Ironman 70.3 Durban

[Wil6]

Well done to all those who competed yesterday! It was a tough day out in the prevailing conditions!! The swim was most definitely, long coupled with fighting the rip tide back in - or atleast it felt like that! The wind on the bike wasn't expected to that degree- especially the exposed section from Durban North to the close turnaround point. I also love how the race gets advertised as a PB friendly course - it's easier than East London but far from pancake flat! The rolling hills definitely sap the legs for the run

Awesome win,congrats 

[Wheelsuck]

Just Surfaced after what was the toughest 70.3 ever and not because of the conditions but mostly of what happened in the lead up. I had some issues with a pinched intravertebral nerve in my thoracic area. Thought it was handled but on Saturday morning it flared up. Sunday morning it was there with reinforcements and I was going to pull the plug-but somehow didnt.

 

By now it had manifested into a locked costovertebral joint (It sounds all very medical-but I am just copying what the medical folks tell me).

 

Start was well organised and the 20second really splits everyone up-I was looking for swimmers. But I coulnd'nt pull with my right arm and was just putting it in the water-the slightest pull hurt like hádes. So finished the swim in 36Min and thought that at least the bike was going to be better, but I couldnt get into the drops for long as the vibration was a new form of pain so I had to lean back or sit up. On the positive the two lapper seems to be the business as there was a lot of open tar with limited drafting which meant limited danger. So by now I was crying for mummy and I knew the run was going to get into another dimension of hurt as I had tried to run before with this a week ago and I knew what was coming. Biked a 3hour and by now it was just a blur of pain-But now there was no way I was gonna quit.

 

The first step of the run gave me a good indication of what I was in for-PAIN as the pinched nerve sits in the vertebrae but manifests in the front it feels like a shaft of pain in the chest with every step. So I trotted at best and walked when it got to much. Limped in at 2h33, Grandma in her Zimmer frame could have kicked my ass. I cant remember the last half of the run as it was just a blur of discomfort.

 

It was my worst time by far but the learning was incremental and I learnt a lot about pain management-basically you cannot manage it you just deal with it and make it to the end.

 

Well done to everyone who finished and enjoy the couple of days off from training.           

[Morne Heystek]

Race number #1504

 

 

Hey Morne I see you are next to me. As the 3rd and 4th last bikes on the racks I’d say we are pretty lucky. I’m looking forward to a bike free 700m jog past all the congestion.

Hey @ndy yes was supersized to see my spot rite at the end felt a bit strange to be rite at the exit of transition probably the closest il ever get to being a pro and then no 0001 did not rack and there i was rite in front ,was a long 700 mt run in my socks .

[lurkerza]

Just Surfaced after what was the toughest 70.3 ever and not because of the conditions but mostly of what happened in the lead up. I had some issues with a pinched intravertebral nerve in my thoracic area. Thought it was handled but on Saturday morning it flared up. Sunday morning it was there with reinforcements and I was going to pull the plug-but somehow didnt.

 

By now it had manifested into a locked costovertebral joint (It sounds all very medical-but I am just copying what the medical folks tell me).

 

Start was well organised and the 20second really splits everyone up-I was looking for swimmers. But I coulnd'nt pull with my right arm and was just putting it in the water-the slightest pull hurt like hádes. So finished the swim in 36Min and thought that at least the bike was going to be better, but I couldnt get into the drops for long as the vibration was a new form of pain so I had to lean back or sit up. On the positive the two lapper seems to be the business as there was a lot of open tar with limited drafting which meant limited danger. So by now I was crying for mummy and I knew the run was going to get into another dimension of hurt as I had tried to run before with this a week ago and I knew what was coming. Biked a 3hour and by now it was just a blur of pain-But now there was no way I was gonna quit.

