Brandon's 2015 IMChoo Race Plan (first Full IM)
Here's my first attempt at a race plan for my first full IM. I used Coach Patrick's format and made it my own. I am still working on it so please bombard me with any comments/questions/criticisms. Thanks so much for reading. Brandon
Also, sorry for the length and the way the copy/paste worked out. This is my second attempt and it looks much better as plain text.
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Pre-Travel Weekend:? Change tires
? Change to Latex Tubes
? Clean bike
? Lube bike
? Check all nuts/bolts/screws on bike
? Change batteries in HR monitor / Quarq
? Charge Di2
? Cut Nails
? Hair cut including shaved legs ?
Wednesday:
? Travel to Chattanooga, TN from NOLA
? Charge Garmin / Computers
? Clean bike from travel
? Check Limit Screws / Bolts / etc.
? Wednesday workout???
Thursday
? Check-in at race site (9a-5p)
? Photo ID
? USAT card or $12 cash
? Athlete Briefing (11a and 2p)
? Team Dinner – Bluewater Grille – 5:30p
? Thursday workout???
Friday
? Big Breakfast by 8am
? Sip Sports Drinks/Electrolytes all Day
? Four Keys Talk – 10a-12p – Doubletree Hotel Downtown
? Smart Lunch + Snacks -- SALT!
? Final Review of Bike / Bags
? Morning Bag
? T1 Bag
? T2 Bag
? Bike Special Needs
? Run Special Needs
? Light Dinner by 6pm
? In Bed by 9pm -- Final review of Race Plan.
? Friday workout???
Saturday
? Big breakfast by 8am
? IronKids Fun Run (8a-10a)
? Mandatory Bike and Gear check in (10a-3p)
? Garbage bag to cover seat
? Walk route from water to bags to bike to exit. // TAKE PICTURES!
? Look for 2x landmarks and markers for bike rack position. Note row/column of t bags. // TAKE PICTURES!
? Get out of there fast
? Back to Hotel to Chill, Stretch, Watch Movie, Etc.
? Get lunch and order a to-go dinner to be warmed up in hotel room later
RACE DAY
Wake Up – Time??
1. Eat Breakfast:
a. Applesauce, bottle of Ensure Active, banana, bottle of IM Perform
b. Coffee maybe
2. Get Dressed:
a. HRM (Snug)
b. EN TriSuit
c. Chip on ankle
d. Flip Flops
e. Throw away clothes
f. Bring sports drink and water bottle for sipping
Transition Check
1. Nutrition bottles on the bike
a. Two bottles of Perform on Frame
b. One bottle of Perform in Torpedo
2. Bento box
a. Duct/Electrical tape
b. Zip ties
c. 1 powerbar
d. 1 canister of salt tabs
e. As many Gu gels as will fit
3. Chain / Gearing Check
4. Sunglasses in helmet
5. Garmin mounted.
6. Tire pressure check.
7. Head to get Body Marked
Team Picture -- 6:30am SHARP – in front of Ice Cream shop right by body marking and bright IM light
Final Suit Up
? Body glide, if needed
? Take out swim ziplock with: cap, goggles, spit anti-fog.
? Clothes/flip flops into Morning (white) clothes bag.
? Hand off bag
PreSwim
? Anti-fog spit and rinse
? Goggles under cap!
? Water and Gel at 15-20 minutes to start (about 7:30a).
Race Pillars
? No Racing
? Steady Effort Wins the Day.
? No Highs, No Lows.
? You’re better than you think you are. You can do more than you think you can. Commit not to quit.
? Stay inside your box! If it’s outside of your box, do not stress over it.
? The one thing! Find your carrot!
The Swim -- Just Keep Swimming!
? Start strong and smooth - stay in control.
? Focus on: (1) smooth recovery with high elbows, (2) strong vertical catch, (3) pull all the way through hip.
? Use the shoreline and nearby swimmers to sight for me.
? Do not stop swimming! Do not lift head and look around!
? Keep your head down and get it done!!
T1
1. Jog into changing tent
2. Hand wetsuit & T1 bag to nearest volunteer.
3. Put on shoes and gloves.
4. Put gobs of chamois cream on the important parts!!
5. Sunscreen
6. Leave tent and find Bike
7. Power On Garmin
8. Helmet On / Buckled.
9. Put on sunglasses
10. Jog bike to Mount Line
11. Execute clean, single-sided mount. No need to rush!
12. Make sure Garmin is started.
Bike // Pacing -- Steady + Aero
? Settle In; confirm everything is good and working.
? Target 145w all day (.70 IF). Climbs up to 200w as needed.
? HR in 120s, building to mid-130s by end.
? Smooth cadence, be humble, don’t be a hero on climbs.
