Ironman 70.3 Arizona 2023 - plan and race report

 IRONMAN 70.3 ARIZONA 2023 (Skip down further for race report)

Predicted Splits:

SWIM - 35:00 (32:01 in 2019)

T1 - 06:00 (8:32 in 2019)

BIKE - 3:15:00 (2:51:39 in 2019)

T2 - 04:00 (4:14 in 2019)

RUN - 2:55:00 (2:09:49 in 2019)

TOTAL - 6:55:00 (5:46:12 in 2019)

Pre-race

Mom and I are driving to Arizona early Friday for this Sunday race. This race follows Salem 70.3 which was 12 weeks ago. My run was a very disappointing 3:16 in Salem. Training for me has been the most consistent for the run the last during the last few weeks, although long runs have been shortened in favor of running more frequently. The Arizona air temp is expected to be 95°on race day but I didn’t have an opportunity to heat acclimate. There is not really any shade on this course, unlike at Salem. With that in mind, I wouldn’t be surprised if the run takes over 3 hours.

The swim, on the other hand? At this point the water is 80°: VERY warm and wetsuit optional. I won’t be wearing a wetsuit and if that temp holds I’ll still probably overheat a little, which will have an affect on performance. The swim exit is fairly close to transition this year, not the more than ¼ mile distance it has been in the past. T1 should take much less time.

The ride tends to be surprisingly fast considering it’s a “technical” course, unlike any other that I’ve seen. It’s 3 laps and each lap contains five 180° turns, plus a number of right and left turns. I’m hoping for the ride to take a little longer than the ride in Salem but I don’t know how realistic that is. I have gotten my longer training rides in, although I missed a few shorter rides in order to get the longer ones in during the week when I was traveling or working on the weekend.

I still have the goal of finishing under 7 hours, just like in Oregon. The conditions will make even this a challenge so I will, as always, be happy if I race to the limits of my current abilities. I intend to race with a feeling of joy, and an appreciation for the volunteers. And I’ll race with gratitude: for my mom being with me, for my so supportive wife, for all the wonderful people who have been a part of my triathlon life over the years, and for still being able to do this during my 67th year.

—------------------------------

Someone asked me about my nutrition plan, so here it is, with limited explanation/justification. As I usually tell my athletes, don’t leave your nutrition to chance. Winging it is not smart. (Note: I race with caffeine so I have been off of it for over 2 weeks in order to obtain the most benefit from it.):

1 day before race: normal b’fast; Salmon burrito from Rubio’s for lunch; protein, carbs, and fat in the form of a blended shake/smoothie for dinner (this is to limit waste in the digestive tract and speed up emptying).

Race morning, pre-race: same blended shake/smoothie as last night along with half a bagel. No psyllium. Drink water with some electrolyte on site at the race. Consume one UCAN Edge gel ~30 min prior to the swim.

T1: 2 UCAN Edge gels (140 cal.) + water

Bike: My aero bottle holds 24oz+ of water and 1 NUUN electrolytes tab. I will refill it with water at 2 aid stations. My Speedfil bottle, mounted in the frame, holds about 40 oz. It will hold 2 x 320 cal of Maurten’s powder mixed with 34 oz water + 4 SaltStick capsules that have been opened and emptied into it. That’s 640 cal and 860 mg of salt. Total calories, including T1 = 780 cal. In my bento bag I’ll carry an extra 200 cal in a Clif Blox package. I also have the option of grabbing a gel or gels at the aid stations.

T2: I will consume 5 tablets of Perfect Amino brand tablets and 1.5 caffeine tabs, all crushed into powder and consumed with water.

Run: I intend to take a Maurten’s gel from the aid stations at miles 1,4,7, and 10 or more frequently if needed. The idea is to take in about 100 cal every half hour. I’ll carry SaltStick brand Fast Chews and aim to consume 2 around the time of each gel. I’ll also carry some Base Salt with me just in case. I also know that Red Bull is available at the aid stations and this is well tolerated. 

MORNING SCHEDULE

(5-6:30 Transition open)

3:45 Breakfast, bathroom

4:45 leave hotel

4:55 Park in structure

5:15 To transition - lay out stuff, check tires, add air, add nutrition to bike, bathroom, wetsuit, swim warm up,

6:20 swim start (no pros)

Race Report

Saturday I rode my bike after breakfast for about 15 min. I crossed my fingers that the battery for shifting would last long enough during the race since my charger didn’t seem to work. It also turned out that I lost my sunglasses after the ride so I hoped it wouldn’t matter that much to not have them for the race. I didn’t want to go look to buy a new pair late in the day - I needed rest more! When I turned in my bike they were telling people to let some air out of your tires because the heat and sun were popping inner tubes as they heated up on the rack. When I left my bike (with blazing sun beating on it) I hoped I had let out enough air but brought extra inner tubes race morning just in case. I had shifted into an easy gear in prep for the start and we headed for lunch at Rubio’s as planned. I got a Langostino Lobster bowl instead of a salmon burrito - muy delicioso!

