Jason Brandt 2015 IMC Race Report
Jason Brandt, 41M, IMC 11:23:54, 3rd Ironman
CAUTION BEARS Next 140.6 Miles
?I had heard that athletes had seen bears in previous IMC races but no idea I would see 4 over the course of the day, almost hit one on my bike and get growled at by a momma bear. In the days leading up to the race I must have checked the weather at least 10 times a day. The month prior we had hot weather and there were fires making the area very smoky….who knew that just a week or two later we would be debating just how many layers we would add due to cold and if the rain & lightning showing on the weather forecast would affect the race. While I’m not sure of the actual temps my guess would be race morning was around 50 degrees possibly a little cooler in spots and we had a substantial amount of rain during the swim and first half of the bike. Thankfully there was not much in the way of winds to speak of.
?Training for IMC had been good with the exception of Weeks 13-15 which I had a really bad respiratory infection which knocked me on my butt during a really critical time. I also wasn’t feeling great on my long runs….was covering the time and distance but really only at a Zone 1 pace and not picking it up at the end to train me for when the run will get hard in Ironman as it certainly does.
?Overall I’m pleased with my results but don’t feel I raced to my potential that I had. I set a swim PR of 2+ minutes, had a respectable bike given the race conditions but had a slower second half of the run then I would have liked. My time placed me 29th in my age group.
Swim:1:05:53, Bike 5:56:07, Run 4:14:59, T1: 4:33, T2 2:22.
Pre-Race
?Arrived Whistler Thursday midday, rode the Callaghan section (miles 12-20) learning that I would really need to keep my watts down during this climb and that this downhill could be a little sketchy if there was cross winds. Friday swam first thing at Alta lake to calm my anxiety about a deep water start (turned out the practice swim was rougher water & winds then race morning so that was good). Ran the Lost Lake Loop Friday morning and was excited to see just how beautiful the run would be (watch out for the migrating tiny western toads, they were everywhere on the trail). Was really nice to go to the EN dinner and meet the friends that we had developed online as we trained for this race.
?Race morning woke up to ominous clouds, hadn’t started raining yet but didn’t look like that was going to last for long. In my Bike Bag I had gloves, a polypro long sleeve jersey, and a cycling jacket not knowing of what combination of items I would add, that was going to be a decision after I was done with the swim. Wished I had owned something more tight fitting for cold weather bike racing. Got my bike tires properly inflated and bike all situated and then went and sat near the swim start to not get caught up in pre-race anxiety. Waited hoping to see my family before I started (they had to walk 2 miles to get to the start). Got to see them for a few minutes before I had to drop off my morning clothes bag. Loved knowing my best cheer squad (Kerry, Kyra and Jack) would be following my progress but felt bad as they were going to have a long, cold, and wet day doing so. Thankfully they got to go back to hotel and warmed up before they saw me again.
SWIM: Was thinking I would swim a 1:08 or better and ended up with a PR at 1:05:53. IMC is a deep water swim start which made for a very wide start line. Since the first turn wasn’t for 800 yards or so there wasn’t much incentive for me to crowd the buoy line. I was probably 2/3 of the way to the buoy and was at the front. Surprisingly I had little to no contact for the first 5-7 minutes because we were so spread out which really helped to settle in a groove and get my every 3 stroke bilaterally breathing rhythm established. Was loving the swim until we hit the first two turn buoys which were just chaotic with swimmers rolling over, swimming over one another, frog kicking it, and clawing their way around the buoy. Just tried to protect my head as best as I could and kept swimming. Sighting was no problem the whole course and after the first two buoys we had spread out pretty good. Sometime during the swim it must have started raining hard as I could feel it pelting me on the head. The final 200 yards of the swim the wind must have picked up as that seemed to be the toughest part as we headed to shore. Although I am probably capable of swimming a few minutes faster to do so I’m not sure would have been worth the effort for the extra kicking it would have required.
T1: I had planned to do this in under 3:30 and would have achieved this if I hadn’t struggled in putting on my gloves which seemed to take forever. I opted with the polypro long sleeve jersey and midweight full fingered gloves to battle the elements. Living in Seattle area I’d had my share of cooler wetter bikes and had a good sense for what I probably needed. Just wished my polypro jersey was more tight fitting or aero but oh well. I detoured to high five the family on the way out of transition….was so great to see them! There is a longer run then normal before the mount line. T1 was 4:20.
