Rachel Hawe's Ridiculously Long IMWI 2015 Race Report- 70 min PR!
This is my entry into the IMWI Longest Race Report Competition. I think I stand a pretty good shot at winning! Patience and discipline, and you might be able to read it all!
Background:
IMWI is my 3rd IM . I did IMWI in 2013 as my first, and did IMCDA this June. I work a lot and train like it is an actual hobby, not another job, but I’m learning (slowly) to accept this. Training this year was boosted by JVC and Blue Ridge Camp, as I knew this was going to be my last Ironman season for a while so why not go all out? Both camps were great experiences! I did a “Camp Weekend” on the IMWI course back in May training for CDA and got up there once more to do a race rehearsal 6 weeks out from race day. After Coeur d’Alene, I took 1.5 weeks off and then started another build. I did Racine 70.3 and USAT AG Nats along the way. I knew that two builds in one year had built bike and run durability, but had two big doubts going into race day. 1) I kinda forgot that swimming was part of triathlon from Coeur d’Alene until a couple weeks before IMWI. Oops. 2) I had a work conference in Milan, Italy during week 18. I moved my final race rehearsal up to week 17. Not sure how big an impact this ended up having, but it sure felt like it had been forever since I did a long ride and I was sure I had lost all my fitness. The sharp drop off on TrainingPeaks didn’t make me feel any better.
As I put in my race plan, my main goal here was to work on nailing execution, especially on the bike. I didn’t have a great idea of a time goal, but wanted to break 13 hrs.
Pre-race:
I drove up to Madison on Thursday just in time for the team dinner. Spent Thursday night with a friend who lives in Madison. Friday was team swim, registration, and Four Keys Talk. My mom and David arrived that afternoon. We stayed at the Hilton, which my mom sprung for after seeing how good those people had it in 2013. Well worth her money
. Saturday was spent at the Farmer’s Market (awesome!), big breakfast at Short Stack Eatery (also awesome), dropping off bike and bigs, and driving the course. We did the hotel’s pasta dinner which was really convenient and actually a decent spread. I really didn’t feel at all in “race mode” leading up to this race. I don’t know if this is because it is my second this year or because the extra week of taper had made me feel more removed from everything or if I’m just really not as type A as most triathletes. I’d go so far as to say I felt too relaxed.
Race Morning:
I woke up a few minutes before my 4am alarm after about 6.5 hrs of sleep. I did the applesauce/protein powder/banana breakfast and sipped a bottle of Perform the rest of the morning. Went over to transition, did body marking and set up my bike. My bike computer (Garmin 500) wasn’t playing nice with my heart rate monitor or power meter. Argh. Cross fingers and hope it will get along when we get away from 3000 of our friends. I went back to the hotel for a few minutes to chill out but wanted plenty of time to get down the stairs for the picture. Before I knew it, it was time to get in the water! I couldn’t find the all important glasses table as I was getting corralled into the water, but a volunteer I asked told me he would take them and take care of it. Folks, I am ridiculously blind, so this was a big leap of faith! I was imagining doing the whole bike and run in my prescription goggles if things didn’t work out!
Swim: 1:20:11 (1:34:21 in 2013).
Gear: sleeveless cheapest Blue Seventy wetsuit, goggles on under cap.
In the water, I situated myself to the left of the ski ramp, and just waited for all the space around me to fill in. That never really happened. To the right of the ramp was a mob scene, but it was really open where I was. I was also pretty close to the front, just because there was no one around, which for a slow swimmer like myself started to seem like a very bad idea. Everyone around me was predicting drastically different swim times, so I decided to just stay where I was and hope for the best.
The gun went off and the cage match began. For probably the first 200 m, I was sometimes not even swimming, but fully out of the water on top of other people. My wetsuit got unzipped halfway down my back in the fight, but I can add “able to zip wetsuit while swimming” to my resume. Miraculously, after only a few minutes, the contact stopped. I was always around people but very little actual contact besides the disaster that was the turn buoys. Even with the massive amounts of contact at the start, I stayed in my box and had ZERO anxiety! I focused on my stroke and breathing every 3rd stroke. I did very little sighting, mostly just staying with the pack and hoping they knew where they were going. I was also swimming pretty much right on the buoy line, so when I did sight it was an easy quick look ahead. This was definitely my best navigation of any race. I don’t think I got significantly off course at any point, which is a huge win for me.
I made it to the half way mark (indicated by buoys turning from yellow to orange) and looked at my watch to see I was at around 40 minutes. This is also where I was at with the half way in Coeur d’Alene, but there I faded on the second loop. I was expecting the same to happen, just given my minimalist approach to swim training. However, my stroke stayed strong the whole time, and I didn’t feel fatigued, more just bored and ready to be done swimming. I came out for the water just thinking “I’m not suppose to be able to swim that fast!”. Great start to a great day!
