Mike R's IMNZ Race Plan
Thanks in advance for any and all feedback on the below; thanks in the current and past to those whose advice, encouragement and support helped get me to the start line. You are all awesome. Sorry for the length, but I create these as much as a personal pep talk as a race plan.
Mike Roberts, 46 yo, 146 lbs, 257 FTP, 51.7 vDOT
This will be iron #7, the second with EN. Arrived at the Haus in 2013 after 17 years in triathlon as an MOPer who could swim and run some, but just awful on the bike (6:47 bike split at IMoo = proof). Usually finished well into the 100s in my AG at WTC events, with 73rd being my best placing. But as is the case with many who chug the EN Kool-Aid, my cycling morphed from a profound weakness to a near-strength under the tutelage of RnP. In the words of the great philosopher Truscott, through EN I became a triathlete. And the results followed, with me quickly moving from the MOP toward the unfamiliar FOP. I still don’t have strength to speak of, but my new weapon is that I don’t have a weakness.
Training was fairly typical EN stuff, with the addition of the Run Durability Program and some concentrated effort on my swim form and volume. Attended Coach P’s awesome volume camp in January and bagged 1,158 TSS points that week. Otherwise, I trained alone through the winter, but it never felt alone because of the feedback and accountability I received from the EN family in the forums and on Strava. I badly strained my right Achilles during Week 14 of 20, which effectively side-lined my running for three weeks (skipped two straight long runs and haven’t done any Z3 or 4 work since then). It was pretty bleak for a couple of weeks, as I could barely walk, let alone run. But it did heal. And by Week 17 I was back to 75% and running fairly normally. Despite this set-back, and even though the heel still bothers me a bit, this is the fittest I’ve ever gone into an IM.
Points of Focus:
1) Follow the Process; results will naturally follow. Intermittent times and positions have zero meaning. There’s only one line that matters.
2) Confidently and respectfully race it. Like most of the participants in Taupo will, I viewed my first six IMs as events in which I participated and hoped to finish, always intimidated and somewhat fearful. I still and always will respect the distance, and I will be mentally prepared to deal with the inevitable bumps and set-backs that the day will deliver, but the fear and intimidation are gone. I will race this one. If I fail, so be it. But I truly believe that I will beat almost everyone floating in the water with me when the canon blasts. Instead of using the enormity of the event to justify taking safe positions or breaks (“I have all day, so I can … start back here/catch my breath in transition/stop to pee/walk for a while/etc.), I will view the enormity of the day as thousands of tiny opportunities to put even more time on my competition.
3) I chose this course, in part, to showcase my EN training and the patience and discipline that come with it. This isn’t IMFL or AZ, where big motors rule the day and where (some degree of) stupidity goes unpunished. My limited powers can only do so much damage to the competition. I need the beloved Taupo chip seal, hills, and brutal weather to finish off a lot of my AG for me.
4) Enjoy the privilege. Most of us say it, but that doesn’t make it any less relevant or true: I love this sport and fully recognize that IMNZ is bucket-list material, that very few have the good fortune, health and opportunity to do something like this. I will use it as motivation to reward those who helped me get here, including my poor, abused Training Self.
Pre-Race:
Monday: Travel smartly. We’re flying overnight from LA, landing in Auckland at 7am. The kids may have to go to Juco for a couple of years as a result, but I upgraded us so we can lie down and hopefully sleep.
Tuesday: Magically vanishes over the Pacific and the IDL.
Wednesday: Upon arrival, drive 3.5 hours to Taupo on the wrong side of the road. Live according to a checklist. Hydrate. Assemble bike, take it out for 60 minutes of course recon to test tire pressure on the rough roads (start with 90/95 psi on my 23mm, 320-TPI tubulars), climb the hill leading out of town to gauge gearing and power. Go for a quick half-hour run. Get on NZ meal and sleep schedules from the outset.
Thursday: Mandatory wetsuit cleaning, then go for a good 30-minute swim. Pick out significant landmarks for sighting. Walk the (long) swim-bike transition, noting every little detail. Check into race (Thurs is the only check-in day). Buy CO2 and PitStop. Go for a 30-minute run and a quick, final spin on the bike to triple-check that everything is securely bolted, strapped or duct-taped down. Attend pre-race banquet (no way I’d skip this . . . it’s IMNZ).