Bike: My goal was to ride 202W which was a .72IF. I finished the first half of the bike and I was at 206W and then I had problems with my powertap SL+ dropping out (I did put in new batteries) where I was getting a lot of zero readings on my watch so I don’t have full confidence in my second half or full course power numbers. My power file shows the ride was 192W overall NP but considering how much of the second half had climbs coming back into Whistler, I don’t think that was right. Also my HR strap was not giving me readings all day (perhaps a user error due to old battery). Best Bike Split said under ideal conditions I was probably looking at a 5:45 given my FTP and so riding a 5:56 I think is pretty darn good. I believe the race elevation profile indicated 6800 feet of climbing and boy it sure felt like it. That climb from Pemberton back into Whistler seems never ending. I observed lots of interesting things on the bike. Within the first hour on the bike I saw that a number of athletes were dropping out that looked like they were shivering and spent. Some were sitting in support vehicles trying to warm up. Wasn’t long before I saw a SAG bus and bike truck collecting riders and their bikes. Some were obviously under-dressed but some looked adequately dressed yet still were succumbing to the conditions. It gave me pause and reminded me to be smart on the bike. Good thing about the climb up Callaghan to the Olympic Ski Jump site is it kept me warm. We had significant rain on the first half of the bike, so much that it was spilling over the roadways in places, I was glad I had my visor on and treated with RainX instead of sunglasses. Just a few blocks past whistler (mile 38?) I had a very large black bear run across the road right in front of me, I slowed and hollered at the bear. Now that was a first….wishing the FinisherPix photographer was right there to catch the moment. As I came to the next group of spectators they asked if I had seen the bear to which I replied “Yeah, I almost hit it on my bike.” The stretch in pemberton meadows was flat as could be which was a nice reprieve before the climb back into Whistler. It was the one place where I saw lots of draft packs despite the rules against it. Was interesting to see folks riding their really expensive bikes wearing huge rain parkas or one guy even had a garbage bag with holes cut out for his head and arms.
T2: Was happy to be off the bike. Transition took a little longer having to strip off my top and gloves. Volunteers were standing around in the tent just talking so I had to get their attention and ask for their help but once I did things went a little faster. Got to see my family just after the run started and give them a hug and kiss! They were my motivation that day! T2: 2:22
Run: The run is a two loop run. Each loop consists of a loop around lost lake and an out and back section along Green lake, very pretty. I felt pretty good the first 6 miles and like always found myself needing to consciously try to run slower than my body wanted to do. Next 6 miles also went good. Final 14 miles though were really tough. I don’t want to make any excuses for why I slowed. I’ve concluded I really need to have my “one thing” nailed which of my races didn’t feel that I had as strong for this race and I needed to do more Z2 work in the latter half of my training long runs. I tried as best as I could to keep it going but instead of running a 3:57 like I planned, I ran a 4:15. I saw a bear in the woods on the first loop maybe 30 feet off the trail. On my second loop as I was approaching the condos near lost lake I was alerted to a bear that was very close to the trail. I think they thought I would stop upon hearing that but I kept running and only upon passing did I realize momma bear literally was just 1 foot off the trail and I probably came within 6-8 feet of her and she growled at me. The spectators after I passed said she had cubs with her. Had I known that perhaps I would have stopped and waited but I wasn’t about to give up precious race minutes. The stupid things we do when we race. Upon reading others race reports it sounded like they held up later runners, rerouted some and later re-located the bear. She was a pretty cinnamon color….I didn’t get any glimpse of the cubs. Shortly after….my run had really begun to slow with me walking a lot of the uphill sections and then running as best as I could until I felt like I had to walk. I should have had it in me to keep running….but I had this mental justification that said it was ok to walk. Saw my family three times on the run….was great to see them but I they knew I was slowing based on the predicted split times I had given them.
Nutrition: The cold weather probably should have altered my nutrition plan but I hadn’t practiced that. I knew I needed the same calories (or perhaps more to keep warm) and had only practiced that by doing 2 bottles of sports drink per hour and a gel every 45 minutes. So I decided I would stick to what I practiced as much as I could knowing I’d probably be peeing a ton during the day but as it turned out that wasn’t so bad because I was already pretty wet and it momentarily warmed my lower half up a little. About half way thru the bike I was starting to tire of all the liquids so I switched from gel to a honey stinger waffle (on course products) and that was delicious. That little switch from gel to waffle was a big pick me up which I continued from then on. I had planned on 2 salt tabs per hour on the bike and stuck with the plan if for no other reason then to get the caffeine they contained. On the run, I stopped the salt tabs and tried to do two cups at every stop and in the second half of the run backed that down to just one cup.
