Category Archives: Half Ironman

Race Report – Silverman Ironman 70.3 October 5, 2014

  By Crystal Clarke | November 3, 2014 - 8:38 am | , , , ,
2 Comments

I finally finished my race report! I wrote it slowly so that I could make sure that I really thought about the race thoroughly. Pre-Race: Our hotel was in Las Vegas so we all got up early and were out the door around 5:00 to make it to Lake Mead around 5:45. Scott was amazed that we were there so early, but he quickly learned that with big races like this everything takes longer. I was the hero with the bike pump in the bike transition area and was lending it out to anyone who asked for it. I will say … Keep reading →

Race Day is Tomorrow!

  By Crystal Clarke | October 4, 2014 - 9:57 am | , , , ,
Leave a comment

      On Thursday I previewed part of the Silverman course. Scott and I made our way out to Lake Mead so I could do a 30 minute swim and a 1-hour bike ride. We heard that the lake was very low and it looked like the beach had receded about 100 feet. The “beach” is the weirdest beach I’ve ever seen. Because it’s desert all around, people were just parked not far from the water, leaving a bit of “beach.” I met a woman down there, who lives here. We swam together and chatted about the race, as triathletes … Keep reading →

This is me not freaking out – 1 week away

  By Crystal Clarke | September 28, 2014 - 12:12 pm | , , , , ,
1 Comment

This has been my mantra for the past week: I can do this. I am not freaking out. So this is me, not freaking out by cramming in some last-minute hot-weather training. Actually, over the last few days I’ve been feeling better and better. I’ve figured out a strategy for the swim so that I don’t get swum over; I’m going to swim on the outside and try to sight accordingly. I’ve also been studying the bike and run profiles and have made strategies for that. All I need to do now is figure out my nutrition and pack my … Keep reading →

Second Summer

  By Crystal Clarke | September 25, 2014 - 8:23 pm | , , , , , ,
Leave a comment

This past week a very amazing thing happened… we got a second summer! Considering it’s 35C in Las Vegas right now, and will likely be in the 30s on race-day, I have been very thankful for some hot weather training. I feel like I’m cramming for a test. In reality, it’s more to just put my mind at ease so that I know that I can do this. Truth time: I’ve been doubting myself. The good news is that I’m pretty much injury-free, my cardio is good, and I’m in the best shape I’ve been in in over three years. … Keep reading →

It starts at the Beginning

  By Crystal Clarke | September 22, 2014 - 8:04 am | , , , , ,
Leave a comment

Since my last major triathlon event (Ironman Canada, 2011) there has been a change in how the swim starts. Instead of a mass start, we now have the joy of the wave start. When I heard about this change I had hoped that it was like the indoor triathlons I did where we self-declared our time and were put in that group. That’s the way marathons are too, where you seed yourself in the group. A few months ago I learned that this is not how the swim wave start is. A swim wave start happens according to age groups. … Keep reading →

Slowly Recovering

  By Crystal Clarke | September 15, 2014 - 4:14 pm | , , ,
Leave a comment

As I was planning my week last night, I thought I would try out a bike ride today to see how my body is doing. However, this nagging cough has made me rethink it. I did some yoga this morning and have been cleaning and exerting myself in non-cardio ways. The cough is from my chest and I really want it to go away. I’m going to wait to see how it feels tomorrow. If it’s not bad in the morning I’m going to go for a brisk walk to test it out. Everyone has their own home remedies for … Keep reading →

Week 14

  By Crystal Clarke | April 8, 2013 - 10:29 am | , , , , , , , , , ,
Leave a comment

14 weeks. 14 weeks until my A-race of 2013. Holy S**t. When I counted the weeks this morning I had a little jump of panic. Why? Well, let me just tell you why. The past few months I have been more active than I have been since the marathons last spring. That really isn’t saying a lot since I did almost zero activity from June to December. The reasons for that were numerous: burn-out (2 years of straight training will do that), a knee injury, a lot of various family issues from my brother being in an accident to my … Keep reading →

Great White North Half Ironman Triathlon – July 3, 2011

  By Crystal Clarke | July 15, 2011 - 6:26 pm | , , , ,
Leave a comment

I have done this race three times before and four half IMs in my life. After the Olympic a few weeks ago, I wasn’t really sure what to expect for this one. This is how it ended up looking in comparison with other years: Year Total Time Swim Bike w/transition Run 2011 6:32:11 40:03 3:20:30 2:31:40 2008 6:45:41 40:25 3:23:46 2:41:31 2007 6:32:59 43:49 3:15:39 2:33:32 2005 6:41:02 44:43 3:26:23 2:29:56 Upon review of the previous years, it seems that I set a personal best by a small margin. Lucky for me, my other 6:32 was on an Ironman year and … Keep reading →

High Expectations

  By Crystal Clarke | July 4, 2008 - 11:30 am | , ,
Leave a comment

For the past few years, my attitude going into a race is “Just do my best and finish.” This year, however, I have set some goals and I have worked towards them with a more regimented schedule than I have ever had before, thanks to my coach and buddy Dan. This weekend is my A-Race: the Great White North Half Ironman Triathlon and I have high hopes for my times and goals. A few weeks ago I had the swim of my life at a local race and I would like to do that again. At Spin off Spadina, I … Keep reading →

  By Crystal Clarke | July 4, 2007 - 2:59 pm | ,
Leave a comment

Two weeks ago, I realized that I hadn’t followed up on ensuring that I would be able to eat at the Carbo-loading supper for the Half Iron(wo)man I was doing on the July long-weekend. So I emailed the race director and he gave me the number for the caterers. I called them and left a message saying that I was vegan and needed to be accommodated (I think I also mentioned something about the supper being worth $25, which is what my partner was paying). The race director then called me to tell me that they would accommodate me, but … Keep reading →