Whirlpool Steelhead 70.3 Triathlon - Triathlon1/2 Ironman

The beach start was fun. Since it was point to point, the start chute was at a 45* angle from the first bouy. I lined up on the side of the chute closest to the bouy, and when we went, 3 or 4 of us ran down the beach to where we were 90* from the bouy and started swimming. The rest of the group went into the water at the 45* angle, and, as a result, were 50 feet back by the first bouy. I hit the 1st bouy 2nd out of my group.

About 100-200 yards into the swim, the approaching storm cold front finally hit, and as a result, the swim turned from calm and smooth to a washing machine with 6 foot swells (yes, they were really 6 feet, that was not an exageration). It really hurt my swim, I choked on some water, and had to do some backstroke/breaststroke, as my lungs were suddenly on fire. I told myself I would accept anything between 30:00 and 40:00. Given the conditions, I was happy with my time, it fit within my goal times. Rough swim, but I got through it. I got to do my corkscrew turn too!




I don't know that I could have done much different. I choked on water, and my lungs felt like they were on fire, but aside from that, I don't know that I could have actually changed much. I didn't go as fast as I was really hoping I would have, but I did perform within my goal time, so I was actually quite happy with my swim.

My biggest disappointment was no baby pool, no water spray off, no good way to get the soft fluffy powerdy sand off your feet. I did the best I could, but I still got a ton of sand in my socks/shoes. I took it easy, and made sure I did not forget anything. It was easy to get the wetsuit off. I jogged the bike out of transition, and at the bike mount, I did a flying leap onto the bike. Started my Garmin and Vetta, hit lap on my Polar.

Leave the shoes on the bike (need to practice this). Run faster through transition. Heck, it was not too bad of a transition, considering how big the transition area was.

I had a Polar CS200 for heart rate, a Vetta RT88 cycle computer, and my Garmin 201 for distance (more for run). I need to find a way to easily consolidate all 3 onto 1 waterproof unit (Garmin 410XT?). That was alot of watches/data platforms to deal with.

The roads were mostly good, though there were some parts in need of repair. You can always tell how good the roads are by the amount of yellow profile aero bottle poofie things on the road. There were a ton of them after every bumpy area, and water bottles, and some xlab wings, and a ton of other things lost on the road. There was even one spot where someone dug a trench across the road earlier that week. Best they could do was try to mark the problem spot.

kmwilliams: "I read a quote last week on Twitter "Everyone has a plan until you get punched in the face" - Mike Tyson.

I can truly say about 40 miles into the bike I found out extactly what he was talking about!!!"

The last 18 miles on Blue Star Highway was BRUTAL. I think I averaged between 12 and 14 miles per hour the whole way back. That should paint the picture for you. I would have probably averaged 20+ had I not had to deal with the wind.

That 18 miles far outweighed and overshadowed the positives that had happened in the first half the ride. I rode strong and fast. With an hour + riding in the wind at 12-14mph, and still averaging 17+ mph overall, I had some great speeds in the first half, and had sections where I was able to hammer at 23-25+ mph, and hold those speeds, which is nothing short of amazing for me.

The last 18 miles? Just miserable. Nothing else I can say about that. The only bright point about those miles was thinking about what would happen if someone had to stop to take a leak near the nuclear power plant. There are a ton of signs saying "Deadly Force". "My gosh Johnny, what happened to you?" "I had to stop and go pee, and one of the nuclear power plant guards shot my .... off."

The things you think of when you're struggling on the Blue Star...

I had nothing left in me by the time I got back to the transition - which led to a rough run.

Try to eat and drink more. Front rim selection is important. With the amount of wind, it was tough to ride on a 100mm front. Mentally prepare for bad conditions. Train in hard winds. Drive the course.

I unclipped my shoes from the pedals, and ran back to transition in my bike shoes. I could have probably saved some time, but this was fine - it worked. I really did not know how much I'd be able to trust my legs after the ride, and I didn't want to hurt myself getting out of the shoes on the way into the dismount area.

Leave the shoes on the bike. Slow down to speed up. I was trying to rush, I was fairly scatterbrained, and actually left my Gu Chomps on the bike. After double checking, triple checking, I was able to get out of transition. I was pretty pooped, I don't even remember if I walked out, or ran out. I do know I carried a bottle of water out, which was greatly needed.

By the time I got to the run course, the race was already over for me. I was not mentally prepared for a wet weather run after the last couple of brutal hours on the bike. I made the best of the run, though, when I got out of the park, made the left turn on North Shore and took one look at what I will now refer to as "The Hill", I realized what humility was. I walked that hill, and other select parts of the course as necessary. I normally don't mind running in the rain, but you just have this empty feeling to yourself after a bike as bad as it was - I was pooped, and it took me a while to compose myself to push more - and I don't know that I ever really got my composure back fully.

The course was fantastic, a mix of closed roads, very lightly traveled roads and running trails around lakes on the Whirlpool Corporate Campus. This was really a top notch course.

 

I was not mentally prepared for running in a monsoon, let alone running in a monsoon after cycling in it. Alot of things could have been done MUCH better, but I think the only real thing I had control over was the mental aspect, and I didn't even have very good control over.

Drank some liquids, rode the bike back to the car. Not much else - I was WAY too tired and sore. I just wanted to get in the car and come home. 24 hours in compression socks and a cryo cuff on my right knee, and I am actually feeling quite myself again.


Brad: That was the most miserable, painful, Godawful experience of my life. I can't wait to sign up for the next one! (IM 70.3 finish)

Stormfront rolled in about 200 yards after the swim start.
Swim: 6 foot swells
Bike: Last 18 miles into head wind of about 20-30 mph
Run: Rain, rain, rain. I was dead after the bike.


Event HR Info:
MaxHR: 179/97%
AvgHR: 146/79%
Calories: 4916
Time in Zones:
Z1: 0
Z2: 47:34
Z3: 2:17:53
Z4: 3:58:54
Z5: 16:13


CAPRI did a wonderful job for this race. Everything was on time, thought out and very organized. CAPRI is a class act. Wonderful expo as well.

Issues:
1) Please add a place to wash sand PRIOR to getting to T1 after the swim. Without it, you are getting sand in your shoes/socks/etc.
2) Please have printouts of course maps.
3) Schwag bags were kind of skimpy - we basically got a t-shirt out of it. I would have liked to see a hat and other things as well. You can get a t-shirt at any local sprint race, while my local HIM races have a ton more.
4) Using cheap velcro, instead of a regular chip strap, causes the chip to dig into your ankle.