Lake Steven's 70.3 Race Recap

I have finally had the chance to sit down with my celebratory bowl of ice cream and blog about what would end up being a very fun and challenging race in Lake Stevens, WA this past Sunday.

If you've been following, I came down with an ear infection on the Wednesday leading up to the race. Several chiropractic appointments and a prescription of penicillin later, I was beginning to feel better throughout the week. It was only Sunday morning that I truly felt about 75% and not groggy or hazy.

The following are brief summaries of each segment of the race -

Swim
I felt like I had cotton-mouth the entire morning before the swim. I couldn't drink enough water in the hour before the swim start. It was odd - the normal morning jitters weren't there. I think I had kept my expectations so low that it was going to be very hard to have a disappointing day as long as I finished.

It felt like the longest swim of my life - just when I thought I had reached the first buoy and was ready to turn into the shore for the second half of the swim, I realized that everyone else was going straight still...OH, we have to go to the next orange buoy. Damn.

All I could think about was Finding Nemo - "just keep swimming...just keep swimming..." even though my shoulders felt like they were going to explode.

Time - 41.07 (3 minutes better than last year)

Bike (including T1)
It took me a bit to get my wetsuit off due to my fatigued shoulders. In a brief moment of helplessness, I panicked wondering if I'd be able to get my arms out of the sleeves. After a brief struggle, I managed to get everything off and get out on the bike in just under 4 minutes.

The actual bike ride however, did not start very well. Whether it was the penicillin or simply the over-exertion I put in on the swim, I couldn't keep my Perpetuem down. Sip after sip kept gurgling back up for some reason.

Shortly after that, things settled down and I began to get into my rhythm. Suffice it to say, the bike felt much better than the swim and other than some strain in my lower back, it felt like a much better ride than last year.

It was in fact - by about 6 minutes. Time - 2:58

Run
One word - HOT. It was forecast to be the hottest day of the year - it certainly did not disappoint. Easily in the 90's by the time the run started and not having the best of luck with my stomach, I had a feeling I was in for a slower run than normal.

Perpetuem was not my friend this day. Whatever amount I was ingesting, it just kept coming back up. With my running bottle filled with it, I quickly dispensed of it and filled it with cold refreshing water...nothing better to pour on your head.

I forgot my GU bottle at one of the aid stations as well - egh. One less thing I would have to worry about coming back up. It was only mile 3 that I adopted a run/walk strategy that would take me through the remainder of the 70.3 miles. It wasn't pretty or fast, but it got the job done.

Time - 2:29

Total time = 6 hours 16 minutes and 27 seconds.

Thanks Lake Stevens. Hopefully we'll see you again next year.

Erik, Mikel and I on the dock at Lake Stevens Ironman 70.3