Ironman 70.3 Buffalo Springs Lake - Triathlon


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Lubbock, Texas
United States
World Triathlon Corporation
90F / 32C
Sunny
Total Time = 6h 18m 5s
Overall Rank = 406/1000
Age Group = 55-59
Age Group Rank = 13/30
Pre-race routine:

Nothing Special, but was late getting to the site, and the line up to parking was 2 miles long. Had to have the wife drop me & run to the transition area so that I could make the event start before the closed the transition. Had about 20 minutes to set up total. BTW it costs $6 per person to get in to the race venue if they are not one of the athletes.
Event warmup:

Jumped in the water, and was told to get out as the Pros where starting in 2 minutes.
Swim
  • 35m 10s
  • 2112 yards
  • 01m 40s / 100 yards
Comments:

No warm up. Start was a lot of contact until the 2nd turn buoy. After that a rookie mistake, thought I had sighted for the next turn buoy and thought it was next to a sailboat, turned out the sailboat was about ¼ mile into the race course. A kayak was coming over to me to tell me that I was way off course. Somehow I was able to get back to the buoy and still PR the swim by 5 minutes over my past PR at 35:10
What would you do differently?:

Sight for the buoy not the sail boat.
Transition 1
  • 04m 57s
Comments:

Wet Suit Strippers!!!!

Had to use the porta potty as I was late getting to the transition, didn't have enough time. Also put on gloves for riding on the chip seal. Added more sunscreen too. Ran into a line of folks exiting at the same time and ran out into the front of the mounting zone.
What would you do differently?:

Get to the race venue earlier to do my business
Bike
  • 3h 02m 27s
  • 56 miles
  • 18.46 mile/hr
Comments:

The hill out of transition is a 4.4% grade ¾ of a mile long. Nasty start to the bike race. Luckily I knew about it, lots of folks were cranking up the hill, went slow. 7 major hills on the race, didn’t want to use it all on the 1st. Once we got up on the prairie things where OK, or so I thought. I didn’t know until later that I had a tailwind. Mile 15 headwind, & stronger than I expected, head to gear way down. Headwind lasted until mile 28. Then I got the cross wind, then the tailwind, then the back to the headwind. Yup it was windy.
Hills where bigger than I expected, but climbable nothing like Chelanman, mostly like Lake Stevens.. Got behind on my nutrition, didn’t finish it as after about mile 25 or so stomach wasn’t liking the perpetuim. As I came back I wanted to be under the 3 hour mark, but with a 9% hill right before the finish, didn’t want to burn myself out. Time: 3:02:27, felt pretty strong for the run for the 1st time. 4 minutes faster than my previous PR!

What would you do differently?:

Go a little harder on the flats in the headwind maybe, over very happy with it.
Transition 2
  • 04m 7s
Comments:

Uneventful Bathroom stop. Forgot my gels
What would you do differently?:

Remember my power bar gels.
Run
  • 2h 31m 34s
  • 13.1 miles
  • 11m 34s  min/mile
Comments:

1st 4 miles actually had to slow down to the pace that Jill had planned. 1st big hill, walked up it. Ran down the next mile no issues. 2nd big hill walked up, started running out the energy lab; it’s a stretch with no shade and a false flat. I was doing great until mile 6, when things started to go south. Mentally I wasn’t happy, so I hit the gu at the run turnaround, mile 7 more gu. Stomach wasn’t happy, but it stayed down. Was able to get back in the mile 6 ½ to mile 7 ½ run a telephone pole walk a telephone pole. Mile 8 & 9 was able to run again. Mile 10 BIG hill, walk. Mile 11 run again! Had to walk a bunch of mile 12 as I was cooked. Not my worst run, but not my best either. Still need to work on this. Had some IT band issues beginning about mile 8 that when I pushed it, I could feel the tug. Overall need work here for the distance.
What would you do differently?:

Work more before the race on running? Remember my gels.
Post race
Warm down:

Nothing eventful. The watermelon was really good. Laying in the lake was nice.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

IT band, heat, Central time zone vs. pacific has it's challenges too.

Event comments:

Really like the Hawaiian aid station on the run, it was very cool. Overall a very good experience and I may do it again, but it doesn't have the same vibe as lets say Boise, but better than Lake Stevens.




Last updated: 2013-01-22 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:35:10 | 2112 yards | 01m 40s / 100yards
Age Group: 11/30
Overall: 333/1000
Performance: Good
Suit: Full
Course: 1st buoy is on the right after that it is a counter clockwise course.
Start type: Wade Plus: Waves
Water temp: 74F / 24C Current: Low
200M Perf. Good Remainder: Good
Breathing: Good Drafting: Good
Waves: Navigation:
Rounding: Good
T1
Time: 04:57
Performance: Bad
Cap removal: Good Helmet on/
Suit off:
Yes
Wetsuit stuck? No Run with bike: No
Jump on bike: Yes
Getting up to speed: Good
Biking
03:02:27 | 56 miles | 18.46 mile/hr
Age Group: 12/30
Overall: 347/1000
Performance: Good
Wind: Headwind with gusts
Course: 2 out & backs with canyons
Road: Smooth Wet Cadence:
Turns: Cornering: Good
Gear changes: Good Hills: Average
Race pace: Comfortable Drinks: Not enough
T2
Time: 04:07
Overall: Average
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike
Running with bike Good
Racking bike Good
Shoe and helmet removal Good
Running
02:31:34 | 13.1 miles | 11m 34s  min/mile
Age Group: 13/30
Overall: 406/1000
Performance: Below average
Course: Tough course you run around Buffalo Springs lake to the south (away from the dam) then you go up the canyon hill, then down, then back up as you exit the event venue. Hills are at least 4% suspect closer to 5. There is an out and back called the energy lab that lasts from mile 5 to mile 8.5 that has no shade and warm wind.
Keeping cool Average Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Good
Mental exertion [1-5] 3
Physical exertion [1-5] 3
Good race? Yes
Evaluation
Course challenge Just right
Organized? Yes
Events on-time? Yes
Lots of volunteers? Yes
Plenty of drinks? Yes
Post race activities: Below average
Race evaluation [1-5] 4