OMG…racing is back!
Technically speaking, there have been other races going on over the last few months, but June 5, 2021 marked a huge milestone in my racing book, as it was my first large race since August 2019.
Where to begin….
For starters, this was our first trip off our little island since February 2020. So there was quite a bit of travel anxiety leading up to the race. It felt like so long since we made a packing list, joined crowds on an airplane, and slept in a bed that wasn’t our own. But, we are pretty good at travelling, so I think we handled it in the only way we know how…plan, plan, plan…spreadsheet, spreadsheet, spreadsheet.
We flew into Kona, per the usual, and arrived on Thursday at around 4:30 PM. It was a much simpler process than we anticipated (feared). Hopefully by the time you read this, the pandemic will be over and all travel restrictions lifted. Due to the timing of the race and since we were vaccinated in Hawaii, we were able to simply sign up to our Safetravels account and show proof of vaccination, and then show our QR code to the airport security when we landed. The process took about 30 seconds longer than normal. Awesome!
Side Story: I received my new Bike Box Alan TT bike hard case literally hours before we left home, and I decided to unpack my bike at home, then repack it in my new bike case before we left for the airport. It was risky, but I figured that it was the best way to ensure I didnt forget any tools. I was excited to see my bike arrived just as I packed it, and it was so so so easy to put together when we got to the hotel (just needed to put on my wheels). Moving the bike case was really easy, and the whole thing felt so much sturdier than my Thule Roundtrip XT case. However, the BBA case is about 28lbs, so with my shoes, helmet, and pump, I was actually over the 50lb limit. However, I was lucky enough to pass both ways without paying extra (thanks Hawaiian Airlines). I also want to point out that you have to sign a waiver on Hawaiian Airlines now for your bike. If you print it out before hand (one copy each way), they might be more lenient.
Since the race location changed a bit this year, and car rental prices were kind of ridiculous, we decided to stay at the Fairmont Orchid and make use of their shuttle services. From the airport, the cab is a flat rate $78 each way (plus tip). You can request a van which has plenty of room for a bike, a few suitcases, and 3-4 people. We (i.e. Janell) set this up through the Fairmont concierge, and it went super smoothly (we didn’t have to wait at all). The drive to the Fairmont was about 30 minutes without traffic, and before we knew it, we were at our destination.
Another awesome thing we (Janell) set up was grocery delivery from Foodland Farms at the Shops at Mauna Lani. It is about 1 mile from the hotel, and there is a free shuttle from the hotel to the shops, but we needed water and food for a few days, so it was going to be hard to carry. We scheduled the delivery the day before through Foodland Farms website (first delivery was free), and they actually dropped off the food to the hotel lobby about 20 minutes after we checked in. Talk about perfect timing.
The only confusing part was that we weren’t allowed to use the bellman’s cart (covid times), so we ended up having them help us bring the food to the room. In hindsight, we could have avoided the extra walking and just called the bell desk to let them know the order was coming.
Since the hotel was rather empty, we even paid $50 a night extra to get upgraded to a suite. It was huge, and definitely worth it for that price point. In all honesty, Janell couldn’t hear the receptionist with the mask and plexiglass between them, and thought she said it was $15/night. Even at $50/night though, it was well worth it.
Pre-Race Festivities
Overall, I think Ironman should keep some of these time saving changes in future races. One of them is signing up for check-in slots. I actually had signed up for Friday at 10:00 AM, but ran into the expo as soon as we got to the hotel to grab my CO2 cartridge’s for my bike ride the next morning (they closed at 6:00 PM). The Expo was super empty, and they actually had me just do my check-in at that time. This worked out wonderfully because I didn’t have to wait, and it was one less thing to worry about on Friday. The check-in was the same as always, but there were temperature checks, sanitizing stations and questionnaires, etc. Besides that, the general process was the exact same as every other race.
