Location: Syracuse, NY
Results: AG 18/30, Females 299/726, 1255/2359 Time: 6:27:10
Local Knowledge and Conditions: Swim took place in the Jamesville Reservoir, water temp at 69 degrees. Average temperature for the day was 73 degrees. Starting elevation for the bike was 685 ft, max elevation 1,722 ft, and a gain of 1,686 ft. Run elevation started at 685 ft, max elevation was 932 ft, and a gain of 400 ft.
Pre-Race: The day before the race I consumed greek yogurt with berries for breakfast, a package of tuna and a spinach salad for lunch, and for dinner (around 6 pm) I had grilled chicken cuts and half a cup of rice. Throughout the day I sipped on execute to keep my sodium levels up, I am going to switch to Perform by PowerBar since they use that on the course for Ironman. I took a nap from about 5 pm to 7 pm, got up and walked around, took care of a few things for the next day and then went back to bed around 9 pm.
Race Morning: For breakfast I had two protein waffles with one chocolate Gu spread over them, tasted really good and didn't upset my stomach. I ate breakfast about 1 hour and 45 minutes before my race began. I drank my execute with my breakfast but stopped taking in fluids about 20 minutes before the race started.
Race Break Down:
Swim:
Another wetsuit swim. Prior races where I had worn my wetsuit, the back of my neck always got chaffed. So this time I made sure to lather, lather, lather, the back of my neck with body glide. (Even though I super body glided my neck, I still chaffed really badly, something I need to tweak on) I was however, excited to get in to my wetsuit because it was cold! Well for me it was, for the people form NY and all the Canadians there it was summer weather, but for me I was cold. The water temp had gone up to 69, they had predicted lower 60's which I honestly would have preferred because it gets warm in the wetsuit, especially since I pee'd in it. Trust me, I wasn't the only one who did that.
This one was not a mass start, they had us in waves. I was in the 3rd wave, the first age group wave after the pro's. It consisted of my age group (18-24) and Womens 50-59. I didn't feel it was too big/crowded at all. They had us get into the water deep enough to where no one could touch the bottom so we tredded water for not even two minutes. Then the horn went off.
The course was like a rectangle. Straight out, right turn, straight for a little bit, another right turn, and then straight for finish. The buoys were big and visible, finally! I did notice I kept veering off to the outside, a lot. The course is 1.2 miles but my Garmin showed I did 1.25, oops. Probably cause I was pulling stronger onto that side then the other so something to work on.
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| I look miserable haha |
For this swim, I didn't want to go all out. This was my first half iron distance and I didn't want to burn out and made sure to pace myself. My swim time was 40:41, so a 2:06/100 yrds pace or a 32:45/mile. I was happy with this. Throughout the entire swim I felt comfortable with my pace, I knew I was capable of going even faster but like I said I didn't want to push it too much to prepare myself for the remaining 5+ hours of racing I was about to do.
I double layered my swim cap, so I had my regular cap on, then my goggles, then the race cap. I used my Phat Girlz custom TYR swim goggles and I had no complications with them what so ever. My stomach felt great, I was feeling good, I made sure to just pace myself and relax on the swim seeing as how this was my first and I wasn't trying to qualify for World's (not yet!).
I loved the wetsuit strippers! They helped me with everything when it came to getting that thing off of me and made it so easy and my transition faster for that.
T-1:
There was a decent little run to T-1 from the swim (.3 of a mile), especially from where my bike was but it wasn't terrible. Volunteers cheered everyone on along the way and it was awesome. I was trying to move quickly but at the same time make sure that I was all set and everything was good for the bike. I did not wear socks for the bike, I never do. They gave you two numbers to wear in your packet, one for the bike and one for the run. The bike bib is not mandatory. I kept mine for safe keeping and chose to use one for the run. When it came to grabbing my nutrition, I stuck everything in my shirt/sports bra. And it stayed there except for when I took it out to eat/use.
Bike:
They weren't kidding when they said this course was hilly. Thankfully though, Coach trained me hard with the hills so they weren't as terrible as I was imagining. I started off with two bottles of execute, because that is what I had trained with. In training that had lasted me a good 30 miles, but I was out of fluids before mile 10 on the bike. I didn't fret because I knew I would be at an aid station soon.
I was nervous at first about going through an aid station because that is something I hadn't gotten to practice or experience before but I was able to grab bottles of Perform easily with no mishap. I also didn't crash into another cyclists which was another thing I was worried about. The aid stations are a decent stretch, they start with a trash drop zone to throw any of your trash, seeing as how if you drop trash on the course in an undesignated area you will receive a penalty. After the first trash dump, you have tables that are seperated by having water, Perform, and Gu, the volunteers were awesome at being clear as to what they had, and then after those tables there is one last trash drop. When I went through my first one I didn't get done emptying a bottle of perform into my bottle and had no where to put the spare bottle because I had already passed the last trash drop, so I stuck the bottle in my shirt which I'm sure looked weird as all get out but I was not about to get a penalty or litter the race course.
