Ironman Boulder 70.3 Race Report
August 8, 2010
I flew out to Colorado the weekend before the race to make a vacation of it, plus my husband and I have friends and family in the area so we had a free place to stay for the week. It usually takes me about 3 days to acclimate to the altitude there, so it worked out well to go out ahead of time.
I had the opportunity to get in some really beautiful bike rides and runs during my taper week and tagged along on an open water swim with the Boulder Triathlon Club in the reservoir where the race was being held. Everyone out there was so friendly and laid back!
I was more and more nervous as the race approached, worrying that I’d embarrass myself out there on the course, but I knew I put in the work in training and that I could finish the race. I had my very own “Support Crew” – my husband Bryant and my mom, dad and sister Jackie flew out to Colorado for the weekend to watch me race in my first 70.3. I also had countless friends from JSTC pulling for me, my family members, like my sister Jaime, who couldn’t be there but if I listened real hard, I could hear her cheering from 1800 miles away!
On race morning, I woke up at 4:15am to get dressed and have a small breakfast – a packet of oatmeal and ½ a banana. I was so nervous, I couldn’t eat as much as I wanted to. We picked up my parents and my sister at their hotel at 5am and drove over to the reservoir. Transition opened at 5am and we got there by 5:15. Everything went smoothly checking into transition – plenty of volunteers to make the process go smoothly. After getting everything ready in transition I headed over to the beach – tried to eat a power bar but was still too nervous to take much. The Pro wave went off around 6:40am and I was scheduled to go off 40 minutes later in Wave #9. It was amazing to see the first Pro Male, Andy Potts finishing the swim in 23 minutes and change. I got in a practice swim while I was waiting around – the water was 74 degrees which made me happy because I definitely benefit from being able to swim in a wetsuit. The water felt comfortably warm because it was warmer than the air temperature at the start of the race.
The race start was an in-water start and when the gun went off on my wave I was ready to go. I felt good overall during the swim which isn’t my strong point – got swam over and bumped into a couple times during the last 800m where male swimmers from the wave behind me started passing me. No major issues during the swim – exited the water in 43 minutes and change. My goal was 40 minutes so I was happy with 43.
Transition went smoothly and got on the bike feeling pretty good. The first 6-7 miles on each loop of the 2 loop bike course were gradually inclines. It looked flat but I could tell I was working hard to get through it. The bike route was very scenic with the front range of the Rocky Mountains on your left and open space/farmland on your right. I felt good during the bike, taking a salt tab every 15 minutes, sipping on a concentrated CytoMax mix and taking one GU halfway through the bike and another with 6 miles to go. Used the bottle exchange twice to get a bottle of water. The sky was overcast for the first loop of the bike and eventually when the sun broke through it started to get hot. I passed a good amount of people on the bike and also got passed by some of the male racers that started in the waves after me. I was able to finish the bike in 3:01 – my goal was 3:00 or less, so I just about hit my mark there.
Transition from bike to run was much easier than I had expected it to be. I felt pretty good getting started on the run. The run course was also 2 loops around the Boulder Reservoir. Only downside is that it was completely exposed with no shade. Luckily most of the course was on a dirt/crushed stone path, so it wasn’t as bad as running on asphalt. There were some hills on the course to add to the challenge. I knew the run would be the hardest part for me, so I set out with the goal of running 5 minutes and walking 1 minute. I was able to do this for the first 5 miles, then the heat started to really wear me out and then it became more of running 2 minutes, walking 2 minutes. Surprisingly I was passing quite a few people on the 2nd loop of the run. The course was awesomely staffed with a water/aid station at every mile along the course with Gatorade, water, power bar gel, food – oranges, pretzels, flat Coke, cups of ice and sponges soaked in ice water. I must say that my saving grace in the heat was the cups of ice cubes. I would eat a few, dump a few down the front and back of my shirt and hold the cup while I was running to take an ice cube here and there to munch on. I was so happy to see my dad waiting at the end of the dirt path leading towards the finish line – he was the “lookout” who called down to my mom, sister and husband at the finish to let them know I was heading in. I finished the run in 2:33. I was hoping to finish in 2:20 but was okay with 2:33 considering the heat.
My final official time was 6:23:40. I was super excited to finish my first 70.3 and couldn’t have done it without the expert guidance of my coach Carrie Slavinski from BPC, my husband who let me use our weekend time to train, my parents, my sisters Jackie and Jaime, all my JSTC friends who wished me the best and the rest of my friends, family and co-workers who were supporting me all along the way!
I would definitely recommend this race to anyone who is looking to do a destination 70.3 – the course was beautiful – the volunteers and the support out there was amazing! If you can take a little time to go out and acclimate ahead of time, you’ll be golden!
