Pigman Long Course Triathlon - Triathlon1/2 Ironman


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Palo, Iowa
United States
JMS Racing Services
93F / 34C
Sunny
Total Time = 6h 32m 54s
Overall Rank = 209/363
Age Group = F35-39
Age Group Rank = 0/
Pre-race routine:

Lisa and I drove up Saturday morning from KS. We arrived at the beautiful Pleasant Creek State Park around 3:30, got our gear unpacked in the cute little cabin we'd reserved, and then headed into town for packet pickup. We found a great little Mexican place for an early dinner, then hit up WalMart to find a makeshift race belt for Lisa (total success!), and went back to the park to do a quick bike ride & make sure everything was working. Got all our gear together and then hit up the showers before calling it a night.
Event warmup:

Staying on-site was such a great idea - we didn't have to get up until 5:30, and then it was just a super short (~ half mile) ride to the transition area. We got our spots set up, and since there weren't that many racers, we had plenty of space. We didn't really do a warm-up; just talked with other racers, and went down to the beach to watch the earlier waves go off. It was so nice outside to start. Wish it could have stayed that cool.
Swim
  • 46m 14s
  • 2112 yards
  • 02m 11s / 100 yards
Comments:

I think this was probably one of my favorite race swims ever. They do a time trial start within waves, so people were spread out enough that there wasn't much contact at all. Lisa started right before me, and for probably the first 800yds we were swimming exactly next to one another. She didn't know it at the time, since she breathes only to her right and didn't even see me on her left, haha, but I found it comforting to know that my friend was right there. I lost her when we rounded one of the buoys, but apparently, she was right behind me on the return, except that I didn't know it. I assumed she's gone on ahead.
I felt so good on the first half and rounded the far buoy at right around 21 min, so I was really surprised that the return took much longer. Not sure what happened there, but I guess I just lost steam!
What would you do differently?:

Train more. As always. Swimming is the sport that I neglect, so I know my muscles just aren't there for long-distance speed. But I still enjoyed this part of the race a lot.
Transition 1
  • 04m 56s
Comments:

I took my sweet time in T1, but I wanted to make sure my feet were free of most debris - they were super sandy after the run up the beach - and I hadn't put any sunscreen on prior to the swim, so I needed to do that in T1.
Bike
  • 3h 12m 27s
  • 56 miles
  • 17.46 mile/hr
Comments:

This course was kind of weird - after a 2 mile ride to exit the park, you had to do 4 laps of a mostly north/south road, with the park entrance in the middle. It was cool in that you were never alone out there, but the course got kind of boring, too.
The winds were maybe 12 mph from the south but didn't seem to be bad, even when it was a direct headwind. I think maybe that was because it was so flat. Except for the hill in the middle by the park entrance, the main part of the ride was pancake flat. So easy. I felt good the whole time. Got to see Lisa multiple times - she was always a couple minutes ahead of me - and saw Ken once or twice.
I dropped my chapstick on the last lap, when it stuck to a bar I was taking out of my bento box. I decided I would need it, due to the sun, so I stopped to pick that up, but it cost me only 10 seconds or so. This was a pretty enjoyable bike, really.

What would you do differently?:

Nothing
Transition 2
  • 04m 16s
Comments:

Took quite a while in T2, mostly to reapply sunscreen. I just wasn't in a hurry, for some reason. I guess it's because all along, I've been thinking of this race as simply a long training day.
Run
  • 2h 25m 4s
  • 13.1 miles
  • 11m 04s  min/mile
Comments:

For such a hot day, I felt surprisingly good during the run. I have been training with a run/walk combo all year, so I did that from the get-go (3:20 run, 0:40 walk). I was in such a good mood to start, I don't even know why - I just like racing.
I took a gel at 0:15, another at 1:15, and then did shot blocks at other 15 min increments. I forgot to bring my handheld bottle, and didn't want to carry the big bike bottle the whole way, so had decided in transition to live off the course. It took a little planning (when to take the GUs) but it worked out ok.
I enjoyed the kids at the beginning of the second campground who had their water guns and would hit you if you gave them a thumbs-up. Also loved that their mom was handing out ice - it felt so good at that point. Nothing really hurt on the run, but I could tell that my toes/toenails were somewhat irritated. Still, they look & feel ok a day later, so I don't think there was any damage. And my quads were starting to get pretty tight in the last lap, but I was still able to run till the end.
Although it got a little annoying having to do 4 laps, I stayed in a pretty darn good mood the whole time. I think my pacing/nutrition/drinking was spot on today.
Post race
Warm down:

After finishing, I got some pizza, cheered on other finishers, and then hung out with Lisa under the shade of a big tree for a while. We met the most chill Labrador retriever ever and a cute Airedale terrier. After we cooled down enough, we rode our bikes back to the campsite & loaded the car. Cleaned up the cabin a little and then hit the shower-house on our way out of the park.

Event comments:

This race definitely had a "smaller race" feel to it, but it had enough support and was fun. They really could have used a sign to direct people back towards the run start for each loop (I'm pretty sure I saw a girl go straight ahead onto a second lap instead of doing the short out-and-back part that you are supposed to do each time). That's my only complaint, though. The four-loop course for both the bike & run can be a tad boring, but the roads were in great condition and there were always people around so you were never lonely. Camping on site is a great option as well - the park itself is beautifully maintained.




Last updated: 2015-08-13 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:46:14 | 2112 yards | 02m 11s / 100yards
Age Group: 0/
Overall: 0/363
Performance: Good
Suit:
Course: Upside-down U shaped course: first you swim inside the buoys; then outside on the return
Start type: Run Plus:
Water temp: 81F / 27C Current: Low
200M Perf. Good Remainder:
Breathing: Drafting:
Waves: Navigation:
Rounding:
T1
Time: 04:56
Performance: Average
Cap removal: Helmet on/
Suit off:
Wetsuit stuck? Run with bike:
Jump on bike:
Getting up to speed:
Biking
03:12:27 | 56 miles | 17.46 mile/hr
Age Group: 0/
Overall: 0/363
Performance: Good
Wind: Some
Course:
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence:
Turns: Cornering:
Gear changes: Hills:
Race pace: Drinks:
T2
Time: 04:16
Overall: Average
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike
Running with bike
Racking bike
Shoe and helmet removal
Running
02:25:04 | 13.1 miles | 11m 04s  min/mile
Age Group: 0/
Overall: 0/363
Performance:
Course: 4 loop run through the park & campsites.
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]