Muncie 70.3

This past weekend, I competed in one of the oldest running Triathlons in the United States. This was the 31^st running of the event.  I first heard about this race back in the 90’s and always wanted to do it but just never got around to it. I’m glad I finally got around to it.

It was a beautiful morning in Muncie Indiana….low 70’s, calm and low humidity.  The race didn’t start till 8:00 AM so I was never rushed setting up transition and had everything in order with plenty of time to get in a swim warm-up.  Breakfast was two bagels and two 24oz Diet Cokes….hmmmm good.

The Swim

My goal was to keep my stroke count high without getting ragged and stay focused on a good strong catch and pull for the entire swim.  I also wanted come out of the water with my heart rate under control. If I was a sponsored athlete, this is where I would insert the mandatory plug for my new Blue Seventy Speed Suit.  Thankfully, I’m not sponsored so you don’t have to read that. The only issue I had in the swim was with the sun glare on the inbound leg. I could never see the finish and I like to sight on something in the distance and not the marker buoys.  As I was swimming, I noticed that I wasn’t swimming with the same effort as the outbound leg. It dawned on me that because I wasn’t always sure where I was going, I was subconsciously holding back. So, at least for me, good sighting technique not only keeps you in a straight line, it also frees up your brain to let your body push harder…

Swim Time: 35:47 / 6^th out of the water in the age group.

The Bike

It’s not often you get to ride 56 miles as hard as you can with no cars to worry about.  That was the case on Saturday. The Muncie course was flat, fast and on closed roads. If for no other reason, you should do this race to experience that feeling.  Another cool thing about this race for me was the fact that because my swim wave was one of the first ones in the water, it took me about 30 miles to get clear of the field. I rode the last 25 miles by myself.  I probably passed one competitor every mile or so..it was unbelievably stress free riding. Hard; but stress free.

This was my first HIM with a power meter. I had a wattage number in my head that I thought I could hold but wasn’t sure so I also had a heart rate monitor for back up. The watt # I thought I was going to ride at was 230. That’s about 85% of my FTP.   As it turned out, that was too aggressive and it’s a good thing I had the heart rate monitor to keep things under control.  I normally ride with my heart rate in the high 140’s, low 150’s. If I would have pushed to the 230 watt number, that would have driven my heart rate into the mid 150’s. With the hot temperatures and a 13.1 mile run looming, I decided to not push it and use the heart rate monitor as my limiter. Over the course of the ride, I averaged 220 watts and a heart rate of 148. It’s a good starting point for my future races.

The only negative I can come up with has to do with my rear brake rubbing on the disk. I didn’t realize it during the ride. It wasn’t until Dottie and I were walking the bike back to the car did I notice that the disk wasn’t rolling free. Nothing I can do about it now, but it does give me some confidence for the next race. Who knows how many watts were used up in overcoming the additional friction caused by the break rub?

Bike time: 2:22:10/23.6 mph/1^st in the age group

Run

At a race this competitive and the fact that I’m 54 and one of the oldest guys  in my age group means that if I want to win, I have to be sharp and at the top of my game in all three disciplines. Today, I wasn’t sharp on the run. It just didn’t happen. I knew that there were at least three guys who were excellent runners and that I if I came off the bike first, I would be “the hunted”. That’s the way it played out and I couldn’t respond to the pressure. I started out feeling better than I thought I would. The first miles were clunky until I got my running legs under me but I was still able to hold a pace just under 7:00 per mile. Once my legs came around, I was able to run fairly free. The course was a continuous series of testy rollers. Up and down for 13.1 miles.  For the first 6.5 miles I tried to run a pace that I thought I could keep for the entire race. Even though I knew that there were faster runners behind me,  I made a decision to not overdo it early in the race. The temps were in the mid 80’s and there was little shade available. I agreed with Daniel Bretscher, my coach, when he said that the runners who held it together the longest would be the most successful. I didn’t want to implode during the last 3 miles.

The race played out like I thought it would. At the turnaround, I saw the second place guy in my age group about a block behind me. I was surprised he was that close so soon but I stayed positive and put my head down to make him work a little harder to catch me. He finally passed me just before the 10 mile marker and I didn’t have anything for him.  As he ran by, I told that I was waiting for the “capture”

If I had to do it again, I think my strategy would be to work closer to the edge early in the race. I played it safe and ended up getting passed anyway. You live and learn. I would also train at running fast down hills. My quads were gone by mile 11. I went from averaging under 7:00 min per mile to about 7:15’s.  I was hurt'n for certain at the end.

**Bodily Function Alert** If reading about other peoples "bodily functions" makes you squeamish, you may want to skip this paragraph and read about the wonderful volunteers....At mile six in this race, I had a Zen moment. It was amazing. I didn't want to take the time to stop and pee at one of the aid stations, so I pee'd while running. I looked down at my Garmin and I was cruzing along @ a 6:57 pace and I was letting nature take its course. I've never done that before. I hope to do it again.

Another great part of this race were the volunteers on run course….they were awesome.. Always positive and you could tell they were working their asses off to keep the runner supplied with ice, water and Powerbar Perform. I never had to slow down to get what I needed and I never left an aid station thinking I missed something….

Run Time: 1:31:35 /7:00 min per mile/ 2^nd fastest in the age group.

Overall Time: 4:33:23/2^nd Age group finish/53^rd overall

Wrap-up

It was disappointing to not win the age group. I knew it was going to take a perfect race to win and I didn’t have that race. The swim met my expectations. The bike exceeded my expectations. My run let me down…..again. I’ve been the “hunted” off the bike in every race this year. The first two, I had enough to hold the second place finishers off. Today, I didn’t. At this point, I’m not sure what I’m going to do to try and improve my run, but something has to happen. I may have a few pounds I can shave off. I may have to add a day of running during the week. I may have to take a rest and get stronger…I’m still not sure. But, I am sure that my coach will come up with something to get the run back in gear for the second half of the season

And finally, I'd be remiss to write anything about this race and not mention that there were eight fellow Bretscher Multisport athletes competing in it. What an amazing crew. PR's and podium finishes were the order of the day. Daniel B, Dana R and myself ended up on the podium. Paul A and Bille both PR'd for a HIM. Mike K and Julie L also put in yeoman's work and did  the team proud.

Thanks for taking the time to read this. I appreciate it.

Ron