American Triple T - Race #4: Half Iron - Triathlon1/2 Ironman

Portsmouth, Ohio United States HFP Racing

Total Time = 5h 11m 49s Overall Rank = 15/ Age Group = 25-39 Age Group Rank = 11/

I actually felt good Sunday morning, and turned the day into a race, more so than “lets just finish.” Try and chase down Mike, and get as big of a lead as I can on Matt and try and hold him off on the run.

The swim was great, and Matt and I exited loop 1 right next to each other, Matt gives me his trademark grin that says, “You’re gonna have to wait for the bike to get a lead.” I think to myself, “bull $hit and swim hard.” I exit loop two, look left, and there is that grin looking right at me, I smile back, get a chuckle on our dead even swim, throw the plan of 220 watts/300 cap out the window, and get ready to bike hard—F power.

Matt beats me in and out of T1, and I stay steady…I finally catch up to him, and see it took me 15 minutes to do so.

We hit the first climb and start to chat….I quickly realize riding with Matt is not an option, and go. Honestly, I was hoping Matt would come with me, but he didn’t chase. He knew what I knew—he could wait until the run to chase me down. I’m not sure what I averaged on that first climb, but 300 was one of the smaller numbers I saw…not the cap.

After the climb, I am basically riding alone; not sure if this was smart, as riding back 3 lengths has its advantages; I try not to think much about it and keep pushing the hills really hard, taking “zeros” on the descents and hitting 220-240 on the few flats we have. Starting to get hot, and at mile 22 or so I start to wonder if I am going to be able to run. Should I back off?

No—keep pressing.

My nutrition plan was 3 bottles; I quickly realized that was not nearly enough. I make the turn into the race start where you change up bottles…coming in I see Mike leaving, and think I might be able to catch him. Hit the self support table, exchange and refill, grab about 4-5 Oreo’s and shove them into my mouth. 5 minutes after that I start to feel better and realize I’m not eating enough.

Starting lap 2—there he is, Matt and his grin, check my clock and figure I put 1-2 minutes into him….I realize I need about 7 to hold him off on the run, so I keep pushing.

I’m really starting to wonder about the run and if I’ll be able to pull it off….At the same time, there is little to lose—I’m not going to win the race, and my only chance of taking Matt was to put in more time on the bike.

I keep pushing.

At mile 30 or so I drop a full bottle, and make the spilt second decision to stop and get it. I am convinced that saved my race….I nearly kept going and would have been done.

With 15-20 miles to go I really wanted off the bike, and the body is coming in and out of feeling good, and on the edge of feeling bad—it was hot, but I was on the brink of getting chills, but they never came. I just kept eating and pushing.

The last few miles allow you to get in some zeros and prepare to run. I’m really concerned about my ability to run, so take the opportunity to recover while going 30+ mph.

I hit T2, and grab some water and infinit and realize I’m in for a battle. I keep checking for Matt and never see him. I figure I got 3 minutes or so if he kept pace.

After the first mile, I realize I’m going to be able to run. I was able to lift my HR, and was passing the field. Saw some folks walking and turned my focus on finishing strong.

As I was approaching the first turn around, I see Mike who looks really good, we exchange words of encouragement. I make the turn around, and learn I have a decent lead on Matt—about 3 minutes. At this point, I start attacking the descents, not worrying about saving the legs for another race.

Finish lap one, grab some Oreo’s (I didn’t want them, but forced them down as I had missed the infinit table and had nothing else), and my lead on Matt is about the same. I start to push and lift my HR/effort and I am able to do so.

See Mike again, make turn around (Mike is way up, a solid 10 minutes) and see Matt again; with that big grin. Lead is down to 90 seconds and he looks fresh and strong.

I keep running, it's really hot, and with about 2.5 miles to go Matt floats by me. . I let it get to me for a few minutes, than realize I’m having an excellent race—finish strong. I pick up the effort and hit the line just under 5:12—Matt went just over 5:10. Mike crushed it with a 5:02.

Right after crossing the line, we were sharing war stories and really enjoying the moment. That was this weekend was all about—exploring your limits and discovering what you are able to back up every day.

Looking at the results, Matt and I realized we would make a pretty good team. He went 8th OA, I was 10th. We swim the same, he gaps me on the run, and my strength is the bike.

We’ll be back in 2012 as a team—I have no doubt together we have the ability to go much faster than we do alone. I told him he is going to have to push me up the hills on the run—he seemed to be OK with that as long as I bomb the descents on Lamp Black Trail from the get go….

11th OA solo racer, moved me up to 10th OA and 10th in the AG group, which is Male, 25-39.

big congrats to Jazz and Yeats--who defended their co-ed title--that is no joke on this course....so much can go wrong with pacing. for two people to be on, hit the pacing is some good stuff, IMO.....