Pumpkinman Triathlon - Long Course - Triathlon1/2 Ironman

The first 200 meters were rough. I felt like I was being squished from both sides. It was good practice I guess for CdA :) I got a little out of breath finding open water but then settled into a nice comfortable pace. Very comfortable swim after the first couple shots to the face. It was a wave start - 39 and under men first.

I put sunblock on my bald head and my capped sort of squirted off at the first turn. I stuck it into my wetsuit and was good from there.

This was a 1/4 mile run up hill out of the water. The transition went fine which is not reflected in the time.

nothing

I went out at a easy/steady pace and made sure to spin up the hills knowing the last climb was going to burn the legs.

nothing

Felt good

nothing

Wheels came off in the desert. Over 100 degrees at the turnaround and I could not cool off. It was all survival by the second loop but I got into a manageable pace and pushed through. I don't run well anyway off the bike but the heat was brutal.

Not much. I took in as much fluid as I could stand and it still wasn't enough to keep my HR down.

Lunch, Irish Rattler (yum), and then back down to the lake to pick up the bike.


Heat


This is usually a very well run race and I always recommend it.

2 items that needed improvement:

The packet pickup was from 3-8 on Friday (line took 45 minutes) with a mandatory T1 bag drop off 30 minutes away. Maybe have them at the same place?

A quarter mile out of transition they forgot to open a gate across the road. One volunteer yelled "just go left" which would have added about 4 miles to the ride. A group of us had to throw our bikes over the gate while they got the key. I heard they got the gate open pretty quickly.

Volunteers were great! They were all dying in the heat too and boy were they busy. Almost everyone was taking 3-4 cups at every water station.

Overall good race on a tough course.