IMNZ2018 Bike １

 Now, let’s move on to the bike leg! 😃

After finishing the swim and returning to the transition area, the volunteers welcomed me with incredible energy ❤️. Their enthusiasm gave me a boost, and I completely forgot about my super slow swim. I was able to refocus and concentrate fully on the race from this point on.

This time, unlike the 20-year-old wetsuit I used last time that was easy to slip off, I was racing in a proper swim wetsuit, so I thought it might be a struggle to take it off. However, two volunteers helped me peel it off effortlessly 👌.

Then I debated whether to race in my tri shorts or switch to bike shorts. Since I was just in the tent anyway, and the change would take less than 10 seconds, I decided to wear the swimsuit under the wetsuit and change into my familiar bike shorts at T1, prioritizing comfort. (I get cold easily, so I don’t like starting the bike leg wet 😞. That’s also why I wore my newly purchased short-sleeve tri top from the bike start.)

Knowing I had fallen behind in the swim, I got a bit flustered in T1 and forgot to eat the energy bar I had put in my tri top, but I think I probably managed to cut about a minute off my T1 compared to last year 👌.

After changing, I started running toward the bike when I spotted my wife. I commented self-deprecatingly, “I messed up the swim again this year,” and she replied bluntly, “Why did it take so long?” 😅

Embarrassing as it was, it actually fired me up even more—I needed to show off on the bike leg! 💥

And now, my long-awaited first ride with Plasma-kun 😃. Right after leaving transition, the course was congested, so I couldn’t go full throttle immediately. But as soon as I hit open road, I shifted into top gear and went full blast 🚀.

Honestly, this was the first time I had seen Plasma-kun in a photo since switching to him, and he has quite an aggressive riding position 😲.

Almost immediately, I thought, “Wow, this bike is insanely fast! ❤️” (I know it sounds self-congratulatory, but that’s genuinely how I felt 😎.) I’m a bit unusual in that I don’t ride in race gear except on race day. Leading up to the race, I deliberately train in a loose high-visibility jacket to create air resistance and save the “easy speed” feeling for race day. So my starting speed felt completely different from last year, which was a bit surprising 😞.

The problem was that because of my swim position, the speed gap with surrounding riders was even larger than last year. Many bikes were blocking the road, making it difficult to overtake. 😞 Nevertheless, I couldn’t afford to dawdle, so I started shouting from afar, “Coming on your right!!” as I overtook them one by one.

Once I cleared the initial congestion, I approached the first hill. I see climbs in triathlon as a recovery and hydration opportunity, so I started my first hydration there. Plasma-kun is nearly half the weight of my previous Merida bike, so it climbed effortlessly, and I kept overtaking other riders 🐦.

After clearing the first hill, the real race began. Experiencing Plasma-kun’s true potential in these early kilometers, I found myself saying, “Nice work, buddy. Let’s keep it up from here!” 😆

Leaving Taupo city, this was where I could really make up time. From here, it was top gear and just full blast 🌠.

I was moving at a pretty high speed in this section, but of course, this is Ironman, and I started seeing bikes overtaking me from behind. Looking later, some were finishing the bike in 5 hours 20 minutes, and there were swimmers with 1:31 swim times—slower than me in the water—so I felt a little relieved 😃. Riding locally recently, I’m rarely overtaken, so it was exciting to compete against these strong riders whistling along 🐦.

Meanwhile, I had to break away from the slower pack behind me as soon as possible, so I kept overtaking aggressively. The problem was that the group was huge! Everyone was riding in a single line at a similar pace, and the speed differences were so big that I hardly had time to return to the right lane 😞.

Looking back, I think this over-speeding on the bike caused the difficulties I experienced in the run. I remembered reading that Koutan received a penalty at IMNZ, so I was extra careful not to get penalized. This meant I overtook quickly without lingering, which left me riding less in my own pace early on.

Checking my heart rate here, I noticed I was in the 160s. I had planned to keep it in the low 150s, so I briefly thought, “Uh-oh.” But since I didn’t feel overexerted, I decided to maintain this pace until I caught riders closer to my speed 😞. Thinking back, aside from eating a rice ball, I mainly stayed in the overtaking lane, so I probably elevated my heart rate by riding aggressively in this section.

Even so, I wasn’t feeling rushed. I enjoyed the first ride with Plasma-kun all the way to the first turnaround. I had forgotten to reset my bike computer the day before 😅, so the average speed shown couldn’t be trusted. I decided not to check the time, trusting that I was moving at a decent pace. I didn’t want to get anxious if it was slower than expected 😉 (Sorry, I’m a bit timid 😜).

Later, I found that the average up to this point was 34.3 km/h. With minimal wind, the pace was excellent. Up to this part of the bike leg, my overall position was 211th, so I had clearly improved from last year 👌.

Heading back on the first lap, I barely remember much from the return leg 😲. It was similar to the outbound section, mostly in the overtaking lane capturing riders ahead, so not much seemed to change.

I do remember checking other riders’ bike models while overtaking 😎. In New Zealand, there aren’t many TT bikes in stores, so race day is really the only chance to see a large number together.

While checking bikes, I spotted a familiar P2—it was my rival, R-kun 😃. I passed a big group and, on impulse, said, “Hey, how’s it going?” I heard R-kun shouting from behind, which later I learned was, “Hey! Too fast! Slow down!” 😆

I think this was about halfway through the return leg. Last year, I caught R-kun only in the second lap, and my swim this year had put me about 2 minutes further back. With Plasma-kun as my new partner, my performance had increased dramatically 🐦.

There’s a long climb on the return, but I barely remember it 😞. I think I once shifted to the small ring, but with no wind, I mostly stayed in the big ring. Last year, this climb felt significant, but Plasma-kun seems exceptional not just on flats but also uphill ❤️.

Finally, back in Taupo, I checked the time—about 2 hours 30-something 😲. Last race, under similar conditions in a duathlon 70.3, it took 2:44. Since this is an Ironman, I had intended to pace it easier than 70.3, so I was quite surprised.

The average on this return was 33.98 km/h, making the first lap roughly 2 hours 35 minutes at 34.1 km/h. Glancing at the numbers during the ride, I thought, “Maybe I misread it, but it seems like a solid pace.” Considering this was faster than the 70.3 I did three months ago, the first lap was likely slightly over my current capability 😞. Will I pay for it on the second lap? That’s for next time.

Thank you for following along this far through this long report 😃