Friday: Big breakfast. Check in bike and bags, note their exact locations, and carefully plan exactly how and where I’ll get through both transitions. Get out. Salt and hydrate. Feet up the rest of the day. Dinner at 6pm. In bed by 8:30pm.
Race Day: Wake by 4am. Eat 800 calories, depending on what I can bring into the country and what I can buy. Worst case - a couple of bars, a banana and a smoothie. Sip sports drink until 6am. Start walking to transition around 5:30am, top off tires (latex bleeds), attach and turn on Garmin, load food into bento, fill aero bottle and one on the down tube. Get out.
Swim: Goal: Finish near the front, put a good gap on the vast majority of my AG. Unless the water is rough, it should be sub-60.
· 100% focus on the swim. The triathlon doesn’t start until 8am.
· Take time to get the wetsuit on properly.
· Solid 5-10 minute warm-up (in water or with cords, depending on what’s allowed).
· When the pros go off at 6:45, take a gel with water.
· If the conditions are lousy, that only increases my advantage over the field. Embrace it.
· Line up in the front row near the buoy line. Go out strong and with confidence for 400m or so. Take no crap. Breathe.
· Settle into the relaxed, aerobic 65 SPM rhythm I’ve practiced over 100,000 yards since Christmas. Good catch at 10 and 2 with high elbows, pull horizontally all the way through, relaxed recovery.
· Keep straight with minimal sighting.
· Find/follow good bubbles, but never be content with a group if they’re slowing me down.
· When concentration strays, count strokes and focus on exhalation.
· The back half is where I separate further from those who didn’t put in the 15-20k swim weeks.
· With 200m to go, begin kicking to move some blood to the lower body. Mental focus now shifts 100% to T1.
T1: Goal: Best in class (~4:00), put a couple more minutes on my AG
· Wetsuit down on my waist (no wetsuit strippers in NZ), run the quarter mile uphill (and upstairs) to transition.
· Grab my neon-taped bag (carrying only a helmet and maybe arm warmers), enter the tent, find a volunteer to remove and stow my wetsuit and sunscreen my shoulders, buckle my helmet, run to my bike while (maybe)putting on arm warmers [yes, I do have the gear and a plan if it’s really cold and/or rainy].
· Run with bike across mount line, strap into shoes already attached to the pedals once I’m underway.
· Very few moving parts to this transition; no excuse not to blaze it.
Bike: Goals: Follow the Process, stay in my Box, dismount in the Top 10
· This bike course is quite slow, with rough chip seal throughout, hills, and strong wind. Conventional wisdom says the IMNZ conditions will slow a rider down 1-1.5 mph vs. more normal conditions. I feel like I’m in~5:10 shape right now on a fast course, which means the NZ roads should slow me down around 15 minutes. And, sure enough, Best Bike Split says I can go around 5:25 on this course (BBS has been eerily accurate for me in the past). The best time in my AG last year was 5:08, and only three guys broke 5:15. Even though my actual bike split is irrelevant, I am 100% confident that good things will happen if I simply execute my plan.
· I can and will only control my input (hydration and nutrition) and output (NP and VI). Speed, time, wind,crappy roads and competitors are all beyond my control and concern. The former mean everything; the latter,nothing.
· I faded on the bike at IMTX last year and ended up at 165NP, but still dismounted in the Top 20 after the bike (1/2 as many in my AG here in NZ). My FTP is only a few points higher this year, but my volume is way up,my 3.5-5hr power averages are 8-12 watts higher, I hit all my Wednesday power workouts (unlike last year),I’m 5 lbs lighter, and I usually felt IM-comfortable in the 180-85 watt ranges during this build (validated during my RR). Even though that’s only in the 70-72% range, I’m perfectly OK with it because it will still put me in the mix, my TSS will be solid, and I’m confidently familiar with that proven power range.
· Climb the first hill one mile into the race at max of 180 watts. Climb all other hills, beginning at Mile 41,according to EN gearing.
· Settle in, flatten the course, find a good tire track in the chip seal (about one meter right of the white line) and enjoy the tailwind out to Reporora (course is basically a double out-and back).
· Garmin set to auto-lap every 5 miles. Under-powering a 5-mile lap is fine; over-powering one is not acceptable. Never try to make up “lost” wattage.
· Lower my cadence when the roads are really bad, relaxed hands and shoulders, let the carbon and rubber absorb the bumps.
