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 Swim
Comments: As the horn sounded we were off. I was far outside and about four rows back from the leaders of the wave. It was very difficult for me to make serious progress for the first 500 yards as I didn't get any open water until the first buoy. Then it opened up for me. I felt great, I was able to excellerate, concentrate on my form, and start moving through the pack, even thought it was still difficult to see the buoys due to the fog or judge were I was in the lake. About a 1/2 mile from shore the sun started coming up over the mountains, the fog started to clear and it looked amazing. It was a remarkable sight to see that amount of people swimming through the sun rays as they came through the fog. The rest of the swim was smooth and I felt great coming out of the water. What would you do differently?: Warm up sooner and get a better start position. I was not expecting so many competitors in my age group.  Transition 1
Comments: Nice and smooth. Felt great. What would you do differently?: Maybe look into sockless shoes. This may speed up transition slightly.  Bike
Comments: Pretty cold for the first ten miles as it was still pretty foggy. I have riden this course so many times that I really felt prepared. I was constantly moving up in position and at ease. I was checking my splits with road side markers and I was improved upon my training time considerably. Which worried me because I was concerned blowing up on the run, but as the race progressed I decided that the tapering over the last couple of weeks had really made a difference in my bike fitness and performance. First time I saw my family was heaing up Dubuque, this was a good place to see everyone cheering me on as I headed up the dreaded hill that everyone was talking about. I couldn't believe it... I felt great and was in the left hand lane, standing up on the pedals, feeling confident that my training was paying off. The only problem I had was my chain came off twice and the lack of porta potties on the course. What would you do differently?: Nothing. Transition 2
Comments: Smooth and fast! Glad I did the practice work on my transitions. What would you do differently?: Nothing.  Run
Comments: Flew out of transition and I was feeling very strong. Ran 7:15 splits for the first three miles. About mile 4-5 I started feeling the effects of not carrying any nutrition on the run and the sun was starting to warm up. Family and friends lined the course which really helped, however by lap 2/mile 6 I was really starting to suffer and wished I had accounted for and practiced taking in nutrition on the run. The rest of the run I was walking the water stations and had a hard time getting the gatorade down but water seemed to be ok. I think it was to late to recoup the lack of nutrition as my body was tingling and I felt extremely sunburned. Mile 10-13 my mind started to help me as I thought to myself, only a 5K left and thought of all of the family and friends that have helped me on my journey to make this Ironman possible. With only about a mile left the lake looked great, it looked so refreshing, and all I could think about was jumping in right when I finished. What a feeling to turn the corner and see the finish shoot. My family was right there to meet me as I finished. What would you do differently?: Nutrition, nutrition, nutrition! And maybe some sunscreen. Post race
Warm down: What warm down? I was done! What limited your ability to perform faster: The run, I am going to continue to work on my nutrition on the run. I would like to do additional training on the run in future races. Missed quite a bit of training due to a knee injury during my training for Ironman Lake Stevens. Event comments: I had a great time, it was all worth it and I wish I could do it again. I hope to do three or four of this type of race a year. Last updated: 2009-03-17 12:00 AM
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United States
WTC (World Triathlon Corporation) (Ironman 70.3)
70F / 21C
Overcast
Overall Rank = 217/875
Age Group = 35-39
Age Group Rank = 41/117
Did not sleep to well, however my parents over to the house with the kids in the motorhome on the side of the house which was very nice. Woke up 4am, one bottle of ensure, two packets of oatmeal, and a banana for breakfast. I was feeling alot of excitement that the day I had been training, for was finally here!
Upon arriving it was still dark, I set up transition and it was nice to meet and talk with the other competitors around me from all over the country. A bit intimidating, the bikes around me looked all business. I was proud to welcome everyone to my home town, as Lake Stevens has never really looked better to me with all of the Ironman streamers and flags. After setting transition double checked everything 3, maybe 4 times. Headed out of transition, found my wife and set out for a 10 minute jog to curb my nerves a bit, but it didn't really work. My wife and I went to the swim start. As I was getting my wetsuit on, the national anthem was playing. The excitement was in the air. I had a hard time controlling my emotions, all of my training, and I was about to see if I was truly ready for this challenge. I headed down to the water for a quick warm up swim. I went a couple hundred yards as the pros were already heading out, and my wave was soon to start. As I looked on the dock I was suprised to see how many competitors there were in my wave and I was disappointed that I didn't get in the water for my warm up earlier. This forced me to the back of the wave and I was one of the last to slip into the water.