Ironman 70.3 Lake Stevens : Official Thread (Page 2)

Wetsuits are optional. I know that I'm a faster swimmer in one, so are many others. If you are looking to rent one "locally" maybe try Speedy Reedy or Triumph Multisport to see if they have rentals.

Thank you, I am trying to decide where best to allocate funds to achieve my goals here. A wet suit or bike upgrades.

I am traveling from New Jersey for this race.... Its my first 70.3  event and my A race of the year... If all goes well I am thinking of doing Silverman in November.... if not I will be doing NYC Marathon, I got in this year see what happens...  A little nervous about all these logistics about getting out there for my first 70.3 event....  When all are talking about hills are these rollers or climbs????  Can we swim in lake before hand like Thursday or Friday before does anyone know???  Is the course marked out to be able to run it before???  Bike course marked???  thanks everyone

damnyankee

As far as the logistics go it should be pretty straight forward for you. I think everything is fairly easy to find. The lake is about 20 miles out of Everett which is where most people stay cuz there aren't any hotels/motels on the lake, or at least very few. There may be some Bed and Breakfast places but not sure.

From the airport you just hit I-5 and go north to Everett. You'll go through Seattle on the way, so you'll get some sites of downtown. I think the websites directions are very accurate so should be pretty stress free.

As far as hills go it is going to depend on your perspective. If you have done California 70.3 then these are rollers but if everything you have done has been very flat then these would be larger hills. I would consider them rolling to hills. I don't think it should be much of a problem even if you have only been doing flat courses.

The bike course is open to cars the day of the race and you can drive it anytime you want. The run course will be open to drive before hand also.

Lake Stevens is very beautiful and I think you will enjoy yourself. Plus check out Seattle while your around. You'll have a great trip.

greg

Thanks for the Info Greg...  I appreciate it..  Not many hills in NJ so I am trying to find as many as I can...  We are staying at Holiday Inn while out there.   Plan to see Yankes play Mariners on Thursday night.....  Is the Lake Open to swimming before the race?? 

Thanks again for the insight.... 

Derek

damnyankee

I'm not sure if the lake is "Officially" open or not. I don't recall since I didn't try to swim it before the race. It's pretty close to pool like conditions since it is relatively small so not much swell and they do wave starts. It was pretty warm but still wore full wetsuit. However, you can easily find a place to get in the lake for a few minutes that isn't close to the park where the race starts so in that sense it would be open. Ironman may have different views of that so beware.

We stayed at the Holiday Inn also. It is nice and easy to get to right off the highway so that will be good. I'm bringing our motorhome this time and will park at Lake Stevens the night before.

Hope you have a great trip and I think you'll really enjoy the trip. Again, I wouldn't stress about the hills. I didn't drive the course before my first one at Lake Stevens because I didn't want to psych myself out and that actually worked well. I drove the California 70.3 course before and that didn't help me at all. There were some fairly steep hills in that race, but I made it and could have done without the mental anguish the night before by not seeing it.

Watch out for cars. Some of the people that live on the lake aren't overly friendly. There is only one road that goes around the lake so it has to stay open and some of the drivers will let you know there not thrilled about the race. There were just a few but keep it in mind as you go.

great insight, thanks Greg,  see ya out there...

Derek

Saw this today, thought I would pass it on:

"If you are planning on riding the Lake Stevens course in the near future be aware that 28th street (part of the out & back section) is completely closed. The bridge is out and you can’t get past it without walking through a creek.

The easiest way to bypass it is to take N. Machias down to OK Mill and skip Russel."

I am heading up there Sunday to pre-ride the course.

Hehe, I forgot to post that info here also. 

I'll be up there Sunday morning also.  Look for me struggling up the Dubuque hill on my blue/white Trek 2.1T.

OK, first post.   Two weeks to go, and I have started tripping out.  I am from Florida, and we have no hills (my biggest clime is 12ft over 2 miles), and it is hot.  I was looking forward to the cool temps for this race, but now I am woried about freezing.  First, I have read that the lake will be 72F.  I have never been in 72deg water.  The gulf stays very warm.  And then to start riding in 57F.  

