Ross Randolph 2018 Santa Cruz 70.3 Race Report

This was my 2nd IM 70.3 race inside EN, 2nd 70.3 of 2018 & the 2nd time doing IM Santa Cruz 70.3. Santa Cruz is about 1.5 hours drive for me, so it's one of those "in your backyard" events that is hard to pass up. (No travel, can scout the course, etc.) I'm coming off a 6-week transition from Santa Rosa 70.3 in July so there wasn't much of a build phase between events. I had an eventful (not in a good way) race at Santa Rosa so was hoping to do better at Santa Cruz. I went in with essentially the same race plan as Santa Rosa but with a few small tweaks from those lessons learned:

1. Bring extra tubes & a bike pump that works on board; test everything ahead of time!
2. Follow the same nutrition plan: 2 bottles of Gatorade Endurance per hour & 1 Clif Shot Block every 20 minutes on the bike. Carry water in flasks on run; 1 Hammer Gel every 30 minutes. (I'm 5'10" and around 155 lbs.)
3. Target power of around 180-195W (FTP is between 220-230W) on the bike. Push last 10 miles if feeling good and set up the run.

The Santa Cruz 70.3 course consists of a beach start & ocean swim one loop around the pier, exit the beach and a good hike to T1 (approx 1/4 mile or so) located in an enclosed soccer field (Depot Park). You then bike out of T1 and head north along beachfront streets before getting out to Highway 1 - the classic oceanside drive that runs up the coast. (One of the most scenic and beautiful highways ever IMHO.) It is a single-loop, out & back ride back into T2 at Depot Park. The run is a single loop / out & back run along the same first 2-3 miles of the bike course before ducking into an oceanside nature preserve which goes from road to trail to dusty single track before heading back to roads toward the finish. All along the run (and bike) you have gorgeous views of the ocean and will see surfers & wildlife. You hear seals barking around the pier in the morning. The finish line is on the beach - so after a mad sprint down a decent incline next to the famous "Dream Inn" you go from terra firma to something that is far from it. The last challenge for a lot of athletes is maintaining their form through a tight 90-degree turn and then not face-planting as pavement becomes sand 50 meters from the finish line!

Santa Cruz can get what we call a "marine layer" (others just call it fog) and last year's swim was shortened because of it. Not this year. When I woke up I could clearly see the end of the pier around 4:30 a.m. so I knew it would be a full swim day. Breakfast was a banana and some oatmeal; I usually have a cup of coffee to get going but the hotel didn't have a machine so I went with cold brew I picked up from Whole Foods day prior. (I almost got the one with dairy - then realized that wouldn't be a good idea so replaced with one w/ almond milk. Have learned the hard way to stay away from dairy on race morning!)

Since T1/T2 is in the same location, Santa Cruz has the feel of a local tri where you can set all your stuff out the way you like it (as long as it fits in the space given) -- not a 'clean transition' like in other races where everything has to go in the bag before you leave T1. I didn't know anyone in my age group before the race, but recognized a few of the names. Sami Inkinen who is a legend in my age group was supposed to be racked next to me but he was a no-show. Bummer - was hoping to meet him.

I'm one of those guys who brings a bike pump with me in the morning. It's not smart since Ironman always have tons of bike pumps available, but I had a traumatic pre-race experience years ago that is now worth the risk of me losing a $30 pump that may be confiscated at a race. It's also helpful as you get to meet a lot of people in transition. "Can I borrow your pump?" is a great way to make new friends. 😀

Sorry for the rambling - ok, so here's the low-down on the race along with some new tips & tricks that worked ... and some that didn't.

THE SWIM. 27:52. 1:26/100m. 9th AG (40-44).

I'm a pretty strong swimmer. I'm sure I have room to improve on technique that would make me faster, but have lifelong habits that would be hard to break for those incremental gains. I'm investing in speed elsewhere for now.

