Dec 25, 2007 3:57 PM
Muncie 1/2 RR Late....
Muncie Endurathon ? 7/14/2007
http://www.brightroom.com/view_user_event.asp?EVENTID=23180&PWD=&BIB=555[/URL" target="_blank">
Here are my pictures from bright room ? bib 555 ? My ?in the water pictures? make me look like a retarded dork trying to decide which way was out of the water, LOL, but I thought the rest looked good. Just click on the first picture, then it starts a slide show?pretty neat. Boy, these pictures are extremely pricey, huh?
Swim - 00:52:55
T1 - 00:03:56
Bike - 02:44:03 20.1
T2 - 00:03:56
Run - 02:32:52 11:40 (lost timing chip, read below)
Finish - 6:17:44 - Real time about 5:32
Here are the official results, but my real time was around 5:32 on my watch at the finish. Let me explain: When I crossed the finish line, the official went to take my timing chip off, and it wasn?t there?.the strap was, but the chip was gone. When I first put the chip and strap on, I noticed the Velcro was not adhering like it should, but I thought it would be OK. It came off once at the beginning of the run, and I hustled to but it back together, but the chip must of fell off in my hurry to get going. A woman runner picked up my chip from the course and when she crossed the finish line, my chip crossed too with her. So my official time was about 45 minutes longer than my real time. Oh well, I really didn?t care because I love to compete, but it?s for fun too. Everything above is accurate, except for my run time and pace and such. So my overall and age group rank are not correct, but no biggie. Best I can figure my run time was about 1:48, which 2 hours was my goal for this hilly course?ok, got that out of the way.
I did this same race last year and it was my first half IM, and it was brutally hot and humid, and had a lot of anxiety before hand. Last year on the run I had to walk up a lot of the hills which made for a slow run, but my swim and bike were fine. This year I concentrated on running more and did a lot of bricks which gave me more confidence for this race.
The swim: I have to admit I hate lap swimming, and I have a huge problem with chlorine. I am sick for days after indoor swimming, so I only swam once a week, with one long open water swim in the reservoir the Saturday before the race (3000 yards). I live in Muncie, so it was nice to swim in the reservoir to get use to race day conditions. Speaking of conditions, I was hoping the weather would be more comfortable than last year. The forecast looked great as I paid attention all week with my fingers crossed. Sure enough, it was real nice except it was pretty windy out. Before the swim started, the water looker super choppy, but I wasn?t too concerned. I was in the 9th wave, so I actually didn?t start the race till almost 8:00?.the official start time was 7:00. I really didn?t mind because it gave me more time to prepare and talk with others, plus I didn?t have to get to the race as early?.slept in a little longer.
The gun, horn or what ever went off and I started the swim leg. You know what- and this was a first- I don?t think I ran into or even touched another swimmer the whole time. So this allowed me to find a nice easy stroke right off the bat, and I felt great. Going to the first buoy was un-eventful, then I made the turn to the next one. Problem with this swim is, the buoys are soooo far a part; you can?t sight them so you just try and follow others. After making the 2nd buoy turn I couldn?t see the next buoy, I again followed others. At one point a person on a boat came up to me and said I missed the 3rd buoy and that I would have to swim back to it and go around it. I was relaxed and feeling good, so I didn?t mind so much, but I think the swim course needs to have stringers or something to guild the swimmers better. I finally made it past the last buoy and headed to the finish?.which is a HUGH problem swimming into the early morning sun that is right into the eyes. Again I just had to follow others till I got to the shoreline. Came out of the water laboring and breathing hard, but felt good, but had the rubber legs running to T1. Figured I lost maybe 10 minutes or so missing the buoy, and swimming off course a little a few other times?.plus, I am slow swimmer in general.
T1: Pretty long run on carpet to the transition area, where I put on my HR monitor and my HR was high at 172 bpm. So I decided to take a little extra time to let my HR lower a bit before I jumped on my bike. One snag (literally): I decided to go with my two piece so I could run without a shirt, so when I tried to put my tri top on my wet body it got stuck, and I couldn?t reach around and pull it down. Finally after a few tries taking in on and off, I got it on (thanks to my ?non-Tri? cycling buddies laughing at me, lol?.it was a funny sight I?m sure) Put my goodies in my rear pockets, took 2 E caps and water (when I refer to E caps, it?s just a generic term for electrolyte pills, not a brand) and off on my bike I went.
