![]() Swim
Comments: Once the swim started I just tried to stay calm and go smooth for the first 200m or so. I was expecting to get thrashed but that was fairly mild. I swam great but after about 400m I was having issues with my wetsuit again (I believe it is just a bit too short in the crotch. TO do any sort of kicking was causing pain as my "stuff" was being compresed so I went with light kicking the rest of way. I noticed my speed dropped off but it was not much so I just went with it. At the turn around I was hit with a wall of sunshine making it hard to see the bouys. There were swimmers around me that were treading and looking and then swimming again...forget that, I saw jetty to the right of me and guess what....the landing is at the end of the jetty so why not just follow that. I did and it worked well. I still tried to sight some just to make sure I didn't go too far right and smack a pier but I was feeling great. Coming out of the water I looked back and saw lots of people still in the water and felt much better ( I was nervous about being one of the last racers on the course). Saw my support crew (Frank and Milagros) at transition. What would you do differently?: Thinking about selling the wetsuit and going with a different fit. Just too uncomfortable. ![]() Transition 1
Comments: I went smooth here. Probably could have saved 60sec but why? I wanted to make sure I was good to go for the next 3+ hrs. This also included a nice little run 2000 deep into transition. Decided the sun was out nicely and I didn't go with the arm warmers I had purchased the day before. What would you do differently?: not much, I was happy here. ![]() Bike
Comments: I was surprised at the 17mph avg, I felt like I was doing greater than that throughout but I guess the hills dropped it some. Seems like the rest of the time I was above 20 unless we were on a false flat. The weather was fantastic, I didn't need the arm warmers and was glad I didn't bring them. Some people had on jackets and a few even in tights which I am sure they soon regretted. For nutrition I had a pre mixed bottle of HEED and 1 bottle with no liquid but 2 scoops of Sustained Energy mix. This was just the right mix I think. The first aid station was at mile 15, I finished the HEED and grabbed water. Between 15 and 30 I drank the water and took down a gel. At mile 30 I discarded the water bottle and picked up 1 bottle of Gatorade. At mile 45 I discarded the Gatorade and grabbed a water. As soon as I saw aid station at 45 I prepared my Sustained Energy by placing the bottle in the down tube holder with cap off and in my mouth. I took a water and immediately shot it in the open container and discarded the bottle. At no time did I have more than 1 bottle of liquid. It seemed to work out well. I was never thirsty and I managed HEED, Water, Gatorade, Sus Energy, and 2 gels total. I am thinking that is about 500-600 calories. What would you do differently?: Go faster, which entails greater bike fitness. I will say the long weekend rides were perfect. I had been doing 40-50 rides for the last 4 weeks or so and it felt like training. ![]() Transition 2
Comments: Transition was smooth I felt. I have very little stuff at transition so it makes it easier. Saw my support crew again coming off the bike which was nice. What would you do differently?: Stay an extra 30 seconds and really rub down right foot cramp. Turns out my bike shoes are too narrow, I am still feeling the foot pain 2 days later as I write this. ![]() Run
Comments: For the first lap I was feeling good. Then after around mile 7 I started to do a run/walk mix but it wasn't happening. It was very hard to start up again. At mile8 or so I was not able to take full breaths. The legs felt OK, no soreness really...I just couldn't seem to catch a full breath. It was as if my lungs were fatigued. My HR got pretty low, it was just my lungs that kept me going strong. What would you do differently?: I suppose just work on run fitness but more than that it is just the long workout. I need to do some 5 + hour training sessions. ![]() Post race
Warm down: Post race I was still not able to get full breathes so I did a few minutes in the med tent. I figured it would be good to have them "make sure" I was feeling ok. After about 5-10 I popped out of there and ate about 3 pieces of pizza. What limited your ability to perform faster: Run fitness and no workouts with 5+ hr duration. Event comments: Best race I have done so far. I tried not to get too down on myself and just enjoy it. So what I had to walk a bit...I will be in this sport for awhile. Might as well enjoy it. Overall this was a fantastic race. It was a sufferfest on the run but I thoroughly enjoyed it, I knew I would finish and I was already calculating how to get better before next time. Figuring out in my head what I need to do to get ready for IM in November. It will be a long road ahead, I just hope I can stay healthy and become an IRONMAN! This is a fantastic sport and I am glad I started doing it... Last updated: 2008-09-30 12:00 AM
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United States
Ironman North America
65F / 18C
Sunny
Overall Rank = 1608/2115
Age Group = 30-34
Age Group Rank = 220/258
I started in the last of 20 waves so I had a chance to wait around for awhile which was great, because I ate a bowl of cereal, used the porta, and didn't start the race till the sun was out.
No warm up, just light stretching trying to stay calm. Found a neoprene hoodie a pro had discarded so I got a free gift and got to keep the head warm! Took in a gel about 10min prior to my start.