This was my 2nd IM of the season. OK here goes-
Swim-There were more waves on race morning than on previous days. So this made for a slightly rougher swim than expected. Got knocked around a little on the first loop, nothing too bad. Had to fight to get to the first bouy on the second loop, I guess a lot of people decided not to go around it. Got dunked hard several times on the second loop and was forced to stop at one point to cough up some water and get my bearings. The run out of the water was a little tough. Finished a little dissapointed with 1:07
Bike-My legs were sore and it took a while to get them going. Once I felt better, I started making progress up the field. Passed a few small draft groups. Shortly after the right turn on Hwy 20, I came up to a HUGE group. I am talking 5-6 abreast, and I have no idea how many people, but it was ridiculous. Several others and I tried what we could (verbally) to break up the group. We were completely ignored. I put in an effort to leave this bunch of clowns, but the front guys upped the pace, caught and passed me shortly after I went off. The group got broken up later on by marshalls. It took a lot of miles to catch and pass most of these people, and it made me ride angry. I made the decision to ride harder than I wanted to for the remainder, just to get away from this circus. So I put my head down and went, knowing my run would probably hurt from this. I want to share with you some of the more memorable comments shot my way when pointing out to drafters that a couple inches was in NO way 3-bike lengths (sorry if people get offended):
"So what? Want to do something about it?" "Eat sh.t motherf..ker" "You need a motorbike to play marshall, stupidf..k"
"If you don't like it, why don't you get the f..k out of here?"
and the one that took the cake for me-
"Why don't you mind your own f..cking business, f..ckin guido?" -then the guy sees a sticker on my bike with my country name on it, surges to catch up to me and says- "Oh, my bad (a pause for effect): Why don't you mind your own f..cking business, you f..ckin spic?"
Nice, huh? They are just words, so, whatever. For those of you doing this next year, do expect packs on the bike (several people told me it happens every year they've done the event). Also, note the special needs station is NOT an aid station at this event. I kept my ride hard up until the last 15mi, when a noticeable headwind picked up all the way back to T2. I eased up in this last section b/c I knew I needed to save something for the run. Finished the bike in 5:01.
Run-A fast course. The first loop was hot, ran a steady pace, slower than I would have wanted. The second loop was tough, had to deal with liquid sloshing in my stomach, multiple blisters, and a hamstring that was right on the edge of cramping. Picked up some broth at mile 20-something and burned my mouth really bad (they didn't tell me it was damn hot). I managed to even split my run, 3:19, for a total of 9:34.
I walk away happy that I left it all the race, but a little annoyed a few of the names above me where drafting on purpose. Right, I don't have any solutions to offer. All I know is this kind of crap is not cool for our sport. Big thanks to my coach, Francois, for helping me put together 2 good races this year. We'll see what happens in the future.
Play fair. peace.
jc
Dad, Husband, Weekend Warrior
Blog , JC Tweets
Swim-There were more waves on race morning than on previous days. So this made for a slightly rougher swim than expected. Got knocked around a little on the first loop, nothing too bad. Had to fight to get to the first bouy on the second loop, I guess a lot of people decided not to go around it. Got dunked hard several times on the second loop and was forced to stop at one point to cough up some water and get my bearings. The run out of the water was a little tough. Finished a little dissapointed with 1:07
Bike-My legs were sore and it took a while to get them going. Once I felt better, I started making progress up the field. Passed a few small draft groups. Shortly after the right turn on Hwy 20, I came up to a HUGE group. I am talking 5-6 abreast, and I have no idea how many people, but it was ridiculous. Several others and I tried what we could (verbally) to break up the group. We were completely ignored. I put in an effort to leave this bunch of clowns, but the front guys upped the pace, caught and passed me shortly after I went off. The group got broken up later on by marshalls. It took a lot of miles to catch and pass most of these people, and it made me ride angry. I made the decision to ride harder than I wanted to for the remainder, just to get away from this circus. So I put my head down and went, knowing my run would probably hurt from this. I want to share with you some of the more memorable comments shot my way when pointing out to drafters that a couple inches was in NO way 3-bike lengths (sorry if people get offended):
"So what? Want to do something about it?" "Eat sh.t motherf..ker" "You need a motorbike to play marshall, stupidf..k"
"If you don't like it, why don't you get the f..k out of here?"
and the one that took the cake for me-
"Why don't you mind your own f..cking business, f..ckin guido?" -then the guy sees a sticker on my bike with my country name on it, surges to catch up to me and says- "Oh, my bad (a pause for effect): Why don't you mind your own f..cking business, you f..ckin spic?"
Nice, huh? They are just words, so, whatever. For those of you doing this next year, do expect packs on the bike (several people told me it happens every year they've done the event). Also, note the special needs station is NOT an aid station at this event. I kept my ride hard up until the last 15mi, when a noticeable headwind picked up all the way back to T2. I eased up in this last section b/c I knew I needed to save something for the run. Finished the bike in 5:01.
Run-A fast course. The first loop was hot, ran a steady pace, slower than I would have wanted. The second loop was tough, had to deal with liquid sloshing in my stomach, multiple blisters, and a hamstring that was right on the edge of cramping. Picked up some broth at mile 20-something and burned my mouth really bad (they didn't tell me it was damn hot). I managed to even split my run, 3:19, for a total of 9:34.
I walk away happy that I left it all the race, but a little annoyed a few of the names above me where drafting on purpose. Right, I don't have any solutions to offer. All I know is this kind of crap is not cool for our sport. Big thanks to my coach, Francois, for helping me put together 2 good races this year. We'll see what happens in the future.
Play fair. peace.
jc
Dad, Husband, Weekend Warrior
Blog , JC Tweets