2013 Miami Man 70.3 Race Review

2013 Miami Man 70.3 Race Review

(IMAGE SOUCE)

Sunday marked the end of the 2013 triathlon season for me and what a race to go out with.  Miami Man 70.3 is constantly setting the bar very high.  It is a great race in all aspects. 



Cool Race Bibs

I’ve participated in Miami Man for over three years now and each year I am amazed at how great a race it is. 

Pre-Race nutrition

Goodie Bag
Miami Man’s goodie bag puts all other races to shame.  The following race themed items were in the Miami Man goodie bag.

• Beer pint glass
• Race Visor
• Sunglasses
• Beer pad
• Pen
• Mouse pad
• Keychain
• Water bottle
• Travel bag tag
• Mouse Pad
• Running belt
• Electrolyte fizz
• Cool fish race cap
• Tech T-shirt with the race’s names on back
• Very nice full color athlete manual
• Powerbar performance energy blend

Compare that to the Miami Ironman 70.3 race good bag which had ONLY a tech T-Shirt.

Race Goodie Bag

My only complaint is in previous years the bags included a themed race, hand towel which I bring to every race.  This year’s bag did not include the hand towel :-(  I will miss that towel but how can you complain when you see everything else that was included in the bag!



Good Bag Item Table



Good Bag Item Table

Aid Stations
The aid stations were all adequately staffed with great and friendly volunteers. Each aid station had water, Cytomax, Hammer Gel, Power Bars, banana s and oranges.  Most had ice also.

After Race Meal
The after race meal was impressive and consisted of oranges, watermelon, chicken and rice, pizza, bagels, water, soda, Cytomax and Muscle Milk.  To my disappointment they ran out of pizza when I finished but they did have more being delivered.



Awesome Fish Race Caps!!

Swim Course
The swim takes place in a crystal clear lake.  It is a two loop course where you have to get out of the water and run back in for the second loop.  There are plenty of swim waves so people are not pilling up on top of each other.  There are also plenty of buoys setup for sighting.  It is a great swim. 

Bike Course
The bike course takes you through the surrounding farmland areas of Miami-Dade County.  The 70.3 consists of a 13 miles outing, 2-15 mile loops and then returns on the same route.  The course has three aid stations.    The course is very flat but always windy with 10-20 mph winds.  I think the bike course was about 2-3 miles short.

Run Course
The run course takes you paved and some hard packed dirt roads.  It also takes directly through the Miami Zoo where you get to see various animal exhibits.  It’s pretty cool seeing all the animals on the run.  The run course is always hot but what else would you expect… it’s Miami.



Bonnie getting her race tattoos.
(I hate getting these things off)

Overall Race Grade A
This is an awesome, well run race!!    I highly recommend this race!!  No complaints!!

My Swim Results
Time:  00:32:51 (0:27:22 min/mile)



They provide instant printed results as you cross the finish line .
I don't understand why other race directors don't
do this!!

 

The swim was AWESOME for me.  I broke my swim PR again and placed 6^th of 61 in my category!!  I could have done even better if I did not swim off course on the second lap. 

Time: 0:32:51

Pace: 0:27:22 min/mile

Category Place: 6 of 61

Overall Place: 57 of 587

Gender Place: 46 of 412

Category Percentile: +92

Overall Percentile: +90

Gender Percentile: +89

 My Bike Results

Time: 2:46:53

I fought the 20 mph winds and averaged 20.13 mph. 

Time: 2:46:53
Speed: 20.13 mph

Category Place: 29 of 61

Overall Place: 184 of 587

Gender Place: 158 of 412

Category Percentile: +53

Overall Percentile: +69

Gender Percentile: +62

 My Run

Time: 2:25:13

This was not my best run at all.  My stomach was turning upside down on the run.  I was clearly not recovered from the Miami 70.3 of two weeks ago.  I also did not get enough fluids on the bike.  The heat on the run was brutal.

