On the 16th of August, I competed in the 70.3 Ironman in Swansea. The course was a 1900m Dock swim with a lot of jellyfish, 56 mile on the Welsh rolling roads through the Gower finishing with a coastal 13.1 mile run. In true British style, the weather wasn’t great high gusts of winds and rain throughout the day.
The race started early with the professional women starting at 07:02. My aim was to have confidence in my swim and lead the swim, making it hard for the other girls. I had a great start and was out in front with 4 girls on my feet. I tried hard to string the group out and in the last 400m got some help from another athlete. We came out as a group of 3 with a small gap to 2 other girls.
Onto the bike, I was in 2nd. The first 5 miles was flat and fast before climbing up the coastal road. My power was feeling good on the bike but with the rain coming down hard and the wind, I lost confidence with my cornering and descending. I wasn’t taking risks and lost a lot of time to the girls in front, who were descending and cornering much faster in the wet. After the first 30 miles, the roads became much less technical, I gained speed and the gap to the front didn’t grow from then on in. I came off the bike in 5th.
Onto the run the legs felt great, I was holding a good time for the first 4 miles before I started to get stomach issues. My stomach was cramping and causing me to slow down. I ended up walking twice on the run, this was annoying as my legs and heart felt good. I finished the race in 6th frustrated as my form and body felt good but my head and stomach meant for a frustrating result.
Looking back at the event I need to work on my pre-race nutrition leading up to the race. Be more confident in my ability to race/run off the bike. My Heart Rate numbers were positive for the race and I am hoping over the next couple of races to show what my body is capable of.
Thanks to everyone for the support. Bring on London!