· Early food and hydration are as important as early watt management, and if I make a mistake during the bike, it will be overhydrating, under-eating or expending too little power.
· Target 1.5-2 bottles of Horleys lemon-lime (course drink) every hour, with focused emphasis on the first two hours.
· Audible Garmin alerts every 15 minutes remind me to drink and stretch every beep, eat every other one.
· I’ll eat a quarter Clif Bar (60 calories) every 30 minutes for the first 1:30 starting right out of T1. After that, I’ll eat 3 chews (66 calories) every 30 minutes for 2.5 hours. I’ll have a couple of caffeinated gels for the last hour. 2-3 salt pills every hour to make up for the lower sodium levels in Horleys (2/3 the amount in Gatorade Endurance).
· The goal is to pee at least two times, preferably three, and these should be pretty significant, draft-killingevents. Always to the left, away from the PM and drive train.
· Part II of the race for me starts at Mile 84, the final turn-around in Reporora. This home stretch has been described as thoroughly demoralizing, almost soul-destroying. It’s 28 bumpy miles straight into a strong headwind. By this point, the rough roads will have nearly destroyed most riders’ shoulders, necks and undercarriages. But this is where my six outdoor century rides in the aero position will pay dividends. While many are sitting up and suffering, I’ll be carving my way through the wind, chin on aero bottle, putting a ton of time on the field. Although it will be a mental grind, my happy place – as Coach R has said – is knowing what I’m doing to the competition. During the final 60-90 minutes, I will take several readings of my heart rate to give me an average for the run. As always, T2 will be a welcome sight.
T2: Goal: Best in class (under 1:30)
· Run while unbuckling my helmet.
· Grab my sparkly pink bag, enter tent, find volunteer to stow my bike stuff, put on (pre-lubed) socks and shoes, grab my run bag, go.
· From my run bag I’ll put on my hat, pocket a bag of salt pills and some gels, put on my race belt and clip my Garmin to the wrist strap I’ve been wearing all day and turn it on.
Run: Goal: Execute the first 18, race the final 8, thank as many as I can, smile throughout.
· I ran my long training runs for IMTX at 8:30 pace, then did 8:48s at that hot race, running my way into 12th place. With the Run Durability Plan this year, I added a couple of points to my vDOT and ran most of my long training runs at 7:45-50 pace. So, even with the Achilles set-back, I am still confident that I can run near 3:40, which should be good enough to move me up a few spots in my AG.
· Course is basically a triple out-and-back, rolling affair along the lake front, with some short-steep hills in the residential area near the first, third and fifth turns-around. For the opening 4.5 miles to that first turn-around, I will run according to my average HR over the last hour or so of the bike, which should be in the high- 130s/low-140s. It will feel stoopid slow. This is critical.
· After that, I’ll allow HR to move into the mid-140s up to the low-150s, where I did much of my long-run training. 155 is when I start to breathe through my mouth and work. Avoid this.
· Chase a gel with water at the outset and then again at every 4.5-mile turn-around, Horleys at every other aid station, 2-3 salt pills per hour.
· Walks at aid stations limited to 10-15 steps (Garmin Connect shows I had some 30-second walks at IMTX, and that’s giving away way too much time).
· Besides HR and nutrition, the other focus will be on form. High hands carrying eggs, elbows leading a quick/smooth arm swing, relaxed shoulders in front of hips, feet light on the ground, eyes on the concrete 6-10 feet in front of me.
· Be smart on the hills, run all tangents, no surging.
· First two loops should be fluid, rhythmic cruise-control.
· Part III of the race starts when I see my wife near our condo at Mile 18. Race time. This is where EN training, patience and discipline dole out the fat bonus checks. Even though “race” most likely will just mean raising the effort level (up to max of 155HR) just to maintain the same pace, I will know that maintaining pace = plowing through a field of slowing racers. Enjoy each pass - there will be a lot of them.
· Somewhere near Mile 20 when I’m sick of gels and sports drink, I’ll switch to Coke for the duration.
· Start visiting my one-things and remind my body why I’m doing this to it.
· When I see our condo at Mile 25, it’s time to pass the reigns to adrenaline and empty the tank.
· The finish line is usually a fuzzy blur to me, but on a few occasions I’ve been conscious of my surroundings and was able to celebrate it. If I can, I’ll truly soak in and appreciate the moment. If not, someone will photograph it.
