IRONMAN 70.3 St. George Bike Course Analysis

 

Bike Course Analysis

 
Being that I am a big guy, and by ‘big’ I mean my body ratio is all wrong for climbing hills on a bike. And by “body ratio” I mean fat. As I climb hills I often curse under my breath through labored breath “Is there anyone in this race that doesn’t climb hills faster than me?” My point is that it is usually a hilly bike course that strikes more fear into me than any other part of a race. Sometimes knowing what I am facing and talking myself through it, helps calm my fears. Here are my efforts on the Ironman St. George bike course.

Elevation start: 3,031           Highest point:   4,111

Elevation should not be a major factor. We will be capping off the toughest climb at the highest point of elevation, but I think the hurt we will feel will be from true effort rather than elevation.

There are 5 major climbs for a total of 2,552 feet of ascent during the course. I am going to think of them as the 5 days of a work week. The first hill is called ‘Nemesis’. I haven’t been able to find out what if anything the locals call any of the other 4 hills, but I am going to call them Monday Morning, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday (or Hallelujah Hill).

Monday Morning - Apparently this hill is called ‘Nemesis’ and starts shortly after T1 at mile 3.5. It is a 1.4 mile long Category 5 hill with 260 feet of elevation gain and an average grade of 3.6%. This hill will probably hurt the most of the 4 Category 5 hills that the course throws at us for a couple reasons. It is the first hill and the steepest of the 4 Cat 5’s. We will encounter it with only 3.5 miles of riding and the legs may need a little waking up. It might feel a bit like a Monday morning. The bright side is that it may be a welcomed opportunity to warm up after a cold swim.

Tuesday - After Monday Morning there are plenty of good flat and descending miles to shake off any effects of climbing that first hill. It is not until mile 20 that we will encounter Tuesday. Tuesday should feel a lot better than Monday Morning. It is still a Category 5 hill with a shorter 1 mile long climb with half the elevation gain of Monday Morning (134 feet) and more than a full percent less average grade coming in at 2.4%.

Wednesday - About 5 easy miles after Tuesday we will encounter Wednesday at about mile 26.5. Wednesday is basically the identical twin in every way of Tuesday. If you have met Tuesday then you have met Wednesday.

Thursday - About 6 miles after Wednesday, we will encounter Thursday at about mile 32.5. Thursday is a little later in the week and this hill reflects it. It is a Category 5 hill that is 1.5 miles long with an elevation gain of 264 feet and an average grade of 3.3%. This hill's stats should sound familiar as it is almost a carbon copy of Monday Morning.

Friday - We just have to get past Friday and then it is the weekend. After Friday it is 11 miles of downhill to the bike finish. We will not approach Friday with the ease that all the other days of the week afforded. We will be 42 miles into the ride and instead of a flat or downhill approach, at mile 37 we will begin a climb that will gradually increase in grade for 5 miles until we reach mile 42 where the climb turns into a category 3 hill that goes for up 3 miles. In those 3 miles we will climb approximately 800 feet with an average grade of 5%. At the risk of being sacrilegious, I am going to call this Hallelujah Hill. After 4 category 5’s, 45 miles and 8 straight climbing miles with the last 3 miles at a 5% average grade, when my fat butt hits that top of that hill, a Hallelujah maybe entirely appropriate. By the time we hit the top at mile 45 it all downhill for the last 11 miles.  

 

 

 

 

Disclaimer:

This is simply a paper analysis by an Arizona flat lander based on what little available information I could find with my meager computer skills. I have never ridden or even seen this course in person, but would welcome comments from those who have.  

St. Patrick's Day Run

Tempe, Arizona

I started today with three hours of hill climbing on my bike in the hills of north mesa. I came home and rested up and then in the evening I went and did this St. Patrick’s Day run. I like it when I can do a race in the evening for a change. The run was 4 miles. It ended up being a pretty tough run however given the status of my legs and the fact that the course was in Kiwanis Park which actually has a few steep little bumps to burn my already burnt legs. Despite the pain I pushed for an 8:10 pace and felt pretty good about my day. A fun run with a cool shirt that I got in my wife’s size which she loved and wore the next day to work for St. Patrick’s Day.
 

Kiss Me I'M Irish Run

Gendale, Arizona

I signed us up for this race for what may be considered by some to be a bizarre reason. I don’t have a 17K on my race resume. It also benefitted prostate cancer and I figured if I was going to do a long run this weekend, I might as well do it as a race. It is always far easier for me to stay motivated for a long run if it is an actual race. 17k is about 10 ½ miles. For some reason this race seemed like a full half marathon to me. I ran it decent for me, but nothing spectacular. My legs are still a bit torn up from dong Escape 6 days ago.

