Austin 70.3 Race Report

Austin 70.3 overall was a fun event for me on a number of fronts. The highlights began on Friday when I was able to reconnect with a family friend who I hadn't seen in 15 years.

I first learned that Ian Mikelson was a triathlete when he made a cameo on Hillary Biscay's blog. Ian's older brother and I swam together (same team as Hillary) in middle school and high school, played water polo together and spent a lot of time together as kids in our formative years. Ian was my brothers age, and while he didn't swim, we saw him all of the time at meets and pretty much every kid I knew did Jr. Lifeguards in the summers, including Ian. Ian was always a short stocky middle linebacker looking guy, so to see him completing what I think he'd describe as a successful first season as a pro is real fun for me and generally amazing. He's got one more big race in IMAZ next month, so we're pulling for him.

I hope some day he gets interviewed by Bob Babbit and Paul Huddle on Competitor Radio so Huddle can ask him his standard "how much you bench" question. He usually gets these endurance beans who aren't sure, but think they could put up 100. They'd be impressed with Ian's numbers!!!

So we caught up with Ian and his mom Gaye, who as swim team moms go, doubled as many of our moms over the years keeping us out of trouble when left to our own devices for hours on end at swim meets. We had a great meal, caught up on the past, talked tri shop for a while. It was a really good time!
I also took the bike out for a short 45 min spin on Fri. I'd had the bike in for a tune up the weekend before and was able to get on it once mid week out on the road, so this ride was to keep the legs loose but to also make sure the bike was dialed in.

Everything seemed fine but I was getting a new sound like popcorn coming from the rear derailleur. I made some subtle adjustments after the ride, took it up and down the street to test it out but while I fixed the rear derailleur, something strange happened to the front and I was no longer able to shift to the big chain ring from the little. Some more tinkering with the front derailleur, another test ride, and I was pleased as it appeared dialed in. More later...

Sat was pretty low key. My dad and I went out to the venue to rack my bike and drop off my T2 bag, got home quick to watch the UT game, and kicked me feet up a bit, packed up my gear, etc. My buddy Tim from Houston was coming up to the house to stay with us for the night and join me in the morning out at the race site to spectate. We had a nice dinner on Sat and hit the sack pretty early.

Sunday morning was the normal pre race routine. Get up early, eat, stretch, hit the road. Tim was able to drop me off at T1 (this race had split transitions about 1.5 miles apart) so I didn't have to mess with the shuttle bus from the parking lot/T2 to T1. I had plenty of time to get my bike situated, chill, stretch, use the pots, etc. It was nice have a friendly face with me all morning, and it was so easy not to have to mess with a morning dry clothes bag, etc.

My wave started 50 minutes after the pros went off, so I was able to catch Ian and the other guys make there way in to T2.

Swim (27:49, 8th out of ~334 in AG)
The swim was alright. I was looking for feet and as we set out, was surprised by the number of guys who seemed to be pushing a solid pace. I settled in with a descent size group. We were about 2-3 wide and there must have been about 12 of us, so I was pretty content. I settled in and was glad to be in the draft. At about the 300 yd mark, I could tell the two guys in front of me were losing the guys at the pointy edge of the group, but their pace was still fine, so I stayed put. At about the 500 yd mark, both of the guys in front of me slowed considerably. I had no choice but to come around, and that was the end of my draft for the rest of the swim. We began catching waves about 7-8 minutes in. I definitely saw 6-7 different colors of swim caps out there, so with 5 min staggers between waves, I had a lot of traffic to deal with. I realized about 2/3 through the swim that I was likely leading a pack as I was getting slight taps on the feet every now and then and it wasn't from people I'd passed. Turns out there were at least 2-3 guys back there who got a great ride. I think I probably would have been better served swimming a little more conservatively as I didn't feel fresh by the end of the swim. But all in all, a good swim. 4 mins off my PR from '08, but that swim was easily 4-5 mins short so this could have been my best swim.

T1
I took a bur in the foot as I made my way to the racks. stopped to pull it out, but other than that, it was pretty much biz as usual in there.

Bike (2:41.14, 20.8 mph, 102 out of ~334 in AG):
I set off on the bike and tried to settle in. The course is a little more hilly at the beginning and the end, but all in all, it is a course with little distinguishing it. I got off really well, was averaging about 21.5 mph through the first 15 miles when I came up to the top of one of the bigger hills that forced me down to the small chain ring. As I crested, I went back to the big ring and threw my chain right over the top of the big chain ring and on to my foot. It was 1-2 revolutions before I realized what had happened, and in those 1-2 cranks I twisted the chain up around the crank. I was able to reach down and pull the chain back on the chain ring without slowing (I was impressed I could pull off - I've seen guys in TT stages of the TdF do this before when they came out of the start house) but the first revolution I made with it back on revealed to me that I'd damaged the chain. This happened earlier in the summer so I knew immediately what happened. One of the links actually gets slightly twisted and as that link passes through the rear derailleur, you get a reaction. For me, it ranged from a small dead spot in the pedal stroke where you weren't putting pressure on the rear cassette, to full on half shifts out of the gear on the rear cassette. Every revolution for 41 miles, I had this irritation. I could move in and out of gear and felt like I could control the severity of the shifting, but the longer I stayed in any one gear, the worse the problem got. I was afraid of any further problems so I stayed in the big ring for the rest of the ride. My pace slowed after the problem developed and it was mentally taxing. Not having the small ring also was annoying as I could have used it 3-4 times.

