Bruce Thompson 2017 IMCHOO Race Report
Summary: I had a very strong race, earning 2nd place in M60-64 AG and 289 Overall on a day with brutal conditions. It was 105 heat index and bright sun the entire day. I executed my plan well, but suffered and slowed more than usual on the 2nd half of the run. Still, I passed 4 guys on the run to move up into 2nd. I came up just short of the one Kona slot in my AG.
Background: I had a good summer of training & racing. I won my AG in two local Olympic races and the Milkman HIM, all with strong runs. I earned a slot to the 2017 70.3 World Championship at the Racine 70.3 race in July with a super fast bike split. But leading up to IMCHOO I suffered 2 injuries that set me back a bit. I crashed on my bike on Aug 13 & got serious bruises and road rash. I had to stop training for about a week to heal up. Then just 8 days before IMCHOO I strained a muscle in my back and shut down my swimming until the race. Net, I was feeling confident but not over confident of my fitness.
Pre-Race: I arrived Thursday & went to the EN dinner. It was great to meet new teammates and see old EN friends. Friday was the normal stuff – check in, get my bike from TBT, buy food, drive the run course, go for an EZ ride and run. Met my good friend Claudia Langarica who also raced IMCHOO. We had dinner. Saturday- more usual stuff – make up bags, rack bike, drove the bike course.
Race Day: Had my usual pre-race breakfast & headed down to transition. Claudia and I met in transition and rode the bus together out to the swim start. We got in line, sat down comfortably on a blow up raft she brought, and eventually entered the water together. That was the last I saw her until the finish.
Swim: Uneventful. Non-wet suit swim since the water was a toasty 83F. Time: 1:09:44, 18th in my AG. The time was a few minutes slower than I hoped for but I swam very EZ the entire way, & didn’t re-injure my back. With the time trial start, this swim had the least amount of contact with other swimmers of any IM I’ve done. Net- a good swim, a bit warm towards the end, but in complete control the whole way. Matches burnt - Zero.
T1: Swift but not without mistakes. Time: 5:02, fastest split in my AG. Upon getting out of the water, I couldn’t find the zipper cord (it was tucked too much under the swim skin) and had to walk a few extra steps before getting it off and starting to run thru T1 . And I went down the wrong rack for my bike (rookie mistake), and had to duck under a rack and thru a hole in the bikes to get to my bike. Got my on shoes, grabbed my bike, and saw Coach Rich at the mount line. Overall, I guess I was fast compared to the other guys in my AG as all of the top 5 finishers were 2-4 minutes slower than I in T1. Still think I gave away about :15 with my mistakes.
Bike: Overall a solid ride. Time: 6:01:54 for 116 miles for average speed of 19.3 mph, 5th fastest bike split in AG. I moved up from 18th after the swim to 6th after the bike in my AG. My original target was 180 average watts (190 NP) for the ride, but I adjusted that down to 165 (175 NP) for the heat. I did have some problems with my computer shutting itself off twice late in the ride, so I only got data for 85 miles, but my average watts were 164 (174 NP) for what was recorded. Average cadence was 92, right on target. So I felt like I rode to my adjusted plan and my HR averaged 120 for the entire which is Z1 for me. I started out easy & watched people fly by me. I drank a lot in the first 20 minutes. I put 2 bottles of water on my bike to start the race (normally only put 1 water bottle on at start) since I didn’t want to get behind in hydration after the warm swim. I finished both bottles before the first aid station. This helped me stay ahead of the game, and I peed 6 times during the ride. At each aid station I’d get 2 bottles of water, and every 3rd station a small banana. During the ride I also drank two 24 oz bottles of concentrated Infinit (825 calories each bottle), ate 1 power bar & 1 bagel that I picked up at BSN. I took 4 S-caps for extra electrolytes. I did feel some fatigue in my calves in the last 30 miles but overall I came rolling into T2 feeling fueled up, hydrated, and ready to run after what was a hard ride for many. Got my feet out my shoes in the last ¼ mile and did a running dismount.
T2: Smooth and fast. I removed my helmet while jogging to my bag, & found a seat in the tent. Body glide on toes, socks & shoes on, stuff helmet in bag, gave bag to a volunteer while jogging out of the tent with my go bag in hand. While running, I put stuff on from my go bag in this order – race belt, headband, EN visor, S-caps pills and race saver pouch into my jersey pocket., 16 oz bottle of Infinit to carry in my hand. Time: 4:02, fastest time in AG. I don’t think I did anything special but again I was 3-4 minutes faster than the other top finishers in my AG.
Run: Solid but not up to my standards. Time - 5:04:36, 3rd fastest split in my AG. Average HR 124 which is well within my Z1 HR. I pride myself on being able to run strong at the end of any triathlon, especially an IM, and I just wasn’t able to live up to my expectation. I ran the first 13.1 miles in 2:17:23, but slowed to 2:47:13 in the last 13 miles. UGH! Still I passed 4 guys in my AG to move up to 2nd. I was able to pass everyone but the AG winner.
I felt ok the first loop, even running EZ up/down Barton. However, my legs just never loosed up after a mile or two like they normally do in races; they stayed tight the entire run. I know I was hydrated and fueled so it was strange to me. Still, my HR was in the 130-135 range which is Z1 for me. Even going up Barton my HR never got above 140. I used the race saver bag to get ice at each aid station, & this worked well, even if it meant I actually had to stop for 3-4 seconds to let the volunteers pour the ice in. I picked up another 16 oz bottle of Infinit in RSN and carried with me, then switched to GE after it was gone. I got one cup water at each aid station.
