GOALS:
* Finish respectably and have fun

ACTUAL TIMES:
Overall Time: 10:08 

SWIM:
The swim start was pretty nuts as usual. I was trying to maintain contact with Trent because I figured it would be more enjoyable but he hit a little gap and by the time I got there it was closed. From that point on I couldn't move through traffic. It was like sitting in a traffic jam and every once in a while I'd find a small gap and take it to make a pass. I was thinking the swim would be pretty gentle because everyone here should have been pretty good at navigating but it didn't seem to be the case and was a little frustrating because I knew I was swimming too easy. I just may have started in the wrong position. In the future, I think I'm going to start a little wide but on the front line. I think it would be better to get run over than to have to try and move through traffic. So I was moving through traffic and it was very tight. So tight that I got elbowed in the left eye and my goggle started to leak. The salt water stung my eyes a bit so I just closed my left eye and swam with only my right eye until I got elbowed in the right eye about 10 mins later near the turn around point. I stopped to fix my goggles because I couldn't see anything and managed not to get run over because I went wide on the turn around and was out of traffic. On the way back in I decided to stick to the way left away from traffic and for most of the swim back in I wasn't drafting. Eventually someone went by me and it looked like I could draft off of him cleanly so I took the position right behind him and rode his feet in the rest of the way. Sitting on his feet seemed too easy but I tried to go around him at one point and that seemed like too much of an effort so I decided to tuck back in and take what I could get. Came out of the swim in around 1:05 which was the top end of my swim goal time so I'll take it. The key is that I didn't waste much effort on the swim so I set myself up nicely for the bike.

BIKE:
Once on my bike I spun an easy gear and slipped my feet into my shoes. My wattage range based on simulation rides was 250-290 watts for the most part and climb up to around 325 watts. This range usually produced around 21-22 mph on the booty loop but we'll see what it brings on this course. A lot can depend on the weather but a watt is a watt. In the early portions of the bike my stomach felt very bloated and almost like I had to puke. I took in a few mouthfuls of saltwater on the swim and figured this was the problem. Guessing that I had too much salt in my system I decided to take down a whole bottle of water before getting started with my nutrition and this seemed to work. On the early climb up Kaukani people were passing me left and right. I must have gotten passed by 50 people over the first 10 miles including the Palani Road climb. On these climbs I was hitting around 280-325 watts and people were screaming by me. All I could think was that they were burning matches that could come back to haunt them later. Either that or they were just better than me so stick with my game plan.

Once out on the Queen K there was a slight wind in our face but it was still fairly overcast early on so the heat wasn't too bad. I still grabbed a bottle of water at every aid station to squirt on my head, back and face and this really helped to keep me cool. The bike course is filled with long rollers that don't seem to be too steep but when you add a headwind they tend to slow you down. I was watching my watts and also watching a lot of people go by me on the climbs. I was silently saying "wattage spikers" to myself to have a little fun out there. While out on the Queen K I was appalled at how many people were blatantly drafting. I know it was congested but come on. At least make an effort to get out of the draft. There were groups of 10-15 people bunched up together 3 wide at times and an official would go right by them as if he couldn't do anything about it. Give them all red cards! This made my bike strategy a little tougher to follow because instead of having to pass one person at a time I had to spike my watts to go around a whole group.

I could feel that it was starting to warm up outside when we hit the left turn to start the climb to Hawi. The wind also seemed to pick up in my face and we were starting to climb. The climbs weren't nearly as tough as I thought they would be but maybe that is because I was watching my wattage instead of my speed. There weren't too many people that passed me at this point. My hip flexors and lower back started to give me some signals of fatigue though so I tried to rub out my hip area while riding. This area has been giving me problems off and on for the last year or so. More on this later. Once I hit the turnaround in Hawi it was a nice downhill with a tailwind. I made a rule for myself that if I was going over 30mph and I could maintain that pace without pedaling then I would stop pedaling until my speed dropped below 28 mph. This allowed me to save some energy. I took my first opportunity to pee at this point before the right turn back to Kona. On the way back in I picked up my special needs bag with two more bottles of Infinit and some more Lava Salts. I actually had to stop for the bag because it took them a little while to find it but what can you do. The way back in was less congested and I was moving up. I kept thinking to myself that most of the guys couldn't ride as fast without their buddies pulling them along so the tailwind won't help them as much and it didn't. I kept moving though the cyclists one by one and it felt good. My wattage was a bit lower at times with the tailwind and I just seemed to be lacking the power so I took down some more fuel. After the right turn back to Kona we had a slight headwind again for awhile and then a while later it started to rain. I actually enjoy riding in the rain so this wasn't too bad for me. I kept passing people. Then there was a good tailwind the last 25 miles and I was cruising pretty good and passing people one by one while holding my wattage range. I took another opportunity to pee coming down the home stretch so I wouldn't have to do so on the run. With about 10 miles to go I knew I wasn't going to have a killer bike split but it was going to be a PR for me and I knew that I felt pretty fresh and set myself up well for the run. Coming down towards the bike finish I was pleased with my bike effort and knew that all I had to do was break 3:30 for the marathon to go sub 10 hrs. This should not be a problem as I backed off on the swim and the bike and should be in a really good position to run.

