Epic Race

Imagine running miles upon miles in a torrential downpour after swimming 1.2 miles and cycling 56 miles through the long climbs of the Ozark Mountains. Yeah, I hadn't imagined it either, but that's what those of us who did the Branson 70.3 Ironman encountered.

All the details are below, but suffice it to say, this was the most challenging single athletic event I've ever accomplished. Had the weather been great, it still would've been extremely challenging but the heavy rain added another dimension. In a word it was brutal. The bike is so hard the run is almost an afterthought, but the rain main the run extra-difficult. It was a feat I was not only happy to finish, but happy to improve my time from my first 70.3.

The long-winded details are below. Hope you enjoy my journey.

Pre-race routine:

The day before race day started like any other Saturday in the fall. I left at 7am to go setup our tailgate for the Razorback game, this week against the Troy Trojans. The difference this time is that I wouldn't be attending the game - my first missed home game since sometime in the mid-90s. I still had a job to do, though, and was happy to do it. The problem - rain, and lots of it. In the early hours it was intermittent but heavy at times. A sign of things to come.

I finally got on my way for the short 2-hour trip to Branson. It had cleared up a bit until I got about 20 miles out from the Chateau for check-in. The heavens opened and the rain would not stop for hours. It was so bad I couldn't see the road, though I knew it was there, because I had been on it many times before. Well, "knew" is a strong word. As hard as it was raining the road could've been washed out.

Finally made it and got checked-in. Found some killer deals in the expo. Went to check-in the bike, in the rain. I had a mild panic worrying about the stupid bike sticker, because it wouldn't stick to the bike with all the moisture. I brought extra tape for this but it wasn't working very well either. I finally got it good enough and made my way to the hotel - about 10 miles away. The run transition and finish line was right near my hotel. Great move staying there versus close to the start.

Took a while to get prepped for the race. The race called for warm, dry, cool and wet, which meant taking a lot more stuff than usual. Finally got all my bags ready for anything and everything. Met my tri club for dinner. Had salad, bread, grilled chicken and fries. Pretty safe meal.

Watched some football and fell asleep. Woke up at 3:50. Took a shower. Had a couple cups of coffee. Ate a Snickers bar. Yes, a Snickers bar. I forgot to bring something good, so I got one of these at the hotel. It did sit well on my stomach and gave me some carbs, fat and protein. Not a first choice but it worked for me.

Headed to T2 to drop my run stuff and then got on a bus and headed to the start. Funny sidebar. The buses were "ducks" that are used for tourists. These buses are amphibious and can go in water, which was fairly fitting given the weather.

15-minute ride to the start and then played the waiting game. Saw some friends. Visited the potty a few times and it was finally game time!

Event warmup:

Not much. Did some stretching. Was able to get in the water to dunk my wetsuit. The water was said to be 70 degrees but it didn't feel that cool.

Swim

Comments:

I'm still a slow swimmer but I couldn't have imagined a better start to my day. I got very near the back and to the outside. I didn't want to get too much into the mix. A lot of other people felt this way, too, so there were a lot of people to the back and the outside. So much for planning.

A little tussling at the beginning but soon I got far to the outside and settled into a rhythm. I had no idea if I was doing well or not. I did pass a few people, which was new for me. I didn't get passed by anyone from the group behind us until almost the final turn, which was also new for me. The water was fairly smooth but there was a little chop on the last stretch, which was 900+ yards.

I was definitely not swimming straight. My Garmin showed I went over 300 yards too long. No big deal in the end, but I will have to get comfortable with swimming inside at some point.

I had no idea how well or bad I was doing. I got out of the water and saw a couple of my good friends cheering us all on. That was very nice. Made the long run to my bike. It was a good 1/10th of a mile to my bike. The good thing about that was that my bike was very close to the bike exit.

Had very little trouble getting out of my wetsuit and into my bike gear. I was prepared with socks, arm warmers and a rain jacked if needed. It wasn't raining and wasn't too cold (around 55 degrees), so I skipped all that stuff. Had a really good transition for me. Less than four minutes total and I was out. I planned for 5 minutes, so I was very happy.

What would you do differently?:

Just keep working on swimming. I got coaching this summer and dropped 18 minutes from my first half Ironman. I just want to get down to a 35 minute swim for a half.

T1

Comments:

Very little trouble at all. Was prepared for cold and wet temps. Skipped all that stuff and went no-socks, no jacket. Considering the long run to my bike, getting out of the wetsuit and getting the clothes bag filled for transport, I was extremely happy with sub-4 minutes.