I think the huge improvement in my swim time came from just keeping on swimming (thanks Finding Nemo!). In 2013 I was stopping to get my bearings, correct my sighting, etc. Here I just went to town swimming and kept a good flow the whole time. In my training I also hadn’t swam much, but the swims I did do were longer sets, so I think that really helped my endurance.
T1: 10:09 (10:07 in 2013)
After a little snafu missing the glasses table, I back tracked and got my vision back, then got my wetsuit stripped off me and was off to climb the helix. I forgot how awesome running up that spectator-lined helix is, and soaked in all the energy. I at least intended on jogging up the helix, but I’m sure I was doing more of a run with all the excitement. I grabbed my bag and got into the changing area. I’d realized on the swim that I had forgotten to turn on my MyAthlete tracker before the race, so my first priority was to do that before I forgot. My socks were rolled up so they were easy to roll on to wet feet. I also rolled my arm warmers on, which I realize I could’ve done while riding as well. Helmet on and I was off carrying my shoes. It was a long way to run to get to my bike, and there was some traffic with people running with their bikes. Once there, I put on my shoes and Penelope and I were off to the mount line!
Bike: 6:25:21 (6:55:37 in 2013)
Gear: Cervelo P2, no fancy aero stuff, Conti GP tires (23 in front, 25 in back)
First, a disclaimer. My plan was to ride a NP of 130 W. This is based on what I’ve ridden several times on the IMWI course with a good 6 mile run after. It also corresponds to the 135-140 W NP I’ve targeted as RPP in training. It does NOT correspond to my tested FTP, or else I am able to ride an IM at a .78 IF. Main reason for this disconnect is that I really suck at testing. Second is I’m more of an endurance person so not sure how well a 20 min test, even if I could do it well, would correspond to my IM target. I knew I had tested my target in training even if it did seem ridiculously high for my FTP, but was still a little wary because I knew if I crashed and burned after that ride, this team would not let me live down the “dumb” choice of bike pacing. Spoiler alert: worked out pretty darn well!
The ride started in my bucket o’ chicken zone, seriously just thinking about cruising along leisurely. I was getting intermittent heart rate readings but wasn’t sure if they were mine or other people’s due to issues pairing. My power meter was giving me no reading. I just focused on going as easy as possible.
The stick was passing pretty quickly and I was seeing people already doing dumb things. My HR started reading reliably at Whalen Rd, and it was high but coming down. In Coeur d’Alene and Racine it took a long time to come down from the swim so I wasn’t worried. Then on the downhill after the hill on Whalen Road a bee flew right into my face and stung me right over the eye. I cursed like a sailor for a minute but kept trucking. I figured the bee was having a worse day than me.
The start of the loop until the climb into Mt Horeb is my least favorite section, but I focused on positive thoughts, fueling, and not being stupid. Before I knew it I was climbing Mt. Horeb, which is my favorite climb for whatever reason. That is also where I tried one last time to get my power meter to sync up and finally had success. The rest of the first loop was focused on flattening the hills. I stayed on the pressure on the down hills, and rode as easy as I could up the hills, which unfortunately is still high above my baby watt target to prevent myself from going backwards. I was not looking at speed at all. I got to the three sisters and enjoyed the atmosphere but stayed in my box. I was really having a great time throughout the course- more fun than any training ride!
I assessed how things were going as I was finishing the first loop. My HR was higher than I had wanted, hovering around 150 despite my best efforts to try to bring it down to 140, and my NP was 134, 4 W over my target, though this is probably off due to not having power from the first 1.5 hrs of the ride when I at least think I was riding easy. I realized that while I might be doing a good job of riding steady, I should cool it a bit where I could to try to bring it down.
The second loop was therefore all about trying to be conservative. I kept the pressure on going downhill since that seemed like great easy speed to get and helped with momentum up the next hill, but I really rode easy on any flat stretch. Unfortunately, the laws of physics just don’t allow me to ride any easier on the hills. Easing up like this helped me bring my NP down a tick to 132 W, just 2 W over my target.
When I hit the stick to come back, I knew I just had one more hill and it would be a fast return to town. I stayed focused and passed a lot of people. I assessed again how I was feeling- 1) overall pretty good, 2) ready to be off the effing bike, 3) slightly queasy feeling (stopped Gatorade and switched to water on the stick back). I finally looked at the ride time and saw I was going to be under 6:30- happy dance!
My nutrition plan was to start with 2 bottles of Perform, then switch to Gatorade Endurance, targeting 1.25 bottles and hour, supplemented by ? bar (80 calories) every 30 minutes for the first 4 hrs and then switch to gels. I can’t keep track very well of how many bottles/hr when exchanging partially empty bottles at aid stations, but going on feel I think my nutrition was on plan. The big worry though was that I knew I was drinking a lot and it was a cooler day, but I didn’t have to pee until the second half. Then the curse of the overly-continent hit and I couldn’t pee on the bike. By the time I stopped at a porta potty, I think I had tricked my body into not having to pee any more because I lost several minutes unsuccessfully trying to pee. I finally was successful at the aid station in Cross Plains on the second loop and peed A LOT, but still, only one potty break on a long ride is very unusual for me, so I’m not sure what was going on. Ok, enough on peeing.