 

Escape from Alcatraz

San Francisco, California

On the 3^rd year of entering the lottery, on the 3^rd day of the 3^rd month of 2013, I competed in the 33^rd annual Escape from Alcatraz Triathlon.  Christian went with me on this trip. We toured Alcatraz Friday morning before the race and heard about all the failed escape attempts and those who had died trying to escape Alcatraz.

The morning of the race started at 3:00 am for me. I stretched, ate, warmed up, dressed and prayed. At 4:00 am, I headed out and rode my bike through Fisherman’s Warf and over the hill at Fort Mason to arrive at Transition on the Marina Green. It was a windy cold morning. I wouldn’t expect anything else from San Francisco. I set up my transition with several cold weather options. I wasn’t sure how cold I would be coming out of the swim and I was most worried about my hands. I had purchased a pair of neoprene diving gloves to wear in the case that my hands were cold. Having working hands is essential given that I need my fingers working properly to operate the shifters and brakes. After double checking my transition I boarded a shuttle to the Boat at about 5:00 am. Soon I was at the dock looking at the famous San Francisco Belle.

 

 

One difficult part of this race is waiting for over an hour on the cold windy dock to board the boat. I could have got on the boat earlier but I wanted to stay close to the port-a-potties for a while to complete my pre-race elimination ritual. Once I was on the boat, I knew that what few restrooms they had would be over-run by 2,000 athletes. I boarded the boat a little before 6:30. When I entered the boat it was wall to wall bodies lying or sitting on the floor. I was assigned to go to the second floor because of my age group.  I laid down and tried to relax for a while before it was time to warm up. As the start approaches the boat becomes more and more agitated with excitement. What originally looked like a morgue of wet suited bodies quickly becomes a hornet’s nest of wet suited bodies. Everyone moves to one side of the boat in anticipation of the jump and the boat actually starts to lean significantly. I knew that the water would be colder than I have ever experienced. Over 50% of the athletes were wearing booties on their feet. This was allowed for this race given the cold conditions. I chose not to wear booties after researching and reading on the subject. Once the all clear for the start occurs you push like a herd of cattle towards the open door for the jump. The closer you get to the door the wetter the carpet becomes. As a triathlete, there was no doubt in my mind where the wet was coming from. People were peeing in their wetsuits, either on purpose or out of fear. The official water temperature would be recorded as 51 degrees.

 

This You Tube Video will give you and idea of what the start is like.

 

It was cold. I have completed the Alcatraz crossing twice before in other races. This time was the coldest and most difficult. I also learned how spoiled I was on my first two crossings. The other times I honestly didn’t see the big deal. This time I jumped in and within a minute the conditions humbled me. Some people claimed six foot swells and waves. I would say that is an exaggeration, but the conditions where the worst I have personally ever faced I have to admit it was a totally new experience to actually feel fear on a swim. Because I have a swimming/water polo background I guess I have lacked a lot of empathy for other athletes who have to overcome fear during these swims. I understand that better now and will stop taking it for granted. Especially since a guy a lot like me lost his life just moments after jumping into that water with me. He was a trial lawyer like me and only about a year older than me.

                    This You Tube Video will give you an idea of the water conditions

 

The cold was shocking and hurt my hands and feet. They call this first section the washing machine for good reason, I felt like I was trying to swim in a washing machine. It was wavy with white caps and the waves seemed to come in every direction. My goggles got knocked loose by a wave that smacked me in the face, I stopped to fix them and got hit by another wave and swallowed water. I have never swallowed water in a race. I must have swallowed water 10 times in this one. I couldn’t see the shore. I couldn’t see the other swimmers. I couldn’t see the guide boats. I talked to many other athletes after the race and it felt like you were alone out there tempest tossed in the waves. I would have to stop and tread water and wait for a wave to lift me up so I could see where everything was. I was constantly getting knocked off course by the waves. What had started as a swim race for me quickly turned into a swim survival.  Siting was difficult and when I got close to shore the current was taking me towards the Golden Gate Bridge and I ended up spending some major swim energy trying not to over shoot the beach. I was glad to finally have my feet on the shore.

 

 

There is a mini transition area where I took off my wet suit and threw on pair of shoes for a half mile. The run seems longer than half a mile but it is good to get warmed up and get your cold head straight before hitting the bike.