 

The first step of the run gave me a good indication of what I was in for-PAIN as the pinched nerve sits in the vertebrae but manifests in the front it feels like a shaft of pain in the chest with every step. So I trotted at best and walked when it got to much. Limped in at 2h33, Grandma in her Zimmer frame could have kicked my ass. I cant remember the last half of the run as it was just a blur of discomfort.

 

It was my worst time by far but the learning was incremental and I learnt a lot about pain management-basically you cannot manage it you just deal with it and make it to the end.

 

Well done to everyone who finished and enjoy the couple of days off from training.           

 

 

Jeez dude, well done for toughing it out, that sounded like sheer agony!  Huge respect!

[gurns]

#2021 Race report:

Drove the 50km from my farm to the start, got there at 6.40am, put my bottles on my bike and clipped in my shoes. Wetsuit on and down to the start pens only to find that everyone else had obviously got there a lot earlier than me! Waited about 40 minutes for my start, and in that time i noticed the flags were starting to flutter and they were indicating that we were in for a headwind on the return leg of the cycle. Headed into the swim with only 3 training swims to my credit since the 1st March, so I knew that it was going to be slow. 41 minutes for 2.05km, I was reasonably happy.

 

T1, not sure what I was up to, but my time showed that I wasn't in any rush. Long run to get my bike, out onto the non racing section, feet in shoes, and then some lady asked me for some cramp block as she was already suffering. I gave her one tablet and she seemed quite unhappy that I wouldn't part with another of my remaining three tablets. I got going again and had a nice ride out to the first turnaround. I got passed by a mass of riders, but on the return leg into the wind, I started picking off a few here and there. It's always amazing to have the lead bikers come past on their last loop, and to see the pace they ride at !!

 

Onto the second loop, and I started picking up the pace a bit, but as I got to the final turn point, I realized that I was going to have to work for my medal. The headwind also encouraged quite a few people to DRAFT. I counselled  a number of these people, and was very happy to point them out to the Referees at every opportunity. Anyway, I pushed quite hard, and ended up with a 3.07 if I remember correctly.

 

Into T2, a lot quicker than T1, and I was off onto the run, which was going to be tough due to expending extra energy on the bike. I had a good run up until about the 18k mark, and realized that I would not be going sub-2, so I chilled a little and finished off with a 2.06

 

Total time was 6.13 after hoping for a 5.50, but I was very happy with my time considering the amount of training I had done.

 

Well done to everyone that competed, it's a great event.

Well done Ryan on the win! Out of interest, it would be great if you could share what your average training week looks like leading up to Durban???

 

See you all next year.

[Wil6]

Failed to mention that huge traffic jam after the race briefing on Friday night. What a nightmare! Took us over an hour to get out, only to see that the reason for this was the traffic cops closing most of the exits and forced everybody coming out to do a mandatory alcohol blow test         I had to keep myself very calm not to say anything to the cops. How can they do this at a fitness event???  

Edited June 6, 2018 by Wil6

[_David_]

Failed to mention that huge traffic jam after the race briefing on Friday night. What a nightmare! Took us over an hour to get out, only to see that the reason for this was the traffic cops closing most of the exits and forced everybody coming out to do a mandatory alcohol blow test         I had to keep myself very calm not to say anything to the cops. How can they do this at a fitness event???  

 

Don't know about Durban but at PE you get a free dinner after race briefing and there was lots of guys drinking wine and beer :-)

[shaper]

Failed to mention that huge traffic jam after the race briefing on Friday night. What a nightmare! Took us over an hour to get out, only to see that the reason for this was the traffic cops closing most of the exits and forced everybody coming out to do a mandatory alcohol blow test         I had to keep myself very calm not to say anything to the cops. How can they do this at a fitness event???  

It was a payday week, so there would have been plenty in the casino, drinking!!  You only had to notice the queues at the ATM's in Suncoast to see that.  Just because we happened to be using the same venue (albeit not actually in the casino), doesn't stop the cops from doing their job.

