As I approach the mid-point of my 2013 racing season, I headed to Williamsburg for the inaugural Rev3 Williamsburg Half. This race capped off a period of 4 races (1 half-marathon, 1 Olympic and 2 Half-Iron Distance) in a period of 10-weeks. For me, this was a busy period of racing. Typically I do 4-5 races over the season, let alone two and a half months. It was really fun to race so much, but at the same time, I am ready physically and mentally for a mid-season break. It’s time to re-focus my training and get ready for longer races later this summer. Enough of that, back to Williamsburg….
First off, I’ve never been to this part of Virginia, so I really didn’t know what to expect. The area is really nice and scenic, much like northern Michigan that I am more familiar with. The race is set-up with a split transition with the swim in the James River and T1 in nearby Jamestown Beach Park. T2 and the race finish is about 7 miles away right in Williamsburg on the campus of the College of William & Mary
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| View of the Bike Course |
With a race start time of 6:30, the extra time needed to drop off my bags at T2 and take the shuttle to the start, my day started earlier than normal. Alarm went off at 3:05 AM (which is really freakin’ early for me!) and I was on my way to T2 by 4:30. Unfortunately, the weather was not cooperating as it was raining pretty steadily. Not really the way you want to spend an hour plus waiting for the race to start, but at least it was warm. T2 was set-up and I was easily on a shuttle to T1 by 5:00. (A bit of advice for those doing a split transition race: ARRIVE EARLY! Get there early and the lines are minimal and the crowds at down. Wait even 10 or 15 minutes and a 10-minute stop can take 45 minutes.) Anyway, as it got closer to start time, the rain was starting to break up and it seemed that even though the roads would be wet, it at least would not be raining during the race itself.
Swim:
With the swim being in a tidal river, and the steady rain through the previous 2 nights, the conditions made for a tough swim. The swim course is triangular shaped with 500-600 yards out, 800-1000 yards upstream, then 500-600 yards back to shore. So not only did the added rain increase the currents in the river, the race start was also seemed to be low tide time as well. This meant that the currents were slightly stronger and the water was shallower. The water temperature was 77.5 F, so the swim was not wetsuit legal (for Pros), which was fine because I could not imagine wearing a wetsuit in that water without instantly overheating. It was warm enough in only a swim skin.
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| Swim Exit, day before the race |
We lined up on the beach for the start and the horn went off. As we ran into the water, the water just did not any deeper. After what seemed like a minute or 2 of running in the water it was still mid-thigh deep: too shallow to swim, so more dolphin dives. Finally after about 200 yards, we were swimming. Given the long run, everyone was already a bit spread out and there was not a tight swim pack by me. I found a pair of feet to draft off of and stayed there until about 50 yards before the first turn. At this point, I was about 15’ behind the person in front of me, and as I turned to head to the buoy, I suddenly realized I didn’t seem to make any progress. I was swimming at my normal pace, but I just wasn’t going anywhere. Right then, I knew it was going to be a long swim. By this point I lost the group in front of me and I focused on the next red turn buoy. I finally rounded the second turn and instantly felt faster heading back to shore. I glanced at the clock as I exited the water and when I saw nearly 39 minutes, I was a bit shocked I at the time. I know I am a bit off the lead swimmers, but after swimming 30:30 at Florida 70.3 (also a non-wetsuit legal swim), I expect low- to mid-30s at the most. Regardless, during the race is no time to dwell on the times, they are what they are, and it was time to stay focused on the task at hand and get going on the bike. Swim split: 39:07 and 22nd place
T1:
After a ¼ mile cross country run over a mowed path through the field, I arrived at T1 with nearly all the Pro bikes gone, so I grabbed my BMC TM01 and was in and out in 2:50.
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| The run from swim to T1 |
Bike:
The bike course is basically a Popsicle shape with a couple of out and back sections. There were no significant climbs on the course, just generally flat to rolling. Rev3 reported a total elevation gain 801’, but I had 2,550’ on my Garmin 500. Not sure which one is accurate; probably somewhere in the middle. The roads were generally good, with the exception of some rough chip seal at miles 10-15 and 37-42 and the single lane section that was pretty poor from about mile 45-48. Besides that Rev3 did a good job keeping dedicated lanes on the course away from vehicular traffic, with the exception of miles 48-51, where the traffic was pretty heavy.
As usual for the Half-Distance, my goal was to stick to my power plan of about 83-85% FTP and see who I could catch-up during the ride. First it was past the Pro women that passed me on the swim, then a rather lonely, solo effort to catch the next placed male ahead of me. On the out and back section around mile 22, I could see the large main pack had about a 8 minute lead on me, and the were several others trailing after that. Finally just after the turnaround at the second out and back section, I made a pass and moved up a position. Shortly after this, the half-distance course merged with Olympic distance course and we entered the bad road section at mile 45. I made my way passed the Olympic age-groupers and tried to maintain my power until the finish. By this point, my power was drifting downward to around 78 - 80% FTP. In the end I averaged 80% FTP, with a bike split of 2:19:55 (24.0 mph) and moved up to 21st place.
My on-bike nutrition was my standard plan for this distance. It works, so no need to change it. I had 2 bottles of First Endurance EFS, and ½ flask of First Endurance Liquid Shot with ½ scoop of First Endurance Pre-Race. This plus some extra on-course sports drink, I consumed about 300 cal and 24 oz. of fluids per hour.
T2:
Not much to say here; efficiently in and out in 0:59 seconds.
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| My spot in T2 |
Run:
The run was a 2 loop run course through the Campus of William and Mary College. The course was a mixture of sidewalk and roads, and a few short hills on each loop and 1 longer climb about ½ mile before the far turnaround on each loop. Given my legs fading on towards the end of the bike, I didn’t know how they would react on the run. To my surprise, they felt really good and I was able to quickly settle into my target pace of 6:30 min/mile. The run was fairly uneventful as I was feeling decent and the miles were ticking by at a steady 6:25 – 6:35 pace. After the final turnaround, with about 3 miles to go, I could tell I was closing the gap to those in front of me, but I also knew would run out of course before I could make many passes. Since you never know what might happen in a race this length, I continued to hold my pace and not give up. At about mile 12.5, I was able to move up 1 more position to 20th and cruised in to the finish chute. My run split was 1:26:00, which gave me an overall time of 4:28:53 and 20th Male Pro.
My run nutrition is always less structured than the bike. It is more based on how I am feeling at that moment and what my body needs in terms of fluids and calories. In the end I had about 1 serving of First Endurance Liquid Shot with ¼ scoop of Pre-Race, as well as a variety of sports drink, water, salt tabs and coke at the aid stations throughout the race. I really have no idea how much I actually consumed; all I know is that I felt good throughout.
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| Thanks Rev3 for the Finisher's Photo! |
Overall I am happy with my day. My swim time left much to be desired, but my bike and run were consistent. Actually looking back to Ironman Florida 70.3 about 5-weeks ago, my bike and run splits were nearly identical to Williamsburg. The positive sign is that my fitness is consistent and my pacing is good. However, it’s also time to step back, re-group and make a few adjustments in my training as I move forward towards Ironman Canada in August. Between the races and recovery, I have not had much time to really build fitness during this time, and a break from racing will provide the chance to make a step forward.
Overall Rev3 Williamsburg was a great event. There were a few minor issues they need to work out for next year, but seeing how Knoxville has improved every year (and I’ve been to every one) I have no doubt this event will be better next year. If you are looking for an early summer half on the East Coast, I wouldn’t hesitate to return.
