Ford Ironman 70.3 Hawaii - Triathlon1/2 Ironman

I lined up in the middle of the pack with the water hitting my waistline. Everyone was fairly spread out in the start area. When the gun went off I waded forward a couple of steps and dove in. I headed straight for the first buoy with little incident, I had almost no body contact of any kind. As I neared the buoy I was looking at the ocean bottom and saw three scuba divers near the base of the buoy. I couldn't tell what they were up to but it did make me realize that the water was pretty clear I estimated their depth at around 30 feet. I made the right turn and head out to the second turn. I was swimming mildly hard but feeling pretty good. The right turn at the second buoy positioned the sun directly in my eyes so it made it quite difficult to make out the third buoy. I continued along the buoys making the occasional contact with other swimmers. I have long come to terms with the fact that a triathlon swim is contact sport so this didn't bother too much. Anyways, I was feeling pretty good about my swim as I reached the last buoy before turning into shore. The sun was still in my eyes but I was able to pick up the swim exit. I sighted along a straight line to it and saw a group of swimmers heading the same direction so I lowered my head and decided to push harder into the finish. After about two minutes I hear someone yelling, I look up and see a lifeguard on a surfboard pointing behind me. Confused I look in the direction he's pointing and I realized that I missed the last turn buoy. S%#$!!! Pretty disgusted with myself I turn around and head back the 150 meters to the buoy I missed. As I rounded the buoy I made sure I didn't miss anymore and headed for the finish. As I'm berating myself for not paying close enough attention to the course someone swims up between my legs. I shrug it off not thinking much of it being more disgusted with myself than anything else. Two seconds later it happens again. Now I'm not talking about someone lightly tapping my toes or even grabbing my calf, this person was literally trying to swim through me. But again I shrugged it off, figuring they would realize what they were doing and go around me. But no, this knucklehead came back a third time and started pushing my under water like he was trying to dunk me. I had enough and let rip with a pretty effective snap kick, I think it caught them in the shoulder but I can't be sure. Wherever I made contact, they got the point and either went around me or backed off. Although my kick had the intended result, it also caused my calf muscle to start cramping hard. I tried to point my toes back and forth while I swam on to relax it but it wasn't working. It got so bad that I had to stop and do the "dead man's float" while I massaged it out. I finally got it to relax and made it to shore without anymore drama. I crossed the timing mat around 42 minutes into the race and I know that 5 minutes of that was caused by my own stupidity.

Count bouys and make sure I know the course.

Grabbed a quick rinse from the showers and headed up the hill towards my bike. My calf was still sore from the cramping and I was hoping it would loosen up on the bike. I made it to my bike which was racked near the exit; put on my race belt, then my helmet the glasses. As I ran to the mount line I saw a lot of people struggling to get clipped in on the slight incline leading out of transition and was thankful that I learned long ago to leave my shoes clipped in and ride with my feet on top until I get up to speed.

I was feeling pretty dejected after the fiasco of a swim so I didn't really have the sense of urgency I normally do.

Since I didn't have any confidence in my training or fitness level my plan was to start off slow and go easy on the hills. I also was going to make sure I took in as much fuel, water and electrolytes as I could. There were some pretty sneaking crosswinds that gusted up but for the most part they didn’t bother me. I was constantly passing people but I tried to hold back a little. I knew the run was coming up and I knew what it did to me last year. I managed at least one bottle of water for every aid station. I finished off my 600 calories bottle of Sustain and gel plus a granola bar. I also poured ice-cold water in the slot of my aero helmet in an attempt to keep cool. I was popping electrolytes about every 30 minutes or so. When I got to the turn around at Hawi I let loose and started barreling down the hill. At the last aid station I grabbed a Gatorade and a water. The water went on my head and I made sure to finish the Gatorade before T2. I finished the bike feeling ok and thought I had managed my nutrition pretty well.

Nothing, other than train more.

I found my run bag and racked my bike fairly quickly. Since I opted to wear socks on the run it took a little longer to get my shoes on than normal. Rolling my socks pre-race made them a lot easier to get on wet feet. I grabbed my gels, visor and spare electrolytes. As I head for the run out I got the urge to pee so I stopped at the porta potty on the way.

Nothing

Last year I didn't respect the run course and got my ass handed to me by it. This year I was determined to be humble so I started off real easy. I was running around an 8 minute mile taking it easy. Every rest stop I grabbed water to drink and pour on my head. I also grabbed ice to put down my shirt and sponges for my shoulders and face. As people passed me I sucked it up and let them go, I was not going to blow up this year. But around mile 5 I started feeling the lack of training. I was fading and I knew it. I started forcing down cola and gels in a vain attempt to keep up my pace. By mile 6 I knew I was in trouble and the worst part of the run, miles 8-11 the "mini energy lab", was yet to come. I slowed down a little more, determined not to cramp up and start walking. I was really dreading the left turn down the "road to hell" but I spotted a woman dressed up as Wonder Woman at the turn cheering loudly and little kids with squirt guns diligently trying to cool athletes as the ran by and it lifted my spirits some. Enough that I was able to pick up the pace and make it thru miles 8-11 without stopping, last year I walked most of it. I walked a portion of mile 12 and I stumbled my way to the last aid station. I grabbed some water and ice and was able to pull it together to a least get a respectable trot heading into the finish. I was real happy to see that finish line.

Other than train like I should have, nothing.

Beer


The lack of proper training and the heat. This run course is a killer.


I was disappointed that my run was slower than last year, along with everything else for that matter. But I am convinced that other than my pre-mentioned swim mistake I ran the best race I could with my current fitness level. Was I happy with my performance? Not really, but this was a "B" race so I'll lick my wounds and try again.