Ironman also added a virtual athlete briefing video, rather than a large in person meeting. It was sent out race week and only 30 minutes long. I was able to watch it before I even left for the flight, so another thing we didn’t have to plan around. They did supplement the video with a few in person Q&A sessions (2 on Thursday and 2 on Friday) that were first come first served. I did not feel the need to attend those, but it was nice that they had them. This was in addition to a few special Q&A sessions with legend Mark Allen (also FCFS)
With the Athlete Briefing out of the way and Athlete check-in complete, all I had to do on Friday was drop off my bike bag, run bag, and check-in my bike. All of those things were done at the same time, and scheduled by age group (mine was 1:00-2:00 PM). This year, the swim course was actually at the Fairmont (more on that later), so this was a single transition race. Normally the bike drop and bike bag drop are at Hapuna Beach, about 5 miles North. This change was welcome as it made the logistics of the pre race festivities so simple.
We got settled into our room after we checked in, got our Foodland delivery, and then I put my bike wheels on and got ready for a shake out session the next morning.
Friday morning, I went for a pre-race swim. The swim course was new, and I had heard some things I didn’t like, so I wanted to make sure I was comfortable. I went out at the same time as my race start, about 6:45 AM, and found a few other swimmers to tag along with. The tricky sections were the start and finish, mainly because the opening to the lagoon was narrow, and shallow at parts. So I practiced that a few times and called it a day. The race bouys were not out yet, or I would have probably swam a little longer (I’ll explain why later).
After my swim, I hopped on my bike to make sure it was functioning properly and to ride over the new beginning part of the course. It was very windy, and I knew race day was going to be an adventure. After about 45 minutes, I shut it down, and it was time for breakfast.
After a few hours of lounging around, we made our way to the bike check-in and bag drop at 1:00 PM, which was located at the old T2. This was going to be the new location for T1 and T2 at this race.
Way more convenient! I didn’t needed anything in my bike bag, since we were allowed to leave our helmet and shoes on our bike (first time for that at this race). I ended up putting a bright bag in my swim bag to have something, since I needed a place to put my swim stuff after the swim.
I also gave my run bag (which I wouldn’t see again till entering T2), and racked my bike.
Previously, bike racking was first come first served. This year it was by number, but the numbers were random (no team or AWA advantage). My number was 530, which was close to the bags, but far from the transition exit (i.e. more time running with my bike). And just like that, it was time to relax and mentally get ready for race day.
Since the hotel was so convenient, I was able to wake up at 3:30 AM (slept 8 hrs!) and make my way to my bike at 4:30 AM (my age group designated time slot). It was much better and way less crowded with these scheduled times. Lots of bike pumps for use. As I walked around the area, I started to get psyched as I could really feel the race atmosphere waking up.
Since my swim start wasn’t till 6:42 AM, I had a lot of time to kill, so I did some laps in the hotel pool, and then sat in the hot tub for 10 min to warm up my body. This worked great, but it was still only 5:30, so I went back to the room to get ready. The race actually started at 6:20, so I planned on being at the staging area a little after 6:00 AM.
As Janell and I walked to the swim area, I felt like a warrior going to battle. I was ready for the day ahead. Fully locked in. It had been so long and I was so excited. We said our goodbyes as she went to enjoy malasadas and mimosas (thanks to the Fairmont), and I was on my way.
I waded in a near by water area, enjoyed the singing of the national anthem, and then had the floor fall from beneath me. I forgot my timing chip! I had laid everything out the night before, and then moved it into my bag in the morning before heading to check my bike, and totally forgot about it. So I ran. I ran to find Janell, to get the room key, to go get my timing chip, and then come back. People must have thought I had to take a huge dump!
But now I was fully warm…again.
Pro Tip: If I had just listened to the announcers, there were folks at the front of the race with extra timing chips, so it was all for nothing…at least I got to warm up again (there was no swim warm up area).
Swim
As I mentioned, there was no swim warm up. So I was lucky to get some swimming in at the pool a few hours earlier. I think this helped me to have perhaps my best 10 minutes of open water swimming ever! Due to social distancing, we had an age group rolling start, 3 athlete’s every 5 seconds. I was in the front of my group (it was self seeded), and didn’t think much of it. But I was lucky enough to start next to a decent swimmer, and I quickly realized that if I could stay on his feet or hip (something I never practice), I could trust him and pace with him. So off we went, and then we made the first bouy turn left. I was able to find him again after the turn for a little while, but then he was lost. I didn’t panic, and in fact I was able to hold that pace for a little longer. But then I found myself drifting in and out of focus, looking for fishes/turtles/sharks below. I was able to get back into it again once I remembered I was racing, and saw the next bouy come up. Then another, then another. I was having a decent rhythm.
