The Hills Are Alive!

Yesterdays Nutmegman Half Ironman in the Southern Berkshires of Connecticut was both as scenic, but also as grueling as expected and feared. I woke up very early in my hotel nearby, seems I can't sleep well anymore the night before the race. So, after quick shower and breakfast I headed to the race site. There we were greeted by bitter cold and low hanging fog, delaying the race start by half an hour, as we could not even see the swim course. Then, at 7.30 off we went. After a nice swim start I suddenly found myself in the fog not seeing any other swimmers. In the distance a volunteer in a kayak frantically waved and screamed that I had missed a buoy. Ouch, so back I swam joining the race.

Then onto the bike course and, immediately, a steep hill out of Kettletown State Park. And so it went, a three lap course that was either up or down, but never flat. The first lap was really the most difficult as I had a tough time to find any rhythm at all. The hills were mostly steep enough to get me into my easiest gear and out of the saddle. So, after three laps of this grueling madness I was quite surprised that I was feeling fairly light on my feet starting out my run portion.

The run started out with the same hill as the bike course and, more or less, also was mostly ups and downs. So, I tried to coast on my downhills and not kill myself on the uhills. OK, I admit, I actually walked sometimes on the steep uphills, a tactic that payed off as it allowed me to stay under 2 hours on the run and finish stong the last two miles.

Finally done with this adventure, 6.04.31, good enough for 29th place overall and a 3rd place age group finish.

For anyone looking for a tough, small and scenicely awesome race, this is definitely one to consider. As this was my last race before attempting IM Arizona I am feeling pretty good that I had to dig deep for this one.

Photos courtesy Ken Schultz