Race date: 9/8/2019
This was my first half Ironman and here is the note for my reference in case I will do this race again. My goal is to race in different areas.
Swim (44:58)
On the race day, I would say it went smooth. I didn’t have any stomach issue that I am always worried about and didn’t even go to restroom during the entire race. Also, I only had one GU during the run and one little bite of honey stinger waffle before the race. For 1.2 miles swim (44:58):The water was as cold as 64F (17C), but the wave wasn’t bad. I’m not a fast swimmer, but the time was acceptable for me cuz I stayed as close as to buoy without swimming extra distance.
T1 (8:28)
The worst part was from beach to T1. I didn’t wear shoes or flip flops as other participants, it was hard to walk to T1 with barefoot for 0.5 mile. T1 (8:28):It took me a little bit longer because I spent couple minutes to look for my Garmin bike computer. I finally gave up and did my ride without it.
Bike (3:03:00)
For 56 miles bike (3:03:00)I dropped one of my water bottles during the first mile. Before the race, I had really bad cramping experience on my thigh two times, in order to prevent that, I tried not to bike too hard in the beginning. Besides, I didn’t expect that many big hills with strong wind. However, after I finished half way, I felt fine and sped up all the way back.
T2 (2:58)
T2 (2:58):It was ok and I did remember bringing GU with me.
Run (2:07:18)
For 13.1 mile run(2:07:18):I usually run half marathon once a month so I thought it was gonna be a relax part, but turned out it wasn’t. As soon as I started running, I can feel my legs were ready to cramp. I had to run slower than usual cuz I know if I got cramping legs then I had to stop and walk or rest. With that two almost cramping legs, it took me more than 2 hours to finish this half marathon, but good thing it didn’t happen and I finished! BTW, the heat was brutal.
Anyway, I can’t write as detailed as others, but I kinda wrote down all the important things I remember. Lots of bad things happened on the day before the race day, but it turned out it was ok on the race day. Overall, I think it was good and Im satisfied. Here are some pictures during the race that keep my memory fresh.