Time: 2:25:13

Pace: 11:05 min/mile

Category Place: 27 of 61

Overall Place: 244 of 587

Gender Place: 171 of 412

Category Percentile: +57

Overall Percentile: +59

Gender Percentile: +59

Overall:  05:51:08

Even with my crappy run, I was able to break the six hour mark.  I’m happy considering I had Ironman Miami 70.3 two weeks ago and also volunteered at Ironman Florida last week (12 hours of driving).



Previous Year Race Comparison
(Click to enlarge)

Pre & Post Race Cuban Meal
(A must do in Miami)

 

 

PREVIOUS RACE REVIEWS

Miami Man 2010 Review

http://halftriing.blogspot.com/2010/11/miami-man-triathlon-review-2010.html
 

Miami Man 2011 Review

http://halftriing.blogspot.com/2011/11/miami-man-703-pre-race.html

http://halftriing.blogspot.com/2011/11/miami-man-70.html

http://halftriing.blogspot.com/2011/11/miami-man-703-part-3.html

 

 

Cool Race Shirts
(All racer names are in the #10)



 

The Super Bling
(with rhinestones)

Ironman Miami 70.3 Race Review

 

Ironman Miami 70.3 Race Review

 

Mr Half-TRI-ing acting cool.

Miami is a very large city. According to Wikipedia, “Miami is the principal, central, and most populous city of the Miami metropolitan area, and the most populous metropolis in the Southern United States after Washington, D.C. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Miami's metro area is the eighth most populous and fourth-largest urban area in the United States, with a population of around 5.5 million.  It is also the world’s largest cruise port.”

Miami is also known for its wide ethnic diversity.  It has a very large Hispanic and Cuban population.  It has a great nightlife and even better food.  I LOVE Cuban food and Miami is THE place to get it.

The bridge you have to run over twice.
IMAGE SOUCE

Ironman Miami 70.3 is very unique and different from most other races.  Most races take place in a small town in the middle of the country.  Ironman Miami 70.3 is completely the opposite.   It feels strange doing a 70.3 race in the downtown of a huge city.  The swim takes place in Biscayne Bay which lies in the shadows of the large, downtown skyscrapers. You swim alongside large docked cruise liners and multi-million dollar yachts. The cycling and run portion of the race takes place under the skyscrapers, the middle of downtown and the warehouse district. 

The race location at night.
Very Pretty!!
IMAGE SOURCE

The race also feels like it takes place in city in Latin America (which Miami pretty much is).  Most of the business signs are in Spanish.  Most of the stores cater mostly to the Hispanic culture.  Everyone speaks Spanish (and sometimes no English).  There are Cuban and other Hispanic bakeries and restaurants on every corner (super yummy). 

This race draws competitors from every culture.  Virtual every Latin American culture is represented in the race.  I also saw many other country represented (Russia, Poland, English, Norway, Sweden, Rwanda, etc).  I think the vast majority of the racers did not speak English.  Most of the day I heard the participants saying “sorry I don’t speak English” in multiple foreign accepts.  I felt like a stranger in a foreign country.

The Swim

The swim exit

 Biscayne Bay (salt water) is not known for being the cleanest place to swim.  This is the largest cruise port in North America.  That being said, “what doesn’t kill me makes me stronger?!?”  If I happen to grow a third eye then look at the bright side, open water sighting will be MUCH easier.

Biscayne Bay

My swim was really strong.  Other than some minor issues with goggle flooding and swimming through a ton of weeds, all want great.  This was probably my best swim ever.  I shaved off 5-10 minutes of my swim time.  I guess swimming 1.5 hours, 3 days a week at a Masters swim pays off.

Swim Time: 35.42
Pace 1:50/100m
Gender Overall: 520/2447 (Top 21%)
Category Overall: 106/524 (Top 20%)

The Bike

The first and last part of the bike course took you through downtown Miami.  This part of the race had many turns and it was hard to speed through it.  It also did not have the best of road conditions.  

What I wish I was riding during the race.
I rode along side of many Ferrari and Lamborghini!!

The vast majority of the ride was on the main roads through the warehouse areas.  It was not a very scenic or interesting bike course.  It was flat and windy.  We only had about ten minutes of wind at our backs for the whole race (maybe 15-20 mph winds).