The finish: It was a little deceiving in that you could hear the finish line announcer about 4 miles from the finish and even when you got into Whistler you had an additional mile of twists and turns before you get into the chute. Was so happy to be done….stopped before the finish to kiss and hug the family then ran thru the chute.
The aftermath: I’m incredibly proud of what I had accomplished and I know I made my wife and kids very proud. I know it was an inspiration for Kyra and Jack which is partly why I race. It was a stunningly beautiful course. It was very tough bike and then to run after that bike was a real test. I’ll never forget my bear interactions….that was my highlight. I got cleaned up and packed up and then went to watch my really good friend Bill Lowe come across the finish. At 0200 in the morning we departed for the 6 hour car journey to Boy Scout camp with my son. Not ideal in timing but wouldn’t have missed it. I’m incredibly proud of my son….he got the “BSA mile swim” badge at camp swimming in the Puget Sound….only the 5th boy all summer to do that and he is 11. Now that I’m home from camp finally had time to write the report.
?
In a week or two I’ll begin training for IMAZ which was also my first IM. After that it will be time for a break from IM racing.
?
Thanks for reading and I’d love to hear your advice so that I may apply it to my next IM. Advice on the power tap readings dropping out? Training tips for running the second half better? Thoughts on kicking more to save another 2-3 minutes on the swim? I need to examine my bike data more to look at my VI.
CAUTION BEARS Next 140.6 Miles
?I had heard that athletes had seen bears in previous IMC races but no idea I would see 4 over the course of the day, almost hit one on my bike and get growled at by a momma bear. In the days leading up to the race I must have checked the weather at least 10 times a day. The month prior we had hot weather and there were fires making the area very smoky….who knew that just a week or two later we would be debating just how many layers we would add due to cold and if the rain & lightning showing on the weather forecast would affect the race. While I’m not sure of the actual temps my guess would be race morning was around 50 degrees possibly a little cooler in spots and we had a substantial amount of rain during the swim and first half of the bike. Thankfully there was not much in the way of winds to speak of.
?Training for IMC had been good with the exception of Weeks 13-15 which I had a really bad respiratory infection which knocked me on my butt during a really critical time. I also wasn’t feeling great on my long runs….was covering the time and distance but really only at a Zone 1 pace and not picking it up at the end to train me for when the run will get hard in Ironman as it certainly does.
?Overall I’m pleased with my results but don’t feel I raced to my potential that I had. I set a swim PR of 2+ minutes, had a respectable bike given the race conditions but had a slower second half of the run then I would have liked. My time placed me 29th in my age group.
Swim:1:05:53, Bike 5:56:07, Run 4:14:59, T1: 4:33, T2 2:22.
Pre-Race
?Arrived Whistler Thursday midday, rode the Callaghan section (miles 12-20) learning that I would really need to keep my watts down during this climb and that this downhill could be a little sketchy if there was cross winds. Friday swam first thing at Alta lake to calm my anxiety about a deep water start (turned out the practice swim was rougher water & winds then race morning so that was good). Ran the Lost Lake Loop Friday morning and was excited to see just how beautiful the run would be (watch out for the migrating tiny western toads, they were everywhere on the trail). Was really nice to go to the EN dinner and meet the friends that we had developed online as we trained for this race.
?Race morning woke up to ominous clouds, hadn’t started raining yet but didn’t look like that was going to last for long. In my Bike Bag I had gloves, a polypro long sleeve jersey, and a cycling jacket not knowing of what combination of items I would add, that was going to be a decision after I was done with the swim. Wished I had owned something more tight fitting for cold weather bike racing. Got my bike tires properly inflated and bike all situated and then went and sat near the swim start to not get caught up in pre-race anxiety. Waited hoping to see my family before I started (they had to walk 2 miles to get to the start). Got to see them for a few minutes before I had to drop off my morning clothes bag. Loved knowing my best cheer squad (Kerry, Kyra and Jack) would be following my progress but felt bad as they were going to have a long, cold, and wet day doing so. Thankfully they got to go back to hotel and warmed up before they saw me again.
