Ironman USA Lake Placid - TriathlonFull Ironman


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Lake Placid, New York
United States
Ironman North America
80F / 27C
Sunny
Total Time = 11h 30m
Overall Rank = 349/2300
Age Group = 35-39
Age Group Rank = 66/312
Pre-race routine:

My wife and I left the kids with Nana and drove to LP on Thursday. We got to the hotel around 7:30 and had dinner at a Mexican place. On Friday morning we swam one lap around the course and then went to register. After I registered we drove the bike course for the fist time. I was fairly happy with what I saw during the drive. I wanted to spend some time alone with my wife as we are never without our kids so I didn't plan to hook up with any BT'ers Sorry!

Then night before the race I had to take a Tylenol PM to get to sleep. Finally fell asleep around 10:30 and got up at 3:30. Got up to pee twice during that time. At 3:30 I ate 1 banana, two mini bagels with PB, one apple sauce and started sipping water. After I ate, I laid down in bed for 15 minutes but couldn't fall back asleep. I then got up an took a shower just to wake me up a bit. My wife really wanted to get down to LP so we could get a good parking spot.
Event warmup:

Ok, after I went to drop off some stuff in the transition area I lost my wife. I walked around for 45 minutes looking for her.... I was freaking out!
She had my water and I had to give her my dry clothes bag that contained my wallet. With 20 minutes left before the start we finally found each other. I tried to be very nice and not say anything stupid as she helped me out a lot the last few days. Anyway, I swam maybe 100 yards as a warm up.
Swim
  • 1h 06m 22s
  • 4224 yards
  • 01m 34s / 100 yards
Comments:

The swim was crazy for the first mile! The first 300 yards were surprisingly easy. I really didn't have too much of a problem bumping and hitting. From .5 miles to 1.5 miles turned ugly. It was so bad at times, it felt as if people were hitting and pulling you on purpose. I didn't panic and kept on swimming. I did take the corners about 20-30 yards out which made for a longer swim.
All in all, I'm just happy that I made it through without and serious issues.
What would you do differently?:

I would swim just a little harder. I kind of let my HR rate dictate my effort level. Seeing this was my first IM, I didn't want to really push any of the disciplines too hard.
Transition 1
  • 08m 15s
Comments:

The was a long run from the swim to the bike. The IM transition is very different from your average Triathlon. You have to get your own transition bag from the rack and run into a changing tent. I guess everything went as planned. I really didn't practice the IM transition but went over it a few times in my head. It's a strange feeling.... you always feel like you're missing something.
A volunteer did get my bike for me....
What would you do differently?:

I was slow but don't think I would do much different. Maybe practice it a few times as I'm putting things into the Trans bags.
Bike
  • 6h 03m
  • 112 miles
  • 18.51 mile/hr
Comments:

Because it was my first Ironman I played it safe. I only got out of my seat to peddle maybe a total of 2 minutes the entire ride. If in doubt I would keep it in the easiest gear. I did not pre-ride the course so I had to feel it out on my first loop. On the second loop the wind really kicked up on white face mountain. It was a double ball buster.
Although I felt stronger on the second loop I had a slower average due to the wind.


Nutrition was 3 hours worth of accelerade and the rest was powergel from the course. I also ate 2 big figs that tasted great. Based on how great I felt the first 16 miles of the run I think I hit my bike nutrition right on.
What would you do differently?:

When I do my second IM I will not be as conservative. I may try an aero helmet like the rest of the cool kids!


Transition 2
  • 06m 35s
Comments:

I tried to be efficient but also wanted to take my time. As I started running out I realized I forgot to put Vaseline on my nips and pits. This caused a minute or two delay while I searched the transition area looking for the bottle. I couldn't find it and finally gave up. I did get some a few miles down the road at the aid station.
What would you do differently?:

Not much.... There's no reason to freakout or go too fast unless you are trying to qualify for Kona
Run
  • 4h 05m
  • 26.2 miles
  • 09m 21s  min/mile
Comments:

IMO the run is what shows you how your day is going. I felt great coming out of the transition tent. I had to force myself to pace slower as it felt like i could hold a 7.5. As I wrote above, I biked conservatively which really helped me on the run.
Ok, the run was great until mile marker 20! I remember running past mile marker 19 thinking how awesome it was that I was still running with 7 miles left. I also remember thinking that the worse that can happen is that I have to walk 5 or 6 miles if the wheels start to fall off.

