I didn’t sleep great the night before the race, I never do. It’s usually a very light, busy minded, anxious, toss and turn, can’t wait for morning type sleep. After tossing and turning...
After tossing and turning a bit from 2-3am, I decided to get up and eat my standard pre-race breakfast. PB&J and a banana. Afterward, still well in advance of my alarm going off, I climbed back in bed and may have actually dozed off for another hour or so.
After tossing and turning a bit from 2-3am, I decided to get up and eat my standard pre-race breakfast. PB&J and a banana. Afterward, still well in advance of my alarm going off, I climbed back in bed and may have actually dozed off for another hour or so.
Pre-Race
Pretty typical here, bike/nutrition set up, bathroom stop, body marking, ect. My brother-in-law was my morning sherpa. He’s a pretty laid back guy and his ‘chill’ vibes were nice to have along on race morning. After prepping the bike, I found my own little quiet place and did a little more stretching and pre-race visualization. We eventually met up with my wife and kids and sister and her kids for one last round of good luck and high-5s.
Down by the water now, I pulled on my PZ3TX and entered the water. A special thanks to the guys in the Blueseventy booth for the last minute hook up. The swimskin fit me like a glove and I was ready to tear it up. I got in the water with about 5 minutes to go. I jostled my way toward the front. This time around I decided to line up a little closer to the action, about 15yds off the dock, 2nd-ish row. I was planning on swimming sub-1hr.
Swim – 1:02
BOOM – and were off! Things started off crazy rough, as usual. It was easily 10mins into the race before what I actually call swimming began. I had jumped on a pair of feet and was able to open up my stroke and get into a rhythm. First lap was completed in 31min, quite a bit slower than I had hoped but with cleaner water ahead for lap 2, I wasn’t too concerned. Much of the same for lap 2, my Blueseventy Hydra Vision goggles worked flawlessly and never even fogged, allowing me to stick to the underwater buoy line like glue. I exited the water in 1:02. I was mildly disappointed with my slowest ever IM swim time but was happy it wasn’t 1:15, because that’s about what it felt like. Not sure what was up, just wasn’t feelin’ it. (note to self: spend more than 1hr/week in pool)
T1 – 5:30
Transition is always a really fun and exciting place to be. Everyone is always really happy to have the race underway and to be done with the swim. There’s a lot of shouting and chaos. Probably a really fun place to volunteer. My T1 was flawless, so unfortunately I wasn’t able to hang around long for the party.
Bike – 5:24 – 204W Avg
As I sped away in my Blueseventy Distance Tri Suit, I settled in for a long ride. My power target for the ride was 205W. I had never actually ridden for 5:20 (goal) at 205W but I had gotten close and blown myself up numerous times trying to hold 220, 215, etc. So to put it frankly, 205W for my ride was a guess, but it was a pretty safe, calculated guess. I came through lap 1 in 2:38 at 201W avg, so things were looking good. Through mile 56, time was on target while keeping my power in check. Things really thinned out on lap 2. I train alone so I find comfort when there’s no one around to worry about. The bike marshals were everywhere, so it was kinda nice not to have to worry about playing yo-yo games with my competitors all morning.
I started to fad at about mile 80. Power and HR began to fade. I had experienced similar issues in training so I was expecting it. Making the turn to climb back up to LP, I took my emergency energy gel with caffeine. I was feeling a little flat and I really think the caffeine helped. I was able to hold it together on the final climb and the crowds forming again up near town was a welcome sight. I ended up biking a 5:24, 202W avg, 150HR. Again, I was a little miffed that I missed my 5:20 target, but honestly plus 4min on my goal time with my guesstimate power target, I was damn close. I was feeling good and ready to run.
T2 – 2:30
Yeah, the happiest place on Earth again, I’m off my bike! There are always a few “uber” bikers, sitting with a bloodshot, death stare thinking “Oh shit, now I have to run!” Sucks to be them! I’m outta here. No issues.
Run - 3:20
Ah, the run. My bread and butter. Get in the zone, run steady, run strong, reel in the bikers. My strategy was simple. Run at 150bpm. Don’t stop. If you feel good it might not last, so rather than speed up, eat. Nutrition during an IM marathon is always a bit of a blur to me. I have a rough plan but really I end up going on feel. I know I need a bunch of calories to make it to the finish line. Gels are the most concentrated. At an aid station, if I feel like I can stomach one, I’ll take one. If not, water, coke, ice, Perform. Consider a gel next time. Through my training I have learned what being overfed (puke) and underfed (bonk) feels like. It was a quick lesson to learn and now I’m lucky to be able to avoid either situation.
Total: 9:55. 10th in M30-34. 31st Overall
All in all, it was a great race! I had a plan, I executed my plan. I raced as fast as I could. While I really thought that I had another shot at getting back to Kona, I didn’t make it. The guys that beat me were faster on the day. They put in more time and wanted it more. That’s the beauty of long distance racing. Hard Work = Results. There are no short cuts. There is no easy way!
Until Next Time.
Hope Everything is Awesome!
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