 

Perhaps you would have preferred them not to do their job on a payday weekend and have drunks piling out of Suncoast early Saturday morning and we would have had perhaps another drunk driver/cyclist incident with some triathletes doing an early morning pre-race ride on the kings park cycle loop?

Edited June 6, 2018 by shaper

[Wil6]

It was a payday week, so there would have been plenty in the casino, drinking!!  You only had to notice the queues at the ATM's in Suncoast to see that.  Just because we happened to be using the same venue (albeit not actually in the casino), doesn't stop the cops from doing their job.

 

Perhaps you would have preferred them not to do their job on a payday weekend and have drunks piling out of Suncoast early Saturday morning and we would have had perhaps another drunk driver/cyclist incident with some triathletes doing an early morning pre-race ride on the kings park cycle loop?

Please don't make assumptions like this on my behalf. It could have been planned better.

[ryanschmitz]

#2021 Race report:

Drove the 50km from my farm to the start, got there at 6.40am, put my bottles on my bike and clipped in my shoes. Wetsuit on and down to the start pens only to find that everyone else had obviously got there a lot earlier than me! Waited about 40 minutes for my start, and in that time i noticed the flags were starting to flutter and they were indicating that we were in for a headwind on the return leg of the cycle. Headed into the swim with only 3 training swims to my credit since the 1st March, so I knew that it was going to be slow. 41 minutes for 2.05km, I was reasonably happy.

 

T1, not sure what I was up to, but my time showed that I wasn't in any rush. Long run to get my bike, out onto the non racing section, feet in shoes, and then some lady asked me for some cramp block as she was already suffering. I gave her one tablet and she seemed quite unhappy that I wouldn't part with another of my remaining three tablets. I got going again and had a nice ride out to the first turnaround. I got passed by a mass of riders, but on the return leg into the wind, I started picking off a few here and there. It's always amazing to have the lead bikers come past on their last loop, and to see the pace they ride at !!

 

Onto the second loop, and I started picking up the pace a bit, but as I got to the final turn point, I realized that I was going to have to work for my medal. The headwind also encouraged quite a few people to DRAFT. I counselled  a number of these people, and was very happy to point them out to the Referees at every opportunity. Anyway, I pushed quite hard, and ended up with a 3.07 if I remember correctly.

 

Into T2, a lot quicker than T1, and I was off onto the run, which was going to be tough due to expending extra energy on the bike. I had a good run up until about the 18k mark, and realized that I would not be going sub-2, so I chilled a little and finished off with a 2.06

 

Total time was 6.13 after hoping for a 5.50, but I was very happy with my time considering the amount of training I had done.

 

Well done to everyone that competed, it's a great event.

Well done Ryan on the win! Out of interest, it would be great if you could share what your average training week looks like leading up to Durban???

 

See you all next year.

 

Congrats on your race day performance - especially given your lack of swim training and fighting it out in the wind. The later starters were at a significant disadvantage as the wind was picking up throughout the day and it appears the average time was 15 minutes slower in 2018 compared to 2017. You can have a look here - https://www.obstri.com/?compare=1 quite a useful tool. I sat next to a guy on the plane back to Cape Town who pulls all the data from results around the world and sorts it on that site. 

 

My training in the build up to race went well. I had two bouts of sickness, flu etc, but managed it very well. It's generally accepted that race day fitness comes from the 40 or so days prior and I had a good base coming from East London and Durban Ultra. My biggest week was 21 hours and this came 5 weeks out from race day. Leading in I hovered around 17-18 hours. I focused on quality rather than volume, as I feel this works best for me as I have studies to attend to. My approximate training split in terms of swim,bike and run in the build up was 20/50/30. All of my weekday rides were on the indoor trainer and I've found this invaluable from a safety and efficiency perspective. 

 

Hope that provides a little more insight. Feel free to ask any questions and I will try my best to answer them, cheers.

