Ironman Arizona : Official Thread (Page 51)

Show up with ID and USAT card or 10 spot.  Pre-Race weigh-in and proceed thru packet pickup lickety split!

To all the newbies and first timers (me included) on a report of my 1:30 ride today..  My curiousity was for Beeline today so I started at the Shell station at McDowell and Beeline at about 10:30AM.  Started up Beeline and it was a bit unsettling at the start as I have not trained on the open road at all.. The big rigs and pick-ups scared the crap out of me but the bike lane/emergency lane is a "traffic lane" width so just stayed to the far outside..  At the start there is more open area and you can feel some breeze but not really windy..  Mostly head wind and just a touch of side..  The weather was nice and the sun warm, but not hot.  Sign at bank bldg near Shea said at 11:30AM, temp was 78 deg.  I was cruzing at 14 mph as I just wanted to get a feel for this stretch of the course..  I believe the incline started just after Gilbert Road and it isn't much.  I was able to hold a steady pace at right around 13.5-14 mph in the tuck position without rolling over my tongue..  There is a bit of debris in this lane and keeping an eye on the road as well as up ahead was necessary for me, but again, I was out there only to see what Beeline was all about.  No pressure on today's ride.. 

I did notice my HR got up a bit but not bad as I hit about mile 8.5 (from McDowell) which started toward the last up-tick roller.  I dropped to about 10 mph up on the handlebars but did not get out of the saddle at all on this ride.  Not far beyond that came the sign for "Shea Dr - 1/2 mile".  Short downhilll to Shea and be careful and watch for traffic trying to turn around to go up the other side.  This is not an easy area to hang a U-turn.  Short uphill from Shea that was not much and then hold on!  "E ticket" ride back down for quite a bit..  I hit 26.4 mph before I knew it..  Surprised I didn't involuntarily wet myself as I have never been at that speed on any bike.. Was a bit concerned about the debris and I didn't want a flat.  Something we shouldn't have to worry about on race day as the new blacktop looks so inviting.  Had one incident that could have been tragic and just a warning to all, if you come upon a double parked big rig, make every effort to let him/her know you are behind them! 

I spotted this one from almost a mile away and saw the flashers.  I sat up and slowed as I approached hoping the driver saw me.  I could not go around the truck on the inside because of the brush filled ditch, so the  traffic lane side was my only choice.  The big rig was the width of the bike/emergency lane, so I was stuck.  I stopped and un-clipped on the left side and was looking back over my shoulder at approaching traffic to see if the lane was clear yet.  A pick-up was coming fast so I could not go around the rig.  Something made me turn back to look up at the rig and he had started backing up.  I was about 8, maybe 10 feet behind it and it was obvious he hadn't seen me when I was approaching..  I was so scared for a second I couldn't move but starting yelling right away.  He heard that as I tried to look around the rig at the rear view mirror, and he hit the brakes.  At that point the pick-up went by and I got out from behind that rig as quickly as I could.  I have to admit, I was shaking.. I rode by and yelled that I was back there trying to get around but couldn't because of traffic, that I had no where to go.  The driver just shrugged his shoulders and after  I rode by, proceeded to pull a U-turn across all lanes and head back up Beeline.  After I got going again uttering every dirty word I could think of, I settled back into about a 17-18 mph pace. 

About 2 miles from the Shell statin came upon that flat area again and felt some breeze but nothing that bad.  I then came across another big rig off the side of the road with flashers on.  This time I slowed much sooner and stayed well away from that one and with no traffic coming, went out into the traffic lane and past the rig..  It was a nice ride and from McDowell to Shea and back was about 21 miles.  To those getting ready to ride that stretch, have fun and be careful!

Lori.. 

Was at packet pick-up at 10 am on the Mdot today and the line was sorta long.  Took about an hour to get into the tent so plan your day accordingly!

If we do the athlete registration Saturday do we have to pay?  For some reason I thought we could wait for a month or so.  Thanks!

I only bought one shirt. I just cant bring myself to purchase anything M-dot or IMAZ until I know I have finished one, LOL Cool stuff though!

To register for next year you pay right then and they give you a link to finish the registration process about a month later.  Of course they want the money up front!