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Ironman 70.3 Muskoka
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Ironman 70.3 Muskoka - Triathlon
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 Swim
Comments: My swim is definitely my weakest sport, but it's improved a bit this year, as I've put in a lot of pool time. I'm pretty happy with this swim, as it's advertised as 2000m, not the traditional 1900m. I got 2,323 yards according to my Garmin 310 in my swim cap. I feel this was my best swim of the season, and put me right where I needed to be. Garmin file: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/373232687 What would you do differently?: Not too much - happy with the swim - top 20% in the AG works for me.  Transition 1
Comments: I opted for the wetsuit strippers, and they had a hard time getting the suit over my heels - rather than pulling harder they stared at each other instead of pulling. I told asked them to pull harder, which they did, eventually yanking it off. After that, there is around a 1/4 mile uphill run to transition. My Garmin 310 was in my hand, after taking it from my cap, and I glanced down seeing a HR of 185 - highest of the day. What would you do differently?: Pick better strippers! (That sounds a bit dirty, doesn't it?)  Bike
Comments: I biked this quite conservatively, knowing I didn't need to push super hard, as the bike is my strongest event. I honestly expected to be a bit slower, based on times from previous years, so I was pretty happy with my bike ride. I rode at around 76% of my FTP, and 20 watts lower than the Tremblant 70.3 last summer. Only three weeks after IMMT, I know I wouldn't have the legs I'd be capable of it this were an A race. From the get go, the hills began. It was almost constantly up and down, with very few flat sections, and the flat sections seemed to almost always have a headwind, especially the exposed areas near the lakes we went by. In the first 20 or so miles I was constantly passing folks - people from my AG and from the wave in front of us, which went off 6 min before. After the first hour or so the field began to thin out, and the passings decreased. After 2 hours I was averaging a bit over 23 mph, but knew that some of the steepest hills were in the last 20k, which proved true. My avg speed dropped by 1/2 a mph over this distance. I also passed a few of the female pros over this part of the course. I came into T2 feeling fresh, but still a bit unsure where I stood in my AG. As the course wasn't an out and back I couldn't gauge where I stood, but I knew that near the end I was riding pretty much on my own. As it turned out, I saw three bikes racked in the 35-39 area when I got to T2. I was actually 5th, so I must have missed a bike. Garmin File: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/373223165 What would you do differently?: Again not too much - I rode smart and didn't push that hard. Transition 2
Comments: Pretty average transition - could have been a little quicker, but I'll take it.  Run
Comments: Knowing there were 12+ WC slots, and knowing where I stood after the bike, I felt like I didn't need to kill myself on the run. I made a decision to cruise along at a pretty comfortable pace until the turn-around, then see where I stood within the AG. Over the first half of the run I passed two guys from my AG and was passed by 1, so I thought I was in 4th place. After the turn-around I could see a few others from the AG a few minutes back, but not nearly enough to make me need to increase my pace that much. There were three nasty hills in each direction of the course, and I contemplated walking a bit on them, as the pace wouldn't be drastically different that trying to run. However, I decided to keep running, and ended up not getting passed by anyone for the remainder of the run. If there had been fewer WC slots I definitely would have pushed more, but it wasn't needed. My goal in doing this race was to get a slot, and placing in the AG wasn't a real priority. However, I was still pleased to take 5th in the AG. This time would have won the AG by 8 minutes last year, so the extra WC slots brought out some faster fellows. Garmin File: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/373232711 What would you do differently?: Again not much - I hadn't run much since IMMT - I went at the pace needed for this race. Post race