Overall, had a blast on this bike course! I can remember the first time in 2013 when I trained on the course and felt like it was beating me up. Now I feel like I was in control the whole time. One negative note is that I really think this course is over-crowded. There were corners where there were literally traffic jams of people, and lots of people were horrendous bike handlers and had a tendency to ride in the middle or left of the lane, making passing really annoying/unsafe. I heard over 3000 people started, and that is just too many in my opinion for a safe and optimal experience for everyone. Ok, now back to gumdrops and fairies.
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T2: 2:40 (2013- 5:54)
I got off my bike and Sue Chapman was there to push the waiting volunteer out of the way to take care of a fellow EN-er! I was so happy with my bike (and to be done with it) that I HAD to give her a hug, then I was down to business. Ran in my bike cleats, grabbed my bag from a volunteer, and went into the change area. My volunteer seemed a bit disappointed that I didn’t need more help/take longer. It was a quick shoes off, running shoes on, toss the arm warmers and helmet, grab go bag and off I went. I stopped for sunscreen application which felt like a great massage, and then it was time to get the Garmin going! My plan had been to take off my HR chest strap since it chafes me horribly on the run and I run with my Mio Link, but I forgot this step. This was the first time I haven’t changed shorts, and while that doesn’t take long to do, definitely the less moving parts the better!
Run: 4:11:20 (2013- 4:34:22)
I started the run very nervous that I’d overbiked, but knew I was in the range of race rehearsals so I could AT LEAST do 6 solid miles before hitting unknown territory. I didn’t even care if my watch had found satellites because I locked myself into heart rate. The plan was to stay in the low 150s for the first 6 miles, then let it climb to 160 after that. I looked solely at heart rate, didn’t even have pace showing. I was saying “easy, easy, easy” over and over in my head (and possibly aloud, who knows at that point). I loved not knowing what my pace was and just focusing on heart rate. My legs felt pretty good, a bit stiff but not shredded. I knew it was going to be a good run.
As I started the loop I saw some of the EN superstars coming in from their first loops- Jeremy, Coach Rich, Matt, and Peter, and they all looked strong! Sidenote- I saw Jeremy from the front and what I thought was the ass of another ENer from the back. Didn’t put together that it was the same guy until after the race. Jeremy looked so strong and steady I never would’ve guess he crashed!
I find the marathon really daunting at the start, and focused on small bits. Just get to the stadium. Just get to Observatory Hill. Just get back to State Street, and so forth. I really like this run course because there are frequent changes in scenery, which help with setting small goals. Everything seems to happen when you need it- the cushy run around the field, the quiet peacefulness of the path, the energy of the crowds on State St- they all came at the perfect time for me. Like always, some miles passed quickly and some went on forever, but I think I’m getting use to how being this damn tired feels and better at my mental game.
While I was having a great run, it of course wasn’t all gumdrops and fairies. My calves were ridiculously tight at first, but I’m not even sure when they loosened up. My stomach felt “eh” the whole time, but not to the point where I was actually scoping out bushes for an emergency situation. I did visit one portapotty on the first loop, and almost stopped again on the second but decided I could tough it out when I saw there was a line. Now I’m so glad that there was the line to deter me or wouldn’t have broken 12:10!! Some chafing and blistering feet bugged me in second half. And of course, that unimaginable fatigue that shows up late in the run. But really, I did feel quite good considering this was a marathon at the end of a long day!
At special needs, I stopped to grab my candied ginger (best stuff ever- change of taste from the rest of the days sugar, and helps calm troubled tummies). I also took off my HR strap as it was taking off my skin. The plan was to use my Mio Link for the remainder, but my watch didn’t immediately recognize it and I felt pretty dialed in at that point and didn’t feel like messing around with it. Now I wish I had that data!
I will proudly say I stayed 100% in my box on the run. I kept my heart rate below 155 for the first 6 miles and then it steadily climbed to ~162 at mile 13, after which I don’t have HR data. I got cues on my pace with mile splits, but my watch was slightly off from the mile markers so I didn’t even really pay attention to these. The EN mojo was great on the course, both from others racing and the spectators. Big props to Bruce Thompson for jumping in with me with some encouragement. I saw my friend Theresa several times around the course as well as my mom and David.
My nutrition was mainly gels and Gatorade. I think I had 3 gels the first half and one more the second half. I also had a couple of banana pieces. When my stomach got iffier, I backed off and drank water. At mile 20 I started alternating coke and chicken broth- both were amazing!