There was a TON of cheating on the course.  More than any other 70.3 I have completed.  I saw at least 5-6 groups of 5-10 cyclists drafting in packs. 

I also saw someone clip a road cone in front of me and go flying into the oncoming traffic lane.  Luckily he got up quickly and got back on the bike.  I saw him later and he looked fine but visibly slower.

It was not my best cycling time but it was fairly strong considering how windy and curvy the course it was.
 

Bike Time: 2:58:05

Pace 18:87 mph
Gender Overall: 1055/2447 (Top 43%)
Category Overall: 226/524 (Top 43%)

There were a TON of bikes in transition

The Run

The run was your average city, warehouse district scenery.  Nothing to write home about but not bad either.  It was flat except for the bridge over the bay which was steep and you had to run up/down it TWICE.  That part of the run was painful.  The heat was much better than it could have been but it was still pretty hot (high 80s).

The bride you run over TWICE!!

 

Overall my time on the run was not bad (taking into account I had to run up/down the bridge twice). 

Run Time: 2:06:41
Pace 9:40/mile
Gender Overall: 951/2447 (Top 39%)
Category Overall: 213/524 (Top 41%)

Transition Times (my vacation time)

T1: 4:33

T2: 3:23

Overall: 5:48:24

I was happy with my overall performance.  I broke my previous PR of 5:55:41 by about 7 minutes.  My swim time was the best I have ever posted in a race.  I really showed to me that all those morning master swims REALLY paid off.  I shaved off 5-10 minutes off my swim time which was AWESOME.

Race Grade: B

I would recommend doing this race to others.  It was a good overall race.  Well staffed and supported.  I just prefer races in smaller towns.  I hate driving in big cities. 
 
Interesting Note:  My bib number was 2447 and there were 2447 males in the race. That means I was the last male bib.

Only a portion of my post-race Cuban meal.
I had Cuban toast, ceviche, bacalao (cod) croquetas, Cuban stew,
rice pudding and two Cuban coffees.

A seven pounds pre-race Cuban sandwich with tostones

Bonnie acting cool.
It looks like the people in the background are kissing.

Cute couple
It's not a bad picture considering I took it my self
with my phone.



The Bling

Rocketman Florida Triathlon 70.3 Review

Rocketman Florida Triathlon 70.3 Review

IMAGE SOURCE

Rocketman 70.3 is over and done.  This marks the tenth 70.3 completed in the since 2011.  This was the first time this race was ever held and let me tell you this was a great and fun race!!

Triston did the Classic Distance and Bonnie
and I did the Half Iron distance.
(BTW In the background is the NASA Vehicle Assembly Building.
You race your bike to it.) 

Prerace
We met Bonnie's teammates at Cracker Barrel.  Yuck!  Not my favor place to eat especially for a pre-race meal.  I had about a pound of pancakes, eggs and sausage for dinner.  :-)  After the meal we went back to the hotel and I had my pre-race nutrition. 

My pre-race nutrition.
I thought "Positive Contact" was fitting
for NASA race.
I slept awesome!! :-)

The Swim

The swim was held in the Indian River (salt water). The water was clean and a little chopping. 

This was my first salt water swim and I think I drank several gallons of the Indian River (mental note to self to keep my mouth shut).  Swallowing salt water SUCKS!!  It makes you sick really quick.

I also could not stay on course and preformed a MUCH longer swim then necessary.  I could not seem to sight the buoys very well on the day.  This was not my best swim time at 47:52.  But then again I probably swam 2 miles. LOL.



I got attacked by an alligator!

The Bike
The bike course was beautiful!  The course ran through the Canaveral National Seashore, Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge and on the Kennedy Space Center.  The wild life and the refuge were very pretty. 

Riding the KSC was REALLY cool.  On the ride you got to see up close and personal the Vehicle Assembly Build, the three launch pads and many other NASA buildings.  It was like your own personal bicycle tour of NASA. 

It was a very memorable ride.  It was also a VERY windy ride.  I was blown all over the place.  It was a tough and gruelling ride.  I was on my new TT bike that I only rode 3 times before the race.  Coming from a road bike onto a TT bike is very different and I was slower because I am not use to the new bike yet. 

