This was my second year racing in this event, although the course this the is totally new with the race having moved from the Lake Norman Y to the Ingersoll Rand business park. This was my “A” racethis year as it was my only race this year. Recovery from IRONMAN70.3NC took quite a bit longer than I anticipated, so training this year has been somewhat erratic. That said, the 7 weeks or so before this race has been very consistent and my new nutrition regime has been on track so I was curious to see what would happen on race day.
Pre-race:
I got up at 4 am and had some Kind granola and whole milk. I took a banana in the car but did not feel hungry enough to eat it. Erika’s husband Michael Ferraco wanted to do this race with me. He had done one other triathlon a few years back and now does Spartan races and running events so he is a pretty capable athlete. This meant the Erika and their 16 year-old son Zach were a built-in cheering section. I picked up the Ferracos and we got to the race site at 6 am and waited in a fairly long line for packet and timing chip pick-up and then set up transition. Porta-potty lines, like the other lines on race morning were way too long so we didn't have time for that. Jones Racing needs a lot more volunteers at check in and more porte-potties for the size of the race (over 400 through online registration plus whoever registered race day).
Racing makes me thirsty.
Swim — 750m — 23:55 (2:38/100yd)
The lake water was a lot cooler than feared, so the swim was actually quite comfortable. I felt strong on the swim at my pace but I was unable to go faster and I got passed by swimmers in the next two waves. I am hoping that as I continue to lose weight I will become more hydrodynamic.
T1 — 5:23
T1 involved a quarter-mile run from swim exit to transition, hence the time. Lucy passed me on the run up from the lake. She said hi on her way to first overall female.
Bike — 12.5 miles — 58:02 (13.13 mph)
Although 5 miles shorter than last year’s course, the new course seems to have kept all the hills (653 ft climbing in 12.5 miles). The only race nutrition I used was 200 calories of Tailwind caffeinated in my water bottle on the bike. This felt more than sufficient for the distance.
Lots of climbs, some with fairly steep grades, so there were lots of battles against gravity with the climbing. Avg cadence was only 64. First 5 miles were slow going at 12.7 mph and 276 ft climbing. Speeded up in second 5 mile split at 14.3 mph with 230 ft climbing. The last 2.5 miles was derailed with a random crash at the end. My chain come off the big ring so all of the sudden I went down hard on my left side. I remember the side of my helmet hitting the pavement and my left hip. Erika was there as it was very close to the bike finish so they helped me up and helped me get my chain back on. Gravity strikes again, and this time it’s playing hardball. I soft pedaled the 30 seconds or so back to the dismount line and took stock in T2.
T2 — 3:57
After I changed into running shoes, I took the bottle of water I keep in transition and rinsed off the road rash from the crash. All things considered, it could have been worse, as my left hip took most of the impact and my tri shorts protected it and did not rip. Thanks Zoot!
Run — 5km — 40:35 (13:02 pace but since run was actually 3.24 miles, 12:32 pace)
The run was tough. The road rash on my elbow and knee didn’t hurt all that much but my left hip felt pretty sore from the crash at the end of the bike. It was one additional issue that I really didn’t need. The first mile of the run was tough but in mile 2, the pain seemed to subside a bit but there were then some steep little climbs to get to the turn-around. I walked the hills and walked the water station, making the second mile the slowest. My heart rate was pretty steady around 150 bpm so I think the walking was more for the soreness than my hr. After the turn-around, I picked it up a bit but got misdirected and missed a path, which seemed to add about a tenth of a mile. Splits were 12:08, 13:24 and 12:19 with an 11:38 pace for the last quarter-mile.
Total time was 2:11:52
Overall, it felt good to race again and I am glad I did a race this year. I was a bit slower on the bike and the run than last year but I weigh about 5-8 pounds more than at this time last year and am not nearly as trained. Also the crash at the end of the bike probably affected my run somewhat so I think it was a good effort and good experience.