1st week at some sort of structured workouts.
By the numbers:
Swim - 2h09m, 9100y
Bike - 7h46m, 160mi
Run - 1h38m, 12.8mi
Strength - 1h30m
TOTAL - 13h36m, 753TSS
This is part of a preparation phase. I start strength training again and ease back into a normal schedule. There's one catch. My ITB is giving my trouble. I still want to do a 1/2 marathon in 2 weeks, so I'l hitting the roller pretty hard and laying off the run miles. I ran a 5k Sat. and given my increase in weight, and lack of running, I thought my 17:53 was pretty good. I didn't push it too hard, paced it fairly well and it included a pretty good hill. My Garmin 405 says 297ft. It also tells me that my threshold pace right now is probably closer to 5:55-6:00 right now. After the 1/2, I think I'll take a solid 10 days off running if needed. If The ITB becomes chronic, then I might look at a cortisone shot to get the inflammation down.
Overall, it's off season. I'm mostly focused on fun workouts, trying to build some durability with strength training, maintain my swim, enjoy some nice cool Fall rides and get my head clear.
Like last year, I'll split my season in 1/2. But I want to do the split earlier, for a more complete build leading to Kona. Really, it will be split in 3 parts. With NOLA in April, a break, a base & couple build periods leading to Steelhead and/or Pigman.
A few other items:
Huge congrats to Daniel Bretscher coming in 2nd at Ironman Chattanooga, behind fellow Iowan Matt Hanson. Daniel put together another smart race with solid swim, bike and run splits. I think he nearly matched his run split from 3 weeks earlier at WI... on a hillier course. Great job. He later tweeted 1 simple thing... "#Kona2015". Hell yes!
Coaching - So I'm looking into the possibility of going into coaching on the side. Probably wouldn't take more than a couple athletes, really just get me feet wet, see what the time commitment is, and go from there. I had previously even offered to coach 1 person for free just to get the experience, but with the liability concerns, I don't that that will work. Plus I need to purchase a Trainingpeaks coaching edition to do it right. Stay tuned!
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Sunday, September 28, 2014
Tuesday, September 16, 2014
2015 Goals, Race Schedule and Annual Training Plan
No time like the present to start looking ahead towards next year. Sure I'm still doing unstructured training this week (doing what I feel like, no real goals, mostly lower intensity) in a transition period. But that changes next week...well sort of. Following "The Training Bible", the start of any ATP is a preparation period. Then, ideally, 3 base periods, 2 build periods and a taper. So roughly, a nice even 6 months to a "A" race. Then, you can take a break (Transition) and then do it all over again, but wit ha shorter base period, since you just recovering some of the base you gave up for the 1st A Race.
Tentatively I'm putting the following race out there...it still pending spousal approval. I listed the Race, category (A/B/C), date, goals/notes.
New Orleans (A) 70.3 - 4/12 (finish <4:10, swim <29, run <1:21)
Trizou Sprint (B) - 05/03 (Time <57:00, win the race...finally beat Kevin in a sprint race..very hard to do)
Galena Triathlon (B) - 5/17 (fun super hilly bike & run course, cold swim, longer run... a real runners tri. Goal - win it. This race is around our wedding anniversary and made for a nice getaway. Plus FWIM-0 You can clean-up on USAT points in this race. Early season, super hilly, cold swim, longer transitions, long run)
Holiday Lake (C+) - 6/7 (I can't taper for everything... but I'll only be into my 1st week of a 4 week build, so I should race pretty well... Goal = Win! Ideally, crush the rolling bike course and cruise the insanely hilly run)
Pigman Sprint? (C+) - 6/8 - (I've never done a "double" race weekend. It is the Iowa World Championships after all, so I probably should make an appearance and let the local/regional pros put me in my place)
Keokuk Y-Athlon (Duathlon?) (C) - 6/20? - not sure on the date here. Would still like to change the course and make it a little more unique. Even a duathlon might be a good idea and do the transition in Rand Park and shorten the bike by 1 mile. Maybe do multiple laps of the newly repaved grand avenue for the run. Might get more interest as a Du and it could be mass start too.
Steelhead 70.3 (B) - 08/09 - (no specific goals, other than a PR for that course, maybe beat my bike watts and otherwise put together a solid race and get some more OWS experience, enjoy the beach, enjoy the day and visit family. I might try and get more of my family out there. If nothing else, a chance to try and pad my USAT rankings...haha.
Pigman Long Course (B)- 08/16 - (Another shot at a double. This one would I would do as a tactical race I think. Try and make the chase swim pack, hang on near the front on the bike and see what my legs have left on the run)
Iowas Best Dam Triathon (C) - 09/13? Might be a fun one near me to race. One final little "test & tune" before the Big Island at the end of my final build. Not bad timing really.
2015 Ironman World Championship, Kailua-Kona, Hawaii (A+++) 10/10 - The BIG ONE! Goals: have a nice relaxing swim <1:03. Have a solid bike, hydrate well and don't get overheated, bike a little conservative. See what my legs give me on the run... go out slow this time. Everyone is fast, expect to be passed a lot the first 14 miles. Slow and steady, easy run pace, hydrate, refuel, stay cool, no walking. See what my legs have left the last 10k.
Few other Kona items: Since most of my race are WS legal, I might be well off getting a tri-suit with sleeves otherwise get some practice rolling it up in transition and using a swim skin. Plus the the short sleeves will give my more sun protection, so only my neck and face is a real concern and I could try arm coolers too.
Training Goals:
1) Increase power by 3% to 317W FTP. (308W now). That would put me at 232NP for Kona @ 0.73IF. Same NP but overall a slightly easier ride than IMWI. Theoretically Bestbikesplit.com says thats a 4:40 @ 250TSS. But I'm not sure how good the BBS model is on that course. I'm thinking it's about 5' optimistic.
2) Work on my position - I think I can comfortably go about 5mm lower up front and stretch out a few mm as well. I'll need a -40 degree stem then add some spacers back as needed.
3) Run stronger - make it a very clear strength- get more durable, drop down to 160-162lbs (5-6lbs lighter than the end of this season). I had a good run at IMWI, but i still fell apart the last 10k. I know I'm capable of more.
4) Swim stronger, straighter, smarter. IMWI showed me that if I can find a comfortable pace really early on and get with a good swim pack, the swim is easy... and much better than the long solo swim I've been used to.
5) Be more mentally prepared for transitions. I made some bad mistakes in both of my 70.3's in transition that cost me 20-60 seconds. At IMWI, I I could have gone at least 30 seconds faster between the two.
6) learn to maintain my legal spacing better. Make sure at a glance, I clearly know how far 7M is. Might have to mark the street in front of my house for a reference.
Tentatively I'm putting the following race out there...it still pending spousal approval. I listed the Race, category (A/B/C), date, goals/notes.
New Orleans (A) 70.3 - 4/12 (finish <4:10, swim <29, run <1:21)
Trizou Sprint (B) - 05/03 (Time <57:00, win the race...finally beat Kevin in a sprint race..very hard to do)
Galena Triathlon (B) - 5/17 (fun super hilly bike & run course, cold swim, longer run... a real runners tri. Goal - win it. This race is around our wedding anniversary and made for a nice getaway. Plus FWIM-0 You can clean-up on USAT points in this race. Early season, super hilly, cold swim, longer transitions, long run)
Holiday Lake (C+) - 6/7 (I can't taper for everything... but I'll only be into my 1st week of a 4 week build, so I should race pretty well... Goal = Win! Ideally, crush the rolling bike course and cruise the insanely hilly run)
Pigman Sprint? (C+) - 6/8 - (I've never done a "double" race weekend. It is the Iowa World Championships after all, so I probably should make an appearance and let the local/regional pros put me in my place)
Keokuk Y-Athlon (Duathlon?) (C) - 6/20? - not sure on the date here. Would still like to change the course and make it a little more unique. Even a duathlon might be a good idea and do the transition in Rand Park and shorten the bike by 1 mile. Maybe do multiple laps of the newly repaved grand avenue for the run. Might get more interest as a Du and it could be mass start too.
Steelhead 70.3 (B) - 08/09 - (no specific goals, other than a PR for that course, maybe beat my bike watts and otherwise put together a solid race and get some more OWS experience, enjoy the beach, enjoy the day and visit family. I might try and get more of my family out there. If nothing else, a chance to try and pad my USAT rankings...haha.
Pigman Long Course (B)- 08/16 - (Another shot at a double. This one would I would do as a tactical race I think. Try and make the chase swim pack, hang on near the front on the bike and see what my legs have left on the run)
Iowas Best Dam Triathon (C) - 09/13? Might be a fun one near me to race. One final little "test & tune" before the Big Island at the end of my final build. Not bad timing really.
2015 Ironman World Championship, Kailua-Kona, Hawaii (A+++) 10/10 - The BIG ONE! Goals: have a nice relaxing swim <1:03. Have a solid bike, hydrate well and don't get overheated, bike a little conservative. See what my legs give me on the run... go out slow this time. Everyone is fast, expect to be passed a lot the first 14 miles. Slow and steady, easy run pace, hydrate, refuel, stay cool, no walking. See what my legs have left the last 10k.
Few other Kona items: Since most of my race are WS legal, I might be well off getting a tri-suit with sleeves otherwise get some practice rolling it up in transition and using a swim skin. Plus the the short sleeves will give my more sun protection, so only my neck and face is a real concern and I could try arm coolers too.
Training Goals:
1) Increase power by 3% to 317W FTP. (308W now). That would put me at 232NP for Kona @ 0.73IF. Same NP but overall a slightly easier ride than IMWI. Theoretically Bestbikesplit.com says thats a 4:40 @ 250TSS. But I'm not sure how good the BBS model is on that course. I'm thinking it's about 5' optimistic.
2) Work on my position - I think I can comfortably go about 5mm lower up front and stretch out a few mm as well. I'll need a -40 degree stem then add some spacers back as needed.
3) Run stronger - make it a very clear strength- get more durable, drop down to 160-162lbs (5-6lbs lighter than the end of this season). I had a good run at IMWI, but i still fell apart the last 10k. I know I'm capable of more.
4) Swim stronger, straighter, smarter. IMWI showed me that if I can find a comfortable pace really early on and get with a good swim pack, the swim is easy... and much better than the long solo swim I've been used to.
5) Be more mentally prepared for transitions. I made some bad mistakes in both of my 70.3's in transition that cost me 20-60 seconds. At IMWI, I I could have gone at least 30 seconds faster between the two.
6) learn to maintain my legal spacing better. Make sure at a glance, I clearly know how far 7M is. Might have to mark the street in front of my house for a reference.
Sunday, September 14, 2014
My Triathlon "career", 2014 Season Review , Planning 2015 and Some Random Thoughts
I thought I'd share some thought on where I've come in my athletic career to give a little background on my accomplishments, a closer look at 2014 and then looking towards the 2015 season.