Questions:
is 57F colded enough for gloves and long sleves?
is the lake realy going to be 72F?
I haven't riden hills in 20 years.  I did the Gulf Coast HIM (2 miles from my house) and did the bike at a avg speed of 18m/hr.  does anyone have an idea of what the hills will do to my avg. speed?  
Thanks 

My first post, too.  Thanks for all of the great information!

I'm traveling to LS (from San Diego) in an attempt to qualify (35-39 AG).  Anyone know why the CW spots rolled down so much last year?  I'm guessing that there were a lot of pros (or previous qualifiers) that finished in the top spots?  I've emailed the RD and as of yet have not heard back.

I know someone who rode the bike course a few weeks ago and he said that it's definitely not a PR course, with a lot of rolling hills and some technical sections.  As such, I've been debating which bike to bring.  He still recommended I bring the TT and race wheels since it's a better bike and wind shouldn't be an issue (I ride with 9.0s, front and back).

Anyone out there have any thoughts?  There's still time to pack up the roadie.

I raced Oceanside this year and there were two pretty big monsters on that course that ate up the average speed.  The Oside run, however, is very flat and from what I've heard, the same can't be said for LS.

I'm really hoping that we'll be able to wear wetsuits, although if we can't, everyone's times will be slower so it really shouldn't matter - and perhaps then I won't be handicapped by my pathetic T1 skills.  Now that the water's warm down here, I've been doing a lot of o/w ocean swimming w/o wetsuit, so I should be ready, but I know that salt water does help with buoyancy.  any word on the current water temps and possibility of a wetsuit ban?

Thanks and good luck to all in the race!

-Mike

There could be any number of reasons why the rolldown went so deep last year: travel expense, previously qualified, timing of CW, had to leave before awards, etc.  I don't know if LS has a history of the rolldown going deep, or if last year was a one-off.  Either way, good luck, hope you get a spot!

I'm not a stellar climber and I can get through the course without getting out of the saddle.  The hills are constant, but not overly steep or long.  Hands-down bring the the tri bike, leave the roadie in the stable.  There are plenty of good descents where you'll pick up quite a bit of speed and be glad you brought the tri bike.  I haven't encountered much wind in the area.  I've ridden the course a few times on my H3's (which SUCK in the wind) and haven't noticed any bike handling issues.  I'd vote for the race wheels, but there might be someone with more time in the LS area than me with more experience.

I don't know about water temperature, haven't been in the lake yet.

Thanks for the replies.  TT & race wheels it is! And it looks like everyone will be wearing wetsuits with these temps.  All you can really do is go out, race the best you can and hope things work out. Should be a fun race, regardless.  I'm looking forward to checking out the course on Saturday!

So what is everyone's plan for the swim? Is it going to be cold enough for a wet suit, spped suit or are standard tri gear going to be okay?

So what is everyone's plan for the swim? Is it going to be cold enough for a wet suit, spped suit or are standard tri gear going to be okay?

I'm thinking that with the rain this week and lower temps we should be looking at a wetsuit legal race. Even if I get a bit warm in my suit I'd race in it for the speed advantage.

Took my Tri bike for a ride today in full race trim (aero helmet and race wheels). Been a long time since I have been on that bike kitted out, felt funny at first and then fast. On a decent I ride a lot, I was pulling more speed than I can on my road bike. That made me feel good about the set up. Will do a few more rides this week, maybe indoors depending on the weather. I don't want to bust out the commuter bike the week before the race, rather do some trainer time on the Tri bike.

I did a olympic distance in 76 degree water last week with a full wetsuit and the temp was just fine. I didn't overheat and the benefits of the suit were obvious to me vs. no suit. I'm guessin' with the cooler temps this week and some rain that we should be fine for the lake temp. Look forward to seeing everyone!!

Yup, I'm bringing the Vendetta and wearing it unless someone tells me I can't.  Just wondering if I should buy a speedsuit, just in case, but it doesn't sound like there will be a wetsuit ban.

Ironman.com has a short preview of the pro race:

http://ironman.com/events/ironman70.3/lakestevens70.3/stacked-field-set-for-sundays-race-in-lake-stevens-washington

Hi everyone!

Let's meet up tomorrow at the expo! Any tips for accomplishing this race? Cheers! Adriana

Preview!





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