Brian Fenlon's IMMT race report overdue
IMMT Race report 2013 Brian Fenlon
I think I’ve held off on writing this report because it marks the definitive end of my Mt Tremblant experience which was a great one for me and my family.
Quick back ground leading up to the race. I am a heavy sweater and I trained in some real hot and humid conditions on both the bike and run prior to the race, leading me to examine my nutrition plan and ultimately revamp it completely about 4 weeks before the race. Probably not recommended but I took a chance and it worked out. I switched from infinit and water to solid food(honey stinger waffles, salt stick pills and ironman perfom (no water at all) on the bike or the run. I felt this gave me a better chance to stay hydrated and strong throughout the day.
I woke at 2:30 had a boathouse protein drink, a bagel with strawberry jam and applesauce, approximately 700-800 cals and went back to bed until 430a.m. Got up, had a cup of coffee and started sipping Gatorade while getting dressed for the race. I also prepared 4 fuel belt bottles with a salt mix(4 salt stick caps and 6-8 oz water per bottle) which I planned to use on the run. Put on race tattoos and sunscreen and headed to transition with my morning bag and special needs bags containing additional honey stinger waffles for bike and 2 of the 4 fuel belt mix bottles for the run.
It was very calm in the transition area. I checked out my bike –tires felt fine didn’t put any air in the rear tire b/c it’s a pain in the ass with the wheel cover on, put my garmin on the bike got satellite info and filled my aero bottle w Gatorade for first part of bike. Also filled my bento bag w honey stinger waffles and a mini tums bottle full - 10 salt caps – this was my wife’s suggestion and worked perfectly.
I checked out my transition bags and put my fuel belt in my bike to run bag. At first I did not like my 1601 bib number but turns out that put me in the front row of bags for both transitions and in a good bike spot - so now I love the number. While checking my bags I ran into my cousins Bob and Jeff Arsenault who were both racing. We wished each other luck on the day and talked about our transition plans for a few minutes before getting back into our own pre-race routines.
I still had 40 minutes to the start so I went back up to my hotel for a bathroom break – at Mt Tremblant there is a mini gondola that goes from the bottom of the village where the transition area and finish line are located to the base of the mountain at the top of the village area. My hotel was right at the base of the mountain so it worked out great. It was awesome seeing my kids, wife and niece getting ready for their day, although my wife was panicked when she saw me walk into the hotel room. She thought something was wrong. Quick visit w the family and then back to the beach for the swim start.
On the way to the swim I saw David Kennedy another EN member. We walked and chatted during the 10 minute walk to the beach. Seeing Dave was a good distraction and helped me relax.
Got to the beach put on my wetsuit and dropped my bags into the special needs bins. Walking away from the bins I realized I still had my slides on – I like them and did not want to have to chase them down later or throw them out so I went
back to the bin and had to almost jump in it to reach my bag and put the slides in..got a few looks but didn’t care.
Back at the beach had to use the bathroom but porta potties mobbed. Got in line for a bathroom located inside the beach house. Timed up perfectly, although I missed the Canadian anthem and the initial flyby. I saw the jets on their return path – pretty cool.
At the start line to see a few waves go off accompanied by fireworks.
When my wave was up, I ended up in the front row. It was an ankle deep start and it seemed like people in my wave were hesitant to be in the front. I just wanted to get the day started. I started my watch timer about 30 sec before the cannon went off so I could tuck it into the sleeve of my wetsuit and not worry about it.
Started the swim and just tried to stay relaxed.. Tried to go straight and ended up on a line pretty tight to the buoys. I breathe primarily to the right so it was fairly easy on the way out to sight directly off the buoys. Got kicked directly in the eye once and had to readjust my goggles but no damage and overall the swim was not too rough. At the turn we headed directly into the sun and it was very difficult to see anything. I tried to stay straight and was able to pick up the 2nd turn buoy and head home. It was on the way back in that I realized the buoys had numbers on them so I was able to count down all the way - 13 buoys I think. I tried to maintain my pace and felt like I was having a solid swim while staying relaxed and kicking very little.
Swim 2.4 mi 1:09:09 1:49/100m 106 div rank 511 overall
Happy to get out of the water, had my wetsuit stripped and started the run to transition – my family was leaning over the fence going crazy…wife Erin, son Jack, daughter Haley and niece Kelly – every time I saw them over the course of the day it gave me a lot of energy!!
Grabbed transition bag put on helmet and cooling sleeves. Grabbed my shoes(no socks) and took off for my bike. Put my shoes on at my bike and ran to the bike mount area.
Swim to Bike transition: 6:09
As soon as I got settled on the bike I drank some Gatorade and ate a waffle. My plan was a waffle and salt cap every 40 minutes and 1 ½ to 2 bottles of perform (30-40 ozs) per hour. I wanted to keep my watts below 190 for the 1st hour and then settle in around 200 for the remainder of the race.
