Hawaii 70.3 Who's in?

I'm in. Missed out on registration last year, so I got on it early this year. 

No idea about the Ewa sprint.

BOCA Hawaii usually puts on the race so you might want to give them a call.  I did it a few years ago and I vaguely remember that early registration was until the end of the year, but can't remember when it actually opened.

yep, I'm in.

if you mean Waterfront Tri, it's not on the schedule for 2013 (yet)

but Haleiwa Tri is March 2...and BOCA Lanikai Tri is April 21

I'm in!  I hope my cold weather training in Calgary pays off!  This will be my first 1/2-IM and 2nd triathlon.  I'll do some practice OW swims on Oahu in February.  Any tips for this beginner and mainlander are welcome

Jeptha

Swim - almost a guarantee that you won't be allowed to use a wetsuit, so plan accordingly.  The water usually isn't rough, but there is a current that tends to push you away from shore.  So if you find yourself swimming wide, try to adjust for it.  Also, I would recommend semi-tinted goggles and finding landmarks to sight off of rather than buoys because a good portion of the swim is into the sun.

Bike - don't overcook it.  The first 20 miles should feel easy because they are.  You'll need to save some for the climb to Hawi because it's a combination of a hill and battling the winds.  The winds are worse up at Hawi.  The roads are super smooth, wide, and well swept.  But just keep in mind that there is lava rocks surrounding the highway and most of the island in general.  When transporting your bike to the race, be careful with your tires.  If in doubt, carry your bike over your shoulder.  Lava rock is just as good as glass.

Run - it's a windy run through a golf course.  Be prepared to run through grass, concrete, and pavement.  Lots of U turns so it can be hard to stay in a rythem if you are used to just running in a straight line.  Not a lot of shade out there so try to stay cool.  I always use a hat and fill it with ice at each aid station.  If you do this, your socks and shoes will likely get wet, so be prepared.  I coat the inside of my socks with body glide and use triathlon specific shoes that drain.

It's a super fun race.  Put in the training and you'll have a blast.

Last year was my first time so I can chip in some advice.

Sighting off the buoys can be problematic, especially on hella windy days when they get blown away! Use the shoreline to do a lot of your sighting, but that means you'll be staring into the sun quite a bit, so tinted goggles is definitely a good idea and a piece of advice I'm going to follow.

The bike ride is as tri808 describes. Right about 25 miles or thereabouts is the start of the climb to Hawi. There are rolling hills here and there before that though, and you definitely don't want to cook yourself prior to the Hawi climb. It's about a 2% grade so it's not terrible, but you want to make sure you've got plenty of gas in the tank for it. At the Hawi turnaround it's a pretty smooth ride mostly down hill all the way back, and usually with a good tailwind, however you have to be careful of catching crosswinds.

Finally, the run will be hot as hell. The sun will basically be right overhead that time of year, and chances are you're running entirely through the midday sun. No getting around it. At least you can look forward to a nice breeze, that is if the breeze doesn't stop you in your tracks when you're running headfirst into it. I dropped ice into my tri top both front and back and held ice in my hands as much as I could. Definitely rub some ice and cold sponges on the back of your neck as well. Keeping your core temperature down is very important. 

Last year it was really windy...I had to constantly switch my hat forward and backwards to keep the wind from blowing it off.  I prefer a hat because I have very short hair (buzz cut) so I need to keep the sun off my scalp.  Others with longer hair prefer a visor because it allows heat to escape.

Starting the 2nd week of the Beginner HIM training program. From everything I have heard if you stick to this plan then there shouldnt be any problems with the race.

Does anyone have additional suggestions for training? Of course the swim worries me the most as a beginner...

are you used to swimming in the ocean ?

if it gets windy, can be quite choppy which makes it harder to sight the buoys.

with so many in the race, the mass start is mayhem, you have to keep your cool especially to the first buoy.

I would definitely train over the distance, so you feel strong to deal with the other issues during the race.

Are you following a plan like this - http://www.trinewbies.com/tno_trainingprograms/tno_HIM.asp

-Matt

Thanks for the suggestions! I definitely need to get more open water swimming in. Right now it is limited to maybe once a week and that is usually not a good distance swim.

I see some trips to Ala Moana in my future. That and I plan to use Kailua Beach as a start point for some of the bricks, it is a nice place to swim I think.

If you haven't done a OWS with a mass start, you might want to get some practice on that, or at least account for it.  Honu doesn't have any "wave starts", it's just 1500+ people that start swimming at the same time.  More than anything, you need to be mentally prepared for that, and not panic when people grab your legs, hit your head, or swim over you.  It's just part of the deal.  The first turn buoy is a complete bottleneck. 

If you're not an experienced swimmer, I would advise starting far back, cruising the first 500 yards, then settle in once things space out a bit.  There will be plenty of time later on to "race". 

