Ford Ironman 70.3 Honu - Triathlon1/2 Ironman

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Honu 70.3 Race Report
June 3, 2006
Big Island


PRE-RACE

My custom is to log in my "best case" times for my races, so on May 26th, 2006, here are my pre-race predictions:

Swim: 36'
T1 3'
Bike: 2h 45'
T2 2'
Run 1h 52’
Total 5h 18’

We will see if my predictive powers continue to amaze me!!!

The above is what I posted to my “race log” at BT. The difficulty with this race is the heat/humidity. If you look at the times that people have done in the 2005 race, this is a good time.

The guy who took 3rd in the 45-49 AG last year, ran a 1:59 ½ marathon, but he KILLED the bike. My 5:18 would put me 4th last year in the 45-49 AG. Not good enough for Hawaii slot. I am not going to worry about that, because I really do not expect that to happen at this race, although I have my checkbook ready!

RACE DAY

Honu is my first triathlon of the season, and my first one since Ironman Florida which was seven months ago. I did all the usual stuff that I always do on race morning, so nothing out of the ordinary. With me on this trip was my wife Kim, my sons Tony and Erik, and their friend Kevin. All of them signed up as race course volunteers and they did everything from body marking, to bike catching.

The wind was blowing early, and the conditions were typical warm Hawaii weather. We got to Hapuna Beach early and it was pretty stress free. Hapuna is many times cited as being the most pristine and beautiful beaches in the world, and I am not going to argue that point one bit.






LET’S GET IT STARTED

Swim: Best Case, 36 minutes. Actual, 42:24
I was 540th out of the water.

The mass start went off at exactly 7:00AM, and it was a very congested scene; duh! I started off pretty hard to shake off some competitors, but I was caught in the middle and had a lot of trouble getting into a decent rhythm. After the 2nd buoy, you turn and this is the longest stretch of swimming parallel to the beach.

I felt strong and pretty relaxed as there now was a bit of distance between the athletes. I followed the feet of several guys/gals and was more or less letting them lead. MISTAKE…..MISTAKE….MISTAKE….

It was very sunny and I couldn’t locate the buoys. When I finally did see the buoys, I was SHOCKED that they were so FAR AWAY. There was a strong current that was pushing us out to sea, and I was not sighting and following the buoys properly. I believe I swam about 800 extra yards and when I exited the swim I was pretty disappointed to see my time.

THE BIKE

Best case, 2:45. Actual, 2:48:29 (20 MPH Average)
I was 236th off the bike and I passed 304 athletes.

Being able to bike the Queen “K” and climb the hill out to Hawi was a thrill, but also a test of strength and determination. The day was heating up and the winds were going to be a factor.

I did a lot of passing throughout the bike, and I hammered hard basically for the entire ride. I have never put forth such a hard effort for so long on the bike. My lactate threshold is 166 BPM, and I averaged 157 BPM. I kept wondering if I would have anything left for the run.
Climbing the hills was difficult with the wind pounding in your face, but there were some glorious and fast downhill’s. On one of those downhills, I hit 49 MPH. What a rush!

Not only did we have some headwinds, but there were spots on the course where you would get pushed very hard by crosswinds. Some people had a lot of trouble with the wind. It freaked me out a few times, but I managed through it. When I came into T2, my son Erik grabbed my bike (he was catching bikes), and my wife put suntan lotion on me. My other son Tony was nursing his foot, which we found out got broken while he was catching bikes in transition.

I had a lightening fast 1:05 T2, and was off.

THE RUN

Best case, 1:52. Actual, 1:47:16 (8:11 mile pace)
I was 184th at the end of the run and I passed 52 athletes.

This is a rolling, turning, asphalt, sand, grass run that is hot and typically slow. Thus my slow predicted time for the ½ marathon (I run standalone ½ marathons at sub-1:30).

My legs felt the typical heaviness, and I was just trusting that they would feel like running legs pretty soon. I had not urinated throughout the day, and I pretty much knew I wasn’t going to as I was sweating it out so profusely. My watch had frozen up after the swim, so I had no watch or heart rate monitor. I would rather just run by “feel” anyway, so I wasn’t too bothered by that.

After about 3 miles, I could tell that my right foot was going to get some blisters. I thought I must not have my shoe on right or something. I later found out my right shoe had 2 INSERTS IN IT!! My foot got a little bloody. I saw my family twice on the run, and that was very motivating. They actually ran along side me for about 40 yards at one point.

I cramped up three times in my hamstrings on the run and had to stop and rub them out and walk them off. This obviously cost me time and I was concerned that they would continue and reduce me to limping, walking, or a DNF.

I did not feel fast on the run, but my family later told me I looked great. At mile 12, I came up on a guy who had 46 on his calf (my age group). I stayed behind him, and then I couldn’t take it anymore and came up alongside him with about ¾ mile left in the race. When he saw I was 49, he took off like a “bat out of hell”. He got about 40 yards on me, and I thought this guy is Superman, or, I will just “reel his ass” in and stay calm and smooth. With about ¼ mile left in the race, I was “shoulder to shoulder” with him, and then I put the “hammer down”. He never had a chance! At the end of the race, he wanted to know if I lived on the Islands as he was vying for a Kona Slot as a Hawaii residence. He looked relieved when I told him I was from California.

THE FINISH

Best case, 5 hours, 18 minutes. Actual 5 hours 22 minutes.
Overall 184th place, and 17th of 76 in my age group.
I worked very hard today and I feel very happy and content with my effort. I feel I could have gotten a better time with a better executed swim segment. It is a beautiful place to do a triathlon, after all this is paradise!



TAKEAWAYS

Michellie Jones spoke at the awards banquet, and congratulated everyone, and said she hoped that we all learned something throughout the day.

1. I only took in fluid only throughout the day, I need to supplement with some solids on the bike. This could have caused my cramping
2. Learn to sight the buoys and swim “my own line” on a race. By following the herd in front of me, the current took us severely off course and caused me to have a sub par swim time
3. Put body glide on my bare feet in T2 to avoid blisters
4. Make sure my running shoes don’t have 2 pair of inserts in one shoe!


NEXT UP


My racing has me doing 2 Olympic distances and another ½ Ironman in the next 2 months as I gear up for Ironman Wisconsin in September. I look to have some great training and some great races this summer.

Thanks for reading and thanks for the continued encouragement.


lar dog