Tim Cronk IMCZ DNF Report
http://members.endurancenation.us/Training/TrainingForums/tabid/101/aft/10242/Default.aspx
Here is the link to my IMCZ race plan. I was tempted not to publish a plan thinking it may jinx my race. It is what it is and that is completely silly. That plan and the responses to it are a very good example of why you should do them. Even though I did not get the results I was looking for I learned way too much just from that step of the process and will continue to do them. Its a tremendous learning tool.
Next is my Race Report and the next step in the learning process.
Coz Overall... Bit of a pain to get to with flight, bus, ferry, or a more expensive flight. There is a language barrier which makes travel , and race week a bit more complicated and confusing. They have everything spread out , package pick-up , T1 , T2, must attend briefing, dinner, rolldown are all in different locations spread over 6-8 miles , making it again complicated and hard to relax. The course itself is absolutely stunning!
As stated in the plan my goal was KQ in the 50-54 AG with a10:15 or better. I was definitely ready with my highest w/kg ratio , Vdot , more educated , experienced , and mentally prepared than in my previous 4 IM's. Was feeling great , well tapered , rested, and ready to race! Turns out 3rd place was 10:12 and I dont know how many slots there were probably only 2. None of that matters anyway I just needed to know if my math made sense and I was close in my race plan.
PreRace--- Got there tuesday. Weds- ran 5 miles with Jim and Carl. Thurs - swam 20 minutes with Jim , rode 1 loop 40 miles with Jim and Carl at .60 with 2x2' at the end of .9 . Fri- swam 30 min at venue , ran 30 min. Sat- rode one loop on the run course 8 miles from hotel extremely easy (this was unplanned but needed to test brakes from messing with them friday and garmin 500 was acting up ). Garmin 500 was turning on and getting stuck on Garmin screen never aquiring satelites. This happened to me once back home and Jim said it happened to him down there. After recharging appeared to work normal. This still changed my plan from using 310xt only on the run to wearing it in multisport mode the entire race. Nothing big but a last minute change non the less. I felt the training was all done very easy with very short bursts of intensity and good for course familiarity all done at the approximate time of day I would be racing. The only exception , thurs was a longer ride than I would have liked and maybe a fatigue factor for my back on sunday but I kinda doubt it. Saturday was low key ,carbo load day with exception of trip to drop of bike at T1. While at T1 I decided to leave bike shoes in bag and put them on in tent even though I had a long way to run. Most of the transition had carpet paths but there was still sections of sand not covered. This was a good move.
Raceday- Up 3:30. Eat . Coffee , taxi at 5:10 , at T1 by 5:20 , all set up , scoped out paths from swim exit, to bags, to tent, to bike, to bike mount, and backwards a couple more times.
Swim--- Goal 1:10 Actual 1:18 19th out of 123 or top 15%. IMMT was top 18% and IMFL was top 13% so I was right the ballpark . The swim is beautiful, 100% visibility, see bottom the whole time, divers in the water along the course, 2 submarines 1 at each turn around. Awesome course. After the pro's go they line you up to enter the dock area over the timing matt. The dolphin show is going on while we enter. About 6:45 everyone is jumping in and lining up. The first leg is into the current and you have to keep swiming forward just to stay in place. There were several times everyone moved at the same time feeling like it was the start. This was very confusing and I actually started my multisport mode 310xt 4 min early because of the confusion. Lined up middle , near the front , official start , swam steady and hard the entire swim, constant contact the entire swim, never violent or too rude like other swims , but constantly in a group and touching people , never alone. First leg into current not bad, made the turn , then the next turn going down current, wholly smokes , were flying across the bottom, the buoys are going by like picket fences, we are going to pay for this later, reverse course yet again , back into the current for the last leg, the winds had picked up, making current stronger, and water very choppy, it felt like swimming up river, or in an endless pool, you could see the bottom and you werent moving very fast, the buoys took forevery to go by , we were paying now. Finally swim exit. Set of stairs with no rails, one step below surface, you have to turn around , sit on first step then get up and run up the stairs. People were tired and moving very slow or walking. Had to run around them. Looked at watch and disappointed but not a bit surprised. Stay within your box. Cant change it. Everyone had the same swim. keep moving. T1. They say over 300 people were pulled from the water for not making the 2:20 cut off or not making forward motion for 20 minutes or longer. I feel pretty good about that swim.
T1---Goal 4min Actual 3:34--- 200 meter run to bags and tent , had to step on a little sand , in tent , race belt on , shoes on , helmet and glasses in hand, go , by the time got to bike helmet and glasses on , grab bike, run almost another 200 meters to start line, turned on garmin 500 on the way , works good, still used multisport 310xt , glad I had shoes on cause had to run a couple sandy sections and already had a little sand on feet in shoes now. Awesome T1.
