Race Report -Ironman St. Goerge 70.3
I have been working hard doing my best to balance my life and my training. This is my first triathlon since the Kona in 2019 and like everyone during covid, it has been hard to keep consistent training going as races were getting cancelled throughout 2020.
My big hairy audacous goal race is in a few weeks (May 23, 2021) at Ironman Tulsa - A full distance Ironman. Though the timing wasn't great to do this race so close to my big goal, with deferments from races cancelled last year and my 2021 schedule, this worked.
I am glad I did it. As usual I learned a lot!
This course was scenic, hilly and challenging. I will definitely keep it on my list to do again. The city of St. George, UT was welcoming to all of us!
Swim: (1.2 miles , 44:38)
New Covid protocols call for all of us to line up into the pre-race corral long before the race starting time - which makes it difficult to warm up. All the racers lined up according to their expected swim time. Since there have been no opportunities to practice open water swimming, I purposely dropped down to a slower pace group as I didn't want to push too hard at the beginning. The water temp was a chilly 59 degrees.
I summoned a good mindset. I visualized my swim start. I was focused and ready.
I jumped up an down several times to get my heart rate up before it was my turn to start. I walked down the boat ramp. They sent us off every 5 seconds in groups of 3. I jumped in, I started the swim relaxed and in good form.
Despite my best effort to stay in my zone, my heart rate spiked really high and I quickly became out of breath. I had difficulty getting it back down, so I treaded water for a 30 sec and started to swim again. Same thing happened, so I dog-paddled over to a kayak that was there for saftey purposes. I hung on for a minute or so, talked to the volunteer boat captain. We chatted about the meaning of life, favorite movies, etc., before returning back to the race. Again, the same thing happened - I could not catch my breath. I had to hold on to boats 4 times during the first 1/3 mile. This hasn't happened to me since my early racing days in the 1990's.
There were several people suffering the same fate. Though I stayed calm during my challenges, I saw looks of panic in the eyes of several people as we hung on to boats together. I tried to calm some down, and invited them to swim with me to the next boat. But no one was ready and I pushed on. Only my mental training and race experience got me through.
Racing Ironman is a long day. I know that things get bad, then they get good again, then they get bad, then they get good again. All I needed to do was to keep moving forward. After about 1/3 mile, I was able to settle into a good groove and cruised though the reaminder of the swim course. I finished the swim in 44:38. Despite all my issues, it was only about 6 minutes off my expected time.
I entered the transition area to find my bike parked alone on the rack. This meant that everyone in my section was already through the swim and on the road. I had a lot of time to make up. On the plus side, my bike was really easy to find!
Bike: (56 miles, 3,162' of climbing, 3:05:01)
The bike course was really hilly which played to my strengths. I was able to keep my heart rate in a good zone on the climbs and the flats. I agressively rode the down hills while stretching my comfort zone. According to my bike computer I averaged 18+ mph with my maximum speed of over 46 mph. The exhilaration of going that fast is quite a rush. It forced me to stay completely in the moment as one mistake could have resulted in a devastating crash.
The final climb up starts at Mile 42. It is a 5 mile, 1,000'+ climb up the steep road that travels through the majestic Snow Canyon State Park. It was the climb that came up in conversation with everyone I spoke to who was doing the race. My pace slowed to just under 9 mph up the long climb. Slowing down afforded me the opportunity to talk to several racers around me. Suffering is always better with company. Lots of jokes and casual conversations were had.
I had my name on the back of my jersey, so I got a lot of "Go Brett's!" as I passed people and as they passed me. Every time someone yelled my name, I laughed.
I also had "sober" on the back of my jersey. There were a few other sober triathletes that acknowledged our common bond. I never forget that without my sobriety, I wouldn't be afforded the opportunity to race, or do much else for that matter. I had a grateful smile on my face most of the day enjoying every moment I get to experience adventures such as this.
As I reached the crest of the pass, I noticed that my bike time was looking pretty decent. The last nine miles were mostly downhill and I decided to push my comfort zone once again. I averaged over 27mph over the last 9 miles. As we came into town, the density of spectators grew as did the energy.
I pulled into T2 and used the bathroom. I racked up my bike. The racks had several other bikes on them, but I could tell I made up a lot of time on the bike portion. I switched over from bike to run gear, I fueled up and headed out.
Run (13.1 miles, 1,267' of climbing)
The run course was also hilly with several long climbs and long decents. It took me a few miles to get my running gait to feel comfortable. the first 4 miles involves a steady climb. I thought it was a cruel start to this section. But every race has something that sucks...this sucked.
I treated it like a typical trail run. I have run 1000's of miles on trails with similar steepness. This was no big deal, plus it was all on paved surfaces. I power walked the uphills, ran the flats and the downhills. I maintained around a 10:30 pace and walked through the aid stations. Looking at my run splits, I was really consistent which is good for me.
Years of snowshoe racing taught me how to efficiently power walk up the uphills and I passed/kept pace with several people who were slow running. Again experience saved the day for me.
The first 3 miles always suck. I play a lot of mind games to get/keep going. "Run to that sign, run to the next aid station, pass that guy who keeps passing me" etc. It is just a way to keep my brain from focusing on how tired I am. I have a hard time running 13.1 miles after a 1.2 mile swim and a 56 mile bike ride. But I can run 1 mile 13 times easily.
The weather was forcasted to be in the mid 90's. There was cloud cover most of the day which kept the temps in the 80's. I notice the heat most on the run. I carry a water bottle with me on the run so I can sip my way through the distances between aid stations. Also, I can pour water over my body to cool it down as the heat of the day wears on. I refill the bottle at every aid station.
My stomach doesn't like to accept nutrition while running. It is always a forced effort to fuel. The sustained effort combined with heat makes my GI track a wild card. I am happy to say that I had no GI troubles this race at all. I took a gel at the beginning of the run, at mile 5 and mile 9. All while using water, gatorade, and salt at every aid station.
As I crested over the final climb, I knew I had about 2.5 miles of downhill to the finish. I picked up my pace for a strong showing at the end. I felt my right calf cramping just a little, so I stopped to massage it while increasing my fluid and salt intake.
I started feeling the energy of the finish starting to build. As always, I teared up in gratitude as I flew through the final 1.5 miles. I love to high five the crowd. I love being sprayed by the kids with squirt guns whose sole job in life is to water dawn as many people as possible during the run. I try to thank every volunteer thoughout the day and bring a sense of encouragement to my fellow racers suffering with me.
I made the final turn towards the final turn to the finish. I saw my coach Charley Perez and his wife Patty just before the finish as they cheered me on. I stepped on the infamous read carpet as Ironman legend Greg Welch called out my name bringing me across the finish line. I let out a scream of accomplishment.
Total Time 6:40:09.
I didn't finish in my goal time of 6:30, but I am extremely happy with this accomplishment.
I have some things to work on the next few weeks as I prepare for IM Tulsa. Thank you to my Coach Charley Perez (CP Coaching) for preparing me to go to battle. Thanks to Patty for making all our arrangements. Thanks to my other roommates Todd Lytle and Bob Spicer - It was great to share the course with you as well as the condo. Congrats to all the finishers from the Rocky Mountain Tri Club - the best group to train with (We train at a mile high). And congratulations to all who toed the line on Saturday.
#theadventurecontinues #anythingispossible #Sober #ADAtrustee #UltrAspire #InspiredbyAthletes #InknburnAmbassador
After the conclusion of the race, I was crushed to hear that a fellow racer didn't make it out of the water, and was pronounced dead that evening. Details are still pending.
