE: MightyMan Montauk

Excellent race report. You've got a great attitude. Unfortunate about your interaction with what I like to call the Bottom 10% of our sport. I believe in karma, nuff said.

I did Mightyman last year. It was my first HIM. You beat me by about 10 minutes and I didn't crash (I'm just slow). It's a difficult but beautiful course.

 Congrats on having a baby on the way. November 10th is the Marine Corps Birthday.



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