I got up on race morning at 4:11, 26 minutes late! I’d set the alarm for 3:45… for Tuesday! Mom saved the day. I quickly mixed my blender breakfast, used the bathroom, and got ready to go. We were only 5 minutes behind schedule, though I was short on bathroom visits. We parked in the parking structure for the first time and made the short walk to the park and transition. There were no lines at the first portapotties so I chose to immediately take advantage. 

Did my thing in transition while Mom waited outside - refilled my tires, placed nutrition, set up my stuff on the ground and went to meet Mom and go to the swim start. The start was from the boat rental docks, very convenient compared to where recent starts took place. The exit was right there too so we didn’t have a ¼ mile + run to get to the bike.

The water was a warm but more mild 74.9° than the 80 I saw online. I decided to wear a sleeveless wetsuit anyway because the leg buoyancy would help my deteriorating swim, the slick surface would help me swim a bit faster, taking this wetsuit off would be quick and easy, and I could swim without the small amount of drag that a tri kit creates. I lined up near the front of the athletes, being about 110th to start, at 6:24 am. (They sent 2 at a time, 5 sec apart.) The swim went fine, only swallowing 3 gulps of water total. I was able to draft behind someone for about 6 or 800 meters on the first part of the swim. Before half way my legs felt somewhat heavy/fatigued but I chose to ignore that and focus on the task, hoping the feeling would go away. It did.

SWIM SPLIT - 34:44 (predicted 35:00)

Exiting the water was pretty easy, especially when compared to the stairs they used to use for Ironman Arizona. Walked and jogged to transition. As I began to wheel my bike to the “bike out” I realized I had failed to fill the aero bottle with water. My 2 NUUN electrolyte tabs were in there but nothing else. I went back to my stuff, grabbed a water bottles and filled up the reservoir. I walked my bike to the mountline, feeling a little too unsteady in bike shoes, to run or jog.

TRANSITION 1 SPLIT - 9:07 (predicted 6:00)

Got out onto the “technical” bike course and gradually settled into the ride, immediately taking in water with electrolytes and liquid calories. This course is 3 laps, all within the town of Tempe. Each lap has FIVE 180° turns and many more rights and lefts. Given that, it is surprisingly fast. I rode this turn-happy, sometimes undulating course mostly in the small chainring, shifting often. Twice I went into the big ring, the second time I managed to drop my chain. It was on the best little downhill of the ride so I coast down to the bottom and stop to fix it. As I was, a roving bike mechanic pulled up to help me, not 10 sec after I’d stopped. We got the chain on and then he gave me a nice push up the hill that followed the downhill. I was very grateful for his help! At about mile 30 I felt some fatigue similar to what I felt during the swim. I didn’t think that boded well for the rest of the race but of course I let the thoughts go and just kept going.

There were 2 aid stations per lap, double what most 70.3’s have. Getting the handoff of a water bottle at the 2nd station and being very unsteady as I refilled the aero bottle, I decided I was no longer able to do all of that without stopping. For the remainder of the ride, I stopped twice more when I got water. I felt the need to pee with about 3 miles to go. To me that indicated good hydration. I had less than 6 oz. of liquid nutrition left, so I think I did a good job fueling.

BIKE SPLIT - 3:13:57, average pace 17.43 mph (predicted 3:10)

When I got off the bike, my lower back hurt some, so it took walking the bike back to the rack for me to straighten up and to feel passable. I racked the bike and sat down to remove shoes from my grass-covered feet, spray Aquaphor on my toes, put socks and shoes on, and get my race belt on (which I had to go back for it when I forgot it iwhen I did this race 5 years ago). Last time I was able to pee on the grass as I sat there but not this time. Used the portapotty and then got out of transition.

TRANSITION 2 SPLIT - 8:45 including portapotty stop(predicted 4:00) 

The temperature was over 90° at this point, with an eventual high of 99°f., which became the toughest thing to deal with and manage. I had 2 instant ice packs (the kind used in 1st aid) stashed in my waist that I was gonna burst open to quickly turn cold when I needed them. I walked and “ran”, alternating randomly, trying to get it going. It was already feeling hot, much more than on the bike where you at least get some cooling from the riding, whether there’s a wind or not. Both attempts to use the ice packs after breaking their inner seals failed. There was supposed to be very little shade, which was the case. There was shade in the shadows of some buildings and the sparse trees along the lake. When I could run I ran in the sun and walked in the shade. I also dealt with the heat by getting 2 cups of ice into my hat and carrying a 3rd cup with me to chew into a slushy at every aid station. (Ironman did a GREAT job making sure each aid station was well-stocked with ice.

I abandoned my nutrition plan right away. With all the heat and sun I didn’t think I could stomach the Maurten gels on the course. Instead, the Gatorade Endurance, especially when it was cold, was much more appealing. I pretty much took in 1 or 2 cups each mile. 