SWIM: Was thinking I would swim a 1:08 or better and ended up with a PR at 1:05:53. IMC is a deep water swim start which made for a very wide start line. Since the first turn wasn’t for 800 yards or so there wasn’t much incentive for me to crowd the buoy line. I was probably 2/3 of the way to the buoy and was at the front. Surprisingly I had little to no contact for the first 5-7 minutes because we were so spread out which really helped to settle in a groove and get my every 3 stroke bilaterally breathing rhythm established. Was loving the swim until we hit the first two turn buoys which were just chaotic with swimmers rolling over, swimming over one another, frog kicking it, and clawing their way around the buoy. Just tried to protect my head as best as I could and kept swimming. Sighting was no problem the whole course and after the first two buoys we had spread out pretty good. Sometime during the swim it must have started raining hard as I could feel it pelting me on the head. The final 200 yards of the swim the wind must have picked up as that seemed to be the toughest part as we headed to shore. Although I am probably capable of swimming a few minutes faster to do so I’m not sure would have been worth the effort for the extra kicking it would have required.
T1: I had planned to do this in under 3:30 and would have achieved this if I hadn’t struggled in putting on my gloves which seemed to take forever. I opted with the polypro long sleeve jersey and midweight full fingered gloves to battle the elements. Living in Seattle area I’d had my share of cooler wetter bikes and had a good sense for what I probably needed. Just wished my polypro jersey was more tight fitting or aero but oh well. I detoured to high five the family on the way out of transition….was so great to see them! There is a longer run then normal before the mount line. T1 was 4:20.
Bike: My goal was to ride 202W which was a .72IF. I finished the first half of the bike and I was at 206W and then I had problems with my powertap SL+ dropping out (I did put in new batteries) where I was getting a lot of zero readings on my watch so I don’t have full confidence in my second half or full course power numbers. My power file shows the ride was 192W overall NP but considering how much of the second half had climbs coming back into Whistler, I don’t think that was right. Also my HR strap was not giving me readings all day (perhaps a user error due to old battery). Best Bike Split said under ideal conditions I was probably looking at a 5:45 given my FTP and so riding a 5:56 I think is pretty darn good. I believe the race elevation profile indicated 6800 feet of climbing and boy it sure felt like it. That climb from Pemberton back into Whistler seems never ending. I observed lots of interesting things on the bike. Within the first hour on the bike I saw that a number of athletes were dropping out that looked like they were shivering and spent. Some were sitting in support vehicles trying to warm up. Wasn’t long before I saw a SAG bus and bike truck collecting riders and their bikes. Some were obviously under-dressed but some looked adequately dressed yet still were succumbing to the conditions. It gave me pause and reminded me to be smart on the bike. Good thing about the climb up Callaghan to the Olympic Ski Jump site is it kept me warm. We had significant rain on the first half of the bike, so much that it was spilling over the roadways in places, I was glad I had my visor on and treated with RainX instead of sunglasses. Just a few blocks past whistler (mile 38?) I had a very large black bear run across the road right in front of me, I slowed and hollered at the bear. Now that was a first….wishing the FinisherPix photographer was right there to catch the moment. As I came to the next group of spectators they asked if I had seen the bear to which I replied “Yeah, I almost hit it on my bike.” The stretch in pemberton meadows was flat as could be which was a nice reprieve before the climb back into Whistler. It was the one place where I saw lots of draft packs despite the rules against it. Was interesting to see folks riding their really expensive bikes wearing huge rain parkas or one guy even had a garbage bag with holes cut out for his head and arms.
T2: Was happy to be off the bike. Transition took a little longer having to strip off my top and gloves. Volunteers were standing around in the tent just talking so I had to get their attention and ask for their help but once I did things went a little faster. Got to see my family just after the run started and give them a hug and kiss! They were my motivation that day! T2: 2:22
Run: The run is a two loop run. Each loop consists of a loop around lost lake and an out and back section along Green lake, very pretty. I felt pretty good the first 6 miles and like always found myself needing to consciously try to run slower than my body wanted to do. Next 6 miles also went good. Final 14 miles though were really tough. I don’t want to make any excuses for why I slowed. I’ve concluded I really need to have my “one thing” nailed which of my races didn’t feel that I had as strong for this race and I needed to do more Z2 work in the latter half of my training long runs. I tried as best as I could to keep it going but instead of running a 3:57 like I planned, I ran a 4:15. I saw a bear in the woods on the first loop maybe 30 feet off the trail. On my second loop as I was approaching the condos near lost lake I was alerted to a bear that was very close to the trail. I think they thought I would stop upon hearing that but I kept running and only upon passing did I realize momma bear literally was just 1 foot off the trail and I probably came within 6-8 feet of her and she growled at me. The spectators after I passed said she had cubs with her. Had I known that perhaps I would have stopped and waited but I wasn’t about to give up precious race minutes. The stupid things we do when we race. Upon reading others race reports it sounded like they held up later runners, rerouted some and later re-located the bear. She was a pretty cinnamon color….I didn’t get any glimpse of the cubs. Shortly after….my run had really begun to slow with me walking a lot of the uphill sections and then running as best as I could until I felt like I had to walk. I should have had it in me to keep running….but I had this mental justification that said it was ok to walk. Saw my family three times on the run….was great to see them but I they knew I was slowing based on the predicted split times I had given them.
