Jon Needell RR IMAZ 2014
IMAZ 2014 – 14:36 (4th IM)
OK swim, Good Bike, Better than Expected RunFriday, I went to a public pool and for $3 got a nice 30 min swim in and then rode from Scottsdale out to the Beeline and back for an hour bike. Nothing crazy. Needed to test a new head unit for my Powertap and make sure my aero set up worked well. Luckily it worked great. I unfortunately made the cardinal sin of having to change my set up three days before my bike shipped because my aerobar was cracked. I replaced it with a integrated Shiv Stem and Aerobar. While the Shiv bike does not fit me the aerobar is awsome. very adjustable. it enabled me to get in a slightly less aggresive position but that made me stay aero much longer on race day. Made some adjustements then went to dinner - Indian with Scott, Tim & heather, the Truscotts & Robin Sarner.
Took a tip from Al and had a couple of smoothies for dinner (great idea) and went to sleep on Saturday at 10pm and awoke at 4am. Had some oatmeal for breakfast and sports drink into transition. Ran into Scott and a few friends from home doing the race this year and crammed by fatness into a wetsuit that is one size smaller than I need.
Swim:
Goal Time: 1:15 to 1:25, actual time 1:21 - given a focus on bike training I did not beat my previous times of 1:16, 1:18, and 0:51 (NYC with the current)
T1: 14min
Took some time here to change as I was pretty sure I would be over 6 hours.
Bike:
Goal Time 6:30 actual time 6:26
With the wind at 15-20 mph and gusts to 30 I was very happy with my new setup. I did my best crouching tiger hidden panda impression! I was also wearing black and white. I split the loops pretty evenly and in EN style got passed in the out and came screaming back on the downhill with the tailwind. Got a little hoarse yelling "on your left". Lot of carnage out there with crashes and a ton of flat tires. The Continental 4000s worked well. I think people get the slick racing tires and in AZ I don't think it is the right tire. I was happy with my time given the wind. MY IF was 0.73 (probably really .7 as I think my FTP was measured a little low) and unfortunately given the wind my VI was 1.06. I also probably created that VI a little given a strategy I tried given the wind and the out and back. My theory was that the winds pick up over the day so I should add 5 watts to the back and take 5 of the up and I would for the same wattage budget get a little boost in speed. I think it worked but I am still analyzing. At first glance it looks like given the high speed I was not able to keep my watts high enough in the early descend. All in all very happy.T2: 9min
It was fine, had to change as I mentioned before, got Vaseline as I had forgotten to put silicone spray on my neck for the swim and had salty sweat in that wound for 6 hours on the bike.
Run
Goal Time: Finish Actual Time 6:16
Didnt know if I would be able to run due to a hip injury (no run training for 8 weeks before the race) so I just started running. A guy saddled up next to me in the first mile running my pace and I tried to scare him off by telling him this was as fast as I would get. He said fine by me we can keep this space as long as you want. Well after a wile we were averaging around 11-12 min miles and I was feeling pretty good. It started to cool down and I was cruising through mile 9 and ten. Started to get a bit slower and realized I needed to keep running through special needs and get my long sleeve. Got there and then my body was done so I walked it in given my hip and not wanting to do any permanent damage.
Comments
It was great chatting with you, Scott, and Clark over lunch on Saturday. I loved getting the perspective of IM vets!
"...crouching tiger hidden panda impression!…" Heh-heh!
It was good getting to know you during the dinners. I hope we get a chance to meet up in Aspen, winter or summer. Biking, skiing, music - it's all good there.
Tim,
I will definitely look you up if I get to Tuscon or NH. You are 100% correct in calling me out on transitions. I made cookies and even had some tea. Seriously I had a couple of things that took a little longer and I was just slow. I did change into a full bike kit. If I am going to be over 6hrs on the bike I do that and that takes some time on both ends of the bike because you don't want to run with a full bike short either. I also needed some Vaseline for the wet suit burn. forgot the silicone spray on the neck. That was a nice feeling for the next 13 hours! Beyond that 1.5 minutes times two I have no real answer except you are correct.
As I get faster I will work on transitions as well.
Thanks,
JN
Hey JN,
Nice work! I wouldn't worry about that VI, 1.06 isn't that "bad," considering the winds. I think it would have been fine to make an informed decision to be smart, steady, and very aero on the up and the come off the gas a bit on the way back, considering that with that tailwind you could save 50-80w and only go a couple MPH slower than on the gas.
Thanks for the support I will get that hip moving yet. Hopefully for Maryland next year.
Thanks,
JN