What would you do differently?:

Nothing.

Bike

Comments:

What all can I say? This is a tough, tough course. 4500+ feet of climbing over 56 miles. Nothing very steep, but fairly long climbs with little break from one to the next. My strongest discipline is the bike and I do fairly well on climbing. It has helped me finish well in several races. That being said, this was an abnormally hard ride.

I had a good start climbing out to the top of the main section. So, you climb to get to a point to do a lot of climbing. Yeah, makes sense. For a sadist.

The roads were a bit wet from the rain. It was just to a point where I was a little scared to go hard down hills and around curves. I kept on as hard as I could go, passing people along the way. The only good thing about being a slow swimmer is that you pass a BUNCH of people on the bike.

I was carrying some good speed on the first lap of the hilly loops. Got up to 19.5 mph average at one point. Then the long climbs hit. Settled down in the 18-19 range the rest of the race. Two types of carnage started to be prevalent. Hills and flat tires. Never seen this many flats in a race. People were everywhere. I guess the rain washed up a bunch of crap and it got people left and right. I just kept praying not to get one.

I got to my second loop and the sun came out. Yes, the SUN. Holy crap! I literally smiled. I thought the day would be perfect. I just kept going and going as hard as I could without getting into difficulty. I took liquid every 15 minutes and gels every 30. Everything seemed to be going well.

One funny thing, though. My speed averages would get to 18.8 and then after a climb would go to 18.2. It happened almost every long climb. It was almost comical. It's really the small things that keep you going when you're hurting.

The last 9 miles were finally off the loop and down to T2. It was mostly downhill with a couple of small climbs and a couple miles on a trail system. The trail system probably cost me a bit of time but nothing bad as it was nice to throttle down before the run.

What would you do differently?:

Nothing.

T2

Comments:

Not much to say (shocking, I know). Got in, bike stuff off, running stuff on, stretch a bit and gone. Quick and easy.

What would you do differently?:

Nothing

Run

Comments:

I felt really good starting the run. My first half Ironman (Kansas 2011) I got about a quarter mile down the run and my quads cramped so bad I had to stop and get the cramps gone. Well, this time I made it a mile longer.

Got a bit over a mile in and my right groin started twitching. Dammit! I thought I had done so well and this was not a good sign. I finally seized up and had to stop. I stretched, squatted and slapped my groin until the cramp subsided. Started a slow walk and then was finally able to run again.

About mile 3 I started feeling okay. I got settled into a pace that was just shy of causing cramps on my quads and hamstrings. This was just over 8 minutes per mile, which was more than enough to hit my goal of under 2 hours.

About the time I finished my first loop there was lightning and thunder - big thunder - off in the distance. I just begged for it to hold off. I hadn't ridden than damn bike course to not finish this race. I saw several friends as I went through the end of the first loop. What a great boost to see people you know cheering for you.

Fast forward a couple of miles. Mile 5 the rain started and it didn't start lightly. it became a downpour within seconds. Well, crap. Yeah, it sucked but I had to keep going. What's a little rain? Well, a little rain got harder and harder. Before long it was raining so hard you could barely see. By mile 8 there was standing water everywhere and little rivers where the water was flowing down the roads toward the lake just east of the Landing.

At this point I just started laughing. What else could you do. It was raining so hard you couldn't see. You couldn't run anywhere without stepping through 6-8 inches of water. Oh, yeah, it was thundering and lightning.

I was still on the edge of cramping but kept at a pace where I never had to stop again, although I did walk through most aid stations. At one point I needed something solid. I was sick of gels and sports drink. Was able to get a PowerBar and it was like a prime rib. Goodness, it hit the spot. Toward the end I started to take coke and mountain dew. Very good for a quick energy boost.

I hit mile 11 and was feeling pretty good. Much better than Kansas where I had stomach cramps. I hit the gas a bit and went a little harder to the finish. I had a goal of 5:45, which I felt would easily have been 5:30 at a "normal" course. After the bike I really didn't think I had a chance but when I crossed the finish line I saw the time and calculate back given my start time and thought I had a small chance.

A short while later I found out I finished in 5:43 and I just about jumped out of my shivering cold skin. That was a 15-minute improvement over Kansas and this was definitely a much harder course. I trained hard and it worked well. I just wanted to get under 2 hours and hit 1:53. Very, very happy.

What would you do differently?:

I'm not sure what to do to help with the cramping just after transition. I have to work on this. If I hydrated any further I would get sick. I think it's just a matter of going beyond my fitness. So, MORE TRAINING.