My only complains are no waters stops or volunteers were allowed on the KSC so the water stops had to be at something like mile 7 (to early) and mile 50 (to late).  But the race directors had no control over this.  Also NASA roads are not the best but not that bad to ride on.  Again, the race directors had no control over this.

My bike time was 03:10:09

The NASA Vehicle Assembly Building and the Launch Pad (in the distance) that
you rode next to on the course.
Image Source

The Run
The run was a two loop course that ran on US1.  One lane of the highway was shut down for the runners.  It was very hot and not a very pretty or scenic  run.  Support was average.  Ice, water, bad/over powered gatoraid,  gels of some type.  I really wish they had sponges. 

I felt great on the run.  I ran 02:05:36.  This is pretty good for me (especially for a 70.3).

My Transitions
My transition times sucked.  I am very slow in transition.  I had to used the bathroom and put on sunscreen.  To me transitions times don't count (expecially when you can't win).  They are time to recover to do the real sports. 

Final Results
Overall: 06:08:28
Swim: 47:52
Bike: 3:10:09
Run: 2:05:36 

Not great for me but also not that bad. I just completed another 70.3 about a month ago and probably have not recovered yet.  I am also getting use to a new bike.

Overall
This is a GREAT race and I highly recommend it to others.  Riding on the KSC makes this a very memorable race.

The Race Bling


Average, sad race bag. Water bottle, fan, numbers.




The Bling

The Abduction

I love this shirt.
"I was adducted by aliens
probed was physically and mentally,
left scarred for life
and all I got to show for it
was this Lousy T-shirt."

It looks like a big Pillsbury Dough Astronaut.

 

Me, Bonnie and Triston after the race.
Look at the dried salt on my pants. 

After race nutrition.  I'm the sixth people back on the left (in the green shirt)

Rev3 Florida 70.3 Review

Rev3 Florida Review

This review is a little late but like they say “better late than never.”

Cool race bib.

This was the first Rev3 race in Florida and unfortunately it fell on the same weekend as hurricane Sandy was passing off the coast of Florida.  Needless to say this made for interesting (and HIGHLY challenging) race conditions. 



The massive waves
(although they look small in this photo)

 The water was really rough.  It was almost boiling it was so rough.  Waves were coming in from all directions and there were severe rip tide warning.  When the waves hit the pier it would shot up 6 foot splashes.  It was so bad that no one (even the professions were allowed to swim), so my triathlon became  a duathlon.

The winds on Saturday night before the race were a constant 40 mph.  On the day of the race I think the winds were a constant 25-35 mph. 

The race started very strangely.  They lined up all the age groups by number.  Then every 30 seconds they sent someone into the transition area to start the bike.  You were supposed to be dressed without shoes, socks, etc.  This was to mimicked similar conditions as getting out of the swim.  Many people ignored this and wore their bike shoes, glasses, etc.  There are always cheaters at races and I hate when they do not stop them.

Bonnie & Triston chillen.

 

The bike was a BEAST.  The winds were 25-35 mph constants.   The first 18 miles the wind was at your back.  Ever mile after that you fought massive headwinds and cross winds.  It was a nightmare.  Even the professionals said this was an extremely windy and difficult bike portion. 

About halfway through the bike ride I wanted to give up.  But what use would be giving up?!  I would have to get back on my bike anyways so I fought through the wind.  It is tough and frustrating when you look down at your speedometer and see low teens.
 

My famous picture that ended up on Rev3's homepage.
I told you I was famous.

The bike course was as flat as a pancake but very boring.  It was almost all major roadways.  The interesting part was the road was not shutdown but nearly no one rode in our lane.  The local police must have done an excellent job educating the public.  I hope next year they change the bike course.

I almost ate pavement on one of the bike water stations.  I missed the first water volunteer (and showered him in an exploding water bottle) but I got the next water bottle.  What I did not notice was the sharp 90 degree turn at the end of the water stop (stupid design).  The 90 degree turn also had a nice 12-18 inch raised concrete edge.   I only had one hand on the handle bars because the other had a hold of the water bottle.  So I locked up the front break and slide (nearly out of control) right at the concrete edge and a police officer.  The police officer said something about holy fecal matter as I nearly died and ran into him.  Somehow I was able to control the slide and regain control of my bike just in time to complete the turn (with water bottle still in hand).  I think the police office wet his pants.