The only other highlight of the ride was seeing Gordo Byrn three times on the ride. Once when he flew by at mile 30 (I had a 20 min start on his AG), again at mile 32 when he was in the ditch changing a flat front, and again at mile 40 when he blew by again. He was rocking it old school in the Australia speedo. God bless him!

T2
Vaguely remember dropping my bike off, but we found it after the race so I must have put it in the right place

Run (2:21.32 10:49 pace, 172nd out of ~334 AG)
I had high hopes of laying down a good run. My conservative goal was to run a 2:15, but my runs in training had been going so well I had dreams of running under 2:10. As I made my way out on the run course, I felt okay, was running some good low 9 min miles and felt fine. I wasn't hot, HR felt low, all was good. Then the rollers came. I had forgot how this run course is a beat down. Either always up or always down. You need to be strong to run well here and I am not. Put me on a flat, point me in a direction and I can go. Force me up and down and my muscles turn to jelly. As I topped each roller, I could feel some mojo leaving my legs. by the time we hit the off road section, I was starting to slow a bit. I walk/ran up Quadzilla and felt like crap after the hill as I made the round about exit out of the trails. I came good back on the roads and thought I might be okay, but by the end of the first loop, I could tell running up the hills was not going to last much longer. by the second loop, I was walking the hills, running the flats and down, and was shuffling a bit and had slowed considerably. It only got worse, and the walking increased. So the run continues to be my achilles heal.


I was hopeful that the increased run volume in this build up would manifest in a better time and this was a 2 min run PR for me, so I guess you could say it did, but come on man! Get it together. I need to take a blank slate approach to running. So something a little more aggressive. It might result in injury, but I need to challenge myself more in my run training.

So my time was 5:37.17. Though I didn't PR, if you adjust the short swim from my PR in '08, I think this is probably my best race. I am content with how it went. I felt very prepared going in to the race, and I owe that to my coach David. He put together a great plan that got me to the start line healthy, as fit as I've ever been since my college swimming days, and motivated. To think about where I was back in June when we first started putting the program together to where I am now is truly amazing. Thanks bud!


So I'm still jazzed about training. In fact, I had visions of doing a Sprint Tri a week later (tomorrow) but thought better of it this morning when the weather rolled in today, plus I still have a slight hot spot in my hamstring that I didn't fully notice until I went out for a run this morning.

I'm doing the White Rock half marry in 6 weeks, so we'll see if I can pop a half PR there. Beyond that, I'm trying to rope Patrick into doing a June 70.3 with me. We're looking at Kansas and Boise. Onward and upward!

Austin 70.3 Quick Summary

I hope to have time to do a full racereport this weekend. I should have some good pics to add to the report at that point, but for now I'll just check in with a quick summary.

So I missed a PR by about 3 minutes, and really wanted to crack the 5:30 mark in this race, and I think I was prepared to do so. However the 5:30 mark came and went and I was still about a half mile from the finish line. I think I realized my goal wasn't going to come to fruition about 45 minutes before the race came to an end for me. It is quite odd to know that you have in this case 40 minutes to achieve your goal, and knowing that under normal circumstances (ie a training run) that covering the ground needed to finish in 40 minutes would be a piece of cake, but not being able to will yourself to achieve it. I tried and based on how torn up my legs felt then and now 2 days later, I know I did all I could at that moment. Unfortunately the damage was already done.

The long and short of it is that I had a good swim, though probably burnt one or two matches trying to fight through a group that went out fast but then slowed and around earlier waves of swimmers. I probably went out a little too hot on the bike, had a mechanical issue at mile 15 that twisted my chain and caused ghost shifting in my rear derailluer on every chain revolution for the remaining 41 miles on the bike. Still managed a good bike split (within 1 min of my PR at Florida) though I burnt too many matches on the bike, and I hit the run more fatigued than I had hoped. The speed and rythm were good on the flats and the downhills, but the uphills that I was running in the first loop of the run were taking a lot out of me and I wasn't recovering in between them. so for the 4th out of 4 70.3s, I did some walking, which is something I really wanted to avoid. I still had a run PR of about 2 mins, but I know I can run better, and hoped it would show.

Still, I think this was one of my better races, and is certainly something to build off of. Look for more next weekend.

2010 Kona Prediction Time

Nothing like waiting until the last minute to get my 2010 predictions in. Here we are on the eve of the big race, and I've finally sat down to one of my favorite annual traditions, getting my thoughts for the how the race will play out down in my blog.

