Pat Koss - Ironman Boulder Report
Overview / Preparation
My wife (Virginia), Kim (a non-EN IM training partner) and I made this a vacation by leaving on Friday August 25th driving from Little Rock, Arkansas to Boulder. Arrived on Saturday, unpacked and set up camp in an apartment we rented off Airbnb (a first time and a real success). On Sunday Kim and I hooked up with a local IM racer (Lisa) and rode 54 miles from the Boulder Reservoir up most of the course through about 25-30 then turned back south. Riding the course and hearing it through the view of a Boulder local and fellow IM Boulder participant was quite valuable and enjoyable.
I worked from the apartment for two days and, then took off after Wednesday to begin to prep for the race. On Wednesday the rest of our Little Rock crew arrived (including EN’er Heather Blackiston and David Wonn). Thursday we drove most of the course north, but I didn’t have a copilot so I did not get out to ride. Still I was glad to preview the course to see more of the course than the hills we rode on Sunday. The bike course is quite stunning for the most part with the mountains on the west.
On Friday a few of us took off from most anything Ironman and went up in the hills above Boulder for the morning to explore the beauty of this area. The rain had passed and the change did all of us good. Saturday was busy till about 2pm, but overall uneventful, making two separate stops at T1 then T2.
Overall we had good sleep most nights. On race day I awoke at 3:30 and left apartment by 5:45 – this should have been earlier with remote swim in the Rez. I wasn’t overly rushed but had no time to warm up and relax before going into the chute. (note to self, the Ironman crew really had the bus situation nailed, moving between 10K to 20K people from the High School out to the Rez – good planning).
Swim
Uneventful for the most part.
I found that first 5-10 minutes were all about finding my pacing in the altitude adjustment. Counting is your friend at altitude in the water. Even though we had hit the pool earlier in the week (Monday), it wad evident that the race start had my heart rate up and air was scarce. But I found my pacing. Still I’ve not been overly fast this year. I think next year I’ll do more master’s swimming as I did in 2013 – life in the water was a little faster then.
Bike
Good equipment except the bike is not shifting mid-cassette. This never happened before, but its not so bad that I can’t adjust…just a nuisance...shift down two and up one to get the gear I wanted.
On Saturday I had evaluated my FTP targets based on my last FTP test. A 70% to 75% range went from 160 to 172 watts. My last FTP test was down 5% and the 75% target on that test would have been 186 so I thought that should be my absolute ceiling – don’t let things get anywhere near that number.
Overall I’m passing most everyone and getting passed by almost nobody, executing the hills just like the plan says in EN, keeping my watts in the 70-75% range, no surges, and screaming on the down hills and hitting the apexes of the few corners we see…this is fun. Oh, and on the turnaround at St. Vrain after a 40+ downhill, I’m pointing out the eagle nest to everyone – the recon rides with a Boulder resident and my camera on the Thursday recon ride were valuable (the pictures are at Pat Koss' Boulder Trip Photos). The two baby eagles were on the edge of the nest taking in all the bikes going by.
From the hills in the first 20 till 60 it was just a nice ride. I was in site seeing mode. There is nothing hard or technical about the course for the most part after mile 20.
I had spots for two bottles (downtube and a bullet) so I took two Powerade’s at every stop. Did not finish both but usually finished most. Did not take water till much later (my bagel from Special Needs did not wash down well with Powerade). Plus by then the water was needed to cool off and wash off the sticky Powerade (all the bottles leaked badly – I had it everywhere, WHAT A MESS, WTC get this fixed).
Something happened from around when we turned south, but I don’t know what. From 57 to 67 are some rolls but nothing big. The wind was picking up out of the southwest so it was at our 1 o’clock but it was not stiff – just very constant resistance. Plus could someone turn down that damn sun. Air temps at that point were not hot (80) but the sun was a whole different kind of sun than I had been out in before, and by that time I had been out in it for almost 3 hours on the bike. Plus from 67 the ride is completely uphill till 87.
At mile 75 I gave myself permission to stop to hit the potty, drink up and fuel and rest for a bit. When I looked after the race I had stopped for 8 minutes! Too long, but I definitely performed better after the stop – the splits show the results. Rest is a good thing, but from a race time perspective I’m not sure of the ROI – 8 minutes is a long time (note to self, watch the time next time).
Anyway the ride went much better from that point, and the numbers show it. Plus it got fun again. The hill down to 100, hitting the apex of the turn (guessing north of 30, off from 40+ going down the hill), climbing again (the 3 bitches were not that hard), hitting the turns on the way in…it all was fun again.
