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| 2015 Colonial Half Marathon |
In December of 2015 I decided to run the Busch Gardens Christmas Town Dash, an 8K. I ran a respectable 29:59, which was good enough to win my age group and place 7th overall. I signed up for the Tidewater Strider's Distance Series 10 miler and the Colonial Half Marathon. I finished 4th overall in the 10 miler with a 1:01:50 and was 12th overall and the 1st place masters finisher at the Colonial with time of 1:24:03 on very challenging Half Marathon Course. I had my running legs back and my confidence was building.
Two weeks after the Colonial Half I started my training for Ironman Raleigh 70.3. My focus was the bike and getting comfortable in the water again. Not an easy task given my experience in Wales. The bike came along well and I crushed my first FTP test of the season. I had a couple of great rides with the Bikes Unlimited group in Williamsburg and I chased my favorite local Pro, Rachel Jastrebsky, to the North Carolina border and back. I applied for and was picked up by Snapple as an Ambassador. All-in-all 2016 was starting to shape up nicely.
My coach, Adam Otstot, had shifted me to training peaks at the beginning of 2016. I'd been using a power meter and tracking my TSS for the last three seasons, but TP provided a whole new sets of tools and the ability to track not only my cycling stress, but my running and swimming stress as well. I've been extremely impressed by the analytical tools. For a Tri-Geek like me, it's data nirvana!
Raleigh was special in that my father was born and raised in the city next door, Duhram. I'd spent every summer of my youth in the farm fields of rural Durham working with my grandfather. Racing across the rural countryside in Raleigh took me back to my roots.
The forecast for race weekend wasn't good. A tropical storm was parked off the coast and the low was supposed to track over Raleigh a couple hours after race start. It had rained 21 days in May and the first week in June was following the trend. My wife, daughter, and I drove down to Raleigh on Friday evening, checked into the race, grabbed some grub and hit the bed so that I could get over to T1 early on Saturday to check in my bike and do a little pre-race tune-up.
Saturday was a scorcher. By the time we drove out of the city of Raleigh to T1 at Jordan Lake the Temperature was in the low 90s with over 80% humidity. I set up my bike and I did a quick 10 minute ride to make sure the gears, wheels, and brakes were all in working order. I racked the bike and we drove across the lake to another small park so that I could do a 20 minute run and 15 minute swim. I ran 3 miles at 7:15 mile pace and my kit was soaked with sweat. It was hot! I jumped in the lake, swam for 15 minutes, played with my daughter, Alex, for a bit and then we went and grabbed a big lunch. My last big meal before the race.
I pulled all my gear together while Alex and my wife, Kelly, did some shopping. I packed my race bags, reviewed my race plan with my coach, and then hit the bed early with a planned 3:00 am wake-up call. The storm arrived that evening, high winds pummeled T1 and T2, and the Ironman team spend all night putting the race course back together.
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| I'm in the Xterra speed suit just behind the pros |
It always surprises me how busy T1 can be. I could have sworn that I caught the first shuttle bus, but there was already a line to get air for my bike tires. It is always good to be early on race day. Setting up my bike took no time at all. I put my binto box on the bike, filled my bottles First Endurance EFS Pro Lemon Water, and pulled on my trainers for a 15 minute warm-up. The storm front had already swept through, leaving nothing but heat and humidity in its wake. It was only 6:00 am and it was already in the mid 80s with 80% humidity. Not a good sign on race morning.
