PrairieMan Long Course Triathlon - Triathlon1/2 Ironman

It was pretty choppy the whole course. I actually do most of my swimming in a cove of Lake Grapevine, not in a pool. The cove is pretty calm in the mornings, so I wasn't used the chop. I was really having to life my head pretty high to breath, and thus my legs would drop. Also, I didn't like how close some of the boats were to the buoys. I think they were crowding us into an unecessarily small space! My lower back hurt a little towards the end, probably because it was arched so bad from draggin my legs.

Overall, I was pretty happy though. I didn't feel exhausted after the swim and my time was about what I expected.

Learn to breath bilateraly and don't drag my legs

This was my first time using a CamelBak in a bike leg, so I had to put that on. It was also my first time wearing socks, so those things slowed me down. I don't practice transitions, so I'm not suprised my times were slow

Turn my freaking socks right side out, for heaven's sake!

The wind really got to me. I normally ride country roads with more hills and trees than these flat highways. The hills and trees protect me from a good portion of the wind on a lot of my training rides, so I was definitely not used to battling it for long durations. Southbound Lakeridge was the worst. I was struggling hard to maintain 15 mph over the unprotectd bridges. SB 360 didn't seem to be quite as bad, probably because it was slightly more hilly.

Northbound on both 360 and Lakeridge was a blast with the tailwinds. Sheer pleasure. I remember smiling and thinking to myself that I love biking even after 40 miles! It's a lot of fun to go 24-25 mph without having to work too hard.

Based on my sweat rate measurments, I planned on my 100oz Camelbak lasting about 2 hours on the ride. However, I finished it in about 1:40. For some reason, I drank way too fast and much. I need to drink on ton on hot days b/c I sweat about 64 oz/hr on the bike, but it was about 10 degrees cooler than normal, and I probably didn't sweat as much. The over-hydrating didn't really affect me on the bike, but it sucked on the run. This was my first time to take bottles at the hand-ups. That wasn't as hard as I thought it could be.

I was really happy to see my wife a few times on the bike. I can't believe she ended up staying the whole race, as she had planned to leave in the middle and just be there for the start and finish. She's the best. Plus she took some awesome pictures.

Practice in the wind, and drink less.

My legs felt really wobbly after dismounting. This was my first time to ever ride 3 hours with out stopping or getting off the bike once. I changed socks b/c my biking ones were soaked and grabbed a few GUs. I then I just stood around my transition area, looking for something else to do or put on, just to stall. I wasn't in any really hurry to start running for 2 hrs. I eventually got moving.

I knew I had a full stomach right away, but it didn't really cause problems till later. In fact, I had to consciously tell myself to slow down when I started to run below 9 min miles. I've really come to rely on my Polar S625X to pace myself on the run. I felt pretty good for the first 4-5 miles and averaged around 9:15. I got a really sharp side cramp after climbing the short hill at the end of the dam. I ran through the pain for a few minutes, but then walked a bit at the next water stop. It didn't go away fully until I ran at 10:15 pace for a few minutes. But by this time, my stomach was really angry at me for 1) jostling it around for 7-8 miles with full stomach and 2) not giving it any solid food. I carried 3 GU packets but threw them in a trash can around mile 6 b/c I was tired of carrying them, and I could bring myself to eat a single one due to my upset stomach.

I slowed to about 9:45 or 10 pace for the last 4 miles as I was starving. My stomach was eating itself. It felt like I hadn't eaten in hours. Overall, I pushed through the pain throughout the course, reminding myself that this is nothing compared to the pain of losing a love one. Yes, the 9/11 and Katrina victims and survivors were on my mind this race. Never more so than running behind Old Glory flying strong and high in the wind over the dam. Thank you so much for carrying the US flag with pride the whole run, Aaron. I was inspired and touched to run behind it for a long while until I finally passed you. God bless you and America.

Drink less on the bike, and take in more solid food or at least GU on the run. Overall, I just need to re-work my overall nutrition plan and be able to adapt it to changing weather conditions

I was SPENT, and incoherent right after finishing. All I wanted was CHEESE. For some reason, I craved it. Must be it's fat content. Thank God for the pizza, it was cold and rubbery, but it never tasted so good. I was double fisting it with a slice in each hand. (See my pictures) Only after about 4 slices, and a bottle of Gatorade, was I able to hold a conversation with my proud wife. She was very happy for me, and I was so glad she was there. I couldn't have done this without her support over 4 long months. Did I mention that she's the best!?

Pryed my aching body of the chair to cheer Aaron to the finish. I was great to talk with you after the race. My wife was very patient, not wanting leave right away even after being there, on her feet, for 7+ hrs. So, I was happy just to soak up the wonderful atomsphere that is the finish line.


You can see more picture on my web site at:

http://gillens.net/PhotoAlbums/PrairieMan/