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Ironman 70.3 Muncie - Triathlon


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Muncie, Indiana
United States
World Triathlon Corporation
82F / 28C
Sunny
Total Time = 8h 53m 4s
Overall Rank = 1488/1541
Age Group = 35-39
Age Group Rank = 89/93
Pre-race routine:

Got up at 4 a.m., had a very small cup of coffee, packed up and Gary drove us the 30 minutes to the race start.
Event warmup:

Got my transition spot situated, put on the wetsuit, chatted with my transition neighbor who was doing this Half Ironman as her first tri, took photos of each other on our cell phones and hung out with Gary for a while in the spectator area.
Swim
  • 1h 04m 29s
  • 2112 yards
  • 03m 03s / 100 yards
Comments:

Though this was the longest distance swim I've done in a tri, that was my best. I was very, very comfortable from the get-go, which that usually takes me several minutes to find my groove.

I was so comfortable, so confident, I said to myself, "Yeah, you got this."

I got kicked more than usual, but it was a longer race than usual so that makes sense. The worst part of the swim, other than the blinding sun, was when someone kicked me with their heel in the right goggle. My already tight goggles were hurting and that was sooo painful. Luckily, the pain subsided and I do not yet have a black eye ... yet.
What would you do differently?:

Go faster ... much faster.
Transition 1
  • 05m 57s
Comments:

Had a hard time getting off my wetsuit, but, frankly, not as hard as I'd expected.
Bike
  • 4h 24m 4s
  • 56 miles
  • 12.71 mile/hr
Comments:

I hate the bike. There, I said it. I myself wonder why even do triathlons if I loathe it so much, but for some reason, my heart belongs to tris.

Miles 20 to 28 were hard because the turnaround seemed "just up ahead" and it never came. After the turnaround, it felt like my brake was engaging some on my front right tire. Stopped to check it out, but I dunno. When I got going a little faster, I did not notice it. Maybe it was just in my head. No support vehicles in sight when I needed them, but plenty around when I didn't. Of course.

The miles from about 25 to 35 were the hardest. I was so far behind in the bike that no one was around, so I cried that entire time. "I can't do this" and "I suck" permeated my brain. In fact, I imagined myself at one point getting off the bike, picking it up over my head and hurling it to the ground in frustration. I decided, instead, to just cry some more.

I got over it and soon found myself keeping pace with a couple women who had passed me. We got out of the rolling hills and I started feeling a little better.

At this point, no one had passed me. Knowing that I would be writing about the race in my column next week, I came up with what I thought was a catchy headline, "Nothing 'left' to say." It's a play off of how when people pass you they say "On your left" but because I passed no one, I couldn't say it. But I ended up passing two guys and one girl so my headline was a no go.

Besides the miles described above, the last eight were actually the hardest — by far — with the last two being the worst. I tried to cry again, but was out of tears. I've never been out of tears before.

An existing pain in a muscle behind my knee flared up pretty much from the beginning of the bike, and I thought for sure I could not go on as I was finishing the bike.

I spotted my husband, Gary, a few yards before Transition and yelled, "I don't think I'm going to do the run!" I literally didn't think my right leg would hold out on me.

Right before I headed into Transition, a woman was walking back out to her car wearing her big, bright, red finisher's medal. I thought, "Uh, uh. I'm not leaving without one of those," and I motioned to Gary that I'd do the run after all. At least I'd give the run a shot. If the pain got too intense, then I could reconsider, but I'd come too far to stop otherwise.

What would you do differently?:

Train more, get a lighter, better bike, get a women' saddle.
Transition 2
  • 03m 49s
Run
  • 3h 14m 45s
  • 13.1 miles
  • 14m 50s  min/mile
Comments:

I ran/walked the first couple miles and then walked about five of them with a couple different folks. I was soooo tired. At the turnaround, I started running again, tossing in a few walks.

I was starting to get worried that I wouldn't finish in time. At every mile marker, I asked the volunteers for the time. I was going to finish in time, by George.

With five minutes left before the cutoff, I crossed the finish line with a very smiling husband on the other side snapping my photo.

This took me about 30 minutes more than my regular half marathon, but it seemed to fly by much more quickly.
What would you do differently?:

Strength train and train for speed.
Post race
Warm down:

Stretched, hugged Gary, ate a banana, took a couple bites of a hamburger, but really didn't have an appetite. I took a drink of pop (tired of Powerade and Water), but it burned my lips — which were apparently sunburned.

Went and got my stuff out of Transition, loaded up the truck and stretch for a few minutes after that.

The night before, I tried on my race T-shirt, but it was so tight Gary and I joked that it must've been a kids T. Already at my heaviest race weight, I felt like a porker when I put that on. So, as we were leaving the race, I asked the ladies manning the T-shirt booth if I could exchange my medium for an extra-large. They said the company had accidentally shipped them kids T-shirts instead of women's, asked me what size I wanted, and handed me the right T. They told me not to worry about retuning the kids T. A ha!

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Not training enough, not being stronger physically (got the mental toughness down), and not training for speed.

Event comments:

What an experience. I'm glad I got a HIM under my belt after six seasons. Now, I don't know what I'm going to do with my days.

That was such a humbling experience, especially starting out my tri life as a BOPer and moving up to a MOPer over the last few years, only to become a BOPer again yesterday.

No matter the status, I'm still so proud of what I accomplished on the course that day — which just happened to be my birthday.


Profile Album


Last updated: 2013-01-06 12:00 AM
Swimming
01:04:29 | 2112 yards | 03m 03s / 100yards
Age Group: 91/93
Overall: 1477/1541
Performance: Good
Suit: Xterra
Course: Out about 900 yards, then across and back to shore. The water was PERFECT! I was doing a really good job sighting, though I went inside a couple times, but the way back was difficult because the sun was right in our faces. It was literally the blind leading the blind. I had to stop and put my hand above my goggles to spot the buoys. Having water safety personnel on both sides of the swimmers was helpful in that regard.
Start type: Wade Plus: Waves
Water temp: 76F / 24C Current: Low
200M Perf. Good Remainder: Good
Breathing: Good Drafting: Average
Waves: Good Navigation: Average
Rounding: Good
T1
Time: 05:57
Performance: Average
Cap removal: Below average Helmet on/
Suit off:
No
Wetsuit stuck? Yes Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: No
Getting up to speed: Average
Biking
04:24:04 | 56 miles | 12.71 mile/hr
Age Group: 92/93
Overall: 1504/1541
Performance: Bad
Wind: Some with gusts
Course: Pretty flat, but with a long section of gently rolling hills. There were some rough patches and some small potholes for a couple miles at the beginning/end which were clearly marked, but riding on a closed course was terrific.
Road: Rough Dry Cadence:
Turns: Good Cornering: Good
Gear changes: Good Hills: Bad
Race pace: Hard Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 03:49
Overall: Average
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike Good
Running with bike Good
Racking bike Average
Shoe and helmet removal Average
Running
03:14:45 | 13.1 miles | 14m 50s  min/mile
Age Group: 89/93
Overall: 1488/1541
Performance: Average
Course: Rolling hills, some long, but the course was very similar to the one on which I train daily, so that was good.
Keeping cool Average Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Below average
Mental exertion [1-5] 5
Physical exertion [1-5] 2
Good race? Ok
Evaluation
Course challenge Too hard
Organized? Yes
Events on-time? Yes
Lots of volunteers? Yes
Plenty of drinks? Yes
Post race activities: Average
Race evaluation [1-5] 4

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2013-07-14 10:51 PM

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Master
1887
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Loveland, Ohio
Subject: Ironman 70.3 Muncie


2013-07-15 10:13 AM
in reply to: #4803958

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Regular
287
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Levittown, PA
Subject: RE: Ironman 70.3 Muncie
Congrats. Way to tuff it out when things weren't going so great. The sense of accomplishment is probably greater when you go thru a breaking point like you did and you keep moving along even though you know at any point you can quit. Great job
2013-07-18 5:34 PM
in reply to: spiderjunior

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Master
1887
1000500100100100252525
Loveland, Ohio
Subject: RE: Ironman 70.3 Muncie
Originally posted by spiderjunior

Congrats. Way to tuff it out when things weren't going so great. The sense of accomplishment is probably greater when you go thru a breaking point like you did and you keep moving along even though you know at any point you can quit. Great job


Hey, thanks so much. You are so right about the sense of accomplishment.
2013-07-18 7:46 PM
in reply to: #4803958

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Master
2429
200010010010010025
Falls Church, Virginia
Subject: RE: Ironman 70.3 Muncie
Loved reading your reports. Thanks for sharing your adventures. You have seriously extreme mental toughness. I'm in awe.
2013-07-18 8:28 PM
in reply to: #4803958

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Veteran
720
500100100
Aurora, Illinois
Subject: RE: Ironman 70.3 Muncie
Congrats on the accomplishment! I heard it was a great race!
2013-07-18 9:48 PM
in reply to: #4803958

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Extreme Veteran
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Subject: RE: Ironman 70.3 Muncie
Congrats on your race and happy birthday!


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