2006 Ford Ironman 70.3 Florida Finisher - Jenifer Maggio

The North American Ford Ironman 70.3 Series welcomed a new member to it's family today as Jenifer Maggio finished strong in just over 7 hours. From someone who has seen her race dozens of times, I can confidently say that she looked her best after her longest distance to date.

Following a better then expected swim, Jen returned from the bike a couple minutes past our estimates, however I would learn later that she needed to stop for some bike maintenance due to a shifting problem at mile 15. This problem forced her to stay in a higher gear and mash for the 1st 15. Then at mile 33 she took a minor spill in a congested turn around. Nothing serious, but it shook her up a bit. Minus these speed bumps, she came in at around 3:22.

Without hesitation, she managed a good time in T2, getting sprayed with sunscreen by one of the volunteers (which I might add were some of the best I'd ever seen) then heading off for a grueling hot 3 loop course. Unknown by the athletes, the course turned out to include a good deal of grassy trail running. Little shade made for an even warmer run. Following her around the first two loops, she looked great, pressing on. She enjoyed a visit from one of my friends on lap 2. This kept her spirits high as she made her final lap around to the finish.

As Jen came down the chute towards the podium, she got a ton of cheers and even a shout out from Mr. Announcer. Again, one of her strongest finishes ever. Many months of hard earned training paid off, and will continue to do so as she takes on her next 70.3 challenge in Racine, WI in just 2 months.

UPDATED EVENT PHOTOS POSTED - Check them out by clicking the Event Photos link in the side bar. In the photo area click the Play button to view a slideshow. (Please allow a few seconds for images to load, and turn your volume up.)

I hope you enjoyed following along with Jen and I. Thank you to all that supported Jen over the weekend and into the future. Your comments and messages made the distance between all of us that much closer. Special thanks to Brenda and Coach Rob. The chocolate covered strawberries were awesome! (Jen let me have one.)

MESSAGE FROM JEN: Thank you everyone for all of your love and support. I thought about each and every one of you on my 7 plus hour, soul searching journey. I am grateful to have all of you in my life and I look forward to seeing you when I get home!" Love Jen

And the Race Begins...

Race day prep began at 4:15am Eastern, while most readers were pleasantly sleeping. (We were jealous). A ride to the Grumpy and Dopey parking lot of the Magic Kingdom, then a short bus to the transition area and we were there... Tire check, gear placement, body marking, potty stop, line up.

The sun rose swiftly over Bay Lake as the 2006 Ford Ironman 70.3 kicked off this morning at 6:30am. 2001 & 2002 World Ironman Champion, Tim DeBoom made his first 70.3 appearance leading off the Pro Men's wave. At 7:01 sharp, after approximately a dozen waves, the Woman's 30-34 age groupers went out.

Jen was expected out of the water at around 50 minutes. However, like a champ and looking strong she emerged just under 40 minutes! Heading up a 500 yard hill, she made her way into T1 (Transition 1) seemingly with ease. With an approximate 4 minute T1, she came down the path, bike in tow with a large group. While running toward the mounting area, she encountered a little trouble with a fellow rider, but nothing serious. It appeared someone's bike was running away from them, getting entangled with Jen's pedal. This slowed her strong pace a bit, but long enough for Jen to give this guy an earful. (Comments best left unwritten... Those who know Jen best, can rest assured he is sorry.)

Heading off on the bike, under sunny skies and a bearable (for now) 73 degrees, Jen begins an estimated 3:15 minute single loop ride. A surely difficult 56 miles journey. She'll return at approximately 11:00am Eastern, where she will enter T2 to hang up her bike and tackle a half marathon. By then temps are expected to be above 90 degrees.

EVENT PHOTOS POSTED - Check them out by clicking the Event Photos link in the side bar. In the photo area click the Play button to view a slideshow. (Please allow a few seconds for images to load, and turn your volume up.)

Keep on supporting Jen as she continues her race! Next post this evening. Post race review and unofficial results, and comments from your athlete.

Registration Day and Race Prep

Registration started Saturday morning bright and early, but not without first taking our obligatory 2 or 3 U-turns trying to find our way around the Magic Kingdom. Once on-site at Fort Wilderness, Jen left to bike into the registration area, while I took the bus with the rest of the spectators (and Cub Scout Troop 139) to meet up with her.

After signing a mound of paper that resembled the closing docs on a house, we headed to Athletes Village to browse the merchandise and sample our fair share of free Power Bars and Cliff Blox. The expo area was cool, but smaller than we had expected. This actually was a good thing, seeing as Jen had to have one of everything--well almost. (Pam, you'll be happy to know that I approved Jen's purchase of a new Ironman Transition Bag. It met my high standards for gear.)

Other than that we tried to take it easy, and get in the zone for Sunday. The weatherman is calling for sunny skies, a high of 95 degrees and winds at 10 to 20 miles per hour. Great if your going windsurfing, but a little less than ideal for triathlons. See the current weather here.

Next post, mid-race review, and starting line photos!

Setup and Rules to Remember

We arrived in Orlando and settled in at about 7:30pm. Jen's new baby, aka "Orbea" made the trip safely in one piece, well figuratively. We put her bike together with no problems and took it for a spin up and down the halls to make sure everything checked out. (It did--Click the pic above for the assembled version.)

After a quick burger in the hotel we ventured out onto Disney's Boardwalk which is right outside our back door. No cocktails for the athlete (or me), just a stroll to scope out a potential dinner spot for Sunday night.

For those of you not familiar with the rules of triathlon, I wished to point out a few I ran across on the plane. For most they'll seem to be pretty common sense rules, but I'm sure if they made it into the official book, somewhere along the lines someone challenged them.

1. NO PUBLIC NUDITY is allowed at any time, including between the swim and bike transition.

2. NO FORM OF LOCOMOTION OTHER THAN RUNNING, WALKING OR CRAWLING IS ALLOWED.

3. BIKE PAJAMAS are allowed in the transition area. (We're not sure what exactly bike pajamas are, but I wish I had a pair.)

Yes, the officials felt it necessary to state these rules in BOLD as if it was not clear enough. Anyway, that's the haps here at the mouse's house. So, be good and check back Saturday afternoon for scenes from Athletes Village and other race prep news.

Jen's Race Blog is Online

The official Race Blog for Jenifer's Ford Ironman 70.3 is online and ready to deliver the latest news on the events leading up to and during the race. In the days ahead you'll see the sites around Athlete Village and many other magical moments! Visit the links to the right for images of the event and information on the race.

The Ford Florida Half Ironman at Walt Disney World Resort features a 1.2-mile swim, a 56-mile bike and a 13.1-mile run. A challenge for the competing athletes, and unthinkable for 99% of the world population! This race acts as a qualifier for the Ford Ironman 70.3 World Championship in Clearwater, Florida, as well as five other Ironman North America events. More than 2,000 athletes are competing in the event, which is drawing an estimated 15,000 to 20,000 spectators.

Support Jen by leaving a comment for her. You can do so by clicking the comment link below.