2013 Ironman World Championship - Race Report

Background
This was my second time racing Kona. In 2009 I qualified via IMLOU. I toed the line just 6 weeks later, exhausted and came away with a 10:45. This time around I qualified at the other end of the spectrum, IMWIS 2012. This allowed me 13 months to train and prepare to race in Oct! As I've detailed in my blog, this approached was also less than ideal for me. Late in my build-up, I struggled with injury and burnout.

Pre-race Goals
On each of my qualifying runs I grabbed the last spot in my AG. Arriving in Kona, I was not delusional with any goals of being competitive within the AG. Instead I set some specific goals racing against the clock and focused on pacing with a strategy to finish strong, with confidence to bring another ironman chapter to a close.

1. Sub 1hr swim with a smart/controlled effort
2. <200W bike, nail nutrition, finish strong (hope for 5:20)
3. 3:20 marathon, ease in to goal pace
4. Sub 10
5. Sub 9:43 (IM PR)

PreRace - I was more nervous on race morning than usual. My training lead up was less than optimal and quite frankly I was terrified of the heat. Even arriving 6 days prior to the race, the heat and humidity was stifling. I think I was most afraid of coming all that way and having a massive meltdown out in the lava fields.

Swim - I lined up in the middle near the TYR buoy, about 5 rows back. When asked, the guy next to me said 1:20. One of us was in a bad place, in hindsight, I'd say it was him. The cannon fired and the washing machine lasted about 5 minutes. I swam very comfortably until the turn. Making the turn at the Body Glove boat and now heading back for home, some swells picks up and sighting became more difficult. With about 20 minutes remaining I started looking for the pier. I was tiring but was still in control, swimming within a large group. Upon exit, I saw 1:02 and brushed it off. A little slow but with the effort I just put forth, seemed reasonable.
Data: 1:02 swim time, 1:37/100m

T1 - was an absolute zoo. A 1hr swim at a US qualifier will let you pick any seat you want, plus 4 volunteers to help. In Kona. I was 500th out of the water! I made by way through as quickly as possible. My best decision all day was taking an extra 20 seconds to pull on some Desoto cooling sleeves. Cooling? Yes please, Protection from the sun? Absolutely! Thank you!

Bike - I'm not a powerhouse on the bike. I can hold my own in the US but the theme of Kona being a different beast continues. I've made the mistake of overbiking too many times, so I wisely held back at 200W for the first 5 miles but in that time I got passed by 140 races. While holding a 25mph avg for the first 40 miles of the race, I still felt like I was going backwards. The draft packs were as expected. Many were doing their best in the given situation, others chose to play the game of cheating until they got caught. I must have seen draft marshals two dozen times out there and the sight of full penalty tents were my reward for riding my own race. I wanted to keep the power around 200W but for whatever reason I wasn't feeling it and settled much south of my <200W goal. I took in 400 cal/hr like clockwork. EFS drink, EFS gel and Pre-Race. 

 

I took on water at every station and immediately emptied it on my arms, head, back and feet. By mile 90 I had been passed by 238 people and then the winds really began to kick up!! I still have no idea which direction they where blowing, but the race really slowed down and people were all over the road. My conservative approach to pacing allowed me to really "drop the hammer" (still holding sub200W ;) and my last 20 miles were some of the strongest miles of the day. My "finish strong" strategy took me past 60 racers in the final 20 miles. It was pure carnage out there.
Data: 5:10 ride time, 171AP, 181NP at 155lbs. 21.7mph. 92 deg avg temp. Garmin File

T2 - off the bike in 678th place, T2 was a zoo again. I took a leak, gathered myself and started off on the scariest part of the race.

Run - The second biggest mistake people make in an ironman is running the first couple miles too fast. I was shocked to see so many of the best iron distance racers in the World making this same mistake. In the first 3 miles, at a very pedestrian pace (7:45s) I got passed by 30 people. I stayed diligent to my plan (take it out slow) and by the 1st turn on Ali Dr (5 miles) I started to reel 'em in. I was hoping to ease in to a 7:30 pace but it never happened. I was too hot and too afraid with so many miles still to come. The heat and humidity was oppressive, thank God the sun was behind the clouds all day! I held steady with an 8min/mile for the entire day. I walked every aid station taking on as much ice and water as I could.
 

Out in the Energy Lab now, people were melting. It felt like more people were walking than running. I stayed steady, now passing 140 "runners" as I grabbed my special needs bad. 1/2 shot EFS+ 1/2 scoop pre-pace and I was off and making my move to the finish line. More lava, more miles, more wavy heat lines distorting the destruction on the Queen K back into town. In the last 7 miles I passed 60 more people. I made my way down Palani, across Kuakini and finally make my turn on to Alii Dr. I soaked it all in and then right before the line I checked behind me to make sure no one would ruin my picture!
Data: 3:27 run time, 7:54 min/mile. Garmin File
 
Final Summary
1:02 Swim
5:10 Bike
3:27 Run
9:51 Total
104th AG (M35-39), 507th OA

 

I only met 2 of my 5 pre-race goals but really I couldn't be happier. I raced a solid race, dropped almost an hour off my previous Kona time and was both coherent and mobile to finish out my final 3 days in Hawaii. I had one other silly goal of passing more people on the run than who passed me on the bike. As the race progressed 181 passed me on the bike, and I passed 171 on the run. So I just missed that one too but it's a testament to my patience, allowing me to finish on a high note despite finishing nearly smack in the middle of the pack. 54th percentile in M35-39.

Big respect to the Island for it's beauty and history. Respect to the race, distance and conditions. And finally a big shout to all the athletes out there who are competitive on the international level! Amazing!