PrairieMan - Triathlon1/2 Ironman


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Grand Prairie, Texas
United States
Ironhead Race Productions
Total Time = 6h 18m 43s
Overall Rank = /
Age Group = W25-29
Age Group Rank = 8/15
Pre-race routine:

Woke up at 4:30. Drank an Ensure, got dressed, loaded up my bike and we headed to the lake. I've gotten into the habit of packing my bag the night before which helps me sleep a lot better! Got to the race site and entertained my daughter while my husband checked over my bike and pumped up my tires. Walked to transition, got marked, set up, and went to find my husband and daughter.
Event warmup:

Played catch with my daughter. Watched the other waves take off.
Swim
  • 46m 41s
  • 1930 meters
  • 02m 25s / 100 meters
Comments:

I wasn't too worried about the swim. I knew I could swim the distance no problem, but I also didn't want to be the last one out of the water! I started on the inside, but in the back of the group and that seemed to pay off. In past races I started on the outside because I didn't want to be kicked, but I ended up swimming into people as I headed toward the buoys. This time I wanted to stay along side the buoys and I did. I was happy that I didn't add any extra distance onto my swim! The swim was pretty uneventful until the turn around the last yellow buoy. I got stuck behind some one swimming pretty slow and since we were rounding the buoy it was pretty crowded so I came up to breast stroke. As I did that I got a mouthful of water and started coughing hysterically. I've never had that problem in the middle of a lake so it freaked me out for about 5 seconds and then I realized I could just tread water and cough. While I was doing that I heard someone on a boat yell "Are you ok?". It's nice to know they're actually paying attention! My cough stopped so I took off swimming again. I was a bit out of breath from it, but that went away eventually. As I got out of the water I looked at my watch and realized I finished in under 50 minutes, so I was pretty happy.
What would you do differently?:

Push harder on the swim. Since this was my first half, I wasn't sure what to expect, but I think I could've gone faster.
Transition 1
  • 03m 38s
Comments:

Took my time in T1. I wanted to make sure I had everything I needed. I was worried I'd forget my race belt since we were told we had to have it on the bike. As I exited the water I saw my husband and daughter and they were cheering for me which was awesome. He kept reminding me of things I should do on the bike and he reminded me to put my race belt on. It was cool to have him standing right by me while I got ready.
What would you do differently?:

Not much. Move a little faster, I guess.
Bike
  • 3h 03m 23s
  • 55 miles
  • 18.00 mile/hr
Comments:

Expected to average around 17 mph, so I was happy with 18 mph. Everything went well except when I stopped at the porta potty about half way through. I get off my bike and one of the volunteers asked if I wanted her to hold my bike, so I said sure. I would've never thought that she would drop it, but I'm 99.9% sure she did because when I got back on the rubber part on my shifters was messed up and my gears weren't working like they had been. I also noticed that there were quite a few scratches on my brake. Next time I know to just put my bike down gently and not to have anyone hold it. Other than that everything on the bike went well. I kept up with my nutrition until the very end when I had to go to the bathroom so bad I couldn't drink any more! I also had a strange feeling in my knee which would come back to get me on the run, but at the time I didn't think much about it.
What would you do differently?:

Not trust anyone with my bike!
Transition 2
  • 03m 1s
Comments:

It felt great to get into transition after the bike to get ready for the run. I always look forward to the run because I enjoy it more than the other two. Once again I wasn't in any real hurry (besides the fact that I had to go potty!). I changed my shoes, put on my hat, some sunblock, grabbed two gels and endurolytes and took of to the nearest bathroom.
What would you do differently?:

Try to get more sunblock on my back! I got fried!
Run
  • 2h 21m 58s
  • 13.1 miles
  • 10m 50s  min/mile
Comments:

