Have fun with it. It is brutal. Not just my opinion after doing it twice and comparing to other 70.3s, but as a testament it is one of only seven HIM/70.3s that give out spots to Ironman Worlds. The officials always measure the water temp far out from shore and deeper over a spring to get a cold enough reading, so it will be wetsuit legal. The swim is a wonky shape, so you have to keep sighting to stay on track. The bike starts with a wicked climb right from the start to get out of the canyon. All of the climbs, too, aren't typical up-and-overs. Rather they are up out of the canyon and onto to the [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Llano_Estacado]Llano Estacado[/url] (flat mesas) which effectively means after you kill yourself climbing up out of a canyon, you don't get to recover going downhill. Instead you are faced with high winds and brutal sunshine. The run is even worse. There's a long section of out-and-back, bordered by nothing but freshly plowed cotton fields. And sun. Lots of sun. They call it Energy Lab II as homage to Kona's out-and-back section and 100*+ temps and 20mph winds wouldn't be unusual at that point in the race. Most importantly, get there early and bring a headlamp. Parking is way far away from the transition area and everyone parks in a field and walks and the transition area is pitch black. It's a masochists 70.3. If you can finish Lubbock comfortably you can do a full with just a tad more work.

Holy crap sooner, you got me scared and Im not even doing that event.

Good luck Sniper, cant wait to hear the RR.

http://www.trifuel.com/events/16430/buffalo-springs-lake-703

Very accurate description, especially of the hills and heat. 113* is not a joke.

This will be my first time at Buffalo Springs, too. Thanks for the headlight tip!
I've also heard that you should bring food, water, ice, etc for youself and any friends or family watching because there is absolutley no place to buy.
I am going to suffer in the heat, it's been an unusually cool spring here.
I've ridden the course on my CT and I thought it was hard and there is no wind or heat in my basement!

i will be there doing the race as well. I went to college in Lubbock and the only diference between it and he!! is a barbed wire fence. This time of year it will be very hot, very windy, and very dry. If you are not used to very low humidity it is a change to adjust to. Lets have fun and see what we can do.

[quote=Sniper100]I ran the Oklahoma City Marathon a little while back and that was the most brutal wind I've race in. Probably took 10-12 minutes off my time.[/quote]

I was there too! I left the hotel around 6am and new instantly a PR was out of the question. So you are conditioned for the run and heat. Good job planning out your training. It will be hard to go out too fast because seriously, unless they've moved the lake or moved T1/T2, you get on the bike and within 400m you are in small chain ring standing and pulling up a hill. Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate and on the run, take the cups of ice and dump them inside your hat.

[quote=watrbg2]I've also heard that you should bring food, water, ice, etc for youself and any friends or family watching because there is absolutley no place to buy.[/quote]

True. Again, unless it's changed (change is something that doesn't come easily to Lubbock), no concessions. In addition, bring a large beach umbrella! It gets so hot sitting there, and tell your fans to go down to the boat ramp and cool off when the swim is over.

[quote=pkp190]. . . the only diference between it and he!! is a barbed wire fence. [/quote]

When I was at Tech (1995-1997), in winter, it was "The only thing between Canada and Lubbock is a barbed wire fence."

[quote=TriSooner][quote=pkp190]. . . the only diference between it and he!! is a barbed wire fence. [/quote]

When I was at Tech (1995-1997), in winter, it was "The only thing between Canada and Lubbock is a barbed wire fence."
[/quote]
Both are true, Lubbock and west Texas in general have the most extreme weather swings. I also was at Tech during those years, good times.

Hey Sniper100,

Just some more two cents from another local. I appreciated your comments in my other thread and so I thought I'd give you my thoughts since I've cycled that area frequently over the past 5 years and the sprint distance that's going on at the same time as the HIM is the race I'm gearing up to.

So... TriSooner isn't exaggerating about the local conditions. Looking at the course map, the start is about about 3.5 miles of 2% gradient as you climb out of the canyon, you cross through the canyon 4 times, expect easy descents where you can pick up some time with some 30-40 mph, just to run into ~5% gradient for the next half mile to climb back out of the canyon.

And yes, Lubbock's famous wind. Winds prevail from the S, SE directions, which means that the out part of out and back is into a headwind, or a blunt sidewind pushing you across the road. You spend all that time spinning up to the top of the canyon, just to hit the headwind, which may as well be a continuation of the ~5% gradient if it's above 15 mph...

