Ironman Ohio - Triathlon1/2 Ironman


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Delaware, Ohio
United States
78F / 26C
Sunny
Total Time = 6h 37m 34s
Overall Rank = 1355/2341
Age Group = M 40-44
Age Group Rank = 167/252
Pre-race routine:

Woke up around 4:30 and started to get myself ready. Put on my tri tats, ate my clif bar and headed out to the car. My wife was gracious enough to drive me and my friend to the start so we didn't have to mess with the shuttles.
Headed into transition and got my hydration set up on the bike and my bike gear laid out. Once all that was done and ready, I left transition and headed to the area in front of the water to hang out with my fellow tri club members and wait for the start.
Event warmup:

Nothing other than walking around and doing some light dynamic stretches to get my arms and shoulders nice and loose.
Swim
  • 47m 34s
  • 2112 yards
  • 02m 15s / 100 yards
Comments:

New for this year, Ironman instituted a time trial start, self-seeded by estimated finish time. I liked the change as it made the start much less chaotic. You still have the issues of people who have no idea how to self-seed, but I definitely spent less time swimming around people.
No way to know for sure, but I would swear that there was some type of current moving across the course. On the out and back, I kept finding myself getting pushed off course and along the back, the swim felt much slower than usual.
Overall, very nice swim.
What would you do differently?:

Nothing different
Transition 1
  • 03m 57s
Comments:

Not a long run into transition, which was nice. The parking lot was full of gravel, which was not nice. Once I got off the mats and into transition, I had to walk rather gingerly to protect my feet. I also had to spend a few extra moments wiping the sand, dirt and gravel off my feet prior to putting socks and shoes on. Not a huge deal, but it probably added an extra minute to my time.
Bike
  • 2h 58m 45s
  • 56 miles
  • 18.80 mile/hr
Comments:

Perfect conditions for the bike. A very flat course and almost no breeze made for a very fast first 28 miles! I got myself up to speed and pretty much held a consistent pace. Didn't want to push too hard because I knew from last year that some hills awaited on the back half and I didn't want to burn out my legs too soon.
On the back half of the course, the breeze started to pick up a little and there were a few miles that had some minor head winds. Nothing terrible, but definitely noticeable. Hit the hills and did pretty well on them. Living in North Carolina, all my bike rides have hills, so I wasn't too worried about them.
What would you do differently?:

I wish I had spent more time on my bike this season.
Transition 2
  • 03m 12s
Comments:

Only problem with my transition was that I had to pee. I don't usually have that problem, but I guess because of the cooler temps, my body didn't sweat out all of the liquids that I had on the bike.
Run
  • 2h 43m 54s
  • 13.1 miles
  • 12m 31s  min/mile
Comments:

Knowing where my training was, I didn't have too many expectations for the run. My "goal" was to keep the run going for the first three miles and then try and switch to running between aid stations for as long as possible after that.
I held a good pace for the first 3, and actually did manage to run as planned until mile 8, when I had to do a little more walking. Then at mile 10, I began to feel the dreaded calf cramps that forced me to walk about half of mile 10 and almost all of mile 11. Coming back down the stretch, I got tons of encouragement from my fellow tri club members as I passed the tent and pushed a very wobbly running gait into the stadium and across the finish line!
Even though this run was painful, it was actually 4 minutes faster than last year's run!
What would you do differently?:

If I could just commit to being more diligent on my training
Post race
Warm down:

Stopped just outside of the athlete exit and stretched out the calves and legs. Had to walk back into T2 and collect my stuff before heading to the tri club tent to help cheer on fellow members still finishing the race.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

My ability and level of training

Event comments:

This race is somewhat difficult to properly rate. The course itself is awesome and Ohio is a great venue. They improved the expo from last year and this time there were several vendors and opportunities to view and buy.
Now for the bad. The post race was just as terrible as it was last year. Once again they provided burgers to the athletes. This time, instead of getting a dry, burnt burger, I got no burger. After waiting in line for 15 minutes, I finally got up to the servers only to be told they were out of burgers and it would be at least another 10-15 minutes before they got more! Are you kidding me? I ended up leaving the tent with no food, no drink, no nothing. I provided this feedback to IM Ohio last year and have now done so again this year. I know it's minor, but after being on the course for over six hours, I just wanted something solid to eat.
I definitely expect better from an IM branded race.




Last updated: 2018-07-02 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:47:34 | 2112 yards | 02m 15s / 100yards
Age Group: 134/252
Overall: 1113/2341
Performance: Average
Suit:
Course: Triangular course heading in a counter-clockwise direction
Start type: Wade Plus: Time Trial
Water temp: 78F / 26C Current: Low
200M Perf. Average Remainder: Average
Breathing: Good Drafting: Average
Waves: Good Navigation: Good
Rounding: Good
T1
Time: 03:57
Performance: Average
Cap removal: Good Helmet on/
Suit off:
Wetsuit stuck? Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: No
Getting up to speed:
Biking
02:58:45 | 56 miles | 18.80 mile/hr
Age Group: 145/252
Overall: 1038/2341
Performance: Average
Wind: Little with gusts
Course: Point to point ride. The front half was flat as could be. Some rolling hills on the second half of the course and a few miles of slight head wind/gusts that slowed it down.
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence:
Turns: Good Cornering: Good
Gear changes: Good Hills: Good
Race pace: Comfortable Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 03:12
Overall: Good
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike
Running with bike Average
Racking bike Good
Shoe and helmet removal Good
Running
02:43:54 | 13.1 miles | 12m 31s  min/mile
Age Group: 167/252
Overall: 1296/2341
Performance: Average
Course: Lollipop style course with two loops off of the "stick"
Keeping cool Good Drinking Too much
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Good
Mental exertion [1-5] 4
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: Bad
Race evaluation [1-5] 3