? Super aero all day; stay small; be smart
Bike // First 20 Miles // JRA/BoC Zone:
? First 11 miles are super easy until the beginning of the loop
? Note early HR and work to get it down. 125 is perfect with 130 absolute maximum!
? Fluid target = 1.5-2 bottles of Perform for first hour.
? 1 salt stick pill an hour, if needed (most likely not)
Bike // Miles 20 - 90 // Ninja Zone:
? Allow HR to climb to 130-135 steady with a maximum around 138-140.
? Settle into target normalized power of 145-147
? Super mental focus on the here and now. Don’t think back, don’t think forward.
? Note any HR/Power/RPE disconnects and adjust/slow down as needed.
? Use terrain-centric execution and conservation of momentum.
? Do opposite everyone else and smile as others blow themselves up on the hills
? Fluid target = 1.5-2 bottles of Gatorade Endurance per hour.
? Eat one powerbar during this section with plain water.
? Gels only if needed and be sure to chase with water, not GE.
? 1 salt stick pill an hour, if needed (most likely not)
? Consider stop to stretch as needed at Special Needs.
? Make sure you stay cool by dumping water during the second half of the ride, if needed.
Bike // Miles 90 – T2 // Strong Zone:
? Stick with a HR target of 130-135 steady with a maximum around 138-140.
? Stay strong with a target normalized power of 147 all the way back into town.
? Keep focused on targets. Do not get distracted or start to race back to T2.
? Note any HR/Power/RPE disconnects and adjust/slow down as needed.
? Fluid target = 1.5 bottles of Gatorade Endurance per hour.
? When get back into admin roads to T2 go with easy light spinning to get mind into t2 game.
? Mentally prepare for the transition to running.
T2
1. Hand off bike.
2. Take off Helmet
3. Find bag, head to tent.
4. Bag down & Open.
5. Garmin on wrist, turn it on immediately.
6. Race belt with number on. Have a couple of gels in loops on race belt.
7. Shoes (on top), single sock in each.
8. Start walking out with GO Bag.
9. Sunscreen
10. Exit transition to Run Out.
Run // Pacing – Slow and Steady Wins the Race
? Settle down; confirm everything is good and working.
? Focus on Great form.
? Maintain focus on all hills.
? Smart through aid stations. 30 steps walking reward at all aid stations.
Run // Miles 1 - 6 – Just Running Along
? Hit the hill out of T2 very easy. Do not raise heart rate on this hill!!
? Force the pace to be slow…..STUPID SLOW
? Keep HR as low as possible for first 6 miles
? HR target is 130 or Bike Avg HR, whichever is lower.
? Speed is present in the form of Not Slowing Down
Run // Miles 6 - 13 -- Steady Eddie
? HR target can raise to approximately 135-140 with a 143 maximum. HR will likely be in the 130-135 range.
? Maintain focus on all hills.
? Speed is present in the form of Not Slowing Down
Run // Miles 13 - 20 -- Prepare for the SUCK
? Execute the first half of lap 2 very similar to that of lap 1.
? Steal the soul/energy of every competitor passed.
? Keep turnover, keep form,
? Don't walk between aid stations.
? Speed is present in the form of Not Slowing Down
? Stay steady until the approaching bridges for the 2nd time.
? Do not bring the Dark Place closer. It is coming, don’t worry.
Run // Part Three – Enjoy the Dark Place
? Keep moving steady over Barton hill
? Embrace the suck. It’s almost over.
? Use your carrot/one thing to keep moving. Do not stop.
? Speed is present in the form of Not Slowing Down
Run Nutrition:
? Feel good? Eat! Especially in the first half of the run.
? Target is 1 gels/blocks every third aid station. About 2-3/hour.
? 4oz GE and 4oz Coke at each aid station. Drink water with gels, though.
? Pay attention to sodium and take Base salt, if needed.
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Comments
T1:
Put on shoes and gloves... then apply cream to the important parts... then sunscreen. You have gloves on, are these bike gloves or latex gloves. if Latex, ok that works. if bike gloves, hmmm, may want to hold of until all the creams are on.
I would move make sure helmet is on and buckled higher on the list to like 3 or 4. Also sun glasses because you do not want to touch those things after you apply creams. A smug on your sun glasses will drive you CRAZY all day.. and you are wet so wiping it off is very hard to do.
On the bike:
Have you practiced with the perform and then gatorade before? Also at what point will you stop perform?
IMO - Do not stop at special needs unless you have to. If you need to stop and stretch, stop at the aid station before or after special needs. Special needs is a cluster. It is just a massive traffic jam and not worth getting involved if you can avoid it.
ON the Run:
Whats in your GO bag?
Do you have your one thing? Heck do you have a second thing?
Are you taking coke the whole run?
2. If possible I would put the chamois cream on before the swim, less moving parts in T1
3. Make sure your bike computer is on before the race, auto-off turned off, and calibrated. That way just press start.
4. I would think you would need the gels on the bike. For reference I just did nearly 2 bottles of GE per hour + Clif Bar + 3 gels and I weighed 132 pounds.
