Race Report – Eagleman 70.3 Half Ironman, June 14, 2009
Hi once again, Tri race fans! This is “Race Report” Dave with another detailed race report covering my participation in this year’s Eagleman 70.3 Half Ironman triathlon. For those that are unfamiliar with this event, it’s held on the Eastern Shore of Maryland, based out of the town of Cambridge roughly 3 hours from Frederick. The event has some history to it and was eventually named for the Bald Eagles which visit Dorchester County. This is quite a popular event as it’s near many large metropolitan areas and is a fairly good one for a first Half Ironman as the bike and run courses are FLAT, FLAT, FLAT. Now, that doesn’t mean this is a cakewalk. Far from it. But, if the weather cooperates (i.e. little to not too much wind, light to no chop/waves for the swim), you don’t like hills, and you can really mash the gears while also crushing the run, then this is the course for you!
Some of you new to triathlon probably didn’t see my report from last year’s Eagleman. Last year, this race was my first Half Iron distance and it literally was a trial by fire as temperatures reached the upper 90s on the run course with heat indexes in the 100s! Well, didn’t need that again this year, though truth be told I prefer that to a soaking rain. Everything gets soaked in transition, cools down, and you can’t enjoy the after event festivities. So, 2 weeks out I started to watch the weather forecast models and check out the trends. They bounced around a bit between rain and no rain but none of them looked like a repeat of the heat. And the day before race, weather was shaping up good – 62 at race start, 80 for a high, light winds 3-8 mph, partly to mostly cloudy skies, 20-30% rain, light chop on the water. I was thinking that it just doesn’t get much better.
Now, believe it or not, I actually started to train for this in October/November timeframe. Mostly I was trying to get strength training back. But, as many of you know, I’ve had my share of health problems and training came to a dead stop in January with lasting effects for the next several weeks. After that, just couldn’t stay healthy. The last two things that happend were a hamstring strain 5 weeks out which cut run training to nil and a cold a week prior which also lingered a bit into the race day. Needless to say, I wasn’t up to par for the race but I said I would walk the 13.1 miles if I had to. Little did I know that statement nearly came true.
Okay, now that the weather looked like a go and I had committed myself to finishing the race above all else, the anticipation started to grow as I headed down to Cambridge with former club member Mike Matney. Mike had something to prove on this course as last year didn’t go as well as he hoped, though this was his B race as he’s in training for Ironman Wisconsin. Mike was fortunate that he lives closer now and had come to train on the courses a few times prior to the race. We arrived in Cambridge in time to hear the pro panel speak. No bike inspection like last year so we had plenty of time after we arrived. We first picked up our race packets and goodie bag. Some good stuff again this year – hat, nice T-shirt, water bottle. I think there was an energy bar as well. Met up with club member Vicki Bate and her friend Kathy as they were waiting for the free Active Release Therapy (ART) folks that were next to the stage. I thought, “Hey, maybe that can fix my hamstring” and I signed up as well. Just before the pro panel started, club members Dan Pfeil and Jason Senuta arrived on the scene as well. Just after the pro panel started, the ART therapist called my name. Told him what was wrong and he proceeded to basically fix me. It actually did seem to work! Wow! I was quite a bit more confident about my ability to run after this. Have to check into this back at Frederick!
The pro panel was interesting and consisted of Terenzo Bozzone, Desiree Flicker, Michael Lovato, and I think Chris McDonald. Michael MC’d and did a great job at keeping things very light and moving along. Mike and I got our picture with Desiree this year. Sweet! She took 3rd in women pros, BTW.
After this, we said goodbyes to Vicki and Kathy and said we’d see them at dinner. Mike wanted to ride over to transition to check in his bike and so I’d drive. We also were going to check out the swim and get a bit of practice there in. So, after checking our bikes in, we tested the water. It was pretty warm considering and I wished I had a john vs a full the suit. The only good thing about a full suit is that it protected me from what Mike found out about – sea nettles! Yup, these are a kind of jellyfish and a few of them have entered into the Choptank River from the bay. Now, Mike only got brushed by one it looked like and I found out later that I apparently hit one as there are sting marks around my wrist. Unless you’re allergic, they’re not really any worse than a minor bee sting. They are a discomfort though. During the swim, my left shoulder starts to really bother me which indicates I haven’t loosened my suit enough. Funny though because all my long distance swims with the wetsuit, I didn’t start noticing anything like this so early in the swim. But, I was able to go out to the first buoy and come back okay. I’d just have to remember about loosening my suit I thought at the time.
