The last time I was in the Caribbean was a short trip post 70.3 Clearwater 2008 and I spoke to my father when I got back:
‘ah you were away on holidays there, how’d it go?’,
‘Da, I was at the Ironman 70.3 world championships’,
‘Oh aye, one of your hardman things, how ‘d you get on? Did you take the bike? Auld Seamy Bradley died there when you were away, did you know him?’
Not totally sure who the guy was that died but I gave up on the Ironman talk… Luckily a few years on our sport is better understood and my father certainly knows a lot more about it, he played Gaelic football for Derry in his time so he appreciates sport and fitness.
Ironman St Croix is a race of legendary status with all the greats having won there over the years from it’s origin back in the 80s, Mark Allen, Mike Pigg, Dave Scott and more recently Craig Alexander and Terenzo Bozzone. The week there was a great experience, the island, the beaches, the people. My friend Karen introduced me to many islanders she has met there over the years and they took great care of us. I spent the first few days with Scott and Carol, a very welcoming home with the most stunning views and a tri mad house (their pets are named after races!).
The island is well versed for the race and locals appreciate the influx of tourists and no doubt the input to the economy. With the island’s oil refinery shutting down they have their own economic issues and big spending triathletes I imagine are a welcome sight. They were also excited as we all were that Lance Armstrong would be racing towards his goal of Kona this year. The local TV and radio stations were reporting on this superstar’s arrival. At the ‘jump up’ festival before the race, a local girl asked us if we had a photo of this guy Armstrong, we didn’t but she then said how cool it was that she was going to see the first man who walked on the moon… I guess it was a similar theory that allowed Ronald Regan to become a US president!
Schoolboy errors: St Croix was exactly what I thought it would be, hilly, windy, very hot and humid. On race day it rained hard, but this did little to curb the humidity. Once again I struggled in the heat, but there are other factors that may have caused me issues on race day. I broke a golden rule – twice! ‘Never try anything new on or before race day!’. I was concerned about missing out on hydration and minerals in the conditions so I was trying different methods to load up the day before without stuffing myself with food. Some of the other athletes were taking sodium chloride the night before the race; it is regularly used in medical after the race, so it seemed like a good idea. It certainly hydrated me but perhaps too much, it meant I was running to pee all night and so I had a very broken sleep. I also tried ensure, a supplement drink that has everything we lose in a race, but this seemed to run straight through me as well!
This left me buzzing the night before the race, feeling very restless and certainly not tired enough to sleep, and to boot I set the alarm on my phone which was still set on uk time, when it woke me at 11pm, in my sleepy state it took me a while to figure out if my phone or wrist watch was correct and subsequently it took me some time to get back to sleep. I then slept right through my correct alarm at 4am to be woken by Dedrick who I was staying with before the race. He was heading down to race start to run the medical tent and so was wondering why my room was so quiet. He banged on my door at 4:45, 15mins before transition opened and only for him I would have missed the race altogether!
Race morning I felt sluggish, whether is was the lack of sleep or the dehydration I’m not sure but I didn’t let it get to me. Athletes must swim across from the main island to the small island for the beach start, I proceeded with the warm up Alan had set me, it included some race starts and race pace efforts. On the small island athletes were gathering nervously as the pros lined the start area. This was useful as we got to see how they positioned themselves and what method they used for the beach start. Each group was being sent off in 2mins intervals, we were up 5th group and the largest of the age groups. I started front left with the plan to get away sharp and swim near the rope to avoid the roundabout route and also the mêlée in the middle of the pack. I think this worked ok but the fast swimmers were already taking off and I was struggling to stay on the fast feet. I veered left out of trouble when we went through the ‘gate’ buoys, but after that point I struggled to find a draft as the athletes were either too fast or too slow for me to work with, this was to be indicative of my day ahead. I felt sluggish and went anaerobic quickly when trying to stay on any fast feet. I exited the water in 33mins and knew something was up as I had swam the same course 2 days earlier in 31 dead.