My body felt fatigued and my legs were heavy. The running, especially during the 2nd of 2 loops, seemed more like a shuffle. The only metric I monitored was heart rate. I noticed that even walked keep my HR in Zone 2 and for awhile I would run until HR got near Zone 3 before walking again. Eventually I basically ignored HR and tried to run when I thought I could. Sometimes that ended up being 3 or 4 steps and then walking again because it felt too hard to run. I did manage to drop 5 or 6 lbs since Oregon so I was 15 lbs over race weight instead of 20!

RUN SPLIT - 3:51:05, 17:06 average mile pace (hoped for 2:55)

I saw Mom about 6 different times altogether during the race and that made me very happy. A couple of those times she was trying to figure out where I was by the tracker and didn’t look up even when I shouted to her. She did meet a random nice guy, whose wife was racing, to help her figure out where I was and when I was coming. She did a great job, hanging in there from before the start all the way to the 2:21pm finish and the hour recovery that followed. The race announcer did a fine job with announcing, including giving my name and mentioning that I was “67 years young”.

FINAL TIME - 7:57:35 (hoped for 6:55:00)

Here’s a paragraph that I originally left out, probably because it's a TMI, but I’ll try to be delicate - here it is. During the run for the last few races, I’ve felt the urge to go #1. As I get to an aid station I go into the portapotty and stand there while nothing happens. Finally I give up and continue running. At the next aid station a mile away I feel I need to go again. I waste more time in the portapotty, standing and waiting, but nothing to happens. This continues to happen. And it happened at Kona last year and IM California, and at a race or 2 before that. Fed up, I decided to let it trickle while I was walking and that worked! It probably helped that it was hot and dry out and that in reality it wasn’t actually a full bladder even though the natural urge was there. I did it 4 or 5 times, each time waiting until I was close to an aid station. I’d let it trickle and the grab a half cup of water, pull out my waistband,  and pour it down to keep myself “fresh”. I worked and I didn’t have to use the portapotty until after the finish line.

Ironman 70.3 Arizona 2023 - Pre-Race Plan

 IRONMAN 70.3 ARIZONA 2023

Predicted Splits:

SWIM - 35:00 (32:01 in 2019)

T1 - 06:00 (8:32 in 2019)

BIKE - 3:15:00 (2:51:39 in 2019)

T2 - 04:00 (4:14 in 2019)

RUN - 2:55:00 (2:09:49 in 2019)

TOTAL - 6:55:00 (5:46:12 in 2019)

Mom and I are driving to Arizona early Friday for this Sunday race. This race follows Salem 70.3 which was 12 weeks ago. My run was a very disappointing 3:16 in Salem. Training for me has been the most consistent for the run the last during the last few weeks, although long runs have been shortened in favor of running more frequently. The Arizona air temp is expected to be 95°on race day but I didn’t have an opportunity to heat acclimate. There is not really any shade on this course, unlike at Salem. With that in mind, I wouldn’t be surprised if the run takes over 3 hours.

The swim, on the other hand? At this point the water is 80°: VERY warm and wetsuit optional. I won’t be wearing a wetsuit and if that temp holds I’ll still probably overheat a little, which will have an affect on performance. The swim exit is fairly close to transition this year, not the more than ¼ mile distance it has been in the past. T1 should take much less time.

The ride tends to be surprisingly fast considering it’s a “technical” course, unlike any other that I’ve seen. It’s 3 laps and each lap contains five 180° turns, plus a number of right and left turns. I’m hoping for the ride to take a little longer than the ride in Salem but I don’t know how realistic that is. I have gotten my longer training rides in, although I missed a few shorter rides in order to get the longer ones in during the week when I was traveling or working on the weekend.

I still have the goal of finishing under 7 hours, just like in Oregon. The conditions will make even this a challenge so I will, as always, be happy if I race to the limits of my current abilities. I intend to race with a feeling of joy, and an appreciation for the volunteers. And I’ll race with gratitude: for my mom being with me, for my so supportive wife, for all the wonderful people who have been a part of my triathlon life over the years, and for still being able to do this during my 67th year.

—------------------------------

Someone asked me about my nutrition plan, so here it is, with limited explanation/justification. As I usually tell my athletes, don’t leave your nutrition to chance. Winging it is not smart. (Note: I race with caffeine so I have been off of it for over 2 weeks in order to obtain the most benefit from it.):

1 day before race: normal b’fast; Salmon burrito from Rubio’s for lunch; protein, carbs, and fat in the form of a blended shake/smoothie for dinner (this is to limit waste if the digestive tract and speed up emptying).

Race morning, pre-race: same blended shake/smoothie as last night along with a piece of bread or toast. Drink water with some electrolyte on site at the race. Consume one UCAN Edge gel ~30 min prior to the swim.

