Slornow's and Wannabefaster's Summer Mentor Group - CLOSED (Page 29)

Today reiterated the point of safety while training....

I went out with a group to ride the Augusta HIM course. Half of the group is training for IMFL. My friend, Julie, and I were the slowpokes, riding at 15-16 mph, so we were left in the dust. We distanced ourselves after the first 15 miles that averaged almost 18, and made ourselves back off the pace and ride our route.

It was muggy and hot, but overcast with a good breeze. Right around mile 32 Julie says she has to stop. Ok...good deal...my crotch could use a break. By mile 35, she's sick....really sick. We are in the middle of nowhere. She agrees to call a tri buddy who cut the ride short & was ahead of us. I got her in shade, gave her the rest of my fluids (knowing that a truck is on the way), and in true tri fashion, she keeps trying to ride.

If we hadn't been together, if we hadn't called for a ride....that could have gotten really ugly in a hurry.

It just reminds me the importance of.not dropping someone in a ride....their life could depend on it in such conditions. I know how we endurance athletes are....it kills us to 'quit.'

On a positive note....I rode 8 miles further than I ever have before, I spent a good 45 minutes on my aero bars and finally found a 'sweet spot' in my saddle, and had no shower screamers once I got home and bathed.

Great races, everyone!!

Nancy: I'm really glad you were with your friend when she wasn't feeling well. Hope she's feeling better, and congratulations on the extra miles!!

Just got home from a 6ish hr car ride including 1 hr of standstill traffic and a wall of rain. It was a great race! Time for bed though, promise to have race report tomorrow!
Props to Jamie for driving in that horrible weather. Glad we didn't get hit with that rain at the race!

Ok, let's do this!
I put up my race report, so check that out for the numbers and all that, but here's my summary:

Pre-race: 3am wake up, bagel with nutella, driving, shuttle bus, warm-up run, then waiting in line to swim.
Swim: I didn't bring my wetsuit bc the RD sounded really confident that it wouldn't be legal, and then it was. Not that big a deal. It was definitely the choppiest swim I've ever done. The deeper we got in the lake, the more it was like actual waves. That was a little tough. But, I got through and was only a couple minutes slower than I planned on being, so no real harm there. I'm not a great swimmer, but I'm good enough to get the job done.

Bike: The bike went really well. I followed my race plan pretty exactly: Gu every 1/2 hour and drink a water bottle b/t each aid station. The course was great, tons of rolling hills, but nothing terribly steep. I passed a huge number of athletes throughout the ride; there was just a never-ending line of people to pass. I just focused on keeping my HR down and not pushing too hard. Really, it felt like the bike went by pretty quickly.

Run: It was a beast of a run. It was an out-and-back course: mostly uphill on the way out, then a loop with some really steep hills, then mostly downhill on the way back in. Like the bike, I'd estimate I passed 3-400 people on the run; so many people were just walking, even the first mile. I felt good at the beginning, but really tired by the last few miles, just drained. Looking back, it's probably because I just didn't take in any calories at all on the run. I had a solid nutrition plan on the bike, but pretty much abandoned it on the run. The last few miles hurt However, I did have enough at the end to have a nice footrace with a guy in my AG, it felt good to have someone push me at the very end. And, it was nice to beat him

Post-race: Some of my family was at the finish line, which was great. I was drained, but it meant a lot having them there cheering. As Nate will back up, I was pretty fried at the end. I was done. I felt nauseous and light-headed. I sat for awhile, then tried to wait in line for food, but the line was long and in the sun, so I wanted no part of that. We went to the car and changed, and then got in line to buy some IM souvenirs. We waited in line about 10 minutes before I was about to just fall out, so I had to go and sit down. I felt better after I got some Pepsi and pizza in me, but I was definitely running on empty.

