2012 Ironman 70.3 Vineman, Sonoma California

Well Optometry school finals were through and Summer 2012 had finally come. I knew this was the most free time I'd have for a while, so figured why not train for an Ironman 70.3 event. Consisting of a  1.2 mile swim, 56 mile bike, and 13.1 mile run, I knew I had a lot of preparation ahead. Most of the April/May east coast events didn't allow enough training time, so I ended up choosing the Vineman in Sonoma California as my first Half Ironman race, July 15th. With relatives living there too, it ended up being one of the best family vacations!

We pulled into town a few days before the event.
Checking out the swim venue @ Johnson's Beach in Guerneville, CA.
Town population: 1000
Number of Vineman 70.3 Athletes Visiting: 2000+

Hangin w/ Uncle Paul & Alex, just before my swim wave. 1st wet suit legal race!

Being my first 70.3 event, I was trying not to have expectations on my times/performance, and tried to just focus on crossing the finish line 6, 7, 8 hours later. That non-competitive mentality didn't last very long. The out and back swim course was perfect, giant redwoods lined the Russian river and families were out on their docks cheering for us.

37 minute swim split, a little quicker than I had anticipated. In transition area,  getting ready to embark on one of the most scenic bike courses filled with vineyards, wineries and rolling hills.

Averaging 17.4 mph landed an overall bike leg of 3 Hrs 12 Mins

Towards the end of the bike, I was feeling pretty good. The bike course consisted of only a few hard climbs, but mainly rolling hills, and tons of vineyards. Having trained in flat Florida, I really didnt know what to expect my bike pace to be. Overall I was very happy w/ my time. I made sure calorie/fluid intake was sufficient on the ride, and was now "ready" to go run a half marathon. 

Thankfully I met up w/ Linda, a new friend from Alaska, on the run course. The 2nd half of the run was tough, with lots of hills and little or no shade. The course took us through a vineyard/winery. I don't think wine tasting would have been a good idea though, haha. We kept each other motivated and on pace. Here we are towards the finish line, legs feeling like 300 lbs each

Hangin w/ my personal cheer leading squad after the finish

My overall time was 6hrs and 27mins, a little faster than I had expected! Tracy (far right) ripped this thing in just over 5 hours, pretty impressive

Pulled over, beneath Golden Gate Bridge

The day after the race, we ended up stopping in San Francisco for lunch. During the car ride over, I was so excited to slip back into my wet suit and go for a short swim in the bay. Little did I know that the week after you do a Half-Ironman race, every muscle in your body head to toe is very sore. I got out of the car and realized there would be no swimming today. That's alright, "Escape from Alcatraz Triathlon" is next on the list : )

Instead of a swim, I settled on an awesome picture w/ Mom & Uncle Paul

Post-race, back to FedEx w/ the bike

Training for this was a lot of fun. I was @ the pool 4-5 days a week. Here in Melbourne, FL there is a large group of swimmers and Tri guys/gals. Occasionally I'd join the tuesday/thursday groups that'd jump in the river to swim for some open water practice. I'd have 2 or 3 "short" runs, and one long run on sundays. Average weekly mileage running was around 18. I'd also ride a few times per week, 25 to 40 miles each. Training in humid Florida really worked to my advantage on this race. On the west coast there was pretty much zero humidity and I loved it! If I would have done anything differently training, it would have been more hill running and more "brick" workouts (bike/run back to back). 

As part of my swim training, I joined the 50+ swimmers for the annual "Bridge to Bridge" 3.75 mile swim here in town. The swim was started over a decade ago by Dave Underill, an Optometrist who was training for the Ironman World Championships in Kona, Hawaii. Every year, he brings a generator to power a blender, serving pina coladas @ the end of the swim. 

Bridge to Bridge Crew - Break @ 1.5 mile Sandbar

I also did one local sprint triathlon in Melbourne Beach, "The Pineapple Man" as well  

Overall, I had an unbelievable experience, mixing family vacation w/ an event like this. The logistics of my bike, and myself, were a little more difficult than the local 5k, or sprint tri, but it was all totally worth it. I was told that after the race I'd either be asking myself what possessed me to do something like this, or I'd be 100% totally addicted. I'm pretty sure I'm hooked on this stuff now. Doing a full Ironman might be a completely different story. However, I have learned to never say never...........