A history lesson-
As a kid I was outdoors.... a lot. Sandbox, climbing trees, riding my bicycle.... riding it some more... and then some. I guess competition was in my blood. I'd set up a obstacle course in our little asphalt driveway and see how fast I could ride it. I wore out many set of tires doing this. If there was a patch of gravel on the road, I'd lock up the rear and slide it around. When the creek behind our house froze, I was on it...yes, on my bicycle, seeing how fast I could ride on it.
Around 10, I got a Montgomery Wards 21 speed 26" mountain bike. I beat the crap out of it riding in the woods near our house and all over. Later at 14, I purchased my first rode bike, A Schwinn with Wow...14 speeds (maybe it was 12). I think it was around $300, which was quite a bit in 1992. and rode the crap out of it that summer. I'd go for 2-3 hour rides. I think honestly, that's where it really started. I had a need for speed, liked to ride hard, and go far. It unfortunately got stolen later that year. That was a real setback, but it wouldn't keep me down. I went out for track and field that winter/spring. I figured out early I wasn't too bad at this distance running thing. I kept dropping time, earned my varsity letter and was one several "most improved" athletes that season.
That Fall I of course, went out for cross country. It was a rebuilding year for the team having graduated most of their fast runners the previous year. I finished 7th on our team in my first race. I think I ran a 23:xx. Not bad in my first 5k I think. I never finished outside the top 7 on our team in 3 seasons. Consistency was probably my trade mark. I either had OK races or great races. I can only remember 2 times in 20 years, both racing bicycles in college, having a bad day and abandoning. But that's tactical racing, not a timed race, so a different animal really. ONce was in Inidiana, another at yup.... Wisconsin, near Mt. Horeb.
Later that Fall my friends convinced me to join the swim team. The rest I guess is history. I was very good at both sports, but never great. Little league baseball was that same. I was near the top, but not great. But I hated baseball deep down, since as a bit of a perfectionist, I had trouble with the concept that you could fail 2/3rds of the time and still be "good" as a batter. That sucks!
Following HS, I quickly missed training and competing. I joined the IM swim club and we went to a couple "Swim meets"... which were really excuses to party. That was fine with me. My path would take a major turn that next Fall. I did an internship in Fort Wayne, IN and a attractive young co-ed was a serious runner and convinced me to train for the Chicago Marathon with her. I was 19 and single.. so of course I agreed. First runs was a 8 miler, having not run for probably 6 months. It about killed me. But it got easier and another big milestone of running more miles was adapting my run form. I started running a higher cadence and noticing that it was easier and smoother. I completed the race with no real pacing strategy, no nutrition strategy other than drink something every mile, and bonked and hit the wall around mile 23 and walked a bit that last few miles. I finished in 3:38 and was ecstatic. That was a sringboard for me. I was swimming regularly and did a little indoor triathlon that winter and killed it., That was it, I was hooked.
A fractured collarbone while mountain biking slowed things down a bit and after recovering, I focused more on cycling the next 4 years of college. I worked up to Class "A" (Cat 1,2,3) in road and MTB after winning that Class B regional race my first season... in .... guess where? at a course in Mt Horeb!!!
My last year of college I got hooked on motorcycles. I got fat... but learned a LOT about handling a 2 wheel machine getting in a lot of track time and burning through many sets of tires over a 2 year period.
I later moved to Keokuk, IA for a new job, got back into riding and running and joined a masters swim team that winter. I finally did a triathlon in 2006. I got engaged later that year. 2007 I did my first 70.3. I did well, finished around 5:30 but vowed that "I'd never do a full IM". I got fat the year my wife was pregnant, got fatter during a labor dispute at my workplace where I put in 70 hour weeks for 3 months working on a shift rotation. I reached nearly 210lbs!!! ... for the 2nd time in my life. 2011... I went on an aggressive diet, sold my motorcycle and bought my trek speed concept. I was lean and mean, down to 160lbs, and running as fast as any time n my life. Won the amature division at the Trizou spring in Columbia, MO and never looked back.
THe next 3 seasons I trained progressively more, kept getting faster, did my first 1/2 marathon in the fall of 2012 and did really well. SO well that I decided to do a 70.3 again. I'd take on Pigman a 2nd time. I ramped up my training in 2013 and by mid summer, decided I was ready to attempt a full Ironman. MY daughter was 4y/o so I had a window before she got too involved in school events and hopefully sports. I crushed my 2nd attempt beating my swim and bike goals and despite GI issues, gritted out a 1:31 run and went 4:25... over 1 hour faster than my first 6 years earlier! There I was, just a notch behind some of the fastest AG athletes in the midwest. I heard them talk of Kona, and thought, wow, maybe I have a real shot.
I did a run focus that Fall, and started getting in some longer rides and increasing my swimming. On a tip from Daniel Bretscher who I had looked at using for coaching, but just couldn't come up with the money for any coach...he was quite reasonable really, I read the THe "Training Bible" and signed up for Trainingpeaks, and ordered a Stages Power Meter at Christmas time.
I used to their Annual Training Plan and virtual Coach to put together the periodization and fill out a weekly training schedule around where I had time to train. The best schedule ended up being riding in the mornings, swimming at lunch and running in the evenings. I mixed things up a little but overall that was the plan. The basic formula in this order of priority was 1) Run 6 days a week (BarryP plan), 2) ride 6 days a week with 1 long/longer ride and 1-2 quality rides and the rest whatever I could handle to fill the weekly target training load. Mostly zone 2-3. 3) Sleep in 2 days a week 4) fit in 5-7 swims where ever I could. It might be a short 25 minute swim during my daughters swim lessons, or a swim at lunch. Later in the summer when I had to use my neighbors pool, I would do swim/run combined workouts.
The rest is history and well documented in my blog posts.
2015 Plan -
NO running until late next week along with 1 more week on unstructured training, then I'll do mostly maintenance for 4 weeks with a run focus, doing a 5k and a 1/2 marathon.
Next 2 months will be weight control, and probably continue to run focus and swim focus with a long ride on weekends and shorter, higher intensity rides during the week.
Next 2 months will be a bike & swim focus and give my run legs a bit of a rest, especially since it will be crappy weather to run in. I'll probably do Tour of Sufferlandria maybe 2-3 times. Might even just keep doing it in order 5-6 days a week plus a long easy ride. All this time doing strength and core training 3 days a week.
Then I'll start my more formal training heading into my first "A"-ish race... probably NOLA 70.3. Not a full build and taper, but close. Fun to have a early season race to focus on. Plus I figure if disaster strikes, I at least had a chance to test my fitness at some point that season. Then it will e a long series of sprint races through the sprint and early summer. Come summer, it's time to hunker down and hit the serious IM training. Take advantage of the heat to run in the afternoon and get used to roasting. Then Steelhead and/or Pigman, then a final training block and my taper leading to Kona.
KONA -
We're thinking now of flying in Sunday and get the full experience the whole week. Get in some swims, bikes and runs, adapt, enjoy the commradarie and atmosphere. This could be the only time I get here, so why do it half assed. They even have a Ironkids "Dip and Run", which I think is a swim off the pier and a short run from there. Too cool! We'll rent a condo or house for the week ideally not too far from town along Ali'i Drive.
Tentative Race Schedule - I haven't verified dates or checked for conflicts. I might also look for a
Ironman 70.3 New Orleans or Texas
Trizou Sprint, Columbia, MO
Galena Sprint/Du - Galena, IL?
Bridge The Gap 1/2 marathon
Pigman Sprint?
Holiday Lake Sprint, Brooklyn, IA?
Keokuk Y-Athlon (need to find a date) Might make this a super sprint or switch to a multi-lap format to be more spectator friendly and a different challenge.
Steelhead 70.3?
Pigman Long Course (70.3)
Great River Road Run 1/2 Marathon
Ironman World Championships - Kailua Kona, Hawaii
I'm thinking NOLA.. or Texas, might be a fun guys only road trip. My buddy Josh wants to race this and I wonder if we can con Daniel to come along too depending on his race plans. Split gas and a room and it could be fairly cheap overall.
Final Thoughts:
I still can't believe how far I've come and how well my day went, especially nutrition. For a 1st timer, it's really an unknown. But I also can't reenforce how important it was to focus on fitness and training load and pay little attention to particular distances and workouts. The long rides were and important element, but not more important that consistent training load. I also want to mention that my last 2 long runs pushed me over the edge and nearly derailed my training at the end. They presented FAR more risk than any reward and I would never recommend a run over about 16-18 miles.
I'd like again to thank everyone for their support and the kind words. The last week I've felt like a Rock Star. It makes all that hard work worth it and I hope I cna share what I've learned with others, so they can reach their goals and achieve their dreams. The thought of doing some less formal coaching has crossed my mind.
A history lesson-
As a kid I was outdoors.... a lot. Sandbox, climbing trees, riding my bicycle.... riding it some more... and then some. I guess competition was in my blood. I'd set up a obstacle course in our little asphalt driveway and see how fast I could ride it. I wore out many set of tires doing this. If there was a patch of gravel on the road, I'd lock up the rear and slide it around. When the creek behind our house froze, I was on it...yes, on my bicycle, seeing how fast I could ride on it.
Around 10, I got a Montgomery Wards 21 speed 26" mountain bike. I beat the crap out of it riding in the woods near our house and all over. Later at 14, I purchased my first rode bike, A Schwinn with Wow...14 speeds (maybe it was 12). I think it was around $300, which was quite a bit in 1992. and rode the crap out of it that summer. I'd go for 2-3 hour rides. I think honestly, that's where it really started. I had a need for speed, liked to ride hard, and go far. It unfortunately got stolen later that year. That was a real setback, but it wouldn't keep me down. I went out for track and field that winter/spring. I figured out early I wasn't too bad at this distance running thing. I kept dropping time, earned my varsity letter and was one several "most improved" athletes that season.
That Fall I of course, went out for cross country. It was a rebuilding year for the team having graduated most of their fast runners the previous year. I finished 7th on our team in my first race. I think I ran a 23:xx. Not bad in my first 5k I think. I never finished outside the top 7 on our team in 3 seasons. Consistency was probably my trade mark. I either had OK races or great races. I can only remember 2 times in 20 years, both racing bicycles in college, having a bad day and abandoning. But that's tactical racing, not a timed race, so a different animal really. ONce was in Inidiana, another at yup.... Wisconsin, near Mt. Horeb.
Later that Fall my friends convinced me to join the swim team. The rest I guess is history. I was very good at both sports, but never great. Little league baseball was that same. I was near the top, but not great. But I hated baseball deep down, since as a bit of a perfectionist, I had trouble with the concept that you could fail 2/3rds of the time and still be "good" as a batter. That sucks!