I ran the whole marathon except for aid stations, where I only took max of 30 steps unlike 2013 when I walked the whole buffet, and Observatory Hill. In the second loop there were also two times I succumbed to walking but max of 10 steps and I got back to it. My first half was 2:04:32 and second half was 2:06:48, not a negative split but very happy with the pacing. The pace was also spot on with my Z1 pace (based off a half marathon last November), which to me confirms that I did the bike I should.
At mile 25 I started to speed up and passed A LOT of people. In my head I was saying “find someone and chase them down” and man, it felt good when I passed a girl in my age group! That hill coming up to the capital took its toll on me and I wanted to walk, but a guy on his first loop pushed me to keep going. Looking at my watch I knew I could break 12:10, and pulled out all I could. Running down the finisher chute, this was my first IM I really felt proud and like I earned it (silly I know, these things are always earned), and that felt great!
This finish was the most I’ve relied on my catchers. Looking at a picture, in PT speak I can say that my center of mass was definitely not over my base of support! I quickly got my legs back though and went into the food tent where it was great to see Coach Rich there supporting the team. After sitting for a few minutes, it was off to reconnect with family and friends.
Reflection:
Awesome, awesome day! My goal was to get an A in execution, and I think I did that, with the added bonus of a humungous PR. 8th in AG and 82nd female-- can’t complain about that!
Right now, I am incredibly sore with a “positive toilet sign” (difficulty/lots of cursing sitting down on the toilet) and really hating my 3rd floor condo. Getting on and off the floor is part of my job, but unfortunately accompanying this with cursing is frowned upon. Past experience indicates I’ll move much better by tomorrow.
Everyone kept telling me how I was smiling all day. I know this isn’t most people’s “race face” but man, I really feel fortunate to be healthy enough to do hard things! I’ve been living with the ups and downs of Crohn’s disease for 12 years now, and know how quickly my health can be taken away. I also work as a PT and do pediatric rehabilitation research, which also puts things into perspective. I do not take being able to do this for granted.
In terms of improvement/future goals, I still have a lot of low hanging fruit. If I even swam 1x/wk for the entire training cycle, that would be a huge improvement in consistency I have had this season. I could easily lose 15 lbs that would help a lot too. My bike is probably my biggest weakness and I really want to improve here! I also have a few cheaper equipment changes that would help, like actually using that disc wheel cover I have in my storage unit, and upgrading to a full sleeved wetsuit.
It is easy to see the work we didn’t do rather than what we did. Part of me was chalking this result up to a fluke- I was just having a really good day. But I have some friends who are telling me that this is an honest sport, and good results don’t just magically happen. I did put in a lot of work, even if not all of what I would’ve wanted. I think this huge improvement came just as a result of consistent training, even if it was consistent sub-par training. With a 2 IM season, I’ve done A LOT of long runs and rides, and I think that paid off.
On the topic of a two Ironman season, I would not do it again, or at least not with two entire builds. I’ve been “training for an Ironman” now since mid April, and that is a long time to either be doing long rides every Saturday and Sunday or feeling like a slacker when life got in the way. I need more balance in my life than that. It was still an incredible season, don’t get me wrong, and makes me feel very satisfied as I now go into at least one IM-free year.
2016 is going to be a running and short-course year for me for a few reasons. Most importantly, I will be finishing up my dissertation this year and that can’t compete with IM training. Finishing also means a very likely move in the next year. Secondly, I want to do something I have the time to give 100%. While I’m thrilled with the result I got on sub-par training, I am sick of feeling guilty about missed/shortened workouts. I’m finally accepting that my life is currently not conducive to Ironman training, and while I can still have a good race, I don’t like to do things half-way. Focusing on short course will also focus me on getting faster, which is of course always a goal.
The next few weeks will be recuperating, then I’ll train for a half-marathon in Indy with some friends in November. I’d love to break 1:40 but I’ll have to see how quickly I bounce back from this and how hard I can train. I’m doing the January Volume Camp again and really want to show up much stronger on the bike. My big race in the spring will be the Flying Pig Marathon in early May. Then the rest of the season I plan to have fun with short course races, though not ruling out a 70.3 yet. Dear triathlon, you are an addictive SOB.
Background:
IMWI is my 3rd IM . I did IMWI in 2013 as my first, and did IMCDA this June. I work a lot and train like it is an actual hobby, not another job, but I’m learning (slowly) to accept this. Training this year was boosted by JVC and Blue Ridge Camp, as I knew this was going to be my last Ironman season for a while so why not go all out? Both camps were great experiences! I did a “Camp Weekend” on the IMWI course back in May training for CDA and got up there once more to do a race rehearsal 6 weeks out from race day. After Coeur d’Alene, I took 1.5 weeks off and then started another build. I did Racine 70.3 and USAT AG Nats along the way. I knew that two builds in one year had built bike and run durability, but had two big doubts going into race day. 1) I kinda forgot that swimming was part of triathlon from Coeur d’Alene until a couple weeks before IMWI. Oops. 2) I had a work conference in Milan, Italy during week 18. I moved my final race rehearsal up to week 17. Not sure how big an impact this ended up having, but it sure felt like it had been forever since I did a long ride and I was sure I had lost all my fitness. The sharp drop off on TrainingPeaks didn’t make me feel any better.