Last year I tried the "hang back and wait a minute" approach to the mass swim start and it seemed to work great.  The fast swimmers were well out of the way, and I immediately fell into a "pod" of swimmers (maybe 4 of us) who seemed to have exactly the same swim speed and we stayed together almost the whole way around.  It was very windy and I heard later that one of the buoys had been pushed by wind further out so we probably over swam the distance.  Overall, it is a beautiful place to swim and the swim was maybe the most enjoyable part of the event for me.  It was my first "no wet-suit" HIM but no reason for concern - the salt water makes you more buoyant and it was easy.

It was the bike portion that was more challenging, entirely due to the wind.  I hadn't done any practice of riding at an angle to counteract the wind, so learned that by trial and error on the spot.  I saw others with one arm in aero bars and the other arm using hand to cover the break during the gusts, so I tried that and it worked pretty good at times.  When heading up to Hawi you pass through cut-outs in the rock (on each side of the road) where suddenly the wind will pick up or disappear completely and then suddenly re-appear in full force.  I learned to watch riders ahead of me to see what the wind condition was about to be.

The run was the strangest run ever.  Partly on asphalt, no shade, hot sun - like running in a sauna.  But running on the golf course was stranger - the grass is more humid, kinda spongy, and just felt awkward.  For a runner, this is not an enjoyable run, just get through it until you see the ocean.  

Despite some challenges, this is an incredible event and the most memorable race of every race I've done.

Many thanks to tri808 and paperwind for your advice - I'll stick to it as best I can.  Sounds like some sort of bib that could hold ice would be useful for the run.  I'll try out the tinted goggles you mention, and make sure I've got a hat that won't blow away, or at least won't blow too far!

Anyone know the time limit for the race?  Is it 8.5 hours?

-Matt

from the athlete guide in 2012.  I don't expect any changes for 2013

The clock will start at 7:00 a.m.* and run non-stop until the end of the race, which will officially end 8.5 hours after the start. Transitions will be included in your total elapsed time. Splits will be recorded for each segment of the race. In addition to the 8.5 hour overall cutoff time, there are cutoff times for each segment of the race.

The cutoff time for the swim segment is 1 hour 15 minutes after the start. Any athlete still in the water after this time will receive a DNF and be removed from the race. The cutoff time for the bike segment is 5 hours 30 minutes after the race start. Any athlete still on the bike segment after this time will receive a DNF and be removed from the race. The same condition exists with respect to the 8 hour 30 minute finish cutoff time for the Ironman 70.3 Hawai`i.

Thanks man...I can't believe that over 1,800 people have already registered.

I talked to McCully bike today and they will box up mu bike for shipment for $30...he said it is easy to put back together on the other end.  The only special tool you need is for the pedals.

I was surprised that Hawaiian Air will move a bike for only $35.

1. Bicycles and Attachable Parts
   1. Bicycle Characteristics
      Carrier will accept non-motorized touring or racing bicycles with single seats and bicycles with tandem seats.
   2. Conditions of Acceptance
      1.                                       i.        Bicycles must have the handlebars fixed sideways and pedals removed or pedals and handlebars must be enclosed in plastic foam or similar material.
      2.                                      ii.        Bicycles and any attachable parts must be adequately packed in a box or hard case.
      3.                                     iii.        Passenger must sign a waiver of liability upon airport check-in for HA to transport bicycle and any attachable parts. HA will not be responsible for damage to or loss of inadequately/unsuitably packed, uncrated or unprotected bicycles or attachable parts.
      4.                                     iv.        Acceptance of Bicycles and attachable parts is subject to availability of space and conditional on aircraft size and load conditions.
         
         Exception: If the bicycle only is less than 62 dimensional inches and weighs less than 50 lbs, the above condition does not apply.
      5.                                      v.        HA shall not be responsible for the ground delivery of bicycle or any attachable parts that are not accommodated on the flight on which the bicycle or any attachable parts were accepted as checked baggage.
      6.                                     vi.        Maximum weight for bicycle and attachable parts and container is 70 lbs and size is limited to115 linear inches.
   3. Charges
      Bicycles and any attachable parts will always each be subject to a charge, whether or not presented as a single piece:
   4.                                       i.        $35.00 USDBetween points within the State of Hawaii:
   5.                                      ii.        $100.00 USDBetween any other points within the US not wholly within Hawaii
      1.                                     iii.        In addition, items exceeding 50 lbs (not to exceed 70 lbs) will be subject to the following excess weight charges:
      2. $25.00 USDBetween points within the State of Hawaii
      3. $50.00 USDBetween any other points within the US not wholly within Hawaii

Note: Excludes unicycles, break-apart bicycles or any other type of cycle which can be packed into a standard suitcase. When in excess, each suitcase will be subject to the excess baggage charge.

Just went to register for the race & the general entry slots are all full!

"General Entry slots for the 2013 IRONMAN 70.3 Hawai'i are now sold out! Limited IRONMAN Foundation Slots are now available!"

Bummer!