Bike: As soon as I took off South, I noticed the wind had picked up a lot. I then turn right down a paved trail which is through a fairly wooded area (old railroads tracks, turned into a recreational trail) I felt good and fast so I rode the 8 miles down the trial and got my average mph to 23.5, and figured I could just relax and try to stay in the lower 20?s the rest of the way. Well, once I turned off the trail onto a highway (HW 35) heading South, I then felt how the wind was going to affect my bike leg. To make this short or shorter, I pushed and mashed and spun about as hard as I could into the wind to try and keep my average speed up. It was gradually falling, but still acceptable for the conditions. Once at the end of this highway, I turned right onto HW 36 right INTO the STRONG headwind. There were rolling hills on this section, along with the wind, and I could only keep my pace at 16 or 17 mph. The stretch was about 6 miles or so till we turned around and headed back the same route. Once turning I had the wind to my back, and easily was peddling 28 to 30 mph which finally felt great and allowed for a short recovery. Then turned left back on HW 35 and was looking forward to a slight tail wind and cross winds. I don?t know about others here that did this race, but coming back was just as hard and windy as heading out. Also my back was absolutely killing me pushing so hard in my aero bars. I have had back problems for a long time, and being in my aero bars or drops really hurts. That?s why I don?t train much in my aero bars, and why my back hurt so much this day. I have had steroid injections in the past that helps, but I don?t like to have that done all the time. Uneventful the rest of the ride and made it back to the transition area, T2. I actually was looking forward to the run, to relieve the pain in my back. I never have back pain running, which is kind of odd I guess.
T2: Ran my bike to my space on the rack, a got ready to run. Nothing out of the ordinary here, and I took 2 more E caps and drank some water and off I went. My back immediately felt better, which was a huge relief. I slowed down on my bike about a mile from T2 to try and get my HR into a lower zone, and it did before the run. Last year my HR was 175 when I started the run, which made for a hard few miles till it came down. It was 156 when I started at this time.
Run: I was looking forward to the run, and I had prepared well with many ride run bricks. My longest was 3 weeks before this race and was a hard 40 mile ride, followed by a fairly easy 10 mile run on this same hilly course. The one thing I heard the most about this course from other runners was ?I thought this was supposed to be a flat course? I just had to smile and say ?I know?. My first and number one goal for this run was NOT to stop, even at the water stops?.almost made it.
I guess it took me longer than usual to find my running legs, but there are some decent sized hills from the start. At about the 3 mile mark I was feeling better and better and I was happy. It always seems like a step of faith knowing your legs will be there after the bike, huh? This is the first year I started using E caps, and I could tell a HUGE difference in my hydration and not being bloated, and not having that sloshing feeling in my belly. I took one E cap about every 20 or 30 minutes, and the cold water never satisfied me more than this day?.I found since using these, I don?t need a sports drink anymore. And took a gel at mile 4 and mile 8, which I can?t really stand that sweet **** later in a race, but it?s necessary.
I made it to the half way turn around point, which I guess makes us all feel better mentally that we?re on the way back. At about mile 7 I noticed my right toe was burning and it felt like a blister forming. I never have had problems with blisters before, so this was new to me?.I think it was from running down all the hills. I think it was at mile 8 where the staff served coke and ice, and boy?that tasted great! I kept asking at the other water stops if they had coke, but it was just at that one station I guess. At about this time a lady runner passed me and she was running barefoot?that was an interesting sight to say the least. They had an article in our Newspaper the day after the race, and she said she went to barefoot running because of constant injuries. Remarkably, she said she has been injury since the change.
The further I kept running, the more my foot (blister) was hurting. I felt like there was liquid in my shoe but just thought it was sweat. It?s funny how pain is not that big of a deal during a race. I made it to the 11 mile mark, and knew that?s where the real fun starts?.lots of hills with one long steady climb of about half mile or so, and a bunch of rollers to the finish line. At this time I had hooked up with a few other runners, and we where chit chatting as much as we could and it did help time pass more quickly. Then there it was?..1 mile to go. I don?t think 1 mile has ever been sooo far in my life, so I ran as hard as I could to the finish line, which finishes going up a fairly steep hill?.Cruelty, LOL. Once across the finish line I felt spent, but nothing like last year when I was very sick and the doctors were a little concerned about me. After a few minutes I felt great and went and sat in the misting tent?boy that felt wonderful. I then proceeded to take my right shoe off and I actually dumped blood out of it, which freaked people out that was watching me. On dude said ?it looks like you rubbed half you toe off? Actually, the outside of my toe was squared off, instead of being round, ouch. I thought my running days would be over for a while, but I took care of my injury and I ran again the following Tues.
All in all, it was a very fun day, and I beat my time of last year by about 30 minutes. You know what?s funny ? I hate swimming in a pool, but the swim portion of a Tri is my most enjoyable part? I know, weird.
Thanks for all the great people here, and the great suggestion and advice.
Boy, I just noticed...my transition time are consistant, LOL.
By the way?Tri Ladies Rock?keeps us men pushing through!
Not too bad for a 48 year old dude that weighed 250 pounds 7 years ago, and couldn't walk up steps without being out of breath!