On the bike nutrition:
Totals: 4 bottles Infinit Dual (1132 cals), 1.5 Powerbars (345 cals), 2 bottles Gatorade Endurance (400 cals), Lots of water, 10 Lava Salts (2550 mg)

Entire ride (258w):
Duration: 5:15:15
Work: 4874 kJ
TSS: 308.9 (intensity factor 0.767)
Norm Power: 273
Distance: 112.148 mi
Min Max Avg
Power: 0 495 258 watts
Heart Rate: 0 163 146 bpm
Cadence: 31 112 86 rpm
Speed: 0 42.8 21.4 mph
Torque: 0 943 260 lb-in
Altitude: 266 879 469 ft

RUN:
The run course had us running an out and back down Alii Drive and then heading up Palani Road and then another out and back on the Queen K to the Natural Energy Lab and back. The only shade on the run course was the way out on Alii Drive and that was only when there were trees giving shade. So the first 4 miles gave some shade and the rest was just plain old hot (according to me). Supposedly it wasn't as hot as some years but because of the rain it was more humid and made it difficult to stay cool. I remember a few runs in Charlotte where it was probably very similar but I didn't swim and bike before those runs.

Within the first mile I saw Jen and told her that I feel great except that I feel like I'm going to puke. Not sure why, but I just felt like puking. This feeling went away after a couple more miles and a couple more aid stations. My plan for fueling on the run was to take 2 Powergels per hour along with water until later in the run when I would take down Coke. For some reason I didn't like the Powergels so I went for the Gatorade instead. I figured I needed to take down 32oz of Gatorade per hour to get the same 200 cals as the PowerGels and that would be about 8 cups of 4oz Gatorade so I'd have to take 2 cups of Gatorade at 4 stations per hour. This seemed to work fine and I also took some water at the stations in between as well as sponges to cool myself at every station. On the way out on Alii Drive I saw a guy with EpicCamp.com on his shorts so I started talking with him. His name was Mike and I remembered reading about him on some of the blog entries. We talked for a while and then he started to pick up the pace. I was very comfortable at my pace and at this point wanted to play it safe because I knew it was hot and I really just wanted to break 10 hrs for the day and finish strong on the run. My splits were coming in anywhere from 7:30-7:40 something and I was okay with that because it felt really easy and my legs felt good and I was able to take in my fluids without a problem. I also knew that I just needed to stay under 8 min miles to break 10 hrs and I was certain that wasn't going to be a problem. I was feeling good going up Palani Road and the first portion of the Queen K. My heart rate was in check at between 150-160 bpm even though that was very high for the pace I was running. On the way out on the Queen K I saw Normann Stadler coming in and it looked like he had a couple minutes on Macca. It was pretty cool to watch the race unfold. At around 12 miles I started to think to myself that the race is going as planned and I'm able to hold off the fatigue longer than at Lake Placid. My miles started to slow down to around 8 min pace but that's because I started taking more time at the aid stations to make sure to drink and cool myself more. At around mile 15 it started to get pretty rough. I started to get some severe side cramps that just wouldn't go away and my quads were also starting to get pretty painful. The heat was also starting to take it's toll mentally. So I backed off the pace a little bit knowing that this will certainly pass but it didn't. I started taking some Coke to see if that would work but it didn't. I started taking even more Lava Salts and that didn't work. Then I started running with my hands grabbing my sides and that worked. I was able to run with my hands at my sides without the severe cramping but I couldn't run fast doing this.

