Ironman 70.3 Timberman - Triathlon


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Gilford, New Hampshire
United States
World Triathlon Corporation
Overcast
Total Time = 6h 03m 47s
Overall Rank = 1073/2278
Age Group = M35-39
Age Group Rank = 167/257
Pre-race routine:

Cut coffee out of diet approx two weeks before race;

Evening before and morning of race: Dinner night before was chicken and pasta at about 5pm; after getting all gear ready, was in bed by 8pm; woke up next morning at 4:30am - had a decent night's sleep (and slept deeply.... no trouble falling asleep, did take a melatonin pill) and no trouble waking up.

Pre-race nutrition: breakfast was a bowl of steel cut oats soaked overnight with sliced almonds, walnuts, chia seeds, flax seeds, and blueberries; a hard boiled egg; a banana; bottle of water with nuun

My body marker did not write my numbers legibly!! Lesson - watch body markers and pick one who is writing well!!
Event warmup:

Bib: 1589
Swim
  • 39m 39s
  • 2112 yards
  • 01m 53s / 100 yards
Comments:

Waited a long time to use the ports-john before getting ready to warm-up

After going to the bathroom (lines were crazy long... lesson - go early, as soon as you feel the need), started getting wetsuit on and passing my stuff off to Dalia; used spray body glide - worked well;

Went for a warm-up swim, which was great; water was a little cold, so was good to get adjusted to it

Prior to swim start, had a Gu Roctane with caffeine and a Reboot - these seemed to work well

Wave began race in about waist height water - took the opp to get myself wet and adjusted to the water again; lined up towards the back of the pack and to the left away from the buoys - strategy was to take the first 2-3 buoys away from the crowd until it spread out some, prob around buoy 2 or 3 - this strategy seemed to work; gave Dalia many waves good bye and went off with the horn

Swim was overall amazing!!! It seemed to be over before i knew it. I took it relatively easy the entire way, trying to remain cognizant to keep myself slow and steady; had only a few pick ups, but everything felt comfortable the entire time - relaxed; repeated some mantras but mostly went through body checks throughout swim - wide arm entry, looking up, watching hand enter, not dropping hand, high elbow, full push follow-through, etc.

Gender rank: 766
What would you do differently?:

At first turn, took the turn way too wide.... went far out away from the rest of the pack; at first thought this was good, bc i had my own space; soon realized i was way too far out and losing all drafting ability; took me a while to get back into the pack, and had swam prob 3 buoys by the time i did.... i didn't need to go that far out

Also, at one point another swimmer brought me under the water... as he was swimming alongside me, on his pull grabbed my hip to propel himself forward... caused me to go under for a bit, but recovered quickly
Transition 1
  • 05m 42s
Comments:

Wetsuit strippers saved a lot of time - they were great, but cramped my right hamstring while getting up off the floor... need to be careful about that
What would you do differently?:

Missed the clip-in once or twice... could have been smoother
Bike
  • 3h 18m 16s
  • 56 miles
  • 16.95 mile/hr
Comments:

Nutrition - Had two bottles of coconut water with honey (approx 100 calories each); one bottle of water; three half bananas from the aid stations; two bonk breakers; four smoothie packets

Back started to sieze up pretty early on and got progressively worse; debated pulling over at the medical station (first aid station out and last one back) but ultimately didn't

Stopped at one porta john to pee, which took a couple of minutes

Ride was overall beautiful and i definitely took my time to appreciate the beauty

Gender rank: 994
What would you do differently?:

Figure out my back situation and what to do about it - maybe need a new fitting
Transition 2
  • 04m 57s
Comments:

Had to stop and go to the bathroom in T2... a couple people in front of me formed a line so waited a few minutes for it


What would you do differently?:

I had decided not to take my watch on the run; as i approached T2 on the bike, i realized that i was within 6 hr time if i pushed on the run, so i took the watch - it turned out to be a distraction... i should have stuck to my plan
Run
  • 1h 55m 13s
  • 13.1 miles
  • 08m 48s  min/mile
Comments:

Legs were definitely tight on run from the bike, but never cramped in any particular area; cramping has always been an issue of mine, so this was good! Stopped at each aid station for water and nutrition and walked for a few seconds; definitely went out too fast in the beginning... need to get that under control; right foot toes started giving me problems by mile 6 - by end of race, all three middle toes were blistered and had to be drained - made the last 6 miles very difficult; was overall tight the entire run... stopped to stretch on a couple of occasions; tried soda in the last couple of miles and this seemed to work well without bothering my stomach too much (had tried in a practice run previously)

By the end, wanted to push a little harder and see if i could hit that 6 hour mark, but i just didn't have it in me. I've never felt exhaustion like that. It wasn't that my legs were cramping or that i was particularly fatigued in any area, but just overall exhausted and didn't have anywhere to draw from... i wonder how much of this can be overcome mentally...

Gender rank: 819
What would you do differently?:

Have to figure out my toe situation in my right foot
Post race
Warm down:

Finish line - Victor Cruz salsa move and a big pound and picture with Andy Potts - really nice guy; recovered my energy for a few minutes; stretched with Dalia; went to medical tent for my toes; stretched some more; went to have a burger and two beers!

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Back pains on the bike and right toes blistering on the run

Event comments:

Rumors were floating around the race that this would be the last one... we'll see!




Last updated: 2014-08-30 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:39:39 | 2112 yards | 01m 53s / 100yards
Age Group: 163/257
Overall: 1037/2278
Performance: Good
Suit: Sleeveless wetsuit
Course: Out six yellow buoys; turn right; across four buoys; turn right; back in for six orange buoys
Start type: Wade Plus:
Water temp: 0F / 0C Current: Low
200M Perf. Good Remainder: Good
Breathing: Good Drafting: Average
Waves: Navigation: Average
Rounding: Average
T1
Time: 05:42
Performance: Good
Cap removal: Good Helmet on/
Suit off:
No
Wetsuit stuck? No Run with bike: No
Jump on bike: No
Getting up to speed: Below average
Biking
03:18:16 | 56 miles | 16.95 mile/hr
Age Group: 183/257
Overall: 1328/2278
Performance:
Wind:
Course: Definitely hilly! Especially in the first and last thirds; the middle segment was flat on a highway and made you feel like you were flying after the hills you had just completed; hitting the hills on the way back was a wake up again
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence:
Turns: Cornering:
Gear changes: Good Hills: Good
Race pace: Comfortable Drinks:
T2
Time: 04:57
Overall: Good
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike
Running with bike Average
Racking bike Average
Shoe and helmet removal
Running
01:55:13 | 13.1 miles | 08m 48s  min/mile
Age Group: 167/257
Overall: 1073/2278
Performance: Good
Course: Two loop out and back with a couple of significant but rolling hills
Keeping cool Average Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Average
Mental exertion [1-5] 4
Physical exertion [1-5] 4
Good race? Yes
Evaluation
Course challenge
Organized?
Events on-time?
Lots of volunteers?
Plenty of drinks?
Post race activities:
Race evaluation [1-5]