Tim
http://This message has been edited by biketm (edited Jul-23-2007).
http://www.brightroom.com/view_user_event.asp?EVENTID=23180&PWD=&BIB=555[/URL" target="_blank">
Here are my pictures from bright room ? bib 555 ? My ?in the water pictures? make me look like a retarded dork trying to decide which way was out of the water, LOL, but I thought the rest looked good. Just click on the first picture, then it starts a slide show?pretty neat. Boy, these pictures are extremely pricey, huh?
Swim - 00:52:55
T1 - 00:03:56
Bike - 02:44:03 20.1
T2 - 00:03:56
Run - 02:32:52 11:40 (lost timing chip, read below)
Finish - 6:17:44 - Real time about 5:32
Here are the official results, but my real time was around 5:32 on my watch at the finish. Let me explain: When I crossed the finish line, the official went to take my timing chip off, and it wasn?t there?.the strap was, but the chip was gone. When I first put the chip and strap on, I noticed the Velcro was not adhering like it should, but I thought it would be OK. It came off once at the beginning of the run, and I hustled to but it back together, but the chip must of fell off in my hurry to get going. A woman runner picked up my chip from the course and when she crossed the finish line, my chip crossed too with her. So my official time was about 45 minutes longer than my real time. Oh well, I really didn?t care because I love to compete, but it?s for fun too. Everything above is accurate, except for my run time and pace and such. So my overall and age group rank are not correct, but no biggie. Best I can figure my run time was about 1:48, which 2 hours was my goal for this hilly course?ok, got that out of the way.
I did this same race last year and it was my first half IM, and it was brutally hot and humid, and had a lot of anxiety before hand. Last year on the run I had to walk up a lot of the hills which made for a slow run, but my swim and bike were fine. This year I concentrated on running more and did a lot of bricks which gave me more confidence for this race.
The swim: I have to admit I hate lap swimming, and I have a huge problem with chlorine. I am sick for days after indoor swimming, so I only swam once a week, with one long open water swim in the reservoir the Saturday before the race (3000 yards). I live in Muncie, so it was nice to swim in the reservoir to get use to race day conditions. Speaking of conditions, I was hoping the weather would be more comfortable than last year. The forecast looked great as I paid attention all week with my fingers crossed. Sure enough, it was real nice except it was pretty windy out. Before the swim started, the water looker super choppy, but I wasn?t too concerned. I was in the 9th wave, so I actually didn?t start the race till almost 8:00?.the official start time was 7:00. I really didn?t mind because it gave me more time to prepare and talk with others, plus I didn?t have to get to the race as early?.slept in a little longer.
The gun, horn or what ever went off and I started the swim leg. You know what- and this was a first- I don?t think I ran into or even touched another swimmer the whole time. So this allowed me to find a nice easy stroke right off the bat, and I felt great. Going to the first buoy was un-eventful, then I made the turn to the next one. Problem with this swim is, the buoys are soooo far a part; you can?t sight them so you just try and follow others. After making the 2nd buoy turn I couldn?t see the next buoy, I again followed others. At one point a person on a boat came up to me and said I missed the 3rd buoy and that I would have to swim back to it and go around it. I was relaxed and feeling good, so I didn?t mind so much, but I think the swim course needs to have stringers or something to guild the swimmers better. I finally made it past the last buoy and headed to the finish?.which is a HUGH problem swimming into the early morning sun that is right into the eyes. Again I just had to follow others till I got to the shoreline. Came out of the water laboring and breathing hard, but felt good, but had the rubber legs running to T1. Figured I lost maybe 10 minutes or so missing the buoy, and swimming off course a little a few other times?.plus, I am slow swimmer in general.
T1: Pretty long run on carpet to the transition area, where I put on my HR monitor and my HR was high at 172 bpm. So I decided to take a little extra time to let my HR lower a bit before I jumped on my bike. One snag (literally): I decided to go with my two piece so I could run without a shirt, so when I tried to put my tri top on my wet body it got stuck, and I couldn?t reach around and pull it down. Finally after a few tries taking in on and off, I got it on (thanks to my ?non-Tri? cycling buddies laughing at me, lol?.it was a funny sight I?m sure) Put my goodies in my rear pockets, took 2 E caps and water (when I refer to E caps, it?s just a generic term for electrolyte pills, not a brand) and off on my bike I went.
