Patriot Half Race Report
First HIM with EN, second HIM ever. To be honest, Timberman last year left quite a bit to be desired, so it didn't take much to have a better race, but I really enjoyed this race. Time: 5:45:00
Swim: 36: 01
As others have mentioned, the swim was a little choppy. I had a hard time keeping a straight line and needed to spot much more than I had anticipated. I was able to get to the front of my wave though and was lucky to be in the second wave to start, so there wasn't too much running over people. I found my rhythm pretty easily, but was ready for it to be over. Like John, I was surprised with my time; I expected it to be much slower. It seemed like I was out there forever!
T1: 2:21
I know it's not fast, but I was happy with my time. I felt very organized and knew what I needed to do and got out on the bike quickly.
Bike: 3:12:59, VI= .97, N. Power 136, Avg Power 129
Sounds slow when you say it out loud, but my goal IF was .80 and my actual was .83. I will say my last FTP was on the trainer due to crumby weather when I had a chance to do it. I felt pretty good the whole ride, generally speaking. The wind threw my bike around a bit, particularly at the cranberry bogs and along the water.
Because my FTP is so low, I really need to shift way down on some of the hills (I realize they're not REAL hills). This is where I got passed by LOTS of folks. I really nailed my hydration and nutrition this time around (which I really struggled with last time) so that was important. Overall, lots of room for improvement on the bike in general, but I was happy with my execution of the bike because it allowed me to run well.
T2: 3:15
I was a little frustrated with T2 because I needed to run a fair distance on grass in my bike shoes which didn't feel too great. I don't know about the set up at other races, but I was a bit disappointed in that. My right foot got a little banged up on the transition in bike shoes and I felt it for the first couple miles on the run.
Run: 1:50:25
I decided on the bike when I started to feel a bit of humidity I was going to run based on heart rate. I was very concerned about hitting a wall before mile 8 of the run. The Timberman half was just a mess and I was very concerned about repeating. It felt great to get off the bike and I had to actively slow myself down on the first 3 miles. I met my HR goal each mile and cooled myself down with ice at each aid station. I had 3 shot bloks at mile 1 and 6 to keep me going a bit. It felt EASY until mile 8 and then I think I started to just lose energy. I started taking in coke and water at each aid station and that helped boost my energy a bit. As you can see from my splits below, I didn't think I had much of a kick at the end, but I pushed it out the last few miles. Maybe too much left at the end? Is it possible? My legs wouldn't have agreed afterwards.
Run splits: 8:42, 8:59, 8:54, 8:32, 8:14, 8:31, 8:27, 8:16, 8:33, 8:28, 8:17, 8:12, 7:46
I had no time goal for the run and was really happy to not be worried about my paces on race day. If for no other reason, I wasn' obsessing about numbers; my HR shifted periodically and I didn't feel like I was killing myself until the end. At no point did I feel terrible though. I actually enjoyed the end of this race compared to my last half!
Overall, improving my FTP and getting out on the roads more plus a little body comp work. I think transition times will decrease with more racing. This was the test to see if I really enjoyed this...I think I'm hooked! Hopefully this wasn't just a freak aligning of stars and is a starting point for good races in the future!
Also, it was great to have so many EN teammates and Coach P out on the course cheering!
Comments
Great Job!
I hear you on the wind... Definitely had me holding on along the water!
Congrats on a REALLY solid performance and great execution!!!
@Jess- I met a few people who happened to run into me at the finish (one of whom I believe was your husband), but it was a bit crazy. Plus,we had a sizable drive home that night, as you may have, so I didn't stick around for the festivities after.
Thanks everyone!