Ironman 70.3 World Championships
Las Vegas, NV 9/11/11
I asked Erin if I could write a race report for Las Vegas and post it to “the beat of a new ambition” as a guest post. She happily agreed; the following is a recap of a whirlwind weekend in Nevada.
We both qualified at Ironman Calgary 70.3 in late July (see Erin’s post: Calgary 70.3 Race Report) and were beyond excited to attend a high caliber race with an impressive pro field. However, following the long, hot day in Penticton I was extremely anxious for the race. I simply melted in Canada, and now we are racing in the middle of the desert in September? This didn’t seem smart. With the support of Erin, I was able to confidently take two full weeks off of running post ironman and added on a handful of road bike rides to gauge how my body was recovering. Everything felt good, but my mental fortitude was absent.
Due to a high increase in work load, and the addition of a two week trip to Illinois immediately following Vegas, I was more focused on work than racing. Luckily for me, a 3rrr running meeting was scheduled the day before we flew to Vegas. Perfect. This was exactly what I needed, to be surrounded by my peers and the triathlon mentors that inspired me to sign up for my first Titanium Man in 2008. The only person that was sorely missed was Robyn Poulson, who undoubtedly started me on my triathlon adventures 3 years ago. Thanks to all of you for your support and training advice through the years.
We arrived in Vegas late Friday night, and after a brief cruise of the Las Vegas Strip, headed over to Henderson to our hotel (Hawthorn Suites) to call it a night. Saturday morning was spent picking up our “tardy” race packets and walking around the empty expo. After several lonely moments at the Rolf Wheel booth hoping for an accidental run in with Team Wurtele, we headed over to the local gym for a swim. The pool was amazing, and the building was a community hot spot, which featured dance classes as well as a cooking class for children (~7-10 years old). It was seriously impressive, and the cost to swim: 2 bucks. A bargain indeed.
The next stop was T1 located on Lake Las Vegas, and Tri Bike Transport. I have to say, it was my first time using this service, and besides being without your race bike for 1 week prior to the race, it is a HUGE convenience, and I will definitely be using it again. (Hawaii would have been awesome, except that it takes 2 full weeks to get the bikes to Kona, if TBT can work this time table out better, the service would be flawless).
After T1 and all the bags were dropped off, we had something that rarely occurs during a race weekend; free time. We looked at each other nervously and said “now what?” I have to say, I hope this feeling occurs more often at our future races. After a heavenly (and costly) lunch at whole foods we relaxed and soaked up the race environment, and discussed Erin’s options for racing the swim or sitting the race out. She eventually decided that DNS was better than DNF. I fully supported her decision, as she has even bigger fish to fry than 70.3 worlds. KONA!!!
RACE DAY:
I was at transition at 530am, and was done by 550. Too bad my wave didn’t start until 8am. Luckily, the transition and the lake shore was filled with amazing athletes; the sights and sounds were intoxicating. The air was filled with anxious, highly competitive people, and the energy was off the charts. One item that Erin and I both noticed about this race was the complete lack of the BOP (back of the pack) athletes. There were no people that were hoping to squeeze under the cut off time, or who were looking for the extra motivation to lose 50 pounds. (Which by the way are welcome additions to the lifestyle, the more the merrier) These people were the elite, and meant business. All ages from 18 to 81 year olds were lean, mean, and ready to tear up the course.
Swim:
I jumped in the 80 degree water and felt great. The goggles weren’t leaking, my catch felt strong, and I hoped to have around a 30 minute swim. After a brief warm up, they lined us up in deep water; 150 men all under the age of 30, all looking to start their race off fast. This was going to be trouble. Even after pushing and edging up I only got as far as 2-3 rows from the front when the gun sounded. Chaos ensued; goggles fogged, never to clear, and I tried to swim as defensively as possible.
