Ironman 70.3

4 comments

Posted on 23rd June 2010 by brett in K & C

20th June 2010 – K & C result

Wimbleball Lake, Exmoor (1900m swim, 56.4m bike and half marathon)

Gary Chapman
Time: 6:11:56

1176 competed
Overall Position: 422nd

Swim: 42:18 (829th)
T1: 6:33 (520th)
Bike 3:42:28 (709th)
T2 3:24 (827th)
Run 1:37:16 (78th)

Another great event in really warm weather. Organisation was excellent again and they had the usual elite pro athletes who are just awesome. All bikes must be racked in transition on the day before the event and there is tight security. When I looked around, there must have been about £3 million worth of bikes. Course is still the hardest on the worldwide Ironman 70.3 circuit and for some reason, despite lower gearing on my bike, the hills just seemed harder this year.

There is about 5500 feet of ascent on bike course. Half marathon course was 3 laps again which were hilly and mostly on narrow trail so quite awkward. Crowds were much bigger this year and fantastic support as it looped around the main start/finish area regularly.

Had a rubbish bike ride as I had load of bike problems and punctures causing 5 stops. That’s all part of it though and you need to ensure that bike is in perfect working order. Practising fast puncture changes is important as I was hopeless. At least, I had a rest with the bike stops so a good run.

4 Comments

  1. Ian says:

    Big respect Gary, fantastic effort. Am v jealous….

    23rd June 2010 at 5:57 pm

  2. Andy Pettit says:

    Hi Gary
    Time looks fantastic – 5 punctures!!
    AP

    23rd June 2010 at 2:25 am

  3. GC says:

    If it was 5 punctures, I would have just stopped at the pub and given up. It was one puncture but problems with brakes and wheels locking along with my bike pump not working. If it was Brett or someone else who knew what they were doing, it would have probably only cost them 10 mins but I am hopeless so was a lot longer. I am going to practice properly now before Alpe D’Huez Tri next month !!

    23rd June 2010 at 5:54 pm

  4. paulm says:

    Bad luck with the mechanical problems etc Gary, and I can sympathise with the pump problems as I’ve had plenty of similar. Problem with mini pumps is that even when they work they will never enable you to get a decent pressure into the tyre, and what little you can achieve takes ages. Basically, they are only a “get you home” option for leisure rides.

    For triathlons where every second counts you should really be packing a CO2 pump with spare cartridges.

    23rd June 2010 at 7:45 am