T1: 2 UCAN Edge gels (140 cal.) + water

Bike: My aero bottle holds 24oz+ of water and 1 NUUN electrolytes tab. I will refill it with water at 2 aid stations. My Speedfil bottle, mounted in the frame, holds about 40 oz. It will hold 2 x 320 cal of Maurten’s powder mixed with 34 oz water + 4 SaltStick capsules that have been opened and emptied into it. That’s 640 cal and 860 mg of salt. Total calories, including T1 = 780 cal. In my bento bag I’ll carry an extra 200 cal in a Clif Blox package. I also have the option of grabbing a gel or gels at the aid stations.

T2: I will consume 5 tablets of Perfect Amino brand tablets and 1.5 caffeine tabs, all crushed into powder and consumed with water.

Run: I intend to take a Maurten’s gel from the aid stations at miles 1,4,7, and 10 or more frequently if needed. The idea is to take in about 100 cal every half hour. I’ll carry SaltStick brand Fast Chews and aim to consume 2 around the time of each gel. I’ll also carry some Base Salt with me just in case. I also know that Red Bull is available at the aid stations and this is well tolerated. 

Salem, Oregon 70.3 Pre-race Plan and Post-race Report 2023

Standard Warning: This is long. No obligation to read.

(Pre)Training has been far from perfect. I am not the same well-trained triathlete of years past when I worked hard enough to go a 5:23 in Oceanside 70.3 in my early 50’s. I also weigh 20 lbs more now. The bike split may be a tad ambitious. The biggest doubt though is how the run will go. I would really be happy with a sub-6:30 half Ironman. I really want to see myself capable of being able to do a sub-14:00 full IM, which is fairly possible with a 6:30 time today. My ambition is to prove to myself that I’m actually able to be faster than the 16+ hour Ironman like I did in Hawaii and Sacramento last year.

(Post)First, thank you to my mom for her ever present support and spectating. And, thank you to Dani and Mike for transporting my bike BOTH ways while I flew to and from Oregon. Linda didn’t come to the race: it was “only” a half Ironman. (Actually, she was working.)

Second, I wrote this out with pen and paper so I’m only now taking time to type it out. Also, I’ve been off of Facebook for most of this year. It wasn’t a conscious decision; I think I was just tired. Consider this part of my return. I’m also racing Ironman 70.3 Arizona so I’ll do a write up for that race too. (It is the last time they plan to hold it there.)

The race day in Oregon started for me at 2:50 am. I woke up and decided to just get up instead of waiting for my 3:30 alarm. It allowed me to eat, do my business, shower, prep my nutrition, and drive and park near transition in plenty of time. First mistake: I didn’t mix up and refrigerate my nutrition for the bike the night before. It would have reduced my stress and saved time,

Parking was convenient and free. We got to T1 just after 5am, when it opened. I set up my stuff for the bike and the run, put nutrition on the bike, checked to make sure my tires were good and it was in an easy gear. I grabbed my swim stuff and morning clothes bag, made a short stop at the portapotty, met Mom, and lined up for the swim.

The race start time was 6:30. The swim start was 1.2 miles upriver from transition. Unlike any other races I’ve done, we lined up by your predicted time and THEN walked all together to the start. I wore my Hoka recovery sandals for the walk - mistake #2. My feet would have been happier in a spare pair of running shoes. (I also later found out that one sandal was mine and one was a slightly smaller one of Linda's. Oops.

The walk down to the water was on a narrow wooden steps that they built. It was maybe 10-15 steps total and they were a little sketchy, especially since my balance/perception have declined a bit recently. I got to the bottom and they wanted you to immediately jump in from the small dock, which I did. 

Swim 

(Pre)It is a self-seeded, rolling start and I will aim for the faster :30 group. Although I’m probably a 34 or 35 min swimmer these days in a non-downriver swim. We assemble outside of transition, then walk in groups 1.2 miles to the start. I will swim in my sleeveless wetsuit so I will be good with wearing my tri shorts underneath and so I’ll stay relatively warm on the walk to the start, even though the water is 70°f. The swim is downriver.

PREDICTED TIME - :22

(Post)The water was a nice 70°f so I wore my sleeveless wetsuit anyway since I knew I could strip it off quickly and I wouldn’t get drag from wearing just a tri suit. Both feet cramp as soon as I jumped off the dock, thanks to the abnormal fatigue in them from the walk, NOT because I didn’t have salt on board. Finally, after some minutes, the cramps released. I swam too wide of the buoy line, but with the quick downriver current it was difficult to make a course correction. The water was moving fast but I could only tell when I could see the bottom as I flew by, which was only once or twice. The water was surprisingly rough at one point, possible from a jet ski?

The sun obliterated my sighting: I could only see the buoys as I passed them. I tried to work my way towards them but it was a slow process. With a few 100 meters to go I decided to pick my head up all the way so I could sight better. Just as I did, my arm hooked a rope that was anchoring a buoy! I headed toward the swim exit ramp and got out okay. Because it was a downriver swim I tried to use extra long strokes to take advantage.