 

 

The bike course seemed like one long 18 mile hill to me. Sure there were downhill segments, but they were impossible to enjoy because they were steep and I was on my brakes and I also knew they just meant I would have to go back up again. I have got to lighten up to be anywhere near competitive or even enjoy a bike course like this one. I felt like I was being passed by all every athlete in the race. I think I only passed one old guy and that was because he had gotten of his bike and was walking one of the steeper hills. I discovered after the race that my back brake had been rubbing the whole race. So much so that when I went to get my bike out of transition after the race the wheel was locked as I drug it across the grass. So not only were those hills miserable, I climbed them with a handicap.

The run was just plain fun. Now that doesn’t mean it is easy, in fact it is probably one of the most sadistic run courses you will ever find. But it was such an adventure. You run stairs, switch backs, asphalt, cement, dirt trails, rocky mountain paths, gravel, soft sand, packed sand, wet sand, beach, sand ladders, grass, gravel. You climb, then you descend, you turn, you twist, you duck through a tunnel. You dodge rocks and even tourists. It is windy and cool, and then it is hot. You cannot get bored on this run, there is always a new challenge just ahead. The run was difficult, but I loved it and it was over before I knew it. I came down the last set of stairs and hit the last flat two miles and the realization that there were not more hills this course had to throw at me, made me intoxicated with the joy of knowing that I had done it. I was so happy, and with the wind at my back I hit the gas for the last two miles and for the first time in the race I was passing people.

 

 

At 240 pounds I will never be very competitive on a course like this, but I loved this race. While it is not as long as a 70.3 the amount of muscle output of this race takes almost as much out of you.

 

 

Tri Catching Cupid Triathlon

MESA, ARIZONA

We decided to try this race this year and I am glad we did. It was a good race. Christian announced that he was going to beat me today. I told him “Fat Chance”, but secretly I was a bit concerned. Panama left my legs a bit torched and because of my post-race tourism, travel and exhaustion, I haven’t been able to bike or run for an entire week and I wasn’t sure how my legs would respond to a sprint. I haven’t worked out for a week because all the traveling and lack of sleep left me exhausted which opened the door to me getting sick. Yesterday I cancelled a meeting so I could take a nap. I spent the entire day yesterday with a headache and had to take the nap because I felt so tired. Despite all that I felt pretty good as the run started today.

This was a reverse triathlon. We woke up and the streets were wet from rain. It cleared up and turned out to be a nice day however. Christian immediately bolted in front of me making his intentions clear. He was running so fast I just decided to pace behind him. He slowly got further and further in front of me. Damn it is pissing me off that he can consistently run faster than me now. I felt good, but even at my best I can’t stay with him anymore. By the end of the 3 mile run I think he was a more than 100 yards ahead of me. That was enough to make him gone and on the bike by time I reached transition. I hunted him on the bike for the entire first loop. I finally found him and slowly passed him a bit into the second loop. I was shocked at how long it took me to pass him once I had finally found him. He had looked back and knew that I was coming. The boy can bike now. I was torching my legs. My run felt fine, but I could feel the killer hills of panama’s toll on my biking muscles. Despite the pain I put some distance between Christian and I. I did not necessarily need it because if we hit the pool even I knew I was coming out of that pool before him. I suffered more for the future. I wanted   to make an investment for the future of sprint racing for future psychological warfare. I have always been faster than Christian on the bike and I want him to continue to believe that.

During the last loop a car made a right turn into the bike course right in front of me. I screamed “noooooo! and I must have had protection from above  because the car stopped with just enough room for me to squeeze between it and another car which was waiting to make a left out of the same parking lot. The adrenaline gave me a boost and I used it to rocket for the next few minutes. I hit the pool and put in one of the most difficult painful swims of my triathlon career. My toe cramped in the first lap and my entire body was just saturated with lactic acid as I tried to swim. I burned deep into the red to pass another athlete and spent the rest of the swim in lactic agony to stay ahead of that person. I actually felt like I was going to throw up as I dug deep to stay ahead. Man that was a hard swim. I felt like I was dogging it the whole way but I must not have given that I turned in the second fastest swim of the day. I ended up with second in my age group. Christian got first in his age group and was 9^th over-all. The boy is getting fast. And he hasn’t trained been on a bike or swam in over a month. Christian came so close to tasting victory over me that he is already asking if we can sign up for this race next year.