Edited June 6, 2018 by ryanschmitz

[shaper]

Congrats on your race day performance - especially given your lack of swim training and fighting it out in the wind. The later starters were at a significant disadvantage as the wind was picking up throughout the day and it appears the average time was 15 minutes slower in 2018 compared to 2017. You can have a look here - https://www.obstri.com/?compare=1 quite a useful tool. I sat next to a guy on the plane back to Cape Town who pulls all the data from results around the world and sorts it on that site. 

 

My training in the build up to race went well. I had two bouts of sickness, flu etc, but managed it very well. It's generally accepted that race day fitness comes from the 40 or so days prior and I had a good base coming from East London and Durban Ultra. My biggest week was 21 hours and this came 5 weeks out from race day. Leading in I hovered around 17-18 hours. I focused on quality rather than volume, as I feel this works best for me as I have studies to attend to. My approximate training split in terms of swim,bike and run in the build up was 20/50/30. All of my weekday rides were on the indoor trainer and I've found this invaluable from a safety and efficiency perspective. 

 

Hope that provides a little more insight. Feel free to ask any questions and I will try my best to answer them, cheers.

Thanks for the link to the Obsessed Athlete to compare races.  Interesting analysis for us data junkies

 

Congrats on your race !!

[shaper]

Please don't make assumptions like this on my behalf. It could have been planned better.

No assumption, just be more considerate of people just doing their job 

[IceCreamMan]

Its a conundrum that's for sure. A discomfort for sure but the effectiveness of these roadblocks has to be questioned. The old macabre joke that drinking and driving only costs one hundred rand is relevant.

 

If the policing was effective, people would pay attention to it and chances are drinking and driving would be severely curtailed saving countless lives. The way it should be.

[gurns]

Congrats on your race day performance - especially given your lack of swim training and fighting it out in the wind. The later starters were at a significant disadvantage as the wind was picking up throughout the day and it appears the average time was 15 minutes slower in 2018 compared to 2017. You can have a look here - https://www.obstri.com/?compare=1 quite a useful tool. I sat next to a guy on the plane back to Cape Town who pulls all the data from results around the world and sorts it on that site. 

 

My training in the build up to race went well. I had two bouts of sickness, flu etc, but managed it very well. It's generally accepted that race day fitness comes from the 40 or so days prior and I had a good base coming from East London and Durban Ultra. My biggest week was 21 hours and this came 5 weeks out from race day. Leading in I hovered around 17-18 hours. I focused on quality rather than volume, as I feel this works best for me as I have studies to attend to. My approximate training split in terms of swim,bike and run in the build up was 20/50/30. All of my weekday rides were on the indoor trainer and I've found this invaluable from a safety and efficiency perspective. 

 

Hope that provides a little more insight. Feel free to ask any questions and I will try my best to answer them, cheers.

Thanks for the insight, Ryan. Much appreciated.

If the bulk of race fitness comes from approximately 40 days out, then my late burst of training from 30 days out is not as effective as I was thinking it would be. I must keep this in mind for my next event - Tour de Tuli in August - Woohoo!!!

[EmJayZA]

Thanks for the insight, Ryan. Much appreciated.

If the bulk of race fitness comes from approximately 40 days out, then my late burst of training from 30 days out is not as effective as I was thinking it would be. I must keep this in mind for my next event - Tour de Tuli in August - Woohoo!!!

 

Ryan's base is much, much bigger though. So, I don't think this statement is really true for everyone. I have a very small base of just over a year of training. That does not mean I can back off my training until 6 weeks before EL, for example. I think consistent stress to the body over a long term (especially if one is new to the sports), with increased load for peak fitness building into the race is the best way to go about it. 

[Wil6]

Watched Tims Don's documentary last night. WOW what an inspiration. World record holder of 7:40 for a full Ironman.

 

He talks about 30 hours training per week  He runs a marathon at 3:40 min/km, I can't even do that for 1km!

 

Edited June 7, 2018 by Wil6