ACTUAL SWIM TIME: 0:21:07, about 1 min. faster than predicted.

T1

(Pre)Transition is not a tremendous distance from the river. There is a somewhat steep ramp to go up but after that it’s a fairly gradual incline. Transition is right there. I will be wearing my arm cooler ‘shrug’ to protect my arms from sunburn. I will also just be wearing the right hand bike glove.

PREDICTED TIME - :07 (Running Total :29)

(Post)T1 was a fair distance from the water - up a steep ramp and then a winding path of concrete and soft grass. My bare feet did fine. Took the wetsuit off fairly easily as I had sprayed Tri Slide on my calves, often a sticking point. I put on my arm cooler white “shrug”, not so much for coolness but as a way to prevent sunburn.

ACTUAL T1 TIME - 08:06 about 1 minute slower than predicted.

BIKE 

(Pre)It is fairly flat with quite a few turns, though nowhere near as many as Arizona 70.3. I didn’t drive the course to preview it. If wind is not a big factor then I estimate I can average slightly faster than 17 mph.

PREDICTED TIME - 3:15 (Running Total 3:44) 

(Post)The ride was beautiful, mostly winding through farmland but some forest too. It was mostly flat with a few short hills. Fortunately the wind was mild on this out and back course. I carried my own calories and electrolytes, which I planned just right. Took water from an aid station twice but I may have been 1 bottle short. Otherwise it was uneventful except sometime during the last 3rd when someone went by me on a hill and said, “It’s just a hill! Get over it!” It was Sally, friend and someone I formerly coached, giving back to me what I have often said to my athletes. It was great and very funny!

ACTUAL BIKE TIME - 3:10:14, about 5 min. faster than predicted, tho far slower than my better rides.

T2 

(Pre)Seems rather straightforward. Will take off the white shrug as much of the run is amongst the trees and is shaded.

PREDICTED TIME - :05 (Running Total 3:49)

(Post) I stopped before the dismount line, walked, and sometimes tried to run into T2. Mom was right there at the entrance. I tried to stop and kiss her but my uncontrolled momentum and poor balance almost took her out! Two women kept her upright and a man acted totally pissed, like I did it on purpose. I felt bad already! (Mistake #3) I struggled to rebalance myself and then headed into transition.

I finally made my way to the rack and racked my bike, got running shoes and hat on, grabbed my race belt and number, and stopped at the portapotty. Hydration seemed to be in a good spot based on my pee color. I ran out of transition unintentionally wearing my right bike glove and my arm coolers (mistake #4). Oh well. I tucked the glove into my shorts and didn’t mind the sun protection the coolers provided.  

ACTUAL TIME - :10:36 (including a portapotty break) about 5 minutes slower than predicted.

RUN 

(Pre)The run is a ‘lollypop’ 2 loops, with a good ~70% in the shade. It is also pretty flat but fortunately has some slight ungulation. How I do will depend on how my foot, knee, and back hold up. Plantar f-ing-itis has appeared slightly in my left foot. My right knee periodically bugs a little but usually gets better the further I go. My lower back often feels tight and achy when I run (nothing new) so I will overcome that too I think. Less than ideal training, and knowing the pace on those training runs, makes me think I may be able to maintain a 12:00/mile pace.

(Post)The run started as expected: I ran easy and walked often in the first 2 miles and things felt okay. As I got to mile 4, fatigue just really started to feel overwhelming. Often that means you have overdone it on the bike or you haven’t taken in enough fuel. I don’t think either of those was the case here. I think it was more an indication of how my run training has gone, not to mention the extra 20 lbs. I’m carrying. Anyway, at mile 5 i stopped at the portapotty for another #1. Again it looked like I was hydrated and I think I was fueling fairly well. Much of the time I ran in the sun and walked in the shade, the idea being that the time in the shade would be extended.

The course was a very nice, mostly flat, paved path in a forested park. I took ice at every aid station that had it, always in my hat, to keep my head cold and usually in a cup so I could chew it into a slushy and swallow it. At one aid station they had ice in a kiddie pool on the ground. Mistake #5, I bent over to get some ice and almost fell over into it head first. It was a big challenge just to right myself, taking several attempts!

The fatigued feeling lessened some as I continued but never disappeared. I continued with the run/walk knowing I would be disappointed with the amount of running vs walking I did, as well as being unhappy with my performance. I did get to chat with a Gastroenterologist early into the run. I shared my history with IBD and with Team Challenge because he seemed interested. At about mile 9, after I used the portapotty again, I held a conversation with a woman with Crohn’s who was walking as fast as I was running. She shared that she had to give up full distance Ironmans because of what that stress did to her body. She seemed very frustrated.

