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Rockman Half Ironman - Triathlon1/2 Ironman


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Loves Park, Illinois
United States
80F / 27C
Precipitation
Total Time = 6h 13m 20s
Overall Rank = 175/308
Age Group = 30-34
Age Group Rank = 22/33
Pre-race routine:

camped in a tent the night before, ate a powebar drank gatorade, walked 2 miles to the race start
Event warmup:

none- the swim was the warmup
Swim
  • 40m 11s
  • 2100 yards
  • 01m 55s / 100 yards
Comments:

mass start, much more kicking and "fighting" then in previous long swims that i have done, some one gave me a good kick in the left eye in the first 500, but it did not knock my goggle off, also someone with a wide freeslyle stroke hit me in the head like three times as i was passing them, one another swimmer seemed to start swimming ziz zag as to not let me pass when I got up near him.
there were some long weeds twice during the swim that i saw people get tangled in and freak out
What would you do differently?:

nothing swim time was almost as I planned it except i did not sight that well at one point and ended up zig zaging about 200 yards or so
Transition 1
  • 03m 10s
Comments:

nothing special here, felt strong running out of the water and with bike
What would you do differently?:

nothing
Bike
  • 3h 07m 58s
  • 56 miles
  • 17.88 mile/hr
Comments:

bike was going very well until mile 44, at that point my bike computer said that average speed was 19.5mph, and then the it got dark, and the most gigantic storm came over us that I have ever ridden in. When it started raining the drops were hitting me so hard I thought it was a big cloud of bugs, but no it was rain, it escalated to a massive downpour with flodding that I could not see the surface of the road for at least 3 miles, I was soaked completely, wind picked up to 20+mph and I felt like I was standing still, this lasted for about 10 miles. Oh I forgot to mention the lightning, twice it hit right by the side of the road... it made me almost fall of the bike. I was passing one guy during all this, and he was like "at this point I just want to finish alive"...Amen.
What would you do differently?:

nothing I was having an awesome ride, the storm ruined the average speed, but it made it a true race of endurance
Transition 2
  • 02m 7s
Comments:

at that point I was glad to be alive, it was still raining but the lighting stopped
What would you do differently?:

nothing
Run
  • 2h 19m 56s
  • 13.1 miles
  • 10m 41s  min/mile
Comments:

massive cramps in quads on mile two, made me rethink my hill strategy, then cramps a few times again forced me to walk, was really disappointed when I realized at mile 10 that I was not going to break 6hrs.
What would you do differently?:

nothing at this point, need to train more, loose more weight.
Post race
Warm down:

walked around in a daze

Event comments:

im happy, august 2007 I did a half-ironman in 6hr54 minutes, today 6h13, and this was a much harder run course, so im getting better.
As far as the race itself, these people are cheap, last year they gave out a finishers sticker, this year a lousy tee-shirt, I paid $144.


Profile Album


Last updated: 2007-12-26 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:40:11 | 2100 yards | 01m 55s / 100yards
Age Group: 15/33
Overall: 136/308
Performance: Good
Suit: neosport sleeveless
Course: two laps, triangular
Start type: Deep Water Plus: Shot
Water temp: 70F / 21C Current: Low
200M Perf. Average Remainder: Good
Breathing: Good Drafting: Good
Waves: Navigation: Below average
Rounding: Good
T1
Time: 03:10
Performance: Good
Cap removal: Average Helmet on/
Suit off:
No
Wetsuit stuck? Yes Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: No
Getting up to speed: Average
Biking
03:07:58 | 56 miles | 17.88 mile/hr
Age Group: 21/33
Overall: 166/308
Performance: Good
Wind: Strong with gusts
Course: out and back, country roads, medium rolling hills, about 1/3 of the roads were rough
Road: Rough Wet Cadence:
Turns: Good Cornering: Good
Gear changes: Good Hills: Good
Race pace: Hard Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 02:07
Overall: Good
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike
Running with bike Below average
Racking bike Average
Shoe and helmet removal Average
Running
02:19:56 | 13.1 miles | 10m 41s  min/mile
Age Group: 24/33
Overall: 214/308
Performance: Average
Course: can I say this race should have been called the Hillman not the Rockman. They could not have picked a more hilly run, a single mile did not pass without a hill.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Good
Mental exertion [1-5] 5
Physical exertion [1-5] 5
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: Below average
Race evaluation [1-5] 3

