2014 Ironman 70.3 Racine

This weekend I made the quick trip North across the Illinois-Wisconsin state border for the midsummer classic at Racine 70.3. Only 60 miles away, this was the only race on my season schedule where I felt like I had any sort of home-town advantage. Not only do I know the course like the back of my hand having raced it as an amateur in 2009 (time of 5:38:51) and 2011 (time of 4:53:10) but the fans drew in flocks to cheer me on which was incredible. Also, I know I said Eagleman was the most competitive field I have ever lined up against but if you can believe it, this one topped it (I suppose that's what happens when you offer up $50,000!) Here is the recap from the race that broke my consecutive top-10 streak but could still be argued as my best performance of the year.

Silky smooth legs= time to go fast  

Let me start off by saying that although I love traveling, driving to a race is freaking awesome. No airport, no bike deconstruction, no food prep upon arrival made for a practically stress free pre-race build up. After a quick ride and run at home on Saturday morning, big-Stevie and I loaded the cooler with food and hit the road for the drive up to Racine. I dipped into the freezing cold water for a swim at the race site, hit up the pro meeting and then made my way over to the hotel. No complaints about the size of the room, the decor or even the lack of TV channels but my unfortunate selection landed us in a room directly above a ridiculously loud quincinera party where the live band left their hearts on the stage until midnight. Thankfully, I sleep like a brick no matter the distraction.

We could even creep on the party from our room! Hola amigos

A nice pre-made quinoa and almond butter breakfast awaited me when the alarm went off race morning. After driving over to the transition area and setting up my gear, I was able to take real stock of who was going to be on the starting line. Fastest runner in the sport, fastest biker in the sport, 2x World Champion, USA Ironman record holder, US national champion... Yep, the battle would be real.

Casually racking next to dudes I've idolized for years.  

I went out for a nice warm up run and then met up with Dad at the swim start 1.2 miles down the beach where he was waiting with my gear. I threw on the wetsuit, "warmed up" in the 61.4 degree water (that was absolutely taken at the edge of the lake) and then lined up, waiting for the gun to go off.

Never a good time  

At 7am sharp, the cannon fired and I dove into the water immediately sprinting to the first buoy. I did not have a great start which put me a few meters back but having been in that situation a number of times before, I was able to quickly work my way back into the game. By the halfway point, I had reached the main bunch of swimmers and stuck in there for the remainder of the effort. I exited the water in 14th position on the back of a large group that exited the water in 26:08. 

I made good use of the long run from the beach to the transition area and picked off a few fellow swimmers. After reaching my bike, I seriously struggled with my wetsuit and then got out on the course, ready for a bumpy ride on the winter wrecked roads around Racine County. 

How to not take off your wetsuit 

I charged up the hill outside of transition and quickly realized that I was on the very end of an 11 man train riding the legal six bike lengths between each other. Although I was happy to be in the mix, my last place in line meant that if I wanted to pass one person in the group, I had to go past all 11 of the riders. So, instead of wasting a boat load of energy in one big pass, I played the patient game and let the race come to me. The first 15 miles were spent riding very hard as super-biker Jordan Rapp took the lead and the rest of us tried to match is pace. Although the effort was full-on right from the start, this served as a nice way to weed out the stragglers and establish smaller, more distinct groups of riders. Around the half way mark, I found myself in a group of 4 which quickly became 3 as we headed back towards town. This was a really different ride and just as hard (if not harder) than the previous 70.3's I have done this year. The gas was on full-throtle the entire way and there were a lot of hard surges that ensured I was not dropped from the group at any point. I ended up rolling into the transition area in 13th place with a 2:11:31 split. Check out the Strava file HERE. 

Screaming down the hill into T2  

Thankfully, the second transition went much more smoothly than the first as I threw on the shoes and got out on the run course ready for some more hard work.

I made my way out of transition and was immediately challenged by an Irishman that was part of that three man cycling group. He took off like a bat out of hell and cruised up the road like I was standing still. But going out hard and hanging on is not my style.... I stay calm and work my way into it- taking down anyone who struggles in the process. So, I let that eager runner take off and settled into my pace.

The early few miles felt a little stiff from the hard ride but I found a nice rhythm around the 5k mark and was able to feel better as the half marathon progressed. My steady and consistent run effort moved me up three places and I was able to pass that Irish runner around the halfway point. I crossed the line in 11th place with a personal best run of 1:17:44 and a personal best overall time, breaking the four hour mark for the first time with a 3:58:56. Strava file HERE.

Lots of pain in that final 5k, but well worth it!

I went into this race with the lofty goal of pulling out another top-10 finish but am not disappointed in the least bit with the performance I put out on the course. I gave the race my absolute best and that is all I can do on any given day. Although it would have been nice to keep the streak alive, I would consider this the best all around performance of my entire career giving me tons of confidence moving forward. 

Huge thanks to my incredible support team who is there with me every step of the way on and off the course. Without you guys, being the youngest athlete on the start line at every race and crushing the dreams of my older competitors would not be possible. EGO, Sammy's Bikes, Precision Multisport, Xterra and the Wellness Revolution- you are the best. 

Although I'm moving around like a senior citizen today, I'm taking all steps possible to recovery quickly and get ready for another half Ironman next weekend at Challenge New Albany in Ohio. I'm looking forward to having another crack and putting all of my hard work in training to good use. 

Some post race ice bath action 

Tune in next week and thanks for following along, 

Justin