Ironman 70.3 Vietnam - DNF

I was in two minds whether to even write a race report following what was a very disappointing result but I think it is still important to share the bad races along with the good ones. 

Vietnam 70.3 is one of the most amazing race locations that I have been to. The race hotel is stunning and the entire team at Sunrise Events does an amazing job in making the race something special. The days before the race were spent doing some light training as well as doing some photo and video shoots with one of my sponsors Alaska Milk as well as getting the opportunity to learn more about their products and all that Alaska Milk does to help give back and support the community though events.

Race Day:

The beach start is something that usually favors me. However I got off to a rough start and had to swim hard to make my way back up to front. Truth be told I never really felt comfortable swimming even though I was leading the group. Normally I swim a lot quicker and can break away from the main group however I just couldn’t seem to lift my pace. I exited the water first however with just a small 7 second gap back to a pack behind.

Image: Korupt Vision / Australian Triathlete 

Image: Vinicius Santana / AsiaTri.com

Heading onto the bike Luke McKenzie and Tim Reed put the hammer down early on which left me in a group of three with fellow Australian Tim Berkel and  New Zealander Matt Franklin. At around the 20km mark Frenchman Cyril Viennot came charging past and this is where I dropped from the group. 

Image: Korupt Vision / Australian Triathlete 

Image: Vinicius Santana / AsiaTri.com

My power numbers were 30% down on what I would usually ride and I was unable to ride any harder. After another 30 kilometers of riding solo my hamstrings and glute muscles tightened up to the point where I couldn’t stay in the aero position and found it hard to even turn the pedals.

I made the very hard decision to withdraw from the race at the 80KM mark knowing that with the cramps I would not be able to make it through the rest of the bike leg or be able to run.

I was really disappointed to have had to withdraw from the race in what was my first Ironman 70.3 DNF and what I hope will be the last.