2022 recap by the numbers! I am going to attempt a quick recap of my 2022 racing season with all of my stats and highlights.
Swim: 565,000 yards / 155 hrs
Bike: 8,500 miles / 415 hrs
Run: 1,450 miles / 182 hrs
Strength: 52 hrs
Total: 10,200 miles / 804 hrs (33.5 days)!
Ironman: 4* - if you include my indoor at the Y
Ironman 70.3: 4
World Championships: 2
Going through all of my Blog Posts from this year, here is each race along with the highlights =)
Road to Kona Indoor Ironman: What started as a joke turned into me swimming 4,250 yards in the pool (they opened early for me), riding 112 miles on Zwift in the weight room, and running 26.2 miles on a TREADMILL, all at Two Rivers YMCA. I had so many friends join me and bring snacks/beverages throughout the day. This kept me entertained, and it turned out to be a very fun day.
2021 Ironman World Championship, St. George Utah: (9:55:04 - 10th AG)
2 weeks before the race, I was nursing a calf injury on my left leg. I stopped biking and running and only swam. Not being able to bike or run key parts of the course wasn’t ideal. Going into the race, I simply hoped to finish. The venue was electric, the sites were beautiful and I was just happy to be there. I also received my first ever random drug test (PASSED)
I had a great swim with a 1 minute PR, and it was the coldest I had done at 60 degrees.
I “conquered” the tough bike course with 7,300 ft of gain and some intense winds on the final descents.
I jogged through a brutal marathon in 90 degree heat and 1,500 ft of gain.
I had adjusted expectations with the calf injury, and I set the “new” goals of breaking 10 hours and top 10 AG. It came down to the final miles of the marathon, and I made it thanks to my wife Ty.
Chattanooga 70.3: (4:18:30 - 4th AG / 7th OA)
15 days after Ironman St. George, I wasn’t feeling myself. I went into the race excited about a new venue and hoped to grab a spot on the podium. I learned a very important lesson about starting up front because I was around 1500 people back, yet finished 7th overall. Needless to say, I had to pass A LOT of people.
This was one of my best swims relative to the field landing 9th in my AG (best I’ve seen so far).
On the other hand, I had a poor ride and fell into a lull the last 10 miles, losing time.
Flip flop again and I had a very strong run with a 1:22 and 3rd fastest in my AG. The highlight of the race was passing Miranda Carfrae on the run. Overall, I was proud of my run and for pushing the highest HR I’ve seen so far in a half Ironman.
Steelhead 70.3: (4:11:21 - 2nd AG / 4th OA):
A 4 second PR and my highest placement in an Ironman Event! This was a race I felt ready for.
The roughest swim I had completed to date, but happy with where I came out of the water. I had also learned from Chatt and started inside of the top 50. This worked out perfectly as I came out in 32nd place. It made for a very lonely race, but that helped more than hurt.
My best bike performance to date! 24.9mph average at 237 NP. Aside from losing time both mounting and dismounting, I had a very strong bike and pushed beyond what I thought I was capable of.
I had my first battle on the run from mile 8 to the finish, and came so close to cracking that 1:20 mark.
Overall I was very proud of this effort, and this was the best race I’d put together since IM Tulsa.
Route 66 and Great Illini 70.3s: (1st OA - 4:30:36 / 1st OA - 4:12:23)
These were two small town races that I had won back in 2020, so I was excited to be back.
At Route 66, I was given a HR cap on the run to avoid over-racing before Kona. I had a great swim and strong bike to build enough buffer to keep the lead and take the win again. Highlight from this race was my brother Scott completing his first Olympic Triathlon!
At Great Illini, I was allowed to go full gas. There wasn’t much competition and I took the lead a few miles into the bike. I won by a little over 40 minutes, so it was quite the sight. Highlight again was my brother Scott completing his first Ironman 70.3!
2022 Ironman World Championship, Kona Hawaii: (9:29:42 - 30th AG)
The race I had been waiting 3 years for! The island did not disappoint and certainly lived up to its expectations. I had never felt so prepared for a race. My coach Brent truly had everything fall into place for me, and I had experienced the 2 toughest parts of the course during my final training days.
The swim was PR by another minute this year! I was so close to breaking that 1 hour mark, and I am very happy with how I performed here.
The bike went as expected except for the last 20 miles into a headwind. This hurt the split a bit, but my power numbers were very close to the targets. The course suited me incredibly well being a simple out and back with some steady climbs.
The run felt like a cake-walk through the first 7 miles before getting onto the Queen K. With the aid stations spaced out more than normal, I melted and fell apart in the Energy Lab. I learned a little more about myself, and came out of there broken. Even after getting back onto the Queen K, I had lost my ability to fight. I let 2 guys pass me without even attempting to stay with them.
Overall I can’t be too disappointed with 30th in my AG even though I was hoping for top 20. After this race, I found that I am much farther away from my goals than I had realized and that several things would need to change. More on that in my final thoughts at the end.
Ironman Florida: (9:14:23 - 2nd AG / 4th OA)
This race was meant to “simply” grab a Kona Slot and end my season. In the back of my mind, I knew I wanted to win but lowered expectations with the incredibly long season I was closing out.
The swim was the toughest I had done given the water conditions and jellies. I was only 20s off my Kona swim, so pretty happy with where my swim ended the season.
The bike split was my fastest by ~15 minutes. It was the flattest and easiest bike course I’ve ever ridden, averaging a little over 23mph.
The run was my biggest disappointment even though no one broke 3 hours. I got to battle another athlete again, but that did more harm than good since I burned matches early on.
Overall, I got the Kona slot and was happy to end the season on a good note. The Age Group and Overall win continue to elude me, but I’ll be gearing up for a few attempts in 2023.
Final Thoughts on 2022
I’d say this year was another step in the right direction for me. I am still getting faster and placing higher each race (4th overall twice now). I'm swimming close to an hour flat and biked just under 4:50. The improvements are becoming less and less, which is expected but still tough to see.
There are certainly a few things I plan to address for 2023 and they are as follows:
My swim is no longer “good enough” to reach my new goals. Even if I had the strongest run in the field, I’d have too much ground to make up. I'd like to be under 28 in a half and 58 in a full to stay competitive in 2023.
Next is my run, which hasn’t really improved since 2019 when I ran a breakthrough 3:14 at Ironman Wisconsin on a tough course. 3 years later, I ran that same split in Madison again (2021), St. George, Kona and Florida. What used to be my weapon is not enough to get me to 1st.
The final is my bike, which I’m listing last because it’s shown the greatest improvement over the year. My power numbers are up and the bike splits are reflecting that as well. Kona was actually a PR bike split before racing Florida. But despite the improvements, I am still losing too much time, and I need to make an identical (if not greater) jump this year.