Overall: I'm pretty thrilled with my overall performance. In my head, my realistic expectation was between 6-7 hours, and closer to 7. So, a 5:58 finishing time was much better than I expected. It was a great race, especially for a first-run; the courses were nice and the finish line was pretty amazing. There were so many people there and they were really enthusiastic and supportive. I definitely need to figure out how to take in calories on the run so I don't hit the wall so hard next time. Also, soooooooooooooo many people walked the course; I really couldn't believe it! I've read that walk/running is an effective strategy, but I could only tell myself that I did not want to walk my first 70.3. I really think the hills on the run were just too much for a lot of people. So, in summary, I'm thrilled about the race. It's definitely my greatest single achievement in life so far, and I have a better idea of what IM Louisville will look like come August. Also, congrats and thanks to Nate; he had a phenomenal race and it was really nice to have someone to go through the experience with.

Now it's time to get back on the horse: 17 hours of training this week! IM Louisville in 12 weeks!


Edited by WoodrowCall 2013-06-03 5:35 PM

Great recap Jamie - I will go read the whole report tonight!


I read Melissa's report last night and I keep thinking about what she said about polarized swim goggles. Do other people use these? Do you find it helpful? Overall I don't have a pair of goggles I love so I'm always on the lookout for the next best pair. AND I'll take every advantage I can get.

Thanks!

I wasn't even going to post this here, but you asked.

Not much to this one. Just the facts, Maam.

http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/discussion/forums/thread-view.asp...


ETA: I am really, really sore today.

Edited by wannabefaster 2013-06-03 1:57 PM

Jason....that's one heck.of a pace! Well done.

Here's my Race Report for Raleigh 70.3! Took me awhile, but I thought I'd spend extra time on this one since I consider it a pretty big milestone!

http://trifunctional.wordpress.com/2013/06/04/race-report-ironman-r...

Nate-great report. Truly a phenomenal result for a first HIM. Scary potential.

Nate...thanks for the report. Great race! I ran the City of Oaks half marathon in November. The hills in Raleigh are rough.

Race report up!

http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/discussion/forums/thread-view.asp...

Ready for another one!

What an awesome bunch of triathletes we've got up in here! Melissa, way to gut out the tough parts. Nate, I love the humor in your reports, and what a fantastic result! Can't wait to hear how Jamie felt about it all! Mary, super duper first, and whoa on 100m pool! Go sign up for more! Randy, always impressive. Who'd I miss?!

Fundraising stuff for me. I hope to get at least a run in afterwards since it's at a decent run location.

Oh, there you are, Jamie!! Sounds like a great race for you too. On to IM!!!!

Edited by Blanda 2013-06-04 1:11 AM

Jason - well done! I'm in awe and have no words - what a pace and sounds like a tough course!!

Randy - I read the title fast and I thought it said "Grandma triathlon!" But that's no granny report! You rocked it

Nate - I'm so thrilled for you. Great race report and congrats on your first HIM!

Mary - I totally chuckled about the pool water. There's always something I find I fixate on when I should just concentrate on what I'm doing. Not to mention your comment about the run start being up a hill - how rude!! lol Congrats. You are a triathlete!!

We have a saying among my friends (said in jest) - for example if you are at the start of a race and you find yourself nervous....... we say "sounded like a good idea at the time!"

So tonight is the "open house" for my local off road tri series and I'm going to check it out. 400 yard swim, 8k off road bike and 5K trail run. I'm pretty excited. If all goes well, next Tuesday evening will be my first official Tri and then I can say I'm a triathlete too!

Have a good day all.

So cool story...

Crowie was on my plane back to the mainland. I couldn't muster the courage to ask him to sign my Honu poster...and then when I finally did he was getting his 3 kids ready to board...and that felt inappropriate. Lol. People were congratulating him (I'd say 80% of the plane had done the race...so many bikes loaded on) and he's a super humble, chill guy.

Next time...next time....don't be a chicken. That's twice now...once with Andy Potts and now Crowie....

I'll get through everyone's RR that raced this weekend throughout the day....currently on a layover in San Fran.