Following HS, I quickly missed training and competing. I joined the IM swim club and we went to a couple "Swim meets"... which were really excuses to party. That was fine with me. My path would take a major turn that next Fall. I did an internship in Fort Wayne, IN and a attractive young co-ed was a serious runner and convinced me to train for the Chicago Marathon with her. I was 19 and single.. so of course I agreed. First runs was a 8 miler, having not run for probably 6 months. It about killed me. But it got easier and another big milestone of running more miles was adapting my run form. I started running a higher cadence and noticing that it was easier and smoother. I completed the race with no real pacing strategy, no nutrition strategy other than drink something every mile, and bonked and hit the wall around mile 23 and walked a bit that last few miles. I finished in 3:38 and was ecstatic. That was a sringboard for me. I was swimming regularly and did a little indoor triathlon that winter and killed it., That was it, I was hooked.
A fractured collarbone while mountain biking slowed things down a bit and after recovering, I focused more on cycling the next 4 years of college. I worked up to Class "A" (Cat 1,2,3) in road and MTB after winning that Class B regional race my first season... in .... guess where? at a course in Mt Horeb!!!
My last year of college I got hooked on motorcycles. I got fat... but learned a LOT about handling a 2 wheel machine getting in a lot of track time and burning through many sets of tires over a 2 year period.
I later moved to Keokuk, IA for a new job, got back into riding and running and joined a masters swim team that winter. I finally did a triathlon in 2006. I got engaged later that year. 2007 I did my first 70.3. I did well, finished around 5:30 but vowed that "I'd never do a full IM". I got fat the year my wife was pregnant, got fatter during a labor dispute at my workplace where I put in 70 hour weeks for 3 months working on a shift rotation. I reached nearly 210lbs!!! ... for the 2nd time in my life. 2011... I went on an aggressive diet, sold my motorcycle and bought my trek speed concept. I was lean and mean, down to 160lbs, and running as fast as any time n my life. Won the amature division at the Trizou spring in Columbia, MO and never looked back.
THe next 3 seasons I trained progressively more, kept getting faster, did my first 1/2 marathon in the fall of 2012 and did really well. SO well that I decided to do a 70.3 again. I'd take on Pigman a 2nd time. I ramped up my training in 2013 and by mid summer, decided I was ready to attempt a full Ironman. MY daughter was 4y/o so I had a window before she got too involved in school events and hopefully sports. I crushed my 2nd attempt beating my swim and bike goals and despite GI issues, gritted out a 1:31 run and went 4:25... over 1 hour faster than my first 6 years earlier! There I was, just a notch behind some of the fastest AG athletes in the midwest. I heard them talk of Kona, and thought, wow, maybe I have a real shot.
I did a run focus that Fall, and started getting in some longer rides and increasing my swimming. On a tip from Daniel Bretscher who I had looked at using for coaching, but just couldn't come up with the money for any coach...he was quite reasonable really, I read the THe "Training Bible" and signed up for Trainingpeaks, and ordered a Stages Power Meter at Christmas time.
I used to their Annual Training Plan and virtual Coach to put together the periodization and fill out a weekly training schedule around where I had time to train. The best schedule ended up being riding in the mornings, swimming at lunch and running in the evenings. I mixed things up a little but overall that was the plan. The basic formula in this order of priority was 1) Run 6 days a week (BarryP plan), 2) ride 6 days a week with 1 long/longer ride and 1-2 quality rides and the rest whatever I could handle to fill the weekly target training load. Mostly zone 2-3. 3) Sleep in 2 days a week 4) fit in 5-7 swims where ever I could. It might be a short 25 minute swim during my daughters swim lessons, or a swim at lunch. Later in the summer when I had to use my neighbors pool, I would do swim/run combined workouts.
The rest is history and well documented in my blog posts.
2015 Plan -
NO running until late next week along with 1 more week on unstructured training, then I'll do mostly maintenance for 4 weeks with a run focus, doing a 5k and a 1/2 marathon.
Next 2 months will be weight control, and probably continue to run focus and swim focus with a long ride on weekends and shorter, higher intensity rides during the week.
Next 2 months will be a bike & swim focus and give my run legs a bit of a rest, especially since it will be crappy weather to run in. I'll probably do Tour of Sufferlandria maybe 2-3 times. Might even just keep doing it in order 5-6 days a week plus a long easy ride. All this time doing strength and core training 3 days a week.
Then I'll start my more formal training heading into my first "A"-ish race... probably NOLA 70.3. Not a full build and taper, but close. Fun to have a early season race to focus on. Plus I figure if disaster strikes, I at least had a chance to test my fitness at some point that season. Then it will e a long series of sprint races through the sprint and early summer. Come summer, it's time to hunker down and hit the serious IM training. Take advantage of the heat to run in the afternoon and get used to roasting. Then Steelhead and/or Pigman, then a final training block and my taper leading to Kona.
KONA -
We're thinking now of flying in Sunday and get the full experience the whole week. Get in some swims, bikes and runs, adapt, enjoy the commradarie and atmosphere. This could be the only time I get here, so why do it half assed. They even have a Ironkids "Dip and Run", which I think is a swim off the pier and a short run from there. Too cool! We'll rent a condo or house for the week ideally not too far from town along Ali'i Drive.
Tentative Race Schedule - I haven't verified dates or checked for conflicts. I might also look for a
Ironman 70.3 New Orleans or Texas
Trizou Sprint, Columbia, MO
Galena Sprint/Du - Galena, IL?
Bridge The Gap 1/2 marathon
Pigman Sprint?
Holiday Lake Sprint, Brooklyn, IA?
Keokuk Y-Athlon (need to find a date) Might make this a super sprint or switch to a multi-lap format to be more spectator friendly and a different challenge.
Steelhead 70.3?
Pigman Long Course (70.3)
Great River Road Run 1/2 Marathon
Ironman World Championships - Kailua Kona, Hawaii
I'm thinking NOLA.. or Texas, might be a fun guys only road trip. My buddy Josh wants to race this and I wonder if we can con Daniel to come along too depending on his race plans. Split gas and a room and it could be fairly cheap overall.
Final Thoughts:
I still can't believe how far I've come and how well my day went, especially nutrition. For a 1st timer, it's really an unknown. But I also can't reenforce how important it was to focus on fitness and training load and pay little attention to particular distances and workouts. The long rides were and important element, but not more important that consistent training load. I also want to mention that my last 2 long runs pushed me over the edge and nearly derailed my training at the end. They presented FAR more risk than any reward and I would never recommend a run over about 16-18 miles.
I'd like again to thank everyone for their support and the kind words. The last week I've felt like a Rock Star. It makes all that hard work worth it and I hope I cna share what I've learned with others, so they can reach their goals and achieve their dreams. The thought of doing some less formal coaching has crossed my mind.
Friday, September 12, 2014
IMWI Photos
Here's a couple photos for now. Will dig up some more later before I share the post on FB.
The Cheering Squad at the capital. Gorgeous Day
The happy travelers, the Smidts. I told them there was beer & sushi so they hopped in a car and drove to Madison.
My little runner.
Cruising through 1st aide station...never saw my wife & daughter
Finished! She gets my chocolate milk as usual. She earned it!
Photo with the champ!!! Daniel was my tour guide on a bike course pre-ride back in June. I can;t make his watts or run that fast, but I'm still faster (crazy) in the corners!
Monday morning. We both have out finisher medals and shirts
We're going to Kona!
A FEW MORE:
Still Smiling.
Rocking the bike!
Running with my new buddy Thierry.
Tuesday, September 9, 2014
My Livestream Video from the IMWI Finish
http://new.livestream.com/ironman/events/3359955/videos/61445076
I should have slowed down more (thought I did) and walked it in and really soaked it all in. Oh well. I'll be sure to do that at Kona. Then again, my legs were so done, that I just wanted to make sure I got to the line.
I'm right at the start of the video. 9:47 on the clock (10 mintes off because of the pros).
I should have slowed down more (thought I did) and walked it in and really soaked it all in. Oh well. I'll be sure to do that at Kona. Then again, my legs were so done, that I just wanted to make sure I got to the line.
I'm right at the start of the video. 9:47 on the clock (10 mintes off because of the pros).
Ironman Wisconsin 2014 Race Report - Mission Accomplished!!!
This will be a long one....
Wow. I can't say much more. Well, if you know me, then your laughing already because you know I can say a lot more than that. But honestly, just sitting down to write this is bringing back some of the same emotions from the last 3 miles on the run, crossing the line, the Kona slot allocation. First was committing to doing a IM. Then signing up, then raising the bar and deciding that I could qualify for Kona. Finally was a full season of training, sacrificing, a few ups and downs, a lot of anxiety of the pressure I put on myself to not only toe the line for my first IM, but to execute well enough to take on some of the best triathletes in the country. I never doubted that I would finish. But stepping off the bike, I was in unknown territory.
Before I get onto the race report, I have to thank a few people. First my wife for supporting me all season. I know it was hard for her to see me spend so much time away from my family chasing after is what we all know is ultimately a selfish pursuit. I tried to find a balance. I think overall I did a good job, but it wasn't easy. 2nd I want to thank my friends Barb & Mark Smidt for coming out this weekend and cheering me on. I could count on seeing them each lap and get updates on my position. Unfortunately I never saw my wife & daughter. They were always standing opposite where I had my visual focus at that moment. But I knew they were there. Finally I want to thank all the individuals and companies that donated to the Lupus Foundation of America, Iowa Chapter.
RACE REPORT:
Pre-Race:
3:00AM = I actually slept pretty well. Woke up a bunch of times, but went back to sleep. I did have a little snack around 3AM, but that wasn't planned. But if you know hotels, you can hear when everyone else is getting up if you below the top floor. All the toilets start flushing and you get the sense that it's time to get
3:45AM - Alarm was set for 3:50, but I'm up and ready to go. Oddly a little less nervous than expected. Do my business get ready eat my prerace meal of a banana, oatmeal, 2% greek yogurt with honey, 16oz of sports drink, some water and a coffee for the road. I carried with me 2 more 16oz bottles of perform for prerace, plus 1 waffle and 1 powergel.
4:25AM - I met up with Brian Gonzales, who I met on Facebook. We stayed at the Sheraton and walked over to the Alliant Center to catch a shuttle. When I'm anxious I talk. So it was great to have someone to talk to on the ride over and walking to transition. Great think about triathlons is that ultimately, we're all at the same event and there's a sense of camaraderie and community. We couldn't have been more polar opposites in overall goal or performance. I'm in awe of folks that can finish an event lasting 15+ hours. We arrived around 4:55, perfect timing. Line wasn't too long.
5:00AM - Set-up went easy. I borrowed a pump from a guy racked next to me, set my bike up, triple checked everything and headed to my transition bags to drop off my watch and pre-open my stinger waffles... and double check my bags... not that I could really do anything about it at this point anyway. Then found a nice spot to sit for a bit, try and take some deep breaths and relax. Hit the restroom one last time and put some more sunscreen on.