Now we turn left to head to the Energy Lab. I'm not sure why it's called this but it's hot back there. I was already feeling like garbage when I took that turn and starting to think "man, my goals for this race were pretty easy, all I wanted to do is enjoy myself and finish strong on the run. I backed off on the swim, paced perfectly on the bike, hit my nutrition for the most part and now I'm struggling on the run. What gives? I'm not enjoying myself right now. I'm miserable and this is torture." Negative thoughts start creeping in. Running through the Energy Lab I walked slowly through one of the aid stations drinking everything in site and grabbing 4 sponges. My pace was very slow and all I could think about was just finishing the race. I totally forgot that Peter Reid was going to be at one of the aid stations in the Energy Lab and I didn't even notice him. I think I went though the station with my head down. With 8 miles to go I was trying to run the math as to what I needed to do to break 10 hrs and realized that I would have to run around 8 min pace to do so and I was currently running around 9 min miles.  The last 8 miles were a death march. Since I knew I wasn't going to get under 10 hrs I was just trying to minimize the pain so I kept slowing down. My main goal for the day was to enjoy myself and that is the only thing I could do to heighten my enjoyment. Also, maybe I wasn't willing to push on this day. I didn't really have the killer instinct and maybe it was because I set my main goal as enjoying myself and didn't really have any goals that I needed to dig deep for. I never really set a goal to go under 10 hrs but as I was finishing the bike I knew it was possible. I don't think I'll ever race again with enjoyment in mind. There is a time to enjoy yourself and racing isn't one of those times. Racing is a time to suffer like you've never suffered before and if you aren't mentally prepared to do so then you won't be able to push when it gets really painful. I hate that I set such a soft goal but everyone that I know was telling me to enjoy the experience and don't worry about time or place for your first Kona race. That's not the way I work. I have a hard time enjoying things if I don't do well at them. Maybe that's the wrong way to look at things but it's just the way I am. Never again will I put enjoyment over placing well or time goals because I enjoy the end result. When I was coming down Alii Drive to the finish line I had to fake that I was really enjoying myself. I put a fake smile on my face as if I was happy with my results and put my arms in the air just like everyone else because it's what you're supposed to do. I was mainly just happy to be done with it but not happy with my results. I did enjoy some moments but I'm learning that I don't care too much to enjoy the actual race itself, I want to enjoy the feeling of pushing my limits and seeing the results that come from that. I also enjoy the process of training with my buddies that gets me to the point that I can push my limits so close that it makes you want to cry like a baby in the fetal position.

So back to the last 10 miles, it was a slaughterfest. It was hot, my legs were killing me, I was starting to form a blister on the middle of my foot, and my stomach cramps were non stop. I wouldn't have minded all of this if I was prepared to handle it mentally but I never did that because I thought if I just backED off all day it will be a walk in the park and I'll have a jolly good time. So mile by mile I got closer and closer to the finish while elderly men and women and small infants passed me one by one on the run. At this point, I didn't care. I have to say though, when I saw that there were two miles to go it did bring on some enjoyment. Going down Palani Road was a bitch on the quads. At one point I even turned around to see if running backwards would help but that was awkward. I got down slowly and there wasn't much left to go. A few guys passed me and one of them was Mike from EpicCamp and he said to push it. I just said "good job" to everyone going by me like I did all day long and tried to keep my pace but I probably slowed down. Coming down Alii Drive was pretty cool but I didn't feel much of a sense of accomplishment. I ran through the finish line, put my hands in the air with a smile on my face and then was escorted by some volunteers to the weighing area. When I walked out to the family area I saw Jen and gave her a hug and kiss for putting up with me for the past year. We then went over to get my finisher bag and I put the medal around her neck to show appreciation for all she's done for me. Then I started to feel sick so I laid down and Jen brought me some pizza and Gatorade. 4 slices later I started to feel better.

Run Nutrition Totals: Not 100% sure….Lots of Gatorade, water, Coke later in day, 9 Lava Salts (2295 mg)


SPLITS:
Mile 1-3: 22:40 (163 max, 154 ave)
Mile 4: 7:46 (172 max, 161 ave)
Mile 5: 7:38 (167 max, 159 ave)
Mile 6: 7:53 (161 max, 158 ave)
Mile 7: 7:50 (162 max, 156 ave)
Mile 8: 7:33 (172 max, 156 ave)
Mile 9: 7:43 (161 max, 156 ave)
Mile 10-12: 24:26 (173 max, 156 ave)
Mile 13: 7:46 (159 max, 153 ave)
Mile 14: 8:00 (157 max, 153 ave)
Mile 15: 8:06 (156 max, 152 ave)
Mile 16: 8:40 (154 max, 150 ave)
Mile 17: 8:17 (154 max, 149 ave)
Mile 18: 8:28 (152 max, 149 ave)
Mile 19: 8:52 (155 max, 151 ave)
Mile 20: 9:00 (156 max, 150 ave)
Mile 21-22: 18:36 (175 max, 146 ave)
Mile 23: 9:16 (148 max, 144 ave)
Mile 24: 9:15 (150 max, 144 ave)
Mile 25-26.2: 20:41 (152 max, 141 ave)

