High Cliff Triathlon - Half Ironman - Triathlon1/2 Ironman


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Sherwood, Wisconsin
United States
Midwest Sports Events
75F / 24C
Sunny
Total Time = 5h 15m 18s
Overall Rank = 146/482
Age Group = M40-44
Age Group Rank = 25/77
Pre-race routine:

My wife and I and her friend stayed overnight in Appleton. We were all racing and the early morning prep gave us a late start that morning so I ate on the drive over - PB on bagel, banana, coffee and water.

My big goal was to PR the race with improvements of 7 minutes on the swim, 7 minutes on the bike and 20 minutes on the terrible run I had last year. That would have given me a time of 5:10. My practical goal was anything below 5:20. I ended up with a 5:15.
Event warmup:

Unfortunately did not get to warm up at all. Would have really appreciated an OWS considering the size of the waves ~ about 4 foot waves due to the heavy west wind. Ate 1 GU before start of swim.
Swim
  • 31m 16s
  • 2112 yards
  • 01m 29s / 100 yards
Comments:

Heavy waves and a west wind caused problems for everyone, including the RD. I am sure buoys were blown in and the course was short. My swim is a lot better than last year, overall, and I think I would have swam 37 minutes on a normal day.

What would you do differently?:

Need to learn to swim straighter in heavy chop. I was pushed around a lot.
Transition 1
  • 01m 38s
Comments:

They had wetsuit strippers this year so I got the top of the T1 off coming out of the water and they helped with the bibs.
Bike
  • 2h 48m 57s
  • 56 miles
  • 19.89 mile/hr
Comments:

The heavy West winds made the first half slower than the 20.5 mph that was the goal. The wind helped when going East or North but not enough to make up the time.

I felt good overall about this bike. I pushed on the flats and down hills, which is natural for me, although climbing was slow again.

My lower right back started to feel numb half-way into the ride - I will need to figure out why because the problem doesn't occur on my training rides, which are longer but slower.

They didn't have volunteers handing out bottles at the first aid station - for some reason they were all walking back from the intersection so I missed the first chance to refill my Profile bottle.

Nutritionally, I ate 4 ounces of GU, a power bar and some beef jerky. 1 Profile bottle of Perpetuem, 1 Gatorade and 1 water.
What would you do differently?:

Bring a second water bottle.
Transition 2
  • 01m 59s
Comments:

T2 was a little slower because I had forgotten my racing shoes with the Yankz. I wore trainers.
What would you do differently?:

Remember racing shoes.
Run
  • 1h 51m 29s
  • 13.1 miles
  • 08m 31s  min/mile
Comments:

I felt good coming out of T2 and beginning the run to the hill. Running up the hill was as tough as usual but I concentrated on short light steps and pumping my arms.

At the top of the hill, felt much better than last year when I bonked after mile 1. I forgot how important focus is on the run in a longer distance and struggled to keep pushing myself after mile 7. The run was OK, but slower than my goal of 1:45.

Nutritionally, I ate at 45 minutes, but should have had two for the course.
What would you do differently?:

Need to work to regain my marathon-focus and keep pushing. Need to pick it up by 30 seconds per mile.

Eat 1 GU at 30 and 1 at 60 minutes.
Post race
Event comments:

Although I didn't hit the 5:10 ultimate goal, I PRd by 30 minutes. This is thanks mostly to a better swim stroke and stronger bike and run than last year (although, to be honest, the wind-shortened swim course helped, too).




Last updated: 2010-01-30 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:31:16 | 2112 yards | 01m 29s / 100yards
Age Group: 51/77
Overall: 0/482
Performance: Below average
Suit: De Soto T1
Course: Shallow wade start in waves. The water remains shallow for the first 100 meters so more walking than swimming at the start. This is a well-marked course with large orange buoys. My Garmin had it at about 0.9 miles this year because the waves pushed in the buoys with a 0.1 mile run up to the mat.
Start type: Run Plus: Waves
Water temp: 70F / 21C Current: High
200M Perf. Average Remainder: Average
Breathing: Below average Drafting: Bad
Waves: Bad Navigation: Bad
Rounding: Below average
T1
Time: 01:38
Performance: Good
Cap removal: Good Helmet on/
Suit off:
No
Wetsuit stuck? No Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: No
Getting up to speed: Good
Biking
02:48:57 | 56 miles | 19.89 mile/hr
Age Group: 29/77
Overall: 0/482
Performance: Good
148 ave HR
Wind: Headwind with gusts
Course: It was well-marked and had plenty of volunteers at the turns and intersections. Of course, the big half-mile long hill remains to start the bike after which it flattens out. Eventually, there are several long sloping hills but not what I would call a "hilly" course.
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence: 86
Turns: Average Cornering: Good
Gear changes: Good Hills: Good
Race pace: Hard Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 01:59
Overall: Below average
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike Below average
Running with bike Good
Racking bike Average
Shoe and helmet removal Below average
Running
01:51:29 | 13.1 miles | 08m 31s  min/mile
Age Group: 19/77
Overall: 0/482
Performance: Average
Ave HR 154
Course: This is a run up the aforementioned big hill followed by a double-loop on trails and finishing down the big hill. Plenty of shade on the trails with a few stretches of direct sunlight. Good volunteers with Gatorade, ice, water and gels.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall:
Mental exertion [1-5]
Physical exertion [1-5] 4
Good race? Yes
Evaluation
Course challenge
Organized?
Events on-time?
Lots of volunteers?
Plenty of drinks?
Post race activities:
Race evaluation [1-5]