Ironman Maryland Race Report - 3 time not always a charm!

I decided to go back to Ironman Maryland for a 3rd time this year. I wanted to do it again because the first time I had my best race of any Ironman I've done, the second time the swim was canceled and it was horrible conditions with a flooded bike and run course.  I was hoping to repeat the great experience I had the first time and finish with an 11 hour Ironman.  I finished with a respectable time of 12:10 but not even close to the 11 hour race I would have liked. The swim was pretty uneventful other than getting kicked in the leg at the end.   I hobbled out of the water and had to shake that off because I had 112 miles to ride.  The swim is not an easy swim because the water is a bit choppy hence the Choptank River.  I came out of the water in 1:11 which is almost the exact time that I did it in 2014. The funny thing is back in 2014 I was in the best swim shape of my life clocking my fastest times in the pool and swimming 4 days a week.  I typically only swim 3 days a week and thats what I did leading up to this Ironman.  I can't say going into this race I felt super fast in the water but I knew I could do the distance. I have to wonder if being that fast and fit in the pool translates to being that fast in the open water since my times were just about the same.  This was my 13th Ironman and I have to say Ironman Maryland is one of my favorite courses.

I prefer the flat courses not necessarily because they are easier (they have their challenges trust me).  Flat courses suit me better just like warmer races suit me better.  It's not easy riding 112 miles on a totally flat course because that means you NEVER get a break from pedaling.  There is no downhill sections you can coast for a few minutes and come up out of aero for a break. You have to maintain your aero position for the entire race, if you want to go fast.  I see so many people on these flat courses coming out of aero for a break and on a flat course it will slow you down significantly.  Another challenge with a flat course can be the wind.  Almost every flat Ironman I've done has been windy as heck.  Ironman Cozumel (geez I wanted to quit so many times the wind was horrible), Ironman Texas, and Ironman Arizona.  I've done many of those twice and at least one of the years for each was pretty windy.  The wind predicted this year at Maryland didn't seem like it was going to be too bad.  The second half of the bike course the wind picked up and slowed me down a bit.  My bike time for the first year that I did it was 5 hours and 11 minutes.  This year I did it in 5 hours and 30 minutes.  Going into the run I felt really great up until mile 15 then I started to feel really nauseous.  I've never really had problems with nutrition or nausea during a race and it certainly slowed me down for the last 11 miles.  I couldn't take in any nutrition for the last half of the marathon............no water, gatorade, coke, nada.  I was trying to get to the finish on empty.  It was tough but I forged through to the finish and got my 13th medal and finishers shirt.  I'm glad I did it and I always love the feeling of accomplishing something of that magnitude.  People sometimes underestimate the dedication it takes to finish an Ironman.  No matter the course its still a 2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike and 26.2 mile run.  

Train Hard. Have Fun. Recover Well.  

Coach Cyndee