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HITS Triathlon Series: Ocala - Half Iron Course - Triathlon1/2 Ironman


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Ocklawaha, Florida
United States
HITS Triathlon Series
Total Time = 5h 57m
Overall Rank = /
Age Group = 40-45
Age Group Rank = 7/22
Pre-race routine:

Breakfast - drive to the race with friends.
Event warmup:

Little bob in the lake. Should have done a better warm up.
Swim
  • 39h 00m
  • 2112 yards
  • 1h 50m 48s / 100 yards
Comments:

Since the visibility is not great because it's still early I would have loved more buoys. But I will say that the swim is in a nice clear lake and it was very nice. The wet suit strippers were a good bonus.
What would you do differently?:

I should have done a better warm up. I stopped and bobbed a bit just after the start to catch my breath.
Transition 1
  • 03m 27s
Comments:

The transition area is very nice. It is in a parking lot so running in bare feet is ... ouchie but not a big deal.
Bike
  • 2h 53m
  • 56 miles
  • 19.42 mile/hr
What would you do differently?:

The roads were wet but I wish I had been more confident at the start. I won't do this race again because of the bike to be honest.
Transition 2
  • 02m 27s
Comments:

No issues with transition. It is pretty much their claim to fame and I will say it is nice.
Run
  • 2h 20m
  • 13.1 miles
  • 10m 41s  min/mile
Comments:

Honestly I thought this run course was a bit of a mess. It's two loops which is fine but part of it is trail and you share part with the cyclists and the cars. There's no cheering except at the end. I dunno I just didn't like it.
What would you do differently?:

I would have carried my own water.
Post race
Warm down:

I finished and went to get some food. When I finished it was really just water and chips and bagels. There was hot food but it wasn't going to be out till much later. That was a bummer.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

I'm okay with my performance. I wish I had run faster. I was very hot on the run and I didn't have enough water.

Event comments:

I am only writing this review to be the contrary opinion. But I want to post this because I don't actually feel that safety on the bike course is a "frill." Every 70.3 I've done has been on roads open to traffic but this is the only one where I've had an issue and it's something that I feel the race director should address in future years. Also running out of water on a run course is something I can never understand - it just doesn't seem that complicated to make sure you have enough water (300 racers 2 cups at each stop = xx amount of cups/water/ice). I assume I was just a little unlucky in my timing at these water stops because otherwise it would be in other reviews. Which is okay it wasn't a disaster or anything. But, I will not do this race again - sorry. For those that choose this race be prepared to be very "on your own."




Last updated: 2013-03-25 12:00 AM
Swimming
39:00:00 | 2112 yards | 1h 50m 48s / 100yards
Age Group: 0/22
Overall: 0/
Performance: Good
Suit: full pro-motion suit
Course: This is a reverse triangle swim.
Start type: Wade Plus: Waves
Water temp: 65F / 18C Current:
200M Perf. Below average Remainder: Good
Breathing: Average Drafting: Below average
Waves: Navigation:
Rounding: Good
T1
Time: 03:27
Performance: Good
Cap removal: Helmet on/
Suit off:
Wetsuit stuck? Run with bike:
Jump on bike:
Getting up to speed:
Biking
02:53:00 | 56 miles | 19.42 mile/hr
Age Group: 0/22
Overall: 0/
Performance:
Wind: Little
Course: The roads are rural and not smooth and they are open to traffic. The traffic didn't seem terribly happy to have us there. I saw one aggressive car and had to slow 3 times behind auto traffic. The turn around is a tight u-turn. I saw no officials and some fairly blatant drafting. Coming back into transition the cyclists share the road with cars and runners ... in my opinion that section was a mess.
Road: Rough Wet Cadence:
Turns: Cornering: Average
Gear changes: Good Hills: Good
Race pace: Comfortable Drinks:
T2
Time: 02:27
Overall:
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike
Running with bike
Racking bike
Shoe and helmet removal
Running
02:20:00 | 13.1 miles | 10m 41s  min/mile
Age Group: 0/22
Overall: 0/
Performance: Below average
Course: 2 loops with the biggest chunk being on a trail and then a park road. There are no mats to check lap splits and so there was some course cutting. There were only 3 water stops and twice when I went by there was no water or ice which was a big bummer because it was hot.
Keeping cool Bad 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? No
Plenty of drinks? No
Post race activities: Bad
Race evaluation [1-5] 2

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2013-03-25 10:42 AM

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Subject: HITS Triathlon Series: Ocala - Half Iron Course


2013-03-25 12:31 PM
in reply to: #4673313

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Florida
Subject: RE: HITS Triathlon Series: Ocala - Half Iron Course
I agree with what you said.  Running out of water is not only poor planning, it is dangerous.  Racers could become seriously dehydrated, especially if doing the full.  There is no way I could have done the full with the roads the way they were and having to do that run course 4 times!  Hats off to those who finished the full!  Drafting was pretty bad.  I will never understand why people cheat!!! 
2013-03-25 4:15 PM
in reply to: #4673313

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Extreme Veteran
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Subject: RE: HITS Triathlon Series: Ocala - Half Iron Course
We must have been near each other all day your splits are very close to mine
2013-03-27 8:17 PM
in reply to: #4673313

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Member
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Subject: RE: HITS Triathlon Series: Ocala - Half Iron Course
Could be. I don't know if any pics will go,up but then we'll see if we were near each other :-)
2013-03-27 8:35 PM
in reply to: #4677214

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Expert
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Fernandina Beach, FL
Subject: RE: HITS Triathlon Series: Ocala - Half Iron Course

miamiamy - 2013-03-27 9:17 PM Could be. I don't know if any pics will go,up but then we'll see if we were near each other :-)

Photos are gradually being uploaded. You can access them here

2013-03-30 10:19 AM
in reply to: #4673313

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Veteran
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100100100
Austin
Subject: RE: HITS Triathlon Series: Ocala - Half Iron Course

Congratulations on finishing with a nice time.  Your experience was similiar to mine last year at the Marble Falls, TX race in April.  The bike and run course was together, also they ran out of water.  I paid the full price last year so it was disappointing.  Live and learn. 

Doing Tri's has helped me get physically fit and I enjoy the small venues with the personal touch to the larger venues with the festival type of atmospheres.   I did not enjoy their race it was just OK.

 Your last sentence sums it up



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