Post race

Warm down:

Got some quick replenishment and talked to some friends. I was so cold I couldn't stand it. I quickly made my way back to transition to get my bike and gear and go to the hotel to get a hot shower. I was literally shivering and was miserable.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Still need to work on my swim and plan to do so. My run off bike needs more work.

Event comments:

What can I say. This is one of, if not the most brutal 70.3 races in the world. The weather stunk but the volunteers hung in through a torrential downpour. They were OUTSTANDING! Other than the weather, I have zero complaints. A great race.

I have to add that I saw some disturbing things I wish I wouldn't have seen. Yes, the mankini. I encountered the first mankini on the bike when a younger, fairly fit but too-plump-to-be-wearing-a-mankini guy passed me. Then I saw at least two more on the run. It was very disturbing and I hope a trend that dies a quick death.

Warmup for Branson

A week before my "A" race I had the opportunity to do one final "sprint" race as practice. There was a Razorback game in Little Rock on Saturday and the race was in Conway on Sunday. Perfect! I could go to the game, race on Sunday morning and be back to the hotel in time to have breakfast with my wife before heading home. It's like it was meant to meant to be. So, it was.

I had a good race. I didn't go all out but still went hard. Had my best swim in any race. Had a very good bike but never felt 100%. Very solid run with no complaints. I knew I was in decent shape for the finish but didn't really know where I stood. Ended up I was the second best in the 40-44 age group and the 1st best guy won the overall "masters" award, so I got the first place for the age group. Pretty nice! Great practice race and some hardware to top it off.

Definitely worth the effort and I will do it again if the opportunity exists again. Details below.

Pre-race routine:

This event timing worked out well, because there was a Razorback football game the day before. We drove down and arrived in Little Rock just after lunch Saturday. Tailgated for a few hours, went to the game (52-3 win over New Mexico) and then made our way back to the hotel in Conway. Finally got in bed a little after 11pm.

Woke up at 5. Quick dress. Cup of coffee and then drove the short distance to the course. I arrive early at the course so I wanted to drive the bike course, since I had not seen it. Relatively flat bike course with just a few moderate climbs. Got a few miles into the course and a deer is right in the middle of the road. Scared the shit out of me. It would figure that I would hit a deer, wreck, etc., 3 hours before the race. Luckly, Bambi scooted across the road and we were all okay.

Worked my way back to the start and got parked. Plenty of parking. Lots of volunteers at 6am directing the way. Good start.

I was pretty early, so I took my time getting ready. It's funny. Even for an event lasting less than an hour and half, there is a lot of prep that goes into it. There is not a ton of difference between a sprint triathlon and a half Ironman. A full Ironman does take it to another level, however.

Made my way to the check-in (I couldn't do early check-in the day before). No line at all. Sweet lady helped me. Took about a minute. All good.

Then, wave 1 hit. Gotta find a porta potty quick. You ever try taking a crap in the dark? It's not fun. Thank God for the iPhone Flashlight app. More later.

Back to the truck to get my bike and move into transition to setup for the day.

Still a lot of time before the race. Got my race number attached to my race belt. Bike bottles filled with fuel (Gatorade). Tires pumped up. Spare tube and toolkit attached to bike. Lubed body for chafing resistance. This is IMPORTANT. Ready to go.

Make my way to transition. 30 or so bikes already here. Over 200 will be soon. This is a difficult decision. One think I like about bigger races is that the transitions are numbered, so whatever your race number is, is where your transition is. This, however, is an open transition so you can pick your spot. Stupid, I know, but it all matters. Do I want to be close to the swim exit or the run exit or the bike entrance? Too much stress!

I find a decent spot and start to setup and immediately see some familiar faces from NW Arkansas. It was an immediate stress relief. It's always good at these events to be able to talk to people you know, or at least "sort of" know.

From now until the race there was a lot of bs'ing and just a lot of s'ing. Good grief. I went to the potty 4 more times. It's crazy how these events act like a laxative. Ex-lax has NOTHING on nerves before a race. NOTHING.

At almost 40 years old you would think this could either be a bad problem (due to age) or no problem at all (due to experience). I'll just leave it at that. It happens at every race. 5K, Marathon, Ironman. It's just part of the deal.

At some point. You. Are. Ready.

Event warmup:

Pretty much, none. I went under to make sure my goggles weren't leaking. I did do some stretching but I'm not sure that counts.

Swim

Comments:

Lord have mercy. I am so frickin' slow at swimming. If I can ever get even decent I will kick some ass.

