Memorial Hermann Ironman 70.3 Texas - Triathlon1/2 Ironman


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Galveston, Texas
United States
World Triathlon Corporation
80F / 27C
Sunny
Total Time = 5h 43m 8s
Overall Rank = 641/1897
Age Group = M 40-44
Age Group Rank = 111/281
Pre-race routine:

Drove down to Galveston on Friday night. Felt tired on Saturday so glad that I'm not racing the day after the drive. Watched the sprint finish (think about signing up for sprint as a warm-up next time), had breakfast, and then went for a 10-minute swim on the beach side (lots of waves) to get used to saltwater. Glad I did that getting thrown around by 4-5 ft waves made race day so much more calmer...Walked around a lot for packet pickup, and bike check-in.
Event warmup:

Woke up at 5am and was glad to be staying at the site. Had a Clif Bar for breakfast and some water, and went out to set-up transition. Since bikes were checked-in the day before, it was quick. I had my shoes lined up (not on the bike as I was not going to worry about getting through transition quick. Went back to the room and took a shower, relaxed, and put on wetsuit. Had a Gatorade prime about 15 min before swim start.
Swim
  • 50m 3s
  • 1900 meters
  • 02m 38s / 100 meters
Comments:

As I was most undertrained for the swim (I haven't done a 1900m workout much less try to swim it all at once!), the goal was to just take it easy and come out of the water feeling good. If not for getting lost over the first portion of the course (I overestimated the effect of the wind/current and added about 200m to the route), this would've been a great swim for me. After the first turn, I felt pretty good. Water felt great and I didn't really even swallow any (part of my low-sodium nutrition plan for the swim).
What would you do differently?:

Consistently swim before next event...I had less than 7000m of TOTAL swim workouts the 7 weeks or so previous to the race...and I'm not a good swimmer to begin with. More OWS practice and more swimming in general and I should be able to get at least 5 minutes faster for this distance.
Transition 1
  • 05m 10s
Comments:

It was not my intention to race this so I took it easy. Walked to the shower, stayed there for at least 20 seconds getting nice and clean, potty stop (strange since I didn't drink much the entire morning), and deliberately put on my gear.
What would you do differently?:

If I was 'racing' this, I would probably cut this time in half by having a sense of urgency. They had wetsuit strippers (first time) though one leg was stuck on my chip strap for a few seconds.
Bike
  • 2h 47m 20s
  • 56 miles
  • 20.08 mile/hr
Comments:

As the bike is my strength, I always enjoy the fact that very few people pass me and I do most of the passing. I was supposed to keep a 140-145 HR but decided to be even more conservative, keeping my around 135-140 most of the time. Probably should've pushed more coming back but was nervous on how the run was going to feel as this would only be my 3rd half-marathon ever and first time after swimming and biking this long. Speedfill with Perpetuem worked well and I was able to take my liquids in smaller, more regular increments vs. gulping as I normally do with bottles. Stuck with nutrition plan - 2 Endurolytes every 45 minutes, and 4 scoops of Perpetuem in the Speedfil. Supplemented with a little bit of HEED on my spare bottle and had a Gel about 15 minutes before the end in preparation for the run. When the Perpetuem ran out, I had a spare bottle of water and just refilled the speedfill with water.
What would you do differently?:

Be confident enough to follow HR plan and not be overly conservative. Probably left several minutes on the table. Also, I may get a wheel cover for my rear 808 since I didn't have any difficulty in the windy conditions.
Transition 2
  • 03m 21s
Comments:

Like T1, I wasn't really racing so I took my time. I did jog with my bike but with no real sense of urgency. It was my first time to wear socks so I took my time putting those on. I remembered to put my spare bike stuff away (I had it in my tri top pocket) and wore a race cap (thank goodness - it was hot!). Even took another potty break before heading out to the course.
What would you do differently?:

Move a little quicker - probably can do this closer to a minute if I was going fast.
Run
  • 1h 57m 14s
  • 13.1 miles
  • 08m 57s  min/mile
Comments:

running 4 loops was nice as I got to see people and knew what to expect. With my Garmin, I didn't have a problem figuring out how many laps I had done. The biggest surprise for me was how much the heat affected my HR. I had a HR-based plan for the race and stuck with it. Did the first loop very comfortably, around low 150's bpm. However, the clouds disappeared and we were in full-blown scorching sun for a while and I made myself slow down to stay in my planned HR zone. I did walk some water stations to get HR down, douse myself and 'renew' my sponge with ice water. Stuck to my nutrition plan and took a Hammer Gel around Mile 4 and Mile 10, and 2 Endurolytes every 30 minutes. I was supposed to go hard the last 2 miles, but I was going to get 2-3 minutes doing that and I wasn't near any nice round times that would be good goals, so I didn't bother. I was safely under 2 hours for the run and was significantly over 5:30 already, so wasn't going to try in the last 2 miles...so I took it easy until the last 0.3 miles, got rid of my sponges (hate those in pictures), zipped up my top and got ready to smile for the finish line shot.
What would you do differently?:

If I was pushing, I would probably have gone a little faster on the last couple of loops and let my HR go up as I was feeling ok. I was just trying to finish so I was very conservative. I ran this over a minute/mile slower than my last half-marathon (2 weeks ago) and probably would've been ok slowing down just 30 sec/mile.
Post race
Warm down:

not much - Recovery Shake, then complimentary massage. Chatted with friends and then got in the car to drive back (over 5 hrs).

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Training - signing up 2 weeks before the race with little specific training doesn't help. I think getting under 5:30 is very manageable for next time (on a similar course). It was a good race for what I intended it to be - to enjoy my first 70.3 experience and use the knowledge to determine my training and THEN race my next one.

Event comments:

Very organized race. I'd love to do this again with more preparation and a plan to stay at least 1 extra day, even 2 so I can enjoy the beach adn explore the town a bit. Perhaps next year!




Last updated: 2011-03-24 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:50:03 | 1900 meters | 02m 38s / 100meters
Age Group: 251/281
Overall: 1650/1897
Performance: Below average
Suit: Tyr Hurricane Cat 5
Course: Point-to-point - deep water start in waves from pier, then swim out on a counterclockwise course, coming out on the other side near transition area.
Start type: Deep Water Plus: Waves
Water temp: 70F / 21C Current: Low
200M Perf. Average Remainder: Below average
Breathing: Average Drafting: Below average
Waves: Average Navigation: Bad
Rounding: Below average
T1
Time: 05:10
Performance: Below average
Cap removal: Good Helmet on/
Suit off:
No
Wetsuit stuck? Yes Run with bike: No
Jump on bike: No
Getting up to speed:
Biking
02:47:20 | 56 miles | 20.08 mile/hr
Age Group: 86/281
Overall: 451/1897
Performance: Average
Wind: Strong with gusts
Course: Out and back course - very windy with more headwinds/crosswinds going out, and tailwinds/crosswinds coming in. This was my longest ride ever without taking a break (usually take breaks during group rides around 30 miles)
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence:
Turns: Average Cornering: Average
Gear changes: Good Hills: Average
Race pace: Comfortable Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 03:21
Overall: Below average
Riding w/ feet on shoes Good
Jumping off bike
Running with bike Below average
Racking bike Good
Shoe and helmet removal Good
Running
01:57:14 | 13.1 miles | 08m 57s  min/mile
Age Group: 79/281
Overall: 553/1897
Performance: Below average
Course: 4 loops around Moody Garden
Keeping cool Average Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Average
Mental exertion [1-5] 2
Physical exertion [1-5] 3
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: Average
Race evaluation [1-5] 4