An hour and 19 minutes into the bike, right at mile 20, I was shifting gears to prepare for the steepest hill on the course when all of a sudden I heard an unpleasant sound, my chain just dropped. I stopped, cussed, and pulled off to the side and tried to fix it. I realized I was too frustrated at what had just happened to fix it, I needed to calm down, so I walked my bike up the hill, almost 200 ft nearly straight up. I was also hoping tech support would drive by and help me out, but of course I never saw them when I needed them. I finally got to the top of the hill and attempted to put my chain back on, which I managed to do but something was still wrong because it wouldn't move from the big ring to the small ring at all. So I sucked it up, hopped back on and went. I knew the remainder of the course, though it wasn't as hilly as the first part, I was going to have to climb all the hills in one of more difficult gears due to the incident, which did tire my legs out a lot more. And not to mention I was so frustrated from being on the side of the road and wasting time that I cranked out the second half of my bike, which wasn't the brightest idea because it did hurt my run later. Here were my splits:
Split 5 is where I was stopped on the side of the road. My first 2 splits were slow because a good majority of the hill climbing took part in the first 10 miles of the bike course.
An hour and 19 minutes into the bike, right at mile 20, I was shifting gears to prepare for the steepest hill on the course when all of a sudden I heard an unpleasant sound, my chain just dropped. I stopped, cussed, and pulled off to the side and tried to fix it. I realized I was too frustrated at what had just happened to fix it, I needed to calm down, so I walked my bike up the hill, almost 200 ft nearly straight up. I was also hoping tech support would drive by and help me out, but of course I never saw them when I needed them. I finally got to the top of the hill and attempted to put my chain back on, which I managed to do but something was still wrong because it wouldn't move from the big ring to the small ring at all. So I sucked it up, hopped back on and went. I knew the remainder of the course, though it wasn't as hilly as the first part, I was going to have to climb all the hills in one of more difficult gears due to the incident, which did tire my legs out a lot more. And not to mention I was so frustrated from being on the side of the road and wasting time that I cranked out the second half of my bike, which wasn't the brightest idea because it did hurt my run later. Here were my splits:
| 1 | 20:14.5 | 5.00 | 14.8 |
| 2 | 27:52.7 | 5.00 | 10.8 |
| 3 | 13:35.9 | 5.00 | 22.1 |
| 4 | 16:02.3 | 5.00 | 18.7 |
| 5 | 21:58.6 | 5.00 | 13.7 |
| 6 | 16:26.5 | 5.00 | 18.2 |
| 7 | 13:42.8 | 5.00 | 21.9 |
| 8 | 17:00.0 | 5.00 | 17.6 |
| 9 | 16:32.7 | 5.00 | 18.1 |
| 10 | 13:40.7 | 5.00 | 21.9 |
| 11 | 15:10.0 | 5.00 | 19.8 |
| 12 | 1:12.0 | 0.32 | 15.9 |
The biggest thing my Coach stressed with my bike is sticking to my HR. Which I stuck to decently, the hill climbing caused my HR to go into Zone 3 (my max zone) and I was suppose to try and stick in Zone 2. I averaged right at the top of Zone 2.
For overall nutrition on the bike, I consumed 2 bottles of Execute, and 4 bottles of Perform. As well as 4 Chocolate Gu's. My stomach felt good the entire time, I never felt hungry or had an GI issues. The only issue I ran into was that my coach had wanted me to try and make sure that I pee'd on the bike. Literally. I never felt though at any point, even though I had consumed plenty of fluids (or at least I thought) that I had to pee. I tried too, but nothing would come out. I stressed a little bit about this because even I was wondering "How on earth do I not have to pee?" and then I was thinking, great, I'm gonna have to pee myself while running if I don't do it on this bike. It hadn't occurred to my that I was potentially still dehydrated even with all the fluids, I was lightly sweating but nothing crazy and I figured that had to be because I was never hot on the bike, the weather was 61 degrees with 72% humidity, aka Florida winter. There were parts of the course that were shaded and I was actually cold. I had not trained with Perform but thankfully it sat very well with me and I do feel it helped me. I will be switching to Perform for training as well just to get more used to it.
