This past Saturday, August 1, was the 2009 Steelhead 70.3 in Benton Harbor, MI. It was my first HIM in 2 years and my first attempt at actually racing the distance instead of merely surviving.
Before the report, a little about the race/venue itself. Transition is at Jean Klock Park, along the coast of Lake Michigan at the north section of Benton Harbor (BH). It’s a pretty nice, small beach focused park that is currently expanding to add a golf course. Hopefully development of the beach front will spur BH to improve itself because currently it could use some work. The town itself looks pretty run-down and impoverished. I’d assume most athletes coming in for the race stayed at nearby St. Joseph’s to the south, which seemed to be a vast improvement.
The course, however, was pretty nice overall. The swim is a point to point along the coast of the lake, pretty much a straight shot and the water is clear enough to not scare more timid swimmers...unless the wind kicks up, then you’ll have big waves. The bike is a short out and back leading to a large loop in the countryside north of the city. Some of the roads could be in better condition, but it’s a nice enough course to not bore you, and can be a bit of a challenge depending on the wind. The run is a double loop with a couple short, but steep hills. It offered enough variety, that having to loop the same section 2x didn’t seem to bother me. It gives you a good idea what to expect on the 2nd loop in terms of terrain and aid station locations, of which there are plenty. Also, the run offers a pretty good amount of shade.
Such a long intro, now to the race report…
Swim: My weakest leg, by far. I felt as I could hope to be at the start, and had a pretty good position in my wave…not quite in the front row and to the outside of the pack. However, within 50m I had fallen way back as I had to stop and drain my leaking right goggle three times already. Finally, after the first couple minutes, which seemed like an eternity, I got them to not leak and away I went. The rest of the swim was pretty straightforward and I had plenty of space to work with, other than catching back up to the occaisional swimmer in my wave to be welcomed with a kick or two. Needless to say, I was frustrated with my start, but relieved to see the beach and move on. Time: 39:22 (Goal: 40:00, –:38 total)
Me (on right) exiting the swim…I sure am angry or concentrated
T1: The transition area was long and narrow, so a pretty long run to the gear, but not too much to report here. Time: 3:39 (Goal 4:00, –:59 total)
Bike: This is where I really just wanted to focus on holding back. I felt if I just settled into a comfortable “feeling” pace then I’d still hold a respectable average AND have legs for the run. Other than my bike PC, I kept no track of time, so didn’t have an idea of how I was doing overall. For the bike, though, I tried to pay attention to the timer only to time nutrition (alternating 2x concentrated Infinit and water, 1 large drink every 10 minutes…as well as a nutri-grain bar at the 1hr and 2hr marks). My legs felt great and I was moving faster than I had expected. I hit the halfway point with an avg speed of 22.6mph. Something had to give, right? It certainly did. At around mile 35, after you’ve been gradually winding your way north and east, you turn onto the highway which is essentially a big straightaway back to transition. Unfortunately, it seemed to be aligned almost directly with the wind, so the majority of the 20 miles home were rolling hills into a unrelenting headwind. I wasn’t so worried about my speed dropping since I was well ahead of my planned speed, but it’s hard to not get frustrated and fight the wind when you’re in it that long. As I approached T2, I was sure I used too much on the bike and figured I had trashed the run. But either way, the bike leg still kept me ahead of my goal pace. Time: 2:38:20 (Goal: 2:40:00, –2:39 total)
Bringing the bike back to T2 and stretching for the upcoming run. DeSoto Coolwings (kinda the Torbjorn Sindballe strategy), are the sleeves if you’re wondering
T2: Grabbed my fuel belt with more Infinit and a couple gels, put on my Trifuel hat, and was on my way. Time: 2:53 (Goal: 2:00, –1:46 total)
Run: I left T2 at little more than a shuffle, knowing I had to start slow to keep from blowing up, especially after the exertion on the bike. Even at my shuffle, I was still moving through people on the course, which had me guessing if I was going too hard. However, soon I get pretty settled and my pace came up a little. I started looking for my dad, who had almost an hours head start on me. I finally caught him at just past mile 5…he looked especially strong for his first HIM attempt. That was motivating since with my dad and sister both racing, it’s hard not to worry a little about how there doing as your out there. I grabbed water at every aid station, drank maybe a gulp and poured the rest onto my arm coolers or in my hat. I was staying pretty cool. By the time I hit the second loop, I had only walked once, at a hill just outside Whirlpool’s campus that I wanted no part of and would walk again on loop 2. For the second loop, I added sponges to the aid station passes, wearing them sort of like shoulder pads under my sleeves. My pace also seemed to come up a bit more. By mile 10, I was pretty sure I had a good time going, but the fatigue was starting to set in. I didn’t really have any kick for the finish, but I did get a little charge of energy when I rounded the corner for the home stretch and Andy Potts was there cheering us on (he said I was looking strong…it was awesome) and again a few hundred meters ahead when I saw the clock and knew I blew away my goal. I crossed the line, and I was drained but very pleased. Time: 1:41:09 (Goal: 1:48:30, –9:07 total)
Finish line within sight.
Total Time: 5:05:23…about a 1 hour 10 minute PR 2 years in the making.
Overall, I couldn’t have asked for a better race. Everything seemed to come together, and yet I was so close to 5hours and see room to improve, so have another goal ahead. I hung out at the finish with my wife and mom and waited for my dad and sister to arrive. My dad came in sub 6:20 for his first half, almost beating my previous PR on his first attempt, and my sister came in in the 6:20’s for a nearly 25 minute improvement from her last half. It was a great showing by all.
Oh yeah, and Andy Potts won the race, and my wife got to congratulate him and take close-up post finish pictures…
Andy, just minutes after victory
Right now, I’m relaxing and celebrating the other event of this weekend for one more day before returning to the real world…my wife and my first anniversary. We are relaxing in Harbor Country and it’s about the best way to spend post-race time I can think of.
Next race, Augusta 70.3 at the end of September.
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