The finish line at night was pretty cool in neon.

 

The run was nice and windy but the wind was nice and cooling on the run.  My legs really enjoyed being off the bike.  They quickly stopped feeling like bricks and locked into a nice (but slow) pace.

Overall this was a great and fun race.  I am disappointed that I did not get to do my first open ocean swim but Mother Nature had other plan.  Maybe I will try again next year.

The local volunteers were great.  They thanked all the participated and stated how great this was for their small, local economy.  That was a great feeling.
 

Front of the bling

Back of bling

 

 

Miami Man 2012 - HIM Race #8

Sunday marked my 4^th half Ironman race of the year.  It marks the 8^th within the past two years. 

Sorry I do not have pictures but my phone went dead the night before the race and I did not bring my phone charger.

My swim caps from this year and the last.

 

This race was a little unplanned.  Several months ago Triston wanted to do the International distance race so I signed him up.  I also said “what the heck” I will do the HIM distance since I will be there. 

Well… Bonnie pointed out after I registered that the Miami Man race was ONLY TWO WEEKS after the Rev 3 70.3 Florida race I had already signed up for.  So much for recovery and taper time.  J

They mouse pad that was included in the HUGE swag bag.
There was also a beer pint, race shirt and water bottle.

 

The swim was not as nice as 2010.  The water in this lake is getter pretty nasty.  I think they are putting too much weed killer into the lake and all the dead plants are creating a debris layer.  It was not crystal clear like previous years. 

The bike ride was a beast.  Winds were higher than last year and you had to fight them the whole way.

Race times are printed out for you the second you
finish the race.  VERY COOL!!

 

The run was a nightmare for me.  My legs clearly were not recovered from the last race.  They were locking up for the first 5 miles.  It was not a pleasant experience.  But I fought through the pain and finished the race.

Swim: 40:06

T1: 4:21

Bike: 3:03:21

T2: 4:43

Run: 2:31:21

Total Time: 6:24:15:76

 Clearly this was not my best race but I had a great time.  My 70.3 race times are normally 5:50 – 6:10 but this race clearly not normal with only two weeks recovery.

 

The bling with the closed cage.

 

The bling with an open cage.
 

I will not bore you with a review of the race.  See the review links below.  They are still valid.  This was a GREAT race and is EXTREMELY well run.  Year after year this is the best run triathlon!!

Miami Man 2011 Review

http://halftriing.blogspot.com/2011/11/miami-man-703-pre-race.html

http://halftriing.blogspot.com/2011/11/miami-man-70.html

http://halftriing.blogspot.com/2011/11/miami-man-703-part-3.html

 

Miami Man 2010 Review

http://halftriing.blogspot.com/2010/11/miami-man-triathlon-review-2010.html

 

Ironman FL 70.3 Review

Ironman FL 70.3 Review

It seems like the whole of Central Florida came out for what could have been called LANCE FEST 2012.  Man do some people love them some Lance Armstrong.  I will leave this part for a post later in the week.

What I do when I am bored in a hotel room to pass time.

New Location

In previous years this race was held at Disney World.  This year WTC decided to move the race to Haines City.  Haines City is about one hour south of Orlando and about thirty minutes from Disney World.  It is a small, quite city with not much going on.  It is a city the use to have a theme park called “Circus World” that closed down in 1986.  Then it was replaced by “Boardwalk and Baseball” which I thought was pretty cool when I was a young boy.  That park lasted only 4 years and now that land is a shopping center.  This race was a big deal to the economy and town.

Me playing on the playground toys.

The city folk came out in great numbers to support the race.  There were about 6 – 8 people who turned on their water hose and sprinklers to cool down the hot participates.  They sat out in lawn chairs and cheered.  The local kids came out and clogged and put on entertainment.  It was nice to see a small town get so behind something.  It was also nice to see a small town get some of my money and not Disney.