Lots of things to be excited about in this years race. Real chances for course records, a new comer on the women's side who is sure to factor deep into the race and potentially change the game, and a wide open men's field that will prove to be hard to handicap.

So without further ado, here we go, starting with the women.

I think we all have come to appreciate the brilliance that is Chrissie Wellington. We even have come to recognize her genius while in the midst of her era. No one in their right mind will predict a changing of the guard, so we look to other unknowns in the women's race. Frankly, even though the winner is a foregone conclusion (on par with Tyson over Buster Douglas!) there are a couple of things to be excited about. One is what time Chrissie will post. Her time in Germany earlier this year was and still is mind boggling. The question of if she will go sub 8:40 on the big island is one I'm excited to see unfold. Where she'll place overall is also something to watch. Can she crack the top 15 overall? Another thing to watch out for is what Mirinda Carfrae does on the bike. Will she go sub 5 hrs and narrow her gap to Chrissie coming off the bike this year. Finally, I look forward to seeing Julie Dibbens make the jump to IM. She can swim and bike like no other and could have a gap on Chrissie coming off the bike. She is a ~3:20 marathoner so she'll need one to be a factor for the win by the half way point of the marathon.


(Updated 11:07 CT on race morning) In light of the news that Chrissie has withdrawn due to illness, I wanted to quickly give my thoughts. I think this is a good thing for the big swim/bikers who should come off the bike with big leads and no solid runners with them. Dibbens, Van Vlerken, Griesbauer and Macel along with others should come off with a good lead, and it will be up for the Corbins and Carfae's to bring them back.

In light of the news, I like the podium to be 1. Carfrae, 2. Dibbens, 3. Van Vlerken

Podium: 1. Chrissie, 2. Carfrae, 3. Dibbens
Sleeper: Catriona Morrison - She toed the line last year with a hefty case of swine flu and gutted it out, but didn't make it on to the run. She has loads of talent and is a name you always hear or read the big guns talking about as someone to look out for. Another sleeper for me will be Sam McGlone. She finished 2nd to Chrissie in her first win back in '07 and has had a string of bad luck ever since with injuries and the like. She had a great end to '09 with a strong performance at IMAZ but her '10 hasn't quite been what you'd hope, still she could push to crack the top 3.
Sentimental Favorite: It has to be a tie between Hillary Biscay for the personal connection, and Lindsey Corbin for her outstanding blog and approach on life. She is in good form this year with a win a IMCDA and some strong showings on the 70.3 circuit.

And on to the men. What a field! I see 7 guys who I believe have legit shots at wining the thing. You might as well put Alexander, Lieto, Realert, Potts, Hennings, Van Hoenacker, and Llanos in a hat and draw names. It is hard to pick against Alexander as he is so talented, so steady, and is a machine.

What I think does him in this year is the way the race breaks down. Without the speed suits this year, the swim should be more wide open which means the bike will start out more fragmented, and will likely stay that way with groups getting big gaps. If the guys are smart, they don't do any work in the main group and make Crowie put out in an effort to tax him prior to the run. We'll see, it certainly hasn't worked out that way in the past. There have always been an ample number of guys shooting for a top 10 spot in hopes of getting the spot in next years race, and as a result, guys might be playing it conservative from a competitive perspective. With the change to WTC rules and the top 10 no longer qualifying for next year, the dynamic on the bike should change.

One thing is certain however, the men's race is going to be great.


Podium: 1. Raelert 2. Henning 3. Alexander. I think Raelert gets away on the bike just behind the stud group, and runs them down by mile 15. He probably gets pushed by Henning most of the way, but the gap never closes to less the 2 mins, and he only gives up a couple of minutes to Alexander on the run, but has more than enough of a gap coming off the bike to keep Crowie at bay
Sleeper: Pete Jacobs - Pete will be out of the water quick, will bridge up with Potts early, and has the legs to ride with Lieto, the Germans (Twelsiek, Stadler, and Faris) and the other stud bikers if he chooses to. He may let that group go and fall in with the next group that will include Raelert and maybe Macca, but can't muster enough in the marathon to compete for the win. I think he'll be top 10 for sure.
Sentimental Favorite: Got to be Potts (like this blog post, picking Potts is also an annual event). How about if we also throw in Luke Bell to keep it interesting. After a great '03 placing top 5 while in his early 20s, he'd vanished into obscurity a bit. He seems to be back on form this year and could be a factor.

So there you go. Enjoy the fire works tomorrow. Here is hoping for good bandwidth and plenty of servers to bring us good coverage.

Long Time No Post

I was gearing up for my annual Kona prediction post, and realized I hadn't posted to the blog in months and that I'd better do that.

Training has been going great in preparation for Austin 70.3 in a little over 2 weeks time. I've managed to hit almost all of my planned sessions, keep the skinny side of the bike down this year and avoid injury, have lost a ton of weight (now weighing in less than I did the day I graduated from college), and feel fit. I'm excited to race!

Check back here in the coming days for my Kona predictions, thoughts before Austin 70.3, and my race report after the race.