Ironman California 70.3
It’s April 4th and despite the fact that snow is in the forecast for this weekend in Burlington, VT my 2007 and inaugural season on the Timex Multisport Team has officially begun. I knew that an early season race, especially a big race like Ironman California 70.3, would be a challenge but despite a few hiccups all in all it was a great day and a great race!
My day began bright and early at 4:30am, it was cold, even for a Vermonter!! I had plenty of time to shiver standing around contemplating my day, becasue swim wave was the last to start, over an hour after the pro men. I was able to watch many athletes swim and make there way through T1 before I even began my day, which was a unique experience for me.
After what seemed like a very long time, I finally got into the water and to my surprise it wasn’t really that cold. Navigating the swim was not too difficult, being in Oceanside harbor the water was relatively calm, however, after the turn around I was swimming directly into the sun and really had no idea where I was going. At one point I literally swam over an athlete from a prior wave because I literally could not see anything. Out of the water I was happy with a new swim PR, then through T1, which involved a lot of running, but possibly one of the most organized and “fair” transition areas I have ever seen.
The first 10-15min of the bike I was having a rough time due to the chill from the water and the cool morning temperatures. The bike course was really a lot of fun. I was thrown for a little loop at the first aid station as North America Sports mixed it up this year serving Orange Gatorade Endurance on the bike and Lemon Lime on the run. But no matter, it made for a little bit of a change. There were a few narrow sections on a bike path and some spots where I’m convinced the surface area of potholes out numbered the smooth pavement, but that’s alright. I did get a little nervous due to the number of people I saw changing flats on the side of the road, but I was lucky!! Most of the bike course is very light on traffic with wide smooth roads through Camp Pendleton Marine Base.
There are a few gentle rollers at the beginning of the course, but around the half way point I took a turn and saw a long climb in the distance. My first thought was, “I hope the course doesn’t go that way,” but sure enough as I got closer I could see specs of little bikers slowing ascending the climb. There were only 3 steep climbs, but I was wondering if maybe I would have been better off with a 12-25 cassette at this early point in the season.
I got back to T2 feeling great, a little slower than I would have wanted but given I had owned my new Trek for only a little over a week, and although my position wasn’t quite where I wanted to it be, the TTX is a fast bike!!
As I said my wave (M25-29) was one of the last swim waves to start the race over an hour behind the pro men. As a result, as I was heading out of T2 I could hear Mike Reilly interviewing the winner Andy Potts. It’s always a little depressing when you are just beginning your run knowing that others are already done with their day.
No worries, there was still work to be done. The run course is a great double out and back, and much to my pleasure due to high tides the portion of beach running was removed from this year’s course. There were tons of spectators and it passed right along the beach and through some sea side neighborhoods. Mostly a flat course although there were a few small grades to be conquered.
I got into a good rhythum and focused on motoring down the road. At about mile 5 I caught up with the eventual age group winner (Mac Brown, who by the way is a really nice guy and great athlete, we talked briefly after the race) we ran together for about a mile then he began to pull away. I had enough to stay with him, but I decided that I would stay consistent and keep my pace. I kept plugging away not knowing where I was in my age-group or overall classification due to the staggered wave start. I have to admit at the second turn around I was ready to push it in and began to pick up the pace as much as my legs would allow. I actually wound up catching and passing Mac at around mile 12 and lead him into the finish by ~20 seconds, but he had started in the swim wave behind me, so wound up with a total time about 2:40 ahead of me. But it just goes to show that pacing in a triathlon, especially the run is key!
All in all it was an amazing race and the perfect way to kick off my season. A 4:18 is not my best time, and a little slower than I was hoping, but given that it’s March I was excited to see where my fitness is at this early in the season. I had a great experience and would definitely recommend this race to anyone looking for an early season kick start!
The next three days of Timex camp were equally as encouraging and inspiring (see Tim’s blog). Thanks to Ben, Tristan and Doug for getting our new Treks up and running in a matter of what seemed like minutes. It’s going to be a great year for Team Timex!
Swim Fast. Bike Strong. Run Hard. J
