Ford Ironman 70.3 California - Triathlon1/2 Ironman

Swim was a Half Iron Distance Personal Best for me. I lined up towards the front, and got pulled along for a few hundred yards. I think I rode a pretty straight line, with the biggest challenge NOT zoning out and going too easy! Mission accomplished for me on the swim! Thrilled to be 21st of 155 on the swim.

Below are my power numbers for the race. This is pretty close to last year, in fact my bike split was the same as last year! Heart rate did not want to climb to normally high levels. I attribute that to fatigue going into the race, as we did our Epic training weekend in St. George last weekend. We rode a hard 90+ miles, and ran 14m of the horribly hilly run course. There were a lot of "packs" at Cal 70.3 this year, and the winds were certainly a factor:

Entire workout (189 watts):
Duration: 2:29:35 (2:41:47)
Work: 1694 kJ
TSS: 179.6 (intensity factor 0.849)
Norm Power: 204
VI: 1.08
Pw:HR: -0.97%
Pa:HR: -2.36%
Distance: 52.441 mi
Min Max Avg
Power: 0 561 189 watts
Heart Rate: 110 167 156 bpm
Cadence: 36 162 88 rpm
Speed: 2.2 44.1 21.0 mph
Pace 1:22 26:49 2:51 min/mi
Crank Torque: 0 706 185 lb-in


This is the big climb on the backside of the Marine Base...

Power-Tap #1:
Duration: 4:04
Work: 66 kJ
TSS: 8.8 (intensity factor 1.139)
Norm Power: n/a
VI: n/a
Pw:HR: -5.17%
Pa:HR: 14.65%
Distance: 0.467 mi
Min Max Avg
Power: 204 404 272 watts
Heart Rate: 156 167 161 bpm
Cadence: 46 95 57 rpm
Speed: 5.4 16.3 6.8 mph
Pace 3:40 11:06 8:46 min/mi
Crank Torque: 181 576 416 lb-in

I started running, and my pace was fine, then I faded and couldn't seal the deal. I had a weak run, and again, I am attributing that to the "no taper".

I did the Cal 70.3 so I could get a slot for an Ironman this year. I got my slot for Ironman St. George which is in 36 days; wooo-hoo!!

I went into Cal 70.3 with no taper and wanted to race well. I had the best 1/2 IM swim I have ever had, and I had a solid bike. I started to fade on the run, and could not keep up a decent speed on the run. Time to recover and will now put the finishing touches on my IMSG training.

I am pleased with the day, we had great weather, and I thank GOD I can participate in these events. I am especially happy for my friend Ron who took 2nd in his AG and had the race of his life today! He missed his Kona slot by just over a minute...now it shows he belongs and he will eventually get that slot...