Ironman 70.3 Steelhead - Triathlon1/2 Ironman


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Benton Harbor, Michigan
United States
World Triathlon Corporation
77F / 25C
Sunny
Total Time = 6h 28m 27s
Overall Rank = 1154/1756
Age Group = 50-54
Age Group Rank = 23/44
Pre-race routine:

Drive from Naperville, IL to Michigan - NOTE: THIS RACE IS IN EASTERN TIME ZONE (not central). Since I recently moved to Chicago from Baltimore, I did not realize that Michigan was on EASTERN time - between "Lake" traffic and the time zone delta, I actually arrived 2 hours later than planned. Parking lot to Jean Klock park was full, so we were diverted to the Boy Scout Parking lot down the street $10.00 to park. Walked about a mile with my bike back to check in. Drove the bike course (hillier than expected, but not too bad), some shade. Checked in to Motel 6 in Benton Harbor - no fridge or microwave (apparently I had to REQUEST this at time of reservation) - but McDonald's across the street is open 24 hrs, so I am able to get my oatmeal and hot tea for breakfast. In bed by 10pm, up at 4am. Office at motel heated up my own instant oatmeal and gave me hot water for my tea (yeah!, super long line at Micky D's drive thru). Drove over to Whirlpool center parking. Very organized, got on shuttle bus quickly and dropped off at transition by 5am.
Event warmup:

Wore my headlamp in case lighting wasn't good, but fortunately my bike was racked right under the lights. Set up transition, hit the porta pots (several times), ate a banana and sipped gatorade. Got air in my tires (since I was early there were no lines). My rack was right against the sand hill and we only had bikes on one side of the rack. This was great, because it gave us a little extra room. Walked the 1.2 miles down the beach to swim start. Hit the porta pots again, got my wet suit on and checked my gear bag. Perfect timing! Got back down to the beach for a little swim before the start of the race. Really good to get adjusted to the water (temp 67 degrees) and the waves (very slight, about 1 foot.....rollers...not choppy).
Swim
  • 46m 15s
  • 2112 yards
  • 02m 11s / 100 yards
Comments:

I was THRILLED to see the water look so calm in the morning. I was really worried it would be a repeat of the prior year where I understand it was 3 foot chop and COLD. The warmup helped acclimate me, so I was able to start swimming right away. It was a straight shot, so sighting was easy. I stuck close to the buoys, drafted when possible (protecting my left hand, where I had strained tendons the day before on my pinky and ring finger). I just swam steady. I did get a crazy bad cramp in my right calf - so bad, I nearly had to stop swimming - but was afraid if I did, I would not be able to tread water. I used visualization to send blood and oxygen down the leg - don't know if this really works, but eventually, my body relaxed and the spasm subsided enough to swim. Standing up at the end of the swim, triggered the spasm again, and I limped a few steps before stopping to take a second to calm down and let the spasm pass. I opted to walk most of the way up the beach (could the 1.2 mile walk in the deep sand have something to do with this?).
What would you do differently?:

Definitely know the number of buoys and swim harder for at least part of the swim.
Transition 1
  • 05m 30s
Comments:

This could have been a little faster, but I choose to take it easy in the sand - worried I would strain a calf muscle. Once in transition, everything went very smooth and I ran out with my bike. I was exactly half way between the entrance and exit - so very happy with location.
What would you do differently?:

jog up the beach (carefully, so as not to injure a muscle) - running in deep sand is not something I do often and I know this can really mess up your muscles - better to be safe than sorry.
Bike
  • 3h 21m 38s
  • 56 miles
  • 16.66 mile/hr
Comments:

Prepared two 24 oz bottles of malto and one 24 oz bottle of water (all insulated bottles, I froze the water and one of the malto's two days before the race, and stored them in a cooler in the hotel overnight). Took a gel at the top of each hour and a salt tablet at the 2 hour mark. My chain fell off twice in the first 10 miles, so I kept the chain in the big ring and on the hills just eased back on the watts to stay within 120 watts (although a couple times it went up to 140-150). Volunteers along the course are awesome!!! The aid stations were located at mile 10, 25, 36 (I don't remember another one after that, there may have been one more). I really focused on keep my HR in check (between 138 and 140) and realized it was hard in the beginning, but knew I would need the energy at the end. My back never bothered me and my fingers (from the strained tendons) were fine (turns out, I didn't really need them as much as I thought I would on the bike). The temps were great - I thought it was funny the first 10-15 miles, my feet were actually cold. It warmed up into the upper 70's during the ride, but it was perfect cycling weather. Mile 45-48 came and went in a flash - - by mile 50, I knew it was literally all down hill, so I was stoked. I stretched my right calf muscles about every 10 miles or so (wanted to make sure it would be okay for the run) and I stretched my back/torso every 15-20 miles.

Consumed 28 oz of malto + 3 gels for a total of 866 cals or 2 cal/lb/hr.