As I put in my race plan, my main goal here was to work on nailing execution, especially on the bike. I didn’t have a great idea of a time goal, but wanted to break 13 hrs.
Pre-race:
I drove up to Madison on Thursday just in time for the team dinner. Spent Thursday night with a friend who lives in Madison. Friday was team swim, registration, and Four Keys Talk. My mom and David arrived that afternoon. We stayed at the Hilton, which my mom sprung for after seeing how good those people had it in 2013. Well worth her money
. Saturday was spent at the Farmer’s Market (awesome!), big breakfast at Short Stack Eatery (also awesome), dropping off bike and bigs, and driving the course. We did the hotel’s pasta dinner which was really convenient and actually a decent spread. I really didn’t feel at all in “race mode” leading up to this race. I don’t know if this is because it is my second this year or because the extra week of taper had made me feel more removed from everything or if I’m just really not as type A as most triathletes. I’d go so far as to say I felt too relaxed. Race Morning:
I woke up a few minutes before my 4am alarm after about 6.5 hrs of sleep. I did the applesauce/protein powder/banana breakfast and sipped a bottle of Perform the rest of the morning. Went over to transition, did body marking and set up my bike. My bike computer (Garmin 500) wasn’t playing nice with my heart rate monitor or power meter. Argh. Cross fingers and hope it will get along when we get away from 3000 of our friends. I went back to the hotel for a few minutes to chill out but wanted plenty of time to get down the stairs for the picture. Before I knew it, it was time to get in the water! I couldn’t find the all important glasses table as I was getting corralled into the water, but a volunteer I asked told me he would take them and take care of it. Folks, I am ridiculously blind, so this was a big leap of faith! I was imagining doing the whole bike and run in my prescription goggles if things didn’t work out!
Swim: 1:20:11 (1:34:21 in 2013).
Gear: sleeveless cheapest Blue Seventy wetsuit, goggles on under cap.
In the water, I situated myself to the left of the ski ramp, and just waited for all the space around me to fill in. That never really happened. To the right of the ramp was a mob scene, but it was really open where I was. I was also pretty close to the front, just because there was no one around, which for a slow swimmer like myself started to seem like a very bad idea. Everyone around me was predicting drastically different swim times, so I decided to just stay where I was and hope for the best.
The gun went off and the cage match began. For probably the first 200 m, I was sometimes not even swimming, but fully out of the water on top of other people. My wetsuit got unzipped halfway down my back in the fight, but I can add “able to zip wetsuit while swimming” to my resume. Miraculously, after only a few minutes, the contact stopped. I was always around people but very little actual contact besides the disaster that was the turn buoys. Even with the massive amounts of contact at the start, I stayed in my box and had ZERO anxiety! I focused on my stroke and breathing every 3rd stroke. I did very little sighting, mostly just staying with the pack and hoping they knew where they were going. I was also swimming pretty much right on the buoy line, so when I did sight it was an easy quick look ahead. This was definitely my best navigation of any race. I don’t think I got significantly off course at any point, which is a huge win for me.
I made it to the half way mark (indicated by buoys turning from yellow to orange) and looked at my watch to see I was at around 40 minutes. This is also where I was at with the half way in Coeur d’Alene, but there I faded on the second loop. I was expecting the same to happen, just given my minimalist approach to swim training. However, my stroke stayed strong the whole time, and I didn’t feel fatigued, more just bored and ready to be done swimming. I came out for the water just thinking “I’m not suppose to be able to swim that fast!”. Great start to a great day!
I think the huge improvement in my swim time came from just keeping on swimming (thanks Finding Nemo!). In 2013 I was stopping to get my bearings, correct my sighting, etc. Here I just went to town swimming and kept a good flow the whole time. In my training I also hadn’t swam much, but the swims I did do were longer sets, so I think that really helped my endurance.
T1: 10:09 (10:07 in 2013)
After a little snafu missing the glasses table, I back tracked and got my vision back, then got my wetsuit stripped off me and was off to climb the helix. I forgot how awesome running up that spectator-lined helix is, and soaked in all the energy. I at least intended on jogging up the helix, but I’m sure I was doing more of a run with all the excitement. I grabbed my bag and got into the changing area. I’d realized on the swim that I had forgotten to turn on my MyAthlete tracker before the race, so my first priority was to do that before I forgot. My socks were rolled up so they were easy to roll on to wet feet. I also rolled my arm warmers on, which I realize I could’ve done while riding as well. Helmet on and I was off carrying my shoes. It was a long way to run to get to my bike, and there was some traffic with people running with their bikes. Once there, I put on my shoes and Penelope and I were off to the mount line!