Bike---Goal 5:15 NP 170 IF .74 , Actual 5:25 NP 161 IF .70 , This was good enough for 4th place bike split in my AG even though its the lowest NP/IF/TSS I have ever ridden. Start pedaling , dial up 170w , drink, eat, go to work. Immediately I felt a tighness in my lower back muscles. I've had lowback issues in the form of herniated , degenerating disc's and sciatica and this was not that. It was the muscles. Ok it will loosen up when I eat and drink I will sit up stretch every 15 min. Never went away and just gradually got worse. My 30 NP splits went 175,171,172,169,167,163,160,156,150,138,130. I always start just a touch hot and this was no exception but after 30 minutes was in my 170 target window and happy right there for 3 hours .Around 3.5 hr my lower right abdomen joined in on the pain train, as well as my feet from the vibrations of the chipseal road surface on about 15 miles of the course. Power then dropped a bit more, and after 4 hours , I was spending too much time sitting, standing and working my lower back , this was definitely taking its tole on my split in the wind I needed to stay down . All the while my legs felft great it was all in my abdomen and back. I had stayed on my nutrition plan consuming 24-30 oz per hour , around 270 cal per hour, 700 mg salt per hour , no caffeine until 3 hrs. I drank some water which was not planned cause I missed a gatorade bottle, I also did not care for the on course gatorade. Maybe I drank too much sea water? Maybe it was the on course water? Maybe the gatorade? Kept easing up to recover and it recovery never came. Passed a guy at mile 100 who had is feet out of shoes and ontop cause they were burning . I said me too! I noticed passing people on the downwinds, and losing spots into the wind. Even though I was not happy with the way I was riding , others were even more erratic. The last 1.5 hrs I slowed down the fluid and calorie intake along with intensity due to my stomach. I was still able to pee twice once at 3 hours and once at 5 hrs. Regardless of why I was not happy with my bike at all. Ok its over. Stay in your box. Work it out on the run. Everyone had the same bike. T2. Go. Saw Heather on first 2 laps of the bike , she was out on the run now waiting. http://connect.garmin.com/activity/247530981
T2---Goal 2 min Actual 1:59...yep beat by a second LOL. Hand bike to volunteer, run to bag, slight delay, grab bag, tent, socks shoes, visor and flask in hand , go. Fast and happy....
Run---Goal 3:45 Actual DNF---Felt like shit, keep moving, it will work itself out, go slow. Started 10:30 pace , saw Heather told her I dont feel good, keep moving , 1/2 mile slow, walk 30 steps, first aid station ice in front on abdomen, and in back , run slow, walk, try to drink, eat, repeat. Go slower. Repeat. Nothing is working. This went of for almost 6 miles at average 10:20ish pace average. Was able to pee twice during this death march. I tried to puke. Nope. Tried bowel movement. Nope. Nothing was working. By now the "race" is over , its OK just walk until you feel better. Started walking just before mile 6 and by mile 7 I was done. Even walking my stomach and back hurt, and now I felt dizzy, nauseous, low blood pressure, flu like, or heat exhaustion which didnt make sense since I wasnt working that hard nor was it that hot. I wasnt throwing up or having the trots but I didnt want any fluid or food. Heather realized something was wrong and walked down course to meet me around mile 8. I said I'm done take me to our room and get me on the bed. She was thinking I would go back out but it never happened. I layed down for an hour, sipping nuun. Got up took shower, was gonna walk to finish .25miles turn in chip and pick up bike, nope , lay back down, another half hour, ok try again, made it this time. Stomach and back still hurt to walk. Turn in chip, get bike to TBT, pick up some plain noodles , back to room, nibble and sip , til around 10pm. Couple more pee's nice and light in color. Felt a little better and lights out! My legs felt great the whole time its really a bummer I didnt get to see what I had in them. I was racing IMCZ about 4lbs lighter than my recent 1/2 marathon PR which had netted a new vdot and I really wanted to try them out. http://connect.garmin.com/activity/247530756
What went right?--- The swim. Yep happy with that cant complain at all. The transitions look to be 2nd best in AG at least against the top 10 guys. Happy you betcha! That is my silver lining!
What went wrong and why?-- Drink too much sea water? Maybe Water on the bike? maybe Gatorade perform which I didnt like? maybe. GI bug that is being talked about on ST? Maybe. Must read link goes over the swim and the GI bug , commments by locals, a Pro, and some people who have race IMCZ in previous years. http://forum.slowtwitch.com/gforum.cgi?post=4301245;sb=post_latest_reply;so=ASC;forum_view=forum_view_collapsed;;page=unread#unread ; That might explain why I felt flu like or heat exhausted with low BP.... Heather thinks I may have raced too lean? Because of the location of the pain on my lower back I thought maybe something wrong with kidneys, but since I could pee, and the pain was there early in the day its low on the scale.