Huge Race Props

Friday and Saturday were packet pickup and shopping days.  All three days the town provided entertainment.  There was a stage in front of registration that provided a pretty constant flow of entertainers.  They had live local bands, clogging kids, the professional triathlete panel, etc.

Bonnie and I pre-race

Bike racking was optional on Saturday so I decided to skip it.  This area of Florida usually rains around late afternoon and I did not want to have the bike sitting out in the rain.

The motley crew

Race Morning

Sunday morning I was awaken at 3:00 AM by my alarm.  I had a vivid, realistic dream I did not wake up in time for the race.  I normally set two alarms (good race tip) but I had my family with me and I did not want to wake them up so early.  Bonnie and T were volunteering at one of the bike water stops and they did not need to leave till around 6:30.  I must have been real quite because T woke up later on and was worried it did not wake up and was late.  I arrived at the race around 4:45 AM and the normal process went very smooth and efficient.

Sickly skinny me!

The Swim

The swim at the race was laid out very strange.  The lake is not big enough for a normal swim so they had to shape the route like a big “M”.  That meant we had 6 turns during the swim.  This course shaped caused a lot of congestion in the turn areas.  There was a lot more of the normal bumping, grabbing, poking, etc.  It was not a swim for the weak at heart.  But maybe I just got a really bad position. 

The swim start and end was really muddy.  Once you were out into the lake it was not so muddy but it was very dark.  The darkness just added to the bumping, grabbing, etc issue.  It was really hard to see the person in front of you.  Florida lakes are usually very tannic (dark) so this is not unusual. 

One of the bad aspects of the lake was that it had some really deep holes that came out of nowhere.  You would be walking in ankle deep water one minute and the sink to about your head in the next step.  I was warned about this so I was somewhat prepared but many were not.  This caused the race to be a in-water start.

My swim went fine and I felt great.  The only highlights of the swim was seeing and yelling at a friend who was volunteering on a kayak.  He was clueless where I was at but he heard me.  I also had my goggles nearly ripped off my head.  They filled up with water and my eyes stung from the sandy water for about ten minutes.  I also got kicked under the arm pit by accident.  This is something we learned in self-defense.  Being hit under the arm pit not only hurts to high heavens but also stuns that side of your body.  It took a good 30 seconds to regain control of my right arm.  It was kind of a weird sensation (kind of like when your arm falls asleep).  Likely it was only a bump and not a hard kick.

After race shot.

The Bike

This area of Florida is surprisingly hilly.  The city of Clermont is nearby and is known for its Horrible 100 Century ride.  The Horrible 100 is VERY hilly with some pretty steep hills.  Even Lance Armstrong said he was surprise how hilly the race course was.  He was not expecting FL to be hilly and so hot and humid.

Compared to last year the cycling portion was much more difficult.  There were no major hills but it was a course of constant rollers that never seemed to end.  The course was pretty much windless so we did not have to fight that.

The bike ride was pretty much on all country roads.  There was not much car traffic so you felt safe the whole time.  Cops were at almost every intersection directing traffic. 

The roads were well kept and the country trees and scenery was very pretty.  Several of the locals were sitting out in their lawns cheering the participants on.
It was well supported with three rest stops about every 15 miles apart.

Pre-race dinner with the team

The Run

The run was very difficult.  It was a three loop course with two major hills in the beginning of the race.  This meant you had to fight those hills three times.  The weather was really hot and humid so if you are not from Florida it would have been really hard.  If you are from Florida you were just happy it was not as hot as some of the summer days we get (one of the FL races I did last year was a feels like 100-110F).  The heat off the black top was pretty darn hot. 

The town also showed up in masses to support the run.  There were water hoses and sprinklers on at many houses.  People were cheering and ringing the cowbell.

Lance failed to catch up to me on the run!

Overall Impression

The move from Disney was a great choice.  This was a much more enjoyable race than last year.  It was one of my favorite 70.3s.  It was not an easy race but then again it was not super hard.  The swim could be in a better lake but you cannot get everything perfect.  I would highly recommend this race and I will be doing it again next year.

!!The Bling!!