Pacific Crest 1/12 Ironman Race Report


The very short version:

It was @#$%!! Hot, though not as hot as 2003.
Swim 36:58
T1 2:34
Bike 2:50:29
T2 2:18
Run 2:04:37
Total of 5:36:56 good for 95 of 420 and 12 of 46

This was good for a PR on this, the REAL Pac Crest ½ Ironman course!!

Longer version:
As many of you know, I am NOT a runner and I’ve never played one on TV. However, this year, I ran the Newport Marathon at the absolute manipulation of friends and believed it would be good for training my notoriously weak running prior to taking on Ironman Florida in the fall. This means that I’ve done very little cycling and have been in the pool fewer than 8 times in prep for Pac Crest this year. Given these great preparations, I decided early on that this year would simply be a training day, where I would work on pacing and staying steady. The only remote goal was to run a ½ marathon that would be in the top half of the times recorded by the field. Once I had looked at the weather forecast, I decided that my new goal was to make sure I drank enough that I had to stop to relieve myself on the run.

On race morning, as I was riding the bus out to the start with my friend Dave Blair (who has also started every Pac Crest with me since 2001) I remarked that I wasn’t feeling the usual adrenaline. I literally almost fell asleep on the bus. At T1, I set up and LOVED the newly paved transition area. I had no expectations in the swim except the hope to swim under 40 minutes. I saw a bunch of friends and Ironheads teammates before the race and wished everyone well and reminded them (like they needed it) to drink up in the heat. On the boat ramp, I ran into a lady I went to high school with and we laughed that this is where we run into each other. Well, soon enough, I was off in the swim. Things were feeling good, so after the first buoy, I picked it up a bit. The water seemed less smooth, yet somehow, I still had the sensation of swimming downhill. I just felt fine. Weird! As I came out of the water, my high school classmate yelled at me. We were leaving the water at the same time and we had been swimming side-by-side over the last several hundred yards. Swim time, a surprising 36:58, good for 179 of 420, good for top half.

On the bike, I drank a gulp electrolytes too quickly and paid with an immediate stomach cramp. My legs instantly felt dead and I considered, for just a moment, returning to T1 and packing it in. I rode for a couple of miles with my stomach in a fist (or so it felt) and finally, as I turned out of the lake road, it loosened up. I finally got my heart rate under control and started to find my rhythm. I caught my friend Dave soon and was surprised that I passed him so quickly as my HR was a steady 145. We had agreed to take it easy on the flats and downhills this year and attack the climbs. So, when I was yo-yo’ing with a couple guys, I finally just let them go. On the climbs, I focused on really spinning my legs and keeping a higher cadence. Sooner than I imagined, I crested the top and was headed downhill. The winds from the east prevented any real speed at the beginning, but once on the super smooth new tarmac on South Century, I was quickly topping 40 and passing a few people. I soft-pedaled the downhill for the most part, but still managed to pass quite a few, ahem, less stout competitors. Gravity is kind to those of us with a higher BMI. When I made the final turn toward Sunriver I realized I was going to have a decent bike time, but resisted the strong urge to ‘push it’. Cruised home to T2 in 2:50:29, good for 79 of 420. Wow! A bike PR on this course!

Now, since it was hot, I did take some time in T2 to spray on sunscreen and take some enduralytes and IB. Once out on the run course I decided I would try to keep my mile splits. Again, I usually don’t do this, but given I’ve sort of been working on my running, thought it might be helpful. I ran the first two miles at 8:50 and 8:45 pace. For me, that was awesome! I tried to keep it up, but around miles 6-8, I slowed markedly. With the heat, I chose to walk the aid stations and was dumping ice into the rear pocket of my singlet. This made a nice mariachi shaker sound as I ran (shuffled) through the miles. After mile 8 I tried picking it up and did run mile 9 in 9:05, but paid for it a bit on the next couple of miles. I stayed upright and only had one small bout of near-cramping when I decelerated too fast coming into the aid station at mile 11. My calves threatened a cramp, but I was able to quickly stretch them and start running again. Steven passed me right before mile 12 and, as usual, was running fluid and easy. I wish I could do that. Oh well, I saw a lady who has passed me in my earlier difficult miles and picked her off and then ran on the shoulder of a guy I thought might be in my age group. He picked it up for the last mile and I stayed with him, but couldn’t pass him. Coming down the last 200 hundred yards the cheers were awesome and I saw Ironheads teammates Heather and Kendra cheering me on. I couldn’t believe that I had finished under 5:40 in that heat. Run total, 2:04:37, a PR by almost 6 minutes and good for 135 of 420. This is the FIRST time I’ve been in the top half of the field for a run split in this race, so I was ecstatic.

To say this race result was a total surprise would be an understatement. This is by FAR my highest ever placing relative the field and a personal record on this, the REAL Pac Crest course. I guess there is something to training your weakness and I’ll keep on running.