Ironman 70.3 California - Triathlon1/2 Ironman


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Oceanside, California
United States
Ironman North America
Overcast
Total Time = 8h 41m 28s
Overall Rank = /
Age Group = W40-44
Age Group Rank = 0/
Pre-race routine:

Packed the car the night before. Up at 3:30, cereal for breakfast, dressed, and out the door just after 4:00. Arrived in Oceanside about 5:00, got a great spot on N. Pacific, just a couple blocks from harbor. Rode to transition and got a spot on the TriClub racks near the bike out. Quick potty stop then back to inspect my gear. Ran my gloved hand over each tire and found I had a metal shard in the rear tire. Over to the bike tent where they pulled it out and changed by tube just in case even though it didn't appear to go through. I packed the old tube as my spare. Racked the bike and headed back to the potty line which now was enormous.
Event warmup:

Run around the roundabout at the potties, jump up and down in line.
Swim
  • 1h 13m 14s
  • 2112 yards
  • 03m 28s / 100 yards
Comments:

Potty line was longer than I expected and I was rushed to get my wetsuit and get through the shoot. I was still donning my cap and goggles when my wave went into the water so I wasn't even at the start yet when the gun went off. The rushed start and lack of open water (read cold water) swims left me with an overwhelming desire to not swim. Only made it about 100 yards at a time before stopping. Very disappointing since last year's swim was my best open water swim ever. This was atrocious and there was no reason for it. The conditions were the same as last year, and my pools swims had been going well.
What would you do differently?:

More cold water swims. I hate them so much I avoid them like the plague.
Transition 1
  • 09m 58s
Comments:

Transition went well. Wore booties for the swim and this time had my chip on under them rather than on top. Yay! Gear laid out well. Took my time making sure everything was in order.
What would you do differently?:

Don't forget sunscreen on neck.
Bike
  • 4h 05m 43s
  • 56 miles
  • 13.67 mile/hr
Comments:

Bike went fairly well. I was terribly undertrained for this event having dealt with back issues since the fall. I was just happy that my back made it, but I would have liked to come in under four hours. First 28 miles flew by at a great pace. Just as I was starting to feel the fatigue I reminded myself the hill was coming soon. Just then I looked up, and there it was. Last year I was concerned about the hills, trained for them, and found they weren't as bad as I anticipated. This year I went into it thinking the hills wouldn't be too bad, but with my lack of training that first one killed me. I considered walking but made it up against the wind at 3mph. The next few miles I started thinking maybe the walkers had the right idea, saving their legs. Between the fatigue and the wind my pace dropped in half. The next fifteen miles seemed to last forever. I picked up a bit of momentum the last ten and was happy to have shaved a few minutes off last year's time, and make it through with my back still functioning.
What would you do differently?:

Train more than two months for a HIM.
The Infinit Ironman formula is continuing to work well for me with a serving for each hour in 15 minute increments.
Took water at every aid station, had plenty.
Transition 2
  • 05m 42s
Comments:

Transition went smoothly. More sunscreen, potty stop.
What would you do differently?:

Don't forget sunscreen on neck - again.
Run
  • 3h 06m 51s
  • 13.1 miles
  • 14m 16s  min/mile
Comments:

I couldn't catch my breath on the run. I've never had this happen before. My back issues limit my running speed so cardio isn't usually a problem. I can only assume this was due to the lack of training. (The closest I came to a brick workout since June was a 55 mile bike followed by a half mile run two weeks before the event. My chest was still burning when I went to bed Saturday.) This caused me to walk a lot which I haven't had to do before. On the one hand I was happy not to have the crazy hip pain that I ran through last year, but this was almost more frustrating because I couldn't run through it. I was happy my back and hips held up, but disappointed in going over three hours. Was nice on mile 10 to see my cousin with her three year old daughter and the sign they had made for me. So cute.
What would you do differently?:

Train more than two months and do more brick workouts.
Post race
Warm down:

I was in a hurry to get to another engagement and running forty five minutes behind due to that awful swim and slow run, so after receiving my medal and hat and handing in my chip I grabbed a piece of pizza as I zipped through the food tent, chatted with my mom a couple minutes, grabbed my gear and hit the road.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Back issues that limited training. Weather conditions were great except maybe the wind on the bike, which thankfully wasn't as bad as last year.

Event comments:

I love that this race is so close to home. I hope to be healthier going into next year so I can train properly. Volunteers are great, race is well organized. Course is challenging, but not crazy.


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Last updated: 2010-11-29 12:00 AM
Swimming
01:13:14 | 2112 yards | 03m 28s / 100yards
Age Group: 0/
Overall: 0/
Performance: Bad
Suit: Two piece De Soto
Course: Relatively calm harbor swim with some swells at the harbor entrance.
Start type: Deep Water Plus:
Water temp: 58F / 14C Current: Low
200M Perf. Bad Remainder: Bad
Breathing: Bad Drafting: Bad
Waves: Navigation: Good
Rounding: Average
T1
Time: 09:58
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:
Biking
04:05:43 | 56 miles | 13.67 mile/hr
Age Group: 0/
Overall: 0/
Performance: Good
Wind: Some
Course: Single loop through Camp Pendleton up coast and inland through rolling landscape with a few steep hills.
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence: 70s
Turns: Average Cornering: Average
Gear changes: Good Hills: Below average
Race pace: Hard Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 05:42
Overall: Average
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike
Running with bike Average
Racking bike Average
Shoe and helmet removal Good
Running
03:06:51 | 13.1 miles | 14m 16s  min/mile
Age Group: 0/
Overall: 0/
Performance: Below average
Course: Double loop along Oceanside boardwalk.
Keeping cool Good 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] 5