Ironman Atlantic City 70.3

September 25, 2018 by South Jersey Belle 1 Comment

Well that’s it folks, my triathlon season is over for 2018. I’ve got a few fun runs lined up for the fall, but that’s about it. So here’s my recap on the Ironman Atlantic City 70.3 2018. Last year I went to spectate and it was like standing around in an oven and the sun was just beating down on the athletes. It was miserable. 2018 decided to switch things up for everyone and give us no sun and torrential downpours!

I followed an online training plan that I thought fit my abilities and pushed myself to stick to it. I had no coach and no swim lessons this year. It wasn’t in the cards for me this year, but maybe I will look into coaching for the 2019 season to tweak a few things, but I am happy with how much I was able to improve without any coaching. I will keep saying it-HOW BAD DO YOU WANT IT? DO IT FOR YOURSELF AND ONLY YOU!

Here’s the breakdown-

The Swim-1.2 miles-

I’ve had to work on my swim the most. This was and is not my strong point. I’ve become more and more confident here, but not overly confidant lol. I know I could spend more time swimming. AC is a back bay swim and the waters are pretty calm. The water temperature was 72 making it wet suit legal. I’ve gotten to swim here for the olympic course too, so home advantage I was comfortable in this water knowing what to expect. This was a self seeded swim. I placed myself in the 36-45 min swim seed. The first 400-500 yards though it was pretty difficult to swim around people. After I was able to get some space I was really enjoying this swim, it was refreshing. It was sooner than expected that I was making the turn to head back to shore. Time-40:48

Transtition (1)-5:54

Getting out of the water and getting to the bike I saw a few familiar faces which is always nice. I heard Will yell my name and I was pumped he was there to see me thru the swim because the traffic to get to transition was insane! I saw Larissa a friend from a local tri club in the area also came out of the water at the same time! When I got to my bike I shoved some food in my mouth to get my energy level back up and get a move on to my ride.

Bike-56 Miles-

The ride started out great. I felt comfortable at the speed I was holding at the bike. I kept reminding myself to drink and eat even when I wasn’t hungry or thirsty. It was overcast and it can be totally deceiving if you are sweating or not. Then the rain started. At first it wasn’t too bad, but it didn’t let up, it just got harder. Pretty much the entire bike route is on the Atlantic City Expressway. One lane is closed down for the cyclist and there are still cars passing us. The water was starting to lay on the road making turns a bit difficult. I saw several athletes that either collided with someone or didn’t have luck in taking the turn. I kept pushing through determined to finish out this bike as quickly as I could. Time -2:53:13 averaging 19.30 mph on the bike

Transition (2)-6:01

When I got back into transition I had planned on changing my socks so I was dry. hahah Well since it was raining, everything was soaked. Nothing was dry. Wet socks to a little less of a wet sock and shoes that were already soaked. haha. Ok-here we go 13.1 miles in the rain.

Run-13.1 miles

The first mile of the run was in Bader Field, close to the swim and transition. My legs were feeling tight and heavy. After the first mile you head out onto the street and up the the boardwalk. Still no sun in sight and the rain just kept coming down. I saw more tri friends on the run which was great. To see everyone out there pushing through in these crazy conditions is so motivating. I loved being able to look around and see people smiling because they are able to compete in this crazy sport called triathlon. Around the last mile I saw Kat my friend from work and Will taking cover from the cold and rain, but cheering me on to push thru. They both met me on the other side of the building where I had about a quarter mile to go. Will told me if I just pushed a little at the end I would come in under 6 hours which was my goal! I pushed it out to the end and finished in

5:44:02!

15th in my Age Group and 116th Female Overall.

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To recap the season and this last race-I extremely grateful for the things I have been able to achieve. I feel lucky to be able to race and compete at the level I am. I continue to learn things about myself and that I continue to push myself to be a better person and athlete. I thank my parents and Will for supporting me along this crazy journey-early mornings, long training hours, exhausted, tired, hungry, and grumpy are just some of the emotions and things I go through, but they have stood by my decisions to continue to push myself. My friends- that know I keep a strange schedule and have to pass on outings, but continue to stay in contact with and check in on me-thank you! The ladies of Savage Tri Team-you inspire me everyday to be a better leader and I have learned somethings from each and everyone of you.

Let the planning for the 2019 season begin! Be Savage, Not Average!

xx

Leann