Austin Ironman 70.3! (The training post)

Never actually saw anyone on a horse

So after having completed my first triathlon in 20 years, I decided to sign up for the Austin Ironman 70.3 on October 29! It's a "half Ironman" distance race, meaning it's a 1.2 mile swim, a 56 mile bike, and a 13.1 mile run. I figured the swim's only a little longer than an Olympic distance tri and the bike and the run are only about twice the distance, so why not?

Even better, the race was just outside Austin, so I wouldn't have to travel. The swim was in Decker Lake (Walter E. Long Lake), the bike was a 56 mile loop almost out to Elgin, and the run would be in the park by the lake and up to the Travis County Convention Center.  I was a little concerned about the hills (having run the Decker Challenge Half Marathon more than once) but decided that that was what training was for.

That started in June, not long after the Capital of Texas Triathlon. Yes, training would be through the height of a Texas summer.  And every time I went out, I would remember Noel Coward's line that "[m]ad dogs and Englishmen go out in the mid-day sun..."

My training program was based Triathlete Magazine's Week by Week Training Guide and involved nine workouts a week. I didn't completely adhere to all of the mileage suggestions (some weeks doing more, some less), but mostly kept to the program of two a days.  

By early August, the mileage was starting to pile up but it didn't seem particularly efficient (and also was getting a little tedious), so I decided to join the triathlon training/masters swim group at Pure Austin Gym and, really, it was the best decision I made in the entire process.  The awesome Coach Peri Kowal leads two swim workouts a week, mostly in a pool but also including two a month in the Quarry Lake, so participants can get used to open water swimming. (Also, during the summer, the gym does a Splash N Dash (Swim 750k, then run 2k) once a month; it's good practice for the whole "group of people in the water, don't get kicked in the face" thing).

Quarry Lake

Somewhat to my surprise, the group was a mix from beginning triathletes to multiple Ironman (and Kona) finishers.  Everyone was enthusiastic and supportive, even when insufficiently caffeinated during the Thursday morning (6 AM) workouts.

Insufficiently caffeinated

Best of all, there were a number of folks for whom the Austin Ironman 70.3 was to be their first half Ironman, as well, so we fell into an ad hoc training group of the equally blissfully ignorant, typically doing our long bike rides and BRicks together on weekend mornings. It was great having a mutual support group and not just when we got flat tires...(Incidentally, if you get a flat in Texas, watch out for fire ants).

Anyway, here are some pics of the process:

Training happens even when you're away on business

Igloo coolers are our friends!

Monkey Road really needs to be resurfaced

Don't drive off with your cell phone on the roof of your car

The gang poses after a long BRick

Starting the run after a 40 mile bike ride...

Kevin and Alec hamming it up...

My first shoes to come with an instruction manual

Celebrating Coach Peri's birthday!

Sights you see along Town Lake

More sights...

About to test out a wetsuit

Went through a lot of these...

Feeling punchy three days before the race...

On the whole, training took a lot of time and work and there were moments in early October when I was really ready for race day to arrive. OTOH, I'm also happy I had that extra three weeks of training....

In the end, I was really glad to have been able to do race-distance open-water swims in the Quarry Lake and to bike the race route. I think we ended up riding the route about 5-7 times altogether and it was helpful not just for putting in mileage but in learning where the potholes and seams were. Also, the BRick workouts were really helpful -- when I had done triathlons in the 90s, the bike to run transition was always terrible. This time, not so much...but that's for another post :-).

I finished training feeling cautiously optimistic -- I'd put in the time and the mileage and the BRicks and the intensity and worked out my nutrition and hydration requirements and figured out how to change a flat tire without getting bit by fire ants in under ten minutes.  We had generally accounted for every possible variable and had kept in mind the mantra, "Don't try anything new on race day."

Except that having trained through blistering heat and humidity of Texas in the summer and fall, the weather was forecast to be 39 degrees at race start... 

So, how did that go? Well, I'll do Race Day Weekend in another post...

Tri and Tri Again

This summer I was finally able to complete my first triathlon of the century! I've actually managed two: The Capital of Texas Triathlon, which takes place in downtown Austin over Memorial Day, and Jack's Generic Triathlon, which is in Pflugerville in August.

Unlike last year, the CapTexTri went off without a hitch and with nearly perfect weather. I was fairly happy with my swim -- my time was actually comprable if not better than my times from back in the day. My only problem was that I kept drifting off course since I couldn't see -- my glasses kept fogging up and I couldn't see the marker buoys...

The bike went well, too: again, my time was comparable to the last time I did an Olympic distance event, undoubtedly due to my brilliant training regimen. (Either that, or the new bike that's half the weight of my old one).

My only problem was that I didn't hydrate enough on the bike, which affected my run. I got really hot and crashed a bit on mile 4, so my run time was less than optimal. Also, I probably should've indulged in some on-course solid or semi-solid nutrition. Oh, well, live and learn... 

Here are a few pics:

Packet pickup at the back of the exhibit hall

The Cutco cutlery booth. I think this is for the "Game of Thrones" division

Everything you always wanted to know about how to mark your body for a triathlon

Alas, fixed-gear bikes are not legal in USAT sanctioned events

Setting up the swim venue

Shiny bikes all in a row (race morning)

On the bike!

And the run!

At the finish line!