I'm not a huge fan of open water swimming, but I really do love wetsuits & salt water. They both make you so much more buoyant which equals fast. This was one of my fastest ever swims; at 61 deg F it was also one of the coldest. There was a slight current pushing us toward the pier on the way out and away from it on the way back but with no marine layer and not much swells so the sighting was pretty easy. I learned about the trick in the forums of using a brand-new pair of goggles for the swim to keep from them fogging up. This was the first time I tried it; I'm a believer. This is the first 70.3 distance swim that I didn't have to stop once to clear my goggles. I loved that!

Another thing I really was concentrating on doing different for this race - especially because of the long run to T1 - was to fight my natural urge to remove my goggles and cap after the swim. It sounds silly, but not having anything in my hands actually made a difference as I could get to the top of my wetsuit easier and not have to think or worry about dropping stuff on the way.

Picture below is water exit (of course have to get the proper swim split on the Garmin, right!?). One of the things I like about that pic is the Everyman Jack guy behind me. Not sure how it is in the rest of the country, but those guys are everywhere here in California races - and they are some of the fastest dudes and ALWAYS on the podium. (I have nothing against them, but is nice to see a photo of me in FRONT of one of them for once!) Oh, forgot to mention that they do the rolling start at Santa Cruz like most IM swim events nowadays. Which, yes, I realize means that in fact the EMJ fellow could have had a faster swim time if he started after me. 😝

Link to my Garmin file for the swim:

T1. 5:03.

I don't have a lot to go on here for comparison. The only data point is from 2016 where I did 5:45. I haven't figured out how to shave off time here. I don't leave my shoes clipped in for flying mount/dismounts; that's only thing I can think of to do different someday. 1st place in my AG had a T1 only 30 seconds faster, but the pros did it in almost 3:00. (Probably run faster from the water?)

THE BIKE. 2:34. 21.7 mph. 13th AG.

The bike is where I have the biggest opportunities to make gains & improve. I'm already seeing a big difference from implementing recommendations from EN teammates and @Coach Patrick . Pics below show my basic set up. I ride a Cannondale Slice 105 that's several years old. Only upgrades to the bike are the wheels (Zipp 808s) and I purchased an ICE drive chain which does feel smoother - theory is less friction = more Watts which go toward speed. I have Garmin Vector 3 pedal power meters which after switching out the new cartridges have not had power drop-outs. I love them. I also like my Profile Design hydration up front which also holds my Edge 100 Garmin computer. The hydration holds about 1 bottle of fluid and has a great no-spill design for easy filling on the go. And after a recommendation in the forum, I now use rubber bands & electrical tape to keep the computer at the correct angle; I can see stats while staying aero and not have to crane my neck. As for the dude riding the bike, not too much upgrades to speak of - only 2 really. I picked up the Rudy helmet at Oceanside last year; very comfortable and stays cool. And the most important upgrade? How about that sweet red Castelli EN kit!? Red is faster!

My goal on the bike was to first get the HR down after the swim. Then settle into Z3 power & heart rate. I let heart rate drift a bit without getting too concerned but keeping in mind the "cap" of 150 bpm recommended by a teammate. That worked out great; I was at 160 bpm initially on the bike (there is a small hill out of T1) but I was able to settle in to my target of 145 bpm after about 20 minutes. The Santa Cruz bike course has some rollers but is pretty straightforward otherwise; not technical at all. I didn't have to stand but for about 1-2 minutes overall on the course. Going in to the race I was planning to target around 180-190 Watts but about half way through I saw I was averaging closer to 195W. I felt strong and nutrition plan was working so I stayed with it. That was perhaps the biggest risk I took on race day as the "there is no such thing as a great bike and a poor run" was always in the back of my head. There was a slight headwind on the way out which pushed us back on the return; I don't think it made a big difference and didn't mess with me mentally which strong winds can do. Also, I'm not a super-strong cyclist if there were strong cross-winds on 808's it could have really pushed me around. I did a brief training ride with the 808s on a windy day a week earlier and was on the hoods throughout to keep from falling over. Luckily, the winds I feared in Santa Cruz never came.

In the end, I finished with a 70.3 bike PR of 2:34. I don't think I've ever gone sub 2:45 on the bike in a 70.3 so I was very happy about the result. But also a little nervous as I still had 13.1 miles yet to run.

