Halfmax Half Ironman National Championships

USAT Halfmax National Championships

Left Virginia Beach for Myrtle Beach Friday morning. 6 hours later I arrived at the race site to pick up my race packet and to rack my bike over night. Checked into the hotel and immediately gobbled down my pre race meal. After that I checked out the area and went down to the beach. Myrtle needs to do something about all the trash up on the beach it was total bummer to see. Virginia Beach, hands down has cleaner beaches and cleaner water. I went back to the hotel for a good nights sleep. I slept great. Easily got around 9 hours of sleep, which never happens before a race.

Race morning as I was prepping my transition area the race director calls all 1,500 participants over. He started tearing up and told us the swim had to be canceled. The bacteria levels in the canal area (where we were to swim) were at unsafe levels due to the 10" of rain they received a day earlier. For the swim to be canceled at a National Championship race is a BIG deal.

Here is what the USAT CEO said

"If we were to put people in the water and they were to become sick and/or die, with us being culpable as the group that came in and orchestrated this entire event, we can't assume that liability," "We decided [to cancel] for the safety of the athlete."

This is the 3rd triathlon I've been at where the swim has been canceled. Every time it is a mix of emotions for me. First I am really disappointed because of all the hard work and time I've put in the pool training. Then I am a bit relieved I don't have to swim because it is my weakest sport. I then get very excited about my chances of doing really really well since I am a run-bike specialist.

The weather was perfect and I knew I had a good opportunity to place very well today if nothing went wrong. So we proceeded with a 400 meter sprint to the bike instead of a swim. After about 20 minutes of waiting for people to go ahead of me (because each person was started 3 secs apart at random order) I was off like a bat out of hell.

The bike course was 2 loops of 28 miles and completely closed off to car traffic. Half of the time was spent battling against 10-15 mph winds and the other half was spent with the winds at my back. I did not escape the course without problems however. During one of the 4 180 degree turns my back wheel skidded out under me and the wheel actual came out of the lock. SO I had to get off my bike and put my wheel back on, which took a minute or so. I was so relieved the tubular did not skid off the wheel, which I first suspected had happened. Turns out that Tufo tape works really well! So I was back onto my bike to complete the 2nd half of the course. I have to mention I did the entire bike without my cyclocomputer, so I had no idea how fast I was going on the bike. I forgot to switch my spoke magnet thing over to my aero wheel before the race. Not a big deal, but it was a first for me. I ran into some cramping around mile 45. I think pushing hard into the wind took a toll on my bike legs. From that point on I dialed my effort down a notch to prepare for the run. I finished the course in 2:18. Not the fastest. But I was racing against some of the best in the country. I was pleased to see a good amount of race officials checking for drafting. Seems like when I changed my training to include more running and less cycling my cycling time trial suffered, which in the end paid off for me on the run.

I felt a bit drained from the bike course when I started my run. I took my salt tablets and drank my water as planned at the start of the run. The run course was flat and fast. I started the first few miles a little too fast to sustain. This was my last triathlon of the year so I just wanted to lay everything on the line. I tried not to pay too much attention to my GPS watch and just run as hard as I could the entire time. My legs started to cramp up around mile 11, but thankfully the cramps subsided and I finished with a personal record of a 1:20 half marathon. A 1:22 for 13.1 miles was my goal all year and I crushed that. I wasn't sure what these other athletes from around the country were capable of, but I knew I had a great day and would place high.

Officially they have me ranked 3rd overall and second in my age group category with a finish time of 3:41. Tom Clifford won the day in a time of 3:39.

I won the award for National Champion of my Age Group because the guy who won is in my age group and he wins the overall first place award. The win for me is bittersweet however because the swim was canceled. It would have been a very different race tactically had there been a swim. I think it was very possible I would have still finished top 3 in the country in my age group.

Myrtle Beach is a cool place to have an Ironman event. But I think a lot of people were angry and disappointed about the entire race event itself. This was the first year for a triathlon to be held in Myrtle Beach so there was bound to be problems. The run course was chaotic to say the least. The aid stations on the run did not have everything I like to see for a half iron event. The volunteers tried, but really did not now what they were doing. And I don't get why a National event such as this does not get more publicity.

My training and racing all year lead me into this event. This was a great victory for me and is a huge stepping stone as I continue to try to be the best triathlete I can be.

This race was also the sole qualifier for Long Course World Championships, which take place near Las Vegas next year. The first time it will be held in the US in 15 years. They make it pretty easy to qualify allowing the top 20 from each age group to qualify for worlds.

So now it is time for a little rest. Maybe 3 days. LOL. I have a marathon in one month to prep for. Swimming and cycling will go on hiatus this month. My focus will be on slowing down the run pace, building up the weekly mileage and getting in at least a 19 miler and 21 miler before Marine Corps Marathon.