 

IRONMAN 70.3 Panama

 

PANAMA CITY, PANAMA

I met up with Erik in Houston Texas. We had lunch and boarded the plane for Panama. We got a meal on the plane which I haven’t had since my flight back from Brazil in 1989. We had a choice of a Cheeseburger or a burrito. The sun was setting as we hit land in Panama. I could still see below and immediately was struck by how the difference between land and water is blurred in Panama. There are pieces of land and bodies of water scattered to the point where you do not know if you are looking at a body of water with islands or land with lakes. Then there was the jungle appearing through the mist of clouds.

 

The pool is located on the 13^th floor. There is one 25 yard pool on each side of the center beam in this picture. Also depending on the time of day and the tide there would be ocean or land out there. The restaurants are at the bottom. This hotel has Great views.

 

I boarded the shuttle from the hotel at about 4:30 a.m. We had to take our bikes down the afternoon before. I had let some air out of my tires because conventional wisdom is that they can expand and blow in the hot tropical sun. When I arrived in the morning I felt my tires. The front one was completely flat. Damn . . . I thought. Not more tire problems. At least it was a front tire. I decided to fill it anyways and see what happened. It was then I noticed I had forgotten to screw the valve down, so maybe it just slowly leaked all night and my tire was fine. I filled the tire and then went down to the stairs where we would exit the canal. I walked down the Amador Causeway alone in the dark and sat on a bench. I looked out at the Panama Canal and thought of my brother Mark and how he would have done this race with me and jumped at the chance to swim the Panama Canal. I miss him. I thought about how grateful I was to be in this place with my brother Erik. This place reminded both of us of our missions and I know that it was something we will always remember doing together already.  I knew that for many reasons I had not been able to get the training in that I would have liked. Injuries, crashes, illness and schedules had cut into my preparation. I knew that resting on my left arm in the aero bars was going to be a very painful experience during the bike. I knew long before I arrived in a Panama that I was only going to finish this race with help from above.

There is always fear that comes over you at this point. Fear of the pain that you will have to endure. Fear of the unknown challenge. Fear of failing. My thoughts turned to my brother mark and how when the doctor revealed his race course there was no pulling out. No matter how bad the pain, he would have to endure it to the very end. I prayed for a while and felt a peace come over me. It would be a hard day but I felt assured my father would be with me. I also knew that my brothers would be cheering me on. Erik here in this world and Mark from next. I was ready. I often tell myself, “Come what may.”

The swim starts on a pier north of the transition area and close to the Bridge of the Americas. Even though we got delayed about an hour I felt very relaxed. The water was much colder than I thought it would be, but perfect for hard swimming. I found excellent people to draft almost the entire swim and just felt like I had a good swim. As it turned out, I was only two minutes slower than the guy who won the race and 6 minutes faster than I had ever swam the distance before. Now there is a current that helps you, but I had a good swim on top of the current and swam a 00:24:35.

 

The Bike course goes over the Bridge of the Americas which officially connects North and South America. So technically we start from South America and then spent most of the bike ride in North America. The last part of the bike leg crosses back over the bridge and then goes right down Avenita Balboa, which is Panama City’s major coastal road. I was actually shocked by the roads that were closed for us. Panama truly rolled out the red carpet for us. No city in the States would have ever closed the roads that Panama closed for this race. The course is beautiful and diverse, complete with jungle, hills, and metropolitan city ways. It is a difficult but incredible bike course. One of the most interesting I have had the privilege to experience.

 

The biggest challenge of the bike course is the hills. Usually you have anywhere from 15 mph - 20 mph of wind from your own propulsion to help cool your body. When you are struggling up a hill in the humidity and heat of Panama it is like doing a stair master in a sauna. I was glad I spent all those hours in the garage cycling in the manufactured heat and humidity. I haven’t had the fan on in the garage in months. I don’t know that it was adequate, but it sure helped. I spent a great majority of the race in the small ring. As usual this elevation map does not do the course justice. The hills were relentless. I have got to lose weight to be effective on courses like this one. I still had ten miles to go when I felt like my body was done. I was just trying to make it through the last miles. I usually end up humbled and often praying for help on the run of a 70.3. In this race that started very early on in the bike.

 I felt so spent by the end of the bike that I was really concerned about my ability to run 13.1 miles. I decided to take it one mile at a time. My brother Erik had missed the last shuttle to the race and ended up walking for two hours through some very rough neighborhoods to get to the race site. Is there any better friend than a brother? After hours of suffering, it truly does help you to hear your brother’s voice cheering you on. I wanted to finish strong, I wanted him to be proud of me. I did not know at the time the sacrifice he had made to be there.
 

