Ironman Racine 70.3 Race Report

I would consider today a success! Read on....

Pre-Race: Given my previous posts - recent lack of sleep and training, as well as the issues with my bike, I had cautious expectations of the day. Since it was supposed to be a practice race for the big deal, that took a bit of the pressure off. Weather was 75 in the morning, but overcast. Probably got up to 85 or so with more sun in the late morning and early afternoon (HOT). Had a bagel and peanut butter and a bite of a banana, and me and my iron sherpa (hubby) were off. Saw our friend Tracy at the start - she just signed up for an IM in June 2011.

Swim: WOW WAS LAKE MICHIGAN COLD. Announcer said it was 64 degrees, and it was by far the coldest water I've ever swum in. Try not to panic when you put your face in the water and the water is so cold that your lungs close up....its not easy. After two minutes of head up freestyle and breaststroke, and thinking why the hell am I doing this, I stuck my face in the water and got to it. Swim was a bit slower than I wanted, probably due to the panicking in the beginning as well as not-exactly-flat Lake Michigan. After that hell was over, it was a long run through deep sand to transition. Total time - 37 minutes, 41 seconds, 15/82 in my age group.

Bike: So I figured that I would be no faster than about 17 mph on this course - its very flat compared to what I've been riding, but still, I've never shown any capacity for speed. Crusing out of Racine, I was going about 19-20mph with almost no effort - I figured I was riding a slight downhill or had the wind at my back. I started by drinking water, than Infinit every 10 minutes. It was overcast at this point so not too hot. After the first hour, I was still averaging a bit of 19mph and felt fantastic. I will say my heart rate was a bit high - in the upper 150s to lower 160s, where I would have like it to be in the 140s, but I didn't feel like I was pushing it at all, so kept with it (I will not do this in the IM). Stuck with drinking Infinit every ten minutes and played leapfrog with a few nice people, including Karen from Iowa. Once saw a three-pack of my fellow age groupers go by together, totally drafting and could see them continue to do so for a while. I hate cheaters. Anyway, I absolutely had a blast on this ride - so fun and I loved how good I felt and how fast I was going of course.....I had estimated a 3:20 bike split, so imagine my surprise when I beat that by almost 30 minutes! Total time - 2 hours, 51 minutes, 55 seconds; 16/82 in my age group.

Run: By the time I started with the run, the sun was out 80% of the time. It was HOT. I ironically thought multiple times during the run, how nice it would feel to get in the lake. Started out on the run feeling good and running between 8 min and 8:30 pace - once again, faster than my planned 9 min pace. But, once again, I convinced myself I felt good. The run was two loops of 6.55 miles each. The first loop passed by without too much incident - the run was flat for the most part and I was drinking water every mile, mixed in with some sports drink and cola. At the start of the second loop, I was starting to feel my stomach turning against me. I'm sure this had to do with my higher than appropriate heart rate most of the day, as well as the heat/slight dehydration. By mile 10, I was not feeling good, and my miles were more like 8:45-9:00. About mile 11 I decided that to avoid serious stomach issues, I was going to run for 3 minutes, walk for 30 seconds. When I started doing this, I met Bob, who claimed he had been using me to pace and got me to run with him. Although we took a couple walk breaks, Bob and I made it to the finish in one piece, and I definitely owe my sub 2 hour half marathon to him. With the exception of the last couple miles, once again, I would say I had fun out there! Total Time - 1 hour, 54 minutes, 51 seconds; 13/82 in my age group.

Total Half IM time - 5 hours 31 minutes, and 27 seconds!! 13/82 in my age group!!

Overall, I was really happy with my day. Five years ago, much less prepared, with a bike that didn't fit me, I did this race. It was over 100 degrees and I got a flat tire, and although I finished, it obviously was not my best performance. I definitely feel like I avenged that today! While today will boost my confidence as it relates to my training and the IM, I am trying to be cautious. I definitely would have had a death march full marathon today, given the heat and pushing my heartrate too hard during the bike and run. Also, 2.4 miles of swimming is going to feel ridiculously brutal. So, my lessons are 1) swim more, 2) drink more, and 3) keep my heartrate down in the early part of the race!

Me and my trusty steed post-race.