Towards the end of the bike course, they make you finish the ride in a single file line, no passing allowed. It was like this for probably the last mile or two of the bike. Slightly frustrating if you're faster than the person in front of you but at the same time it was a nice mini cool down before getting to transition. Overall, I felt the bike went pretty well. I managed to average 17.35 mph which I was pleased with considering how hilly the course was and my mishap that happened, and it was only that decent because the second half of the bike (after my chain dropped) I managed to average a little over 19 mph to make up for the rough first half.
T-2:
This was quick and easy. I racked my bike, took off my helmet and shoes, I put on my INJINJI TOE SOCKS, yes I wore toe socks, and no it didn't take me any longer then regular socks would because my feet/toes are used to wearing toe socks so they slide right on. They are my favorite socks. I then slid on my Newton Distance S's. I grabbed my nutrition for the run, again stuck it in my sports bra, then grabbed my visor and race number belt and started running towards exit of transition area.
Run:
I started out the run feeling pretty good, I wasn't fatigued/sick/drained, my legs were just a little sore/stiff. Now, who ever created this run course, deserves to be smacked! The run course was two loops, and mile 0-1, 6-7 was up hill, freaking cross country terrain. It started out as gravel/rock road, then you were running up a grass hill, then had to run through a mulch path which is dusty as hell when you have hundreds of people running through it. I was cussing this certain someone out in my head, I mean there was plenty of good, solid road for us to run on.
I was warned about this entire race being hilly, and after the bike course I was thinking ok, it can't get much more hilly then that, right? WRONG!!!! There was one hill, that you hit twice because of the two loops, that was over a 200 foot climb practically straight up. But there were lots of hills on this course, and I knew my legs were already pretty done. So my plan was to fast pace walk the up hill, and run the flats/down hills. Unfortunately, there was more up hill then down hill and flat. I knew I wasn't going to have the half marathon time I wanted but as I looked around me and saw how miserable a lot of the people were around me looking, I was ok with that because I wasn't feeling nearly as terrible as they were looking.
A good few people were complaining about the heat, which made me chuckle, finally I had an advantage! It was only 73 degrees for the run! Granted for the northerners, that was there summer weather, but for me it was gorgeous! I never felt hot or overheated.
I ran in my Newton Distance S's. This was a hard choice for me because I love my Altra's but I love the extra spring/boost I have with my Newtons. I didn't have any blisters or pain in my feet what so ever, thanks to my toe socks and my shoes.
I ran in my Newton Distance S's. This was a hard choice for me because I love my Altra's but I love the extra spring/boost I have with my Newtons. I didn't have any blisters or pain in my feet what so ever, thanks to my toe socks and my shoes.
The support on the run course was awesome. From volunteers to people who just lived along the course. One guy left his hose out on the road with a sign saying "Help Yourself". Your name gets put on your bib and the volunteers would say your name and cheer you on which is so awesome after 5+ hours of racing. Every mile there was an aid station. The aid stations were huge for the run. They consisted of several water/Perform tables, Coke, Gu/Chomps table, Fruit/Pretzels table, and my favorite, the Ice Cold Sponges! Make sure y'all thank every volunteer/police officer that is there. They really make a difference and help a lot. And when going through an aid station and you're about to grab something from someone, make eye contact with them and nod, or say 1 or 2 for how many of whatever they have you want, and thank them. It makes it better for you both. Through each aid station, I grabbed the same thing each time. I grabbed a cup of water to pour on me, a cup of Perform to drink, and then a set of sponges. At first I put the sponges on my shoulders under my tri top, but then I started to feel chaffing under my underarms I started sticking them right in the opening of my trip top below the arm pit which prevented the chaffing from happening.
It being a two loop course is such a tease when you get to the halfway mark cause you literally see the finish line but have to turn around and head back out one more time. Mentally, I was feeling awesome. I was on cloud 9, happy and thrilled as could be! I knew I wasn't going to hit my goal time but was no longer worried about my time because I was about to finish a half Ironman! And I was feeling great! Legs were sore, very sore and tired, but I wasn't. Emotionally, mentally, cardio- I was feeling stupid good. My heart rate was doing great, and I was just stoked. I was so happy, and new my training had done me well because of how overall great I was feeling, especially when I looked at people all around me who looked like they were steps away from their grave. I made sure to encourage others around me, saying things like "We got this", "Keep it Up", "You're doing awesome". I made friends with lots of strangers on the course, and managed to help a couple people who were dealing with some minor things on the course.
When I hit that last turn around, I was literally all smiles. My smile couldn't be smacked off my face even if someone tried. As I was headed back down the hill, I saw a familiar face, a guy from my run club, and he looked so miserable, he was walking up the hill and just looked awful. I couldn't help but find that hilarious because he is normally a much faster/stronger runner than I am. I yelled to him as I ran by him but I think he was too dazed to notice. (I beat him by 41 minutes! He got chicked!) My smile got bigger and bigger the closer I got to the finish line. As I saw that finish line I gunned it, my turbo kicked in. I was about to finish a Half Ironman. I had goose bumps throughout the entire shoot. Then finally, I crossed that finish line.