I could feel my brothers with me and with a mile to go I passed this guy and patted him of the back and said, “Can you feel it? It is the finish line pulling us forward.” I smiled and ran faster. My split times say that I ran that last half mile at a 00:06:01 minute mile pace which I don’t even think is possible. I must have been running on pure joy of finishing such a difficult race. Erik was there yelling encouragement. He managed to run across this circle and cheer me twice. I was glad he was there. Honestly that was the best part of this whole trip, was having my brother with me.

I wrote this review for Alejandro because I thought he and his team did a great job. He was even there to high five each and every athlete as they head down for the swim.

The host hotel was great. The rooms, service were excellent. I brought my brother and he couldn’t believe the rate that you secured for us. I especially liked the two negative edge pools that were perfect for real swimming every day. The breakfast buffet at the hotel was fantastic. The swim course was wonderful. Getting to swim in the Panama Canal was a dream of mine. The water temperature was perfect for hard swimming and I loved every minute of it. The bike course is difficult, but one of the most diverse and interesting courses I have had the privilege of doing. I can’t believe you were able to close Balboa. I felt like Panama really rolled out the red carpet for us athletes. No city in the United States would have ever prioritized us in such a way. Everyone was so supportive and energetic. Great job in securing those permits and establishing that course. Great bike course! I am a big guy for a triathlete and the bike course certainly left me a bit spent and I wasn’t looking forward the run, but what a great run course! Thank you so much for making sure there was plenty of ice. I never wanted for ice or water. Job well done! I really enjoyed the run course and all the support. It really helped and I was shocked to determine afterwards that it was my fastest run leg ever in a 70.3. I attribute that to the support, so thank you. What a great race. Thank you for your efforts. I will tell everyone they need to do this race. I certainly want to come back. My only complaint is that I wasn’t able to get my hands on an x-large jersey or pair tri shorts so I could advertise this great race for you.

 

Another Bike Crash!

 

GILBERT, ARIZONA

I have been riding in the garage for some time now for several reasons. First, it is safe and I don’t have to worry about re-injuring my still mending bones. Second, it has been very cold this winter. Third, I have been trying to acclimate to Panama by running on some space heaters and humidifiers to raise the temperature and the humidity levels in the garage while I ride.

Today however I wanted to get my last long ride in outside since it was a warm afternoon and I wanted to spend some time on the bike I would be riding and in the saddle I would be riding in Panama. I set out to do 45 miles on Garden Circle. I was doing well, feeling strong and good about my riding fitness with only 5 miles to go when a woman in a white SUV turned left right in front of me. I was going about 22-23 miles per hour at the time and I locked up my brakes. The bike felt like it was on ice. I eventually had to lay it down to avoid hitting her. While I was still sliding across the asphalt I was already thinking about the fact that Panama was in 12 days. I went down on my right side this time. I suffered some bad road rash on my right arm and right leg. My right shoulder ended up sore and I did some pretty extensive damage to my bike and destroyed my ipod case and right shoe. I had some bruising on my right quad and the top of my right foot.  I got up and accessed my body making sure nothing was broken or dislocated. The woman stopped but did not get out of her car. I told her that I had just got healed and this was my first long ride outside since September. She apologized and I was so mad I just told her to go. I should have got her information so I could submit my bike repair bill to her.

I walked my bleeding body and broken bike back to the house. Vayden was horrified. She hates the sight of blood. Then I began the painful process of taking a shower and scrubbing out all the dirt and gravel that was ground into my body. I sang a church hymn in the shower to help me with the painful process. While still in the shower I made a decision. Once out of the shower I started to get dressed again and Christian asked me what I was doing. I told him I needed to get my run in, because I knew that I would be too sore in the next few days to do it. I went out and ran at race pace. Sweat mingled with blood and dripped from my arm and leg as I ran. Blood, sweat and Tears! The tears were Vayden’s when she saw me. I only would have cried if I broke something and had to miss out on Panama. It felt good to run. I was angry and very happy at the same time to still be functional. I know that I was blessed. I would suffer some pain and discomfort, but I would be able to race in Panama. It could have been a lot worse and I know that the Lord was watching out for me.

I could not fall asleep until 5:00 am because of the intense burning sensation. I had trouble sleeping for many days. I stayed out of the pool for a few days, and when I got back in my scabs turned to this hanging skin that flapped as I swam and by the end of the swim, it hung down from my arm several inches. I went home from the gym and Lori was gaging when I asked her to cut it off. Two days after the accident  my neck would convulse into spasms for most of the day causing some pretty extreme pain. The neck problem prevented me from training for about two days. This incident caused me great pain but I was able to come away from it missing very little training and healthy enough to attempt Panama.