First stop was the bathroom. I ran straight from transition to the bathroom in the little house. There were 2 other girls there before me and both stalls were full, so I thought I was going to have to wait awhile. I got lucky though because the other 2 girls decided to run over to the porta potties and as soon as they left some one came out so I got to go quickly. When I left the bathroom I made sure to get back on the run course where I left it because I didn't want to cheat myself. The first few miles were great. I saw my husband and daughter as I headed toward the dam and they were cheering for me. I wasn't sure if I had pushed too hard on the bike so I told my husband I was going to take it easy for a bit and try to push hard on the way back. At about mile 4 I got this horrible pain in my knee. It hurt pretty bad and the only time it stopped hurting was when I walked through the water stops. At about mile 5 I was debating whether I should start walking because I had no idea what was going on with my knee and I didn't know if I was going to hurt it so badly that I couldn't do IronStar. I decided that I'd keep running and deal with it afterwards. I got pretty down around mile 6 but once I made it to the turn around on the dam my spirits lifted quite a bit. I also saw the two girls that ran over to the porta potties while I was in the bathroom and I wondered how they got in front of me seeing as they didn't pass me and I know they didn't leave the bathroom before me (I think they left the porta potties and headed straight toward the dam instead of doing that loop before heading out.) I was determined not to let them beat me since I thought they didn't do the entire run. That helped me pick up the pace and when I passed them I was not going to let them catch me. Once I hit mile 9 I really started to pick it up despite the fact that my shorts were rubbing my legs raw and my knee was killing me! I felt so good about what I was accomplishing that I thought about that instead of the pain. Once I got to mile 12 I pushed even harder. That mile ended up being my fastest at 9:13. When I got to the finish line I saw my husband and daughter and she jumped up and started running to the finish line with me. It was awesome! The other thing that bothered me during the run was that I felt extremely bloated towards the end (about mile 8 on). Not full, just bloated. It was weird. I drank water at every water stop and I think that might have been too much for me. I know it was hot, but I'm not used to drinking at every stop. Next time I think I'll have a few sips and toss the rest. I also tried to drink some Gatorade but I hate that it makes me feel thirstier. I think I'm going to stick to water, gels, and endurolytes on the run and only drink Gatorade every other stop or so.
What would you do differently?:

Put on more body glide before leaving transition. Not drink so much! Run faster.
Post race
Warm down:

Grabbed my finishers stuff, water, and two pieces of pizza. Walked over to our tent and sat and stretched for a bit then got back in the water. I couldn't eat anything so I drank some of a smoothie. Went to the hotel, took a shower, took a nap, then went to eat LOTS of Mexican food!

What limited your ability to perform faster:

My slow swim. This being my first HIM and not knowing what to expect. My knee hurting pretty bad. I hurt the rest of the day but started getting better the next day. My knee keeps popping today, but other than that I'm ok.

Event comments:

I had a great time! The run on the dam got a bit rough right before the turn around, but everything else was great!




Last updated: 2006-05-24 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:46:41 | 1930 meters | 02m 25s / 100meters
Age Group: 13/15
Overall: 0/
Performance: Average
Suit:
Course: Triangular course.
Start type: Wade Plus: Waves
Water temp: 0F / 0C Current:
200M Perf. Average Remainder: Average
Breathing: Average Drafting:
Waves: Navigation: Good
Rounding: Average
T1
Time: 03:38
Performance: Average
Cap removal: Average Helmet on/
Suit off:
Wetsuit stuck? Run with bike:
Jump on bike:
Getting up to speed:
Biking
03:03:23 | 55 miles | 18.00 mile/hr
Age Group: 11/15
Overall: 0/
Performance: Good
Wind:
Course:
Road:   Cadence:
Turns: Cornering:
Gear changes: Hills:
Race pace: Drinks:
T2
Time: 03:01
Overall: Average
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike
Running with bike
Racking bike
Shoe and helmet removal
Running
02:21:58 | 13.1 miles | 10m 50s  min/mile
Age Group: 5/15
Overall: 0/
Performance: Good
Course:
Keeping cool Average Drinking Too much
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? Yes
Plenty of drinks? Yes
Post race activities: Good
Race evaluation [1-5] 4