Finally we hit the next turn bouy, a right hand turn. This is where things started to go down hill. The current appeared to have been at our backs this whole time, and once we made the turn, it was like a cross wind, pushing us left when we wanted to go right. This made for a round, almost circular turn around the next bouy, which was another right turn. But the circle felt like it kept going wide, and before I knew it, a group of us we swimming out to sea. I saw people on the far left of me and the far right, and I was very confused as to what direction I should swim. The easiest thing to do would be to locate the next bouy…only I couldn’t see it. It turns out, after that last turn, we were looking directly into the sun, and the bouys seemed to line up with the sun. Also, my shade of goggles made the red bouy turn black, which made them almost impossible to see. Needless to say, my rhythm was out of whack and I had to try as many tricks as I could to swim straight.
Eventually, I found a palm tree silhouette on the horizon that was able to guide me to the final turn, but the damage was done. The current kept pushing us back, the swells were more and more apparent, the sun was in our eyes. But, I was doing more passing than being passed. And when I got out of the water, a quick peek at my watch said I PR’d the swim by 3 minutes!
Swim: 36:09 (PR for non wetsuit)
T-1
The run from the swim finish to the transition area was about 300 meters along the shoreline path. Which was more than enough time to strip my swim skin and put on my folded tri-suit (something I practiced a lot in our backyard). All the practice paid off, and I was in and out of the transition area in no time. I decided to put my bike shoes behind my seat instead of being clipped in because the run from my rack location to the mount line was another 300 meters on grass and pavement. Luckily I have big straps on my shoes and was easily able to do this, and made sure to stay on the side while I put them on near the mount line. I have previously left my shoes clipped in, but after practicing it a few times, I felt it took longer for me to do that, than to just put them on regularly (I passed several guys in the beginning of the bike doing that, who left T1 before me).
Bike
I decided before the race that I was going to race by feel. I had power targets in mind, and I just bought a new Garmin 530 computer, but I wanted this first race back to be by feel. I think this both helped and hurt my race. As expected, from the first 5 minutes, you could tell it was going to be a challenging day. The wind was gusting inside the resort area, and I knew it would only get worse. I just didn’t figure worse would start so soon. While it isn’t “sexy”, I went with an aluminum climbing wheel in the front and a 90mm wheel in the back. This made my day seemingly much safer. However, I was still getting blown around from the wind. At the time I remember looking at other racers larger than me getting blown around, and getting in and out of aero position to hold on. Naturally, since I don’t ride outside enough, I simply followed. I am sure I got out more than necessary, and it cost me time in the end. Was I being safe? Yes. Could I have sucked it up? Yes. Later on I found out that the key is to actually ride faster and get more aerodynamic…the opposite of what I did.
All in all, it was a beautiful day for a bike ride and I was so happy to just be out there. This was another problem however, because just like in the swim, I was enjoying being outside racing so much, I wasn’t focusing on racing and pushing myself! I was disappointed to look back at my power profile, and despite a PR on the course by 3 minutes, was almost the exact same average and normalized power as in 2018. I could have pushed myself harder (which could have ended up poorly also), but ultimately I didn’t have the race mentality needed to commit to the suffering.
In the end, I was safe, had a blast, and still came away with a decent time considering the conditions.
Bike: 2:31:51 (PR on course)
T-2
The second time through transition was reverse of the first time. I did stumble a bit putting on my race number belt, which ended up being my Ultraspire run belt. I had to change my plan of carrying a hand held bottle because I left the tip of the bottle at home! Luckily I had packed another bottle type for training, and could use it instead. I probably lost 10 or so seconds in transition because of this.
Run
The run belt was something I have used for training for months. However, I never used it when wearing a trisuit. I quickly found out it was too big for my slippery suit, and ended up carrying my bottle after the first few miles because it was moving so much. I even ended up dropping the bottle at one point, and needed to go back to pick it up. Normally not a big deal, but you will see why it was in a bit.