T2
Long way to run from dismount, onto hot asphalt (I was in my socks) and on a hot rubber (some people burned their feet with huge blisters on the balls of their feet).
Time for T2 was long, but I really can’t think of why. Don’t think I stopped for a rest period or anything. (Note to self for 2015: Practice transitions)
Run
OK, love hate with the Ironman run. I’m a runner. That’s where I started as a beginner athlete at 50, running marathons with numerous 4:0x and two 3:5x marathons. But none of that matters on the IM and it kills me. (yeah, that’s outside the box)
Also outside the box: I run in hills at home so the grades here are not a big deal, but this is an IM run so any hill here seems bigger than it is. Long slow grades and road underpasses seem bigger than they are. AND COULD SOMEONE TURN DOWN THAT DAMN SUN. Blistering hot.
Inside the box: running my goal pace for the first hour and walking the rest stops…it doesn’t get any easier than that, and overall it felt that way. Walked the water stops for the whole race since I knew the line was coming where I could not stomach any more nutrition so I took more time than previous races to get nutrition in and settle my stomach.
And come it did. Slowing down in the water stops, watering down the Powerade, starting Coke somewhere before mile 10, scarfing down 4 Powergels (with 2x caffeine – love those). But by 16-18, little was going down.
I didn’t take anything for the last 3 miles and paid the price with no energy but the finish line coming up.
Oh, and JT was in the core at a Y in the course where a 3-way water stop was set up. Every time he sought me out and reminded me of running in the box – that was huge for me since the box was closing in and fast. This is my second year for EN and my first year running in the jersey. It was huge to see the kit and have everyone cheering each other on.
I’ve run marathons where I don’t remember a mile or two late in the race – this was not that. I remember all of it. Ironman runs are nothing but grueling with me ending up sick-in-the-stomach unable to take in any more nutrition and by the second half thoroughly out of energy to do much more than gut it out.
Overall from the zones I spent 5 minutes stopped in water stops, 14 minutes slogging through water stops or just slogging along, 1:09 walking, 3:31 jogging, and 42 minutes approaching something akin to running.
The finish line was the usual pure joy – the first of four races that I heard Bill Reilly call out my finish! (why is it that hearing his voice makes everything go away?)
Oh, and in 3 other IM finishes I’ve never had to hit medical. At Boulder, Virginia (my love and Iron Sherpa to our core Little Rock team of 8 racers) picked me up, but it was not to be. I felt so sick that I had her take me back to medical, concerned that if I did have a medical issue she could not deal with it. 30 minutes on a cot. Another first.
Overall
I forgot my heart rate monitor. Bad prep no other reason. The data would have been good to evaluate my performance.
Maybe I hit the bike too hard but I’m not sure. The numbers don’t seem to say so. Or maybe the combination of the altitude and hot sun just drained me too much. Florida was much hotter, but that was heat and humidity – not sun like this.
Once again I found myself unable to take in Powerade any more. Coke helped (first tried that last year at B2B). But simply could not get nutrition in fast enough on the run. This remains my Achilles heal in Ironman racing. I think more variety on both the bike and the run might be the ticket to marginally improve. Also I used all my salt and probably could have carried extra, but I don’t think that was an issue with my GI distress.
I promised my wife that I would take 2015 off from IM, and run some half-IM’s. Candidly I’m weary of the training for full IM and need a change. This winter I plan to get back to running a marathon or two, plus will run my first 50K trail race in February (really looking forward to that). With Tri season I plan on working on speed and execution at the HIM distance, then set a course for a fifth full IM in 2016.
As far as numbers, I'm pleased that through the day I progressed in the ranks of my age group. Also when I compare this race against my 3 others I can easily say that this was much harder than the last two and I remain pleased with the results. The PR's of 13:10 and 13:11 remain at flat/fast courses on days that were not nearly so hot (B2B was actually 36, but that's another story).
pat
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Comments
Glad to see you got a chance to enjoy Boulder and the scenery. It is truly a great place to spend time on a bike.
Pat- Congratulations on the finish! A couple points. I live in colorado and i know a lot of people who were racing and the heat caught up to just about everyone. There really was very little margin for error on the run. You almost needed to over hydrate on the bike in order to avoid starting the run in a deficit. On your 8 minute stop, i agree that's a long time. Maybe next time look for opportunities on downhills to coast and take your rest while you are at least moving forward. Way to get it done and best of luck with your run focus next season!
Pat - persistence pays off in a Mike Reilly shout out at the end.
+1 on Mark's comments about the imperative of hydration in the dry, hot air.
Thanks for all the great input. We don't train for this kind of heat in Arkansas -- usually super humid.
Now I want to go back and repeat this race.