Delaware Diamondman Triathlon - Triathlon1/2 Ironman

Not bad considering very limited swim time this year. I was counting on the millions of yards swum in my youth to pull me through. I probably could have pushed a little harder even at my current swim fitness level, maybe 5 more minutes faster and gotten away with it.

Couple calf cramps on way out, the first one when I stepped in a big, mucky hip-deep hole in waist-deep water. That must have been hilarious for the people on the shore. Glad I brought some extra shoes because the run-up was long, and it was pouring. The extra shoes let my real running shoes stay dry in a bag at transition.

Schedule my training weeks better so that I had regular swim training, because it could be a strength based on my swim background. That would take getting over my mental barrier because of the aforementioned millions yards of staring at that black line. Maybe join the masters group at the Y?

Good transition given the wetness of everything. Socks and bike shoes in trash bag to try to keep dry. Little slow on the mount but it was tough out there.

Nada

My best bike ride ever in a race, which may have led to my not-so-best run, but more on that later. This was my first race on the Valdora and I have nothing but good things to say about the bike itself. Felt very comfortable through most of the ride; back a little sore but expected that bc it had been bothering me. Some spasms in my thighs toward the end from about mile 52.

Got stuck on the saddle at the dismount line somehow, was singing soprano after that. Did lose one bottle, a Gatorade bottle from the exchange which was a bit too tall for my seat tube cage. Hit a bump at about 23 mph, ejected it, then ran over it, exploding it all over the road -- somehow didn't crash.

Overall very happy with my ride; expected to ride strong because I spent a lot of time on the bike this year.

I saw some unbelievable bikes in this race; carbon Cervelos, QR's, Felts, Aegis, Kestrel -- with 3 grand worth of Zipp wheels too -- WOW! (Luckily, I saw a lot of them from the side as I went by...I wonder if any of them said, "wow look at that cool Valdora") I passed a lot of people on the ride, and only got passed by a few. I wonder what I could do on a souped-up toy like that; maybe when the kids are done college...

Maybe hold back just a little bit in the beginning to save something for the run, but I was right on my plan which was basically to bike hard and hang on for the last 13.

Decent T2 after my dismount mishap - got both shoes unclipped as was my plan to run into T2; however, my wet butt got stuck on the wet saddle with my feet hanging -- YOW!

Had my running shoes and a new pair of socks in another plastic bag, so swapped into the (somewhat) dry socks and shoes. Had my gels, electrolytes, motrin, etc. in a bag for the run next to my shoes which worked out well - loaded my pockets while I was moving.

Just bad luck on the seat incident - nothing.

My rank says it all --- I just could not run any faster. Looking at my Garmin I ran like 4 miles in a row in the beginning at a 9:08 pace, whether I was jogging off a cramp, sprinting like I was running from a lion, or shooting the sh&% with the guy next to me. I got passed left and right, which sucked. My plan was to have a fast bike then hang on to bring it home, but I really thought I could run in the 8's on this course.

Had some bad cramps in my quads out of T2, which luckily went away after a quick stop to drink, take a couple motrin and some electrolytes. Those 30 seconds helped me save a lot of pain I think.

It finally stopped raining here too. My funniest thought during the run was when we were running out thru the campground in the park. What were all the campers who weren't in the race thinking about all the sopping wet nut-cases slogging thru the campground?

Looking back, my run volume on this plan, and in general, were lower than last year. So, given that, coupled with going hard on the bike, I fell apart a bit. I need to build in more long runs next year; along with a couple race simulation bricks to get over this hump.

Stretched, walked around a bit, ate.


Swim time and run volume. Bike I felt right on, but this is a 3-sport event. I need to find that next zone mentally at the end to push the run no matter what. I still had 10-15 beats of HR where I could have gone up and ran if my legs would have taken me.


I liked this race; felt it was well organized overall. I thought the course was nice, especially the bike. Lots of volunteers and police on the roads in the pouring rain, and hordes of boy scouts at the bottle exchange and run stops. I made sure to shout a thank you every time I saw them. It got off a couple minutes late, but I'll give them that given the monsoon. Race price was also good for a half; goodies were OK, with a tech shirt, a running hat, and a water bottle. I would do it again.

As for my own performance, I learned a lot about my limitations and have a better idea of what it would take to get me further toward the front of the pack. This is a journey, and I have come a long long way since those first steps when I was 40. When I step back and look at it from the perspective that most of the 43 year old guys in my neighborhood can't run around the block, finishing in the front of the middle of the pack doesn't seem so bad.

The best moment of the whole day was when Kyle ran out to me in the driveway to give me a giant hug to welcome me home and tell me he was proud of me and that I did a great job. Not bad for an 8 year old....