Timberman - Half Iron - Triathlon1/2 Ironman

Given lack of swim training prior to event, swim went pretty well. Focused on smooth stroke and good reach. Nagivation for start of race was very good, keeping my line straight and right at first marker. Lots of bumping at the first turn but felt good going into long straight. Made good progress down course and felt good and in control. LOTS of knocking at the second turn and could now see the finish. I think this is probably when my stroke really started to degrade and my navigation suffered. Drifted a bit off course but made necessary corrections. Started to have trouble keeping steady stroke due to bumping and knocking as closing in on finish. Started to notice urge to go during last segment of swim - would be a recurring theme.

Tinted goggles - with the sun and direction of course, sun was constantly in my eyes. More pool time. With more work, good opportunity to shave time off total here.

wetsuit took a bit to wiggle out of but nothing major. Was a little slow getting into socks and shoes, but ok. Helmet / glasses went on quick, gloves got stuck.

riding without socks? maybe practice getting into shoes on bike?

What an awesome bike ride overall. Strategy was constant steady effort and I stuck to it. Could have ridden much harder, but saved for the run. Kept HR / effort in check on hills, carrying momentum over small hills, pushing the down hills and settling into good pace on hard climbs. When the headwind was a factor, pushed a little harder, keeping my effort consistent. Did not let HR over 170 for the duration. Ran into two problems on the bike - the first was on a refill of my aero bottle - retaining strap came loose and I couldn't secure it while riding. Quick stop got that fixed, but probably cost me a minute or so. Second issue was having to stop towards end of bike to use the bathroom. Pretty much had to go whole bike segment. Started to feel some cramping in my stomach about halfway through, enduraltye tabs seemed to help.

NUTRITION: Started bike with two full bottles plus full aero bottle. Aero had gatorade, other two had cytomax. Did one gel (vanilla gu) every 30 minutes. Took on two additional bottles on course. Had 1 bottle remaining at end.

Nutrition - first race had the bladder issues. Also felt as though was pretty full most of the time.

Focus a bit more on pace in middle of race, noticed my effort falling off a bit towards the middle of the race, probably could have held HR closer to 160 for duration.

Good T2 - got bike raced and out of shoes quick - loosened straps prior to dismount of bike. Into running shoes quick - grabbed hat and belt attaching on the way out.

What a day - felt really good coming off the bike, finish line only 13.1 miles away. Legs felt good and settled into running pace quite quickly. Felt good for first half of first loop and seemed to be holding a pace around 9:15. This was a little slower than target but tried to maintain for first half of race. Legs were starting to tire as I came into the end of the first loop. Goal was to increase pace for second half of race, but just couldn't do it - when trying to push harder, had cramping sensation in stomach and legs were really sore. Stomach was probably bigger limiting factor. Held on pushing as much as possible. Had to stop for bathroom around mile 5. Held on, working to maintain pace and keep consistent. Tried to limit time loss and focused on keeping pace faster than 9:30. Worked to maintain on climbs and push a bit faster on the descents. By the end, legs were really tired. In the last mile, an AG came up past me - drafted him, pushing my pace to match and work for the finish. Once I could see the finish turn, I passed him and maintained a slightly faster pace. Held on for the finish. Did not know what my total time was until the finish - beat the goal! 5:27:56!

NUTRITION: Had a GU every 30 minutes, took water at most aid stations. Had quite a bit of stomach gas -

Need to work on my running. I think I am too comfortable at my "endurance pace" need to focus more and work out nutrition issues.

Completely wiped out after the finish. Walked back to the car and stretched legs out. Got some food and more drink.


Stomach issues


This is a great race! I will definately try to make it back for next year!