Comments
If the roads really are as bad as you made them sound even lower PSI than 90-95 might be a good idea... Sounds like you also have a handle on that but don't be afraid to go a little lower in your testing!
Wishing you Good Skill on 3/7....
I don't have anything to add with respect to the plan. Knowing that you are going to execute as written, I am certain that you will "truly soak in and appreciate the moment."
Mike. Great plan. I can't find any detail missed! You have prepared mentally and physically and I expect you to meet your expectations. Enjoy it (as much as you can enjoy a ~10hr race). I will be tracking you (hopefully that's available?!). Wishing you the best of skill and execution. Jeff
I have just one thing to say. Having done California-Auckland flights many times, your plan to stay up all day when you arrive is absolutely the best way to adjust. However, please, please, please be careful driving to Taupo. You will be tired and on the wrong side of the road. And most of those roads have nothing but a white line separating you from oncoming logging trucks. I suggest taking frequent stops to keep you alert and safe.
See you there!
As expected, very smart, well layed out, veteran plan.
HUGE S/B/R fitness with a 3.9 w/kg after leading the pack on the swim sets you up to run well. Your humility excluded below what, in my mind, is your greatest weapon, Mental Toughness........
If it helps at all for me to say this one thing, with all of these great attributes, here it goes, "Let the race come to you" .......as you state in so many words below. Easy to say, hard to do......
While I liked all of your focus points below, number 4 was my favorite.
Will be anxiously waiting to hear about that PR and KQ after this battle as well as the details that led you there.
Keep Leading and make us all PROUD!
SS
You are now offically in the bull's eye of ENation's attention and expectations. You can - multiple choice - (a) feel that as unwarranted, (b) find it anxiety producing, or (c) use it as additional motivation, and another one thing to keep you from slowing down in the last hour, or, really, anywhere along the day. Regard our high expectations as a confidence booster.
Good Luck
One day I want to be able to have goals like that!
Good luck and I hope you get that Kona slot!
Mike- UR a badass and there is nothing to add to this great plan. As you've said below; keep your shit together (pardon my french
) in miles 84+ and 18+ of bike and run, go deep and execute! May the force be with you.
"Part II of the race for me starts at Mile 84, the final turn-around in Reporora. This home stretch has been described as thoroughly demoralizing, almost soul-destroying. It’s 28 bumpy miles straight into a strong headwind. By this point, the rough roads will have nearly destroyed most riders’ shoulders, necks and undercarriages. But this is where my six outdoor century rides in the aero position will pay dividends. While many are sitting up and suffering, I’ll be carving my way through the wind, chin on aero bottle, putting a ton of time on the field."
"Part III of the race starts when I see my wife near our condo at Mile 18. Race time. This is where EN training, patience and discipline dole out the fat bonus checks. Even though “race” most likely will just mean raising the effort level (up to max of 155HR) just to maintain the same pace, I will know that maintaining pace = plowing through a field of slowing racers. Enjoy each pass - there will be a lot of them."
If you plan to track, keep in mind that the race will start at 1pm East Coast time/10am Pac on Friday in the US. Good way to waste a Friday afternoon pretending to work.
The forecast is currently calling for rain and 40mph wind gusts. Perfect.
Al, when I wrote this RP, I thought about creating a Version 2 for forum publication that identified my goals as finishing and enjoying the day, nothing more. But after some reflection, I chose to just throw it out there and, like you probably suspected in your multiple choice options, (c) use it as additonal motivation on race day much like I use Strava on long runs ("if I slow down now, I'll have to own it online"). If I do flounder on race day and my lofty goals turn out to be the product of an overconfident, naive boy pretending he can play with the big boys, I can live with it and own it. But unlike on ST where I would be electronically burned at the stake, I know that the good folks in the Haus will welcome the naive boy back home with open arms.
That said, there will be no flounder.
Freakin great race plan! You've done the hard work, your mind is right, and you are ready to roll!!
Based on your Strava rides I think you have every reason to expect a solid bike split. Your increased 5hr power over last year and the lower weight will serve you well. You know the drill.....Set yourself up to execute from mile 84 to the finish and the last 8 miles of the marathon. Visualize things that could go wrong and have a recovery plan to deal with any mishaps that may occur.
Good luck, enjoy the experience, and know that you have the entire Haus in your corner pulling for you!!!!