Off to dinner meeting back up with Vicki and Kathy, plus we see Bernie Sellers there as well. A few other folks. Then checked into the hotel and met with club members Tamara Bruce and Julian Coiner to catch up on things and discuss the race. Since Julian was discussing his lack of training, we decided my goal should be to catch him if I could actually run. I actually thought at that point that I had a chance too. Said goodbyes, wished all good luck, and headed back to the hotel to prepare and get some shut eye. Tomorrow would come too early and it was going to be a long day on Sunday. However, the sleep is broken by a thunderstorm sometime around midnight and I think about all the bikes getting wet and what the transition area will be like.
RACE DAY! All the alarms and wake up call go off around 3:45 AM and I drag myself to the coffee machine. Ahhh, the nectar of morning. So, breakfast today consisted of a raisin bagel, raspberry yogurt, and carbohydrate drink. I missed my little bit of peanut butter, though. After the rest of the morning routine, pack and head out. Now the Holiday Inn Express at Easton actually prepared little bags of food/drink for the triathletes to take and this was most appreciated.
Transistion opened at 5 and we get there shortly afterward. As you’d expect, the transition area is bustling with activity as everyone has to be out by 6:55. The pros actually start at 6:40 with next wave 5 min after that and then every 9 minutes after that. I get body marked and go find my spot again. As I am in Wave 9 near the end, I’m not in much of a hurry. I also didn’t leave anything back at the car this time like last yer. Everything’s pretty wet from the thunderstorm and I dry things off a bit. Set my stuff up just so, pump tires, and fill my drink bottles. As we had to wear our numbers on the bike, made sure my race belt was on my bike shoes so I wouldn’t forget. Then socks or no socks on the bike? I had been debating this and decide to go with no socks as the transition area is a bit muddy here and there from the night’s rain. Then, I’m pretty much done in no time and decide to wish others well who are going ahead of me. And I found a little over half the club members – Julian, Tamara, Mike, Dan, Jason, and Geoff. I also see Ricardo who is a volunteer here! Way to go Ricardo!
I see elites Lucas McCollum in my rack row and then Herb Spicer and realize both gentlemen are in my wave. Talk about a little competitive pressure! But, my spirits are pretty high as I joke to the other folks around me that we should get some lounge chairs and umbrellas while we wait for our wave to start since we have so much time. 
It is mostly cloudy with temperatures in the 60s as the waves start to get going with a breeze over the water. I head over to the start to watch a couple of the waves go off to see if I can gleam any intel on how they look. A pro last year advised us to do this to check out any current. One thing I do notice is that it looks like a better line starting left than right and so I decided to do this when it was my turn. I then see some folks from the wave before me start to line up and realize it’s time to get it together. I try to warm up and stretch but I really don’t get as much out of this as I should. I normally jog a little bit to get the heart rate up but I’m still afraid of my hamstring and don’t want to chance anything. It does still feel better since the ART and I also put a brace on it just for more support. So, I probably should’ve. My shoulder’s still sore from the day prior and this is not a terrific sign of things prior to the swim. Still I just needed to remind myself to loosen up the top of the suit as much as I could.
Wetsuit is now on and I’m in line with other folks from my wave. It’s a big one too – M 50-54, M 25-29, Men 13-19, and Clydesdales. I line up not too far from the front on the left as I decided. Timer says 1 min and I start my watch….30 sec…15…10…5….GO! Can’t remember if the horn blared or not as well. Anyway, there is now MASS PANDAMONIUM in the water!! The water is a churning area of bodies and neon green caps! Man, I had never been in this much of a churning mass before, not even last year! And then I realize it might’ve been a mistake lining up in front as faster guys are clamoring over me and bumping into me all over the place! While this is good to catch feet and draft, it proves to be a bit difficult to get my rhythm going. Still, I don’t seem to be doing that bad as I get up to the first buoy. There are still a good number of neon green caps around. And I seem to be more relaxed than one would think for all the action around me. I just press on and let folks bump and roll off my legs when it happens. My sighting for this first leg and actually the second weren’t too bad and I wasn’t going off course too much. This despite the fact that the breeze is at our face before the first turn and we have a little bit of chop on the water, more than I was expecting. Now, after the second turn starts the long stretch to the second set of turns before going into shore. This stretch takes its toll on my left shoulder and I’m finding it’s getting tired pretty quickly. So I try to compensate by only doing one side sometimes. That works to give me relief but I find myself going right when I do this too much. So, I have to sight more than I should to stay on course. I can see also, that I’m starting to lose a bit of ground with the rest of the wave too. But, I push myself forward. One thing working in our favor is the wind is with us and helping to push us forward as well. The third turn buoy finally comes up. I’m getting tired now and I’m starting to breast stroke a bit more than I should. But onward I go as the last turn buoy is coming up. This puts us back in the wind and its a bit of a challenge to continue pressing. Still, the transition arch is in sight. I finally get close enough to touch bottom and decide it’s better to jog into shore. And I emerge from the water completing the swim portion of this year’s Eagleman!