I finally had less than half a mile to go but was still run/walking up to that point. I “ran” the rest of the way to the finish line. Met up with Mom and eventually my teammates. It was great to race with so many friends. That helped make the race for me. My run was far slower than I’d hoped, so that was a disappointment. 

PREDICTED TIME - 2:37 (Final Total 6:26)

ACTUAL RUN TIME - 3:16:52, about 40 min slower than predicted. (Final Total 7:06:52, about 39 min slower than predicted.) 31st in my age group

I led this writeup by listing my goals for the race. I admit that this is another discouraging performance and makes me question what I should think. Over the last 4 years I have fairly quickly declined in my abilities and coordination. I’ve assumed, correctly, that age doesn’t mean you can’t get faster and better. But at some point you have enough experience in a specific sport, in this case triathlon, that age does have an effect. It feels like I hit what was likely my peak in 2018. I’m reluctant to accept that but since then everything seems to be slower.

Being slower doesn’t mean I’m stuck where I am though. I know my training, diet, sleep, etc. are not as rigidly committed to so that I can be the triathlete as I once was. I could certainly do things that would help me perform better but it takes commitment to that end. It also, in my case, requires me to think differently as far as scheduling training. My old, previous way of getting all my workouts in was ideal for my situation. With the change in medications to control my colitis has also made my previous routines impractical. Early morning starts are difficult-to-impossible to do. Mid morning or early afternoon training is now the norm, which takes way more discipline (for me anyway) to pull off. 

Well, I’ve gone on too long here. My next race is 70.3 Arizona in less than 2 weeks. Training has varied from excellent to fairly poor with life “interruptions”. Without a downriver swim, I’m aiming for sub-7 hours. I’ll be happy if I execute my plan, put forth good effort, and enjoy being out there with a sense of gratitude for, among other things, being able to participate at this age and to have Mom along for the ride with me.

We Made It

 It caught me by surprise last night but it shouldn’t have. Back in 2018 I met the Ironman Legacy requirement of finishing a dozen Ironman races. They had promised I would get a slot at the Kona World Championships by 2022 but I thought that promise went out the window, what with the pandemic, Kona being cancelled in 2020 AND 2021, and the chaos that created. 

There it was in my email: 

“Aloha
You are now ready to finalize your registration for the 2022 IRONMAN World Championship in Kailua-Kona, Hawai`i….” I could hardly believe it!

This has been my goal since 2009. I didn’t expect it to happen this way - my goal was always to qualify outright by placing high enough in my age group. I missed that by 1 spot in one race and 3 spots in 2 other races. So now I get in through their Frequent Buyer rewards program. Don’t get me wrong, I’m very pumped to be going, it’s just that I fell a little short of my goal. I DID meet their requirements and played by the rules so it’s okay. And it doesn’t preclude me from continuing to try to qualify by winning a 140.6 Ironman triathlon.

When I sent in my qualification credentials to Ironman in 2018 they also asked for a background statement. Here’s an edited version of it: 

"In 1986 my ulcerative colitis was so severe that my only real option was surgical removal of my large intestine. I began triathlon in 2007, not sure I could possibly finish a sprint race. I did my first Ironman in 2009 and dreamed of going to Kona. On March 10, 2012 I had a vision of me crossing the finish line in Kona wearing my (Crohn's and Colitis Foundation's) Team Challenge orange race kit, carrying the flag, and hearing Mike Riley call out my name. I had this vision while listening to Chrissie Wellington speak at the Endurance Live awards in Los Angeles. It has been in my mind ever since. Triathlon and Ironman training have been a lifestyle for me for the past 10 years. It's my fountain of youth. I also have the honor of coaching athletes of many abilities. Some of them even come to IM Arizona to get a taste of the Ironman experience. I've helped inspire dozens to go beyond a sprint and take on a 70.3 or full. My passion as a coach is to help people overcome fears, change their beliefs about themselves, and help them be successful."

I know there are lots of people who have been on this journey with me. No one ever does these things by themselves. I’ll stick with my family for this post but there are SO MANY others who have had an impact and for that I am forever grateful! Thank you to my one-and-only Linda for going along on this CrazyTrain, to my Mom, Jayne, who has been so supportive and my head cheerleader, and my kids: Corey, Marc, and Courtney. THANK YOU!

Of course I intend to make a difference for the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation while I’m on this journey of preparation for Kona. Would you consider a donation, large or small? (I haven’t even had a chance to make my own donation yet!) 

http://online.crohnscolitisfoundation.org/goto/slade2022

Ironman Arizona 2021

 I enjoyed getting to coach and spectate at probably my favorite Ironman race this past Sunday. It’s my favorite because I have a long history of racing there, having done my first IM there in 2009 and, as of now, having done 9 there altogether. I also have a love for the desert and Arizona that started in my college days. While it felt a little weird to be there and NOT be racing, I also knew that I was in no shape to race well at this time. I enjoyed trying to support and spectate for the 2 athletes I coach, John Sheridan and Jason Dubovsky that were there. 