I caught two waves in the water and felt great for the entire swim, once you turn around and start heading back under the bridge, the meters just fly by. I exited the swim feeling great and happy with my overall position. Time 31:23
Bike:
After the long run into T1, it was onto the bike. The course was tough, but not unreasonable, I think it was due to the fact that all the media touted this course as extremely difficult. So I was expecting simply brutal conditions and hills.
It was on this segment that I saw my only professionals. They. Were. Flying. And I saw them when they were riding uphill into a headwind. Truly unreal the amount of power these men and women can put out and still run sub-6 minute pace.
This was also the only segment that I thought “I will never do this race again”. Maybe it was because we started so far back, or maybe it was just the group of men I was around, but people were riding like idiots. No concern for their own safety, or more importantly fellow racers. We were quickly catching the women and while I would sit up and carefully get around them, others didn’t break aero and squeezed into unreasonable spaces. The worst situation was when an explorer towing a boat was driving 25 down the middle of the road, with riders going both directions for probably 3 miles. I found myself riding his right rear trailer tire. It wasn’t fun.
Racers were everywhere, and the hills were definitely crowded. Official Refs were driving the course keeping an eye on things, but I was literally speechless when I head “number 1713, you have a yellow card for drafting”. What? I rode up behind a line of 25 athletes, sitting up, going uphill, with a tailwind! All I could think of saying was “thank you” and tried to get along with my ride. But it really pissed me off. There were people who were drafting, but never saw any other penalties handed out.
The last 10 miles, back into Henderson, was a struggle for me. The ride was dragging on, and the rugged beauty of the first 40 miles was behind us. It was a long, false flat climb to the finish. Finally, the run course was in view, and the end was only moments away. Total 2:55:13
Run:
Holy crowded run course batman! 16 waves were in front of me on the course, and it was evident! The first mile and a half was down hill, and I arrived at a 730 pace. Not half bad for not running in over 2 weeks! But I was busy doing course recon, checking mileage posts and trying to figure out when that huge hill I just ran down would be an uphill, the answer was (unfortunately) immediately and my pace suffered. I soon found out, it was a 3 loop course with MAYBE half a mile of flat during the entire loop. It was either up or down, but not rolling hills, more like 2 miles down, followed by 2 miles up. Rinse and repeat.
The aid stations were unbelievable though, and the water and sponges and ice never ran out (even for a late starter like me). I believe there were a total of 5 aid stations per lap, perfect for a racer with a recent history of “melting”. Another good thing about the course was getting to see Erin 6 times on the run! She was easy to pick out with her new teal colored 70.3 world championship t-shirt and trademark pink running shorts.
The only bad thing about the run was I didn’t get to see any pro racers. Not a one, and honestly rarely did I see a runner flying past me. I think the fast guys were all done! I was cruising along just trying to get to the crest of that final hill. When at last I reached the top of the final 2 mile decent, I let the legs go. It was a blast. I crossed the line and into the athlete’s pizza tent happy with my performance. Run: 1:51:16
Total time was 5:23:45. Not my fastest, but not my slowest (albeit close!). Overall experience, Vegas is definitely a 5 star race. The course is fair and tough, and the support of the community and the volunteers were unmatched. The bike course finished in The District in Henderson, and every single street that the course crossed had 2 volunteers and a cop. That takes a serious commitment by the race organization, and the community. Thank you to all those who helped out, you were greatly appreciated.
The only downside would have to be the finish area. Spectators were left without means of purchasing food or water once they showed up at the finish line/run course. For a race in a desert, I don’t think it is smart to not have water or food available for purchase.
After dropping the bike off again at TBT (again, awesome service) we stopped by the Cheesecake factory and filled up on veggie burgers, quite possibly the best recovery food in history, Mac and Cheese, and a slice of turtle cheese cake. Before we knew it, we were back in Las Vegas airport heading back to the Pacific Northwest.
I fly out Monday morning for two weeks of fun in Illinois, but I am sure you will get some updates from Erin as she continues her training for a little race in the middle of the ocean on October 8th! Thanks for reading!
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