Ironman 70.3 Branson - Triathlon1/2 Ironman


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Branson, Missouri
United States
90F / 32C
Sunny
Total Time = 6h 03m 1s
Overall Rank = 307/1357
Age Group = M25-29
Age Group Rank = 48/151
Pre-race routine:

I drove down to Branson with my wife Ruth the day before the race. She had a 22 mile run for her marathon training, and once she was done with that we hit the road. We drove the bike course on the way to race check-in. We grabbed a bit to eat at a Mediterranean restaurant and I was actually in bed by 9pm!
Event warmup:

I woke up at 3:45am and had a bagel with peanut butter and honey and a banana for breakfast. I realized on Saturday that I had forgot to bring my GuBrew so Ruth bought me 4 packets of HEED. I know never to change nutrition before trying it, but I had no choice. I had a cup of coffee and sipped on some HEED for the next few hours. They allowed swim warm ups so I hopped in the water for around 5 minutes to make sure the wet suit fit well. I took a GU 15 minutes before my wave.
Swim
  • 30m 27s
  • 2112 yards
  • 01m 26s / 100 yards
Comments:

This was my first running start, and I was afraid I would catch a lot of water in my googles. Fortunately this didn't happen. I was in the front line so I had a straight shot into the water. I immediately had clear water and settled into a very comfortable pace. I started catching previous wave very quickly and spent a lot of time navigating that traffic. I kept my eyes on another guy from my wave and tried to follow him for the whole swim. I got a bit off line toward the end of the swim, but corrected my problem quickly.
What would you do differently?:

Not much. I felt great during the swim and swam strong. I need to find a better way to get through slower traffic from previous waves. My goal for next year is to be under 30 minutes for all HIM swims.
Transition 1
  • 03m 37s
Comments:

There was a steep hill directly out of transition so I walked up that to catch my breath and gather my bearings. Once on flat ground I ran to my bike which I founder easier than my last race. I packed the bag for to be taken to the finish since this the transitions were far apart from eachother. I made sure that everything was packed well and that added and extra :30 to a minute
Bike
  • 3h 04m 59s
  • 56 miles
  • 18.16 mile/hr
Comments:

I started out great passing people left and right. The course was very difficult and start going uphill almost immediately after leaving transition. I was feeling strong and holding a great pace for the course. I was passed by the fast bikers but felt like I was holding my own well.

Things started to go bad about 2/3rds of the way through the bike. The hills began to get significantly harder and I had to coast most of the downhills to rest. I spent a good deal of time dry heaving up the hills and got passed by a lot of the people I had passed way earlier in the bike.

I had nothing left by the time we hit mile 50. Although the last 6ish miles were downhill I could still barely push the pace. My mind hit a bad point then and I spent the last part of the bike convincing myself not to quit.
What would you do differently?:

Not go out so hard on the bike. I cooked myself and had nothing left for the end of the bike.
Transition 2
  • 01m 53s
Comments:

I was very tired and needed to catch my breath. My wife was right outside transition by my spot and asked me how I was doing. I told her how bad I felt but that I was going to finish one way or another.
What would you do differently?:

Nothing
Run
  • 2h 22m 5s
  • 13.1 miles
  • 10m 51s  min/mile
Comments:

This was not a fun run for me. I took a bathroom break right out of transition and soon after began to walk. At this time it became how to figure out how to get to the finish line. I walked more than I ran, but tried to run when I could. There was tons of people walking throughout the hot, humid course. Another race report reference, "Zombie Walk", and I couldn't agree more. I had leg spasms and stomach cramps off and on throughout the whole run. The crowd support was great and really helped push me along. My wife also found me 4 or 5 times on the course, her support was amazing. I saved a little bit of energy so I could run across the finish line with my arms up.
What would you do differently?:

Go easier on the bike so I had energy to run.
Post race
Warm down:

Got in the ice cold fountain for around 10 minutes.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

My major mistake was going out too hard on the bike. Had I paced myself better I think I could have gone 20 minutes faster my having a slower bike and much faster run.

Event comments:

This was a great race that was run very well for being the first year. I look foward to doing it next year.




Last updated: 2010-02-19 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:30:27 | 2112 yards | 01m 26s / 100yards
Age Group: 9/151
Overall: 54/1357
Performance: Good
Suit: BlueSeventy Synergie
Course: U Shaped
Start type: Run Plus:
Water temp: 76F / 24C Current: Low
200M Perf. Good Remainder: Good
Breathing: Good Drafting: Average
Waves: Good Navigation: Average
Rounding: Good
T1
Time: 03:37
Performance: Average
Cap removal: Average Helmet on/
Suit off:
No
Wetsuit stuck? No Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike:
Getting up to speed: Average
Biking
03:04:59 | 56 miles | 18.16 mile/hr
Age Group: 0/151
Overall: 0/1357
Performance:
Wind: Little
Course: Difficult ride through the Ozarks. There was very little flat ground.
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence:
Turns: Good Cornering: Average
Gear changes: Average Hills: Below average
Race pace: Too hard Drinks:
T2
Time: 01:53
Overall: Average
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike
Running with bike Average
Racking bike Good
Shoe and helmet removal Average
Running
02:22:05 | 13.1 miles | 10m 51s  min/mile
Age Group: 0/151
Overall: 0/1357
Performance: Bad
Course: 3 loops around Branson Landing. The course is very flat but had very little shade.
Keeping cool Below average Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Below average
Mental exertion [1-5] 3
Physical exertion [1-5] 3
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: Average
Race evaluation [1-5] 4