6:00AM - made my way to the swim start. Try and contact my wife and meet up with her before dropping my morning bag. I take my time getting my wetsuit bottom on. I'm wearing a borrowed Blue Seventy Helix (thanks again Josh Madsen) for the first time other than a short pool swim. But a Medium-Tall, fits perfect. I send out a last text and drop off my bag. I slip into the rest of the suit and find someone that looks calm and ask them if they can zip up my suit. He obliges and we chat for a bit... because you know me. (now I know where my daughter gets it from).
6:35AM - Get in line for the water. Its' pretty calm. I'm feeling a little better and ready to get going. It's not as chaotic as I thought. Water temp is reported at 71F. Damn near perfect. Feels awesome. I survey the scene. I thought about fighting it out on the buoy line, but it already looks a bit crowded. I instead go to the right of the ski jump. I pull to the left, so I'll slowly curve into clear water with the gap form the ramp. The start line is actually angled slightly, so I think it's not all that much of a longer swim starting wide. I hang on the ski jump for most of the 20 minute wait and chat with the guys around me. Most are slower than my goal, though 1 guys is a low 50 swimmer.
6:58 - the wind/current if pushing us away from the start line which is really good. But I keep having to edge my way onto the front. A few more guys slide towards the front. The tension builds a bit.
6:59 - 1 minute warning. I get into a prone position and scull on my front and get clear water around my body and sort of countdown in my heat. I take deep breaths and relax. I know what I need to do. I've trained or it, I'm fit, I'm ready.
SWIM - Cannon goes off and I put my head down, kick hard, hammer 4 or 5 chopped strokes then take a breath and start stretching it out. I'm clear of the main field and there's a faster swimmer pulled by on my right and a ways over to the left. I keep easing back a bit. I slide just into the draft of a group of 3 or 4 and just hold that pace. It's a pretty relaxed pace, just what I wanted. I'm between 2 swimmers, so there's not a lot of sighting needed. The mass drifts to the left as we near the first turn. It comes up fairly quick. There's a bit of contact but no big deal. I'm about 15' outside of the marker. I'm now seeing the same pick and white cap near me most of the time. The next turn comes up quick. A little more contact this time. and we're onto the main straight.
One beauty of being a stronger swimmer (I still won't call myself fast) is that you get to swim with other strong swimmers that usually swim straight, pace evenly, and make small waves. I look around and it's a large pack of I'd guess 30 or so swimmers stretched out over 10-20 seconds. The pace feels nice and relaxed. I focus on a nice catch and long even stroke, steady kick and try and get into a nice rythem with my kick while still sighting ever 8-10 strokes. I normally breath on my left, but I take a few breaths on my right to take in the view of the Monona Terrace with the early morning light on it and capital building in the background. I haven't done a lot of races, but this is by far.... hands down, the more beautiful swim in the best conditions I've ever been in. I adjust my stroke to swim a little more straight. I keep veering inside the buoys here and there, but not too bad. Part way on the straight I realize that 1) this pack is clearly off the front, and 2) I'm doing my first IM and I'm having a great swim. All anxiety I had about the day disappears and it's replaced with complete confidence. What a perfect way to start the day. If I just sit in here, My guess is that I'll probably swim I think a 58-59. I'm hoping that Scott Iott is 1-2 minute behind but I suspect he's somewhere in this group. I've picked him and another as my main rivals, though you never know who shown up. But I suspect there's a good chance if we both have good days, that I'll be within 3-5 minutes of Scott the entire race.
Before I know it I can see the 3rd turn up ahead. Then the 4th and the final stretch. Now you can sense the excitement building. It gets a little more congested and crowded and the pace seems to pick up. Even with earplugs you can start to hear the crowds and Mike Reilly. Wow... I just swam 2.4 miles and I'm sure it was under 60 minutes. It was the easiest, more relaxed and by far, the best swim I've ever had in my life. Perhaps the most important thing, and it sounds funny, but I burped several times, and didn't suck in any waves.
TIME 59:50
T1
a big pack comes out of the water together so it's a little congested b not bad. Find a wetsuit stripper and drop down, they yank it off and I'm off and running towards the helix with my suit over my shoulder. I have to focus on not running too fast. It's not a 70.3 or Olympic. I get my bag, go to the next room, pull out my glass, put them on, helmet on, grab my shoes, leave my bag, cap, goggles and wetsuit on the chair and volunteer says he's "got it" so I take off. Suprise, suprise, jogging next to me is Scott Iott. He's wearing a light blue race kit not the read one. He asks how the swim went for me. I said really well. We came out of the water 20 seconds apart. I must have ran faster up the helix or something. We run to our bikes, the volunteers help up unrack them (since we have shoes in our hand) and run to the exit. It's a very long transition area. Stop at the line, shoes on and jump on the bike, just behind Scott. This is all too familiar. That's 3 races now we're within 5-10 seconds at the T1 exit.
TIME 5:39
BIKE - 1st lap
We make our way down the helix conservatively and onto the bike path and roll past some "Fish". Pretty spread out. Out onto the stick, it's a light headwind. My power plan has me around 215-220 with 225-230 for a headwind. Scott's pace is pushing that a bit, especially up the hills. I try and get nice and aero, relaxed. As usual I wait about 15 minutes to drink anything to make sure any air or lake water is settled out of my stomach. I finally just let Scott go and stick to my plan. He's heard my boast of riding under 5 hours. He looks like he's on pace for it. I know that I tend to get stronger as the ride goes on. The power feels easy, and my legs feel strong, but my energy isn't there yet. I keep passing "fish" and 1 or 2 faster riders go past. I pass a couple pro females I think. I suspect one of them is of course Thomas Brunold. But I don't know what he looks like. Doesn't matter since he's in a different age group.
I turn off the stick and I'm all alone, and had to double check that I turned the right way. It's already a lonely ride. I settle in for a mostly lonely stretch to Mt. Horeb. But it's also one of my favorite stretches.
I hit Garfoot and take it a little conservative the first time down, plus there's a car on the course going the other way. I rail through the turns. Through Cross Plains, get another bottle. I nailing all my exchanges so far. I'm only carrying 1 regular cage plus an aero bottle as a reserve.
The 3 sisters section goes well. I just ride to my power. Easy. Really no big deal. a 39-28 keeps my around 75-80RPM at 280-310 watts or about 90-100% FTP. One pro female stands up and attacks the hills. I almost asked her if she was sure that was a good idea. She had to have been at 150% going up that hill. I just sit and spin up and make sure I don't ride too hard. The crowd were amazing. The typical comment was "your making it look easy". An truthfully, it was easy. That's how it should be. If your breathing hard at any point, you will pay for it on the run. Verona is slightly downhill and fast! That's the only time I missed a bottle exchange, but i got the 2nd. The streets are smooth and wide and you feel like a rock start rolling through at 25+ mph.
NUTRITION - I actually exceed my target slightly and consume about 124oz of Perform, maybe 6oz of water, 6 powergels, 2 stinger waffles. I eat about 2240 calories, or about 430 calories per hour. Stomach felt good overall the whole way. Never hungry, never sloshing or too full. I just kept taking food. Perfect. Maybe the most important element to IM racing. They say it's the 4th discipline in long course. So far, I seem to be nailing it.
Bike - 2nd lap
I start lap 2 and I see Scott Iott up ahead. So I'm sort of hoping that maybe he went out too fast and is already in trouble. A few miles later I pass him and he tells me he got stung by a bee. I'm like...damn that sucks, but it turns out the impact of that was detrimental. Just like getting a flat, mechanical, crash... that's not how you want to beat someone. I want to win because everyone showed up and had their best race that day. Pretty soon we're into a group of 4 riders. We hit the rollers going into Mt Horeb and it's yo-yoing really bad. I feel like the overall effort is too low, so I finally roll past the group... look down and see 360W... and it jumps to 400W cresting a hill-watts....Ugh...not good. I settle in at the lead. A few hills later Scott rolls around and asks how I'm feeling. I settle in behind him and try to hold what I thing is 7m... or 4-5 bike lengths. We hit another roller and I ease off but roll up just into his draft zone. I do the wrong thing and let myself roll back and hope it goes unnoticed. In reality I'm supposed to either 1) ride 350-400W to pass him or 2) anticipate the hill and open my gap as large as needed to stay out of his draft. I do neither and guess what.... there's an official wit ha stopwatch. Say I was in the draft zone for 1 minute... so not just a stop and go, it's a red card. F***! I told her I though that was still 7m... and after the race one of the others guys through that was marginal too. But it's illegal to argue and honestly I'd rather so them calling it tight then no officals at all. I saw more officals in that race than I've seen in maybe all my triathlons combined. But that's what happens when your at the front of the race going for Kona slot. Fair enough, I should know better. She nicely explains I have to report to the next tent. It's my first penalty ever.
When I pass Scott again on a hill after Mt. Horeb. I tell him about the penalty.. he got a good laughs. I tell him "like you needed a 4 minute head start on the run". I love racing with these guys. Serious, focused but can have a good time doing it. Honestly, if it was legal, I would have just assumed ride side by side up most of the climbs and chatted with a few of these guys. Actually, now that I've done an Ironman, draft legal would make for a race that's more fun with some really interesting tactics. A lot of time the race just felt like a long training day, except for the crowds, aide stations, transitions and timing chip.
I pushed the pace and took a few risks on the descent on Garfoot and pushed the pace just a bit on the flat section to Cross Plains.... and stopped at the penalty tent. Duhm...duh, duhm, duhm, daaahhhhm. I told them I got pinched for drafting, red card. She hit the stop watch and set it on my seat. I stretched out got a drink and chatted with them for a bit. They were glad I wasn't all pissy and complaining about it. Hey, its' part of racing. You either ride far away from people, or take that risk. about 30 seconds later I see Scott roll past.
Over the next 30 minutes I put down my highest wattage of the whole ride and sail through the sister. I have tons of energy, feeling good and the crowds are now really thick and your hitting lapped riders. I feel almost guilty just spinning up, hitting my watts, eating a gel, getting a drink (no aero penalty to refuel up steep hills). I never stand up on the climbs other than to stretch out a little over the top.
I make the turn onto the stick and I'm all alone.... like really alone. Feeling a little tired finally. But legs are still strong overall. We have a tailwind now so I take it easy and hold the watts a little lower. Looks like I'll ride just over 5:05 but under 5:10. I'm good with that with the penalty. I pass 2 or 3 female pros, but otherwise see nobody for 40 minutes. I have clear road for the turns around Alliant Center and the bike path. I go a little aggressive, but not too crazy. I get 1/2 way up the helix and realize I forget to get out of my shoes. oops. I hit the dismount like a little fast as usual, but stay on my feet. I head indoors.
Looking at my numbers later... I laid it out there on the bike. If I rode any harder, I'd definitely been walking at the end.
