Ironman 70.3 Vineman : Official Thread (Page 3)

Suzanne, thanks for the info on Geyserville.  I'll bake that into the ride plan.

Tom, congrats on getting into the NYC.  That is supposed to be a GREAT race, one for the run bucket list. 

Double post.  Must learn patience on the "submit" button.  But then, "submit" is not in the Triathlete lexicon, is it?

Rode the course (mostly) again yesterday.  Training plan called for 3:30 on the bike @ PRE2 followed by 20 min run@ PRE 2.  Day didn't quite work out according to plan.  Talked my cycling/running buddy Paul into joining me.  He's great in both disciplines and pushes me.  So we start out and he gets 2 flats in the first 2 miles; the second a blowout that sounded like a gunshot, blew the tire off the rim and split the tube down the seam.  At this point we've used up most of our repair supplies so decide the better part of valor is to head to the LBS to resupply, then do a restart.  (Note: Downtown Windsor has a great bike shop, Windsor Bicycle Center.  Great service, great attitude.  Explained what happened as we bought 3 replacement tubes and the guy, with a smile, said he'd throw in a 4th for free.  Guess he decided we might need it!) We were riding most of the Vineman 70.3 course, the same as I did two weeks ago, and I told him he was welcome to draft behind me but I really didn't want to draft off him so I could get a better approximation of the course and my fitness.  He was fine with that, but it didn't mean he was going to slow down when he was out front.  As a result, ended up with an average HR @ Z4.4 according to my Garmin with a max at Z5.8.  Sounds like I need to redo the LT test perhaps.  The good news is that at mile 56 the clock was right at 3 hours, so looks like my goal is not completely unrealistic.  Found the hills to be easier this time.  Total ride came in at 3:03 for 57 miles (excluding the dual flat aborted attempt, with that got the 3:30). As a side note, Paul did get a 3rd flat at mile 34, so the bike shop guy must have been clairvoyant!

Then we transitioned to the run which during the race I want to do in a time (unheard of!), but after that captured data correctly and showed my HR went from 153-169.  I was pretty happy with that considering the pace and the fact it was after the ride, but I now need to focus on keeping it below 160 for as long as possible, knowing in the final miles the target likely will rise to 170.

Overall I feel pretty good about the day.  Riding it a second time was definitely worth it to gain more familiarity and to see that I could push harder.  Somehow the front half did not seem as bumpy as last time but I did stick more to the center of the lane on Westside than I did last time.  Paul commented that the front half was more challenging than he expected which, coming from him, made me feel better in my own assessment of it.  I also found that Chalk Hill was easier this time even though I had pounded harder on all the miles before it, so I'm choosing to believe that means my fitness level on the bike is improving..

The weather really cooperated yesterday as we started out with overcast and ended up in the mid 70's.  Is it too early to start praying for such conditions come race day?

-Tom 

I've done Oceanside x 6, Vineman 70.3 x 2, and Lake Stevens x 1. Here's how I
see it:

Swim: Oceanside's the most difficult (cold, choppy water, and
sighting is always a nightmare for me). Vineman and Lake Stevens are a toss up,
with both of them being fairly easy. The Russian river's not very wide, so you
can't really get off track, even if you're swimming into the sun and can't see
at thing. Also, the water at Vineman is very warm, i.e., boarderline wetsuit
legal.

Bike: I'd say all three are on par, but Oceanside is the toughest
if the wind conditions are not favorable. If I had to pick I'd say that Vineman
is the easiest bike, but you could be dealing with heat if you have a late wave
start.

Run: I think Lake Stevens is the toughest
run because of the two trips up and down the long hill. I think
Oceanside's easier than Vineman because there are a few sharp climbs at Vineman.
Also, it can get hot on the run at Vineman.

Weather: Oceanside's
definitely coldest. Vineman could be cool, hot, or somewhere in between. The one
time I did Lake Stevens, the weather was cool in the morning and warmer (but
never hot) as the day went on.

Here's the link: http://www.vineman.com/Ironman_70_3_Vineman/entries_race01.htm

Elena, your number is 470 (the only Elena from Hollister!).  I got lucky number 1467.