2014 Ironman 70.3 St. George Utah

Ironman 70.3 distance triathlons are fun…..I mean really fun.  They are long enough to make them tough, but at the same time you can really push it knowing you won’t be out all day like an Ironman.  Two  weekends ago I competed in my 8^th Half Ironman.  This was the hilliest half ironman course I have raced.   St. George puts on a great race.  First of all, the course is awesome.  Second there are are so many awesome volunteers that make the whole experience what it is.  Last you get to finish in a cool little small town center.  Not to mention that part of Utah is breathtakingly beautiful.

It all began  when we departed San Diego after work on Wednesday.  We didn’t hit a lot of traffic and arrived in Vegas at 11PM.  Went straight to sleep to wake up early and run the strip.  Packed up and hit the road for St. George.   After cruising the 4 corners area and the beautiful Virgin River Gorge we arrived in St. George around noon.  It had already gotten quite hot and the winds were blowing.  I love the dry desert breezes.   After checking into our hotel room we headed over to St. George town square to register for the race and check out the expo.  St. George has an awesome town square where T2 occurs and the race ends.   There are water parks for the kids and plenty of places to chill and watch the race.  As usual, Ironman puts on a well-run show.  Registration was usual.  ID checked, waivers signed, bags filled, timing chips checked, and we were off to shop.  Got my usual work shirt and pint glass.  Expo was cool but it was getting hot and we wanted to explore St. George.    

St. George is a small town located at the south end of Utah.  We had stayed here before but only as a place to crash on the way to either SLC or Colorado.   There is a lot of hills and mountains and little trees in the area which make for some great views.   Later in the day we met up with my buddy, Jeff Lyles.  This was his first triathlon ever.  Man did he pick a tough one for a first race.

Kasia and I had planned on having a chill day before the race to go for a cruise on the bikes and a swim in the lake.  We woke up to a perfectly beautiful Utah morning with little winds so I left my arm warmers at the hotel and headed out toward Snow Canyon where the toughest climb of the race is located.  Ended up right at the base of the big climb but decided to leave it for race day.  We headed back to the hotel to change and grab our wetsuits and then headed out to Sandy Hollow Lake Reservoir for a little practice swim.  The lake is located about 15 miles outside of town.  We would have to head out to the lake later that day to drop our bikes off at T1.  The lake has these cool little islands that you have to swim around during the race.  For the practice swim we swam out to a couple of the islands and got out on them to explore the lake.  The water was clear so you could see the rock disappearing into the depths. 

After a little fun we headed back into town to get Jeff registered.  The expo had a little more people than the previous day.  Listened to the last pre-race briefing at 3PM then got our bikes and headed back out to the lake to drop them off.  Ate an early dinner, packed up all of gear bags, and headed to bed. 

Alarm went off shortly after 3 AM.  Got our breakfast, checked out of our hotel, and headed down to T2 to catch the buses out to the lake.  The bus driver had some country music on as we headed out to the lake in the pre-dawn darkness.  I managed to catch a little shut eye on the 20 minute ride out to the lake.  Got our tires pumped up and our bikes ready then headed over the lake to watch the pros and waves start.  There was a cool quad copter hovering above everything all day filming the race.  Hopefully they release some of the footage.    They had wave starts so the swim was absolutely awesome and gave each wave three minutes to get out to the red buoys (start line).    Overall, my swim was great. 

Swim split – 32:57

Got on my bike stoked.  Now it was early morning, wind was calm, and I felt good. 

The road circles around the lake to the first big climb.  The roads are a bit rougher in Utah but then again they have real winters with snow.  My plan was ride and fuel.  I loaded up with Cytomax, Cytomax drops, salt tabs, Barnanas, and some vanilla wafers. This bike course is by no means flat.  Utah is pretty and this bike course is awesome.  I loved it………especially when I got into town and things started to become familiar.  Before I knew it I was on the same part of the road I was riding the day before during my pre-ride.  The toughest most beautiful part of the course was yet to come and I was ready to take it on.  I was hydrated and fueled and pushing it as much as I could.  As I entered Snow Canyon I was stoked with seeing the awesome cliff wall and white mountains in the back ground.  This part of the course is super sic.  The views inspired me to continue the tough climb.  

It is a continuous tough climb but I knew at the top it would be all downhill to T2.  I crested the top of the climb I shifted down to my heaviest gear and started to let gravity do its job.  The descent felt great.  It was a welcome break after the tough climb up Snow Canyon.   T2 came before I knew it. 

