Kansas 70.3 Recap

The Swim: Well for some reason I was not that nervous for the swim and was actually pretty calm while waiting to get in the water and even calmer treading water waiting to go. So I sat there treading water pretty relaxed warming up my wetsuit, it is so much easier to pee in the water while waiting then while you are actually swimming. New fan of in water starts.

The start area in the water had a wide starting gate and I was not feeling crammed in at all. When things started that was a different story, the first couple of hundred yards things were pretty brutal as everyone tried to figure out where to fall in line. I tried to just find my rhythm and settle in and swim. There were a ton of buoys on the course so it was fairly easy to stay straight. The swim consisted of only three turns but the longer lines out from the beach and back in seemed like they would never end. I was definitely ready to get out of the water by the time the finish came in sight. Swim Time 35:00.

T1: The transitions were the tightest I have ever dealt with, I ended up having to hang my bike by the XLab water bottle holder as I couldn't get my bike under the bar to hang it by the seat and it was to tight to hang by the brakes. My age group was right by the swim exit which turned out to be a huge blessing as there was a ton of gravel and I could run what seemed like a mile through transition with my shoes on. Wetsuit came right off with no sitting down and everything was pretty uneventful. Time 2:25

Bike: The start of the bike was through the entrance of the park which I knew had some gradual hills so I just tried to get in a smooth rhythm and get moving. I was a bit chilly at the onset as it was cloudy and a bit drizzly but warmed up once I dried off a bit. As I started to hit the hills I made sure to pedal through the crest and continue to build up speed on the downhills as this was key to passing folks on the inclines. Once we hit the main road things became quite congested. As my age group was the second to last wave to go there were quite a few folks out on the course. The hills were tough and the packed roads didn't help as you were navigating around folks going 40 mph down the hill. I enjoyed the bike as the hills were tough but better than just out cranking away as they broke it up a bit. I was very happy with my time on this course as there were quite a few tough climbs. Time: 2:33:27

T2: Once again I was right by the entrance of transition (this race had two separate transitions which I am not a fan of, considering they were about a mile a part and when you forget something makes for a fun walk). T2 was quick and easy, I actually sat down to put my shoes on as I didn't want the sole to bunch up as they did in Tri Shark. Time: 1:36

Run: I am not sure what happens to me on the run but I made improvements on this course. My legs felt good coming off the bike which was a surprise as my right hamstring was a bit tight for the last 5 miles or so on the bike. The plan was to take a GU every 30 minutes on the run. I was feeling pretty good up until mile 5 or so but could really start to feel my stomach. Could hear the water sloshing around so opted to pass on the GU's for the rest of the run but continue with small amounts of water or Gatorade. I struggled a bit on the last 4 miles but new I could end up with a decent time so just pushed on. The last mile seemed like it was 4 miles long but was so happy to see the finishing gate (they had a super nice finish line), once I hit the gate I was able to pass a guy in the chute which is always fun. Time: 1:49:33

Total Time: 5:02:01

Once the race was done my legs were shot and could tell it was going to be a rough 8 hour drive home. I was afraid that if I sat down I was not going to get up. I downed a water and diet cola, which in hindsight was not a good idea as it almost came back up. I had to wait around for my T1 bag to be brought up so had some time to kill. Decided to grab the bike and stuff from T2 take the journey to the car and grab a quick shower in the outdoor showers at the on site campground, even I don't want to smell myself during the drive home. After showering and packing the car took the mile journey back to pick up my bag and hit the road.

This was a good race, I had a goal going into it of 5:09 was questioning that after listening to Rick and Ryan describe the bike course after they drove it on Saturday. I am very pleased with my time but know I can go faster and go sub 5. The run was a struggle and would love to get that down to a 7:45 average. Had a great time in KC hangin out with Nate Friday night and was glad to do something of that distance compared to the sprints I have been doing. Now time to recover the rest of today and get back in the pool tomorrow. No races on the schedule until Steelhead in August so need to make sure I am getting in some long rides every weekend in July.