I was so freakin happy. I didn't want to stand still, but they had to take the chip of my ankle, which I double safety pinned together to truly make sure it would fall off. Then, I was handed my gorgeous finishers medal and finishers hat. Eee!
I continued walking towards the food area, and was looking for my coach. When I finally saw her, I ran into her arms and balled my eyes out. I was so proud of myself, and so thankful for her training me and being there for me. Thanks to her awesome training, support, advice and my dedication/commitment to my training, I crossed that finish line running, with a smile! When I finally stopped crying, we got me a chocolate milk and a grilled cheese sandwich and headed back to the camper. I was on such a high it was unbelievable. My legs were sore, but I was too excited to care and though it would've been nice to get an IV or a massage (services offered for free to athletes post race) I knew I didn't need it as badly as other athletes around me, I know I'm a beast. (just kidding, kinda, not really)
I continued walking towards the food area, and was looking for my coach. When I finally saw her, I ran into her arms and balled my eyes out. I was so proud of myself, and so thankful for her training me and being there for me. Thanks to her awesome training, support, advice and my dedication/commitment to my training, I crossed that finish line running, with a smile! When I finally stopped crying, we got me a chocolate milk and a grilled cheese sandwich and headed back to the camper. I was on such a high it was unbelievable. My legs were sore, but I was too excited to care and though it would've been nice to get an IV or a massage (services offered for free to athletes post race) I knew I didn't need it as badly as other athletes around me, I know I'm a beast. (just kidding, kinda, not really)
Ironman 70.3 Syracuse, was so far, the best day of my life. It was the most difficult, challenging, beautiful, amazing, experience of my life yet. I had been training for over 5 months to get to this halfway mark. I finally felt that I was going to be able to race a full Ironman and not die. The entire race I stayed positive, I felt great, and was just thrilled to be there.
I want to thank everyone who has helped me so far. Friends and family, especially those who joined me in any training. I really want to thank my Running Wild Zoo Crew! Paul and Cherie for being so supportive and allowing me to have the time off to go up there and race. To my coworkers; Mike, Seth, Shannon, Jon Michael, Alex, Nicki, Katie for allowing me to stuff my face whenever I needed, letting me nap on the office floor, and being very supportive and helpful as well. Thank you to Lora Harris with Tensegrity Massage, Patrick/Gulf Coast Cycle and Tri, Anytime Fitness Downtown/Pace crew, Tri Gulf Coast, and All American Swim. Thank you to the companies who provided great quality gear that led me to be successful; Newton Running, Pearl Izumi, Tifosi, Lazer, 110%, Moving Comfort, Injinji, Garmin, Headsweats, Energy Labs, and Gu.
This experience taught me that hard work certainly pays off. All my training hours, and all those hours I chose to sleep instead of going out certainly showed. It also taught me that you're not always going to have things go your way, so as a triathlete you need to be able to handle things going wrong at any point and time but have the ability to stay calm and positive. Is it frustrating when things eff up, it sure is, but don't ruin your experience because of it. Have fun, enjoy yourself.
Race Summary: Swim00:40:41 Bike03:13:41 Run02:26:52 Overall06:27:10
I want to thank everyone who has helped me so far. Friends and family, especially those who joined me in any training. I really want to thank my Running Wild Zoo Crew! Paul and Cherie for being so supportive and allowing me to have the time off to go up there and race. To my coworkers; Mike, Seth, Shannon, Jon Michael, Alex, Nicki, Katie for allowing me to stuff my face whenever I needed, letting me nap on the office floor, and being very supportive and helpful as well. Thank you to Lora Harris with Tensegrity Massage, Patrick/Gulf Coast Cycle and Tri, Anytime Fitness Downtown/Pace crew, Tri Gulf Coast, and All American Swim. Thank you to the companies who provided great quality gear that led me to be successful; Newton Running, Pearl Izumi, Tifosi, Lazer, 110%, Moving Comfort, Injinji, Garmin, Headsweats, Energy Labs, and Gu.
This experience taught me that hard work certainly pays off. All my training hours, and all those hours I chose to sleep instead of going out certainly showed. It also taught me that you're not always going to have things go your way, so as a triathlete you need to be able to handle things going wrong at any point and time but have the ability to stay calm and positive. Is it frustrating when things eff up, it sure is, but don't ruin your experience because of it. Have fun, enjoy yourself.
Race Summary: Swim00:40:41 Bike03:13:41 Run02:26:52 Overall06:27:10
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