Beach2Battleship Iron Distance Triathlon
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Beach2Battleship Iron Distance Triathlon - TriathlonFull Ironman
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Swim
Comments: My goggle straps were too loose, so when I started swimming, water started leaking in. I tried not to panic as I treaded water and tried to tighten the strap. I tightened it a bit, then started swimming, but they still leaked. At this point, I was doing all I could not to panic. My first ironman and it was about to be over before it started! Would I have to swim the entire 2.4 miles without goggles in salt water? I stopped again, this time realizing that I was so buoyant in the water that I could float, and I really tightened the strap. I started up again and they were didn’t leak, as long as I only breathed to the left. The current was amazing! I highly recommend this race to anyone who is a little less confident with their swimming! I reached the orange buoy that signaled us to turn left towards the docks and headed for home. Towards the finish, I really had to sight often to make sure the current didn’t drag me past the docks! What would you do differently?: Buy new goggles, swim with them during many practices, and don’t change the way I put up my hair under my swim cap on race day! And put more BodyGlide on my neck because I have a nice wetsuit hickey. Transition 1
Comments: We had to run from the swim dock, across a parking lot, across the street, grab our bags, then run into the changing tent. The pavement was a little rough on my feet, but not too bad. I put on arm warmers because I saw most of the other women putting them on, and one woman was even offering people newspaper to put under their jerseys! The weather was supposed to be nice, so I didn’t worry about putting on other warm clothes. What would you do differently?: Nothing. Bike
Comments: I took it easy on the bike because I had heard stories of people going out too hard on the bike and then blowing up on the run, and that’s the last thing that I wanted to happen. There was a slight headwind throughout the course, which knocked my average down slightly, but I think the easy swim well made up for it! I stopped at 4 of the aid stations to get water and Heed, and to use the facilities. Taking the breaks really helped relieve my aching parts. I took in about 100 calories every half hour. On the half hour, I would eat either half a PowerBar, or a gel with water, and then on the hour, I would eat 4-5 Endurolyte tablets with a Gatorade/Cytocarb 2 mix. When I ran out of Gatorade, I drank the Heed offered at the aid stations. What would you do differently?: I would try not to stop at as many aid stations. Each time I stopped it cost me about 5 minutes, so I probably could knock 20 minutes off my bike if I didn’t need to stop. Transition 2
Comments: T2 was inside the Convention Center, which was kind of neat. Volunteers took my bike, and I ran into the makeshift changing tent. I wanted to be comfortable because I wasn’t exactly sure how long the run would take, so I washed my face, and took the time to change all of my clothes, right down to my socks! What would you do differently?: I probably didn’t need to change my socks! And I should have put chapstick in my T2 bag (or even my T1 bag) because the wind on the bike really did a number on my lips! Run
Comments: I sprinted out of the Convention Center and onto the run. Everyone was commenting on how fresh I looked, and that just made me want to run faster! My watch Garmin took a good half mile to find the satellites, so I had no idea how fast I was going for the first mile. I had to make myself slow down because I had no idea how long the run was going to take. I tried to keep myself at a 9:30-10 minute/mile pace. I ate a gel every 3 miles and took 4 Endurolyte tablets every hour. My legs felt good for the first 15 miles or so, then my knees started aching. Around mile 18 I was beginning to feel a little sick to my stomach and started wondering if I had over-eaten my gels. I made myself eat one more gel at mile 19 (I was still terrified of bonking), and kept running. It started getting dark around mile 20, and I was beginning to feel like I was ready for the run to be over. I had to watch where I put my feet because the path along the lake wasn’t completely level. The run went over a few bridges, which was pretty and a good change of scenery for my feet. At mile 22, I couldn’t contain myself any longer and I just let myself run as fast as I could. I was feeling good and surprisingly comfortable for the distance that I had covered! When I got towards the finish line, I actually had some left in the tank to sprint! I loved the cheering crowd! What would you do differently?: My stomach was really upset towards the end of the run, so I would try to figure out how to change what I ate to fix that problem. Maybe more real, solid food instead of gels? Post race
Warm down: I walked a block or two to the car, but I really wouldn’t consider that a warm-down. I sat and relaxed for a few minutes after I finished to take everything in. I couldn’t believe after all that work, it was over. Just like that. Webb and my parents found me at the finish line and we hung around for 30 minutes or so. We then went back to the hotel room, I showered, and we went out to Olive Garden for a late night dinner (by this time it was around 10pm). I could only eat a few bites of my meal because my stomach was so upset. I wasn’t hungry at all! I had thought that I’d be starving, but I had to take most of my dinner home in a doggy bag! What limited your ability to perform faster: Inexperience. I didn’t know how hard I could push myself on the bike or how often I should stop at aid stations. My diet may have also affected my time. I let myself eat whatever I wanted when I was training. If I ever do another full event, I would watch what I ate. Event comments: This was my first ironman distance event, and I would strongly recommend this race to beginners. It was a super easy swim, an honest bike, and a very scenic run. The race was really well organized, the food at the athlete dinner and brunch was great, and everyone was really friendly. The lighting on the run was a little scarce, so I would pack a light in my run special needs bag if I did this course again. Last updated: 2012-10-22 12:00 AM
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2012-10-22 12:08 PM |
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2012-10-22 12:21 PM in reply to: #4463544 |
2012-10-22 7:16 PM in reply to: #4463544 |
2012-10-22 7:31 PM in reply to: #4463544 |
General Discussion-> Race Reports! |
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United States
Set Up Events
75F / 24C
Sunny
Overall Rank = 25/136
Age Group = 25-29
Age Group Rank = 2/10
Webb and I and drove down to Wilmington right after work on Thursday, and arrived at the hotel at about 1:30 am. We met my parents Friday morning for breakfast at the hotel. After breakfast, Webb and I went to packet pick-up, dropped off my bike, and stopped at the local bike shop. We went to the athlete dinner Friday night (which was fantastic!) On Saturday morning, I got up at 4:30, had some microwavable eggs and pancakes, a Gatorade, an Endurolyte tablet, and drove to T1. We decided to park in a lot on the far side of the bridge so Webb wouldn’t have to fight traffic after the race started. We rode our bikes from the lot to T1. I pumped up my tires in T1, then took the shuttle to the swim start.
I got to the swim start around 6am, so I had an hour and a half to wait around and watch the sun rise before the start. I had two more Endurolytes because I have a habit of cramping during the swim, ate a banana, finished my Gatorade, and put on my wetsuit.