70.3 Mont Tremblant

This was my A race for the early part of the season. I had high hopes and one big goal, qualify for Worlds 70.3 in Chattanooga, Tennesse this upcoming September. Mont Tremblant may be one of the best places to go, not just to race, but to just experience the beauty nature has.

On top of Mont Tremblant (French for Trembling) 

Nutrition: 

Anyhoot, for the race, the Half Iron distance is much different as nutrition plays a key part in the race, without it and you won't race well. I went with consuming a few things. First, my gel for the race was my team sponsor Powerbar Simple Fruit Jells. They seem to do a great job at sitting well in my stomach and allowing me to get what I need quickly. I had 3 on the bike and another 3 on the run. I took the three on the bike in between 2 cliff bars, since I needed more substance. Along with this, I normally race with a water downed Gatorade. 

Swim: 

As many people know, this is my weak point. It was a rolling start and we were self-seeded. I liked the format however, I couldn't decide when to place myself. I decided to go with the 29 minute and under group and head out with my buddy Rich (he's a lot faster swimmer than I and I lost him within the first 400meters.) I finished though under 30 minutes! My fastest 70.3 swim to date! 

Coming in on the bike 

Bike: The bike I had high hopes with. I went into the bike hoping to maintain a solid bike split. Mont Tremblant's roads were in pristine condition which allowed me to really dial in. Around mile 35 though, things started to go south. I felt horrible. I don't think it was from nutrution, instead my thoughts was it was just from not having a good base in biking. Anyways, the fun in Mont Tremblant on the bike is the last section of it when the elevation gain starts to take place. It was at this point I was struggling to hold on and just to finish on the bike. However, I did finish with a 56 mile bike time around 2:28. 

                                                             Coming in on the run.

Run: This run starts off with one thing in mind, anger. I was hoping to have had a much better bike split and time needed to be made up. I knew if I wanted any shot at a World's Championship spot I had to take a big risk on this run. I started the first mile conservative running a 6:20 and from there I went out went out aiming for a 6:15 mile pace. I was able to stay pretty close to that pace for the rest of the run. It was one of the best runs I had in a race, as I was able to really compose myself and just put my legs in extreme pain for 13.1 miles. Time for the half was 1:22. A solid run. 

Overall: This was truly an awesome race. I went for the day 4:25:29, 3rd age group and 38th overall. This is a PR for the 70.3 distance for me on a not so easy course. The big highlight though was that I was able to qualify and gain a spot for the 70.3 World Championship this year in Chattanooga! YAY! I must say though I will be racing this race for sure next year as it may be one of the best atmosphere's I've ever raced in.