Bike: 6:25:21 (6:55:37 in 2013)
Gear: Cervelo P2, no fancy aero stuff, Conti GP tires (23 in front, 25 in back)
First, a disclaimer. My plan was to ride a NP of 130 W. This is based on what I’ve ridden several times on the IMWI course with a good 6 mile run after. It also corresponds to the 135-140 W NP I’ve targeted as RPP in training. It does NOT correspond to my tested FTP, or else I am able to ride an IM at a .78 IF. Main reason for this disconnect is that I really suck at testing. Second is I’m more of an endurance person so not sure how well a 20 min test, even if I could do it well, would correspond to my IM target. I knew I had tested my target in training even if it did seem ridiculously high for my FTP, but was still a little wary because I knew if I crashed and burned after that ride, this team would not let me live down the “dumb” choice of bike pacing. Spoiler alert: worked out pretty darn well!
The ride started in my bucket o’ chicken zone, seriously just thinking about cruising along leisurely. I was getting intermittent heart rate readings but wasn’t sure if they were mine or other people’s due to issues pairing. My power meter was giving me no reading. I just focused on going as easy as possible.
The stick was passing pretty quickly and I was seeing people already doing dumb things. My HR started reading reliably at Whalen Rd, and it was high but coming down. In Coeur d’Alene and Racine it took a long time to come down from the swim so I wasn’t worried. Then on the downhill after the hill on Whalen Road a bee flew right into my face and stung me right over the eye. I cursed like a sailor for a minute but kept trucking. I figured the bee was having a worse day than me.
The start of the loop until the climb into Mt Horeb is my least favorite section, but I focused on positive thoughts, fueling, and not being stupid. Before I knew it I was climbing Mt. Horeb, which is my favorite climb for whatever reason. That is also where I tried one last time to get my power meter to sync up and finally had success. The rest of the first loop was focused on flattening the hills. I stayed on the pressure on the down hills, and rode as easy as I could up the hills, which unfortunately is still high above my baby watt target to prevent myself from going backwards. I was not looking at speed at all. I got to the three sisters and enjoyed the atmosphere but stayed in my box. I was really having a great time throughout the course- more fun than any training ride!
I assessed how things were going as I was finishing the first loop. My HR was higher than I had wanted, hovering around 150 despite my best efforts to try to bring it down to 140, and my NP was 134, 4 W over my target, though this is probably off due to not having power from the first 1.5 hrs of the ride when I at least think I was riding easy. I realized that while I might be doing a good job of riding steady, I should cool it a bit where I could to try to bring it down.
The second loop was therefore all about trying to be conservative. I kept the pressure on going downhill since that seemed like great easy speed to get and helped with momentum up the next hill, but I really rode easy on any flat stretch. Unfortunately, the laws of physics just don’t allow me to ride any easier on the hills. Easing up like this helped me bring my NP down a tick to 132 W, just 2 W over my target.
When I hit the stick to come back, I knew I just had one more hill and it would be a fast return to town. I stayed focused and passed a lot of people. I assessed again how I was feeling- 1) overall pretty good, 2) ready to be off the effing bike, 3) slightly queasy feeling (stopped Gatorade and switched to water on the stick back). I finally looked at the ride time and saw I was going to be under 6:30- happy dance!
My nutrition plan was to start with 2 bottles of Perform, then switch to Gatorade Endurance, targeting 1.25 bottles and hour, supplemented by ? bar (80 calories) every 30 minutes for the first 4 hrs and then switch to gels. I can’t keep track very well of how many bottles/hr when exchanging partially empty bottles at aid stations, but going on feel I think my nutrition was on plan. The big worry though was that I knew I was drinking a lot and it was a cooler day, but I didn’t have to pee until the second half. Then the curse of the overly-continent hit and I couldn’t pee on the bike. By the time I stopped at a porta potty, I think I had tricked my body into not having to pee any more because I lost several minutes unsuccessfully trying to pee. I finally was successful at the aid station in Cross Plains on the second loop and peed A LOT, but still, only one potty break on a long ride is very unusual for me, so I’m not sure what was going on. Ok, enough on peeing.
Overall, had a blast on this bike course! I can remember the first time in 2013 when I trained on the course and felt like it was beating me up. Now I feel like I was in control the whole time. One negative note is that I really think this course is over-crowded. There were corners where there were literally traffic jams of people, and lots of people were horrendous bike handlers and had a tendency to ride in the middle or left of the lane, making passing really annoying/unsafe. I heard over 3000 people started, and that is just too many in my opinion for a safe and optimal experience for everyone. Ok, now back to gumdrops and fairies.
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T2: 2:40 (2013- 5:54)
I got off my bike and Sue Chapman was there to push the waiting volunteer out of the way to take care of a fellow EN-er! I was so happy with my bike (and to be done with it) that I HAD to give her a hug, then I was down to business. Ran in my bike cleats, grabbed my bag from a volunteer, and went into the change area. My volunteer seemed a bit disappointed that I didn’t need more help/take longer. It was a quick shoes off, running shoes on, toss the arm warmers and helmet, grab go bag and off I went. I stopped for sunscreen application which felt like a great massage, and then it was time to get the Garmin going! My plan had been to take off my HR chest strap since it chafes me horribly on the run and I run with my Mio Link, but I forgot this step. This was the first time I haven’t changed shorts, and while that doesn’t take long to do, definitely the less moving parts the better!
