Ironman 70.3 Syracuse - Triathlon1/2 Ironman

Lined up in the middle/outside. Got going fairly easy. 62 degree water feels a lot colder than I expected! It was a little shocking when I first put my face in the water. I was used to it/got warm by the time I hit the first buoy. It felt like I was reaching buoy after buoy so quickly, and before I knew it I was rounding the first corner. And then the second. My sighting was good, but either there weren't as many buoys on the back half or I just had a hard time seeing them. About halfway through the back half I started to get really cold and slightly disoriented. It was an ok swim, and the least amount of contact I've ever experienced. For the training that I put in, I did more or less how I expected.

Get in the pool a lot more often. I'm capable of a lot better than this and I've done it in the past. If I'd been diligent about swimming sub-40:00 would be a given.

Love having wet suit strippers! It was a longish run from the water to T1, on a paved path. Running across the pavement hurt and my feet felt raw from being so cold. I debated whether or not to wear arm warmers for the bike. About 5 seconds into the swim I knew I needed them! Smartest decision I made all day!! Since I was so cold, I felt like I was fumbling a little to get my arm warmers, helmet, bike shoes on.

Nothing

The first 11 miles was climbing, climbing, climbing and more climbing. It wasn't nearly as bad as I was expecting. I settled in and spun up most of the hills. The ride started off a little foggy and the more elevation we gained, the foggier it got. There was no more than 50 meters visibility. A little tough not being able to see what was coming ahead. The first 60-90 minutes flew by! I felt great. Hit the first aid station at mile 15 and decided to ditch my half-full water bottle for a new one. As I was pulling up, realized I was going a bit too fast (~20mph) but there really wasn't enough time to slow down. Luckily there wasn't anyone else around me. Had a moment of realization that this could end badly with me kissing pavement....instead it was a pretty cool exchange. Hit a steep, screaming downhill at mile 20 followed immediately by an uphill. Literally went from 45mph to 6mph in less than 10 seconds. Crazy. Spent a long time trying to pee but couldn't make it happen, and by mile 45 finally gave up. By the time I hit mile 50 my quads were angry and ready to stop working. Tried to think of the last 6 miles as just one easy loop around Central Park. It felt like the longest 6 miles I've ever ridden. As I rolled in towards transition all I could think was how my quads were screaming and that it was likely to be a looong, painful run. Saw my mom and stepdad which was a HUGE pick-me-up....I thought they would have already left to head to the finish area downtown, so I wasn't expecting to see them at all. As I ran towards my rack my mom was running along on the outside of the fence ringing cowbells and yelling all sorts of encouraging things...it was awesome!

Nutrition was spot on. Took GU Roctane every 45-55 minutes and put 3 pieces of chocolate PowerBar in my bento box as a "treat"/pick-me-up (genius idea!).

I've been having mechanical issues on and off almost all season. Someone was watching out for my today bc everything worked seamlessly!


Nothing major. Spend more time on the bike and get in some longer rides.

Speedy transition for me. Threw the bike on the rack. Helmet & shoes off at the same time, running shoes on, grabbed my visor and GU's and was out of there.

Nothing

Based on the course map it seemed like we'd be running a gradual downhill the majority of the way. False. Overall flat with some good downhill section in the beginning.

As I headed across the mat, I looked at my watch to see 4:04. I was shocked & excited, and realized I could be in a position for sub-6:00. Opposed to how I felt coming off the bike, my legs felt great and I felt really strong. Decided I'd take the first 3 miles easy and then reassess how I felt, and hopefully pick up the pace as I went along. I checked my splits at mile 2 and saw that I was holding 8:20-8:30 pace, and it felt easy. At that point, I decided I was 100% committed to making a sub-6:00 happen. I was excited, focused, positive and feeling stronger than I've ever felt in any race. The aid stations were set up somewhere between each mile marker...mentally this was huge for me as I always had something to look forward to alternating between a mile marker & an aid station. At the 4th aid station I grabbed a piece of PowerBar, thinking I might want it as a "treat" later. Genius! The miles kept flying by. The run course was far from scenic, but I was in such a great place mentally I honestly never even noticed. I was so set on my new goal of sub-6:00, & wanted it so so bad, nothing could have brought me down. I got more than a few comments from volunteers about how much I was smiling & how happy I looked. And for once, when people told me I looked strong, I knew they weren't bullshitting me & I really felt strong. Before I knew it I hit the 8-mile mark and was still feeling great. Around 10 I started to feel slightly fatigued, but reminded myself I only had less than 5k to go. I also started to feel a dull soreness in my left knee, which in hindsight wasn't completely surprising since my piriformis and ITB had been tight for quite a long time. Up until mile 10 I'd only been watching my mile splits bc I didn't want to get hung up on my overall time. Early on I decided mile 10 is where I could finally have a look at the overall time. I was still on track, and felt a good mental boost. By mile 11 my tank was just about on empty and the soreness in my knee was turning into pain. But my eye was on the prize and I was not slowing up for anything. I kept telling myself there was less than 20 minutes to go, and I could do anything for 20 minutes. I may or may not have been repeating encouraging things to myself out loud. Then I remembered the PowerBar in my pocket...I knew it would come in handy! I hoped, and wanted it so desperately to take my mind off my knee. It worked but not for long. By mile 12, I was running on fumes & the pain was searing/stabbing through my knee and I was down to a run/limp, although still managing a decent pace. I started contemplating if I should stop to stretch my PF just for a few seconds. I thought if I could relieve the pain just a tiny bit I'd be so happy. After going back and forth for a while, I was almost certain I was ok on time and I finally gave in. I bargained with myself that I could stretch for 30 seconds but that I had to push the last half mile or so no matter what the pain. For a few blocks I felt better, and then the pain was back. I sucked it up and pushed as hard as I possibly could to the finish.


Nothing. I don't regret stopping to stretch. I've expereinced similar pain & PF/ITB tightness before, and without stretching it out there's a decent chance I may have eventually been reduced to walking.

As I crossed the finish I was so happy with my day, and at the same time my heart completely sunk when I looked down at my watch.


Lack of swimming


For the past month my swimming and cycling has been less than diligent, so going into the race I honestly had no idea what to expect from myself. No idea whatsoever! My biggest goal was to have fun & enjoy the day, hopefully run a sub-2 hour half marathon and I hoped for a small HIM PR. I would have been thrilled with a 6:15 finish. At no point did I ever expect a 6-hour finish. I'm beyond thrilled, and I'm so proud of myself!! This was my strongset and best race ever. Those 7 seconds are a killer, but I'm not stuck on them anymore bc there's no question in my mind that I capable of a sub-6 HIM. I know I can do it.