Link to my Garmin file for the bike:

THE RUN. 1:34. 7:12/mile. 8th AG.

My race plan for the run was to target no more than about 10 bpm higher than what I was hitting on the bike for the final hour. Since that was around 145 bpm, I knew I could let HR drift up to 155 bpm. For me, that's around a Zone 3 which I regularly train at when running. On fresh legs, I can usually hit 6:50 for Z3. Race rehearsals suggested I could do about 7:10ish pace but the first 2-3 miles I was expecting to be around 7:30-7:40. (It always takes me about 1 mile to get the legs warmed up after a long bike.)

It's important to take a quick pause here to explain the difference between the official IM time (1:34) and my Garmin file (1:33). That difference is real and it represents me starting my Garmin run AFTER stopping by the port-a-john just outside T2. So there you go ... if you're wondering is there time to be saved by training your bladder on the bike as much as training everything else - the answer is yes, or at least it's worth about 1:00 for me. 😬

You will see me carrying a plastic bag in my hand in the first photo below. That's my "Go" bag that is one of the coolest ideas to shave time in T2. It has paid dividends for me. I carry a lot of 'stuff' when I run - I have my nice new EN visor, my race bib and I carry flasks on a hydration belt. That would really eat up a lot of time in T2. Instead, all of that is in a large Ziploc bag that I run out of T2 with me. So all I have to do is change my shoes and I'm gone. My T2 time for Santa Cruz was 1:35. The guy who won my age group was over 2 minutes. Eric Lagerstrom who won the whole darn race? 1:12. Boom! Thank you, EN peeps.

My first mile was 7:16 with HR = 153 bpm. I wasn't really looking at my watch closely but thought that was a little too fast. I kept the leg cadence high and tried to keep stride short for the next mile. 6:53. Uh-oh. I am going too fast ... but HR is at 155 bpm. Keep moving forward. Mile 3 is 6:48. So much for smart pacing? HR now at 157 bpm. By mile 4 things slowed back down and I had settled in to the 7:00-7:10/mile pace that I would average most of the rest of the run. (The terrain gets a little technical and most of the elevation change is between miles 7-10.)

I was able to execute the nutrition mostly according to plan. Took first gel around Mile 4. Didn't feel like it but forced another gel around Mile 8. I didn't take the 3rd gel I had planned for Mile 12 but at that point I knew I could make it. From Mile 10 I really tried to pick it up but did walk through an aid station to get that rocket fuel (Coke). This is something I picked up in some race rehearsals before Santa Rosa, used it with success at Santa Rosa and then really looked forward to it at Mile 10 in Santa Cruz. Not sure if it's the sugary sweetness or the caffeine - or probably both - but man you can see it in my numbers. Mile 9 at 7:39. Mile 10 (aid station) at 7:06. Mile 11 (no aid station stop) at 7:27. Mile 12 (took a quick few sips passing the aid station) at 7:17. Mile 13 (another quick sip) at 6:53 and had finishing kick sub 6:00 for last 0.1 mile to the tape.

One thing I want to mention as you look at the pics below is that you will see me smiling in all of them (or trying to smile). That's not me hamming it up for the cameraman and it wasn't that I was really 'happy.' (Was actually in a lot of pain pushing the limit.) But I have discovered that if you smile while you run (even if it can look more like a grimace), it's actually easier to get through the dark places and you do go faster. (At least it works for me.)

This was by far the best finish I've ever had at an Ironman event. I've never been Top 20 in my AG, let alone cracking the Top 10. A lot of things came together - the weather was perfect (50-60 deg F throughout the race) - but also had a ton of advice from the forums and teammates' race reports that I was able to use.

If you've made it this far, I thank you very much for reading and would appreciate any additional thoughts/suggestions as I'm still learning. I'm now enjoying the 2-week post IM recovery plan and then will get back to it. Next up for me is a race-cation with my wife in November at Ironman Malaysia in Langkawi. She is doing the full; I'm doing the half.

Link to run file: