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Ironman World Championship - TriathlonFull Ironman


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Kona, Hawaii
United States
World Triathlon Corporation
85F / 29C
Sunny
Total Time = 10h 23m 45s
Overall Rank = 952/2615
Age Group = M35-39
Age Group Rank = 253/452
Pre-race routine:

Oatmeal and some fruit for breakfast. Danielle drove us to the shuttle location, took that to the pier. Walked through transition, got the bike set to go, and just tried to take in the enormity of it all. Somehow found Joe just outside the corral, so got to chat for a bit and exchange good lucks. I was in the first amateur wave, so got in the corral where I watched the ceremonial blessing and the pros start. Incredible to be here,
Event warmup:

100-200 yard swim to the deep water start line. The surfers creating the line were so cool.
Swim
  • 1h 10m 52s
  • 4224 yards
  • 01m 41s / 100 yards
Comments:

By far my slowest IM swim, but I can't really say I was "racing" this. Mainly just wanted to survive without taking in too much salt water. The swells were something else, and there was more contact than I was expecting. There were moments where I would string together a few dozen "hard" strokes, just to get jostled by a swell and have to recalibrate myself. One the way back found some drafting opportunities to help with navigation and save some energy. Got to the end just feeling happy to be done and ready to get out on the bike.
What would you do differently?:

Not sure a practice swim would've helped, but prolly couldn't have hurt.
Transition 1
  • 06m 12s
Comments:

Took my time rinsing off, took a gel, and thoroughly applied sunscreen.
What would you do differently?:

Nothing, not worried about the time here
Bike
  • 5h 30m 9s
  • 112 miles
  • 20.35 mile/hr
Comments:

Really really happy with this ride. Goal was to stay in the moment, stay within myself power-wise, and at all costs stay on top of nutrition. I ended up taking more of the on course Gatorade than planned, but it was cold and agreeable today, so I went with it. Took in salt and calories at the planned rate. Towards the end had to back off slightly on the calories and just push some fluids to get the stomach back from the brink.

Pace was solid, conservative. Power avg/NP = 150/155 which is below what I should be able to do for IM, but better to err on this side. Legs were still feeling gassed by the end, and I'm very happy with this time. The power slippage was pretty consistent, but the second half was so much faster than the first that I think it played out just fine. Did a really good job staying aero overall as well.

Talk about a beautiful course - my goodness! Some of the ocean views were breathtaking. We got lucky with a fairly reasonable day in terms of wind. It was definitely there and frustrating at times, but nothing like what it could have been. The heat and sun though - that was no joke. Around mile 90 we made a turn and began to climb and the wind flipped to behind, and it suddenly just felt so so hot. No coincidence this is when my stomach started to turn as well. Luckily I was being very mindful all day, and was able to make some minor decisions to avoid disaster and get back on track.

As always I was ready to get off the bike and get running when coming back to town. The crowds were just so amazing, still hard to believe I was doing this.
What would you do differently?:

Nothing, very happy with this. First time ever skipping special needs, was doing fine living off the course for fluids, and had all the food and salt I needed on me.
Transition 2
  • 07m 3s
Comments:

Took a little extra time here getting myself ready to run. I can't say I was feeling 100%, so maybe I was trying to cool off out of the sun a little bit here.
What would you do differently?:

Could've moved a little quicker here.
Run
  • 3h 29m 29s
  • 26.2 miles
  • 08m  min/mile
Comments:

Stunning. Incredible. Cannot believe this run. I did NOT feel great in the first mile or two. Luckily we are in town to start and the energy was just overwhelming. There was actually a few areas of shade, and I went through every hose I could. Took fluids at the aid stations and came back to life. Now it was time to grind. The heat was unrelenting, and once leaving town on to the Queen K there was absolutely no where to hide from the sun. Every aid station I dumped water, took fluids, and ate calories when I could. Before they ran out of ice I was putting some under my hat each time as well.

As the miles went on, I found I was no longer getting passed, and in fact was chewing through people at a decent clip. In the Ironman World Championship! I finally felt like I belonged in this race. Getting to the Energy Lab caused a weird catch-22, is it worse to have to push through a headwind, or suffer the increased heat of a tailwind? I accidentally missed an aid station, thinking we were turning around right after it, not over half a mile down the road. Silly mistake but ultimately a non-issue.

Got to see Joe on my way out of the lab, was difficult to assess but I think we were pretty close together in terms of race time. Gotta keep pushing!

Getting back to the Queen K, it seemed someone flipped the road. I thought it was gradual uphill coming out, why does it look the same now? Oh well. Stay focused, hit the aid stations, and keep the pace going. Miles were ticking by and somehow I was still cruising along.

Lots of pain as I got back to town, but who cares! Just don't cramp down the hill or on a turn. Let a little juice out before getting to Ali'i Drive. Had some room to myself so this is where I would stay. Entering the finish was so incredible. More than I could have imagined. A dream come true barely does it justice.
What would you do differently?:

Absolutely nothing.
Post race
Warm down:

Walked around in the athlete area. Rinsed off and put on some dry clothes while I snacked, reflected, and waited for Joe to finish.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Nothing. Not only did I finish Ironman Kona, but I finished strong with a negative split run, and set a new PR for the distance. Insane.

Event comments:

Amazing. I don't know what else to say. Blew away my expectations in every way possible. I am forever grateful.




Last updated: 2022-11-13 12:00 AM
Swimming
01:10:52 | 4224 yards | 01m 41s / 100yards
Age Group: 305/452
Overall: 1369/2615
Performance: Below average
Suit: None
Course: One out and back rectangle in the ocean from Kailua Pier
Start type: Deep Water Plus: Waves
Water temp: 80F / 27C Current: Medium
200M Perf. Average Remainder: Average
Breathing: Average Drafting: Good
Waves: Below average Navigation: Good
Rounding: Good
T1
Time: 06:12
Performance: Average
Cap removal: Helmet on/
Suit off:
Wetsuit stuck? Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: No
Getting up to speed:
Biking
05:30:09 | 112 miles | 20.35 mile/hr
Age Group: 359/452
Overall: 1583/2615
Performance: Good
Wind: Some
Course: Out and back mostly along the coast on the Queen K - so beautiful
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence: 85
Turns: Good Cornering: Good
Gear changes: Good Hills: Good
Race pace: Comfortable Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 07:03
Overall: Average
Riding w/ feet on shoes Good
Jumping off bike Good
Running with bike Good
Racking bike Good
Shoe and helmet removal
Running
03:29:29 | 26.2 miles | 08m  min/mile
Age Group: 97/452
Overall: 952/2615
Performance: Good
Course: Short out and back in town, then a longer out and back to the Energy Lab, before the famous finish on Ali'i Drive.
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: Good
Race evaluation [1-5] 5

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2022-11-13 6:18 PM

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Expert
908
500100100100100
Niskayuna, New York
Subject: Ironman World Championship


2022-11-14 8:42 AM
in reply to: #5283394

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Master
2479
2000100100100100252525
Atlanta, Georgia
Gold member
Subject: RE: Ironman World Championship
Wow! You pretty much had a Kona dream result..congrats Ironman! The hardest, least likely result of all is an IM marathon neg-split and you did it on the big stage. Well done.
2022-11-14 9:12 AM
in reply to: alltom1

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Expert
4598
20002000500252525
Middle River, Maryland
Silver member
Subject: RE: Ironman World Championship

Wow - what an incredible race.  Very well executed and when I saw that mary time I was like, "DAMN!!". 

Congrats on living out your dream race.

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