Kissimmee, FL - May 16, 2010
40:40 Swim (2:06 / 100 M)
4:16 T1
2:35:59 (21.5 MPH)
2:56 T2
2:28:39 (11:21 min/Mi)
Total 5:52:29
148th out of 348 in AG
729th out of 2450 signed, 2017 who raced
My first 70.3 ever !!! Two days after my 41st B-Day.
It was awesome. What a place for my very first half-ironman. Disney World.
We arrived the day before (not a good idea, as I came to realize). We spent the entire day running around, getting settled in our hotel, then heading to the race site, to get my bike, get checked in, etc... We didn’t to eat all day. We finally had dinner at 8:30 pm, and didn’t get to sleep until after 11:00 pm. Next time we will make sure to arrive two or three days earlier.
Race morning came fast, as I was extremely excited for it. Got to the race site early, got my transition area set up, and then waited for the start. There were over 2000 competitors, over 20 waves.
The swim went well. I made sure to take it slow. It was nice, as i took to sightseeing as I swam. It was quite crowded, as the waves were only 3 min apart. But I was able to find some open room, and found a good rhythm. Wetsuit was not allowed, as the temperature was quite warm.
The run to T1 was very long, with lots of sand and dirt. My feet were all muddy as I got to my bike. It took me quite a long time to get my feet cleaned, get the socks and shoes on. And I was off.
As I was about to mount the bike, I noticed the strap to the aero bottle came loose and therefore the bottle was completely loose. I would end up having to hold the bottle with my hands/forearm the whole race.
For the bike, all I remembered was my coach Aaron telling me to “Slow Down !!!”. And I did. I kept a very easy zone 2 pace, except for the last 12-15 Miles, when the strong head wind made for a difficult finish. The ride was mostly flat, and very nice. I realized after the fact that I did not fuel very well... I consumed only 1 bottle of Gatorade and 1 water for the whole bike, and stopped taking my Gu’s after mile 45. It would come back to bite me later in the run. I ended up with a 21.5 MPH.
T2 was a lot faster than T1, as I felt good and ready for the run. But maybe too good for my own good. Not knowing what to expect from a half marathon after biking 56 miles plus swimming 1.2 miles, I started my run way too fast. I averaged between 8:30 and 8:45 min/mile for the first 3 miles. The weather was extremely hot and humid, and the 3 loop course took us through the trails with no shade and no wind. I blew up soon after. Again, I forgot to eat during the run completely... that probably didn’t help :) The second and third loop were extremely hard, especially during the trails. I walked every aid station, trying to hydrate and cool my core. I was exhausted. That finish line couldn’t come soon enough.
Soon after crossing the finish line, I sat down and rested for a while. As I tried to get up, I got dizzy. It took me another 15-20 min to get up and get out of the finish line area. A few steps after reaching Jenna, I had to sit again. I tried to get up to go get food a few min later, but again, couldn’t. Was getting dizzy each time. Jenna had to get me food and a Coke. Finally after eating, drinking and resting for quite a while, I felt good enough to get up, go gather my bike and equipment, and go.
After a long deserved night, the next few days at Disney were really fun !!!