SUMMARY:
I'm neither happy nor unhappy about the way the race went. There are things that I need to address before racing again but there are also things that I addressed since Lake Placid that were a step in the right direction. Jen and I enjoyed our trip to Hawaii and I ran a fairly solid race. It just didn't turn out the way I was planning it to. Here is a list of things that I wanted to improve upon from Lake Placid:

* Find a way to calm my nerves the night before the race and the morning of the race.
* Register for the race as early as possible and pack up transition bags, special needs bags, etc sooner rather than later. Take care of all of this early so there will be no room for error. Also take care of your bike early so you don't have to worry about it the day before the race.
* Get to the race site early enough to get everything done. Make sure to coordinate with anyone that is helping you out with bags so that there will be no confusion.
* Improve my swimming so that taking it out a little harder won't take me anaerobic in the first 400m. Either that or back off at the swim start.
* Make sure to put enough Body Glide on to avoid chafing.
* Drink more fluids the morning of the race and take at least one dump.
* Get more comfortable with swimming in close quarters and getting knocked around a bit.
* Do a better job of drafting on the swim.
* Don't take so much time in transition.
* Take down some water the first 30 mins on the bike.
* Take in fluids and nutrition every 15 mins on the bike thereafter so you don't have as tough of bad patches.
* Ride your own pace.
* Possibly think about taking down some solids...got really hungry on the bike.
* Need to figure out why the chain popped off.
* Don't lose your electrolytes on the run.
* Again, don't lose your electrolytes on the run.
* Stick to your nutrition plan unless it's not working.
* Try to maintain a faster run pace even when faced with a lot of pain and suffering.

RESULTS:
* I wasn't overly nervous for this race and was able to keep my heart rate under 100bpm at all times on race morning. It may have helped to have Trent there to tool around with.
* I registered for this race on Monday as soon as registration opened and I packed the bags a couple of days ahead of time. My bike was in good working order as well.
* I got to the race site as soon as it opened on race morning and actually had too much time on my hands.
* I backed off early on the swim so I didn't go anaerobic early.
* I put Body Glide in all of the necessary areas and had no issues.
* Took plenty of dumps....check. Also drank fluids and took Lava Salts so I wasn't over diluted.
* I still didn't like getting elbowed and didn't like the close quarters.
* I did okay with drafting but was hung out to dry for quite a while on the way back in.
* I was still pretty lax in transition. Probably need more of a sense of urgency here.
* I took down a bottle of water in the first 35-40 mins. Made my stomach feel better.
* I don't know if I hit every 15 mins but was certainly close. I don't remember too many bad patches on the bike.
* I rode my own pace based off of wattage and it worked well.
* I took down 1.5 Powerbars during the bike and this made my stomach happy.
* No mechanical issues today.
* I made certain that I wouldn't lose my salt tabs and had backups in my special needs bags.
* I stuck to it for the most part on the bike but missed a Powerbar or two. On the run I switched it to Gatorade and Coke. I need to nail my nutrition down further.
* I totally blew it on the run. Didn't have the mental strength or willingness to push through the pain. Need to get more running mileage and possibly do some ultra runs.

LESSONS LEARNED IN KONA:
* Some people said we got a fairly easy day in Kona in relation to some years. I thought the conditions were tough enough. If I get back here I better be prepared to race in some serious conditions. Some people said that they crank up the heat in their house and ride on the trainer. Something to think about.
* I need to position myself near the front of the swim. I think it's better to get run over then have to run people over. Improving my swimming will also help this. Spend some time working this limiter in the winter.
* I lost 30 positions on the bike while going 5:15. I have some gains to make on the bike. I need to make sure to ride my own pace in training. It will be okay to ride socially in the winter months but when doing race specific workouts or long rides I have to do what I have to do.
* Need more of a sense of urgency in transition.
* I have a theory as to why my quads have been tanking along with stomach cramps during the last two races. I think my core muscles (hip flexors, hips, lower back, stomach) are weak or not firing properly. On the bike my hip flexors and lower back got very fatigued and were sending pain signals. Then on the run my stomach muscles and quads started to blow. I just have to think that my hip flexors weren't taking on their share of the load so the quads had to take over more of the load and they started to blow too. This could have also given me stomach cramps (I think). That being said, I need to do some serious strength work this winter while mainly focusing on the core muscles. I'll also buy some PowerCranks to get stronger as well. Using the PowerCranks will also allow me to ride with Jen.
* I have to imagine that my run endurance was a limiter in this race as well. I need to work the run durability and endurance over the winter.
* Don't set pansy goals. Set tough goals that are within reach but quantifiable. Work hard to achieve them and visualize yourself achieving them leading up to the race. Then fight like Mike Tyson when it's time to inflict some pain on yourself.
* Stop being such a pansy when things go south out on the run course.
* I think I hit my nutrition fairly well on the bike but need to nail down my bike and run nutrition on rides leading up to the races. No more convenience store stops where I pick up whatever looks good. Time to get specific with my nutrition. Sorry beef jerkey.
* Wearing the running shorts and singlet for the run worked out for me. It felt more comfortable and breathable. May need to mess with this a bit more in training.
* Piss doesn't smell very good after it bakes on your shorts.
* I need to hit the weight room. There were some seriously ripped mo-fos in Kona. Eighty year old women looked more cut than me.