Run time.  Bike Split – 2:43 Averaged 20.61 MPH  (Not bad for 4K of climbing)

Now it was time to run.  I ran in my Hokas due to a lingering foot injury.  Training for the Tahoe 100 this July has its side effects.  Good news is my foot felt great due to some R.I.C.E.  and love from my Hokas.  The run was also hilly but not as tough as the trails I have been training on.  The run went by a lookout place Kasia and I checked out the first night we got into town (Big Rock with Dixie painted on it).  The road is right above town along a ridge line.  The same quad copter that was at the start was out filming here too which made for some fun sightseeing.    I decided to take a hand bottle along for the run and kept filling it with ice and water at each aid station.  That was a good move and I was glad I did since it was heating up by then.  As I was headed back into town I saw Kasia.  She stopped and gave me a kiss.  I am lucky to be able to share in the experience with her.  She continues to amaze me.  She always has a good run and always seems to be in a good mood.  I was happy to see her running.  I knew she would do great.  Now I needed to push it and finish this thing up.  With 4 miles to go and mostly downhill l really started to push it.  To the point of making myself sick.  But I love it.  There is something about this racing thing that has me hooked.  I enjoy suffering in a weird way but then again, so did the other 2000 or so people racing with me. 

When I got into town I knew I would not break 5 hours but I was close.  My best time on this distance is 4:58 at Oceanside.  I would not beat that time but I knew I raced a better race.  This was by far my best effort at this distance on the toughest half ironman course I have ever raced.  Good times. 

Run Split – 1:43:11

It took a few minutes sitting down on a bench to get my bearings straight after finishing.  Felt good to be done.   The park was packed with people and kids.  The warmth felt good.  Took a quick splash in the water park and sat on a bench for a bit and took in the moment.  It was starting to get hot.  I wondered where Kasia and Jeff were and how they were doing.  One of my teammates on the Nytro Men’s team, Cassio Debiasi,  crushed it and went 4:37.  Way to go Cassio!!

My total time  - 5:06

All in all we loved Ironman St. George.  It is an awesome course and is very beautiful.   I would definitely do this race again. For now I am going to focus on ultras for the next couple months.  This past weekend Kasia and I both ran the PCT50 east of San Diego.  This was  our second time racing that distance.   I ran it on my own and crushed it.   Look for another race report on that one shortly. 

BTW:  On the way home we hit up Bachi Burger in Las Vegas to refuel and were not disappointed.  They make killer burgers and had Sierra Torpedo IPA on tap. 

2014 Xterra West Championship Race Report

Sunday April 13, 2014   Lake Las Vegas, Nevada

Like racing on the moon……that was the text printed on the front of the Xterra race guide we picked up at check in.  Kasia and I were pumped to head to Vegas for the weekend and test our luck at Xterra.  Las Vegas is definitely one of the most amazing cities in the world; like an adult playground with anything you want….including some fun off-road triathlon.  Xterra triathlons are to me the most fun and exciting triathlon type by far.  A swim (1500 meters) mountain bike (30k) and trail run (10k).   The best part is being on the dirt and trails.

Got to Vegas late Friday night and checked into our hotel.  Next morning loaded up the truck for Lake Las Vegas for some course recon.  We have raced here before back in 2011.  The course is slick.  There are no trees, steep climbs, and loose dirt.  Not the sticky kind but the kind that makes you real unsure in the turns.  While pre-riding the course I noticed at about every turn a wheel track heading off trail.  The air was hot and dry and felt good.  The only worry was the water temp.  Saturday they said it was 54 and wetsuits were mandatory.  After checking in and pre-riding the course we opted out of a pre-swim and headed back to our hotel in Las Vegas.  I had swam in cold water before and was prepared thanks to my new Matuse wetsuit.

Last time we raced we stayed out in Lake Las Vegas and really didn’t like it.  It is nice, but dead out there.  Golf courses, hotels, and houses…..that’s about it.  Not a lot of food choices either.  This time we stayed downtown and loved it.  We ate dinner and headed back to the room to prepare and rest for the following day.  Xterra starts after 8AM so there was no need to set the alarm clock too early. 

We woke up to strong winds.  Winds at dawn usually mean it will be a windy day.  After checking out and loading the car we were off to Lake Las Vegas.    It was windy!  At least I would not have to go aero out on the road and get beat up.  After setting up transition and saying hi to Greg and his wife we headed down to the swim start.  This was Greg’s first Xterra and he loved it.  He will definitely be back for more. 