A note on technique that I've learned over time... for the canyons, you want to stand up to power to the top... DON'T. Keep spinning at high RPM so you don't tire yourself out for the long stretches across the flats.

The only shade you will really see is in the canyon near the waterway, and even then, a lot of it has been cleared back from the road to allow for clearance for the farm machinery easy access. Lots and lots of cotton. Upper 90s and low 100s are common temps by that time of year, which when you count the reflected heat from the asphalt, most of your ride will be chip sealed asphalt, btw, it will be an effective temperature above 100 degsF.

I haven't mapped your ride with mapmy, but I have two rides that I do frequently that you can see some of the climbing on your route.

http://www.mapmyride.com/ride/united-states/tx/lubbock/895124339221290847
http://www.mapmyride.com/ride/united-states/tx/buffalo-springs/492124352...

Having said all that, I cycle it regularly and either I've forgotten what it's like to ride in real places without constant headwinds and long huge flats, or it's not that bad.

Again, thanks for your comments on my thread... I hope mine are as useful.

[quote=TriSooner][quote=watrbg2]I've also heard that you should bring food, water, ice, etc for youself and any friends or family watching because there is absolutley no place to buy.[/quote]

True. Again, unless it's changed (change is something that doesn't come easily to Lubbock), no concessions. In addition, bring a large beach umbrella! It gets so hot sitting there, and tell your fans to go down to the boat ramp and cool off when the swim is over.
[/quote]

+1 to bring your own. Don't know if it will be open or not (I've never seen it open, but maybe I'm just there at the wrong times), but there is a "cantina" at the lake... overpriced food and drink.

Well, I think it's obvious, from reading the course description, that if you took away the Kona slots, you'd get a dozen folks with MTB's and self-flagulation scars to show up! Good luck and better you than me! ;)

I've only done the course on my Computrainer so I'm not sure how it will compare to the real thing. But on the CT, the climbs out of the canyons are long and steep - 1+ mile in length and 6-7% grade and there is no gradual climb to the 6% grade, it goes from 0% grade to 6% grade in about 10 feet (or so it seems...).
I'm planning on using the 27 cassette and for lack of a better term, I will be "spinning" up the hills. :)
Thanks for all the advice!

What about spectators. Is there any advice on where to go or park?

also, does any one know of a good mexican resturant in Lubbock?
Thanks!
Good luck to all!

[quote=watrbg2]also, does any one know of a good mexican resturant in Lubbock?
Thanks!
Good luck to all!
[/quote]
You're best bet might be Abuelo's, but do you really want mexican in the days before a race?

[quote=TriSooner][quote=pkp190]. . . the only diference between it and he!! is a barbed wire fence. [/quote]

When I was at Tech (1995-1997), in winter, it was "The only thing between Canada and Lubbock is a barbed wire fence."
[/quote]
Well, when I was there (1999-2002) it was "The only thing between Lubbock and the north pole is a barbed wire fence, and half the time the fence is down." :)

Last year was the year to do BSLT, 78 degrees, and pouring down rain with 40mph wind gusts.

As for spectators, the road into and out of the park (one road) is used heavily for the race itself, so get there early, and plan to stay a while. There was one little trailer thing selling burgers last year. I would just bring my own eats, and stake out some shade this year.

The bike course pretty much immediately leaves the park, so you can watch everyone struggle up the first climb, and then you can walk down the run course and watch people struggle up the first climb on the run!

[quote=fpugsley][quote=watrbg2]also, does any one know of a good mexican resturant in Lubbock?
Thanks!
Good luck to all!
[/quote]
You're best bet might be Abuelo's, but do you really want mexican in the days before a race?
[/quote]

I was thinking of mexican as a post race meal and maybe a few "mexican gatorades" too!

Abuelo's is always a safe bet, but it's been tamed for the general population and pretty standardized because it's a chain restaurant. There's also a Ruby Tequila's and On The Border, but again, are chain restaurants. The problem with Lubbock is that it has a ton of chain restaurants, but not too many local businesses that make really really good food.

For the Mexican Gatorades, Chimi's on Broadway is a good bet for a celebratory glass raising... as long as you don't mind the college age crowd. Cricket's is across the street and a good place to get a brew. Other local watering holes worth checking out are Murphy's (Slide & 34th) and Caprock Cafe (34th & Indiana). Although the whole Sunday thing might limit some of your options... a lot of local places close down...

Thanks for all the tips! I used to live in Houston and I do miss local Mexican food.