That being said, I chose to wear my wetsuit simply because the Branson half Ironman was 7 days away and I thought it would be good practice. The water was plenty warm enough to swim in comfort.

My friend and I, who are both comfortably slow, tried to line up to the outside of the swim to avoid chaos. Well, apparently that was a popular stance, so we were screwed. This was a beach start, so you could be partially in the water or entirely on the beach. When the horn sounded the chaos began. All well-laid plans ... out the window. Good grief.

I actually loved the swim course, because the first buoy was only 100 or so yards out. The bad part was the congestion. O.M.G. In my very(VERY) short triathlon "career" I have done distances of sprints, super sprints, olympic and half Ironman. I have never been physically swum "over" but I have now. Some guy swum completely over the top of me. I'm glad I didn't drown.

After the first turn, which was a CF of the highest order, things went pretty well. I breathed way too much to one side but still felt pretty good.

I still hate the swim but I am getting much, much better thanks to my coach. Hopefully, I will be decent at some point.

What would you do differently?:

Kick the guy who swum over me?

T1

Comments:

I did not have to use a wetsuit for this race but I did use it because I will likely use it for the Branson half Ironman. I did a great job getting my left foot out, but my stupid right foot would NOT come out. It was frustrating as all get out. I could not for the life of me get my left foot out. Finally did it and got out of T1. Good grief!

What would you do differently?:

Not be an idiot trying to get out of a wetsuit.

Bike

Comments:

The bike is without question my strongest discipline. I have found through doing a few triathlons that it takes a while for my legs to really be able to "work" after the swim.

This has been a reasonably consistent trend. I suppose I'm using my legs more than I realize on my very poor swim.

As per usual on the bike, I passed a LOT of people. It's almost comical. I am so damn slow on the swim, I pass almost the entire field on the bike. It has happened on every triathlon I've done.

I was kind of excited for this course because it was reasonably flat, compared to my previous courses. I got started out and it didn't take long to start passing people. I was constantly saying "on your left" all that way to the turn (half way). Before the turn I could finally see the people who were ahead of me.

I kept counting the racers. In the big picture, I didn't really care where I finished, in the overall or my age group, but it's nice to at least know how you compare.

I saw 15 or so riders ahead of me before I made the turn. I knew I had made up a lot of ground from my slow swim, but I had no idea where I really stood.

When I got to the finish I was reasonably pleased with my time. I wanted to finish under 40 minutes, which I did, but I also wanted to average 23 mph, which I did not. In the the big scheme it doesn't matter. It was just a goal. I was still better than the vast majority.

What would you do differently?:

Nothing really. Perhaps go a tiny bit harder.

T2

Comments:

Pretty quick transition. I don't do the flying dismount yet but still have a reasonably quick transition. No complaints here. Sockless shoes are the BOMB!

What would you do differently?:

Work on dismount.

Run

Comments:

Not much to say about the run. Got off the bike and felt pretty good. I quickly saw the one and only person who passed ME on the bike and I ran right past him. BOOM! Feeling good! Then one of my age groupers comes flying by me like the earth is standing still. Jeebuz! I kept pace for like 2 seconds and quickly (and smartly) gave up on him.

I ran hard the entire race. I wasn't full-out but was pretty close. Got to the half-way turn and then started seeing some of my friends on the way back. That was really nice. It's always a boost to see someone you know.

I got to the final half mile or so and one of my friend's sons came up beside me. I was three minutes ahead of him overall, because he started three minutes before me, but he said "thanks for pacing me" and he took off. Well, then I took off right behind behind him. I was carrying a 6 minute pace following him to the finish. I had to resort to talking to myself but I went as hard as I could go the last quarter mile.

I can't explain how hard it is to to give it your all in an event like this. If you've done it, you know. If you haven't, then just imagine being in tremendous pain and wanting to throw up and then multiply it times 1,000.

I think the volunteers probably though I was crazy hearing me talking to myself that last bit, but it worked. I went HARD and was happy for it.

I averaged 7:01 for the entire run, which I would be happy for during any 5K but after swimming and biking, I was ecstatic.

What would you do differently?:

Nothing. I went as hard as I could reasonably go.

Post race

Warm down:

I took in several bottles of water immediately after the race. I met with my friends and talked about the race.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Nothing. I went as hard as I could go. I was ready to puke after I finished. You know what? That tells me I timed things pretty well. I have no complaints, except for my dumbass not getting out of the wetsuit better.

Event comments:

Course was really good. Events were on-time. Check-in was easy. Goody bag was WEAK at best. Volunteers were awesome! No complaints at all.