Run: 4:11:20 (2013- 4:34:22)
I started the run very nervous that I’d overbiked, but knew I was in the range of race rehearsals so I could AT LEAST do 6 solid miles before hitting unknown territory. I didn’t even care if my watch had found satellites because I locked myself into heart rate. The plan was to stay in the low 150s for the first 6 miles, then let it climb to 160 after that. I looked solely at heart rate, didn’t even have pace showing. I was saying “easy, easy, easy” over and over in my head (and possibly aloud, who knows at that point). I loved not knowing what my pace was and just focusing on heart rate. My legs felt pretty good, a bit stiff but not shredded. I knew it was going to be a good run.
As I started the loop I saw some of the EN superstars coming in from their first loops- Jeremy, Coach Rich, Matt, and Peter, and they all looked strong! Sidenote- I saw Jeremy from the front and what I thought was the ass of another ENer from the back. Didn’t put together that it was the same guy until after the race. Jeremy looked so strong and steady I never would’ve guess he crashed!
I find the marathon really daunting at the start, and focused on small bits. Just get to the stadium. Just get to Observatory Hill. Just get back to State Street, and so forth. I really like this run course because there are frequent changes in scenery, which help with setting small goals. Everything seems to happen when you need it- the cushy run around the field, the quiet peacefulness of the path, the energy of the crowds on State St- they all came at the perfect time for me. Like always, some miles passed quickly and some went on forever, but I think I’m getting use to how being this damn tired feels and better at my mental game.
While I was having a great run, it of course wasn’t all gumdrops and fairies. My calves were ridiculously tight at first, but I’m not even sure when they loosened up. My stomach felt “eh” the whole time, but not to the point where I was actually scoping out bushes for an emergency situation. I did visit one portapotty on the first loop, and almost stopped again on the second but decided I could tough it out when I saw there was a line. Now I’m so glad that there was the line to deter me or wouldn’t have broken 12:10!! Some chafing and blistering feet bugged me in second half. And of course, that unimaginable fatigue that shows up late in the run. But really, I did feel quite good considering this was a marathon at the end of a long day!
At special needs, I stopped to grab my candied ginger (best stuff ever- change of taste from the rest of the days sugar, and helps calm troubled tummies). I also took off my HR strap as it was taking off my skin. The plan was to use my Mio Link for the remainder, but my watch didn’t immediately recognize it and I felt pretty dialed in at that point and didn’t feel like messing around with it. Now I wish I had that data!
I will proudly say I stayed 100% in my box on the run. I kept my heart rate below 155 for the first 6 miles and then it steadily climbed to ~162 at mile 13, after which I don’t have HR data. I got cues on my pace with mile splits, but my watch was slightly off from the mile markers so I didn’t even really pay attention to these. The EN mojo was great on the course, both from others racing and the spectators. Big props to Bruce Thompson for jumping in with me with some encouragement. I saw my friend Theresa several times around the course as well as my mom and David.
My nutrition was mainly gels and Gatorade. I think I had 3 gels the first half and one more the second half. I also had a couple of banana pieces. When my stomach got iffier, I backed off and drank water. At mile 20 I started alternating coke and chicken broth- both were amazing!
I ran the whole marathon except for aid stations, where I only took max of 30 steps unlike 2013 when I walked the whole buffet, and Observatory Hill. In the second loop there were also two times I succumbed to walking but max of 10 steps and I got back to it. My first half was 2:04:32 and second half was 2:06:48, not a negative split but very happy with the pacing. The pace was also spot on with my Z1 pace (based off a half marathon last November), which to me confirms that I did the bike I should.
At mile 25 I started to speed up and passed A LOT of people. In my head I was saying “find someone and chase them down” and man, it felt good when I passed a girl in my age group! That hill coming up to the capital took its toll on me and I wanted to walk, but a guy on his first loop pushed me to keep going. Looking at my watch I knew I could break 12:10, and pulled out all I could. Running down the finisher chute, this was my first IM I really felt proud and like I earned it (silly I know, these things are always earned), and that felt great!
This finish was the most I’ve relied on my catchers. Looking at a picture, in PT speak I can say that my center of mass was definitely not over my base of support! I quickly got my legs back though and went into the food tent where it was great to see Coach Rich there supporting the team. After sitting for a few minutes, it was off to reconnect with family and friends.
Reflection:
Awesome, awesome day! My goal was to get an A in execution, and I think I did that, with the added bonus of a humungous PR. 8th in AG and 82nd female-- can’t complain about that!
