Mary Larson IMMT Race Report
Mary
Larson’s Ironman Mont Tremblant Race Report
I followed the intermediate
half IM training plan through July then dropped into the intermediate IM
training plan.
Pre-Race Day:
Arrived on
Thursday afternoon after flying into Montreal with my sister, Sue Chapman, whose
husband drove with all our stuff and met us in Montreal. We picked up groceries and we had just enough
time to check in to our condo and unload the car before heading to the EN team
dinner. So nice to see old friends and meeting new ones. Slept great.
Friday 7am –
met the team for a practice swim. Getting in the water, I realized I
should have probably brought my full sleeve wetsuit but after 2 episodes of
SIPE, in a full sleeve and none in a sleeveless, I was very gun shy about the full. I acclimated to the water ok but started
getting dizzy and nauseous while swimming.
I decided it was best to get out and that we would try another swim on
Sat. am. The spent the rest of the day
checking in at IM and getting our bags together. We also recon’d the bike, riding about 30
miles based on Patrick’s suggestions.
Coming from WI, we felt the hills were manageable. Dinner was mellow, pasta with chicken at the
condo. Slept great
Saturday – Another
practice swim and again feeling dizzier then the day before. Ran the blue line near the swim for about 30
minutes. Went back to the condo got our
bikes and bags and checked those in.
Googled dizzy and nausea in cold water and the suggestion came back to
wear ear plugs (I never had issues with this in the past but then I don’t swim
in cold water. We scoured the expo for
some earplugs and could not find any. I
found a pair of the foam ones from my last international flight in my suitcase and
decided they would have to do.
Race Morning:
Up at 4:15 am,
eat breakfast (greek yogurt, raspberries, agave and granola). I
purposefully don’t have any fluids in the am because extra fluids can also be a
problem with SIPE. Took the bus, then the gondola to transition to get
body marked, prep bikes, fill water bottles on bike and drop off special needs
bags. We then headed over to the team EN photo.
Swim:
Expected about 1:30 (anytime I get out of the swim without issues is
a good day) Actual Time – 1:25:01 (5 minute PR)
I put in my ear
plugs and pulled my cap down and Leslie S and I got in the water for a warm
up. Don’t know where Sue went which was
disconcerting because we always start our races together. My group was the last swim wave, and we
got out just as our group was getting ready to start. I though the water was warmer than the
previous 2 days. I found Sue and lined
up together. I lined up near the back on the right
side. There was some bumping but not too bad. Once I got out
of the initial fray, I tried to find some fast feet to follow but started to
run into previous groups. It got a
little choppy at about the midpoint but nothing too bad. Once I hit the buoys heading in, I found some
really fast feet. I lost my ear plugs
about that time but had no dizziness at all. At about the second to last buoy, I looked
over and saw that Sue was swimming right next to me. Gave me some great mojo. I came out of the water feeling great, didn’t
feel like I had just swam 2.4 miles.
T1: 19:13
(yeah I know)
Jogged from the
swim to transition, used wetsuit stripper, but probably should have left my
suit on to stay a little warmer I was chilled by the time I got to the
tent. I had to dry off and change out of
my swim suit. Yeah I know, wear tri
clothes, which I would if I could go braless (TMI), I dislike the constriction
of a bra under a wetsuit. Had my bottle of Gatorade to replace what I didn’t
take in pre-race. Sue had a thermos of
warm chix broth, which she shared with me, it was fabulous!!!. 400 miles shorts, my EN bike jersey and EN arm
warmers. I was heading out with my helmet on but could not tighten it. I have a Lazer with the tightening wheel on
the top of the helmet. The wire became disconnected
and I had to fix, it costing more time.
Bike:
Expected 7:15 actual 7:11
Grabbed my
bike, and headed to the mount area. It
was great to hear all the EN cheering. Target power was 130. I
tried to keep my watts low but have always struggled to do this on the hills
and I was pushing too hard. I passed Sue
at a porta pot but she soon caught up with me and we rode together almost the
entire 112 miles. Plan was a concentrated bottle of infinite with water,
sipping every 10 minutes. Salt, tums and
a gel every 2 hours. Felt really good
the first half but knew I was burning matches. 1 bathroom break and stretching
out the hammy.
Stop at special
needs to replenish with a new bottle. Rt 117 seemed to be much windier the 2nd
time out. 1 more porta potty stop at the
turn around on 117. Hit the top of Lac Superier and was looking forward
to flying down the hills but it started to rain causing everyone in front of me
to start slowing so I had to as well, bummer!! I was soaked when I got back.
Data: Oh
Boy……More on this below….
I should have
been riding no more the 130.
Nutrition:
2 bottles
Infinite concentrate over entire bike with water as needed
Gel every 2
hours with salt and tums every hour. (I decreased this as it was not as humid
and hot as this plan calls for)
T2:
11:24
I was really indecisive
here. I was wet but not cold but could not
decide if I should keep on the wet jersey for warmth or change to a dry tri
tip, wear the arm warmers, which were wet or not…Next time, I will have another
pair of warmers in my bag .
Run:
6:08
This is by far
my worst discipline. I did not wear a
watch so I have no data. First loop went
fairly well. Rained for about 10 minutes
and soaked me. Walked through all aid
stations and grabbed whatever liquid sounded good. Other than that just kept running. The crowd was very motivating and saw Sue on
the second loop. I was so happy that it
seemed that she would be able to finish in the light. At SN, I grabbed my jacket as I was getting a
little chilled, but didn’t need it after another mile or two.
On the second
loop, the hills were tough and I had to walk on parts especially on the way
back in. There were not many people on
the second loop so I was feeling like I was one of the last ones out there.
Total
time: 15:15:16
Not
a PR but only 20 minutes off last year’s IMWI, where I had almost an hour PR
Lessons Learned:
- Learn my power meter!! I only
used it to watch my watts but not having a good understanding of what my watts really
mean for my race and how it can negatively effect the race. This has been an epiphany for me. Al T talked about just going 4 watts higher
then what you should be doing and that this can really affect your race. I had no idea, I though just 10 over would be
OK. I thought that if I spent too much
time with numbers (not my thing) that it would take the fun out of it but it is
more empowering to know how to race.
- I thought I had
gotten pretty good at hills but I learned that I really need to shift to a
lower gear earlier on the hill
- It’s time to
start racing and not just finishing.
- My nutrition is
good overall but I need more experience with colder weather nutrition.
-
Need more experience with different weather types.
This was one of the best races I have
ever been a part of. I could not have
asked for more mojo and smiles from all the EN folks and their families out
there. Thank you!!!
Comments
Congratulations on a swim without drama! Get some Mack's silicone earplugs - they will make a big difference in the colder water in Tempe Town lake.
Mary … Let's make a pact that we will bike within our capabilities at Arizona and NO HARDER, OK? I've made a similar mistake several times in IMs - it makes the run not very much fun. You should be starting out @ 0.65 IF on the outbound part of the first loop there, thru the turnaround, and back down the Beeline. Then it's OK to get up to 0.67, maybe 0.68/9 in the third loop. Anything more, and you won;t be able to run to your capability.
An FTP test just about now is critical for determining how you should manage the bike in AZ. Then, living by the results on race day is the big thing.
I foresee a HUGE improvement on Nov 16th.