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2008-06-08 7:16 PM

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Veteran
171
1002525
Jacksonville
Subject: Rockman Half Ironman


2008-06-08 9:33 PM
in reply to: #1452800

User image

Champion
6993
50001000500100100100100252525
Chicago, Illinois
Subject: RE: Rockman Half Ironman
yeah that storm was rough. I was back of the pack on the bike and I was like being slow rules I missed the lightning but I got hit with the down poor twice. Wind even knocked me off my bike. Lucky I refuse to fall and was able to unclip in time.

I was told most peopel seem to have atleast 20 extra minutes because of the weather. You did great.

Edited by chirunner134 2008-06-08 9:37 PM
2008-06-09 12:28 AM
in reply to: #1452800

Subject: ...
This user's post has been ignored.
2008-06-09 8:17 AM
in reply to: #1453171

Veteran
171
1002525
Jacksonville
Subject: RE: Rockman Half Ironman
thanks guys, the results page shows only 278 finishers, there were supposed to be about 450 starters, it looks like a lot abandoned the race.
2008-06-09 10:31 AM
in reply to: #1453434

Veteran
171
1002525
Jacksonville
Subject: RE: Rockman Half Ironman
heres what the local newspaper said about the race...

http://www.rrstar.com/homepage/x1758843906/Thunderstorms-can-t-stop...
2008-06-09 10:48 AM
in reply to: #1452800

Champion
5495
5000100100100100252525
Whizzzzzlandia
Silver member
Subject: RE: Rockman Half Ironman

Hey! Were you wearing the ALS uniform? I saw you there... dumpster was wearing his too... If I knew you were you I would have tapped you on the shoulder and said hello!  

Nice work. It was nasty out there.



2008-06-09 11:21 AM
in reply to: #1452800

Regular
96
252525
Petaluma, CA
Subject: RE: Rockman Half Ironman
Yeah, that storm was nasty. I agree with you, I was cruising along doing alright until the storm, which took it right out of me. Way to stick with it and get a good time despite the weather.
2008-06-09 11:41 AM
in reply to: #1454006

Veteran
171
1002525
Jacksonville
Subject: RE: Rockman Half Ironman
Yes I was wearing the ALS outfit, so was Coredump.
Congrats on the first place finish Whizzzzz, thats awesome!
2008-06-09 11:48 AM
in reply to: #1452800

Regular
169
1002525
Southeastern Minnesota
Subject: RE: Rockman Half Ironman
yeah, on slowtwitch it says over 125 people bailed out. Couldnt handle a little rain
2008-06-09 2:17 PM
in reply to: #1452800

Extreme Veteran
573
5002525
IL
Subject: RE: Rockman Half Ironman

Great job out there, what a crazy race day!  Conditions were insane, congrats on finishing!

 I think I was right by you on the campgroud...I was the guy out there with his wife and the 2 dogs. 

 BTW, they might not have had the best swag but Chip is one hell of a race director and one hell of a nice guy.  You may have noticed the folks that pulled into the campground a bit later on....one of the guys' bikes had fallen off the rack on the drive out and was run over by a truck...it was thrashed.  I heard the race director felt bad for the guy and actually loaned the guy his own personal bike for the race so he could still compete. 

2008-06-09 4:45 PM
in reply to: #1452800

Regular
94
252525
Westchester, IL
Subject: RE: Rockman Half Ironman
I got caught in the rain twice and saw some people quiting. The swim was also a little wierd, getting clobbered on the head. Good Job!


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