It’s done and I managed a hot day, something new for me. All
my concerns about my TeamUSA uniform proved to be uneventful. It worked
flawlessly and really helped me keep cool. At every run aid station I doused
myself from head to toe in cold water and the evaporation kept me cool to the
next aid station. I’ve never had such a good experience at keeping cool. The
only downside was that my shoes got wet after a while causing my feet to squish
around.
The details: (numbers here, for them what’s interested)
Race morning we had a light breeze (which kept up all day,
helping with the cooling). I was so glad to have had all those days in Lake
Washington with light wind and waves. It made this swim totally manageable.
My wave (men 40+) had about 300 starters. With the dinky
little 10 meter ‘line in the sand’ start it was crowded. Luckily everyone
wasn’t required to cross the official start line, so people spread out on the
beach. The swim was a clockwise 3KM loop starting at Rotary Park (near the
Peach) and ending at Okanagan Park (east of the Coast Hotel). It was pretty
busy out to the second turn and return-to-the-beach leg. By that time I started
to see some purple swim caps (younger women’s wave) around me. Someone must
have thought I was a good swimmer because I had fingers on my feet for most of
the swim (weird person!).
The swim felt just like a long training swim, except for the
other people crowded around. Luckily we were all going in the same direction.
I was shooting for a 55 minute swim, but ended up with 58
and first out of the water for my AG!
The ride is an out and back north along Lake Okanagan to
Summerland and back, followed by 2 loops around Skaha Lake. Both loops include
McLean Ranch Road and Highway 97 out of OK Falls. Plenty of up but also some
good down. Those of you who’ve raced in Penticton will remember most of these
roads.
There was a slight south wind so the leg to Summerland was
wind assisted and the return leg wind hindered. I still managed to crank
comfortably along in my aero bars almost all the time. Then along the spectator
lined Lakeshore Drive and out of town on Government Drive. Once out by Cherry
Lane we were back on the road to OK Falls along Skaha Lake; all very familiar
ground. Up McLean Ranch Road and down the manky descent to OK Falls (with a
dead or sleeping cat on one of the corners!). A few turns through OK Falls,
part of it the end of the old IMC marathon course, then up the Highway 97 hill
out of town. Even though I’ve ridden this before I still don’t have the false summit
section down. After the steeper low section, there’s a long, gradual climb
that’s deceptively steep. I kept thinking “Why is this so hard?”.
Each loop brought us back into town and through the crowd.
I had an altered bike hydration plan (thanks to Gary and Ed)
and followed it. A little less drinking early on and a bit more towards the
end. I started the ride with full 2 liters in my hydration pack and added 1.5
liters, which turned out to be about .75 liters too much, at the McClean Ranch
Road aid station.
I crushed the 120KM ride with a sub 4-hour time and was
EXTREMELY pleased. My legs were good off the bike and, after a porta-potty
visit, I was through the change tent and out onto the run.
The run course for this race was basically a set of 3 out
and back loops: one along Main Street, a second along Martin Street over almost
to the Convention Center, and the third along the lake shore, past the
Sicamous, and up to a turnaround near Highway 97. Each loop was 10K and we
repeated it 3 times. Very tedious, very hot with temperatures around 30°C. I
was very pleased with the functioning of my TeamUSA uniform: no arm chafing
(which I’d feared) and excellent cooling when doused with water.
I followed my hydration plan with a short drinking walk
every half mile and consumed fluids on my known schedule (1/2 liter each 3
miles). My only problem was the spacing of the aid stations. The aid stations
on both Main St. and Martin St. were placed too close to the turnaround point
so they were unevenly spaced around the course It took me about half the run to
figure out how to get my water bottle refilled when I needed it.
Other than that, it was just jog along, getting passed by
faster runners, and keep moving forward.
My run was not as fast as I’d hoped, but still adequate. The
first 2 laps were pretty even pace, but by lap 3 I really slowed down and had
to pay attention to keep moving. By then, a lot of people were walking so I was
able to pass others. It was only on the third lap that I saw a competitor with a
race number near to me and I passed him while he was walking. Turned out he
wasn’t on lap 3, but farther back.
All day long I’d been looking at race numbers to see if an
age group competitor was near me, passing or being passed, and saw no one. So,
I was scared the whole time about where I was in the field (wanting to finish
well!). So, it was with great pleasure that I heard Steve King announce that
his “… good friend Mike Nelson wins the gold in the 70-74 age category” as I
crossed the finish line. What a relief.
After finishing I did has some blood pressure issues and
faint headed-ness which a stop in the Medical Tent for fluids and a chair
resolved. Then food, some rest, and the evening awards ceremony.
The awards ceremony had a number of cool features: an
Olympic style podium for the bronze, silver, and gold medalists;
representatives from the various national triathlon organizations handing out
national flags so you could proudly display your nation’s colors; men and women
presented at the same time (cut down on the awards time); old people first
which meant I got to go out first with my fellow 70-74 winners, followed by all
the young uns.
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