Short version: PR by over 13 minutes, great course, humid but not hot, yes I'd do it again.
Longer version follows.
This was a fun course with a lot of community support. Augusta, GA is a nice little town with a strong sense of history, and a desire to rebuild itself rather than fading away. From before the Civil War to as recently as the 1970's, it was a major textile mill town rivaling Lowell, MA. As that business died off, so did many employment opportunities. The town is now following a strategy similar to that of Indianapolis: they want to become an amateur sports mecca. To that end, they very enthusiastically embrace the Ironman event and make the athletes feel very, very welcome. This was the fourth year of the event, and the town's enthusiasm was quite refreshing. I didn't realize that this is the largest of the IM 70.3 series races, at 3500 participants (most are capped at 2500).
We got into town Thursday, and did a little sight-seeing. While enjoying a Guiness, we ran into some Ironman employees who were coordinating volunteers, and agreed to help out at packet pickup the following day. After a canal boat tour Friday, we moved to the host hotel (the Marriott) and got settled in. I had shipped my bike there earlier in the week (Delta is a ripoff with bikes), and they had it delivered to our room before we hauled our bags up there. What service! Got the bike assembled, made sure no parts were missing, and went downstairs to check in and work our shift.
The expo was the largest of any 70.3 I've done so far (this was #8), and offered many opportunities to spend money. I picked up my race packet and chip, then found the volunteer coordinator. We assembled/dispensed goody bags for a few hours, had fun meeting other athletes, and called it a day. Saturday was a 1.5 mile walk down to Transition, where a bike mechanic aligned/tightened/verified that all was good, then I found my spot and racked the bike. Relaxed on a historic trolley tour and saw a bit more of Augusta.
Maybe it's part of being in the South, but the general atmosphere was very, very friendly, and athletes were very chatty. I've never been asked so many times if I've done a full. It was nice for the ego to get asked that, reply yes, and see the look of respect. So here we are in the elevator after dinner, I'm feeling all puffed up and studly, and an obviously elite female athlete gets on with her obviously expensive high-end bike and 2% bodyfat. Then two more Kona-qualifier types get on, about my age, with maybe 5% bodyfat. Then there's me...beer-drinking, normal bodyfat range, minimal training, never-gonna-stand-a-chance-at-qualifying because I'm in the middle-to-back of my age group. I just had to look around and laugh. Oh well, we all get the same medal at the finish line.
Sunday morning I got to sleep in late for a race day, until 5:20 am. Caught the 6 am shuttle to transition, got all my stuff set up, drank another Muscle Milk, then caught another shuttle back to the swim start. Those of us in wave 11 (of 25) watched the previous waves leave and noticed the visible current. Hooray! As a slow swimmer, I LOVE strong currents! Water temp was 76, so wetsuit legal and very comfortable. I had my fastest swim ever thanks to that current and got out of the water after 33:56.
Very long transition from exiting the water back into the transition area...about 350 yards. But there were wetsuit strippers after that long schlep. Gotta love the wetsuit strippers.
So far the rain was holding off, and everyone was hoping it would at least wait until most were done with the bike. We crossed the Savannah river after maybe five miles, and rode about 45 miles in South Carolina on rolling hills before crossing back into Georgia. These truly were rollers -- steep enough to have to work it, but not so steep as to be miserable. And some of the downhills were quite nice. With so many participants, it was hard at times not to draft, but it wasn't horribly crowded and I always had plenty of company around. I was hoping to have a repeat of the Steelhead bike ride (~3:15, no stopping) and succeeded. This course was much hillier than Steelhead, so I was very, very pleased with my ride. Pulled up to the dismount line after 3:15:48.
Still felt pretty good through transition, and headed out for the run...and just couldn't get enough air. I've lost any high-humidity conditioning I might have had, and it quickly became painfully apparent. At 93%, the humidity reduced me to a pitiful run/walk routine. I could run maybe .10/mile, then my heart rate would shoot up and I'd have to walk and pant a bit. It was like breathing through a wet dishrag. Very frustrating. The legs felt ok, the gut wasn't thrilled but wasn't the issue: I just couldn't get enough air. And I had lots of company. Many people were doing the same thing: run for a minute or two, then walk for 30-45 seconds breathing hard, then run again. Oh my, this is going to be a long day and it's going to blow my chances at a PR if I don't watch it.
The run is a zig-zag through downtown, twice, so there's plenty of spectators and plenty to look at. I was glad we had taken the trolley tour the previous day, because now I could recognize various landmarks as I went by and distract myself by trying to remember their story. Eventually I came upon Scott Rigsby, the first double-amputee to complete a full Ironman distance, around mile 9. He was chugging along at a good pace on his blades. Very motivating. I can't even imagine how much that must hurt after the first few miles.
Kept up the run/walk routine, and was delighted to look up and see the Mile 11 sign. A group of us passed it together, and had a good laugh about missing the Mile 10 sign but being very happy we only had two more to go. Eventually I rounded the last corner, and was able to run the last couple of blocks to the finish. Four of us hit the chute at the same time, and I came from the back to beat the two guys to the finish line. Yes! Hope they didn't mind getting chicked by an old fart (age is written on your calf). At last it started to rain a little bit.
Immediately found Paula, got my medal/hat/food, and headed back to the hotel for a badly-needed hot shower. Ohhhhh that felt good. Run time: 2:32:22. Not bad!
While I didn't have the negative splits that I had at Steelhead, I am still very pleased. The bike course was quite a bit more challenging than Michigan, and the run conditions were harder. Even without the nice current helping me out, I would have at least matched my Steelhead time, so it was clearly a good day. I took my time in transition, and it was well worth it. Between the hospitality of the town, the volunteers, and the hotel, I would definitely fly back to do this race again.
| Total Time: | 6:32:39 |
| Swim: | 33:56 |
| T1: | 6:23 |
| Bike: | 3:15:48 |
| T2: | 4:10 |
| Run: | 2:32:22 |
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