2014 Great White North Half Iron Race Report

Pre-Race Rambles:

I am a little behind on my posting…I guess Ironman training will do that to you!  Back on July 6th I raced the Great White North Half Iron distance triathlon in Stony Plain, AB.  I wasn’t feeling that prepared for the race.  I had a great training camp in Penticton, but then training got derailed by our move into our new home.  To make up for lost time I rode 130 km on July 1st knowing that it would likely impact my race.

I was also travelling without my favourite cheerleader.  Neil was on call that weekend so he had to stay behind in Calgary.  The trip wouldn’t be the same without him!  Luckily I had a ton of teammates racing Great White North so I didn’t feel too lonely.

On Saturday afternoon I dropped my run gear bag off at T2…

…then dropped my bike off at T1.

There was an option to swim in the lake but it was getting late in the day for me.  I was more interested in doing my usual thing the night before Great White North…drive out to Edmonton and have dinner at Olive Garden.  It isn’t amazing food but I know it sits well in my stomach so I just go with it!  I got back to the hotel early and put on my race number tattoos (which promptly wanted to fall off) and called it a night.

I was up early on Sunday morning, had a shower and ate my usual breakfast these days of oatmeal with cinnamon and dried fruit soaked overnight in milk.  I then packed up, headed out of the hotel and caught the shuttle from the finish line/T2 to the lake.  As soon as I got there it was time to get to business!

I got my tires pumped up, set up my nutrition on the bike and hit up the porta potty lines.  Time flew by and all of a sudden I had to hurry up and get in my wetsuit or I was going to miss the swim warm up!

Thank goodness for my friend Tara who had gotten up well before the crack of dawn to come cheer us on at the race today.  She calmed me down and helped me get in my wetsuit.  I had just enough time for a few strokes in the lake to check the seal on my goggles before it was time to get out.  Once we were ushered over to the timing mats and on to the beach I had a few minutes to find friends.

There was no time to be nervous…it was time to race!

Photo by Ken Anderson

Swim – 2000 m – 46:01

There were people everywhere which was a good thing because I couldn’t see the first buoy we were supposed to swim to.  It was just around a corner so I wound up just making sure I had people to my left and right rather than worrying about where the buoy was.  After I rounded the first buoy it felt like everyone disappeared.  I decided to put a bit more oomph in to my swim.  I don’t know if that translates in to me swimming much faster but I was trying!  Overall I was really happy with my swim.  It was a bit slower than last year’s, however last year’s course was definitely short!

Photo by Ken Anderson

Bike – 90 km – 3:15:54 (including T1 and T2), estimated 3:12 without transitions

I tried to be really efficient in T1…wipe my feet off, put my socks on and put my swim gear in the provided plastic bag.  I pushed my bike out of transition and I could hear Coach Angie and Tara screaming and cheering me on!  You have to ride up a short, steep hill to get out of transition so I had made sure I had left my bike in a super easy gear.

Photo by Ken Anderson

Once out on the road I wanted to focus on doing my own thing.  I’ve often gotten caught up in trying to pass people early on the bike.  Today I just made sure I was riding clean and I kept an eye on my power meter to make sure I wasn’t pushing too hard.  The wind was a bugger and at times it felt like I was barely moving.  My legs were not really feeling that awesome either.  I had conveniently forgotten about my 130 km ride just a few days earlier!  I made sure to taking in calories every 15 minutes, sipping on EFS and taking in EFS Liquid Shot.

Despite the wind and my somewhat lacklustre legs I felt like I was having a really good ride.  The ride is two times on an out and back and when I hit the first turnaround the wind was a bit more favourable.  There were also some nice downhills and I decided to take a few chances and pick up the pace here, being mindful of not pushing my watts too high.  This part was awesome…I could feel my wheels purring and I just felt so fast!

Photo by Ken Anderson

Maybe the wind wasn’t quite as bad on the second lap of the bike or else I knew it would feel a lot better on the way back so I didn’t mind as much.  Regardless, the second lap felt better.  I was pretty pleased to come in around 3:12 on the bike, a good 7 minutes or so faster than last year on the same course.

Run – 21.1 km – 2:22:19

As I started on the run I knew I had nailed my nutrition on the bike so I should be well fuelled for the run.  I was a little concerned that my legs were less than peppy…but it was time to run a half marathon.  I carried three gels with me and I knew I needed to keep up with my fuelling to ensure my best possible day.  I also kept repeating the word patience over and over to myself.  I wanted to start slow so I’d leave enough gas in the tank for the end.

Photo by Rose Serpico

My favourite thing about racing Great White North is the double out and back for the run course.  You spot all of your friends and it always makes my day!  My teammates were all awesome and I got a lot of encouragement from them.  The other thing I love about Great White North are all of the amazing and enthusiastic volunteers at the aid stations.  This year they were all really well stocked and I grabbed a cup of water and a cup of Coke each time I ran through.

The wind on the bike?  Completely gone for the run.  It was a hot one out there!  I was on point with my nutrition, taking my gels in when I needed them.  My stomach also felt awesome.  It was great to know that my bike nutrition and run nutrition were sitting well in my stomach.  My legs were really fading on the second lap of the run though.  When I caught up with Kelly I decided to take a couple of minutes to walk and chat with her.  She shooed me on my way and I needed to keep on running, albeit somewhat slowly now.  It was a tough slog to the finish and I will admit to feeling a bit disappointed that I wasn’t able to put together a stronger run.  I had hoped to be patient but I just wound up fading.  Now that I’ve had some time to reflect on the race I know that my day was dictated by that large bike ride I did just a few days prior.  It wasn’t ideal, but it was what I needed to do to be ready for Ironman Boulder.  Having a speedy race at Great White North was not my goal this year.

Photo by Ken Anderson

6:24:13!

Overall there was a lot to be proud of on this day.  I crossed the line at 6:24:13, a full 14 minutes faster than last year.  My swim was a little longer this year due to the course actually being 2000 m, but I made significant gains on the bike and run.  I nailed my nutrition plan and my stomach felt great.  I still wonder how I’m going to knock off 20 minutes to get close to my half Iron PR but that can be a mystery to solve in another year.  I feel like I have the right building blocks in place for Ironman Boulder in 12 days and that is what matters the most!