TIME 5:08
NP - 231W
AP - 220W
IF - 0.75 (FTP 308)
VI - 1.05
TSS - 286
T2
It's a ghost town. Almost a little weird being the only one there. A room full of chairs and there's like 5 volunteers trying to help me. The volunteers are awesome all day. Really ,really awesome. I say thanks at every intersection on the bike the last 15 miles on the stick.
I Get my bag go to the next room and find a seat. No real rush. I'm pretty sure I'm 2nd or 3rd in my AG at this point. I have to "redo" one sock that was crooked. Shoes on, volunteer puts my number belt on me, puts on my visor, hands me my watch... and I'm out of there.
TIME: 2:36
RUN
The race has finally started. My watch is still finding GPS signals, but it's pretty clear I'm running almost like it's a 70.3. Whoah...there horsey. I keep easing back, and try and find a pace that feels like a easy training run. The next segment is mostly down hill, but I ultimately think I ran just a little too fast those opening miles and will pay for it later. A 7:20-7:30 feels comfortable. The dream of killing a 3:05-3:10 seem unrealistic. I'm confident a solid 3:15-3:20 will guarantee a Kona a slot at this point.
I pass Daniel Bretscher going the other way around I think mile 4 or 5. I clap and cheer and little. He responds back with a "go Mike". I think he's in 3rd, but not far behind and looking damn strong and focused. I sense he's ready to take control of the race.
I see 1 guy way ahead and over the next 4 miles slowly reel him in. He's in the 40-45 AG and Quebequois (French Canadian). His name was Thierry (Guertin). I start up a conversation and we end up running mostly together and chatting on and off for about 8 miles or so. Wow, that makes the run go by much easier. Ultimately it's a relatively easy run pace, like a training run.
Around mile 8 or so, we catch 1 guy walking...38y/o... I think its' Justin Henkel. I've never met him so I can;t comment on what happened. He's a very fast former pro and was a real threat. Maybe over biked, nutrition, hard to say. Stuff happens. He must have killed the bike. But looks like he's done for the day. Up ahead I see a light blue trisuit... I'm floored. I'm thinking no, way, it must be a pro or female with a similar girly light blue race kit (unlike my totally masculine purple one). We next catch the leader in 40-45. 1 mile later I pass Scott walking up a hill. I honestly feel bad. Even a Kona slot is slipping away for him and he was on pace to win the AG. That is not the way I ever wanted to beat him in a race. I honestly had dreamed of the opportunity to be side by side most of the run in a real dual. I later find out the bee sting made his foot totally numb. He toughs it out for a 10:30. I honestly figured he had DNF'd. Nothing wrong with trowing in the towel when a Kona slot is gone, there's nothing to gain, and you've done this race 3 times before. But huge props to him to toughing it out and finishing.
State Street is rocking. Hard not to run too fast here. I see my friends Barb & Mark dressed in purple (great idea for those shorts I know what to look for). Hard to even hear them.
Around mile 10 Joe Morrow streaks past. Met him on Facebook. Told him that he's the leader of the AG now. I think he's totally shocked. I tell him good luck, he's killing it.... but of course wonder if he'll blow up. At the end of lap 1 turn round I get confused, read the sign wrong (not sure why there was no volunteer standing there... folks are a bit tired that late in the race and not thinking clearly). I start heading down the finish chute (ahead of the 1st pro mind you). I go 20 yards in and realize oops... this isn't right and turn around. I catch back up to my runny buddy.
Thierry and I run together through about mile 14 or so and I slowly pulled away on a couple downhills and never saw him again. I find out he faded really bad and just missed a KQ finishing in 6th. That's hard. Great guy. The next few miles are a blur but my quads were getting tight. around mile 15 I get a hamstring cramp. I literally say out loud "no,no,on,no,no. no". No way my dreams and ending here. Hell no. I massage it out while walking a few steps (always keep going forward). It calms down and I continue on at a slightly slower pace.
Aide station get more challenging with lap traffic. Downhills hurt, my quads are getting really tight and inside my thighs feel on the edge of cramping. But I try and think positive thought, keep my form together, keep my legs going. It's different than 70.3. In 70.3 racing and Olympic, it's a cardo limiter and fatigue together. You are just tired, worn out, energy levels are low, legs lose their sharpness. But in this case, leg fatigue was incredible. Not cramping, just very, very sore. My energy levels were great. I wasn't thirsty or hungry. Stomach was taking whatever I could put down. My mind wanted me to run faster. My internal governer said it was time to go faster and run that negative split. But my legs couldn't do it.
The shock to me was that my hamstrings were tight, but my calves, Plantaar faciitis, shin splits and hip flexor issues I'd had here and there in training were fine, perfectly fine. Hell, my calves aren't even sore. Makes me wonder if I'm running differently somehow off the bike than I do in training.
NUTRITION - I tried to grab all the fluids I could. My stomach was a bottomless pit and seemed unaffected by when I put down. I usually drank 2 waters (probably 2oz per cup) and 1-2 performs or coke. I also ate 1 gel each hour and ate 3 banana halves and even munched on some grapes at one point. I really think my cramping, given all I was eating, was neuromuscular not biochemical. Meaning not electrolytes. Rather lack of the right training stimulus for those muscles. I think more strength training and hill repeats will help the next time. I think the seated climbing possibly took it's toll as well.
I take ice at most aide station and dump it down my suit. The hles in my Kinvaras seem ot work well. I never notice major squish.
Due to the hamstring cramps and quads shutting down, my pace clearly started dropping around mile 18. I was shocked later looking at my file and seeing I only slowed by about 0:30-0:40/mi. felt like 1:00. Now it's just going aide station to aide station, yelling on your left even though your barely passing folks on their first laps. I see 3 motorcycles with the lead males between them up ahead. Daniel battling for the win. I shout "Go Daniel, Kill it!" as loud as I can over the crowds cheering. I know he's going to win.
SIDENOTE... The pros put on a great show in both IMWI & IMKY with epic battles for the win in the final pro races for these awesome events.
It's survival mode. I'm getting to the line damit. Gone too far to fall apart now. The mile tick by slower and slower now. I'm holding steady at 8:00-8:15 pace. I'm still running up the hills...if you call baby steps up hills running. Downhills are brutal but I embrass the pain and let it fly. Free speed and my hamstring don't care about downhills.
1 hour left.. I can run 1 hour. NBD. 10k left. I can run a 10k... that what people say? Yup. that what you end up thinking. 5.2mi, 4.2mi, 3.2mi.... just 5k.
Around 2.5 miles out I hear someone yell in a vice as deep and loud as Mike Reilly (I'ts Aaron Apter from Facebook) "How bad do you want Kona!". I literally yell out "ahhhhhhh" as loud as I can and pump my fists together.
24mi mark and you are heading back into town. You start to feel the emotion. All those training days, all that work, time, laps in the pool, miles on the trainer in the basement, running in heat, cold, snow, treadmills. Whats more, there was the pressure and anxiety. This was really my only shot... yes another "one shot at Kona". But I'm not as talented as others in my age group and I can't commit this amount of training year in, year out. This was it. That was my chance. My 1st IM and I know I had to probably go 9:45 or better. And here I am. I'm doing it. It's so close. Almost tearing up. I'm 1/2 smiling, half grimacing in pain. My legs are gone, totally gone, I'm rubbing out cramps every 1/4 mile but not stopping. I skip the last aide station, it's crowded and hell, what's the difference now.
Last 1/2 mile!!!! It's uphill, but the crowds are there, I've got this. It's the same road I ran with my daughter Sat. morning in ironkids... I think I'm running the same 8:30 pace she was. I start to soak it in and I'm clapping and smiling. 1/4 mile and there's special needs and the last turn to the end of the lap. I didn't even have a bag there.
The last 100y is awesome. You're a rock star! You finished...high 5's to the crowd as I jog it in. Both fists in the air and I'm yelling, shouting. (I need to find that video). And I hear it... "Mike Girard, you are, an Ironman".... and I'm going to Kona! I'm still standing, but not by much.
RUN TIME: 3:21:16
FINAL TIME 9:37:34
15th overall
4th amateur
2nd 35-39
Took a bit to find my wife and friends... It so loud and my voice was gone at the finish, that I had to get a stranger to go bring them over 100' away. Then I kneeled down to get a photo with my daughter and needed 2 people to lift me up...I had nothing in my legs. Finally I saw Daniel Bretscher...IM champion Daniel Bretscher... 200' away and tried to yell his name... as I couldn't jog over there... Great now I know what it's like to be like 90 years old. Congratulated him and got a picture with him. Was such a huge help riding the course with the champ. He trained his ass off and it paid off.
Looking at my results, it's just like my friend Josh Madsen says, I just get stronger as the day goes on. 87th out of the water (including pros), 22nd off the bike, 15th at the line. I passed Thomas Gerlach out there. I told him "Great effort Thomas, great effort". I knew he laid it all out there to get 6th place or better. The pros race a different race than the amateurs. No shame in a DNF for them...or anyone in this long race. But there he was finishing it up walking it in. He's raced I think almost every weekend since April. Insane!
.... And now I understand. Why people do this. Nothing like it. Yes the NBC coverage of Kona I've watched 10 times in my basement on the trainer believe it or not really does capture some of the reality of racing when he asks "Why this race, this distance". I've won a local Olympic race and that's really cool, being in the lead and winning. But nothing like this. The most amazing athletic achievement of my life by a huge margin an all around my best race of the year in execution and pacing. Not a dream race and I have a faster race still in me. But on that day, I nailed it.
I got a chance to chat with Joe Marrow and the other guys in our age group.
TRAINING - You can check out my blog. But I'll give you simple the summary. Self coached. I used the Traininpeaks Virtual Coach as a guide and was a "Student of Slowtwitch" and learned a lot by reading and consulting with other fast age group athletes. Another fast guy, Scott Bowe told me that long rides were really important and why. It made sense, so I changed my plan and threw in a few more long rides. I followed roughly the BarryP plan and only did 1 20 mile run, 1 18 mile run and 1 17 and 2 16 mile runs. Nothing else over 12-14 miles all year. I overcame an Achillies injury back in Feb. and have some lingering plantaar faciitis. Consistency is king. I'm taking a 2nd day completely off in a row for the first time in maybe 3 years. I utilized the Performance Management Chart to guide me in my builds and taper and measure my overall training load using the TSS tools for bike, run and swimming. I ended the season with a FTP of 308, threshold run pace of 5:45, threshold swim (1000yTT) pace of 1:21.5 (in a warm, humid 82-83F pool).
What now? I have a local 1/2 marathon in 5 weeks I'll do. I thought about doing the Des Moines Marathon, but I'm just not interested in an open marathon unless I can focus on just running. I could probably train half heartedly and run maybe suffer through a 2:50. 1/2 marathons are more fun and compliment IM training better.
