Race Report - Ironman Muncie (37.2)

My brother-in-law and cousin-in-law are training for IM Louisville, so they both targeted Muncie 70.3 as a half-ironman race to use for practice.  So I decided to jump in and race too.  After registering, we headed out to the race venue and on the way, we found out they were shortening the race to a 1 mile swim / 30 mile bike / and 10K run.  We were all disappointed, but the conditions were pretty harsh – temps of 100+ with 80+% humidity.  Other races in the past have been that hot, but I suppose there are risks that race directors need to be aware of and the decision was one they made for the safety of all the folks involved.  We couldn’t do anything about it, so we just accepted it and looked forward to a hard race.

Then we went out to the race venue and boy was it a cooker!  We checked in our bikes and headed down to see the swim venue, where we bumped into Greg Bennett – we chatted for a minute and wished him luck... he's a super nice guy and we were all pulling for him.  

Muncie Swim Venue

Emily, Scott (brother-in-law), Catherine (sister-in-law)

Em with Greg Bennett!

We decided to forgo any riding/swimming and just headed to our hotel and went for a bit to eat and got our gear ready to go for the morning.  Everything went smoothly in the AM and we each were off on our way.  

Kendra (cousin) and Josh (cousin-in-law)

Scott and Catherine pre-race

Me and Em.

Coming out of the water...  not happy.

With respect to my race, if they give mulligans for triathlon, I think I’d take one.  I have no excuses – my head just wasn’t in the game.  Rather than a blow-by-blow, here’s my list of process goals prior to the race with scoring and comments for each:

-          Focus on not dropping left elbow during swim

C-  ///  I was focused on my left elbow and trying to keep it from dropping, but I completely imploded, physically and mentally on the swim and ended up doing about 30-40% of it breaststroke.  On the way back, I was alternating – 20-30 strokes freestyle, 20-30 strokes breaststroke.

-          Practice breathing to both sides, but focus on right side (slightly weaker breathing side)

D- /// I started breathing to my right side watching the buoys, but could not get comfortable.  The water was HOT (they measured it at ~88-89), and I just felt like I couldn’t get in enough air or get in a rhythm.  I eventually gave up and started breathing left and knew my form started fading; I was lifting my head way up out of the water and could feel my chest coming up and my hips/legs going down.  Not good.

-          Run hard through T1, but when I get to my transition, stay calm and methodical

B /// It was not a fast transition – since I don’t have a legal swimskin, I chose to swim in tri shorts and just put my jersey on in transition, which slowed me down.  However, I stayed calm and tried to put the swim debacle behind me.

-          On bike, keep effort steady, but mod-high on bike for flat course; Break it into 5 30-minute laps and check avg power at each, taking nutrition in every 15 minutes

B- /// I kept the effort going, but in looking at my average power, it was low for a 30-mile ride and was probably closer to my half-IM power output.  I did get in my nutrition, even with the modified distance.   I am content with the effort, but not overly happy about it.  Could’ve gone harder, but I am not sure I bounced back enough mentally from the poor swim to really crank it out on the bike. 

-          On run, target 3 30-minute laps, avg HR for first ~160, avg HR for 2^nd 163, avg HR for 3^rd ~166.  Pacing my HR in the heat, speed will be what it will be.

C+ /// I decided not to put my HR strap on and go by feel in the shortened race.  I attempted to keep the effort up, but the same as on the bike, I think it was more of a half-IM pace/effort.  I was having a hard time digging deeper and really pushing it, given the circumstances.  It was a flat course, but I should've been able to put out more power for 30 miles (a 1:10 split).

-          Race every step

B- /// I had what I would say is a solid effort, but I think, given the fact that I was a total headcase in the swim, I did not go anywhere near my potential, let alone get anywhere close to "the well."  I practiced managing the hot conditions, but I did not race to what I feel is my potential.

Overall, I’d give myself a C+ on my process goals and clearly need work before Steelhead.  With respect to what went well and what needs improved…

What went well:

• Stayed calm and smooth, yet urgent, during transitions
• Stuck to my nutrition plan on the bike – since the race was shortened, I modified to 1 bottle of 300 calories of EFS drink and some Saltstick caps (with caffeine).  I got all of it in on the ride in just over an hour (~1:10)
• Used my mantras on the run and kept a steady effort with decent rhythm

What needs work:

• Mental toughness in swim
• Swim fitness
• Transition speed
• Getting my head back in the game when things are not going well
• Digging deeper on both the bike and the run
• Expectations - they were likely too high prior to the race given my build up and life-stress in the last couple of months

In spite of my sub-optimal day, I had a lot of fun being out there with my brother-in-law and cousin-in-law and going along the journey with them towards IM Louisville.  Plus, we all had a nice “adult” weekend with none of our kids there!  I was super proud of my brother-in-law and cousin-in-law for finishing in some tough conditions.  My brother-in law had a flat and some navigational issues, but was able to persevere and make it to the finish.  His experience illustrates the fact that you just can't take any finish for granted, no matter what the distance.  You always face adversity, and success is more about how you overcome it and how you approach it.  I was glad to be reminded of this lesson and am really proud of how he responded!

My cousin-in-law had a good day, solid all-around on the swim/bike/run.  Things went well and he motored along, managing his nutrition, pace, mental approach, etc., tweaking his "race process" and practicing it prior to the big dance in KY.

Josh on the run.

With respect to the shortening of the race, I do not know who made the "final" decision, but I believe it was a good one.  I was likely up to the challenge to race in that heat and could've managed myself, but for a relative newbie, it could have been VERY tough.  It would have also been really hard on spectators and volunteers out there for a longer day.  My worst experience on the day was the 88 degree water.  Starting the day off with a high core body temp, swimming in 88 degree water, then riding and running for 4-5+ hours for all of the competitors in the 100+ degree heat with 80% humidity would have been dangerous.  I know many say you need to HTFU, but now-a-days, race directors face tough decisions.  While I was frustrated with the decision, I did not get bent out of shape like some folks.  Sometimes you just have to roll with the punches.  However, the way they announced it was sub-optimal.  I only found out on Twitter and otherwise wouldn't have known until they sent an email late in the day.  We were offered a $125 discount to other 70.3 events later in the year, but the way it all went down could've been managed much better.



After the fact, I am glad I went to the race.  Besides the distance change, it was well-organized, well-run and I hope to go back in the future.  Maybe the weather would cooperate and I could get in the entire half-iron distance on that course – the run has some rollers, but otherwise, it is fast and fun.