Gulf Coast 1/2 Iron Race Report

This past weekend was my early season ‘A’ race- the Gulf Coast ½ Iron Distance Triathlon.  The stage was set for this race to be significant for me in many ways; from the size of the participant field, the presence of professional racers, and the relatively large financial/time cost of participating in an event four states away.  All of the training completed from December 2010 until now had in some way or another been designed and executed with this event in mind.  Unfortunately I am here to report that it did not go as I hoped it would have.  There were a few small positives that I was able to take from the race effort, but all in all, this was a disappointment. 

The Swim-

We woke up Saturday morning to a very calm Gulf of Mexico.  The almost glass-like ocean conditions were a departure from the the previous couple of days, where the gulf wind had been churning up some longboardable surf.  The water temperature on race morning was comfortable 75F, making this a wetsuit legal swim.  Mine was the first male wave to go off, and I stood at waters edge sizing up the other athletes, trying to position myself on sight alone next to who I guessed to be the faster swimmers in this anonymous crowd.  The gun went off and I attacked the water like it was 100m sprint.  After 4 or 5 dolphin dives and a very hard 50 or so meters, I found myself at the front of the pack, with one athlete just a few feet ahead.  I worked hard to bridge the gap and make contact, knowing that I would be rewarded with a draft to tuck into.  This worked- temporarily.  It didn’t take me long to figure out that this dude was superior swimmer, and for the first 2/3 of this 1.2 mile swim I battled to stay on the guys feet.  It was a repeating pattern of me gradually falling off of the pace he was setting, and surging to pull back into his draft.  Not an ideal swim strategy, but I was pretty satisfied with the end result, as this guy forced me out of my comfort zone, and paced me to a ½ iron swim PR- 29:31.

The Bike-

After a LONG run across the beach, up the boardwalk, through a hotel breezeway, and (finally) through the hotel parking lot, I put together a decent transition.  The first 5 miles of the bike course run parallel to the beach, and were fairly uneventful.  I spent the first few miles waking up the legs with a high cadence, taking in a few calories, and reminding myself not to get too excited in the early miles of the bike.  Coach Williamson has said that he considers me a “second half” racer, so my intention for the first 30 minutes of this 56 mile bike split was to kept the effort level hard yet controlled.  Whether it’s a training ride or a race, I generally don’t feel like I am firing on all cylinders until 30-40 minutes into the ride, so I didn’t put too much stock into the lack of snap my legs were showing early on.  The Gulf Coast  Tri course is flat and fast throughout, and I could see one age group male just a couple of minutes up the road.  Eventually I caught the guy, and we spent the middle hour of the ride repeatedly overtaking one another.  After about 75 minutes on the bike, I was coming to terms with the fact that I was feeling sub par.  My legs felt heavy- despite the fact if anything I was over rested.  Each time I tried to reach a little deeper to separate myself from this other guy, I just wasn’t able.  I was feeling pretty flat, and I was forced to spin an easier gear than was normal.  I kept grinding on, hoping that this malaise was limited to the bike, and I could still put together a great run.  My wave had started the race immediately after the last female wave had gone off, and by the end of the bike I had made it through almost all of the female riders, although the dude I had been battling on the bike gradually pulled away from me over the last 20 minutes.  I cruised in at 2:26:42, disappointed with the performance, but determined to execute a fast T2 and put in some quality early miles on the run course.

The Run-

Out onto the run, I didn’t feel too bad at first.  Buoyed on by cheering spectators and a fresh pair of Brooks ST4 Racers, I felt like a solid run split was in the cards.  The first mile went by conservatively in 6:49, which was the plan.  What wasn’t in the plan however, was my inability to pick up the pace any further.  The lifeless legs that had plagued me on the bike had followed me out onto the run.  This wasn’t a case of a bonk or a lack of fitness- I just had no snap, no kick, or any spring in my legs.  My body only seemed able to sustain an aerobic effort, and I slogged out an anti-climactic run in 1:40.  Running the ½ marathon at 7:38/mile pace was definitely not my plan, and I gave up several spots on the run course.  When the dust settled, I ended up the 25^th overall amateur male, out of 527 dude racers.

Recap-

Although I gave just about all I had to give on Saturday, this was certainly a forgettable race performance for me.  I had much loftier (if only marginally realistic) expectations of a top 5 finish.  My fitness and the workouts I had been turning in during the preceding weeks certainly lead me to believe that a 4:20 finish was within the realm of possibility.  Sometimes, a big part of executing a great race is arriving at the starting line healthy and in one piece.  I came down with a pretty severe cold the Saturday before the race, and this had a huge impact on my taper going into race week.  Tried as I might to will the unwanted sickness away with extra sleep and the power of positive thinking, the lingering effects were apparently still with me on race day.  In fact, the race itself was sufficient physical stress to bring back my body ache and chest congestion in full force the day after the race.  Although I prefer to avoid anti-biotics and treat these things holistically, enough is enough, and tomorrow it is off to the doctor for me. 

I thought long and hard about even mentioning being sick in this race report, because I don’t want it to be viewed as making excuses for a poor performance.  I can’t stand it when I hear people reaching for reasons (read: excuses) as to why they fell short on race day.  I love reading stories about pros who race and win despite an illness, a broken hand, a recent wreck, etc.  That kind of stuff is heroic, and demonstrates a rare ability to block out any and all distractions, and rise to the occasion on race day.  A couple weeks ago at Beaverdam while standing at the finishline, a very fit looking dude I overtook on the run told me more than I wanted to know about his ill fitting orthotics, his GI problems on the course, and the mono he had back in 2009- no shit.  To me, that’s not ever how a winner acts, and I refuse to make excuses about my race this weekend.  Some days are better than others, and I fought hard for that 4:40:42 finish.  I can take comfort in knowing that I never succommed to quitting on the race, and there is always another opportunity on the horizon.  For me, this next opportunity will come June 4^th at the Colesium Rock N’ Rollman ½ Iron Tri in Macon, Georgia. 

Thanks to Brooks Running, Coach Derick at Durata Training, and to Leigh for all the support!