Persona Oliver Half Iron - Triathlon1/2 Ironman


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Oliver, British Columbia
Canada
Sunny
Total Time = 5h 45m 5s
Overall Rank = 233/783
Age Group = M35-39
Age Group Rank = 37/74
Pre-race routine:

Drove up on Friday so that pre-race day was easy. On Saturday I did a easy 500m swim from the beach where the race starts to test out the wetsuit and make sure the goggles weren't leaking (like last race!). Also did an easy half loop around the north half of the bike course to check out the bike and make sure everything was all set up properly - had just put on a a new X-lab behind-the-seat bottle carrier that I needed to test too. Checked the bike in and chilled.
Event warmup:

Got to the site around 45 minutes early for marking and checkin. Sunscreened up and then spent 10 minutes splashing in the lake to get acclimatized to the water.
Swim
  • 38m 14s
  • 2000 meters
  • 01m 55s / 100 meters
Comments:

A good start to this one - very little jostling around. They stage this start with 3 waves so there isn't a huge crush in the water. Managed to catch some feet for a little while and dropped on and off them throughout the swim. Coming out of the water I was a bit surprised at how slow I was, but it seems that the course was a little long - many people had the same comment. Overall a good swim - wasn't fatigued which I always consider a success!
What would you do differently?:

I always wonder if I should go harder on the swim - but I figure the energy is better saved for the run...
Transition 1
  • 06m 9s
Comments:

This race has a weird transition - about a 500m run from the lake to T1. Got the suit off pretty quickly (no thanks to the rather ineffective stripper - thanks for trying though). Long run to T1, then pretty quick to get on the bike.
What would you do differently?:

Take off my wetsuit myself? Learn how to run faster? Actually turn on and start my Garmin?
Bike
  • 2h 40m 53s
  • 93 kms
  • 34.68 km/hr
Comments:

Spent the whole bike consciously trying to go slower than I wanted to. It's hard since this is such a fast course.
Overall I thought I managed my nutrition really well - downing the right amount of Carbo-Pro/EFS + elete drops on time. Had a little trouble sometimes drinking in aero and had to sit up to get it down. Finished 2 bottles in two hours and had a gel + water in the last 20 minutes.
I retrospect I probably went too fast overall on the bike - see run comments...
What would you do differently?:

Get a better mount for my Garmin to monitor HR and speed. Perhaps try and go even slower...
Transition 2
  • 03m 33s
Comments:

Slapped on a little extra sunscreen - it was getting really hot at this point... uh oh.
Run
  • 2h 16m 17s
  • 21.1 kms
  • 06m 28s  min/km
Comments:

Ouch! Started badly with a side stitch right out of T2 - I was going a little too fast I guess. Probably drank too much water at the end of the bike too. The stitch didn't go away until around 6 km when I started walking aid stations - need to remember to slow down and the stitch will pass - my thinking always gets a little stupid on the run though. Didn't start drinking and managing the heat early enough - by 5 km I was starting to overheat rather badly. Started walking aid stations and putting a wet sponge in my hat as well as alternating cups of cola and water. Had some extra electrolytes (elete drops) a few times. Developed a wicked blister by about 14km and I think the last 2 km of this run were the hardest I've ever had on a run - a lot of people were walking at that point and it was hard to not join them. The Garmin measured the course at ~21.8 km - that last "km" took FOREVER!
What would you do differently?:

My lack of long run training (no runs over 1:15 since March due to a combination of injury and illness) really hurt me. I definitely need to pay more attention to heat management as well as going even slower on the bike.
Post race
Warm down:

After tentatively negotiating the stairs to the beach I soaked my legs in the lake for a while. Meandered over to the post-race BBQ with the wife and kid and had a burger. I'm usually ravenous after half's but didn't have much appetite today - too much heat I think. My legs have never hurt that much in my life... until Ironman Canada I guess...

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Getting injured in April and not running for 3 weeks really set back my run training.

Event comments:

Immediately after the race I was pretty disappointed with my overall result (though the bike time was awesome!) but given the heat (~30 on course - my first time exercising in weather hotter than 23 degrees this year!) and run training this went rather well I think. Looking forward to next year!




Last updated: 2011-03-31 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:38:14 | 2000 meters | 01m 55s / 100meters
Age Group: 23/74
Overall: 166/783
Performance: Good
Suit: BlueSeventy Axis
Course: Elongated triangle in Tuc-El-Nuit Lake.
Start type: Wade Plus:
Water temp: 0F / 0C Current: Low
200M Perf. Good Remainder:
Breathing: Drafting:
Waves: Navigation:
Rounding:
T1
Time: 06:09
Performance: Average
Cap removal: Helmet on/
Suit off:
Wetsuit stuck? Run with bike:
Jump on bike:
Getting up to speed:
Biking
02:40:53 | 93 kms | 34.68 km/hr
Age Group: 22/74
Overall: 116/783
Performance: Good
Wind: Little
Course: 2 1/2 loops of Hwy 97 and Black Sage Road. Rolling with one little hill.
Road: Smooth  Cadence:
Turns: Cornering:
Gear changes: Hills:
Race pace: Comfortable Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 03:33
Overall: Average
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike
Running with bike
Racking bike
Shoe and helmet removal
Running
02:16:17 | 21.1 kms | 06m 28s  min/km
Age Group: 48/74
Overall: 401/783
Performance: Below average
Course: 2 loops of a pretty flat mixture of road and trails. A few little hills.
Keeping cool Below average Drinking Not enough
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Average
Mental exertion [1-5]
Physical exertion [1-5]
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:
Race evaluation [1-5] 5