Subject: RE: Iowa Pigman 1/2 ironman Aug. 2005 I did the Iowa Pigman half in 2004. It was my first half-ironman and a wonderful experience. Good support from volunteers and race staff. Aid stations were well stocked . . . even towards the end where I was. The bike course was a pretty hilly -- yes, Iowa does have hills and while they were mostly rolling, I found that they bottomed out enough that I didn't have much momentum to pull me up the next hill. The run is very flat except for a few tiny hills in the state park and a big monster hill at mile 11. The run course is a little boring (in my mind ) and is not shaded at all. It is out and back which is nice, but the scenery doesn't change much.
Make sure you wear lots of sunscreen. I would even suggest reapplying it before the run. I hurt more from the sunburn than anything else after the race.
The race was good enough that I would gladly do it again . . . but I'm training for IM Wisconsin, so I don't think Pigman is going to fit into the schedule this year.
If you have other specific questions, let me know. I'd be glad to help. |