Rhode Island 70.3

Finish Time 5:13:15
This was my first “big” race in two years and I was anxious to see how my body would respond after dealing with training with Afib. Based on my training metrics and evaluation of the race course, I expected to finish in about 5:10. Perfect execution would have gotten me there. My previous HIM best is 5:05 on a flat course. So, unfortunately, no PR to report, but I still had a solid day.

On The Swim… (31:21)
• The swim was delayed 25-minutes due to rough seas (!) and the buoys coming untethered. I lit a few matches in the first 400 meters of fighting the surf. I settled down by finding a good swimmer’s feet. The swim back into shore was much, much easier & I found a nice rhythm. Body surfing into the beach was an unexpected bonus.

On The Bike… (2:47:44)
• It is very difficult to maintain a low VI (for “variability index,” a measure of consistent riding in which the goal is a metric of 1.0) on a rolling hill course when you start in the 12th wave. Given the amount of blocking from folks recovering down hill, I was pleased with a VI of 1.06 (I was able to do race rehearsals at 1.04 on more difficult courses).
• Peeing in the tuck position at 38 MPH brings a smile to my face. It’s a skill, just like anything else.

On The Run… (1:48:48)
• My primary goal in this race was to run a negative split and a sub-1:45. Darn!
• I was focused until that massive hill on the second loop (mile 7+), which felt like a Mike Tyson body blow. Then my will to race began to evaporate & I battled the internal negotiation of walking & easing the pain versus pushing to the end. Ultimately my “one thing” (my main mental / verbal cue to keep me moving) paid off. I kept reminding myself that I wouldn’t forgive myself in the morning if I stopped running. I also knew that the fastest way to end the suffering was to push harder. Regardless, I was not able to negative split the run as I had hoped.
• I bought Chris G’s (an EN athlete) concept of painting parts of my feet with NuSkin in lieu of wearing socks. As the post race photo of my bloodied shoe clearly illustrates, this falls into the category of THINK FOR YOURSELF! I look at my torn up feet and can hear the voice of my wicked second grade teacher resonating in my head, “If somebody else jumped off a bridge…” But, hey, it saved like 15 seconds in transition!

On Nutrition…
• I owe the coaches and several EN athletes a beer for giving me a race nutrition wake-up call. This was the first long distance triathlon (7th at HIM distance or longer) in which I didn’t experience some form of GI issues. They’ve never been completely debilitating, but I never knew what a clear / clean system felt like during a race. I just assumed it was a sort of occupational hazard. Not so!

On Sanctioned Ironman Events…
• The level of competition at the sanctioned races is humbling.
• I really like the 70.3 distance and will hold on full IM sign-up until the stars appear aligned for another attempt. I achieved great personal / work / training balance this season & HIM provides enough of a challenge to keep me happy.

On Continued Improvement…• I need to determine if going sub-5 on a hilly course is truly enough of a motivator to elevate my cycling discipline. Focused, consistent, and hard riding is the only way I’ll get there. I can easily set a goal of getting to 4W/kg sitting at this computer… then comes the 4 am wake up call in mid-February.
• My watts are lower this year than last for good reason. I skimped on many of the bread & butter threshold repeats. Basically, if I had to do the workout on the trainer I cut it short. If it was on the road I got it done. I tried to compensate by building in two 250+ mile weeks. Those weeks helped, but the results speak for themselves – lower FTP in 2009 as compared to the consistent effort in 2008.
• That said, I think I’m still going to blame on my bike and buy a new one. Seriously, I’ve been saving my allowances and might pull the trigger this fall!

In Summary…• Racing to the best of my abilities is very cathartic, regardless of AG placing, split times, etc.
• This training season and race have provided clarity on how to deal with my on-going health issue. There’s absolutely no reason for me to hang it up. For that, I’m deeply grateful.

Thanks for reading.