On to the bike and the rain started hard, it was to stay like this for the next 2½ hours. Not the type of rain we get in Ireland but a warm rain that creates huge puddles in the road. I had planned around 250w avg. This course is so hilly that I was way over that early on and had to stay focused on bringing the power down, with the beast ahead it was a challenge staying below 250w. As soon as the bike started 4 guys went past me, not just drafting but working as a TT team, within 5 inches of each others wheel, each taking a turn. I gave out a bit of grief to them, I got a response that I didn’t fully understand but I don’t think he was welcoming me to the Island! As a motorbike came up behind I thought that would split them up, it didn’t and the biker seemed more interested in showing off his Harley Davidson skills with no hands on the handlebars.
I had ridden the coastal road a few times so I knew the corner before the beast was sharp and slippy as it was covered by weeping trees that hang over the road. Just before it some guy came past wearing tequila sunrise speedos, I don’t want to assume he was German but I was impressed with his Faris like turn out. Anyway he didn’t seem to know the course as he went head first in to the hedge on the slippy corner, not hard and he stayed upright. On the beast he came back past me and started zigzagging over the road as we reached the 26% section, I could have wasted a lot of energy shouting but decided to reserve my energy. He was providing some entertainment and distraction from the pain so I let it go.
After the beast the course drops downhill for a few miles then goes on a non stop rolling coastal route, with constant headwinds. I managed my power plan easily enough but just never felt very good. Working alone in the headwind I raced my own race but was unaware of the leaders in my age group pulling away miles ahead. I came back in to town in 2:42 and seeing some of my age group out on the run already realised I had a lot of work to do to catch up. We had planned for me to ease off a little on the bike in return for a good run, this may not have been the best strategy considering the others team tactics and even though my normalised power was 271w, I can’t help thinking that many of those watts were wasted.
My running was strong going in to this and no injuries meant I could chase from the start. I recognised two guys ahead from my age group but one of them was so far ahead I had to let that go. Sticking to around 150HR I worked my way through the field, the hills coupled with the smothering heat made for hard work on this challenging course. I recorded the run as 500m long too, but this should have benefited me. I recorded a 1:23 run, it was the fastest amateur run and 6th fastest overall, but not enough to get me in the top 5. Coming in 6th, the kona slots went to 4th and Jan Siberson in 5th was just 20secs ahead of me. The two guys who came 1-2 in my age group had identical splits up until the run, there is ‘working together’ and then there is ‘Working Together’, but if running 10mins in to someone is not enough then maybe I should be more streetwise next time!
My biking was strong going in to this race, my power was up on my best from last year but I think I could have used my wattage and energy better, working alone in these conditions was not smart. I don’t mean drafting like I witnessed early on the bike, more so working with someone of similar pace, staying legal distance and using them for motivation and pace reference. It could have made the 3mins difference for the Kona slot.
Next up is Tri Limits 70.3 distance, Co Tyrone in early June, and at this stage I’m hoping to try IM 70.3 Buffalo Springs in Texas for another shot at a Kona slot in late June. It is very hot there, but a dry heat rather than the humid type. Again the competition will be rife and those 2 slots hard fought for. I like a fight so I’m hoping I can make the trip happen, my Emerald team mate Robbie Wade has offered to keep me over and recce the course with me so it’s a strong possibility. For now Roth is still on the cards but it depends on the outcome of the BS 70.3, if that fails then IM Switzerland is another option. By then I can’t say I didn’t try the ½ distance qualifier! :-) My goal for the season remains getting to Kona.
St Croix. is a great race and a great experience, it has a well earned reputation and I recommend it to anyone who likes hills and heat! The island makes for a great holiday too, when we were hanging out with local A&E doctor John who often spears his own fish for lunch, you know when you’re far from home :-)
Good luck to my Emerald team mates racing this weekend around the globe, my brother John Joe is racing Austria 70.3 as well. Hope the terrain and weather suits your strengths guys! We’ll all be watching online!
Thanks to all my sponsors for their support: Bespoke Performance Lab, Champion System, CherryGood, Compressport and Barefoot. See the links on the right colum for more details. I’d also like to thank therapist Kinga Bornemisza for keeping me injury free in the run up to the event, good work!
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