From there I'll have to put together a schedule. Probably do Pigman 1/2 in August and maybe my wife lets me do NOLA 70.3 with Josh Madsen in April. I won't be in top form. But should be able to put a good race together with what I know now.
Other goal for next season is to take my success and put it towards another fundraising campaign for Lupus Foundation of America. I'll include all the original donors on my trisuit, but add the new ones. This suit is going to be loud. I'm going to find someone that can do something totally custom without ordering 20 suits. My goal... a lofty one, but make it bold enough that I have a shot at making the NBC coverage, at least in a short snapshot. I might get my graphic artist cousin in Michigan to help me possibly.
Phew. do I have any time goal already for Kona... sure. I think I'd like to run sub 3:20 (despite the heat) and bike around 4:45 for a sub 9:20. Not overly ambitious, but realistic. I'll need more power, to swim a lot stronger and maintain the run and acclimate to heat. Sure that's oversimplified. But what the hell.
One last summary of doing an ironman. It's not a hard race, but that's only because you've trained for it. It's a nearly 9 hour SBR training day with a 10k race done with a pair of knives sticking out of your quads.
I'll post some more thoughts later this week.
Run & Ride files for the data geeks like me:
http://www.trainingpeaks.com/av/PCOIM5545SUS5Q54RGZJRZVJMI
http://www.trainingpeaks.com/av/W273AV32FP3VCAMY7XPNKWMLOU
Wow. I can't say much more. Well, if you know me, then your laughing already because you know I can say a lot more than that. But honestly, just sitting down to write this is bringing back some of the same emotions from the last 3 miles on the run, crossing the line, the Kona slot allocation. First was committing to doing a IM. Then signing up, then raising the bar and deciding that I could qualify for Kona. Finally was a full season of training, sacrificing, a few ups and downs, a lot of anxiety of the pressure I put on myself to not only toe the line for my first IM, but to execute well enough to take on some of the best triathletes in the country. I never doubted that I would finish. But stepping off the bike, I was in unknown territory.
Before I get onto the race report, I have to thank a few people. First my wife for supporting me all season. I know it was hard for her to see me spend so much time away from my family chasing after is what we all know is ultimately a selfish pursuit. I tried to find a balance. I think overall I did a good job, but it wasn't easy. 2nd I want to thank my friends Barb & Mark Smidt for coming out this weekend and cheering me on. I could count on seeing them each lap and get updates on my position. Unfortunately I never saw my wife & daughter. They were always standing opposite where I had my visual focus at that moment. But I knew they were there. Finally I want to thank all the individuals and companies that donated to the Lupus Foundation of America, Iowa Chapter.
RACE REPORT:
Pre-Race:
3:00AM = I actually slept pretty well. Woke up a bunch of times, but went back to sleep. I did have a little snack around 3AM, but that wasn't planned. But if you know hotels, you can hear when everyone else is getting up if you below the top floor. All the toilets start flushing and you get the sense that it's time to get
3:45AM - Alarm was set for 3:50, but I'm up and ready to go. Oddly a little less nervous than expected. Do my business get ready eat my prerace meal of a banana, oatmeal, 2% greek yogurt with honey, 16oz of sports drink, some water and a coffee for the road. I carried with me 2 more 16oz bottles of perform for prerace, plus 1 waffle and 1 powergel.
4:25AM - I met up with Brian Gonzales, who I met on Facebook. We stayed at the Sheraton and walked over to the Alliant Center to catch a shuttle. When I'm anxious I talk. So it was great to have someone to talk to on the ride over and walking to transition. Great think about triathlons is that ultimately, we're all at the same event and there's a sense of camaraderie and community. We couldn't have been more polar opposites in overall goal or performance. I'm in awe of folks that can finish an event lasting 15+ hours. We arrived around 4:55, perfect timing. Line wasn't too long.
5:00AM - Set-up went easy. I borrowed a pump from a guy racked next to me, set my bike up, triple checked everything and headed to my transition bags to drop off my watch and pre-open my stinger waffles... and double check my bags... not that I could really do anything about it at this point anyway. Then found a nice spot to sit for a bit, try and take some deep breaths and relax. Hit the restroom one last time and put some more sunscreen on.
6:00AM - made my way to the swim start. Try and contact my wife and meet up with her before dropping my morning bag. I take my time getting my wetsuit bottom on. I'm wearing a borrowed Blue Seventy Helix (thanks again Josh Madsen) for the first time other than a short pool swim. But a Medium-Tall, fits perfect. I send out a last text and drop off my bag. I slip into the rest of the suit and find someone that looks calm and ask them if they can zip up my suit. He obliges and we chat for a bit... because you know me. (now I know where my daughter gets it from).
6:35AM - Get in line for the water. Its' pretty calm. I'm feeling a little better and ready to get going. It's not as chaotic as I thought. Water temp is reported at 71F. Damn near perfect. Feels awesome. I survey the scene. I thought about fighting it out on the buoy line, but it already looks a bit crowded. I instead go to the right of the ski jump. I pull to the left, so I'll slowly curve into clear water with the gap form the ramp. The start line is actually angled slightly, so I think it's not all that much of a longer swim starting wide. I hang on the ski jump for most of the 20 minute wait and chat with the guys around me. Most are slower than my goal, though 1 guys is a low 50 swimmer.
6:58 - the wind/current if pushing us away from the start line which is really good. But I keep having to edge my way onto the front. A few more guys slide towards the front. The tension builds a bit.
6:59 - 1 minute warning. I get into a prone position and scull on my front and get clear water around my body and sort of countdown in my heat. I take deep breaths and relax. I know what I need to do. I've trained or it, I'm fit, I'm ready.
SWIM - Cannon goes off and I put my head down, kick hard, hammer 4 or 5 chopped strokes then take a breath and start stretching it out. I'm clear of the main field and there's a faster swimmer pulled by on my right and a ways over to the left. I keep easing back a bit. I slide just into the draft of a group of 3 or 4 and just hold that pace. It's a pretty relaxed pace, just what I wanted. I'm between 2 swimmers, so there's not a lot of sighting needed. The mass drifts to the left as we near the first turn. It comes up fairly quick. There's a bit of contact but no big deal. I'm about 15' outside of the marker. I'm now seeing the same pick and white cap near me most of the time. The next turn comes up quick. A little more contact this time. and we're onto the main straight.
One beauty of being a stronger swimmer (I still won't call myself fast) is that you get to swim with other strong swimmers that usually swim straight, pace evenly, and make small waves. I look around and it's a large pack of I'd guess 30 or so swimmers stretched out over 10-20 seconds. The pace feels nice and relaxed. I focus on a nice catch and long even stroke, steady kick and try and get into a nice rythem with my kick while still sighting ever 8-10 strokes. I normally breath on my left, but I take a few breaths on my right to take in the view of the Monona Terrace with the early morning light on it and capital building in the background. I haven't done a lot of races, but this is by far.... hands down, the more beautiful swim in the best conditions I've ever been in. I adjust my stroke to swim a little more straight. I keep veering inside the buoys here and there, but not too bad. Part way on the straight I realize that 1) this pack is clearly off the front, and 2) I'm doing my first IM and I'm having a great swim. All anxiety I had about the day disappears and it's replaced with complete confidence. What a perfect way to start the day. If I just sit in here, My guess is that I'll probably swim I think a 58-59. I'm hoping that Scott Iott is 1-2 minute behind but I suspect he's somewhere in this group. I've picked him and another as my main rivals, though you never know who shown up. But I suspect there's a good chance if we both have good days, that I'll be within 3-5 minutes of Scott the entire race.
Before I know it I can see the 3rd turn up ahead. Then the 4th and the final stretch. Now you can sense the excitement building. It gets a little more congested and crowded and the pace seems to pick up. Even with earplugs you can start to hear the crowds and Mike Reilly. Wow... I just swam 2.4 miles and I'm sure it was under 60 minutes. It was the easiest, more relaxed and by far, the best swim I've ever had in my life. Perhaps the most important thing, and it sounds funny, but I burped several times, and didn't suck in any waves.
TIME 59:50
T1
a big pack comes out of the water together so it's a little congested b not bad. Find a wetsuit stripper and drop down, they yank it off and I'm off and running towards the helix with my suit over my shoulder. I have to focus on not running too fast. It's not a 70.3 or Olympic. I get my bag, go to the next room, pull out my glass, put them on, helmet on, grab my shoes, leave my bag, cap, goggles and wetsuit on the chair and volunteer says he's "got it" so I take off. Suprise, suprise, jogging next to me is Scott Iott. He's wearing a light blue race kit not the read one. He asks how the swim went for me. I said really well. We came out of the water 20 seconds apart. I must have ran faster up the helix or something. We run to our bikes, the volunteers help up unrack them (since we have shoes in our hand) and run to the exit. It's a very long transition area. Stop at the line, shoes on and jump on the bike, just behind Scott. This is all too familiar. That's 3 races now we're within 5-10 seconds at the T1 exit.
TIME 5:39
BIKE - 1st lap
We make our way down the helix conservatively and onto the bike path and roll past some "Fish". Pretty spread out. Out onto the stick, it's a light headwind. My power plan has me around 215-220 with 225-230 for a headwind. Scott's pace is pushing that a bit, especially up the hills. I try and get nice and aero, relaxed. As usual I wait about 15 minutes to drink anything to make sure any air or lake water is settled out of my stomach. I finally just let Scott go and stick to my plan. He's heard my boast of riding under 5 hours. He looks like he's on pace for it. I know that I tend to get stronger as the ride goes on. The power feels easy, and my legs feel strong, but my energy isn't there yet. I keep passing "fish" and 1 or 2 faster riders go past. I pass a couple pro females I think. I suspect one of them is of course Thomas Brunold. But I don't know what he looks like. Doesn't matter since he's in a different age group.
I turn off the stick and I'm all alone, and had to double check that I turned the right way. It's already a lonely ride. I settle in for a mostly lonely stretch to Mt. Horeb. But it's also one of my favorite stretches.
I hit Garfoot and take it a little conservative the first time down, plus there's a car on the course going the other way. I rail through the turns. Through Cross Plains, get another bottle. I nailing all my exchanges so far. I'm only carrying 1 regular cage plus an aero bottle as a reserve.
The 3 sisters section goes well. I just ride to my power. Easy. Really no big deal. a 39-28 keeps my around 75-80RPM at 280-310 watts or about 90-100% FTP. One pro female stands up and attacks the hills. I almost asked her if she was sure that was a good idea. She had to have been at 150% going up that hill. I just sit and spin up and make sure I don't ride too hard. The crowd were amazing. The typical comment was "your making it look easy". An truthfully, it was easy. That's how it should be. If your breathing hard at any point, you will pay for it on the run. Verona is slightly downhill and fast! That's the only time I missed a bottle exchange, but i got the 2nd. The streets are smooth and wide and you feel like a rock start rolling through at 25+ mph.
