Door County Triathlon - Half Iron Course - Triathlon1/2 Ironman


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Egg Harbor, Wisconsin
United States
Door Country Triathlon
85F / 29C
Sunny
Total Time = 5h 37m
Overall Rank = 275/814
Age Group = 45-49
Age Group Rank = 29/72
Pre-race routine:

Rented a house about 15 minute drive from race site so didn't have to wake at an ungodly time. In the morning I had a bagel with peanut butter, coffee, and gatorade and water.
Event warmup:

Got acclimated to the water about 20 minutes before the start with some easy swimming and a few quick sprints. We did a swim on Friday and the water felt quite nice but on race day it was a bit cooler. Considering it is Lake Michigan and has been a cold winter & cold summer, the lake was about as "nice" as it could get..
Swim
  • 35m 32s
  • 2112 yards
  • 01m 41s / 100 yards
Comments:

Good swim. The first long leg of the swim heading northbound was with the current/wind so it was fairly effortless. However coming back southward had a fair amount of chop and required much more effort. Overall I paced myself well and put forth a good swim.
What would you do differently?:

Nothing.
Transition 1
  • 01m 53s
Comments:

Pretty decent T1 despite some struggles getting the bike off the rack when my brake handle got stuck in the spokes of the bike next to mine. Luckily no damage to either bike thanks to my lazer fast reflexes and brilliant awareness of what was happening.
Bike
  • 2h 35m 21s
  • 56.3 miles
  • 21.74 mile/hr
Comments:

Wanted to push the bike a little harder than last year and see if I could replicate a similar run to what I had last year, knowing that today was going to be tougher (hotter) conditions. I am training for IMWI so my volume is much greater than it was last year, but I still knew going in that this was going to be a tough test of my running skills. I really wanted to use the day as a speed day on the swim & bike and then see how the 'ole body could handle a very stressed out run in hot conditions.

Put forth a pretty consistent work effort the entire ride. There are a couple of hills, but overall this course is very flat so it was easy to stay consistent. Drank 2 bottles of water, 4 salt tablets, 80% of my Perp bottle, 50% of Perform bottle and half a Cliff Bar.

Had an uneventful ride until the finish line. Came into the chute and the volunteer yelled out, "keep going, the dismount line is ahead". So I kept going but definitely slowed way down and the next thing I know I see the timing mat and a guy is yelling at me to "DISMOUNT NOW". I immediately stopped, which happened to be on the timing mat, and I dismounted. The official yells out "PENALTY" and writes down my number. I got penalized 4 minutes for basically dismounting with my front tire 1 foot over the timing mat, I think. I say I think because I never really did know where the dismount line existed. I wasn't going to argue or worry about it and just kept moving on.
What would you do differently?:

Dismount my bike when a volunteer says "DISMOUNT area is up ahead".
Transition 2
  • 01m 16s
Comments:

No real issues.
What would you do differently?:

None
Run
  • 2h 22m 59s
  • 13.1 miles
  • 10m 55s  min/mile
Comments:

Due to an off season injury I was not able to run most of the fall and all of the winter. Running has always been my weakness, so not being able to get back to it until March certainly affected my training plan. I feel like I did make great strides since March and knew if I could have done better here it would have really shot me up in my AG where it seems everyone's strength is the run. However, my goal today was to figure out some pacing, nutrition and run items for Wisconsin & I feel like I accomplished that.

Coming off the bike I felt pretty good, but knew this course is very tough and that the heat was also going to affect me greatly. The first hill around mile 3 wasn't a problem and I got through the first 5 miles averaging about 9:45 which was close to my goal pace. However, with the increasing heat and my harder-than-normal push on the bike, I was forced to walk a good chunk of the hill at mile 6. From that point on it never got any better.

From the halfway mark, I was unable to get back into a comfortable pace. From the hill at 6 to the hill at 9, I was walking about 30% of the time which wasn't horrible, but it brought my pace to right around 11 minute miles. Part of the problem was that my stomach also shut down which for me is always a sign of going too fast, too soon & pushing pace a little too hard. I was okay with all of that because it was expected. I knew at this distance I could get through and finish, but obviously this type of strategy would never work at the full Ironman distance, so I am glad I toyed with it here.

From mile 10-12 it is totally exposed and very hot and I was walking quite a bit. At the final aid station I found the coke & freezy pop to be the first thing my stomach liked. Not sure if it was that or being chicked by my training partner & friend Ruth at mile 12, but somehow I found a way to run the last 1.1 miles at a 9:59 pace. I think the walking between 10-12, let my stomach settle down and finally accept some nutrition. Classic case of stomach shut down.
What would you do differently?:

Pace things a little better. Probably 5-10 minutes slower on the bike would have saved me 15-20 on the run.
Post race
Warm down:

Medal, chip removal, and an immediate soak in the tub of ice water. That was a really nice perk they had at the finish line.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Just my pacing strategy.

Event comments:

Everything about this race is well done & the venue is superb. I would recommend both the sprint and the HIM to anyone.


Profile Album


Last updated: 2014-05-16 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:35:32 | 2112 yards | 01m 41s / 100yards
Age Group: 0/72
Overall: 0/814
Performance: Good
Suit: Xterra Vector Pro Full suit
Course: Waist deep starting gate out a few hundred yards to a right turn and a counterclockwise rectangle (appx) and then 90 degree back into shore.
Start type: Wade Plus:
Water temp: 65F / 18C Current: Medium
200M Perf. Good Remainder: Good
Breathing: Good Drafting: Below average
Waves: Good Navigation: Good
Rounding: Good
T1
Time: 01:53
Performance: Good
Cap removal: Good Helmet on/
Suit off:
Wetsuit stuck? Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike:
Getting up to speed: Good
Biking
02:35:21 | 56.3 miles | 21.74 mile/hr
Age Group: 13/72
Overall: 0/814
Performance: Good
Wind: Some
Course: South along the lake front and a little loop back up and around before heading back.
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence: 86
Turns: Good Cornering: Good
Gear changes: Good Hills: Good
Race pace: Hard Drinks: Not enough
T2
Time: 01:16
Overall: Good
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike
Running with bike Good
Racking bike Good
Shoe and helmet removal Good
Running
02:22:59 | 13.1 miles | 10m 55s  min/mile
Age Group: 46/72
Overall: 0/814
Performance: Below average
Course: Head north along the bay with hills at 3, 6, & 9. Mile 6 & 9 are the big hills.
Keeping cool Average Drinking Not enough
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Good
Mental exertion [1-5] 2
Physical exertion [1-5] 3
Good race? Ok
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