"Preparedness makes us powerful..." - The Prodigy, The Fat of the Land.
"Pride goes before a fall." - ancient Hebrew proverb.
Big Kahuna was my first official triathlon and marked the end of my first Team In Training season in 2005. In that race, we swam only on the south side of the Santa Cruz pier instead of around it (due to pollution/algae growth) and one of my aerobars came loose and became unusable during the bike ride. I hoped to avoid such problems at this attempt, but as this season has taught me, anything can happen...
My preparation was less than stellar. I managed to avoid boozing during a trip to Ireland and London two weeks before the race date (apologies folks!) and do some running while I was there. However I could not shake a head cold (or maybe allergy symptoms) that returned after my visit to Folsom, my local pool was closed the preceding week and my last bike ride was three weeks before the race...It is also definitely not recommended practice to attend (and stand/dance at) a 4+ hour long concert, about 24 hours before a half ironman. But enough whining - I was lucky to be able to race at all. Three of our five person group were forced to drop out due to illness/injury, some of the folks who raced were fighting cancer and there was even a blind competitor.
Swim: I got into the athlete corral early which allowed me to get a prime spot on the start line (sharing bouy navigation thoughts with Michellie Jones, "the winningest triathlete in history"!). My entry into the water was pretty clean (Santa Cruz beach is a little shallow in spots so avoiding bumping or scraping on that first dive is important - if you pause, someone will charge over you). After I eased off and the Elites cruised by, I felt reasonnably comfortable. The overcast morning helped sighting as did the pier; it's tough to miss. :-) I decided to stick to my own route rather than try to draft with the pack (which, as ever, was not taking a straight line to each buoy...). The tide was coming in but there was little surf so exit to the beach was straightforward.
T1: was okay. Stripping off my wetsuit as soon as I cleared the beach, before the 'suit got a chance to dry, worked out but I might have been quicker, running without my arms full.
Bike: As triathlon distances increase, the bike section becomes progressively more important. It's the longest portion of the event (both in distance and in terms of time spent) and no matter how strong a runner you are, if your legs are done after the bike, then so is your race.
I felt okay for about the first quarter of the bike segment but I was progressively less comfortable as I approached the turnaround (I reached it in about 80 minutes). After I turned for home my legs just gave up; I could no longer stay in the aero position and my shifting and pace maintenance fell apart.
The bike course was made slightly more pleasant by Elite competitor and age group winner, Lesley Paterson, and her roving supporter. We leapfrogged several times before she left me for dead on a(nother) climb. :-)
A dumb nutrition mistake was to put an ice pack in the same container as my energy gels. Congealed sugary lumps do not a gourmet meal make.
T2: was quick. Getting a "first come first served" spot at 5am paid dividends (and made up for needing to re-apply sunscreen...).
Run: If I had been able to maintain my Big Kahuna 2005 pace (which was my first race after breaking my leg - I missed most of run workouts that season) I would have finished about five minutes faster. Even my Wildflower 2007 run split was better and that course is much hillier, was hotter and I was out on the bike course for nearly an hour longer! At Big Kahuna this time, my legs just didn't have enough left, and mentally I was already beating myself up for my self-imposed handicaps. I walked every aid station and much of the course in between, especially on the return leg.
This race served as a stark reminder that neither gear nor experience trump training and preparation, that half ironman triathlon is an entirely different prospect to Olympic distance racing and that the biggest obstacle to overcome is always that person in the mirror. (Common sense might scream all this but arrogance can cloud good judgment).
I need to start weight lifting and making brick workouts a regular part of my bike routine (and I need to have a "bike routine"). Trying caffeinated gels (if I can find a flavor I like) is required research. I should also consider a heart rate monitor and bike speedometer - I don't think I'm good enough at racing based on "how I feel". A more comfortable saddle might be a worthwhile investment too.
Results: overall, age group. My bib number was 676 (even though it's not listed...)
Official photos: start (Michellie and I on right side), all.
PS Apologies if this post is a even more self centered and introspective than normal. When cocky-Luke returns to read this later, I need him to remember how this went down and learn from his mistakes.
PPS In 2005 about 580 people completed Big Kahuna. The 2007 results list 815 finishers. 40% growth in two years ain't bad!
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