NUTRITION - I actually exceed my target slightly and consume about 124oz of Perform, maybe 6oz of water, 6 powergels, 2 stinger waffles. I eat about 2240 calories, or about 430 calories per hour. Stomach felt good overall the whole way. Never hungry, never sloshing or too full. I just kept taking food. Perfect. Maybe the most important element to IM racing. They say it's the 4th discipline in long course. So far, I seem to be nailing it.
Bike - 2nd lap
I start lap 2 and I see Scott Iott up ahead. So I'm sort of hoping that maybe he went out too fast and is already in trouble. A few miles later I pass him and he tells me he got stung by a bee. I'm like...damn that sucks, but it turns out the impact of that was detrimental. Just like getting a flat, mechanical, crash... that's not how you want to beat someone. I want to win because everyone showed up and had their best race that day. Pretty soon we're into a group of 4 riders. We hit the rollers going into Mt Horeb and it's yo-yoing really bad. I feel like the overall effort is too low, so I finally roll past the group... look down and see 360W... and it jumps to 400W cresting a hill-watts....Ugh...not good. I settle in at the lead. A few hills later Scott rolls around and asks how I'm feeling. I settle in behind him and try to hold what I thing is 7m... or 4-5 bike lengths. We hit another roller and I ease off but roll up just into his draft zone. I do the wrong thing and let myself roll back and hope it goes unnoticed. In reality I'm supposed to either 1) ride 350-400W to pass him or 2) anticipate the hill and open my gap as large as needed to stay out of his draft. I do neither and guess what.... there's an official wit ha stopwatch. Say I was in the draft zone for 1 minute... so not just a stop and go, it's a red card. F***! I told her I though that was still 7m... and after the race one of the others guys through that was marginal too. But it's illegal to argue and honestly I'd rather so them calling it tight then no officals at all. I saw more officals in that race than I've seen in maybe all my triathlons combined. But that's what happens when your at the front of the race going for Kona slot. Fair enough, I should know better. She nicely explains I have to report to the next tent. It's my first penalty ever.
When I pass Scott again on a hill after Mt. Horeb. I tell him about the penalty.. he got a good laughs. I tell him "like you needed a 4 minute head start on the run". I love racing with these guys. Serious, focused but can have a good time doing it. Honestly, if it was legal, I would have just assumed ride side by side up most of the climbs and chatted with a few of these guys. Actually, now that I've done an Ironman, draft legal would make for a race that's more fun with some really interesting tactics. A lot of time the race just felt like a long training day, except for the crowds, aide stations, transitions and timing chip.
I pushed the pace and took a few risks on the descent on Garfoot and pushed the pace just a bit on the flat section to Cross Plains.... and stopped at the penalty tent. Duhm...duh, duhm, duhm, daaahhhhm. I told them I got pinched for drafting, red card. She hit the stop watch and set it on my seat. I stretched out got a drink and chatted with them for a bit. They were glad I wasn't all pissy and complaining about it. Hey, its' part of racing. You either ride far away from people, or take that risk. about 30 seconds later I see Scott roll past.
Over the next 30 minutes I put down my highest wattage of the whole ride and sail through the sister. I have tons of energy, feeling good and the crowds are now really thick and your hitting lapped riders. I feel almost guilty just spinning up, hitting my watts, eating a gel, getting a drink (no aero penalty to refuel up steep hills). I never stand up on the climbs other than to stretch out a little over the top.
I make the turn onto the stick and I'm all alone.... like really alone. Feeling a little tired finally. But legs are still strong overall. We have a tailwind now so I take it easy and hold the watts a little lower. Looks like I'll ride just over 5:05 but under 5:10. I'm good with that with the penalty. I pass 2 or 3 female pros, but otherwise see nobody for 40 minutes. I have clear road for the turns around Alliant Center and the bike path. I go a little aggressive, but not too crazy. I get 1/2 way up the helix and realize I forget to get out of my shoes. oops. I hit the dismount like a little fast as usual, but stay on my feet. I head indoors.
Looking at my numbers later... I laid it out there on the bike. If I rode any harder, I'd definitely been walking at the end.
TIME 5:08
NP - 231W
AP - 220W
IF - 0.75 (FTP 308)
VI - 1.05
TSS - 286
T2
It's a ghost town. Almost a little weird being the only one there. A room full of chairs and there's like 5 volunteers trying to help me. The volunteers are awesome all day. Really ,really awesome. I say thanks at every intersection on the bike the last 15 miles on the stick.
I Get my bag go to the next room and find a seat. No real rush. I'm pretty sure I'm 2nd or 3rd in my AG at this point. I have to "redo" one sock that was crooked. Shoes on, volunteer puts my number belt on me, puts on my visor, hands me my watch... and I'm out of there.
TIME: 2:36
RUN
The race has finally started. My watch is still finding GPS signals, but it's pretty clear I'm running almost like it's a 70.3. Whoah...there horsey. I keep easing back, and try and find a pace that feels like a easy training run. The next segment is mostly down hill, but I ultimately think I ran just a little too fast those opening miles and will pay for it later. A 7:20-7:30 feels comfortable. The dream of killing a 3:05-3:10 seem unrealistic. I'm confident a solid 3:15-3:20 will guarantee a Kona a slot at this point.
I pass Daniel Bretscher going the other way around I think mile 4 or 5. I clap and cheer and little. He responds back with a "go Mike". I think he's in 3rd, but not far behind and looking damn strong and focused. I sense he's ready to take control of the race.
I see 1 guy way ahead and over the next 4 miles slowly reel him in. He's in the 40-45 AG and Quebequois (French Canadian). His name was Thierry (Guertin). I start up a conversation and we end up running mostly together and chatting on and off for about 8 miles or so. Wow, that makes the run go by much easier. Ultimately it's a relatively easy run pace, like a training run.
Around mile 8 or so, we catch 1 guy walking...38y/o... I think its' Justin Henkel. I've never met him so I can;t comment on what happened. He's a very fast former pro and was a real threat. Maybe over biked, nutrition, hard to say. Stuff happens. He must have killed the bike. But looks like he's done for the day. Up ahead I see a light blue trisuit... I'm floored. I'm thinking no, way, it must be a pro or female with a similar girly light blue race kit (unlike my totally masculine purple one). We next catch the leader in 40-45. 1 mile later I pass Scott walking up a hill. I honestly feel bad. Even a Kona slot is slipping away for him and he was on pace to win the AG. That is not the way I ever wanted to beat him in a race. I honestly had dreamed of the opportunity to be side by side most of the run in a real dual. I later find out the bee sting made his foot totally numb. He toughs it out for a 10:30. I honestly figured he had DNF'd. Nothing wrong with trowing in the towel when a Kona slot is gone, there's nothing to gain, and you've done this race 3 times before. But huge props to him to toughing it out and finishing.
State Street is rocking. Hard not to run too fast here. I see my friends Barb & Mark dressed in purple (great idea for those shorts I know what to look for). Hard to even hear them.
Around mile 10 Joe Morrow streaks past. Met him on Facebook. Told him that he's the leader of the AG now. I think he's totally shocked. I tell him good luck, he's killing it.... but of course wonder if he'll blow up. At the end of lap 1 turn round I get confused, read the sign wrong (not sure why there was no volunteer standing there... folks are a bit tired that late in the race and not thinking clearly). I start heading down the finish chute (ahead of the 1st pro mind you). I go 20 yards in and realize oops... this isn't right and turn around. I catch back up to my runny buddy.
Thierry and I run together through about mile 14 or so and I slowly pulled away on a couple downhills and never saw him again. I find out he faded really bad and just missed a KQ finishing in 6th. That's hard. Great guy. The next few miles are a blur but my quads were getting tight. around mile 15 I get a hamstring cramp. I literally say out loud "no,no,on,no,no. no". No way my dreams and ending here. Hell no. I massage it out while walking a few steps (always keep going forward). It calms down and I continue on at a slightly slower pace.
Aide station get more challenging with lap traffic. Downhills hurt, my quads are getting really tight and inside my thighs feel on the edge of cramping. But I try and think positive thought, keep my form together, keep my legs going. It's different than 70.3. In 70.3 racing and Olympic, it's a cardo limiter and fatigue together. You are just tired, worn out, energy levels are low, legs lose their sharpness. But in this case, leg fatigue was incredible. Not cramping, just very, very sore. My energy levels were great. I wasn't thirsty or hungry. Stomach was taking whatever I could put down. My mind wanted me to run faster. My internal governer said it was time to go faster and run that negative split. But my legs couldn't do it.
The shock to me was that my hamstrings were tight, but my calves, Plantaar faciitis, shin splits and hip flexor issues I'd had here and there in training were fine, perfectly fine. Hell, my calves aren't even sore. Makes me wonder if I'm running differently somehow off the bike than I do in training.
NUTRITION - I tried to grab all the fluids I could. My stomach was a bottomless pit and seemed unaffected by when I put down. I usually drank 2 waters (probably 2oz per cup) and 1-2 performs or coke. I also ate 1 gel each hour and ate 3 banana halves and even munched on some grapes at one point. I really think my cramping, given all I was eating, was neuromuscular not biochemical. Meaning not electrolytes. Rather lack of the right training stimulus for those muscles. I think more strength training and hill repeats will help the next time. I think the seated climbing possibly took it's toll as well.
I take ice at most aide station and dump it down my suit. The hles in my Kinvaras seem ot work well. I never notice major squish.
Due to the hamstring cramps and quads shutting down, my pace clearly started dropping around mile 18. I was shocked later looking at my file and seeing I only slowed by about 0:30-0:40/mi. felt like 1:00. Now it's just going aide station to aide station, yelling on your left even though your barely passing folks on their first laps. I see 3 motorcycles with the lead males between them up ahead. Daniel battling for the win. I shout "Go Daniel, Kill it!" as loud as I can over the crowds cheering. I know he's going to win.
SIDENOTE... The pros put on a great show in both IMWI & IMKY with epic battles for the win in the final pro races for these awesome events.
It's survival mode. I'm getting to the line damit. Gone too far to fall apart now. The mile tick by slower and slower now. I'm holding steady at 8:00-8:15 pace. I'm still running up the hills...if you call baby steps up hills running. Downhills are brutal but I embrass the pain and let it fly. Free speed and my hamstring don't care about downhills.
1 hour left.. I can run 1 hour. NBD. 10k left. I can run a 10k... that what people say? Yup. that what you end up thinking. 5.2mi, 4.2mi, 3.2mi.... just 5k.
Around 2.5 miles out I hear someone yell in a vice as deep and loud as Mike Reilly (I'ts Aaron Apter from Facebook) "How bad do you want Kona!". I literally yell out "ahhhhhhh" as loud as I can and pump my fists together.
