Vineman Race Report....My first IM
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2009-08-02 4:04 PM |
New user 163 | Subject: Vineman Race Report....My first IM So, I completed my first IM. Although I suppose I can't exactly call myself an ironman, since it wasn't a WTC branded event, and of course, by slowtwitch standards, I think I have to be under 10 hours (or is it nine, or 8:30) to have really 'raved' an IM. Whatever. Edited by caelric 2009-08-02 4:10 PM |
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2009-08-02 5:13 PM in reply to: #2322518 |
New user 163 | Subject: RE: Vineman Race Report....My first IM Couple of other things from a race report point of view: Weather was great, the marine layer kept us covered and in the low 60's until about noon, or so, and then it started getting warm, but I think it never got beyond 80 or so. Other years have had 100+ temps, so we were lucky. Bike course was rolling hills, only one really step part, but since the bike was sort of two laps, you went up the steep section twice. Bike course was also very bumpy! The roads were all older and paved poorly. Certainly not cyclocross action, but pretty bumpy. And I bike commute 16 miles each way on county roads, so I am quite familiar with bumpy. Run was hilly, as I said. Race support was great. Aid stations every mile on the run, almost seemed like there were too many! The lines for the portajohns at race start seemed shorter than other tris, perhaps due to the lesser amount of people, but there were plenty of portajohns either way. The swim took place at Johnson's Beach on the Russian River. As I said, it was quite shallow, and the temp was around 73 or so. Wetsuit legal, but some folks choose to go without, and they were fine. me, I'm a crappy swimmer,a nd I need all the swimming help I can get! Johnson's Beach is a misnomer, because the name 'beach' implies sand. No sand, only rocks and dirt. Some parts of T1 were covered by carpet, but there was no way to avoid getting rocky/dirty feet. I put my shoes on in T1, so it wasn't so bad, but if you are one of the tri shoes already strapped to pedals and run barefoot out of T1 kind of guys, it might not be the best place for that. T2 was in a blacktop parking lot at Windsor High School, adjacent to the finish line. By the time I got there, the spare gels I had stashed there had completely melted. Sun and blacktop don't mix. I suppose if I had biked faster and got there sooner, it still would have been cloudy. Note to self: bike faster. As I said, race support was great, and they had plenty of good food for athletes at the finish. Pasta sald, chicken breasts, burgers, plus all the normal stuff (cookies, bananas, brownies, etc...) Much better than the dominoes pizza in a box that was at the Oceanside 70.3 (an IM branded event, I might add) All in all, despite being a smaller, non WTC branded IM (or perhaps because of it), Vineman was a well put on, thoroughly enjoyable event, that I would highly recommend for anyone's first IM (or second, or third, or etc...) I'll be back next year, most likely. |
2009-08-02 8:38 PM in reply to: #2322518 |
Master 1610 Kirkland, WA | Subject: RE: Vineman Race Report....My first IM awesome job! and you are an IRONMAN! ST standards = a bunch of BS |