I find out later that I actually did a bit better than last year – 40:16. Still slow but not bad for me. 50/81 in AG
Okay, my rack is real close to the swim in area and I know I’ve got to get my wetsuit off quickly. No zipper problem (it’s been stuck in the past) and peel the top down to my waist as I jog along. At my rack, get the rest of it off, put number on, put shoes on, sweat band, sun glasses, and finally helmet. And I’m outta there! Last year, I really took my time but now I’m a bit more practiced and shaved nearly 4 minutes off of last year’s T1 time – 2:44 26/81 AG
At the bike mount area and I’m off on the bike portion. I still don’t have my shoes in my pedals yet and will save that for perhaps next season. Now, the bike course is pretty darn flat with some slight changes in elevation. The challenges on the bike course are the unpredictable winds when they’re there and the fact that you’re always pedaling. So, I try not to hammer here and keep cadence in the 80s. Like last year, I’ve started my countdown timer to remind to take in food and drink about every 20 min. My nutrition consisted of my electrolyte drink, shot blocks, water, and electrolyte pills. I also had some gel with me just in case but I would stick to the main stuff along the way. On the way out, the wind seemed to have stiffened up a lot more that I was expecting. In several places this was a crosswind and in others a tailwind. But, I should’ve realized that meant a possible headwind on the way back. I was moving along smartly passing a good number of people and trying as best as I could to not get in the way of the faster folks. I passed Lisa Houck at one point and wished her a good ride. I wished a few others the same. Saw a few blocking issues and a few drafting folks which I really dislike seeing. Anyway, the first half of the bike seemed fairly uneventful though we did have to watch we didn’t move over some newly cut rumble strips on the road shoulder. As traffic was light, just stayed on the road and avoided these. So, I was hopeful at mile 31 of a having a good ride as my average speed was 21 mph. But, turning to the NE at that point, the headwind hit us. I had to downshift to keep the cadence up. Actually, what I should’ve realized was just how much this was affecting me and I should’ve cut speed and kept cadence much higher. But, I attempted to keep pushing it a bit. There was also a guy in my AG I was chasing too and I finally caught and passed him on a leg that gave us a tailwind for a bit. But on the rest of the return trip, pushing into the headwind led to the problems I encountered later. And I was getting tired. Still, nothing was really bothering me per se. Last year, my quads started to cramp at mile 40 and this year, there wasn’t anything like that except a bit in my calves early on. At mile 45, I take the gatorade bottle to replenish my electrolyte drink. I also decided to take a few big drinks too so I would stay hydrated. Nutrition seemed to be going well also as I paused enough to take in a block, water, pill, or combination thereof. After nearly 20 miles or so of the wind in my face, I finally saw a turn I recognized to be near the town and my spirits brightened. I was actually looking forward to the run at this point to get out of this headwind. Last turn now onto a straightaway leading right into transition and I get out of my shoes. I’ve gotten much better at this since I first attempted this a Mussleman last year. My one hamstring complained but I relaxed and eased out of the shoe. Then the other one. And as I come up to the dismount point, I smartly swing my one leg over my seat and balance on the other pedal with both feet and then hit the ground running off the bike into T2. The ground’s a bit muddy but I didn’t really care as I jogged with my bike to my rack. And the picture of me I saw shows me smiling as I’m doing this. It was a good transition from bike to run. Bike time 2:53:14 39/81 in AG
In T2, I remove my helmet after racking my bike and then remvoe a bit of dirt from my feet and try to get socks on as quickly as possible. Then shoes slip on. I shouldn’t have paused here to put on my hat and should’ve just grabbed everything and left. So just a few seconds there lost. Still T2 time is also much improved from last year – 2:46, which is a minute and a half better than last year.
