Ironman Canada - TriathlonFull Ironman


View Member's Race Log View other race reports
Penticton, British Columbia
Canada
North America Sports
Total Time = 10h 56m 31s
Overall Rank = 303/2648
Age Group = 35-39
Age Group Rank = 58/240
Pre-race routine:

For those with ADHD feel free to skip the reading and just watch my race report...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u2ABm3wE2GM

  • ..or if you're bored, here it is.

  • Up at 4:00 a.m. Forced, I mean forced down food. First IM so felt fairly nervous.
    Event warmup:

    Actually started to feel calm once I got body marked and into the transition area. Bathroom line-ups were horrendous, so I jumped the fence and went to the hotel. Drank a bunch of pre-race drink and felt like a coiled spring. I was happy about that because I felt so terrible for most of my taper.
    Swim
    • 1h 07m 40s
    • 4224 yards
    • 01m 36s / 100 yards
    Comments:

    Started about 4 rows back and to the left of the buoy line. Went out at a steady but moderate pace, never got HR up to high and looked to draft as much as possible. Felt like I was going really slow but I kept reminding myself of the long day to come. Amount of contact wasn't too bad, just what you'd expect from a mass IM start. Waved at the frogman on the second turn. The whole swim went by very quickly. Now that I think of it, I loved the swim, the mass start with a huge crowd watching, all the boats, the helicopter, awesome.
    What would you do differently?:

    Recognize a good draft when you have it and don't let it go as easy as I did on several occasions.
    Transition 1
    • 04m 17s
    Comments:

    Wetsuit strippers were great. Lucky to have a friend Andrew volunteering and he grabbed me, got my bag, dumped it out and got me going. Skipped the chaos of the change tent and did my whole routine on the grass.
    What would you do differently?:

    Simplify, less stuff. Being that it was my first IM, I think I over-packed. Too much food, too much bike repair equipment, to much everything.
    Bike
    • 5h 40m 37s
    • 112 miles
    • 19.73 mile/hr
    Comments:

    I had ridden the course several times earlier in the summer, so I knew exactly what to expect (and is now my number one training recommendation). Held back big time going down to Osoyoos, it felt like I got passed by half the race. Gradually increased effort after that but still always holding back. Started seeing family and friends in various places all over the course, which was great and makes a huge difference. Wind wasn't bad this year so the out-and-back was fine. Riding up to Yellow Lakes is awesome. The supporters line the side of the road and you get this great energy from them. Got speed wobbles coming down from YL but that was the only sketchiness on the bike.
    What would you do differently?:

    Need to get stronger on the bike (doesn't everyone). Compared to AG, my bike time really was a bit slow. Also, too much junk in the SN bag. Seriously, it was like a someone emptied half a 7-11 into my bag. Ended up having to stop and dig through everything for the only thing I wanted (more gels).
    Transition 2
    • 05m 8s
    Comments:

    I don't know why this was so embarrassingly slow. Well actually I do, it's because I decided to put compression sleeves on my calves and change my pee soaked socks (hey, at least I was well hydrated). I also though it would be good to put so much crap in this bag as well so that it would be like a little mind game to figure out what I actually needed in the middle of a race, you know just to keep me on my toes.
    What would you do differently?:

    Less junk in bags!!!!! Seriously, who is going to want a melted Snickers bar or a 2 lb. bag of jube jubes before they run a marathon? Apparently I thought I might.
    Run
    • 3h 58m 51s
    • 26.2 miles
    • 09m 07s  min/mile
    Comments:

    Lucked out with weather, warm but not as hot as previous years. But had a brain fart and left my Garmin attached to my bike. Realized this about 100m out of transition. Thought about going back, but figured that since I just finished reading "Born to Run", I should be good to go without any of this fancy smanchy stuff like pace, heart rate, race time, etc....oh god what have I done (my thoughts at third aid station). Luckily found a great guy named Greg (from Penticton)who was running about the same pace as me and we just chugged along together, he shouted out our pace every km or so for the first 15km. Seriously, what a great guy, thanks buddy, I owe you a beer. At the turn in OK Falls I ran into a good friend Nick who was watching this year. He told me that I could go sub-11 if I ran 6 minute km's for the last half of the run. This is where my entire day of holding back paid off. I knew what that pace generally felt like so I just went for it. No walking hills, no long conversations with other participants about what a great day it was. Just do what you trained all year for. Ended up with a negative split and just slipping in under the 11 hour mark. The last half of the run was as tough a run as I've ever done but coming down the finishing chute at an IM for the first time is a feeling that for me is beyond description. Well worth every single second I spent preparing this year.
    What would you do differently?:

    Ah, maybe not leave my Garmin on my bike for starters.
    Post race
    Warm down:

    Lie...on...ground. Eat...pizza.

    What limited your ability to perform faster:

    My parents' genetics.

    Event comments:

    This race was the perfect cap to an amazing year of training. Was satisfied with the result considering that a year ago I had never done a triathlon.






    Last updated: 2012-09-14 12:00 AM
    Swimming
    01:07:40 | 4224 yards | 01m 36s / 100yards
    Age Group: 58/240
    Overall: 408/2648
    Performance: Average
    Suit:
    Course:
    Start type: Plus:
    Water temp: 0F / 0C Current:
    200M Perf. Remainder:
    Breathing: Drafting:
    Waves: Navigation:
    Rounding:
    T1
    Time: 04:17
    Performance: Average
    Cap removal: Helmet on/
    Suit off:
    Wetsuit stuck? Run with bike:
    Jump on bike:
    Getting up to speed:
    Biking
    05:40:37 | 112 miles | 19.73 mile/hr
    Age Group: 72/240
    Overall: 435/2648
    Performance: Average
    Wind: Some
    Course: Awesome course. Single loop. Got everything, flats, hills, rollers.
    Road:   Cadence:
    Turns: Cornering:
    Gear changes: Hills:
    Race pace: Drinks:
    T2
    Time: 05:08
    Overall: Bad
    Riding w/ feet on shoes
    Jumping off bike
    Running with bike
    Racking bike
    Shoe and helmet removal
    Running
    03:58:51 | 26.2 miles | 09m 07s  min/mile
    Age Group: 49/240
    Overall: 280/2648
    Performance:
    Course: Single loop. Down to OK Falls and back. Some hills but mostly flat.
    Keeping cool Drinking
    Post race
    Weight change: %
    Overall:
    Mental exertion [1-5]
    Physical exertion [1-5]
    Good race?
    Evaluation
    Course challenge
    Organized?
    Events on-time?
    Lots of volunteers?
    Plenty of drinks?
    Post race activities:
    Race evaluation [1-5]