Ironman 70.3 Syracuse : Official Thread (Page 5)

Looks like I lucked out then! I keep hearing horror stories of the no passing zone, but I finally got to be in the first non-pro wave (after being 2 hours after the start at Eagleman 2 weeks ago), so I had no problems getting stuck behind anyone struggling in the no passing zone. The run was tough, the hill at about mile 2 that you keep going up I was prepared for, but coming out of the park and running uphill through the uneven grass was surprisingly tough.
Overall I thought it was definitely a great race, much more organized than Eagleman and tough but on par with what you'd expect in upstate NY. Not my fastest time, but managed to snag my Mont Tremblant slot at least. In fact, I think getting that slot was my one major complaint about the race. They had one person doing the waivers and one running credit cards, so we were literally waiting in line for over an hour just to grab our slot. You'd think they'd be able to afford to properly staff the race!

That no pass zone was BS!!!!! I sat behind some person who was going approximately 8-10mph. I figured it cost me 3-4 minutes. Some guy behind me said screw and passed her but I later saw him in the penalty tent. Not sure if it was related to that. I would not do this event again because of what was mentioned above on the run and that no pass zone.

Congrats to all who competed and especially finished! And Erin - congrats on getting a slot to MT! Awesome! I finished decently in AG and turned out my 2nd fastest HIM time. The day wasn't without its share of issues though. I had a normal swim time for me but I felt I was moving all over on the way back for some reason and kept going right. Then averted possible disaster when I realized the wetsuit stripper had removed my timing chip! Fortunately, I realized this not too long after my wetsuit was pulled off and went back to retrieve it. Now, during this first part of the season, I've been having new bike issues and these continued in the form of 3 dropped chains and a constant thumping in my back wheel. Fortunately, I only had to stop once for the chain and the thumping didn't cause a flat. BTW, I hit 48 mph on that one hill - WEEEEEEE! Definitely a rush! And yes, the run was brutal! I had previewed it the day before and thought the same thing someone else here said, that it would be a climb on a bike. Fortunately, it wasn't really hot or else there would've been more casualties. While I can say that I "ran" the entire course, that's not what it probably looked like going up the double hill the second time with the baby steps I was taking. And I saw one guy who looked like he had started to go on after the turnaround there but went back and essentially sat down sounding completely out of it with a concerned volunteer attending. I thought the race was put together well and the volunteers were super, though I had to yell a couple of times for what I wanted at a few of the aid stations because no one had any out to take. I did think the first time I took a Perform that it was just not enough. I guess they wanted to reduce waste but I found I was taking a few cups of what I wanted. I definitely didn't appreciate running through the mulch area, nor on the uneven grassy area. I was afraid of tripping and also getting debris in my shoe. Agree with the No Passing Zone at the end. Just when you need to turn and burn, there's someone ahead going fairly slow. I understand safety too....still. It was a bit frustrating. Some minor things - why no race tatoo numbers? I think I expect that for the price we pay. And no results posted anywhere. I don't have a smart phone or tablet (yet) and had to ask around to find out how I did. BTW, Rev3 events have both race tatoos and results kiosks with 3-4 computers for folks to get results at.

Well, I'm a tad disappointed with my performance but I held it together when issues cropped up. The race did serve its purpose to find out what I need to work on for IM Louisville in a little less than 9 weeks.

Congrats again!

Well, maybe I'm too competitive with myself or something, but now that I did Syr 70.3 once and know the course better, I'm probably going to do it next year to see if I can beat this year's time. Agree on the stupidity of the no pass zone, but that by itself won't put me off registering for next year.

In any case, my race report is up.

Erin congrats on a great race and getting one of those MT 70.3 slots.

Finally getting a chance to post up here on Syracuse. I didn't do too bad not as good as I was hoping for but I can't complain too much. I was sort of late getting down there so I had to rush around in transition and actually got down to the swim start later then I wanted to but did get to warm up a bit before the swim.

I was very disappointed with my swim. I couldn't get into a good rythym and I just swam too hard for much of the swim. I'm not a good or fast swimmer but was just happy to get it done and over with to be honest. It was just one of those days for me in regards to the swim.

The bike went pretty well for me. I was planning to hammer as long as I could. I wanted to get in under 3 hours on the bike and I was well on my way to doing that but I got a flat just before the no passing zone around mile 53 or 54. I had to walk the bike up the hill a bit and find a place to pull off and get in changed. It cost me at least 20 minutes between walking it up and changing the tire. Needless to say I was very disappointed however it did sort of save my race. My pacing on the bike was hard and my nutrition was terrible. My back was bothering me early on and my stomach was unsettled for most of the bike so I really didn't eat or drink nearly enough as I should have. I think the little break for the flat helped me alot. Unoffiicially I did get under 3 hours on the bike according to my garmin with auto pause for ride time so I was happy with the fact that I know I could have hit my goal.

I agree the no passing zone was a mess. I saw people passing each other and riding in packs and such. They need to figure out a better way if they are going to have runners, bikers and cars sharing the two lanes of road.

My run wound up being really good. I was able to eat and drink and sort of got a second wind. I ran up the hills the first loop and walked some on them the second loop but I ran faster on the second loop even with the walking and I was able to finish strong and sprint in to the finish at the end. So overall not a great race but not a bad race and it was still a PR for me. I was glad to get a race in before Ironman Mont Tremblant so Syracuse served it's purpose for me. Hope everyone else had a great race.