My legs felt tired but ok to start the run. Running on grass is nice for training, but it makes you feel slooooow. I ran a decent first mile, and knew that I needed to back off a bit. The new layout for this run course was 3 loops around the golf course (2 loops in previous years). My plan was to focus on one loop at a time, starting conservative and then giving all I had in the last loop. I also ran blind, not checking my pacing once, but still getting the mile pace updates. The first lap was exactly as I wanted it to be. But when I thought about turning it up one click, I didn’t want to. So, I enjoyed myself again and just ran at a 6/7 RPE for the second lap. My times started to drop a little, but I was ok with that. Not a PR type of day I said. On the final lap, I tried to snap out of it and remembered that this was it, 66 miles done, 4.3 miles to go.
But as soon as I wanted to push one last time, I started to get side pains on both sides. My nutrition plan was starting to unravel, and I was intaking more calories than I could handle. I was so concerned with drinking my calories and electrolytes, and also eating gels, that I started to get too much in my stomach and needed a few brisk walk brakes.
Overall, I took water from every station, one in my mouth, one in my face, and two ice cups inside my jersey. I also grabbed three Maruten gels from the aid stations. But after my last gel, it was too much. So I had to slow down, and ultimately dumped my hydration bottle around mile 11.
This is where things get complicated in racing. The final few miles, you want to both finish the race and stop moving at the same time. Ironically, the sooner you finish, the sooner you can stop. But that means pushing harder. Then I was passed by one young male and then another shortly after. They looked like they could be in my age group, even though they had full grown beards. In fact, I was pretty sure I recognized one of them from social media. So I told myself, that each one of them had my Ironman 70.3 World Championship slot they were taking from me if I didn’t beat them. In 2018, the guy who finished one spot before me took the slot. Was this about to happen again?
I wanted to push, but only half heartedly. Even a high five and positive words from Ironman legend Dave Scott himself couldn’t push me though. My stomach hurt. It was almost over. I had no idea how close I was to any time goals. I knew I didn’t give everything I had on the swim and bike, and for most of the run. I made up my mind that it was ok to let them run away from me in the final mile. A decision I regret…again. I did push with whatever I had left to finish, but it was too late as they also pushed to the end.
I actually ended up close to my PR on the run course from Santa Cruz, which was previously my best 70.3 distance race overall. And that was on a much cooler, and much easier course.
Run: 1:41:07 (PR on course)
Finish/ Post Race
There are a few places that have a finish line as beautiful at the Honu. The cool Pacific Ocean right there to bring you back to earth, nice breezes, a beautiful hotel, and luckily for me a nice shower and some food.
This year they also gave pre packaged take away plates of food, with a selection of burgers, hotdogs, chicken salads (what I got), and a few other items. It was actually very good, but a little small.
We ended up needing to stop at Brown’s Deli to get my $6 Redbull, a post race tradition.
There was also no post race entertainment or awards ceremony like in previous years, again because of Covid. This made the suspense of roll down slots for the world championships very anxiety inducing.
Final: 4:57:55 11/75 AG, 39/1020 overall
Final Thoughts
This is a hard race to think about. From one perspective, it was exactly what I wanted and needed. I went into the race with no expectations (per my coaches orders). I had success in swimming more than ever before. I handled my bike well in the hardest conditions I have ever rode in. And I didn’t fall apart on the tough run course.
But, I am competitive, and I am disappointed that I didn’t have the fire needed to dig deeper on the run and make a statement. I missed 8th place by just 38 seconds. One thing I am going to work on in the future is continually reminding myself that I am racing myself and not others. Since we all start at different times, I need to push myself and myself only.
On a surprising and welcome note, I got an email a few days after the race saying that I qualified for both the 70.3 World Championship in St. George, Utah and the Ironman World Championship in KONA!!!! The Honu has slots for both races, and has Hawaii resident slots. I was lucky enough to get the second slot designated for my age group! That email made me happier than I had been in a long time.
We are so excited and looking forward to sharing the rest of our season with you, and will need to put in more work to make a statement at these big races.
Racing is back baby!