Nutrition: The cold weather probably should have altered my nutrition plan but I hadn’t practiced that. I knew I needed the same calories (or perhaps more to keep warm) and had only practiced that by doing 2 bottles of sports drink per hour and a gel every 45 minutes. So I decided I would stick to what I practiced as much as I could knowing I’d probably be peeing a ton during the day but as it turned out that wasn’t so bad because I was already pretty wet and it momentarily warmed my lower half up a little. About half way thru the bike I was starting to tire of all the liquids so I switched from gel to a honey stinger waffle (on course products) and that was delicious. That little switch from gel to waffle was a big pick me up which I continued from then on. I had planned on 2 salt tabs per hour on the bike and stuck with the plan if for no other reason then to get the caffeine they contained. On the run, I stopped the salt tabs and tried to do two cups at every stop and in the second half of the run backed that down to just one cup.
The finish: It was a little deceiving in that you could hear the finish line announcer about 4 miles from the finish and even when you got into Whistler you had an additional mile of twists and turns before you get into the chute. Was so happy to be done….stopped before the finish to kiss and hug the family then ran thru the chute.
The aftermath: I’m incredibly proud of what I had accomplished and I know I made my wife and kids very proud. I know it was an inspiration for Kyra and Jack which is partly why I race. It was a stunningly beautiful course. It was very tough bike and then to run after that bike was a real test. I’ll never forget my bear interactions….that was my highlight. I got cleaned up and packed up and then went to watch my really good friend Bill Lowe come across the finish. At 0200 in the morning we departed for the 6 hour car journey to Boy Scout camp with my son. Not ideal in timing but wouldn’t have missed it. I’m incredibly proud of my son….he got the “BSA mile swim” badge at camp swimming in the Puget Sound….only the 5th boy all summer to do that and he is 11. Now that I’m home from camp finally had time to write the report.
?
In a week or two I’ll begin training for IMAZ which was also my first IM. After that it will be time for a break from IM racing.
?
Thanks for reading and I’d love to hear your advice so that I may apply it to my next IM. Advice on the power tap readings dropping out? Training tips for running the second half better? Thoughts on kicking more to save another 2-3 minutes on the swim? I need to examine my bike data more to look at my VI.
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Comments
Jason...Great race! It was very nice meeting you and your family. Your ability to bike within ~10min of BBS prediction is amazing. You must have been dressed a lot better than I was...no mention of being cold/shivering? I lost a crapload of time having to brake just to avoid shivering or crashing (I'm not willing to take risks on the TT bike in the rain)....seems you didn't have those issues?
That is a great race and execution in those conditions. I have had the same retrograde "wishes" that I had a tight/form-fitting waterproof cycling jacket. I have one that is probably too thick/warm and one that is so large that it would've driven me nuts with flapping...but both were hanging in my closet in San Antonio last weekend anyway! If there is a "next time" for me, I will definitely bring more options for potential cold/rain.
Congratulations!
JL
Jason, throw your "things to do different next time" out the window for this race. Simply participating, surviving and finishing is a success. I bet the dropouts on the power readings were due to wetness in the system? as to better mental fortitude for the run? You probably used up an unusual amount of brain energy just trying to cope with the first three hours on the bike. Don't beat yourself up about any of this.
The Hefty bag on the bike brought back memories of riding the bottom lifts @ Whistler/Blackcomb in the rain wearing just such an outfit. Not very aero, but it works!
Jeff--No, surprisingly I wasn't cold but that is probably the extra fat I had versus a lot of the athletes. The gloves made a world of difference. My braking seemed pretty sound in the rain, had there been significant wind it would have been a whole different situation.
Al--I appreciate your perspective and advice for me in my post race debrief. I am incredibly proud and should just leave it at that. I've learned so much from you these past 2 years.