Well... at mile 20 one wheel fell completely off! I got a cramp in my abductor muscle in my left leg that was so severe that I dropped to the ground in total pain. As I start stretching it out, I ripped open two powergels and sucked them down. It took me 5 minutes to get the cramp worked out to the point where I could stand up. It took another 3 minutes or so before I could start walking on it. I will tell you right now, that cramp was the most humbling event that has ever happened to me. I was freaking out in my mind thinking "I am 10:30 into the race with only 6 miles to go and I might not even be able to walk back!"
An official had been watching me the entire time and finally drove over and asked me if I could continue.... I felt like saying "get the hell away from me" but I politely told him that I was fine and started to walk it off. After a few hundred yards of walking I started thinking "should I continue walking and guarantee that I finish or should I chance it and start running?" The two things that kept popping into my mind were my time and the fact that this is Ironman! I did not train and come all that way to be defeated with 6 miles to go! I started running but very slowly. After mile 21 I started picking my pace up a little and ran at about an 8:50- 9 minute mile for the rest of the race.
Everything was going ok until I got to the entrance of the finish loop inside the tent area. Just as I got through the entrance the cramp flared right back up. With 300 yards left I had to start walking for 30 seconds or so. If I didn't, I risked the pain being so bad that I would fall down in front of everyone and maybe even cry like a little girl. I walked maybe 50 yards and then started running with my left leg as straight as a board. When I got within 100 yards of the finish I sucked it up and ran as normal as I could through the finish. i didn't want my picture taken while running like an old sailor.


What would you do differently?:

I would take those potassium/salt pills. I thought my nutrition was right on (ok, maybe off just a little) but based on my leg cramps I would say I was off. I pretty much had a powergel every 30 minutes throughout the run but I guess it wasn't enough.
Post race
Warm down:

Just did what I could to keep my leg abductors and hamstrings from cramping.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Lack of course and IM knowledge and a big fat brutal cramp in my leg.

Event comments:

What can I say, it was awesome! I don't have any other IM's to compare it to but it as a great experience.




Last updated: 2009-07-12 12:00 AM
Swimming
01:06:22 | 4224 yards | 01m 34s / 100yards
Age Group: 78/312
Overall: 479/2300
Performance: Good
My HR was between 140 and 155. I kept looking at my watch to try and keep my HR under 150.
Suit: full Xterra suit
Course: 2 loops out and back. I started about 3 rows back and roughly 50 yards to the right.
Start type: Wade Plus: Shot
Water temp: 68F / 20C Current: Medium
200M Perf. Average Remainder: Average
Breathing: Good Drafting: Average
Waves: Navigation: Average
Rounding: Average
T1
Time: 08:15
Performance: Average
Cap removal: Good Helmet on/
Suit off:
Wetsuit stuck? No Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: Yes
Getting up to speed: Average
Biking
06:03:00 | 112 miles | 18.51 mile/hr
Age Group: 109/312
Overall: 549/2300
Performance: Good
Tried to always keep my HR under 150. For the most part I was right on.
Wind: Headwind with gusts
Course: First, let me say that it was an awesome course if you were doing it as a training ride. As for an IM..... kinda rough! First 40 miles of each loop were very easy, but the back 16 killed my average speed. If I were riding that course as a training day, I would not rate it as an extremely hard course, but trying to conserve energy and not knowing what it's like to run 26 miles after biking 112 made the ride seem like you were climbing Everest. More than enough aid stations and plenty of places to make up time. I tried to stay 3-4 bike lengths away from the next athlete unlike a lot of people that were clustering right up next to each other. In some spots there were so many cyclists that you couldn't help but be right on top of the next guy. To sum it up I was very happy with the course. I just wish I could have ridden the course even once before the race to know what kind of average I could have kept. With that info, I probably could have been a lot faster. No excuses though...it was not worth driving 7 hours just to preride the course.
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence:
Turns: Good Cornering: Good
Gear changes: Good Hills: Average
Race pace: Comfortable Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 06:35
Overall: Average
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike Good
Running with bike Good
Racking bike
Shoe and helmet removal Good
Running
04:05:00 | 26.2 miles | 09m 21s  min/mile
Age Group: 55/312
Overall: 331/2300
Performance: Good
Tried to stay under 154....
Course: Very steep down hills for the first 3 miles then it flattens out. Great course until you are on your way back from the first and second loop. The course is out and back twice that will cause you to run through town 4 times. Although you are running up a steep hill twice, your are in town with tons of people.... it was awesome! The people are cheering and calling your name.
Keeping cool Average Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Good
Mental exertion [1-5] 5
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: Good
Race evaluation [1-5] 5