5. I would do GE and Water at each aid station and then switch to only coke down the road. I am not sure about GE + Coke the whole race.
6. Also put hat/visor in go bag. Most important, save the go bag. You can fill it with ice down the road to either store under your hat or stuff in your tri-kit.
Otherwise looks good!
1) Do you need 3 bottles on your bike? You just need enough to get to the next aid station, and it looks like with 2 bottles/hr max you should be good with 2.
2) I don't think you are allowed to leave helmet/sunglasses on bike? Check on this. You can put them on on your way to the bike.
3) There will be volunteers outside T1 to put sunscreen on you. I'd recommend this- they are pretty speedy and one less thing you have to do in a crowded changing area.
4) If you don't already, I'd have a screen on your garmin showing NP for the whole ride. If you are targeting 14x watts but letting yourself get up to 200 on hills, you might end up with a higher NP for the whole ride than you want. Too much spiking on hills and you might need to ease off on other areas to keep your ride NP in check.
5) Don't worry about starting the Garmin (bike or run) immediately when you cross the mat- that is what timing chips are for. The bike mount can be crazy congested, focus on staying rubber side down, you have 112 miles to get the computer going. On that note, I've had a lot of issues this year with my Garmin 500 not finding my power meter when there are hundreds of other power meters around, and I"ve heard similar reports from others. Just try to sync again when a few miles in and a bit more spread out.
6) Try to hold out on coke until the later miles of the marathon. It becomes a reward. Also don't be surprised if you cannot stand the thought of gatorade or gus in the second half of the run.
You're going to have a great race! Have fun!! Smile! This is what it's all about!
2. As you take buses to swim start you'll have a bag you can hand off with your morning clothes as you make your way to the water so you can get those back. It's a long wait and long line to get to the water so get there on time and be ready to just sit around a lot in the dark on the pavement and bring some nutrition and hydration there. At one point you will go past a swamp which will definitely wake your senses up if you were at all still sleepy ; )
3. Wake up Race day. Give yourself enough time to digest big breakfast and BM typically 3 hours.
4. Chip on ankle with safety pin per peter. I usually tape any toes that I know might be an issue and also do band aids on the nipples for the run as well as a little vasoline in the socks.
5. Do you have break fix of a couple of tubes (butyl) and co2 in case you flat? First section with railroad tracks had lots of flats so be ready. Hopefully the idiots with the tacks and motor oil won't be back this year.
6. What are you doing with the duct/electrical tape and zip ties?
7. As many gu gels as will fit? Ideally you have a nutrition plan at this point that gives you an exact amount needed based on your RRs and testing. It's good to have a safety in case you drop something but don't go overboard with a buffet taped to your top tube.
8. For aero bars do you wear gloves? If you've done all your training with them then wear them but on a tri bike I typically skip the gloves, one less thing to worry about since you'll hopefully spend X hours on your elbows instead.
9. Per Peter put on chamois cream before race, don't waste time in T1 it won't wash off during the swim.
10. Garmin should be powered when you leave bike setup for the swim with auto off turned off. The battery will last on a full charge.
11. Jog past the mount line, Choo is very congested and narrow so go past all the other people and get some clear space before mounting. No need to mount right a the line.
12. Bike start is a bunch of admin miles before getting out of town with railroad track crossings so just watch yourself and hold the bars. On second loop last year I saw women right in front of me 2 miles from finish on second loop completely eat it on railroad crossing so just be careful.
13. As you are finishing the last couple of miles turn on and set your wrist garmin for run no need to add that to T2 list and it will grab GPS and be ready.
14. I would hold off on the coke as long as you can. I think the sugar high from coke for a typical cup you grab lasts about 8 minutes or so and once you start you can't stop. As said use it as a reward like after mile 18 or so when the suck really comes as you cross the bridge and start the hills.
Have a great race and enjoy the experience.
This will be my first IM and this has been a huge help for my plan.
One quick question, I am using a Garmin 520 for my bike and a Garmin 310xt for the run. A good idea was given to me to just put the watch on in T1 that way I don't have to worry about it in T2. I can just wait and turn it on sometime later in the bike. Is there any issues with doing this while underway using the 520? I have never tried this and dont want to confuse the computers or cause anything weird to happen. Does anyone do something similar to this?
Since I'm planning about a 13 hr day finishing somewhere around 9pm, should I be bringing a headlamp for the run? I have never ran with one of these but I know I have seen them out there before. I could put it in RSN bag and use it if needed. Any thoughts?
Thanks
I plan to use a headlamp is great for the set up early morning at T1.
I believe there will be enough temporary and street lighting where headlight for run is not needed. Curious to see if anyone feels differently.