What to Change or Address? Going to the doctor to check abdomen and lower back go over issues. Not gonna ride 2 hrs 3 days before race no matter how easy. Race rehearsals of the future will be full boat day before nutrition, early bf, full swim , full bike, 6 mile run, day rest before and after is easy to recover from and worth it for me. May do a Core Diet consult although Nutrition has always been my strong point.
How do I feel? --- I'm type A. I don't fail. I don't quit. Pretty damn stubborn. So people that know me think I'm pissed, upset, devestated. I am completely fine with my decision. It was the right one. Yes its alot of time , money, and energy to use and not get the outcome that you want. Not knowing exactly what went wrong and how to keep it from happening again is my only concern. Its a process. Its not supposed to be easy and when my KQ does happen it will be all the sweeter. Next attempt is IMTX! Physically I feel great. Not running that marathon sure make recovery a piece of cake. My legs felt great the next am. My Not even so much as a wobble up and down stairs or curbs. It reall is that marathon! In fact my upper body felt more fatigue from the swim.
Originally I was going to Cozumel by myself and was just planning on hooking up with EN team members and borrowing thier support for emergencies. I'm 100% sure they would have been there for me if needed. But I sure am happy that Heather had made the decision to come down nf friday. Was very nice to have someone there if you really need them!
Thanks to the entire EN team , those who were at IMCZ, and specially those who took the time to read my race rehearsal and offer thier comments and advice backed with knowledge and experience. I ask for any and all comments or questions any of you may have no matter how small so that we may all learn and move forward!
Thanks Tim
Did I mention my legs feel great? Gonna swim only a couple weeks and take some time off the legs anyway. Gradually build up over a week or 2 and hit the OS for 8-9 weeks hard. 1 easy week. Then 12 week build for IMTX next up!
Comments
Never a doubt that your competitive fires are still stoked, maybe even more so now.
Just a thought on run GI issues, may not apply to you, but this year I altered my nutrition plan from previous successful races (never any GI issues before). Significant changes were Perform instead of Perpetuem as a major calorie source, and higher calorie intake. I used to go in the range of 210-240 cal/hour on the bike, this year was higher. Both races, I threw up on the run, and limped in from there. You, at an even lighter weight than me, may do better at about 200 cal per hour? Give your stomach less to worry about, just enough intake to stave off glycogen depletion for about 8 hours or so.
I'm going back to my old plan next year.
My biggest take-away is how you constantly managed your situation and stayed in the box. Always a hard thing to do when everything is stacked against you. Sorry on the DNF but I think you make the right call at the right time.
Big sorry. But patience is a virtue. We will get it done.
Good idea to see doc.
good idea to not do the long bike thing. Short,brief, intense things only for me race week.
sorting out exact schedule between now and texas for me. At least the 12 week iron plan. Maybe a big bike week in hawaii a week before five weeks from race.
i assume you do core work. Maybe some intense yoga for a while for you?
let us know if you find out the cause of the back and abdomen issues.
Hang tough. I am having a nice rest but itching to get back to it. We just got stand up paddle boards so this will be my swim and core work for a bit.
will follow along with you. And will PM soon with some details.
Guys, what about the National Rally in Tucson as part of the TX build? Sun, dry after a long winter, a couple of climbs up Mt Lemmon, and EN vibes/support.
Nice idea Al. but work/wife vacation schedule/already traveling enough for races/etc.
@Al- Yes I have considered the National Rally. Looks like a blast. I have a short non-training trip planned to AZ in April already so it really doesnt fit. I was originally thinking or hoping for a TX rally but even that doesnt really makes sense to me at this time. Currently I am considering just going to TX 2-2.5 weeks early for acclimation and training on the course. I think this will be most beneficial towards my goal. Not as fun as the rally though!
@P-Thanks. Emotionally I am fine and this will only fuel my fire!
@Tom - Friends until 5/18 7am? Would love to know your plan from here until then? 10:15 is still a huge goal for me considering my best to date is 10:33 but I know I am capable of that and like I told P I have fuel for my fire!
Good luck at IMTX!
I've decided to skip the OS this year and work on my real weakness, the swim, so swim technique and volume, then run consistency - hoping for 5+ days per week and then FT work on the bike to hold fitness. That's my plan and I'mn sticking to it!
Hoping you're taking a lot of time off and pursuing your goal of a 10:16
@Tom. Ok it's time to move this smack talk to the IMTX forum! I don't think your on there yet? So friends until 5/18 at 7am , and competitors until 1 of us finishes , then friends again. Let's say that I am sufficiently scared cause I have followed you for 2 years and talked to Carrie Chavez at IMMT. Good luck with your swimming plan. I'm starting up in earnest this weekend!