The roads were smooth and fast. There were some long rollers on the highway and I really focused on keeping my watts down on the inclines and accelerating through the crests of the hills and into the descents. I was able to generate some pretty good speed. Heading back to town I was anticipating the climb to lac Superior. I saw my family again and tried to let them know I was doing well. The special needs bike stop was right before the climb and as I pulled up I saw my cousin Jeff pulling in too. I was going to give him a yell but he looked pretty focused and I did not want to distract him. I grabbed a few more waffles and headed up the mountain. On the climb my legs felt great. I did not feel much fatigue and had to fight the urge to stand up and hammer some of the short descents. I kept my cool and let a bunch of people pass me and then was able to get up to speed quickly and fly back down. The split at the end of my 1st loop 56 mi was 2:47. I knew I was having a strong bike and kept reminding myself I still had a marathon to run.
The second loop was more of the same..literally. I peed 4 times on the bike and grabbed water at a few aide stations to rinse off (no socks) and pour some on my cooling sleeves. My nutrition was right on and I continued to feel good - for the whole 2nd loop felt like I was holding back. I was really hoping this would pay off on the run.
I was not worried about the 2nd climb to lac Superior. I road as slowly as I could up some of the steeps and couldn’t wait to hit the turnaround. Seemed a little further this time but I got there. I hit some bike traffic on the way down and had to brake a few times which was frustrating but knowing that I was heading into the bike to run transition I kept my thoughts positive.
Bike split 112 mi 5:41:34 89 div rank 357 overall
I remembered to take my feet out of my bikes shoes on the way into transition and had an easy dismount. Ran into the tent, grabbed my bag and headed to one of the last seats. I asked a volunteer to get my garmin out of my bag and turn it on while I put on socks and sneakers. Garmin on, visor, race belt, fuel belt, sunglasses and I’m off – a little mouthwash felt great and I got some sunscreen on my shoulders, now I’m off….oh wait, I really have to pee. Might as well stop in the tent instead of running out and stopping at the 1st porto potty on the course…now I’m really off
Bike to Run transition 3:25 (would have been faster w/o pee break but well worth it)
My right foot was a little sore but it felt good to be off the bike. My plan was to run 8:30 pace with 20-30 walk at aide stations to get in 6-8 oz of perform and a big squirt from my fuel belt salt mix. 1 gel per hour 2 in first hour.
My run was very consistent, my fueling was good and I saw my family a bunch of times along the way, including my cousin David who was there to support Bob and Jeff. He was cheering me on and giving me updates as well.
Things started to get tough on the 2nd loop but I was focused on maintaining my pace, not speeding up too much and trying not to slow down and I never walked on any of the short hills. Get to mi 18. As I approached 18 I still felt good sped up my pace slightly - I started to look at my watch timer. I knew I had a great shot at hitting my goal of a sub 4 hr marathon which would also put me under 11 hours for the race. I was really starting to look forward to running through the village through the narrow shoot to the finish line.
I started drinking coke at mi 20 and got a pain in my stomach…that went away quickly and I stayed on the coke for the last few aide stations. I started to get emotional once I got past mi 20 and knew I was in great shape. Thinking back on the past year of training and adventures leading up to the race…
Going into the race, I thought I had a good shot to come in under 11:30 and on a good day if I executed my race right would have a shot at 11.
I was able to really enjoy the last few miles of this race knowing I had done things right. As I came to the village I could hear the crowd and started to run hard. There was a guy ahead of me and I thought of backing off and letting him have his own time crossing the finish line… then said “f that” to myself and cruised past him. I saw Paul and Gloria on my way by, Paul leaning on the fence with a bud light in hand…then saw my family screaming, didn’t see Bob but thought I heard him yell.
Crossing the finish line of my 2nd ironman felt great. My mom told me after the race she and my dad where able to see the live stream of my finish. I know they were disappointed they couldn’t be there in person but very happy they saw the finish live.
Run split 26.2 mi 3:53:48 65 div rank 295 overall
Overall 10:54:15 65 div rank 295 overall
IMMT was my 2nd ironman and a PR - 1:18:31 faster than IMLP 2012
PS – Very happy to be lucky enough to race and have the support of my family -Erin, Jack and Haley. I couldn’t do it without you – I love you and thanks for sharing these training and racing adventures with me. Kelly McCann, thanks for putting up with me and my family on this Canadian road trip extravaganza. Mo, thanks for your hospitality and friendship.
I know there were a lot of people tracking me and thinking of me during race day – thanks a lot I could feel the support.
I feel great in recovery and although I haven’t come up with a plan yet, I know I have more of these races in me. Thanks EN for the training guidance.
bonne soirée mon frère
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