spin / second sole multisport team

As mentioned in our previous post, multisport racing in NE Ohio is done for the 2010 season, and the only way to get your fix is to drive somewhere far away. So, that’s exactly what Brain Kostura and Jim Lamastra did!

Having visited the 70.3 World Championships in Clearwater Florida before, and considering it one of the best race experiences he’s ever had, Jim showed up in Syracuse for a 70.3 qualifier hoping to punch another ticket to the “little” Big Dance in November.

Brain, attempting his second Ironman, had slightly more modest (but no less difficult) goal of setting a new PR over the full 140.6 mile distance in Madison, WI; despite the more difficult bike course.

Read through for their reports.

“Iron” Brian –

So here we go…Sept. 12, 2010…while everyone was racing or volunteering in Sandusky for the Rev3 Races…I decided to head out to Wisconsin to attempt my 2nd Ironman…what can I say, I’m addicted!  The weather report looked good…high 70’s 5-10mph winds and clear skies.  It looked like it was going to be a beautiful day!  On Friday I headed over to the expo to register, and you could just feel the energy.  I happened to take a glance out at the water to see the conditions, and noticed that they were quite unfavorable, but a few heads could be spotted in the water of a brave few attempting to get in a swim.  Not very encouraging, but hey, you can’t control what mother nature is going to throw at ya!

For this race I attempted to be very methodical and plan everything out ahead of time to reduce stress race day morning, but that did not quite work out as expected…prepared my traditional morning race morning breakfast of oatmeal the night before which mysteriously gelatinized in the fridge overnight (hmmm…oatmeal jello!), and almost forgot my timing chip as I headed out to the start of the race…so much for that plan!

After getting to the transition and set up for the day to come, I through on my set suit and headed down to the swim start.  The start of this race was a mass swim start with 2799 of your closest friends, who from my estimation, probably all peed in the water while waiting for the race to begin!  I got lucky last year at Louisville being that the swim start was one by one off the docks, but this was something else…what an adrenaline rush!  When the cannon when off, the fight for position began…for pretty much the entire first loop.  I’m not a fast swimmer, as everyone I’m sure knows, so I was just trying to find some space and maintain an steady pace.  The first lap seemed to go by pretty quickly and no one managed to rip off my timing chip.  The second lap, the spacing got quite a bit better on the first half of the lap, and then a bit more of a battle on the backside heading to transition.

Got out of the water, had a quick look at my time, and noticed that it improved from last year…I thought great, I’ve still got a chance to PR, but it’s a long day…  As I got out of the water, I wasn’t sure where the wetsuit strippers were going to be, so I hadn’t started to get out of the wetsuit immediately, anticipating that they would be closer to our transition bags, but no luck, they were right there…wetsuit stripped, goggles gone…got to keep moving, it’s a long transition up the helix into the conference center.  Got out of there in just under 10min, longer transition than I wanted, but fully expected it because of the setup.

Out on the bike, I felt good, comfortable…aero wheels and Aussie’s aero helmet…feeling fast, but TRIED not to push it.  The bile was a “lollypop” two loop course…I attempted to take it easy on the way out, before picking up speed a little on the first loop.  The plan seemed to be working and I’m picking off a lot of better swimmers, improving my position overall.  Having ridden the course before, I knew where are going to be a few longer climbs coming up so I tried not to push it too much.  After the first loop, I was still feeling good, noticed some of the hills a little, but that was expected, nothing unusual there, second loop, about the same thing, however, I did notice my legs a bit when I took a moment to stretch them on the bike, I immediately knew I was pushing it, but it was hard not too!  The amount of fans along some of the longer climbs heading into Verona, the race party host city, were awesome!  It was like being in the Tour de France!!  I was hoping to have enough time on the way back on the bike with the wind to my back to get my legs ready for the run, but I knew the damage was done.

Got the bike done under 6hrs, and from what I later found out, almost the exact time I had in Louisville, so I still had a shot at a PR…all I had to do was maintain…got through transition quickly only about 3min, and off to the “marathon of pain”…wow!  All I wanted to do was get into a good pace and finish strong, but my legs had another idea…  Realizing early on that it was going to be a long afternoon, I kept my spirits up and kept moving forward and keeping to the nutrition plan as much as I could.  Unfortunately I ended up doing more of a walk…run…walk…run… than I wanted, or ever expected to do, but there’s a reason they call this an Ironman!!  I knew I would finish, but I could feel my PR slipping away, but kept pushing on…the volunteer and fan support was really uplifting, the whole city really comes out for this race!  We owe a lot to our fans and race volunteers!!  As I rounded my final turn on the run heading down towards the finish I could hear the crowd cheering and that famous phrase to any triathlete…”…you are an IRONMAN!”  I knew I had made it, not as fast as I wanted, but I completed the task I set out to do, and was ready to sit down!  This race was a real test, and I learned a lot about myself, and racing an Ironman!  The best lesson I learned…when everyone tells you not to push it on the bike, you best not, and even if you think you are not pushing it…back off anyway…you’ve still got a marathon to run!

Bring on Placid 2011!

Jim “winning is a pretty nice silver lining” Lamastra –

Rob and I signed up for this back in early spring with uncertainty based upon it being a first year race. However, it definitely lived up to a quality event (save for a slight snafu).  The swim was in a reservoir with a beautiful backdrop and very large park for spectators.  The bike took us on a very hilly 2700 feet of climbing over smooth road surfaces and outstanding community support.  T2 was back in the park but the 13.1 mile run ended in downtown Syracuse at their inner harbor.  Although the run was net downhill, it had challenges including a relatively unspiring 6 miles or so on a 4 lane highway with little cheering.  Aid stations on the run did not live up to what was advertised in the pre-race guide but otherwise no complaints.
The day started with drizzle and temps in the 50’s.  The water temp was officially 61 degrees but felt to me like 41.  I couldn’t wait to get out and start the bike.  Swim time was 25 and change and good enough for second in my AG.  I was very conservative through the first 20 miles of the ride and was averaging 18.1 at that point.  However, I hadn’t been passed and felt pretty good about that. The final 36 miles were significantly easier and as with most competitors, my average speed improved by the end.  I got off the bike feeling good about the effort…no one passed me and I passed around 10 female pro’s so I figured I was in a pretty good spot.  Finished the bike in 2:26 and change.  Started the run feeling solid but for whatever reason, maybe being somewhat cold, maybe undertrained, not sure, but by mile 4 I just began to have issues running.  I let it get to me that aid stations 4, 8 and 12 did not have coke (as was advertised) and focused on other negatives rather than the fact that I was getting closer to the end. Around mile 11.5 I got passed for the first time on the day and it was demoralizing when I realized the individual started in a wave after me.  It turned out that my bike hadn’t been as fast as I thought and my run not as fast as I’d hoped.  With that said, it was still very exciting to come toward the finish line.  Andrea, Luca, both of my sisters (and their families) and my parents were waiting to cheer me in.  Seeing them multiple times throughout the day was easily the highlight of my race. As usual, the first person I saw was Sal (my pops) and he looked pretty excited.  I Crossed in 4.22 something which I was initially content with.  However, when I looked back on the results I was a bit disappointed with my overall place.  What does that say about me?  I am an idiot.  I finished first in my age group and took a slot to Clearwater for this November.  By February, I should be peaking.

Filed under: 2010 | Tagged: 70.3, Ironman, kostura, lamastra, nice work boys |