Ironman 70.3 California - Triathlon1/2 Ironman

More than 2 minutes slower than last year. I'm not a fast swimmer and I've had some miserable race swims when I go out too hard, so I just wanted to take it easy, swim straight and try to save something for the rest of the day. It was overcast, so sighting wasn't an issue. Goggles stayed clear and visibility was great. I felt great the whole time. Probably took it too easy.

Maybe push a little more. Focus on swim training (while keeping up with the bike and the run).

Long run around transition and in through the back end then down to my rack (about halfway down). Had a good rack, with an open walkway in front of it, so there was plenty of space. Took a while to get my wetsuit off of my chip ankle and over the heel. Race belt, glasses, helmet, go! The mount went well.

This went okay. T1 at Oside is long. I was shooting for 3 minutes.

Heading into the race, I had seen weather reports that called for very moderate winds at Camp Pendleton, and I didn't think that conditions would be too bad on the back side of base. The first section up to San Clemente was very fast and it didn't seem like too much work to maintain 23-24 mph. I just planned to hammer the bike for as long as I could and deal with whatever came later. My heart rate was up over 170 after climbing the first hill up out of the harbor and that was concerning, but it dropped down under 160 for most of the ride. I was keeping an eye on cadence and was trying to maintain between 90-100 rpm and keep my heart rate around 150. When we turned onto base in San Clemente, the wind picked up and it became more difficult to maintain speed. Packs formed as everyone braced for the first big hill. I got some nutrition on board and headed on up. The first hill wasn't too bad, but I didn't feel like I was charging up it like I did last year. I could feel my quads burning and I wasn't passing many people (it could have something to do with the fact that I was in an earlier wave this year, so we weren't catching up to many people). Between the first and second hills, the wind picked up and things got pretty tough. I was going 14 mph at one point on what seemed like flat ground. No one was passing me, though, so I just figured it must be a false flat. The hills and wind (and perhaps pushing the pace in the first section) took their toll on me and I started to feel pretty bad around mile 35. I took on nutrition and would come good every 10 minutes or so, but my cadence and HR were down and I just didn't have much power. I couldn't take full advantage of the last 10 miles into T2 and never really made up any ground from there on. That last section along Vandegrift was horrible for me. I was all alone and I couldn't wait to get off the bike - or just see something, anything. It was much different than last year when I was still feeling good, racing, and looking forward to the run.

Maybe back off a bit in the earlier section and save something for the back side of base. Do some longer TT rides in training. Hour-long spin classes & trainer sessions, races and easy social rides didn't quite prep me for the second (and third!) hour on the bike. Take on more nutrition early on the bike. I had a few sips of Carbo-Pro, but that's about it for the first hour of the bike (and nothing pre-swim). Should have eaten some Bloks, but I was uncomfortable with the high heart rate and didn't feel like eating. Could barely take on the fluids.

Good dismount (no lost shoes). Very easy to spot my rack with the walkway and tents next to it. Took time to lace up shoes. Ran out with handheld bottle and Garmin.

Use speed laces. It took a while to get things tied up. I just feel that Yankz mess with the lacing pattern on my Newtons and I'm not comfortable with how they fit. Maybe I should try Lock Laces or one of the other brands out there?

Had a feeling this was going to be a struggle. Started off with 7:15s and they didn't exactly feel easy. Shuffle, shuffle. Saw a lot of TCSD and BT peeps on the run. That helped. Was cool to see the Women's race unfold, with Rinny in 6th finishing up her first loop, in 4th heading towards the last turnaround and then in the lead by about 20 yards heading for home across the bridge. I saw Andy Potts and Rasmus Henning running shoulder-to-shoulder along the strand.

Do more bricks. Train for the run. Last year, I went out at 6:15 for the first two miles and it felt so easy, I thought my Garmin must be off. This year, starting easy meant 7:15s, which soon became 7:30s and then almost 8s.

Hung out at the finish area until Monica showed up along the fence. Then we went out back, so I could coach/encourage Karen's dad Jim through T2. He had had a rough swim (1:10) and had to use the paddlers. The bike cut-off was going to be at 1:18 p.m. and he came through just after 1:10. He had nothing left, but got his shoes on and shuffled on down to the Run Out. We stayed for rolldown and there was one Vegas spot that rolled over from the Men's 75+ division. At first, there were only two of us for the spot and the other guy was over 6 hours. I was walking up to the podium and another guy came in from outside and claimed the spot with a 4:48. Oh well, he definitely deserved it more than I did. Maybe I'll have a shot at Honu.


I didn't really do much run training leading up to this race and I raced a lot. I'm sure the Olympic PR last weekend didn't really set me up well for a good race - but there were others that did very well at Oceanside after racing SuperSeal, so I'm not sure I can use that as an excuse. I've been trying to figure out how to swim lately and now that I think of it, I really haven't done all that much focused HIM training. Honu 70.3 has been the big A race on the horizon and I've kind of been piddling around, having fun racing and training socially. Boston in 2 weeks is going to hurt! I need start a serious HIM plan, focusing on June 4th soon!


Oceanside is one of the best races I've ever done. It ranks right up there next to Boston and Clearwater. I feel very fortunate to be able to race such a high-caliber event so close to home. The marines were great and supported the race in full force. Also, the Triathlon Club of San Diego provided almost 300 volunteers and had about 200 members in the race. Everywhere I looked, I saw someone I knew.