LESSONS LEARNED THIS YEAR:
* Hiring a coach is a good investment if you want to get the most out of your training
* Communicating with your coach and giving feedback on a very frequent basis allows you to make gains and learn very quickly
* You don't need to train at high intensities to make big gains in fitness.
* Patience is the name of the game in Ironman racing.
* A power meter is a powerful tool for the bike if the operator knows what to do with the data.
* It is best to work on your endurance first and then work on training at steady intensities (~IM race pace) for longer and longer periods instead of increasing the intensity.
* Work your limiters in the off season and in the early base period.
* Figure out the specific demands of your A-races. In the build periods leading up to the A-race make sure to include workouts that focus on those specific demands of race day.
* Refuel with high glycemic index food sources + protein within 30-60 minutes of a long or intense workout. For example, 3 baby red potatoes, tall glass of chocolate milk. Follow that up with medium GI foods such as pasta until you have replenished what was lost. Eat normally the rest of the day.
* Eating fruits is a good way to stay hydrated because they are a time released source of fluids.
* An easy way to get your share of fruits is by filling a blender 1/2 full of frozen fruit, add some hot water, and blend away. It tastes good and is good for you. Don't add sugar.
* If you wake up hungry at night eat something with protein or something with a good source of fat such as nuts. This will subside your hunger.
* Set high goals that are realistic, write them down, and work to achieve them in some way every day.
* Training for Ironman can consume you so make an extra effort to show your loved ones that you appreciate them often.
* Monthly or bi-weekly maintenance through massage, chiropractic, or ART is much better than waiting until you have a serious injury.
* If you're bonking on rides it could mean a few things. You either didn't fuel properly since your last workout, you didn't fuel properly during the workout, or you aren't accessing high ratios of trans-fatty acids per the glycogen that it takes to keep fat metabolism alive. If it’s the latter, you need to ride long at lower heart rates to ensure that you’re tapping that fat source.
* I'm a heavy sweater so electrolytes are my friend. I need anywhere from 800-1000mg of sodium per hour on a hot and humid day.
* High endurance training camps are a good way to push your endurance envelope and break through mental barriers (just as long as you recover from them and don’t get injured).
* Riding at 95+ rpms spreads the output of watts over more pedal strokes and this allows you to accumulate less blood lactate and run better off the bike.
* Someone that pops quickly when they hit 3.0-4.0 mmols of blood lactate needs to work on aerobic endurance and then muscular endurance.
* You need to be mentally prepared to torture yourself before each Ironman race. You also have to have a good reason for wanting to suffer or you'll back off when it counts. You pussy.
* You can't fake an Ironman when it comes to volume. You might be able to get away with less cycling or running for a half but it just won't cut it for the full. In order to run well off of the bike you first need to have superior cycling fitness and then you need to also have superior run endurance and durability to be able to finish the run strong.
* My body doesn't feel right while running if I'm only running 2-3 times per week. I think I build run fitness quicker if I run shorter durations for 5-6 days a week (ie. 5-6 days @ 30-60 mins).
* I don't like swimming alone. It's tough to push myself and it's just not enjoyable. I need to swim with a group from here on out but I just need to make sure to swim down a few lanes and only move up a lane when I am good and ready to.
* My legs seem to recover well when I have one day completely off of them per week. On this active recovery day it's a good idea to do a swim workout that focuses on drills to give the cardio system a break as well.
* My stomach likes the feel of having some solids during training and racing. Even if it's just a half Powerbar per hour.
* It takes years of consistent aerobic volume and race experience to get to the point where senior citizens aren’t beating you. I’ve been triathlon training for two years now and I’m starting to see gains in fitness. I think next year will be a breakthrough year in terms of racing.