Kasia did the sprint triathlon so she went off right after the pro’s.  I got to watch her get used to the water temp, practice swim, and then head off.  I love that they use a small little cannon like Ironman to start each wave.  After she headed out on her swim I got in the water to warm up.  To my liking the water was not that cold.  The wetsuit felt awesome.  We have swam in much colder.  I bet it was 58 or so.  Swim was good but it was tough to sight due to the rising sun.  I always say the swim is the easy part.  It is not my strongest part but I enjoy it and always feel fresh.   I knew I was nowhere near the front of the swim so I was content to race my race and have a good time.  As I was approaching the beach I was getting excited to get on my bike and hit the dirt.  Before I knew it I was running up stairs to the bike transition.  

Getting on the bike is always a good time, especially in a race.  The feeling of leaving transition still wet and fresh feels amazing.  Something I will always love.   After a short stint of road I was on dirt and loving it.  The wind was strong once we left the protection of the buildings…..blowing gusts of dirt in everyone’s faces.  The first half of the course has the toughest climbs.   Climbing is on ridge lines and everyone was getting blown all over the place.   The wind was sucking all the moisture out of me.  I decided to carry two liters of Cytomax and was I glad I did.  I drank it all and grabbed two water bottles on course.   It was dry and hot, not something I was used to living in San Diego.  But it was fun and I liked it.  After the climbs in the early part of the race you descend into a wash that is filled with sand.  Kasia took a spill here while pre-riding the course the day before.  My 29 inch wheels really helped keep momentum during this part of the course.  Picking the right line was key.  Out of the canyon, a couple more climbs, then some sweet single track next to the lake.  

Got through the first loop and was ready for the second.  I kept reminding myself to take it easy in the turns and not fall.  I guess I jinxed myself.  Just as I finished the big climb on my second loop I crashed on the downhill.  It happened so fast.  My front tire slipped out in the turn.  It knocked the wind out of me and I was still clipped into the bike as I came to a sliding stop on my right side.  It was a tight race course so immediately I was worried about people running me over.  I was lying in the middle of the trail.  I clipped out and moved over the side.  It took a few minutes to get my wits about me.  Bars and saddle were twisted but bike was ok.  Moved the saddle straight and checked myself out.  My right forearm was bleeding and my right shoulder/back was hurting along with my hip.  I also ripped a hole in my brand new Nytro Breakaway tri kit shorts……grrrrrrrrr.  Got back on the saddle and continued on.  This is the first time I have crashed in a race before.  It sucks. I sprained my left wrist in Utah early this seasons snowboarding and this fall re-injured it a bit.  The second lap was tough but I managed to ride the rest of the course and head into T2.  I drank every bit of liquid I had on me.  This lap was definitely not as good as the first one.

My wife and I have been training for the upcoming PCT 50 and Tahoe Rim 100 mile race so I was stoked to get running.  When I got into T2 Kasia was there taking pictures.  She had already finished her race and was now cheering me on.  I decided to take my water bottle with me since it was so dry, hot and windy.  I was glad since aid stations were spread out by a couple miles.  I felt good starting the run but as I started to climb I could feel my hamstrings tightening up.  At first I thought nothing of it but it quickly changed to a full blown cramp.  First my left hamstring cramped, then my right.  I had to stop running and stretch.  Cramps suck and hurt too.   I definitely did not take enough electrolytes on the bike and was now paying for it.  Standing there watching people run by sucks bad.  After a few minutes they released and I started to walk up the hill.  I like challenges and this was one of them.  I felt good energy wise and the hills were not too hard to run, my body was just not cooperating.  As I reached the top of the first climb I started to run again and thankfully did not have any other cramps.  When I reached mile 3 I really started to feel good.    The rest of the run was great and I had no more cramps. 

Compared to recent events this was over in a blink of an eye.  When I got to the finish line Kasia was there taking pictures.  I was bummed I missed her medal ceremonies.  She got 1^st place in her age group in the sprint race.   Even though she was terrified of the bike, she pushed through and gave it her all and ended up bringing home our only medal.  I am really proud of her and what she has accomplished.  Without her support and determination we wouldn't get half the stuff we do done. 

I ended up 15 of 19 in my age group.  Not my best performance but after the crash and the cramps I was glad I was able to finish and live to race another day.  I gave it my all and never gave up.  This was my first crash in a race and probably won’t be the last. 

Swim :29:29  Bike 1:51:36 Run 1:00:51  Total: 3:21:56

It really makes me want to get better at mountain biking and trail running.  Xterra races are by far my favorite and I look forward to the next one.  For now I have Ironman St. George in little over a week.  Cannot wait to be back racing in the desert.