I did this race last year and was not sure I wanted to do it again. Not because of the distance- 70.3 is my favorite- but the course conditions especially on the bike were pretty hairy. Roads in the northeast are bad due to the extreme hot and cold every year causing potholes and cracks galore. However after I did not get into the NYC Olympic tri and knowing I needed a good race before IM NYC, the RI race made sense. Plus the race organizers promised the course would be in better shape. So I pulled the trigger and entered for Round 2- And glad I did.
PreRace/Packet Pickup- My company has summer friday hours so I was able to leave NYC by 1:30on Friday and make the drive to Providence. My hope was I would make it before 6 so I could pick up my packet, but if traffic was against me I would still be in the city early on Saturday so either way worked. As luck has it (and knowledge of multiple ways to get through Connecticut- read Merritt Parkway), I got to the RI convention center by 5:15 and breezed through packet pickup and the expo store. The swag bag was pretty nice- good KSWISS tech shirt, very good drawstring backpack- the good kind- not the ones that rip (IM Pocono Mtn 70.3 and Toughman this is addressed to you) as well as a bottle shaker from Vitacost. And the Spinervals brochure- folks if you don't use Spinervals DVD's you are doing something wrong. Buy them, Use them-YOU WILL BE FASTER. Once I left the expo, it was time to check in at my hotel-The Hampton Inn on Weybossett Street. If you need to travel to Providence I highly recommend this hotel-2nd year staying here and will do next year (yeah round 3 is on my agenda). I had a great dinner at a local restaurant and then got a good night sleep.
On Saturday it was time to drop off my run bag at T2 and my bike at T1- RI uses a 2 transition area setup. This is a bit of a pain, but actually is great practice for full IM distance races since you often have to bag your gear instead of setting everything up at Transition. And I knew what to expect since I did this race last year- definitely helped from a stress perspective. Once I got everything squared away it was time for Lunch and then Dinner as well as a lot of hydration- it was HOT.
Race Morning- I was up by 3 and managed to eat pretty well- coffee, bagel with pb, banana and oatmeal. And by 3:45 I was out the door to the race shuttle to get to T1 and the swim. I sat next to a guy from Montreal who was using the race as tune-up like me- his race was IM Mont Tremblant (which is a week after IM NYC). Once we got to Transition it was time to set up everything- no problems and the lines to the porta potties were not bad (nice!!!).
Swim- One of the best things about RI is they let you stay in the water before your wave is called- so you can stay warm (the water temp was 80- Air temp at 6 was closer to 70). I was in wave 7 M 40-44 about 125 folks. The first 300 Meters were VIOLENT- one of the rougher starts I have experienced for 2 reasons- lot of guys pushing for position and some rough water due to the lifeguard boats with motors creating wakes. I swallowed a big gulp of water instead of air as I was getting swum over- but I was able to push through and before long found some clean water to swim- and the good news is I was on the Buoy line. Since the water was 80 degrees it was not a wetsuit swim- but I gotta say It seemed long (it did last year too). Even the pro times seemed a few minutes slower than normal. But everyone had to swim the same distance so even if it was closer to 1.4 miles (my guess) we all had to! Eventually I found my fingertips scraping sand and it was time to stand up- my time was about 41 minutes - slow for sure, but like I said the swim seemed long (at least in my mind). The swim for me is not fast, but not slow- I am not too concerned about the swim- I am faster on the bike, run and transitions.
T1- a long run from the beach to Transition meant for somewhat slow times- I was about 2:30 (about a minute slower than I like). But I also took time to put on arm sleeves to keep me cool and had to pack my bike bag with my swim gear (googles, cap and speed suit - not sure if it makes me faster But I look cool!) I did a great flying mount and was quickly off on the bike.
Bike- So I am a good cyclist, but I knew within a couple of miles today was not my day. My legs felt a bit tight and I could tell I was not 100%- I would say about 90%. So the first 15 miles was a lot of talking - push/ can't push, free speed, dammit I need to stand up, crap I suck, I am slow. But I told myself- push to what your limit is today and concentrate on what you are doing. Yeah you want a 23 MPH avg, but your body is giving you 20- make the best of it. It's a freakin IM 70.3- enjoy it dave. And I did (sorta) as only 56 miles in aero can. My only concern once I won the mental game is my mouth tasted like sour sugar- like you drank too much soda as a kid and have that rotten taste in your mouth. BUT I was able to keep getting nutrition in without feeling like I wanted to throw up or any GI issues. Now the roads were a bit bumpy, however they were much better than last year - I did get the bike up to about 45 MPH on a long descent- that was cool!
I rolled into T2 in 2:45- about 10-15 minutes slower than I wanted, but I was feeling pretty good and ready for the run.
T2- Just gonna say I don't like the bag- took at least 20 seconds to get my gear out and on. T2 is normally 30-45 seconds for me (no I don't wear socks and I am fast), but today I had to switch sunglasses as well as get my two bottle fuel belt out of the bag- it just did not want to come out. So my time was 1:30.
Run- The run is a two loop jaunt through Providence with two hills per loop- one hill is a short incline heading to the turn around/ finish- only about 300 meters long. Easy. The other hill Sucks. it is a slow steady 1.5 mile crusher. It Sucks. Wait did I mention it Sucks- especially when it is 90+ degrees out. Other than that it is great- in a Sucky way. But I knew what to expect and I actually felt very good- especially as I ran up that sucky hill twice & passed a lot of people from the bike and run- just sayin' -know your course! Since it was so hot cooling the body was key and the aid stations had some good hookups- icy sponges and ice chips. I love ice. At each aid station i would grab 4-5 sponges to at the front and put them down the front of my tri kit. Then grab two cups of water and cover my arms (still wearing the arm sleeves- which are awesome) with icy cold water. Then grab another cup of ice water and a sponge or two. The extra sponges went down my back & the cup of ice got carried to the next aid station. I emptied and refillled my fuel belt bottles twice (I use the revenge 20 with 2 bottles). It was so hot that getting cool liquid was so awesome. Overall I felt best on the run, although I was running about 20 seconds slower per mile than I normally do- BUT I knew I was gonna finish and was very happy with my mental strength. I even started to encourage other runners- when I do that I am feeling good. And the fan support especially near the finish chute was great. I also have to say thanks to the woman in the gardening hat on the hill- cheering for everyone up and down. Cheering is cool- It makes you feel great.
I crossed the line in 1:48 and and overall time of 5:19:41. I was slower compared to last year by 5 minutes but happy with the overall effort. I finished 23rd in my AG and 164th overall.
And the best part of the day was three fold- crossing the finish line, getting an awesome post race massage and having a big mac and two cheeseburgers from McDonalds. So bad but oh so good!
Would I recommend this race- yes and I will be back for round 3. However I would not recommend this to be your first 70.3. The combination of heat and hard run can add up to a hard day. But if you are looking for a great northeastern race in a great city- do the Ironman Rhode Island 70.3.
