California Half Ironman

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California Half Ironman - Triathlon1/2 Ironman

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Oceanside, California
United States
Ironman North America
Precipitation

Total Time = 6h 02m 33s
Overall Rank = 1018/2033
Age Group = M35-39
Age Group Rank = 0/

Pre-race routine:

1 can Ensure at bedtime (8 PM), 1 can ensure at 2 AM bathroom visit, 1 can Ensure at wake up (4 AM) (350 cals each). Had Ultramet (?) with three cans pineapple juice & 16 oz water for breakfast (520 cals). Left the hotel feeling full.

Event warmup:

I went to one of the port-a-pottys to "take care of business" and it started raining pretty hard and the wind really picked up off the ocean. The port-a-potty was still clean so I thought about just hanging out there for awhile. Instead I went and set my transition up with everything in garbage bags. What a pain.

From the Ironman site - After a night of rain, Oceanside dawned to mostly blue skies this morning. All fingers are crossed that a rain front predicted for around 8am misses Oceanside.

By San Diego standards, it’s colder than a polar bear eating an Eskimo Pie in the Antarctic with the air conditioning on in winter. It’s around 50 degrees with light winds. The water temperature is 56 degrees.

There have been 6 cases of hyperthermia. All are in the medical tent that has been heated to 110 degrees to facilitate quick recovery."

Swim

37m 20s
2112 yards
01m 46s / 100 yards

Comments:

While we lined up waitng for our waves it was raining fairly hard and it was COLD. I definitely wondered what I got myself into and why.

You are only allowed in the water 3 minutes before yor wave which is about enough time to swim to the start line and warm up your suit. There was no practice swim.

When the horn sounded I felt like I forgot how to swim. My stroke was short and choppy, not long and smooth. I guess it had to do with the cold water. I keept taking my face out of the water when breathing which is a no no. At some portions on the backside I got a little rhythm but then I had some mild cramps from the cold.

What would you do differently?:

Relax and swimlike you can.

Transition 1

05m 25s

Comments:

Now I had to get all my stuff out of the garbage bags I packed them in! Arghh! Also, I usually put on only my shoes and helmet and go, today I put on socks, a jacket, shoved gloves in my pocket, put shoes and booties on... I felt like I was taking residence at T1. I really could have used the extra time for the run. Oh well.

I also bled some air from my wheels as the roads were wet.

What would you do differently?:

Race in warm weather

Bike

2h 56m 31s
56 miles
19.04 mile/hr

Comments:

I was very relaxed during the majority of the bike ride. I felt no pressure for the first time doing a half. From the time I signed up for this race I thought of it as just a step towards IM CDA this June. I just "was out for a ride." My pace was decent and my effort was actually pretty low (HR 153). I was able to sit going up all the big climbs. With about 16 miles left we turned into the headwinds that were with us for the rest of the bike. this was the portion of the course I was told you can "let the dogs run all the way to T2." It was a little demoralizing to feel my exertion level climb as my avg pace plummetted. I had a few hard patches in here.

Drank 2 * 20 0z bottles of 1.5 scoops cytomax and 1.5 scoops carbo pro for 267 cals each, plus 3 Gu's and 2.5 bottles of water. 834 cals for 3 hours. This is a probably a touch low.

What would you do differently?:

I have been training in the mountains almost exclusively. I need some work on the flats so I can put some time in the aerobars. My back was talking to me at the end.

Transition 2

03m 29s

Comments:

Those damn garbage bags again! But I was sure glad my shoes were dry. I added 5 minutes more than usual to my race due to the weather precautions in the transition area. That is really hard to make up.

Run

2h 19m 48s
13.1 miles
10m 40s min/mile

Comments:

Ugh. More bricks. I'm not a fast runner ever but I'm not this slow! I didn't blow myself up on the bike at all so I figured I would be close to my stand alone 1/2 mary times. If so I would be very happy. It was not to be.

I kept looking at my watch to see if I could break 6 hours and just kept watching the opportunity slip. There was a 300 meter section of beach (sand) running you did 4 times. I knew I had to cross that section to get back to the finish line and I knew I couldn't run it. For whatever reason my legs aren't strong enough to run in the soft sand. Some serious lack of coordination. That psyched me out from just putting my head down and trying to run it home.

I could tell the first two miles my exertion level was too high but I couldn't slow myself down. I think the bricks will help me get used to the difference in momentum your body feels from bike speed to run speed.

I unfortunately had many walk breaks. I had no problems with cramping but I couldn't tell if I needed to eat or not eat. I might need to rethink my nutrition strategy. During training I can eat bars on the bike but have not tried that in a race before.

Post race

Warm down:

Walked about 2 miles to the car with my 3 year old boy on my shoulders - ouch!!! One of us was happy.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Got sick two days before and was hacking up a storm during the bike and run. Didn't train for this race, it was just the mid point of my Ironman training. I wanted to do well and tried as much as I could given the point in the training program.

Event comments:

The marines were very helpful and some were fun. "Come on maggot this is what you trained for!" "1088 - you get yourself up this hill!!" It was the first time I rode through street with "Tank Crossing" written in the road.

Unfortunately I let myself get psyched out about the weather conditions beforehand. It wasn't as bad as I imagined.

I know what I need to work on during the next 97 days leading up to Ironman. So the race served its purpose. I trained for 3 months compared to 6 months prior to this half and I did about 7 minutes faster so I'm going in the right direction.

The good thing about the race is I am very psyched about triathlons again and will go back to training with a renewed vigor.

Will I do this race again?????????????

Profile Album

Last updated: 2006-01-08 12:00 AM

Swimming
00:37:20 \| 2112 yards \| 01m 46s / 100yards
Age Group:	0/
Overall:	0/2033
Performance:	Below average
Suit:	Orca Predator - Fullsuit
Course:
Start type:	Deep Water	Plus:	Waves
Water temp:	56F / 13C	Current:	Low
200M Perf.	Bad	Remainder:	Below average
Breathing:		Drafting:
Waves:		Navigation:	Average
Rounding:	Average

T1
Time:	05:25
Performance:	Bad
Cap removal:		Helmet on/ Suit off:
Wetsuit stuck?		Run with bike:
Jump on bike:
Getting up to speed:

Biking
02:56:31 \| 56 miles \| 19.04 mile/hr
Age Group:	0/
Overall:	0/2033
Performance:
Wind:	Headwind
Course:
Road:		Cadence:	81
Turns:		Cornering:
Gear changes:		Hills:
Race pace:		Drinks:

T2
Time:	03:29
Overall:
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike
Running with bike
Racking bike
Shoe and helmet removal

Running
02:19:48 \| 13.1 miles \| 10m 40s min/mile
Age Group:	0/
Overall:	0/2033
Performance:	Bad
Course:
Keeping cool		Drinking

Post race
Weight change:	%
Overall:
Mental exertion [1-5]
Physical exertion [1-5]
Good race?	No

Evaluation
Course challenge	Just right
Organized?	Yes
Events on-time?	Yes
Lots of volunteers?	Yes
Plenty of drinks?	Yes
Post race activities:	Average
Race evaluation [1-5]	4

{postbutton}

PGoldberger

2006-03-19 7:09 PM

Master

1661

Newbury Park, CA

Subject: California Half Ironman

California Half Ironman

California Half Ironman - Triathlon1/2 Ironman

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