My Madison 70.3 Race Report

This past weekend I completed Ironman 70.3 Madison in 5 hours and 56 minutes. My goal was to do it in less than 6 hours so right off the bat I’m happy with how I did.

There was 1 key element to my race that I attribute to helping me go sub 6: my bathroom strategy

For every half Ironman or Ironman I’ve ever done, I’ve always found myself in a position of having to pee really badly and waiting in line for a porta-potty. This has ALWAYS killed my transition times and I would be standing in line thinking “WHAT AM I DOING HERE? I’M WASTING TIME!”

This race was different

Instead of peeing in a porta-potty before getting in the swim corrals, I held it. I held it to the point where, as the first swimmers were entering the water and us in the back were starting the slow march to the start line, I really needed to pee.

Then, I let it flow.

My wetsuit started to get warm and then I could feel the warmth trickle down my legs and eventually to my ankles and feet. Creating a not so subtle puddle at my feet as I continued to slowly march to the swim start.

I completely voided my bladder and felt extremely relieved as it was now my turn to enter the water. I hear the beep to advance into the water, pass the timing mat, start my watch, and enter the water.

Thanks to Craig Strong/Precision Multisport’s Own the Open Water program that I took this summer, the swim was the most calm and comfortable I’ve completed a 1.2 mile race swim. Very happy about that.

As I got to the final 600 yards of the swim, I could feel the urge to pee come back. I tried with all my concentration and energy to relax my legs and void once again. I had never been able to do that in practice and I wasn’t able to do it on race day. Dang. I’ll have to hold it.

I get out of the water and start lightly walk/jogging up to the transition zone. This moment, T1, is where I always lose time by going to the bathroom. But this time, I could hold it. I planned to use the porta-potty at the first aid station of the bike at mile 15.

I got my bike stuff on, got my bike, and made my way out.

Biking was good. I’ve done this course 2 times before so no real surprises. But with the hills I always get to a point where I feel like I’m pushing too hard and I ask myself “Am I over biking?”

The problem is, on a closed course, it’s so much fun to just punch it and race all the other bikers out there. I know it’s not really a competition between me and the others, but how could I not try to pass as many people as possible and then try to re-pass anyone who passes me? It’s only natural. So I play that game and have fun.

Now, the first aid station is coming up and I gotta pee. Thankfully, as I’m biking through, I can see that there is NO LINE FOR THE PORTA-POTTY.

I jump off my bike, park it, immediately open a porta-potty, let it rip, and then I’m back out remounting my bike.

The new Precision Multisport tri suit I raced in has 2 components to it which allows me to hastle free stand up to pee without taking the torso component of my suit off.

My old suit, required me to take the arms and torso off which added time.

Another benefit to my bathroom strategy

Back on the bike and I’m eating and drinking fluids at the rate I have been told by people smarter than me I should be eating and drinking. Which means, by mile 30, I have to pee again.

Not that much, but enough to where I’m looking forward to the aid station. The problem is, this time there is a line. NOPE. I’m gonna wait until mile 45.

So I keep biking, keep racing other people, eating and drinking. By mile 42, I’m really ready to pee and looking forward to the last aid station.

Rolling up to the last aid station and the line for the porta-potty is longer than at mile 30! No way I’m waiting in that line.

So I dig deep and make the decision to hold my pee until transition 2. Biking from mile 45 to mile 56, I seriously considered how I could safely pee myself on the bike without getting anyone behind me or getting it all over my bottles. I didn’t do it but wish I could’ve.

Rolling up to T2, dismounting from the bike, and seeing NO LINE FOR THE BATHROOM. I darted in, let it rip while also taking down an energy gel, and then I was out.

I felt like an efficiency machine. Killing two birds with one stone and not having to wait in line at any point during the day!

Bike goes to run and now I’m here for my favorite part. I love the 13.1 mile run of a 70.3 because it’s fun to try and see how fast can you run a half marathon with tired legs. The times are never as fast if you had fresh legs, but it’s playful to think about how fast you can do it. And that’s the part of triathlon everyone always gets surprised about.

“You do all that and then you run a half marathon???” Yea baby

And now it was time to run it. That first mile I started off way to fast but it’s hard to run slow when you’re excited and you’ve got all the people cheering.

But once my watch rang 8:30 for the first mile, I said “You’re running way too fast” and settled down slower into the 9-9:30 min/mile range.

Drudging along for miles and keeping pace.

Besides going sub-6 for the overall time, I also had goals for each disciplines’ time. Swim in under 50 minutes (success), bike in under 3 hours (success), and then run in under 2 hours.

At mile 8 my legs were on the verge of cramping at any step. It would come in waves but they always came and went. At mile 11.5, I could feel that the wave of cramping wasn’t going to go away, so I slowed down to a walk, let the pre-cramping calm down and then got back to my run.

At mile 12.5 I looked down at my watch and saw that I was not on pace to complete the run in under 2 hours. It was close, but I had to pick up the pace.

I picked it up and got down to 8 minute mile pace. My legs were actually feeling good again.

The last effort in a race, is always my absolute favorite. THIS IS IT mentality.

I’m running and feeling good but then…the hills.

Madison 70.3 ends on a gradual and steady incline and as I was chugging up the hill, I saw my pace dropping. My effort and fatigue was increasing but my speed had fallen behind where I needed to be.

I heard a lady in the crowd go “Just one more turn after this one!” I rounded the turn and saw that she was correct, there was another stretch of hill and then the last turn, I looked down at my watch and saw that it said 1:59:56 and thought to myself, dammit, not gonna break sub 2 for the half marathon.

I kept chugging along, got to the the red and black Ironman carpet in the finisher chute and soaked it all in. Half marathon completed in 2 hours and 11 seconds.

Race completed in 5 hours and 56 minutes!

I finished in under 6 hours and didn’t have to wait in line for a porta-potty! Success 🙂

Dr. Michael