17/81 in AG
Okay, I’m now out of transition just starting the run course and even pass a guy asking if we’re having fun and is this the fun part? So, I’m in good spirits and not feeling bad, happy that I’m on the last part of the triathlon without a mechanical on the bike. Alas, it all falls apart right here. Right after passing this guy, both quads cramp, hurt, and freeze up. I am in disbelief as to what is happening and try to ignore this but just can’t. I stop. Legs completely stiffen and I now can barely walk. A wave of light panic comes over me. I really don’t believe this and am in somewhat a state of shock! I hobble around the corner and try to stretch things out. Then jog a little. Back to walk. As a round the next corner, there’s a photographer. This picture tells it all – head is down, I’m stiff legged, and walking. No smile this time. (Pic can be seen here:
http://www.asiorders.com/go.asp?54960647 )
Okay, I try to relax my legs and get them to a point where I can at least lightly jog or shuffle. The pain has not exactly gone away, though, and they try to cramp up on me again. After a while, I’m finally able to lightly jog and stop when I need to. Decide I should walk through each aid station and see if I can run/jog in between. That was my strategy last year but I wasn’t in pain then. I find I can’t keep to this strategy and end up stopping to walk more often than I would’ve liked. I then realize after the first couple of aid stations that I have gotten dehydrated more than I expected as I was really throwing the water down. The sun was out by this time and temperature by now was in the low 80s. With little shade on the run course, I decided I should continue to down a couple of water cups at each aid station. The run course is an out and back with earlier runners going the other way back to finish. And I see Mike, Vicki, and Tamara. I looked for Julian but never recognized him. I tell Tamara that I’m not having a good run and won’t be catching her today. The “jog when I can, stop when I have to” strategy continues for 8 miles. And it’s fairly painful each step. Last year, I was feeling so good even in the heat that I started to sing to myself at the halfway point. Not this year. I feeling pretty lousy. And I look at my watch to check my time. It’s taken over an hour to get here. (sigh) No PR on this course unless some miracle occurs. Now, after this, I do get a few boosts of encouragement from folks passing me and this does go a long way to keeping me going. Interestingly at mile 8, I don’t know what happened but I was able to force myself to run/jog to each aid station and walk through them. No stopping in between any more. I was able to pass a few people that had passed me earlier and were still stopping along the way. But, it’s still real difficult to keep going here. And the number of folks going out are growing smaller. I did see Lisa Houck and wished her well while saying things weren’t going well. The last few run mile stretches are becoming agonizingly long now. But, after passing the last aid station at mile 12, there’s only 1.1 miles to go. I see the last turn ahead and continue to run forward knowing the finish is less than a mile now. I am pushing harder, anxious to finish, but I have no idea at this point just what is keeping me going and not falling down. Last couple of turns and I see the turn to the finish. Incredibly, there’s another “Dave” in front of me and I somehow manage a short sprint to the finish while passing him. And while I know the crowd is cheering him, I hear shouts to “DAVE”! to finish strong. Just at the finish, arms go up in triumph but I think perhaps more in relief that I’m done. Run time 2:27:06 11:14 pace
Final time and stats: 6:06:04 50/81 AG, 778/1050 Men, 1029 out of all competitors
I stop long enough to allow the nice volunteers to take my chip and give me my finishing medal. I’m moving very slowly ahead to the gatorade table and grab one to take along as I get out of the way of others. I considered going to the medical tent, but I didn’t think I was feeling that bad. Just tired and my legs hurt a great deal. I really just needed to get food, drink, and sit in a chair a spell. Mike Matney finds me and I tell him what happened. I then see Tamara and relay similar info. Then I go and grab some chow, thanking all the nice volunteers I saw there. I saw Kevin Kendro just before that and he told me the good news of qualifying for the 70.3 Championships. Now after I have food, I don’t dare sit on the ground as I’m afraid I won’t get back up. So, I find a chair by a table and this suits me just fine. Eventually Mike joins me too and we discuss the race. Then go and get a massage. It may or may not help but I thought I should give it a try. Despite some pain, it does seem to feel good, but I know it will be several days later to recover from this. After this, I think I got to see Lisa finish and said my congrats. I also met with Kip who had his award in hand for finishing first in Master Clydesdales. Then it was at last time to pack my gear, head back to the car for the trip home, and close the book on this year’s Eagleman event.
Overall, I was very pleased with my transition times and my dismount performance heading into T2. I was okay with my swim, but I obviously needed a bit more of something as my arm got tired too quickly. I should’ve probably stayed back a bit more as well. Now while the bike didn’t really give me too many problems and I finished with a time only about 30sec slower that last year, a lesson-learned here is to drop speed and increase cadence if my run training has suffered prior to the race. I should’ve done this when the headwind started and not fought it quite as much. It would’ve been the smart thing to do rather than fretting about going slower than last year which I was thinking about during the headwind portion and not thinking about the rest of the race. I think this would’ve really have saved my legs from the disaster that occurred. Overall, though, I finished only 5 minutes more than last year. Shows what practicing transitions can do to make up time.
After this you may ask if I’d do it again. You betcha! It’s a great race, close, and I really do like the flat course. I just wasn’t smart wrt the lack of run training and needed to compensate my bike portion so my legs would be saved for the run. They say you can’t teach an old dog new tricks, but this old dog certainly learned his lesson.
Well that’s about it tri race fans for Eagleman 2009. Gotta go recover this week and get my legs back for the next event – Hagerstown Sprint July 26. Until then, train safe and good luck in your season.
“Race Report” Dave