Challenge Barcelona on Sunday

The first edition of Challenge Barcelona on the Ironman distance is tomorrow and I have a few Danes I want to follow so I am hoping to find a live update some where, even though it seems like the official does not plan to provide me with one.
I had really considered very hard to do this race but after the second Ironman in 5 weeks in early August then I felt like giving my body a bit of rest. I also would like to be able to do Ironman races for the next 10 years at least so better not use all my attempts at such a early stage. But the Challenge Barcelona almost seems like a race that you must do before you die. It is not raced in Barcelona, but up the coast at Maresma. It has a great fast bike course along the coast where you need to do two laps of 90 km. on a out and back flat course. That seems like a race for me. Put you head down and hammer away. I think we’ll see some very quick bike splits tomorrow.
Obviously the race collides with Hawaii which is the only down side about the event. But a great new interesting race at the Ironman circuit and in the Challenge Series.
Now I have to admit that I find the official site a bit confusing. I have been checking the site since spring and especially their list of participants seems to have a default of some sort. So I am not sure which Pro’s will be at the starting line. But none the less the huge favorite seems to be Marcel Zamora. He is a local so should know the course and the conditions well. I saw him at the Ironman France where he posted a new course record in his third consecutive win. His final run is at the highest level and it is bit sad not to see him instead next week at Hawaii. The hot conditions suits him well and he has been competing in Hawaii before. I hope we’ll see what he can do next year. And maybe because I raced against him in Nice he is one of my favorites. And check of the picture below. Marcel Zamora, the winner, and my bike side by side. Fucking hell… Looks damn good :-) When I came to collect my bike in the transition zone after the race, his bike was next to mine. Proud moment. I came to T2 in 15th spot so he was 11 positions ahead me. But maybe the volunteers thought the two most beautiful bikes should be next to each other. I am sure that it was not a coincidence… ;-)
I am actually also still at the firm conviction that if I had started the bike ride with Zamora, he would not have been in the T2 before me. Even though I had a bit of a shit day in Nice that day. But I got it together and I actually consider my physical and mentally performance that day to be of a higher level than my 3rd place at Ostseeman in 8:45hrs. The experience from that day in Nice will be with me for several years. And I certainly used my experience from a very hard day in Nice to “almost” have a easy day at the Ostseeman. Nothing could be harder than Nice and the cramps and digestion problems I had to overtake from the first minute of the race. Experience is for sure essential on the Ironman distance.