CATS - Half Iron (Iron Mt. Man) - Triathlon1/2 Ironman


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Arkadelphia, Arkansas
United States
DLT Event Management Inc
101F / 38C
Sunny
Total Time = 6h 08m 43s
Overall Rank = 110/257
Age Group = 30-34
Age Group Rank = 12/23
Pre-race routine:

Woke up before the crack o'dawn. Ate Lucky Charms and a waffle with as much syrup as I could fit into those little squares. Drank 32 ounces of Gatorade while rechecking my race bag for the 3rd time. Rechecked my bike and it's attachment to my truck for the millionth time and drove an hour to the race site.
Event warmup:

Stretched, then I stretched again. Setup transition. Flip-floped my way to the water, goggles and dork hat in hand. Swam 100 meters, the water felt pretty good, as it was already hot (78 degrees F at 6:30 am.)
Swim
  • 38m 4s
  • 2112 yards
  • 01m 48s / 100 yards
Comments:

I really enjoyed this swim. Initially, I started at the edge of the group on the starting line, but there were guys climbing on each other to get a better spot before the start, so I just slid back 10 feet and watched the melee. I went out at my normal swim pace and ended up getting pinched between two guys and then getting dunked. At about 400 yards I had to stop to adjust my goggles, but only cost me a few seconds. This unfortunately ended my budding relationship with the guy I planned to draft...er ummm...site off of. I then had to switch fish, and I should have drafted off one who took better lines, because I'm sure we swam further than required. I guess I could learn to navigate on my own, but that seems so much harder. The 'race map' of the swim implied that the course is a rectangle, with a 100 yard backside. This, however, only served to disorient my already suspect navigating skills. Backside was more like 600 yards and the course was a triangle, or a rhomboid, or some other shape with a really short final leg. I'm an idiot for not seeing this before jumping in the water, but that goes without saying.
One of the women in the wave behind me caught me and dunked me with authority in the last 250 yards of the swim, I couldn't tell if this was out of anger or just part of her race technique, but I was so impressed I couldn't be upset.
Overall I felt really good on the swim. There was a lot of boating presence for the safety factor which greatly increased the comfort level. The water was relatively clear, for an arkansas lake. We started on time and everyone survived, what more could you ask for?
What would you do differently?:

not much
Transition 1
  • 03m 34s
Comments:

I couldn't stand the thougth of spending 3 hours on an uncomfortable bike seat in my Speedo with no padding. So, I pulled up a towel, pulled off my suit, put on bike shorts, and took the towel off. This coupled with the fact that I didn't swim with my race jersey on, probably accounted for the extra 2 minutes.
What would you do differently?:

1. New seat
2. Tri shorts, with butt pad
3. Swim in race jersey
4. Learn to ride without socks
5. Already have HRM on during the swim.

Bike
  • 2h 55m 37s
  • 56 miles
  • 19.13 mile/hr
Comments:

I felt I had a good nutrition strategy, unfortunately I forgot my banana and my peanut butter and honey sandwich in the car. I did however remember to eat a packet of GU every 20 minutes, and drink a bottle of Gatorade every 8 miles with some water thrown in the mix for good measure. Man, nothing feels better than dumping a bottle of cold water on your head in 101 degree heat. Towards the end of the ride the GU and Gatorade brick in my stomach caused me concern for the run, so I stopped eating with 10 miles to go. I wish I had remembered to start eating again when I no longer felt "the brick," ahhh live and learn.
On another not I felt really bad for Little Tom when he had to pull over for cramps on the back portion of the bike, and was really happy to have that brick in my stomach then.
What would you do differently?:

Get faster and more efficient
Transition 2
  • 03m 13s
Comments:

Removed a lot of crap, had to tie shoes, have no idea where 3 minutes and 13 seconds went.
What would you do differently?:

Practice, practice, practice
Run
  • 2h 28m 17s
  • 13.2 miles
  • 11m 14s  min/mile
Comments:

My feet got soaked in the first mile and I managed to rub blisters within the first 3 miles. Then I went to a 'run one mile walk one mile' strategy. I met a lot of nice people on this run and heard some good stories. I wish I could have kept pace with any one of them, but my back and butt cramped from about mile 6 on and my calves cramped to the point of preventing running at 9 miles. A 4 mile "death march" (with blisters and cramps) is not anyones idea of fun, I can't wait to do it again next year.
What would you do differently?:

Drink more and pour less on my shoes. I would also vaseline my feet prior to my run.
Post race
Warm down:

They had a firehose spraying water 60 feet into the air. I almost drowned, it was awesome.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

My feet. I should have been 30-40 minutes faster, cramps and all.

Event comments:

Great race, well organized, lots of food, medical staff, and course bike support by "The Ride."


Profile Album


Last updated: 2006-08-04 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:38:04 | 2112 yards | 01m 48s / 100yards
Age Group: 8/23
Overall: 70/257
Performance: Average
Didn't wear my HRM in the water. I didn't want to wear my timing chip either, 'cause I could feel the drag. (At that point I was so geeked up I think I could hear the thoughts of the guy next to me)
Suit: Speedo FSII
Course: Big triangle, supposed to be a square, but sure didn't feel like it. I'm pretty sure I didn't cut a bouy, unless 69 other people before me did.
Start type: Deep Water Plus: Waves
Water temp: 0F / 0C Current: Low
200M Perf. Good Remainder: Average
Breathing: Good Drafting: Average
Waves: Navigation: Below average
Rounding: Average
T1
Time: 03:34
Performance: Bad
Cap removal: Average Helmet on/
Suit off:
No
Wetsuit stuck? No Run with bike: No
Jump on bike: Yes
Getting up to speed: Below average
Biking
02:55:37 | 56 miles | 19.13 mile/hr
Age Group: 16/23
Overall: 121/257
Performance: Average
Out and back course. About 1:20 out and 1:35 back.
Wind: Little
Course: Elevation change overall is 400 feet from bike out to turn around. Overall, downhill is the out portion, and it is painfully hilly on the back. This course is pretty tough. You come out of T1 into a 5 mile uphill. In your first half mile you go up about 100 feet, with no flat to get your bike legs underneath you. You ride over the dam for a great view of the lake on one side and a deep valley on the other. The course continues uphill on a rumble strip called skyline drive. At mile five, things get much better with rolling hills. About mile 8, we began our ride through a recently controlled burned national forest. Riding down "big brushy" is an experience I would compare to a log ride without the splash at the end, lots of twists and turns and very fast downhill. (on another note, since this is an out and back course, I would highly recommend keeping some gas in the tank for the climb back up "big brushy" or you will fall over...as I heard a number of people do.) The rest of the out is pretty much rolling hills with 250 feet of elevation loss. Much faster out than back. Back felt like all uphill, though I know it wasn't.
Road: Potholes Dry Cadence: unk
Turns: Average Cornering: Average
Gear changes: Average Hills: Average
Race pace: Hard Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 03:13
Overall: Below average
Riding w/ feet on shoes Bad
Jumping off bike Bad
Running with bike Below average
Racking bike Good
Shoe and helmet removal Below average
Running
02:28:17 | 13.2 miles | 11m 14s  min/mile
Age Group: 12/23
Overall: 122/257
Performance: Below average
Course: Up hill for 3.5 miles then down hill for 3.1 miles and repeat, sun directly overhead, no shade, and a pavement temperature of 163 degrees.
Keeping cool Average Drinking Not enough
Post race
Weight change: %unk
Overall: Average
Mental exertion [1-5] 3
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: Average
Race evaluation [1-5] 5