Hump day here in Kona. I thought I would take a break from posting pics and blog a bit about the Ironman which is rapidly rising ahead of me on the immediate horizon.
The biggest thing I can tell you that's different about Kona (and I must confess I am so far from an expert--this being just my third time) is the environment. I think of it as a Hyper-Kinetic environment. I guess being an island out in the middle of the biggest body of water on earth has a lot to do with it. Further, having these five big volcanos on the island--especially Kohola, Mauna Lea and Mauna Loa--has a lot to do with the environmental dynamics. Mauna Lea is nearly 14,000 feet and is not that far from sea-level. So you have the combination of trade-winds and then vertigious mountains and because of this the wind is significant and all over the place direction wise and changing all the time--sometimes over 5-10 minutes....
The practical reality of this is as you ride out to and back from Hawi you might have 3-5 wind direction changes. And I'm talking about 20 mph here, 35 mph there. Crazy.
Then there is the heat. It was 42 centigrade on the Queen K two days ago. Lots of wind--scary bike control, combined with heat (and the humidity and the radiant heat off the lava) makes it pretty tough. It makes it hard to drink enough--even with no wind it's hard to do so.
The swim can vary quite a bit from day-to-day depending on the swell and resulting current. I think it can make as much as a 5+ minute difference. When we first arrived last week the swell was huge and it was a bit of a challenge to swim--nothing to make you nervous, but definitely slower. The last 4-5 days have been very mellow and it's a piece of cake to swim here--when the swell is down, it must be one of the easiest non-wetsuit swims you'll ever see. The swell is building now and it looks to be pretty energetic come Saturday.
Then you have to run as well. Not an easy run course, up and down wise, but the sun, heat and humidity can really do a number on you. Palani hill is not that big but I've never been able to get up it without really getting crushed.
So....
I'm on the defensive on this course. The reality is I never really attack.
I might push it on the swim a bit and try to get into the mid 70s. On the bike, it's catching a chill out to the beginning of the climb to Hawi--that's 42 miles of being very conservative. Then, I'm trying to not f' up on the climb/descent. The key thing for me is to eat and drink--even if we have wicked side-winds. Back out on the Queen K, after the descent, you have these challenging climbs where you still have to be mellow. Then about Waikola Beach road usually you have these nasty headwinds....always conservative....I never really go for it on this bike...and still I'm pretty wiped at the end....
The run--well, for me it's doing the best I can while keeping a smile on my face and enjoying myself....
Tomorrow is the Undy-pants run--lots of pics for sure....
Saturday is very close now!
The biggest thing I can tell you that's different about Kona (and I must confess I am so far from an expert--this being just my third time) is the environment. I think of it as a Hyper-Kinetic environment. I guess being an island out in the middle of the biggest body of water on earth has a lot to do with it. Further, having these five big volcanos on the island--especially Kohola, Mauna Lea and Mauna Loa--has a lot to do with the environmental dynamics. Mauna Lea is nearly 14,000 feet and is not that far from sea-level. So you have the combination of trade-winds and then vertigious mountains and because of this the wind is significant and all over the place direction wise and changing all the time--sometimes over 5-10 minutes....
The practical reality of this is as you ride out to and back from Hawi you might have 3-5 wind direction changes. And I'm talking about 20 mph here, 35 mph there. Crazy.
Then there is the heat. It was 42 centigrade on the Queen K two days ago. Lots of wind--scary bike control, combined with heat (and the humidity and the radiant heat off the lava) makes it pretty tough. It makes it hard to drink enough--even with no wind it's hard to do so.
The swim can vary quite a bit from day-to-day depending on the swell and resulting current. I think it can make as much as a 5+ minute difference. When we first arrived last week the swell was huge and it was a bit of a challenge to swim--nothing to make you nervous, but definitely slower. The last 4-5 days have been very mellow and it's a piece of cake to swim here--when the swell is down, it must be one of the easiest non-wetsuit swims you'll ever see. The swell is building now and it looks to be pretty energetic come Saturday.
Then you have to run as well. Not an easy run course, up and down wise, but the sun, heat and humidity can really do a number on you. Palani hill is not that big but I've never been able to get up it without really getting crushed.
So....
I'm on the defensive on this course. The reality is I never really attack.
I might push it on the swim a bit and try to get into the mid 70s. On the bike, it's catching a chill out to the beginning of the climb to Hawi--that's 42 miles of being very conservative. Then, I'm trying to not f' up on the climb/descent. The key thing for me is to eat and drink--even if we have wicked side-winds. Back out on the Queen K, after the descent, you have these challenging climbs where you still have to be mellow. Then about Waikola Beach road usually you have these nasty headwinds....always conservative....I never really go for it on this bike...and still I'm pretty wiped at the end....
The run--well, for me it's doing the best I can while keeping a smile on my face and enjoying myself....
Tomorrow is the Undy-pants run--lots of pics for sure....
Saturday is very close now!
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