Here I sit playing the “what if” game despite not really achieving good racing form this year.  As many people know, my ultimate goal has been to qualify to the Ironman World Championships in Kona. Before I earned a spot on the list for a “legacy slot” (finishing 12 IMs back in 2018) I came close to qualifying a couple of times, missing it by 1 place one year and by 3 places another year. So, even though the legacy slot will eventually allow me to go to Kona, I still look at finish results and think “what if?” What if I was in very good Ironman shape and capable of coming reasonably close to my best (or even my 1st) Ironman time? It’s hard not to look and wonder. And even though I know I’m not the same athlete I was in 2015 (11:29) or 2009 (12:32) I can’t help myself. 

I looked at the finishing times with the understanding that there’s only 1 Kona slot. I knew that my friend Kurt Madden would be very hard to beat. He finished first in 11:23 but may already have a slot - he has the right of first refusal. 2nd place was 11:57, 3rd was 12:50, and 4th was 13:23. Of course conditions are variable and are different each year but those times gave me hope for a solid place, even if Kona wasn’t available. 

And the point of all this? Motivation. I’ve struggled to find motivation since qualifying for a legacy slot. Among a few key ingredients to being your best in an Ironman is consistency. Being consistent with training can overcome other weaknesses. Being consistent and doing appropriate training for what’s need for a race like this is a big key. It is difficult to be consistent when motivation flags. When you have multiple goals, multiple reasons to train you are more likely to be successful in doing what you need to day after day. You don’t have to think about it as much because the reasons are there, making the decision to train and making that a priority makes consistency much easier to maintain for the long haul that Ironman training can be. It also helps other key components be easier to execute: things like eating like a disciplined athlete, working towards race weight, sleeping enough to maximize recovery, etc. are all easier to keep up with

While I had already been jolted awake by my slow Oceanside 70.3 race and had made some changes to my training, this reminder, this additional motivation, just added to the desire to continue working to achieve things. This watching of IMAZ 2021 from the sidelines gave me something I wasn’t expecting - what a bonus that is!

So what does that mean for you? This is just one example of what kind of thinking you might want to do during December, before the start of 2022. Figure out what motivates you to get off the couch, overcome your possible inertia, and gets you moving and physically active. Figure out multiple reason why you want to do something. Figure out what motivates, or will motivate, you. It doesn’t have to be competition-focused. It could be something to do with your health or weight or fitness, your mental wellbeing, your resilience, your ability to do things as you age, or even something like being an active part of a community or maintaining friendships. Find “it”; find your “why”. Then figure out how you’ll achieve them. It takes planning and awareness and building habits.

If you ask me, movement is something doctors should literally write a prescription for, just as they do medications and such. It’s important for your health and wellbeing. 

I encourage you to keep moving because age could be gaining on you!

Ironman 70.3 Oceanside

 Ironman 70.3 Oceanside – 30 October 2021

A week after Ironman California, Oceanside 70.3 was on my calendar. I anticipated it to be a “participation” race as opposed to a “race”. When IM Calif. in Sacramento was cancelled, this was an opportunity to use my fitness I’d built over the year. It was mentally hard to shift focus but I thought I was fortunate to have the race just one week later. Linda and I didn’t figure out right away that we were also going to be in LA for Halloween weekend with our twin granddaughters. We agreed that she should go to LA and I would race without her. We jokingly said, “It’s only a half (Ironman)!”

My first 70.3 was in Oceanside 2009. I have nearly never not had a 70.3 or full Ironman on the calendar since then. Because of the pandemic, the past year and a half have been my worst long distance training in a long time. As it is with many people, I had to adapt to the options available: more trainer bike rides indoors, strength training with home equipment, and moving all my pool swims to “dryland swims” and year ‘round open water bay swims. Trainer rides are great but it’s not the same as riding outside. Running took a hit from a combination of wavering motivation, a hernia, and the subsequent surgery. My running and riding have not come close to returning to previous levels.

Mom/Jayne and I arrived before 5am and walked at least a ½ mile to transition. I got set up and then met Mom and Phil and waited on the beach to line up for the rolling start. I had my wetsuit on part way to stay warm and wore an old throwaway sweatshirt. I also decided to wear my neoprene booties when I saw there was no carpet down the middle of the rough asphalt of transition/parking lot. I did a warmup using my resistance tubing, made a last minute decision not to wear a neoprene hood (announced water temp of 65°), and then lined up with the athletes who’s predicted times were :30 to :32. Once the fasted people started, time went quickly and I was in the water within 2 or 3 minutes. I got past the waves, seeming to swim straight towards the big buoy while others seemed to be swimming a bit crooked. After a right turn I encountered a few large clumps of kelp but just swam straight through it. We swam pretty much straight towards the harbor entrance, me staying a little wide of most people, and then swam into the calm harbor to the boat ramp. I mostly walked to, and into transition, along the carpeted edge. Swim split 33m23s.

