Beach 2 Battleship Iron Distance - TriathlonFull Ironman


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Wilmington, North Carolina
United States
Setup Events
37F / 3C
Sunny
Total Time = 11h 51m 41s
Overall Rank = 93/531
Age Group = m30-34
Age Group Rank = 18/50
Pre-race routine:

Swam Wed morning before we left. We arrived in NC on Wed night around 5:30. On Thurs, we went to packet pickup in the afternoon. At night, there was an athlete kickoff dinner of various types of pasta. One of the speakers was a group that called them selves the TinMan- every member of the relay team has been a recipient of at least a heart transplant. Their stories were very inspiring.
Friday we went to the pre-race meeting. It was confirmed at this meeting that athletes in the full would not receive any benefit from the current. However, athletes doing the HIM should be prepared for a very quick swim with the current. Just my luck.
After dropping of my bike at T1 on Friday night, we went to a surf shop to get neoprene gloves and booties. This turned out to be a very good idea.
Race morning- woke up at 4:30. Had a bagel with PB, water and a banana. Also, sipped on a water bottle of electrolyte mix until we got to the race site. Got to T1 and handed in all of my transition and special needs bags. Hoped on a bus and headed to the swim start.
Event warmup:

got to the swim start and stretched. about 5 mins before the start I swam ~25meters. Not much of a warm-up.
Swim
  • 1h 25m 41s
  • 4224 yards
  • 02m 02s / 100 yards
Comments:

this was a salt water swim in the channel. I think I took in a lot of salt water which may have led to my problems later in the race. Overall, the swim times were slower than expected for most athletes. The top time was 54:35, so I could not be upset with swimming only 4 mins slower than last year's IM in CA.

What would you do differently?:

not drink the salt water
Transition 1
  • 07m 41s
Comments:

the run from the water to T1 was about 400m. The wetsuit strippers were able to remove my wetsuit very quickly. Having the booties was a huge benefit running to T1.
ran thru showers to help remove the salt from my body
Changed into my race tri shorts and put on a bike jersey. Brought a jacket and gloves but opted to leave them behind. ended up working fine.


What would you do differently?:

not much
Bike
  • 5h 42m 57s
  • 112 miles
  • 19.59 mile/hr
Comments:

by mile 10, stomach started to feel weird. kept hoping it would go away before the run, but it did not happen.
nutrition:
2 bonk breaker bars 250 calories each- one piece every 15mins
1.5 bottles with 500 calories in each (each bottle:3 scoops EFS, 2 scoops Carbo Pro and 1 scoop BCAA)
1 chocolate gu (120 calories)
opening 71 miles was into the wind and avg was 18.7. When it turned to my back for remainder average was 21.3mph.
1/2 banana from aid station- 50 calories
Total: 1400 calories... planned on being between 1200 and 1500, so this went well
What would you do differently?:

nothing. for the last 40+miles I was not pushing even though the speed was higher than usual. Going into the race I figured I would average 20mph or so if there was no wind. Considering there was a head wind for 2/3 of the race, I am happy with the pace/effort
Transition 2
  • 04m 42s
Comments:

upon dismounting the bike volunteers raked my bike and others grabbed my T2 bag. I went into the changing tent. changed into running shoes and socks. Took off the cycling jersey and put on a short sleeved technical.
For nutrition, I had a gel flask with 4 GU ROctanes and water. This was the same strategy I used for the marathon 6 weeks ago where I qualified for Boston.
My stomach was not feeling good at this point, but my legs felt fine. I knew if the stomach would feel better I was would have a very good run. On the way out, grabbed a 1/2 banana and 1/4 bagel.


What would you do differently?:

nothing
Run
  • 4h 30m 43s
  • 26.2 miles
  • 10m 20s  min/mile
Comments:

when stomach felt ok, I was holding a great pace (sub 8). However, with the stomach issue, I walked way too much. The Gel Flask was not an option as it made me feel nauseous. I ended up eating at the aid stations- water, cola, trail mix and pretzels.
At 13.1 I felt horrible and walked for almost 15mins hoping my stomach would feel better. At times it would feel ok and pace was fine, then feel lousy and I would walk.
What would you do differently?:

figure out what caused the stomach issues for most of the day.
Post race
Warm down:

got a massage and ate some food in the heating tent.
when we got back to hotel, I had a mountain dew and stomach started to feel much better. was able to eat some normal food. next morning stomach felt much better

What limited your ability to perform faster:

stomach.
While there will be no full IM for a couple of years, wanting to nail the run portion will make me do another one in a few years. I have no doubts that I capable of breaking 11 hours (without having a perfect day).

Event comments:

this was a fantastic race by Setup events.
Pros:
plenty of excited volunteers that were very helpful
great community support, esp during the run in downtown Wilmington

Areas that could be improved:
possibly 1 more aid station on bike course after mile 50
more than 1 port-a-potty @ aid stations.
more lighting on the run course, esp by the park.





Last updated: 2009-12-17 12:00 AM
Swimming
01:25:41 | 4224 yards | 02m 02s / 100yards
Age Group: 30/50
Overall: 262/531
Performance: Average
Suit: full plus booties and gloves
Course: point to point swim with a total of 2 turns. first 1/2 mile was against the current. Not only were we not going to have a fast swim with the current, it appeared it would be slow and against the current.
Start type: Run Plus: Shot
Water temp: 63F / 17C Current: Medium
200M Perf. Average Remainder: Good
Breathing: Below average Drafting: Below average
Waves: Navigation: Average
Rounding: Good
T1
Time: 07:41
Performance: Good
Cap removal: Good Helmet on/
Suit off:
Wetsuit stuck? Run with bike:
Jump on bike:
Getting up to speed:
Biking
05:42:57 | 112 miles | 19.59 mile/hr
Age Group: 19/50
Overall: 85/531
Performance: Good
opening 71 miles was into the wind and avg was 18.7. When it turned to my back for remainder average was 21.3mph.
Wind: Some
Course: the course was about 71 miles out and then angled back for 41 to T2. Road surface was very good throughout. flat course
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence:
Turns: Good Cornering:
Gear changes: Hills:
Race pace: Comfortable Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 04:42
Overall: Good
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike
Running with bike
Racking bike
Shoe and helmet removal
Running
04:30:43 | 26.2 miles | 10m 20s  min/mile
Age Group: 18/50
Overall: 119/531
Performance: Bad
opening 5 miles was @ 7:45/pace opening 13.1 2 hours- started top walk/run around mile 10. second 13.1 2:30
Course: the course was a 2 loops- out and back. On the way out, there were 2 bridges with longer climbs and 1 shorter climb about 3.5 miles into the loop (this was downhill on way back). On the way back, had 2 more climbs with the bridges and 1 additional climb (was downhill on the way out)
Keeping cool Good Drinking
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Good
Mental exertion [1-5] 4
Physical exertion [1-5] 4
Good race? Ok
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