PCHI - Finished

My goal this season was to finish a half ironman length triathlon. So by that measure, I am succeeded. I finished the pacific crest half-ironman. It was pretty tough. I think a big part of the competition was the logistics setting up the transitions and getting to the start on time. AA sports puts on lot of events in the area so should know how to setup a course. They could have done a better job. There was little to no signage on how to get to T1 and T2. No one seemed to have an idea of what was going on at the event. I had to find the race director to find a person who knew what was going on. I am sure if I do this again next year, it will be much easier. I big part of triathlons is being mentally prepared and streamlining your transitions. This is always easier the second time around.

The swim course was intimidating. I had never swam that far before but one the race got on, it was not major problem. I got out the mix and let the others battle it out. I find that keeping relaxed and not banging in to other swimmers gives me a much better time than going out too fast. My swim time was decent considering that I am not much of a swimmer. Pushing more there is not going to help much. I was happy that I did not wear my race shirt since it always seem to chaff. I put on a sleeveless bike jersey at T1. It was great for the bike; so-so on the run. My bike time was decent. My bike computer died as I started but that was actually for the best. I was forced to listen to my body rather then trying to keep it pegged at a certain speed. It is effectively what the power meters are doing. I find that in a race, I have plenty of motivation to keep pushing even with out feedback. My average speed was actually better than I have done on the Blue Lake olympic distance tri. The problem is that I lose so much feeling in my legs towards the end, I think I really lost a lot of time on the bike and the run. The clip on aerobars can only provide so much comfort. The seat tube angle on my road bike is never going to be optimal.


T2 was fine. I knew were everything was, I just couldn’t convince my legs to start running. Eventually, I got up to speed. I feel like everything was great at about 8 min/mile until about 6 miles from the finish. I just could not get enough air. It was an awful feeling. I have bonked before and this felt totally different. It think it was an effect of the altitude. I was very similar to when I have really exerted on mountain climb. 1:30 is my PR for a straight ½ marathon. At 2:00 I was slow. I am should have been able to take at least 15 minutes off my time if I could have sorted that out.


This year I finished in 5:25. Since it was my first one, I am happy with a middle of the pack finish. next year, the goal is to hit 5:10. That should get me in the top 15-20%. Preparation, Bike Setup and a bit more time to acclimate should get me there.