Deer Creek Toyota Challenge - Triathlon1/2 Ironman

i had a phenomenal swim for me. i figured out a week ago that the pool i have been swimming in is 27m, and not 25 yards, so my times have been a bit faster than i thought.

i came in closer to shore on the near side of each loop and rode the waves along it, MUCH faster.

nada.

bike felt smooth and controled the whole time. first lap a bit harder until i new where my lead was at on the out and back, 2nd loop easier, 3rd lap controlled but a bit harder again. the wind was getting bad near the middle of the 2nd loop and was killer on the 3rd. as i was coming back in after the out and back on my last loop i was going by people from the 2nd loop, FLYING by them, and only going aout 14mph. bad news right there.

6 hammer gels, two bottles of heed, half bottle of water.

cadence was a bit higher due to not riding as much lately and not feeling as strong.

not get swine flu.

felt stiff, riding in the wind that long took its toll but i still got out fast.

dropped out at the turn around on the run.

miles 1 through 4 were good, ave 7:10-15 pace, feeling ok, at mile 4 2nd and 3rd places went through me, no one else even close. a mile later the wheels just fell off.

at first i thought it was nutrition or pacing related, but checking back that was not it, took in more than enough cal/fluid, and bike was taken at the border between Z2 and 3.

i had been stuck in bed for about a week with H1N1, and lost close to 7 pounds in the week leading up to the race, so best guess is that didnt help too much. (i started the week before i got sick at 153 and 7% BF, the day before the race i was at 146 after dinner).

all in all i am happy with how things went until the run, and am please with the day as a whole. i learned a lot about what i could and could not make my body do, and how far i could push on that day. i led the swim and bike, and had i kept anywhere near the pace would have crossed the line as the 3rd elite.

the longer stuff is slowly getting better:-)

congrats to all that finished on a tough day out there.

on a side note, my swim and bike results came out with 5 min off the swim and added to the bike, overall times matched (swim and bike on here are correct, race results are not).