TEXAS 70.3 (Galveston)
We traveled down to Galveston on Thursday with the race on Sunday. This is a little early but it worked out great. We found some really good restaurants away from the tourist etc. Went to Bubba Gump Shrimp Seafood Co.,.. hey, it was fun and had pretty good food. This time of year the town is not crowded. Did some sight seeing along the island. Since the hurricane, the town has really done a good job of cleanup/restoration.
With a later race start my breakfast was standard small oatmeal, banana, 2 cups apple sauce and 8 oz of Gatorade about 2.75 hours prior to start. Transition closed at 6:45 so I had plenty of time for one gel and sip a little more Gatorade and water. Many races have the older guys go first… not here….
Approximately 2,350 entrants with 20 waves. Since Bob McCallum wrote a previous report I will try to condense mine. Congrats to him for a great race.
SWIM
First wave of pros was at 7:00 and my wave was 11th at 7:50 out of 20 waves (AG 65-69). Yes, I’m at the far right end of the bell curve. That water was COLD at 65 degrees. No real issues just kept the stroke pace passed some and stayed real close to the bouys.
T1
Since there were so many bikes staged, getting to the exit took longer than expected.
BIKE
Road conditions were good. My plan was to go steady which I delivered almost textbook according to my Powertap. But the problem of my lower back slapped me. With a prior lower back injury a few years ago, that area stated flaring up and I did a few upright bike stretches. Plan was a conservative 78-80% to effectively save myself some running room with this back issue. That said I submitted to just a hair under 20mph. So yes, I ‘coulda’ but stayed with the ‘shoulda’ plan. That conservative plan was re-enforced by my passing numerous AG’s. I was so tired of that Perform (3+ bottles) that I chased with water occasionally. I prefer the course drink as to minimize potential complications. Had ¾ powerbar and about 3.5 gels and 3 bloks. The wind was no real issue except for maybe a second guessing the speed and/or actual direction.
No problems with nutrition. Bike time was 2:51:40
T2
No issues. Dismount was closer to rack.
RUN
First 3 miles was spot on time. About mile 4 that lower back devil came back and slapped me again. This forced me to lay down and ‘quickly’ stretch 3 times during the run. There were some tight little turns that would change your pace up. The next section of miles went slower than planned. My legs were not giving out but the back said nasty things. Try talking to your back, it’s a strange thing. Somewhere in the last 2-3 miles my wife (nazi coach) yelled something (!!) at me and helped me get that pace up. I went through a good amount of water/coke/pretzels throughout the run.
I finished with a not so happy 5:58:56 but got my 3rd place finish and got to the podium. The entire race was purely positive. I always learn something for the next time. This is a nice race to test out early bugs and nutrition. The winds and temps were just slightly lower than before when I did this in 2010. Overall, the pacing on the bike went ok and that I have the built up endure get more wattage. The run was ok in that the legs were ready. Now I have to concentrate on more core exercises and a few more trips to my PT. Next race in about 8 weeks (Kansas 70.3)....
Comments
You Inspire! Congrats on the podium!