Bike: As soon as I took off South, I noticed the wind had picked up a lot. I then turn right down a paved trail which is through a fairly wooded area (old railroads tracks, turned into a recreational trail) I felt good and fast so I rode the 8 miles down the trial and got my average mph to 23.5, and figured I could just relax and try to stay in the lower 20?s the rest of the way. Well, once I turned off the trail onto a highway (HW 35) heading South, I then felt how the wind was going to affect my bike leg. To make this short or shorter, I pushed and mashed and spun about as hard as I could into the wind to try and keep my average speed up. It was gradually falling, but still acceptable for the conditions. Once at the end of this highway, I turned right onto HW 36 right INTO the STRONG headwind. There were rolling hills on this section, along with the wind, and I could only keep my pace at 16 or 17 mph. The stretch was about 6 miles or so till we turned around and headed back the same route. Once turning I had the wind to my back, and easily was peddling 28 to 30 mph which finally felt great and allowed for a short recovery. Then turned left back on HW 35 and was looking forward to a slight tail wind and cross winds. I don?t know about others here that did this race, but coming back was just as hard and windy as heading out. Also my back was absolutely killing me pushing so hard in my aero bars. I have had back problems for a long time, and being in my aero bars or drops really hurts. That?s why I don?t train much in my aero bars, and why my back hurt so much this day. I have had steroid injections in the past that helps, but I don?t like to have that done all the time. Uneventful the rest of the ride and made it back to the transition area, T2. I actually was looking forward to the run, to relieve the pain in my back. I never have back pain running, which is kind of odd I guess.
T2: Ran my bike to my space on the rack, a got ready to run. Nothing out of the ordinary here, and I took 2 more E caps and drank some water and off I went. My back immediately felt better, which was a huge relief. I slowed down on my bike about a mile from T2 to try and get my HR into a lower zone, and it did before the run. Last year my HR was 175 when I started the run, which made for a hard few miles till it came down. It was 156 when I started at this time.
Run: I was looking forward to the run, and I had prepared well with many ride run bricks. My longest was 3 weeks before this race and was a hard 40 mile ride, followed by a fairly easy 10 mile run on this same hilly course. The one thing I heard the most about this course from other runners was ?I thought this was supposed to be a flat course? I just had to smile and say ?I know?. My first and number one goal for this run was NOT to stop, even at the water stops?.almost made it.
I guess it took me longer than usual to find my running legs, but there are some decent sized hills from the start. At about the 3 mile mark I was feeling better and better and I was happy. It always seems like a step of faith knowing your legs will be there after the bike, huh? This is the first year I started using E caps, and I could tell a HUGE difference in my hydration and not being bloated, and not having that sloshing feeling in my belly. I took one E cap about every 20 or 30 minutes, and the cold water never satisfied me more than this day?.I found since using these, I don?t need a sports drink anymore. And took a gel at mile 4 and mile 8, which I can?t really stand that sweet **** later in a race, but it?s necessary.
I made it to the half way turn around point, which I guess makes us all feel better mentally that we?re on the way back. At about mile 7 I noticed my right toe was burning and it felt like a blister forming. I never have had problems with blisters before, so this was new to me?.I think it was from running down all the hills. I think it was at mile 8 where the staff served coke and ice, and boy?that tasted great! I kept asking at the other water stops if they had coke, but it was just at that one station I guess. At about this time a lady runner passed me and she was running barefoot?that was an interesting sight to say the least. They had an article in our Newspaper the day after the race, and she said she went to barefoot running because of constant injuries. Remarkably, she said she has been injury since the change.
The further I kept running, the more my foot (blister) was hurting. I felt like there was liquid in my shoe but just thought it was sweat. It?s funny how pain is not that big of a deal during a race. I made it to the 11 mile mark, and knew that?s where the real fun starts?.lots of hills with one long steady climb of about half mile or so, and a bunch of rollers to the finish line. At this time I had hooked up with a few other runners, and we where chit chatting as much as we could and it did help time pass more quickly. Then there it was?..1 mile to go. I don?t think 1 mile has ever been sooo far in my life, so I ran as hard as I could to the finish line, which finishes going up a fairly steep hill?.Cruelty, LOL. Once across the finish line I felt spent, but nothing like last year when I was very sick and the doctors were a little concerned about me. After a few minutes I felt great and went and sat in the misting tent?boy that felt wonderful. I then proceeded to take my right shoe off and I actually dumped blood out of it, which freaked people out that was watching me. On dude said ?it looks like you rubbed half you toe off? Actually, the outside of my toe was squared off, instead of being round, ouch. I thought my running days would be over for a while, but I took care of my injury and I ran again the following Tues.
All in all, it was a very fun day, and I beat my time of last year by about 30 minutes. You know what?s funny ? I hate swimming in a pool, but the swim portion of a Tri is my most enjoyable part? I know, weird.
Thanks for all the great people here, and the great suggestion and advice.
Boy, I just noticed...my transition time are consistant, LOL.
By the way?Tri Ladies Rock?keeps us men pushing through!
Not too bad for a 48 year old dude that weighed 250 pounds 7 years ago, and couldn't walk up steps without being out of breath!
Tim
http://This message has been edited by biketm (edited Jul-23-2007).