I'd originally planned to run the TriRock triathlon over Labor Day, but that one was canceled this year, so I decided to run Jack's Generic Triathlon, in early August.

Again, I was fairly pleased with my swim, although I may have cut the course a bit. My goggles were fogged and I have no memory of rounding one of the triangular marker buoys. But my time was in the right ballpark, so it's enitrely possible I did it correctly :-).

The bike portion was two loops through rolling corn fields, which reminded me a lot of central Illinois where I would ride back when I was an undergrad at U. of I. It was rather windy, and I was very happy to have my new aero handlebars...It felt pretty good, too, and I made an effort to hydrate more than during the CapTexTri.  Apparently not enough, though, because I again crashed and overheated during the run.  But there were ice sponges on course and plenty of water and Nuun and there was an ice bath at the end...Also, I now understand why some teams provide their riders with Coca-Cola during the Tour de France...

All in all, a fun race that I will probably do again next year.

Because it's out in Pflugerville, I decided to check out the course beforehand:

Lake Pflugerville!

The Hydrilla-eating Monster

Panorama of the bike route. Lots of corn

Yes, I had my Bat Shark Repellent. Because you never know what the hydrilla monster is going to dredge up.

As usual, the race started way too early in the morning, but I managed to get a few pics:

Bicycles at dawn

Prepping for the afterparty

The swim exit is prepared

Posing before the swim just before warmups

The squint of the near-sighted swimmer racing to the transition area

Made it to the bike. I'm now a fan of aero handlebars

The transition area post-race

  

Post-race ice bath, yay!

Coca-Cola is our friend

Capital of Texas Triathlon/Duathlon/10K/5K

So my plan to do my first triathlon in twenty years on Monday didn't turn out so well.

It rained.

A lot. But not so much in town.

At Camp Mabry, just north of central Austin, we got less than an inch of rain last Thursday. At Bergstrom Airport, just south and east of downtown, they got about nine inches.  And it was much worse farther east, along the Colorado River (which also runs through Austin).

On Friday and Saturday, it rained in the Hill Country.  West of Austin.  Upriver.

On Sunday, there was the CapTexTri expo and packet pickup and bike dropoff.

Swag!  My first cowboy hat since I was around seven.

Bike drop off.  I got there early.

Packet pickup

Coveting my neighbor's bike, Part I.

It was clear and sunny.  But because of all the rain, the LCRA opened at least one floodgate from the Tom Miller Dam, releasing water into Lady Bird Lake.  Which was where the swim portion of the CapTexTri was supposed to take place.

At the course talk at the expo, they announced that there was a flow of about 3 mph and they were considering changing the course so that it ran point to point (downriver).

Course talk.  Could've used a projector.

Later that day, they announced the swim was canceled.  Which was disappointing, but I've weathered a couple of triathlons in Chicago where that had happened and one when it probably should've.

Monday, race day, I awoke at 5 AM, fed the cats, ate breakfast and drank coffee, and then I heard rain.  Lots of rain.

Nevertheless (discovering, to my chagrin, that I am apparently an optimist), I headed out.  When I arrived at the transition area, I was told it was closed, and that we should shelter at Palmer Events Center or its garage.  This was around 6-620.

In the garage and on the deck of the Palmer Events Center, folks seemed to take things in stride and with humor.  Some people were concerned about hairpin turns on a wet course, but were generally willing to take it slow.

Sheltering in the garage

We heard a tentative plan to cut short the bike portion to 20k, but the rain and lightning continued. Finally, at around 830, race officials called off the bike portion entirely because of flooding on the course. 

Still a bit lightning-y

They announced that Olympic distance participants could do a 10k, while sprint participants could do a 5k and that start time would be at 10 am. Most folks removed their bikes and went home or back to their hotels. There was some grumbling -- last year the event had been cut short due to flooding, as well, and I gather there had been similar problems in 2014, too.

Athletes clearing out the transition area

 

I took my bike back to my car, but decided that I'd gotten up at five that morning to run a race and so, I was going to do one.  Besides, I didn't want to waste all those carbs I'd eaten in the past few days. :-).

At ten o'clock, the rain pretty much stopped.  And then we were off!  By 10:15, the sun came out.  No, really. 

Everyone who's still there seems in good humor :-)

And we're off!

Turned out, there were only about 200 of us who stuck around for the 10k, with another 150 for the 5k (out of around 3000 original participants), but everyone seemed to be having a good time.  I was pretty happy with my race -- I'm not sure it was exactly 10k, but I still did one of my better overall times and paces. At least this century :-).

The view from the Biergarten.  Note the utter absence of rain.

Sunny skies.

On the whole, it was a bit surreal but fun, although in the moment sometimes frustrating.  And, in retrospect, kind of funny.  I think the organizers did a good job under trying conditions and kept us pretty well informed via social media.  So, thanks (And I am really glad I wasn't in charge :-)).  Thanks also to all the volunteers who stuck around to the bitter end.

 Oh, and I actually ended up getting a bit of a tan.

Coveting my neighbor's bike, Part II

Epilogue: Late Monday, the Austin Fire Department closed Lady Bird Lake and Lake Austin to all boat traffic.

And they're giving us a discount for the 2017 race. :-).

Here's what the lake looked like Tuesday morning (Normally, there is no current at all):