Warm down: Chatted with some other racers and got a good massage. What limited your ability to perform faster: I didn't need to go faster - I got what I wanted - a 70.3 WC slot, and I didn't need to push all that hard. Event comments: Although I wasn't planning on doing this race it was a fun experience. I would have much preferred doing Kona in 5 weeks, but that didn't happen. I was able to get a 70.3 WC slot on a challenging course. I've now got a year to be ready for that race! I was the second non-pro from the US to finish - definitely mostly Canadians doing the race - heck, I was born in Nova Scotia, so I could be Canadian if I wanted. The support was good for this race and the post race food was excellent. I didn't stick around for the awards ceremony - I guess I would have received something for 5th - as I had 6+ hours of driving back to Syracuse. Last updated: 2013-08-26 12:00 AM
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 2013-09-09 12:19 PM |
Master  1770     Bedford, MA |  Subject: Ironman 70.3 Muskoka |
| 2013-09-09 12:23 PM in reply to: #4850944 |
Veteran 2842 Austin, Texas | Subject: RE: Ironman 70.3 Muskoka Cruising to a WC slot - you're the man! With a start to my day like that, I think my highest HR would have been getting out of bed, not in T1! Congrats on a fine performance and the slot at the WCs next year - you earned it, for sure - and for a great close to the season. Matt |
| 2013-09-09 11:37 PM in reply to: #4850944 |
Extreme Veteran 1136 | Subject: RE: Ironman 70.3 Muskoka Hey Nate- nice job! I can't imagine racing a 70.3 so close after an Ironman... Impressive splits all around, but killer bike split! |
| 2013-09-10 12:39 PM in reply to: #4850944 |
Elite 3779 Ontario | Subject: RE: Ironman 70.3 Muskoka That is an impressive time on this course. It's scary that you rode only 76% FTP and went that fast. |
| 2013-09-10 4:37 PM in reply to: #4850944 |
| Subject: RE: Ironman 70.3 Muskoka Great job. With the WC at Mont Tremblant next year, you should have a slight advantage having already done the course. |
| 2013-09-10 6:01 PM in reply to: Jason N |
Expert 1099 Bedford, NH | Subject: RE: Ironman 70.3 Muskoka Way to go Nate. I don't think its fair to say "way to rebound" as you did great in MT, but I think this was a smart decision and its gonna be nice to have a spot locked up already. You had a heck of a year man and you should be damn proud of yourself! Looking forward to seeing you soon my man. |
| 2013-09-10 7:28 PM in reply to: PeakTriCoaching |
Master 3058 South Alabama | Subject: RE: Ironman 70.3 Muskoka Heck of a race for a relaxed effort. Impressive! |
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Canada
World Triathlon Corporation
60F / 16C
Sunny
Overall Rank = 35/1523
Age Group = M 35-39
Age Group Rank = 5/194
I signed up for this race less than two weeks ago after missing a Kona slot by 7 seconds at IMMT. I needed to have a good race to end the season on, after quite a sour feeling after IMMT. This race had been assigned 100 qualifying spots for the 2014 70.3 WC, so I knew it would be pretty easy to grab a slot, even when I wouldn't be close to 100%
I left for the race on Friday evening, driving 5 hrs to Syracuse, NY, then another 6 1/2 hrs to the race site on Saturday morning. I arrived around 1 PM on Saturday, got in a short ride, then headed to registration. After registering, I wanted to go for a swim, but apparently the swim course was closed and there was a possibility of a DQ for swimming.
Eventually, I headed back to my car, and drove the 30 minutes to my hotel, found some supper and was in bed a little before 9 PM, setting my alarm for just before 5 AM.
Some time on Sunday morning I rolled over, checking the time on my phone, and swore out loud. It was 5:50 AM, and apparently the AC unit in the room had muffled my alarm. I was out the door and on the road by 6:05, eating a bagel and having a race nutrition breakfast of gels, cliff blocks, and some Infinit - yum!!!
Luckily, it was an 8 AM start, so I had time once I parked and got the shuttle bus to transition. I was lucky to have woken up when I did - just think if I had driven all that way and slept through the race start! Next time I'll definitely do a wake-up call!
After setting up transition, I headed down to the swim start, about a 10 min walk away. I contemplated leaving my shoes near the swim out, for the steep 1/4 mile run to transition, but decided against it, eventually putting them in my morning clothes bag. I was able to get in about a 10 min swim warmup before it was turn for our wave to head out.