This was my second year doing Ironman 70.3 Boise. Last year I just barely missed breaking five hours, so I was looking forward to breaking it this year. I did a lot of training on an indoor bike trainer over the winter, so I knew I could cut significant time from the bike, possibly a few minutes from the swim, and do about the same on the run. But my plans of a sub 5 hour 70.3 were squashed when they cancelled the swim at about 6:15am the morning of the race…
Swim
The swim at Ironman 70.3 Boise takes place at Lucky Peak Reservoir. The reservoir is in a canyon and often has high winds in the morning which create lots of waves and chop. Last year many people commented on the chop and a significant amount of people DNF’d or DQ’d due to the swim.
Two weeks before the race I went to the exact spot the race takes place to do an open water swim and sure enough, I got hammered by the waves. It was part of a group swim organized by a local triathlon store (Tri Town). That open water swim gave me confidence though, and I knew I could get through the waves and have a decent swim. The Monday before the race I even set a mile swim PR in the lap pool at the YMCA. I was super excited for the swim – it’s my favorite part of a triathlon because it’s so unlike anything else I do.
Lots of people did practice swims at Lucky Peak leading up to this race, and there were multiple comments that I saw on Facebook and Reddit encouraging people to go experience it.
Which brings me to the morning of the race. Most competitors had their wetsuits on as it was after 6am and the pros were scheduled to start at 6:25. First it was announced that the pros would be delayed by 10 minutes. Then about ten minutes later, around 6:15, they announced that the pros were do an alternate two lap course and the swim would be cancelled for the age groupers. Of course it was seconds after I had downed a gel with 100mg caffeine.
I was so disappointed. I kind of understand why they cancelled, but I just don’t understand how it wasn’t foreseen and planned for. Maybe the race organizers were just hoping for slightly better weather? Maybe it was worse than normal? To me it seemed completely normal for that spot and no different than what we’d seen for several days before the event.
Bike
Since there was no swim, the age groupers lined up by number and we started cycling two at a time using the beep timer with a 3 second (or 5 second?) delay. I’m glad I was number 628 so that I didn’t have to wait too long. I felt sorry for the people in the 1400’s or later. I set off around 7:45am and went pretty hard on the bike since I was so frustrated.
The bike course starts with 1 mile across the dam and then a steep downhill around the dam. It follows the river for a few more miles and then has a nice uphill. Slight uphill and downhill grades continue for the rest of the course, with about 3 more decent climbs, although there’s nothing too crazy. The wind is always an issue. From miles 17-24 there was a decent headwind on a slight uphill section which I struggled with last year, but I was mentally prepared for it this year. It’s followed by a turnaround at mile 24 and then the wind pushes riders slightly downhill for the next 8 miles. The course kind of continues like this all the way to the end – a combination of slight hills and wind either pushing with or against riders. Besides the opening miles along the river, it takes place on roads south of town basically among desert. There was even someone out shooting guns during the race.
This year I struggled most between miles 40 and 48. I got a little faint, probably slightly dehydrated, and just tired. At mile 45 I got a weird cramp on the inside of my left leg – kind of between my crotch and the side of my quad. I had to unclip and stretch out my leg and luckily it went away.
For nutrition I consumed:
- 100mg caffeinated gel an hour before
- My ~50g carb drink mix over the first 40 miles
- Uncrustable at mile 15
- Morton 100mg caffeinated gel
- A noncaffeinated gel
- Morton 100mg caffeinated gel
- Noncaffeinated gel at Mile 50 or so (to prep for the run)
- A full bottle of the electrolyte drink they handed out
- 2-3 24oz water bottles
I think next time I should ditch the Uncrustable and get a good carb bar that doesn’t have all the fat and protein. I’m not sure though. Whatever I do, I should do some practice rides where I actually consume everything. But the real problem is how it will impact my run. I think it went ok this time, but my stomach got a little upset in the run.
My pace was pretty good overall on the bike. I was targeting at least 22.5 mph and I got 22.6. I feel like that could have been improved with a little more mental fortitude, slightly better nutrition, or had I not gotten that cramp. Nevertheless, I finished strong, transitioned quickly, and got right into the run.
<div class="strava-embed-placeholder" data-embed-type="activity" data-embed-id="19463237601" data-style="standard" data-from-embed="false" data-token="MiiyiX3TC6g1ONYC-US_lTarqYkoOkYwmDmj_5Q70Ec"></div><script src="https://strava-embeds.com/embed.js"></script>Run
For the run, I wanted to get 7:00/mile or better. Last year I bonked at Mile 8 and it cost me several minutes, so my goal was also to avoid that.
The run course is two laps on the beautiful greenbelt. It’s spectator friendly. I would say it’s about 50% shaded. The most brutal stretch is Mile 5 and Mile 10.5-11.5 where there are few people around and runners are exposed to the sun.
I started the run at a fast pace (for me) – 6:38 for the first two miles then 6:41 – probably a little too fast but I felt good. A half mile in my hamstring started cramping and I got very worried. I stretched it out by adjust my stride, and then consumed electrolyte drink at every aid station. It was hot, so I also dumped water all over myself at every aid station.
Did I mention it was hot? It was probably 85-90F when I ran. I felt sorry for people who would be on the course when it was approaching 100F. I grabbed ice several times and shoved it down my tri suit in addition to all the water I was pouring all over myself.
I slowed down my pace a little to 6:45-7:00, both because my legs weren’t holding up and because I worried about running out of gas. I told myself I’d just try to hold the line at 7:00 until Mile 8 and then see what I had left.
One fun thing about starting in numerical order for the bike is that you could look at the number of the people either passing you or that you were passing and figure out whether they were behind you or ahead of you in the race. Usually it’s all mixed up from the swim, but if you passed someone on the run who had a lower number you knew that you were ahead of them, and vice versa.
I got through Mile 8 ok, but I struggled a bit on Mile 9 through Mile 11 with some stomach cramping and just a bad mental space. However, I regrouped for the last two miles and finished nice and strong.
<div class="strava-embed-placeholder" data-embed-type="activity" data-embed-id="19463242651" data-style="standard" data-from-embed="false" data-token="p5-XHH9p9TQ0aMMj6mmRlVn4Z0l6A59CS2TqTl-Go2E"></div><script src="https://strava-embeds.com/embed.js"></script>Final Thoughts
I was happy with my Ironman 70.3 Boise Ride and Run, and it ended up being a fun event (at least Type 2 Fun). I slightly exceeded my pace targets, but of course that was without a Swim. The lack of Swim was really a downer for the day. I understand these things happen, but it doesn’t prevent the disappointment and frustration. Now I’m left wondering if I should sign up for a half distance triathlon to try to break 5 hours or wait for next year’s 70.3 Boise…
