IRONMAN Florida 70.3, April 13, 2014
Ironman FL 70.3 was my first triathlon since the culmination of 7 Ironman races in one year at Ironman Louisville in August of 2013.
Training has been very solid this year leading up to my big race (Ironman Coeur d'Alene) in June. The goal for IM Florida was to test my Ironman nutrition, get back into the mental side of racing, go through transitions, and also see where my weakness is in leading into the final 9 weeks of training for CDA.
I am very happy with where I am in training and I'm looking forward to working on some speed.
SWIM
Split Name Distance Split Time Race Time Pace DivisionRank GenderRank OverallRank
Total 1.2 mi 00:34:10 00:34:10 01:46/100m 5 42 239
The swim at IM FL 70.3 was very interesting. It featured am M shape and had 6 turns. I got in the day before and did a swim to orient myself, I am so glad I did. On race day, I knew the course and had no problem with sighting or knowing where to go. My issue was with congestion. I was in the 12th wave. The first stretch out to Turn 1 was smooth, I started on the inside line and had clean water within a minute. Upon turning, BAM! I got knocked in the face by a heel. The water was very dark and that made it very hard to see the swimmers ahead. After a few times of getting hit, having to swim over top of people, and swerving out of the way. I decided to add distance to my swim to avoid the congestion. I swam wide but it was worth it as I had to do less sighting and was able to swim clean without the fear of swimming up on another person. I was concerned about my shoulder going into this race. I have limited my swim to 3,000 yds a week with no speed. I just held a steady tempo, never pushed the effort high and still came out with a solid swim, and no shoulder pain! T1
Swim-to-bike 00:02:27
Smooth, no mess ups and out onto bike. Opted out of doing flying mount due to swim wave and knowing the mount line would be packed and it had a 90 deg right turn downhill about 150 yds past transition. Running in bike shoes was okay, I didn't have to go far.
BIKE: CLICK HERE FOR FILE
Split Name Distance Split Time Race Time Pace DivisionRank GenderRank OverallRank
Total 56 mi 02:43:27 03:20:04 20.56 mph 6 61 415
Nutrition: 1 concentrated bottle of Hammer Perpetuem (4 scoops, + 1 Heed) = 640 calories, 1 aero bottle with Heed (2 scoops) = 200 calories. Total Calorie intake for bike = 870 cal. At aid stations (18, 33, 44) refilled aero bottle with water.Conditions: Partly cloudy, high 82 degrees, E wind 10-15 mph
It took me about 6 minutes to lower my HR into goal range (lower Z3: 155 bpm). My goal was to keep my HR within Z3, letting wind, terrain, and road surface dictate effort within Zone 3 as I came to it. This worked perfectly.
My ave HR for the bike was 155 - Boom. I could have squeezed a bit of faster pace in. I had 39-min in Z2 or lower, but I also had 9-min in Z4+.
T2
00:02:51
Run: SANDBAGGER RUN FILE
Split Name Distance Split Time Race Time Pace DivisionRank GenderRank OverallRank
Total 13.1 mi 01:57:09 05:20:04 08:56/mi 10 77 409
Nutrition: 2 GU gels at mile 3 and 10. Water or perform at every stop. Ice in tri top, tri shorts water over head at every stop to keep cool. Total calorie intake: ~250 calories.
I had a good run. It could have been GREAT but I was timid of the course and nervous to push the effort. Thus - I HAVE FOUND MY WEAKNESS! Goal HR: 166-174 HR - Zone 3
The course was three loops. Leaving transition was about 1/2 mile flat passing tri club village, this was fun, it was loud and it got you pumped up. We had our Triattic tent set up, my Mom, Sister in law, niece and nephew were there cheering us on and boy did that help! After that you hit a series of hills, three to be specific. The first one wasn't bad, short and not too steep, then you hit the main road with the two big guys. To add to it there was construction on the course forcing the runners to run up the sidewalk that was full of broken gravel and concrete (my least favorite section). Then you had a few short climbs but mostly a downhill run to start the next two loops.Loop 1: Ave HR 158, Max HR 167, 8:56 min/mile.
Goal for the first loop was to run smart, watch my effort and learn the course and hills. Well I did that and maybe a bit too much, but I felt great.
Loop 2: Ave HR 158, Max HR 168, 8:58 min/mile.
I should have picked up the effort but didn't. I was scared of going to hard. I have become so used to IM effort and I know I can sustain that so that is what I did. I held Z2 and stuck with it.
Loop 3: Ave HR 162, Max HR 177 (final 1/4 mile), 8:55 min/mile.
Okay, as you can see I never increased my effort. SANDBAGGER. I felt good and decided to just keep within my zone. I did pick it up in the final mile because I was closing in a girl in my AG.
Entire Run: Ave HR 159, ave pace 8:57 min/mile.
Time in HR zones:
Z1: 0:08:25
Z2: 1:42:00
Z3: 0:06:35
Even though I could have run the half harder, what I did realize is my fatigue rate for Z2 is none! I have the base to hold Z2 but I already knew that. So know that I know for sure, I can maintain HR and Pace in Z2, I can work on some speed leading into CDA.
What topped off the weekend was that our team, Triattic, won Division V for Tri Clubs! Go Triattic!
