Ironman 70.3 Boise - Triathlon1/2 Ironman

There's nothing like waiting to get into that water while watching athletes getting pulled out left and right shaking uncontrollably. The first thought that came into my mind was, "Okay, what the f*ck are these guys experiencing that I'm about to experience myself?!" The start was like a bad nightmare...people sitting on the ground huddled into balls, dripping with water, shaking and even crying...I just wanted in that water. As far as I knew, that water was close to 20 degrees warmer than the air temps. Get me in there now!! I'll deal with how I feel out of the water afterwards...

Swim went well...Didn't go as straight as I wanted to, but that seems to be the theme with me. Between now and my next race I plan on getting my stroke analyzed and work with a coach on swimming more efficiently.

My goal was 40:00 and I just barely missed it...

Ummmm...not get in??

In all seriousness, the water was pleasant.(relatively speaking) I put my hands in to splash my face and it literally felt warm...for a split second it was like I was taking a bath. After that split second, however, it felt like 57 degrees...I loved the amount of buoys that they had out there, but even with them out there, my sighting was below par. If I would have sighted more often, I would have been money...

Yes, you read that right...9:21 in transition!! Now, mind you, the run up to transition took a good 2 minutes, but this is still a long time to be in transition. I was very confused in transition...I was putting things on in the wrong order and having to pull them back off to get the right clothes on. At one point, I wanted to sit down, but the ground was too wet so I didn't...Meanwhile, I was soaking wet already, plus it was raining. Just a couple examples of my distorted thinking...

I decided that I would try to be as warm as possible on the bike...I put on an insulated t-shirt, arm warmers, a beanie and a jacket. The whole time trying to get my hands to work and my brain to function. I felt like I was only there for maybe 5 minutes...I can't even imagine what I was doing for that long.

Speed up?? Slow down?? Who knows? I could barely tell what I did let alone what I'd do differently...

You know when you have one of those dreams that you can kind of remember vividly, but not completely? You can make out the environment or details of the dream, but there is no order or it's all kind of blurry? That is what my bike leg was like; I can remember some things with detail, yet there are parts of the course that I just don't have any recollection of at all...

I remember being very cold, but that's it. This was a terrible bike leg for me. It was mostly down hill or flat, the rain had almost stopped and yet I still only averaged 16.6 MPH over a 12 mile stretch. A low intensity training ride is usually faster than that and during my last OLY, I averaged about 21 MPH...My only guess is that the faster I went, the colder I got so I opted for an easy, slow pace instead.

My goal was to average between 18-19 MPH...next time, I suppose.


ETA: Ironman Boise adjusted the course distance which actually brought my avg. MPH to 18.8...a little closer to what my goals were after all.

A few athletes took off in their wetsuits, including Matty Reed who tied for first place. I suppose that would have been worth thinking about?? But besides that I'm not sure...I guess push harder? Ignore the cold? Think straighter?? I was really trying to stay as comfortable as possible. I didn't even accomplish that...

Well, not a fast transition, but I had a lot of clothes to shed. I was still numb and I was dealing with a "clean transition" for the first time ever...On top of that, I think I was still trying to get over what I'd just endured. After a quick drink, I was off to run...

Nothing...performed as well as I wanted to. Just glad to be done with the bike.

I wasn't expecting much from this run...I had missed weeks of running due to injury and even when I was able to get back to it my pace was slow and the mileage was kept to a minimum. It took me a while to feel my feet again, but I was running with high energy...The sun was out, (Go figure!!) my legs were fresh, and I saw my cousins right out of the chute cheering me on. I was finally having fun. About 1/2 mile into the race I saw my mother in the distance cheering me on...This was the first race that she was ever able to attend. She was beyond proud...It was as much her moment as it was mine and I acknowledged her moment by taking the time to go up to her, give her a big hug and kiss and thank her for being there. The seconds it added to my time will provide her with a lifetime of happiness and that makes it well worth it...

I also took a couple minutes to use the restroom...first time for me during a triathlon, but it had to happen. It was so bad that I was starting to cramp. Even then, I was arguing with myself as to whether or not I should stop to the point of me actually passing the porto-potty by about 20 feet before turning back. I kind of laughed at myself for making such an nonstrategic move, but I felt 100x better so it was worth it. Rest of the run went very well...I was trying to hold a sub 9/mile pace which for me is a fast half marathon pace. I was in pain, but it was an enjoyable pain and keeping things enjoyable was my main priority after such a brutal experience. I took advantage of all the aid stations (one per mile!!) and took in plenty of water, 'Perform', GU and Cola...The volunteers were GREAT!!

As I was coming into the last two miles a friend of mine says to me, "If you got it in you, turn it on, Jasen. You've only got 2 miles to go!". This lit a fire under my ass and I kept my pace in the low 7's for the rest of the race...I finished strong, finished happy and I finished WARM!! My goal was 2-2:10 and I finished in about 1:53. I'll take the one positive out what was otherwise a pretty miserable performance.

Nothing...My main goal was to enjoy this run and I executed that plan perfectly. I love Boise...It's where I grew up and the Greenbelt holds so many memories for me. This just added one more.

My good friend Jon, as well as my family and fiancee were all there waiting for me...I wrapped up in my foil blanket, grabbed some pizza and just hung out still trying to figure out how the day went...Eventually grabbed a beer, more pizza and a latte' to warm up my insides...


Do you really have to ask???


What can I say about a race that went from a 70.3 to a 26.3?? With all the training and all the money invested into this race, to say I was disappointed is a gross understatement. I've never experienced race conditions like this before, never pushed myself into such extreme elements, but that lingering feeling of failure will not go away...Could I have made it through the whole bike in those conditions?? Would all of my hard work produced the results I was hoping for?? Was my nutrition on Point?? These are just some of the questions that will never be answered...This was my first 70.3 attempt and I wanted to take it. I have to trust that the WTC were just saving us from ourselves. That the spirit of the the athletes participating would have put us in danger that we would have been too stubborn to acknowledge. Hundreds of those signed up didn't even toe the starting line. And out of those who did, many were pulled before they finished. (Including multiple Pros) But as much as I try to find sense of achievement, I'm finding it very hard to do...Next year, come rain, sleet or snow, Ironman Boise 70.3 is all mine!!