Cardinal Harbour 1/2 IM Tri Event

Well, as this event fades in the rear view mirror, just some observations and some rules to live by.
Rule #1 - Don't be in the front when the swim begins. The swim started at the boat ramp at Cardinal Harbour on the Ohio River. I wanted to get wet and get adjusted to the water so I went in the water to get wet while the race director was giving final instructions. Before I knew it, it was 10 seconds to start and then the next thing I know here comes a whole herd of folks in the water in what was a mass start for the men. I was about to get a lesson in hand to hand combat in the first 4 or 5 minutes of the race. Once I got kicked in the head by what felt like a mule, it was time to pull over and let the kamazi get ahead. It was another 4 or 5 minutes before I felt comfortable to get a in a relaxed swim mode and start the swim.
Rule #2 - Don't misjudge the river current. I knew from past times that a 1.2 mile swim takes me about 50 to 55 minutes. The course is set up approximately 100 feet from shore with red bouys on each end and yellow bouys about 150 to 200 yards apart between the two red bouys. There are 5 or 6 yellow bouys so I just swim from one bouy to the next usually taking about 25 minutes to make the turn at the red bouy and swim back. After about 25 minutes the red bouy is still not in sight so I just keep stroking along finally making the turn at the 35 minute mark which was kind of demoralizing at the time because I kept thinking it was taking a long time to swim this course. Once I made the turn, the shore line started to fly by...then it occured to me that the river current must be stronger that I even imagined. The return trip took only 19 minutes...thus don't misjudge the current, it is probably stronger that you think.
Rule #3 - Relax and enjoy the bike ride. The bike ride is along some very scenic countryside along Rose Island Road, US 42 along horse farms and wooden plank fences and some very beautiful homes and estates. The volunteers and traffic control were great and the bike portion went off without a hitch. The bike took 3 hours and 14 minutes, a little slower that I wanted but enjoyable none the less, the most important part being a good ride with no incidents or flat tires.
Rule #4 - When it 93 degrees run easy to run another day. It was after 12 noon before I got off the bike and on to the 13.1 mile run. The course was relatively flat running with a few small hills with the main part of the course along a 1.5 mile out and back course (3 mile round trip) that we had to run 3 times before we could head back to the finish. About 1/2 of the course was shaded which made it bearable most of the time. I decided early on that this was not a day to run any harder than necessary and to stay as wet as possible in order to keep sweating to a minimum so as to keep electrolye loss to a minimum. I don't usually don't wear a hat when I run, but I decided to wear one today to keep the sun off of my head. The extra benefit to the hat is that it make a wonderful receptor for ice so as you go thur each aid station, just load your hat with ice and try to keep cool....that is the name of the game on what ended up to be a 95 degree day at the finish.

All in all, a good day all pointing to 8/31/08 and IM Louisville

Louisville Ironman Bike Course

Getting ready is half the battle

It is the eve of the Cardinal Harbour 1/2 IM tri and I am running around the house trying to get all of my gear together. As I sit here writing this, I have socks and shorts in the washer as the last piece of gear I need for tomorrow. Thank goodness for check lists, paper and pencil. It is amazing all of the stuff you need to have to make this work. I salavaged an old ski bag to be my tri bag figuring it wasn't worth a $100 to buy a bag and it seems to work OK. Then you have to think thru each discipline as to what you need such as swim suit, goggles, cap, towels, bike gear including shoes, gloves, riding shorts, shirt, helmet and then running shoes, socks, hat, visors, etc. Then there is what you are going to drink and eat...I have been working almost 2-1/2 hours getting stuff ready for tomorrow. I guess this is part of the training too....on to the event....tomorrow