Transition 1 took longer than expected. I quickly got the wetsuit off and put my aero helmet on first. Phil and Mom watched from beyond the fence and yelled at me that the helmet was on backwards! I didn’t move very quickly getting things done. I took time to put on my cheap “arm warmer” sleeves (tube socks without toes). I put shoes on as usual without socks and then walked out of transition pushing the bike to the mount line while trying not to fall. T1 split 10m03s.

At the mount line I took my time getting on the bike to avoid a fall. Confidence in doing the usual “flying mount” has waned – so have most of my bike handling skills. I was thankfully in my small chain ring for the 1st small hill leaving the harbor. As it was, I still swerved, nearly hitting a traffic cone. Within a few minutes I had dropped my chain and had to stop to put it back on. It took a couple of minutes because it really got wedged in. The 2nd half of the ride has climbs, small hills, and plenty of undulation. I’d only remembered the climbs so the ride was no joke. I really needed an easier gear to shift into. I stayed in aero when appropriate, which was a small victory since all my training on the trainer did not include riding in that position. I was also not in shape for climbs since summer training was all about prepping for Sacramento, a very flat course. Bike split 3h21m18s.

I walked my bike awkwardly through transition to my spot, got rid of my bike gear, and put on my run gear. Why this took so long I don’t know. The portapotty only accounted for 2 minutes at most of the slow T2 split 10m00s.

On the run I ran and took walk breaks all along as I had planned. The course itself is pretty flat except for some short, steep uphills and downhills. Since I alternate running with short walk breaks I walked these sections. When I was younger I’d more or less run the downhills but not this time. All I could visualize was me doing a face first splat… so I walked down the steep hills. The course has 2 out and backs. My quads gradually hurt more and more. During the first half of the 13.1 miles I would look at my watch and see what my mile pace was. It reflected exactly how I’d trained – slow for me. I didn’t continue checking because I knew that wasn’t going to help motivate me to go faster. I was doing what I could. I saw Mom cheering me twice on the run. I was surprised to see Bev, Pia, Tristan, and Jen out there spectating. The last few miles were difficult in spite of knowing I was nearly done. I even decided that a portapotty stop with just 2 miles left was necessary for my old man bladder. As I ran down the finish chute, I saw Kat to my left cheering for me. Seeing her brought me to tears which I tried to quickly stuff so I could get to the finish line. I usually cry upon seeing Linda after a full Ironman but not at the end of a 70.3. This time the 70.3 just felt so hard despite my slow time (for me). Run split 2h40mi 18s.

6:55:00 Finish Time, 15th of 24 in my age group.

After thinking about this performance and this finish for a few days, I have made peace with it. It reflects my fitness level very well. The swim was pretty decent considering I have really only swum in open water for the past 18 months, not returning to the pool. Because of my long-time swimming background, I am gradually getting slower as I age. The most I can hope for is that I limit the slowing. This doesn’t apply to my bike and run because my athletic age in those sports is younger.

My training for the run has been less than great. I often ran 2+ minutes per mile slower than I did just a few short years ago. That may reflect my very inconsistent training in 2020 when I had 3 training interruptions due to an abdominal hernia and surgery. I have yet to find my old self. A lack of motivation due in part to the pandemic also was a factor. Also, when I consider how sore my quads ended up being the days after the race, tells me I probably did almost all I could on race day. Soreness ranked up there with how I feel after doing a full Ironman. Finally, I also began getting infusions for my “colonless colitis”. How that affected things, positively or negatively, I can’t say for sure. I think it made things better but my reduced level of energy - causes unknown - are also part of this confusing mix.

Finally, bike training has been less than stellar too. I spent more than a year only riding on the trainer and this affected my bike handling skills and comfort. In some ways I got very fit but when it came to endurance, that was certainly diminished. I put in an adequate number of 95 to 115 mile training rides but they were slow for me. They did help me gain some lost endurance but in the end it wasn’t enough for Oceanside. It also didn’t help that my bike, well ME actually, weighs nearly 20 lbs. more than my usual race weight.

All these thoughts on my performance give me perspective and food for thought. I find it difficult not to compare previous performances with this one even though it’s not always fair to do that. And besides, there are other goals besides time or pace. Processes, execution of a plan, experiences, etc. also are important. Performance is only one component but that tends to guide and drive my training. Since training is a process regardless of the race, I have reasons to train anyway but with this year’s 70.3 Oceanside being a full 1 hour 30+ minutes slower than my best time and with me signing up for the 2022 Oceanside race, I have plenty of reasons to refocus, work consistently, and do more to have a better race in 5 months. Even at 65 years old there are things to work on and things to improve on. They aren’t all race specific but for me, a race on the calendar helps me focus.

In the end I am grateful that I’m still able to physically do this. I’m grateful and thankful for the love and support I get from family as well as my great friends near and far.