Right now, I am incredibly sore with a “positive toilet sign” (difficulty/lots of cursing sitting down on the toilet) and really hating my 3rd floor condo. Getting on and off the floor is part of my job, but unfortunately accompanying this with cursing is frowned upon. Past experience indicates I’ll move much better by tomorrow.
Everyone kept telling me how I was smiling all day. I know this isn’t most people’s “race face” but man, I really feel fortunate to be healthy enough to do hard things! I’ve been living with the ups and downs of Crohn’s disease for 12 years now, and know how quickly my health can be taken away. I also work as a PT and do pediatric rehabilitation research, which also puts things into perspective. I do not take being able to do this for granted.
In terms of improvement/future goals, I still have a lot of low hanging fruit. If I even swam 1x/wk for the entire training cycle, that would be a huge improvement in consistency I have had this season. I could easily lose 15 lbs that would help a lot too. My bike is probably my biggest weakness and I really want to improve here! I also have a few cheaper equipment changes that would help, like actually using that disc wheel cover I have in my storage unit, and upgrading to a full sleeved wetsuit.
It is easy to see the work we didn’t do rather than what we did. Part of me was chalking this result up to a fluke- I was just having a really good day. But I have some friends who are telling me that this is an honest sport, and good results don’t just magically happen. I did put in a lot of work, even if not all of what I would’ve wanted. I think this huge improvement came just as a result of consistent training, even if it was consistent sub-par training. With a 2 IM season, I’ve done A LOT of long runs and rides, and I think that paid off.
On the topic of a two Ironman season, I would not do it again, or at least not with two entire builds. I’ve been “training for an Ironman” now since mid April, and that is a long time to either be doing long rides every Saturday and Sunday or feeling like a slacker when life got in the way. I need more balance in my life than that. It was still an incredible season, don’t get me wrong, and makes me feel very satisfied as I now go into at least one IM-free year.
2016 is going to be a running and short-course year for me for a few reasons. Most importantly, I will be finishing up my dissertation this year and that can’t compete with IM training. Finishing also means a very likely move in the next year. Secondly, I want to do something I have the time to give 100%. While I’m thrilled with the result I got on sub-par training, I am sick of feeling guilty about missed/shortened workouts. I’m finally accepting that my life is currently not conducive to Ironman training, and while I can still have a good race, I don’t like to do things half-way. Focusing on short course will also focus me on getting faster, which is of course always a goal.
The next few weeks will be recuperating, then I’ll train for a half-marathon in Indy with some friends in November. I’d love to break 1:40 but I’ll have to see how quickly I bounce back from this and how hard I can train. I’m doing the January Volume Camp again and really want to show up much stronger on the bike. My big race in the spring will be the Flying Pig Marathon in early May. Then the rest of the season I plan to have fun with short course races, though not ruling out a 70.3 yet. Dear triathlon, you are an addictive SOB.
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Comments
Are you doing the Monumental Half Marathon? Great fast course...I set a PR there in 2013.
I like how you are glad to be done, not doing an IM next year, but still doing the January Volume Camp...too funny.
Awesome job..
Well done Rachel!!! Awesome that you were running gals down at the and and earned a solid placement to boot!!! Appreciate your perspective and healthy outlook on this "life balance" you speak of. Cheers to easily sitting on the toilet soon and best of luck in your future endeavors!
Good work and great execution!
What a great reward for all your work this year. No matter what you compete in - half marathon, short or long triathlon - you;re going in with a racer mentality. The result show it, as does your constants quest for improvement. And, IMO, there's no way you miss going under (pretty far under) 1:40 for a half marathon in November, if you just keep running 4 -5 hours a week after appropriate recovery time.
Success on race day requires a lot of disparate things coming together, or at least having the mindset to "make it so" during the race. Not only are you a total ninja of execution, but your focus and determination are borderline unfair advantage.
As we rode in a group in Clermont together, working the hills and wind, putting you on the front to take control of the pace...I bet if I had said "8th AG" you would have laughed yourself right off your bike. And yet...here you are...after a year few would have survived, you aced the biggest test!
Congrats!!!!
Little tip for future long runs: I used to have a problem with the heart rate monitor chaffing. Now I buy sports tape and just tape a piece in the middle under the receiver - it works! It won't work if you have to swim first though. My last race instead of the tape I used "Self Adhesive Waterproof Disposable Hypo-Allergenic Nipple Covers" (Amazon) under the strap - it held the entire race! ;-) No chaffing.
Good luck in your future endeavors while trying to manage your below quotes :-)
"I don’t like to do things half-way." " Dear triathlon, you are an addictive SOB. "
Rachel...congrats on a fantastic race. You executed like a true EN Ninji. But best of all, you had the biggest smile (only John Withrhow's smile came close to yours). When I saw you on the run on State St, you looked like you were out for a eazy Sunday morning jog, yet you were covering the ground rapidly. You even told me "I'm having a great day", and you did.
Best of luck to you on whatever you decide to do in the future.