Actual HR 137 bpm,
Normalized Power 106 Watts (per garmin - check power tap for accurate read)
What would you do differently?:

I wish I were stronger for the longer distance and could push the bike harder, but I know that means sacrificing my run - although given the time delta between the two, my overall time may be better if I push harder on the bike. I prefer to play it conservative and have a strong finish. Given the hills, this was actually a great ride for me!
Transition 2
  • 02m 40s
Comments:

Transitions are my best event! I think I may have one of the top 5 in my age group for this transition. Practice makes perfect (and this was the first race where I didn't actually go through the motions of the transition at least twice before the race - that was because I hurt my fingers and didn't want to strain them trying to get a wetsuit on accidentally bumping them).
What would you do differently?:

NADA - I've got this down :)
Run
  • 2h 12m 24s
  • 13.1 miles
  • 10m 07s  min/mile
Comments:

Played it conservative and kept HR at 140-145 for the first 3 miles (walking :45-1:00 after each mile). I had one hunger pain and decided I needed to get my calories in. The next 3 miles I let my HR drift to 145-150 (walking :30-:45 after each mile). Mile 5 ate a gel, and at 1 hour mark ate another salt tablet. Miles 7,8,9 I walked about :30 after each (or really just refilled water / ice at aid stations) and after that just ran the rest of the race. I walked part of the big hills (to keep HR down). Also filled my sports bra with ice and poured cold water on my head and my face to stay cool. Interesting to note that most of the runners were not pouring water on their heads, or using the sponges. I saw a baby pool filled with sponges (no water or ice in the pool yet) - but I did not see a single runner wearing a sponge. Around mile 5 I could feel something on my back (but could not reach it to swat it away - thought it was a mosquito) - fortunately another racer flicked it off -it was a big deer fly - ouch!! I love the last 4 miles of the race, where I am basically "mowing folks down". It's quite the motivator. Its odd though, that my last .1 mile shows me slowing a bit - I certainly did not feel like I was slowing down, if anything, I was speeding up to finish. No worries, this was still an awesome run for me. My fastest HIM run was 2:09 - on a completely flat course - so I'm very happy with my time, given the hills on this course.

Prepared three 8 oz bottles of malto for a total of 360 calories. Consumed 10 oz plus 1.5 gels for a total of 300 calories or 1.25 cal/lb/hr.

Actual HR 150 bpm

What would you do differently?:

maybe start a little harder, or shorten the walk breaks - maybe eliminate the walk breaks and only stop at aid stations. Just seemed like to many aid stations and would make my times longer.
Post race
Warm down:

walk to chocolate milk station - yum!! two of them tasted great. My calf finally gave out and I limped over to the massage table (need cash - great, don't have it - that's in my car over a mile away). Decided to get my bike and gear out of transition and walk back to the car. I changed into dry clothes in the car and then drove back to the transition area, snagging a parking space right up front. Got a 10 minute massage and then some free food (woo hoo!!) nice buffet - I had a hamburger and some baked fettuccine pasta while waiting around to watch the World Championship roll down (in Austria next Labor Day weekend).

I was not starving in fact, it was a good hour or more before I ate the hamburger, so nutrition and hydration were on target.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

my calf muscle spasming, left me playing it a little more conservative - but otherwise, this was a great race - SOLID!

Event comments:

Great Race! Lots of volunteers, well organized, great courses - weather was terrific on race day.

While not a PR, I did move up in AG percentile.

Swim 46:15 AG 19/44, Gender 288/553, OA 1166/1756
Bike 3:21:38 AG 31/44, Gender 395/553, OA 1486/1756
Run 2:12:24 AG 23/44, Gender 277/553, OA 1154/1756

Points 2234









Last updated: 2014-01-10 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:46:15 | 2112 yards | 02m 11s / 100yards
Age Group: 19/44
Overall: 1166/1756
Performance: Average
per Garmin - 60 degree's (feels like 60 degree's), Winds 4 mph ENE, Humidity 88%
Suit: sleeveless plus second swim cap
Course: swim out to buoys about 50 yards, then straight up the beach (north) to transition. Buoys were easy to sight and evenly spaced. Awesome. I should have known exactly how many of each color. I saw 6 or 7 yellow, then there were orange ones. I thought there were only going to be 3 orange, but I believe there were 6 or 7 orange and then FINALLY the red buoy to turn to shore.
Start type: Wade Plus: Waves
Water temp: 67F / 19C Current: Low
200M Perf. Good Remainder: Good
Breathing: Good Drafting: Average
Waves: Good Navigation: Good
Rounding: Good
T1
Time: 05:30
Performance: Good
Cap removal: Good Helmet on/
Suit off:
No
Wetsuit stuck? No Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: Yes
Getting up to speed: Good
Biking
03:21:38 | 56 miles | 16.66 mile/hr
Age Group: 31/44
Overall: 1486/1756
Performance: Good
First 1.5 miles uphill, then gentle uphill until mile 5-6, straight shot til mile 10, right hand turn - go another 10 miles (lots of short ups and downs) - water stop around half way point - after turn at about mile 36 - straight shot back to transition. Rolling hills, a couple bigger hills, nice downhill the last 5-6 miles. Target HR 138-140 BPM; No more than 120 watts on the uphills. Per Garmin - 63 degree's (feels like 63), winds 6 mph E, Humidity 83%
Wind: Little
Course: beautiful scenery, country roads, mostly well maintained - one section a little vibration - but makes the smooth section that follows, feel like velvet! Really enjoyed the course - some shade and cooler temps made this a great ride Per garmin 1106 ft. gain in elevation and 1086 loss in elevation.
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence: 82
Turns: Good Cornering: Good
Gear changes: Below average Hills: Average
Race pace: Comfortable Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 02:40
Overall: Good
Riding w/ feet on shoes Good
Jumping off bike Good
Running with bike Good
Racking bike Good
Shoe and helmet removal Good
Running
02:12:24 | 13.1 miles | 10m 07s  min/mile
Age Group: 23/44
Overall: 1154/1756
Performance: Good
lollipop with two loops at the top. Target HR 145 first 3 miles, 148 BMP next 3 miles, then whatever! per garmin - 81 degree's (feels like 82), 6 mph wind, 54% humidity
Course: billed as flat - it was not. First 1.5 miles is uphill (steep) and twice on the whirlpool campus loop, there is a monster hill, plus a few other minor ups and downs. per garmin - 620 ft gain, 610 ft loss in elevation.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %0
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] 5