24mi mark and you are heading back into town. You start to feel the emotion. All those training days, all that work, time, laps in the pool, miles on the trainer in the basement, running in heat, cold, snow, treadmills. Whats more, there was the pressure and anxiety. This was really my only shot... yes another "one shot at Kona". But I'm not as talented as others in my age group and I can't commit this amount of training year in, year out. This was it. That was my chance. My 1st IM and I know I had to probably go 9:45 or better. And here I am. I'm doing it. It's so close. Almost tearing up. I'm 1/2 smiling, half grimacing in pain. My legs are gone, totally gone, I'm rubbing out cramps every 1/4 mile but not stopping. I skip the last aide station, it's crowded and hell, what's the difference now.
Last 1/2 mile!!!! It's uphill, but the crowds are there, I've got this. It's the same road I ran with my daughter Sat. morning in ironkids... I think I'm running the same 8:30 pace she was. I start to soak it in and I'm clapping and smiling. 1/4 mile and there's special needs and the last turn to the end of the lap. I didn't even have a bag there.
The last 100y is awesome. You're a rock star! You finished...high 5's to the crowd as I jog it in. Both fists in the air and I'm yelling, shouting. (I need to find that video). And I hear it... "Mike Girard, you are, an Ironman".... and I'm going to Kona! I'm still standing, but not by much.
RUN TIME: 3:21:16
FINAL TIME 9:37:34
15th overall
4th amateur
2nd 35-39
Took a bit to find my wife and friends... It so loud and my voice was gone at the finish, that I had to get a stranger to go bring them over 100' away. Then I kneeled down to get a photo with my daughter and needed 2 people to lift me up...I had nothing in my legs. Finally I saw Daniel Bretscher...IM champion Daniel Bretscher... 200' away and tried to yell his name... as I couldn't jog over there... Great now I know what it's like to be like 90 years old. Congratulated him and got a picture with him. Was such a huge help riding the course with the champ. He trained his ass off and it paid off.
Looking at my results, it's just like my friend Josh Madsen says, I just get stronger as the day goes on. 87th out of the water (including pros), 22nd off the bike, 15th at the line. I passed Thomas Gerlach out there. I told him "Great effort Thomas, great effort". I knew he laid it all out there to get 6th place or better. The pros race a different race than the amateurs. No shame in a DNF for them...or anyone in this long race. But there he was finishing it up walking it in. He's raced I think almost every weekend since April. Insane!
.... And now I understand. Why people do this. Nothing like it. Yes the NBC coverage of Kona I've watched 10 times in my basement on the trainer believe it or not really does capture some of the reality of racing when he asks "Why this race, this distance". I've won a local Olympic race and that's really cool, being in the lead and winning. But nothing like this. The most amazing athletic achievement of my life by a huge margin an all around my best race of the year in execution and pacing. Not a dream race and I have a faster race still in me. But on that day, I nailed it.
I got a chance to chat with Joe Marrow and the other guys in our age group.
TRAINING - You can check out my blog. But I'll give you simple the summary. Self coached. I used the Traininpeaks Virtual Coach as a guide and was a "Student of Slowtwitch" and learned a lot by reading and consulting with other fast age group athletes. Another fast guy, Scott Bowe told me that long rides were really important and why. It made sense, so I changed my plan and threw in a few more long rides. I followed roughly the BarryP plan and only did 1 20 mile run, 1 18 mile run and 1 17 and 2 16 mile runs. Nothing else over 12-14 miles all year. I overcame an Achillies injury back in Feb. and have some lingering plantaar faciitis. Consistency is king. I'm taking a 2nd day completely off in a row for the first time in maybe 3 years. I utilized the Performance Management Chart to guide me in my builds and taper and measure my overall training load using the TSS tools for bike, run and swimming. I ended the season with a FTP of 308, threshold run pace of 5:45, threshold swim (1000yTT) pace of 1:21.5 (in a warm, humid 82-83F pool).
What now? I have a local 1/2 marathon in 5 weeks I'll do. I thought about doing the Des Moines Marathon, but I'm just not interested in an open marathon unless I can focus on just running. I could probably train half heartedly and run maybe suffer through a 2:50. 1/2 marathons are more fun and compliment IM training better.
From there I'll have to put together a schedule. Probably do Pigman 1/2 in August and maybe my wife lets me do NOLA 70.3 with Josh Madsen in April. I won't be in top form. But should be able to put a good race together with what I know now.
Other goal for next season is to take my success and put it towards another fundraising campaign for Lupus Foundation of America. I'll include all the original donors on my trisuit, but add the new ones. This suit is going to be loud. I'm going to find someone that can do something totally custom without ordering 20 suits. My goal... a lofty one, but make it bold enough that I have a shot at making the NBC coverage, at least in a short snapshot. I might get my graphic artist cousin in Michigan to help me possibly.
Phew. do I have any time goal already for Kona... sure. I think I'd like to run sub 3:20 (despite the heat) and bike around 4:45 for a sub 9:20. Not overly ambitious, but realistic. I'll need more power, to swim a lot stronger and maintain the run and acclimate to heat. Sure that's oversimplified. But what the hell.
One last summary of doing an ironman. It's not a hard race, but that's only because you've trained for it. It's a nearly 9 hour SBR training day with a 10k race done with a pair of knives sticking out of your quads.
I'll post some more thoughts later this week.
Run & Ride files for the data geeks like me:
http://www.trainingpeaks.com/av/PCOIM5545SUS5Q54RGZJRZVJMI
http://www.trainingpeaks.com/av/W273AV32FP3VCAMY7XPNKWMLOU
Wednesday, September 3, 2014
Ironman Wisconsin Here I Come!
Well it's here. The road top Kona passes through Madison, WI this weekend. In 96 hours I'll be nearing the end of the swim. Probably thinking WTF did I get myself into. 806! That's the number of hours I will have trained from Sept 10th 2013 through Friday morning. That's right around 2h15m per day on average. That's not really so bad when you consider most Americans watch that much TV. So there you go everyone has enough time to train for an Ironman. It's just a matter of having the commitment and resolve to push yourself through to the get to the start line prepared and make it to the finish line.
I'm ready. I'm mentally prepared to rub elbows the first 400y, just keep rolling buoy to buoy through the swim, nice and relaxed, execute my power and nutrition plan on the bike then find a steady pace on the run and push on through to the finish line. While I'm interested in the position of my competition, I know that ultimately I simply have to put together the best race I can and listen to my body. While there's still that small bit of apprehension, especially the swim, overall I know I'm ready and I'm excited to see what I can do. OT prove my fitness and see where 12 months... and really the last 4 seasons of training have taken me.
My projected splits (factoring in current weather forecasts):
Swim: 58:00-1:02
Bike: 5:00-5:10
Run: 3:09-3:20
Transitions are about 7 to 8'.
Finish time prediction: 9:16-9:40.
Yes, that's a very wide range. But it's my first, and who knows how the day unfolds. Odds are I go just under 9:30, but with good weather conditions, everyone else will be fast too.
I also don't want to forget that I'll by wearing my Lupus race kit as usual. This time on my biggest stage of the year.
Thank-yous:
Huge thanks to my wife & daughter for putting up with my training this last year.
Special thanks to my friend Barb & Mark Smidt who will be cheering my on this weekend.
Thank you to Josh Madsen for being a good friend, all the support and loaning my his awesome Blue Seventy Helix wetsuit.
Thanks to fast 35-39 age group athlete Scott Bowe for racing and training advice. He'll be in Kona next month killing it.
Thanks to pro Daniel Bretscher again for the afternoon riding the IMWI course and letting my pick your brain a little.
Finally a shout out to all the awesome athletes and great bunch of guys in the 35-39 age group. It's really made racing a lot of fun this year with such amazing, yet friendly competition. I know I've been "poking the bear" all summer. But this weekend, he's the veteran that does this race 4 times before... and I'm just the Iron distance rookie. I expect to be humbled. but look forward to the possibility of a very close race.
Good luck to everyone racing this weekend in Madison!!!
I'm ready. I'm mentally prepared to rub elbows the first 400y, just keep rolling buoy to buoy through the swim, nice and relaxed, execute my power and nutrition plan on the bike then find a steady pace on the run and push on through to the finish line. While I'm interested in the position of my competition, I know that ultimately I simply have to put together the best race I can and listen to my body. While there's still that small bit of apprehension, especially the swim, overall I know I'm ready and I'm excited to see what I can do. OT prove my fitness and see where 12 months... and really the last 4 seasons of training have taken me.
My projected splits (factoring in current weather forecasts):
Swim: 58:00-1:02
Bike: 5:00-5:10
Run: 3:09-3:20
Transitions are about 7 to 8'.
Finish time prediction: 9:16-9:40.
Yes, that's a very wide range. But it's my first, and who knows how the day unfolds. Odds are I go just under 9:30, but with good weather conditions, everyone else will be fast too.
I also don't want to forget that I'll by wearing my Lupus race kit as usual. This time on my biggest stage of the year.
Thank-yous:
Huge thanks to my wife & daughter for putting up with my training this last year.
Special thanks to my friend Barb & Mark Smidt who will be cheering my on this weekend.
Thank you to Josh Madsen for being a good friend, all the support and loaning my his awesome Blue Seventy Helix wetsuit.
Thanks to fast 35-39 age group athlete Scott Bowe for racing and training advice. He'll be in Kona next month killing it.
Thanks to pro Daniel Bretscher again for the afternoon riding the IMWI course and letting my pick your brain a little.
Finally a shout out to all the awesome athletes and great bunch of guys in the 35-39 age group. It's really made racing a lot of fun this year with such amazing, yet friendly competition. I know I've been "poking the bear" all summer. But this weekend, he's the veteran that does this race 4 times before... and I'm just the Iron distance rookie. I expect to be humbled. but look forward to the possibility of a very close race.
Good luck to everyone racing this weekend in Madison!!!
Monday, September 1, 2014
Weekly Wrap-up 09/01/14
Week 2 of Taper down. Last 5 days of workouts left.
By the Numbers:
Swim: 2h51m, 12,300y
Bike: 9h32m, 205.7mi
Run: 4h21m, 33.5mi
Total: 165mm
Tss: 1088
The numbers are a little high as I had to defer my last longer ride to Monday. Over, it's still a long slow descent that will accelerate the last 4 days. So mostly maintaining.
My legs feel pretty good overall. My test swim in the he borrowed Helix felt great. Swim feels strong, a 7:15 run pace feels comfortable and 230w is easy. I'm feeling more excited than nervous. I'm sure that will jump back and forth.
Just 11 workouts left not including the 3 I did today. I'll swim and bike every day but skip running wed, but will have a "harder" bike session.
I'll post 1 final pre-race post and go over final strategies. I will add that I'm now paying less attention to my rivals and more on execution and making it to lap 2 of the run. My race starts there I think.
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