I have TYR polarized special ops. As a swimmer I just can't wear big bulky "open water" goggles and I grew up swimming with Swedish goggles which are the ones that essentially sit within your eye socket and don't have the rubber/foam gasket that a lot of other goggles have. I got talking with a TYR rep at the California 70.3 expo in the IM store about this issue and she recommended these goggles. She was pretty open about going through other goggles and said for years before she started working with TYR that she was a Speedo girl and wore the same goggles for years, so I didn't feel like she was trying to sell me TYR just because she worked for TYR. These goggles have igood peripheral vision and are fairly low profile with a really comfortable gasket. They also transition really well from outdoor to indoor swimming so I feel they are a really good all around goggle.

Anyways...I find the polarized goggles help prevent the sun blinding that I get with normal dark lens goggles. Even though the dark lenses block out the light a bit when you are swimming and look at the sun (ie. doing backstroke in the pool, sighting, etc) I would still have that remnant blindness in my visual field. I found I didn't get that even when I was swimming directly towards the direction of the sun rising in Hawaii. Might be different for different people but I find the polarized lenses help.

Online reviews look great too. I have a small face - wonder if they will work for me

Everybody recovered from the weekend's racing?

I am still sore.

Managed to get in a fairly good swim this morning and will pick up the intensity tonight on the trainer for an hour or so. I have a couple more weeks to build toward Mont Tremblant 70.3 before a week of taper.

Dropped the bike off at the shop for a tuneup. It hasn't been shifting quite right and was skipping a little bit in the middle gears. Turns out the 5-6,000 miles I have put on it in the last year have stretched the chain quite a bit. Glad I took it in early because they are pretty backed up at my LBS, even with my usual 6-pack of beer enticement.

Jim, talked to Jess for a couple minutes. She is excited to get you back in the shop and get you fitted up on the Shiv. She was saying how nice it is to fit people on that bike. It just fits more triathletes, better, or so she claims. I am certainly happy with mine.

I have a new (used) wetsuit that I have not swam in yet. Need to get it in one of the local lakes for a trial run before race day. I may need my wife to zip me in to it at home, then I could drive to the lake to swim. It is so tight that I don't think I can zip it my self Don't want to get pulled over on that drive.....

I’ve been out of town for the last week. Went to Colorado Springs for a wedding and caught up with some very close friends. I could only get in 2 runs due to the schedule and I was also suffering from the worst allergies I have ever experienced. I’m just glad it didn’t occur during my race week. This week should prove easier since my allergies have improved and I actually have a light work week.

Speaking of peeing, I nearly did that from laughing so hard while catching up on the forum. It did answer of few of my questions, however. Sounds like the majority of you save it up for a “safer” time although the hard core of the group obviously have learned how and when to do it.

Congrats to all the racers! I love this group for the inspiration you give me. Like others, I also live vicariously through your experiences.

June’s totals:
Swim: 9h 41m 32s - 18965.76 meters
Bike: 13h 34m 10s - 235.8 Miles
Run: 12h 49m 47s - 82.56 Miles

Talk to me about nutrition...both for training and racing.

Coming from the land of running, I've always used Gu gels and water. Once I ventured into the land beyond 13.1, I added in a sports drink (I trained with Accelerade because of the included protein in the mix). I have a bit of stomach sensitivity once the miles add on...peanut butter or the orange mandarin Gu is all I can tolerate. I finished my first full marathon with energy, no 'wall,' no cramps, and no stomach upset by utilizing every aid station, taking my Gu every 35-40 minutes with water, drinking a sports drink at alternate aid stations...

The bike, though, creates a new situation, as does the extended distances. In addition, by the time the run comes around in a HIM, appropriate fuel becomes more important.

I know everyone is different...was looking at the Infinit site today and may call them tomorrow for some more information.

Thoughts???

Nancy,

I am on an iPad right now and typing a nutrition response would take awhile. I promise to get back to this and give you some of my nutrition-racing opinions. I have used infinit since 2011. I really like the stuff and after using a lot of gels over the years I have converted to an entirely fluid/drink based nutrition plan. No gels. No bars. Just fluids for racing.

More later.