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Soma Half Ironman - Triathlon1/2 Ironman


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Tempe, AZ
United States
80F / 27C
Sunny
Total Time = 5h 11m 25s
Overall Rank = 114/623
Age Group = 25-29
Age Group Rank = 17/49
Pre-race routine:

Training was a little light at only 12 weeks after a summer filled with lots of work and no training.
Swim
  • 36m 45s
  • 2100 yards
  • 01m 45s / 100 yards
Comments:

If only I could swim straight...
What would you do differently?:

In retrospect, I probably should have seeded myself a little closer to the front since I ended up swimming around a number of slower swimmers...mind you, I started in the VERY back...this doesn't mean I am a fast swimmer!
Transition 1
  • 02m 40s
Comments:

Maybe I should have taken advantage of those westsuit strippers after all! I struggled a little with getting out of the westsuit, but at least I didn't have grass on my a##! ;)
Bike
  • 2h 38m 29s
  • 56 miles
  • 21.20 mile/hr
Comments:

I was really happy with the first 45 miles of the bike...struggled from there to the finish though! I had this annoyingly painful cramp in the back of my knee. I didn't think I would have a chance at the run. While I was 21st in age group, I was only six minutes off the average time for the guys on the podium, which I was extremely excited about. All in all, I performed a lot better than I thought I would be able to.
What would you do differently?:

Nothing much I would do differently. Maybe some more strength work to push strong past 45 miles. I would definitely repeat going overdistance on the bike! It helped more than anything else I did (a couple of 80 mile bike rides helped get me through the race).
Transition 2
  • 03m 28s
Comments:

Had to piss like a race horse...this sort of helped me through the last ten miles of the bike!
Run
  • 1h 50m 5s
  • 13.1 miles
  • 08m 24s  min/mile
Comments:

Didn't think I would be able to run after the bike lef...was a lot faster than I expected...gave me a little more confidence going into my next 'A' priority race next year...Ironman USA
Post race
Warm down:

No warm-down...plopped down on the grass and enjoyed my family's company!

What limited your ability to perform faster:

I needed more training, definitely more running.

Event comments:

I really recommend this race to anyone wanting to try the half ironman distance. Having my girlfriend and my parents to see every once in a while gave me something wonderful to look forward to. In each of the race photos, you can see me looking around all over the place trying to find them. The course allowed me to see them 6-10 times while they remained in one spot. I cant recommend the course enough...




Last updated: 2004-12-30 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:36:45 | 2100 yards | 01m 45s / 100yards
Age Group: 21/49
Overall: 156/623
Performance: Average
Suit: Quintana Roo
Course: Two loops
Start type: Wade Plus:
Water temp: 65F / 18C Current: Low
200M Perf. Below average Remainder: Average
Breathing: Average Drafting: Below average
Waves: Navigation: Below average
Rounding: Good
T1
Time: 02:40
Performance: Average
Cap removal: Good Helmet on/
Suit off:
No
Wetsuit stuck? No Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: No
Getting up to speed: Below average
Biking
02:38:29 | 56 miles | 21.20 mile/hr
Age Group: 21/49
Overall: 117/623
Performance: Good
Wind: Little
Course: Pretty easy double out and back...deceptive climb out into a light headwind that certainly made it more difficult than expected per the pre-race course drive.
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence:
Turns: Average Cornering: Average
Gear changes: Average Hills: Average
Race pace: Hard Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 03:28
Overall: Good
Riding w/ feet on shoes Bad
Jumping off bike Bad
Running with bike Average
Racking bike Average
Shoe and helmet removal Good
Running
01:50:05 | 13.1 miles | 08m 24s  min/mile
Age Group: 18/49
Overall: 160/623
Performance: Good
Course: Two easy loops...very flat, but pretty warm
Keeping cool Average Drinking Not enough
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Good
Mental exertion [1-5] 4
Physical exertion [1-5] 4
Good race? Yes
Evaluation
Course challenge Just right
Organized? Yes
Events on-time? Yes
Lots of volunteers? Yes
Plenty of drinks? Yes
Post race activities: Good
Race evaluation [1-5] 5

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2005-01-03 5:19 PM

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Member
14

New York, NY
Subject: Soma Half Ironman


2005-01-03 10:51 PM
in reply to: #98304

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Official BT Coach
2210
2000100100
Englewood, CO
Subject: RE: Soma Half Ironman
More running, shit you kicked ass!  How many people ran under 1:50 1/2 marathon.  That is awesome and you should be proud!  Well done.  I did Wildflower last year and it was hot.  You would like that one.  Your bike paced rocked!
2005-01-07 2:30 PM
in reply to: #98304

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Member
14

New York, NY
Subject: RE: Soma Half Ironman
Thanks...yeah, I was extremely excited about the whole race and beat what I thought to be a somewhat optimitic time goal of 5:30 by almost 20 minutes...Crossing that finish line was one of the happiest moments of my sporting life. The only reason I mention the run is that it's where the top people in my age group completely beat the crap out of me! The top guy in the group was a full 20+ minutes ahead of my run time. So, while I was happy as can be with my run time for the race (that's an understatement!), I think there's some room for improvement with my run speed.

On another note, I looked into Wildflower and would love to do it, but it's right in the middle of my finals week at school! If you are going again, good luck to you...it's supposed to be a tough course!

Matt
2005-01-08 11:56 AM
in reply to: #98304

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Expert
795
500100100252525
New Mexico
Subject: RE: Soma Half Ironman
Light training? More running? Your times and placement look good all things considered. I know plenty of people who would love to have your 1/2 marathon time alone.
2005-01-08 12:35 PM
in reply to: #100869

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Member
14

New York, NY
Subject: RE: Soma Half Ironman
Yeah, for some reason, I just felt fresh on the run once I got through that first mile. I really only truly struggled for miles 7-9, which was wonderful since I thought miles 1-13 were going to be a struggle! Seriously, once I was at the end of the bike, I thought I was toast, but I didn't want my family to see me walking so I struglled through the first few miles where they could see me! After that, the ABSOLUTELY incredible volunteers lifted my spirits at the aid stations every mile. I cannot say enough how wonderful they were! I really think the over distance training on the bike is what worked wonders for me since I was originally looking for a 2:00 - 2:10 run time so...somehow, something worked right. Not quite sure what it was! :-)

By the way, when I say light training, I say it relative to plan. As a student, I "work" about 15-20 hours per week so I have a lot of time to devote to triathlon. I am busy taking advantage of this now since my triathlon dreams will be put on hold once I start working after Lake Placid this July. Since it was prior to my getting involved here (I LOVE THE TRAINING LOG), I am not sure how much I trained but I would guess somewhere around 10-15 hours per week, which is more than enough for a half. So again, my comment about light training is relative!

Anyhow, don't think I am not jazzed about the race! It went so much better than anticipated. My time goals going into it were 6:00 and I would be satisfied, 5:30 and I would be very happy, and 5:00 and I would be estatic!
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