Ironman Kansas 70.3 : Official Thread (Page 20)

cjkelly0729 - 2011-06-14 4:53 PM By the way, if anyone was offered some of "Anthony's Weiners" while out on the run course, that would have been my friends at our campsite grilling hot dogs ... let me apologize   

That's funny!!

I have enjoyed reading all the post-race posts from participants, volunteers and spectators.  This crazy sport is truly a tight-knit community made up of strangers, but the common bond makes us all one giant family of sorts...people of all ages, abilities, shapes and sizes.  We all had similar experiences during this race, regardless of our individual finish times.  We all agree the volunteers were fabulous, wonderful assistants along the way.  Thank you for your generosity and your time.  The weather turned out to be a gift.  Sure it was windy, as we could have expected on the plains in June, but the temps were low and it was mostly overcast.  It easily could have been much windier with scorching sun and 90+ degree temps during the run.  Or, worse yet, the storms could have postponed the race or canceled it.  The race was executed by pros without any visible hiccups.  I wasn't too excited for the walk back to T1 after the finish, but I knew it was part of this race and I won't complain about it.  And GEEZ LOUWEEZ!!! The bikes I saw some of you ride were works of art!  I was in awe of T1.

I wanted to be closer to breaking 5 hrs than 5:22, but I knew the hills on my bike would be tough and steal much of the energy I needed to maintain my goal pace on the run.  And, this being my first HIM, I knew I would learn a lot for next time. 

Congratulations to all of you and thanks for all the help during the past several months. 

Next up: Mudwater OLY at Lake Afton outside of Wichita, KS in July (Clinton lake is "clear" compared to Lake Afton's pasture runoff).  Then the 10th annual Salty Dog sprint tri in my hometown of Hutchinson, KS.  I've been in all 10 "Dogs" and experienced a weather cancellation in 2008.  Wow...what a depressing moment that was. We were lucky at IMKS in 2011. 

Best of luck to you all.

I did this in 2010 and decided NEVER AGAIN as I was by myself, woozy, dizzy and generally a limping zombie. This year I took the extra 15 seconds to put my gear in the gear bag they provided so it would be transported up to the finish line area. I can't recommend that enough - lesson learned for next year maybe?

See you at Mudwater!
 

Did anyone have any family or friends use the shuttle/bus service that transported people from the parking areas to the campsite? Was this still offered this year? Just curious on any thoughts on this service for future reference.

I wish they would have had something different or additional for post race food. I would've loved a cheeseburger or turkey sandwich instead of BBQ pork. The pork was good just not what I wanted.

I used the aero bottle for this race, actually the first time I ever used one, so glad I did.  But I will agree with you on the bottles.  I know there are costs involved with better bottles and the RD had a budget to work with.  Maybe next year they hook up with Gatorade and get cage-friendly bottles to hand out.  There was a green Gatorade bottle in the SWAG bag, so why not leave that one out and put them out on the course.

I've got to tell you however, it was soooooo easy to just stick that bottle in my aero bottle, squeeze it, have the contents transferred BEFORE the end of the water station.  I was able to even hand the empty water bottle to the last volunteer as I left.  I had my own bottle in the cage as a reserve.

I actually appreciated this. I kept water in my aero bottle, so when I went by the aid stations all I had to do was tun the bottle upside down and empty it.  I was done before I hit the end of the aid station. I kept concentrated Infinite in my down tube bottle. Just an example, I suppose, that you can't please everyone all of the time. Someone will be disappointed. I'm sorry to hear of your troubles.

I believe last year, before the switch to Perform, they did have the sturdy Gatorade bottles with the twist spout.

I doubt it, as the contract is now with PERFORM and not Gatorade.
I did not get a green bottle in my swag bag, I was gypped!!! I bet they were leftover, I do remember getting a green one last year.

I'm with Barkeep... I really appreciated the bottles being open already! I can't imagine trying to open them while riding...

Now that I think about it, I got a SWAG bag from the Blazeman dinner Friday night so it might have been from there.  Anyhow whoever the drink sponsor is next year might look at these points.  I'm woth you guys, so glad it was open, just plunked it down into aero bottle and squeezed.

harleyclone - I hear you about the Budweisers.  I was searching for the beer tent!  Next year I will know this is a BYOB race.  

As for the water bottles, I only had to get one at the last aid station and poured it directly into my aero bottle.  I don't remember what kind of top it had.  It seems like it was a squeeze top.  The volunteers did an excellent job holding out bottles.  At Ironman New Orleans, the volunteers kept a death grip on the bottles and they were hard to grab.

As far as the water bottles are concerned, I also actually appreciated having the open bottles, I too squeezed as much as I could into the aero bottle, then drank what I could before I got to the last trash drop. This worked really well for me, because I also carry the Infinit-mixed bottles.

As far as the swim was concerned, I was just happy to finish. Having volunteered at a couple IM and HIM races myself, I was happy to see the sometimes-overzealous kayaks hanging close. There were times when on the upstroke my hand would not clear the water because of the wave, and that was followed by getting tossed down into the trough... I couldn't manage to get my stroke coordinated with the wave action.

More importantly, having I think the campsite closest to the finish line (the tent with the black pickup) I was REALLY happy to see that cold ice chest. Even before I got off the expo boundary though walking my bike back to the truck, I came across a finisher and her friend sitting near the finish with a couple cold ones. I was so blessed when they reached into the cooler and pulled out a "spare", popped the top and handed it to me! I had told a spectator sitting alongside the run course I was going to trade places with her on the 2nd loop, so she had better put her running shoes on and leave me at least one cold one in the cooler. I will be darned if she wasn't holding an open one out for me as I went past! -- No, she wasn't willing to give up the chair!

Happy to finish, and will be happy to participate in this one again... no I am not a racer or competitive soul, for a number of reasons. IMKS had some of the BEST volunteers. I also appreciated the suggestion from the Kansas-experienced to camp rather than do the hotel thing... definitely a better experience.

See some of you at Redman, or Ironman Florida?

Hello Everyone-

I have a question.  I am looking at the official maps provided by the Kansas Ironman Website and from what I can tell there are 2 different transition areas 1 for bike and one for the run.  Can anyone confirm this?

Yup. Unless they are making a change from prior year, T1 is located down by the marina/swim exit and T2 is located near the finish line.