A quick 15 minute run and a 10 minute swim and I was ready to go. The pro men went off at 7:00, then the pro-women at 7:04. Men 45-49 Group 2 were the 6th wave. I lined up, waded out, and set up in the middle of the swim line. I wanted to get on the feet of some faster swimmers and stay there for as long as I could. The horn sounded at 7:28 and off we went. My Xterra speed suit felt great. I was smooth in the water and I was relaxed. This wasn't the North Sea and I was back in my comfort zone. I couldn't find a group to work with, but I had picked up my own trail as I felt the swimmer on my feet every couple of strokes. I was counting buoys, swimming straight, and I found myself passing red and blue caps before the first turn buoy. It was a long swim and I didn't have the swim fitness I have had in prior seasons. I just tried to stay long and focus on technique. There was a little chop going into the final turn for shore and then I found a pair of feet that pulled me all the way to the swim exit. (Swim: 37:04 - 22 AG/200 OA)
I had just exited the water and I was already sweating. I struggled to get my zipper peeled, but managed to have my suit down around my waist by the time I made it to my bike. Speed suit off and into the bag with my goggles and swim cap. Shoes on, Rudy Project sun glasses on, helmet on, grab bike, run to mount line. (T1: 2:40)
Raleigh has a funny spur up and out of transition to make the distance right. So you have to climb up and away from the lake and then turn around descend part way back down before turning and climbing up and away from the lake again. I took a long pull on my aero bottle of EFS Pro and settled in to do some work. My plan called for me to hold 230 to 240 watts average power. I was pushing 200 to 220 starting out, just to get my legs warmed up, and I was already dripping with sweat. This day would be all about core temperature management, pushing electrolytes, and being patient.
The day was hot and getting hotter. The early part of the bike had some limited shade, but as the day wore on, it became less and less. I focused on spinning up the hills and pressing down the back side. My speed sensor wasn't working, so I was riding based on power and feel. I knew my power was low, but the bike felt fast and I was worried about overcooking the bike in the heat. I grabbed a cold water bottle at the aid station at mile 14, to use to cool myself down. I was carrying two bottles of EFS Pro and salt tablets if that wasn't enough. I also had a binto box full of bars cut into quarters that I would eat every 15 minutes. I used 1-1/2 bottles of EFS Pro to get to mile 28, where I grabbed a bottle of the on-course-hydration to refill my aero bottle and another bottle of cold water to cool my self down with. The second half of the ride was a battle to stay cool and keep hydrated. I was extremely pleased when we made the turn and we could see the high-rise buildings of downtown Raleigh getting closer. I had survived the heat and was ready to run. (Bike: 2:30:12 - 12 AG/113 OA)
I unclipped and hopped off the bike at the dismount. I hadn't tried to pull my feet out of my shoes for a flying dismount. The final turn into transition came at me faster than I realized and I didn't have time. So I just ran with the bike, in my bike shoes, to my rack. Shoes off, Visor on, Shoes on, run number on. I grabbed a couple of Gu Chomps and my second tic-tac case of salt tablets and was on my way. (T2: 2:36)
I ran out of transition and around the corner. The first aid station was right there to start the run. I knew I wanted some water and a cup of ice. I yelled out for ice and they just looked at me with blank stares. My heart fell and I thought "if there is no ice on this race course I am done." One of the young ladies finally yelled that they didn't have any ice, but the next aid station did. Off I went at 6:50 pace for the next two miles. Raleigh climbs up and away from T2 and it is an out and back, two loop run. Out and Up, Down and back. I had a steady rhythm and I was clicking off the miles. I grabbed a cup of ice for my top, a cup of ice for my pants and I sipped water at every aid station, which worked out to be about every 2 miles. I was chewing Gu Chomps and popping salt pills every 30 minutes.My core temperature was climbing and my pace was slowing. I knew that if I stopped it would be hard to get back started. I had to keep moving. There was a small bit of shade at the end of the first loop and making the turn to start the second loop I knew that I could hold my pace to the finish. My goal was to be steady and roll up as much of my age group as possible. Without a spotter on a two loop course it is impossible to know your position. All I could do was ask the guys I was passing if they were on their first or second loop and most were answering first loop as I was starting my second loop. I knew I was near the top of the age group. So I just held on, and as I made the turn for the finish I could see one guy 200 yds in front of me. I was gaining, but there was no way to catch him. I pulled down my jersey top, pushed the pace, and finished strong. (Run: 1:36:28, Total Time: 4:49:00 - 4 AG/77 OA)
It felt good to be done. It may have been my strongest race ever, but that is hard to judge. I do know that it was a hard day and I gave it all that I had. I'm proud to wear the Snapple kit. EFS Pro saved the day on the bike. My Xterra speedsuit was faster than I could swim. I'm looking forward to Rev 3 Williamsburg and racing on my home course.
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| Age Group Podium (2nd & 4th) |