On the 2nd loop, the heat got to me at about mile 15. I never had any GI problems, my HR was in good range, but my legs, especially my hamstrings just wouldn’t go like normal. I went to a run/walk strategy to keep going. Also, my One Thing (get back to Kona) was lame. My legs told my head – “dude, we've carried you twice to Kona and you don’t even like that damn race course, so we’re freaking walking”. So that was my race from miles 15-22, walk some, run some, conversation going back and forth between my legs and my head. Even switching at mile 20 to that magic elixir – Coke – didn’t help much. Finally, I got some motivation. A guy in my AG passed me as I was walking at mile 22. I didn’t know if he was on the first or second loop, but damn if I was going to let him pass me. I started running and put him behind. At the aid station at the bottom of the backside of Barton hill, he caught me again. So I start running again, and kept running up most of Barton (I walked for about 50 yards half way up to turn and see if he was with me – nope), and then ran (slowly) the rest of the way to the finish. I saw Coach Rich on the pedestrian bridge near the finish and at least I was running when I passed him (didn’t get yelled at for walking).
At the finish, I felt ok, meaning I’ve felt much worse after other IM finishes. I still don’t quite know why I struggled so much for me on the run. The heat - I’ve run well in the heat before, so maybe not the heat. The hills - Possibly. The combination of heat and hills - Likely. A lame One Thing – For Sure!! Well on to IM Arizona in 7 weeks to race again. This time I’ll have a new One Thing – Run the entire marathon no matter what.
Thanks to everyone who continues to support me in this crazy hobby – My brother JT and sisters Beth & Sarah, my kids Andrew & Lindsay, my good friend Claudia Langarica (who finished IMCHOO in 13:40), my training partners at Amphibian Multisport, other Chicago training partners (Matt Aaronson, Mike Semmerling, Erin Harvego, David Salzman, Steve Warsaw, Erika O) and the EN team.
Comments
It's good to see what kind of result one can have when they nail the nutrition. There's a lot I can learn from your race.
Take care - hope to see you at a future race.
Bruce,
Nice race. I've had a lame one thing, well not really having one mostly and walked off the course so good job getting it done. Not sure it's the cause but the two breaks you had due to injury could have definitely affected your race. You took a week off in mid august that's what, 6-7 weeks before the race so some big bike/run workouts missed which could have cause part of the issue. My 2nd thought was the back issue leading up to the race. Did this change your taper other than the swim, possibly causing you to come in flat. Not sure what this feels like on an IM but I've felt flat on on a 1.5K/55K/15K tri and really did not come around until the back half of the run and not fully.
Not sure either are causes but definitely take a look at WKO metrics to see how big of a hole these punched in your training.
Gordon
Bruce,
Definitely showing that veteran experience, deep fitness base and mental toughness getting it done on a long day in 105 heat index conditions.
No words.....
Sincere congratulations!
SS
@ Don - Yes nutrition is so important in an IM. I've followed the same nutrition plan for virtually every IM I've done. It includes: a big breakfast 3 hours before the race start, a power bar one hour before race start, sip a 16 oz bottle of infinit in the hour before race start. On the bike it is two 24 oz bottles of concentrated Infnit + 3-4 banana pieces from the aid stations + power bar + bagel that I get a special needs. It is about 400 calories/hour on the bike, which is above the EN guidance but works for me (I simply get hungry if I don't eat the power bar and bagel in the 2nd half of the bike). On the run it includes Infinit on the early part of the run and then switching to GE and coke later in the race. This averages much less calories/hour than the bike - only about 225/hour, in line with EN guidance. The only thing I adjust is the amount of water and number of S-caps I take. More water and S-caps if it is hotter than 80F. BTW, I've done all my long practice rides (anything over 2 hours) using this combination of nutrition for at least 5 years, so my gut is very use to it.
@ Robin...Thanks & good luck this week in Kona. Enjoy every moment, even the times when the wind is almost unbearable. The run down Alii' Drive at the finish is like no other. Go M'burg.
@ Gordon - Thanks. I did cut my running back a bit more during the taper since the arm swing during running did seem to aggravate the sore back. Still, I may have been a touch stale. Actually, I had a business trip to Quebec City on Tues-Wednesday of race week (and of course the flights got delayed upon my return to Chicago on Wed nite) & I think that may have worn me down a bit.
@ Shaughn - Thanks very much.
Well done Bruce on a brutal day! It would have been easy to throw in the towel but you didn't. Not surprised. Rest up!!
Congrats on the 2nd place AG! I understand your frustrations with the run but you were able to get moving when needed (competitor passing you) and you kept it moving. That conversation between mind and body is real and though not at our desired pace, you figured out what it took to keep moving. It was motivating seeing you on the course...you were making it look easy. It was great meeting and racing with you. Recover well...All the best at IMAZ!
Thanks Paul and Derrek. I do think the bike crash I had 6 weeks before the race may have hurt my performance at IMCHOO. I bruised my left hip and thigh badly. The bruised healed up but I still had a tightness in my left hamstring that I didn't have before the crash. Looking back, I think the hamstring was strained as it dealt with the surrounding bruises.
Also, I looked back at my pacing in the marathon, and I clearly was going for the win, and was willing to risk not winning by going for it. That's racing!!
Bruce, first off, running down 4 of the five guys in front shows a *bit* of toughness in harsh conditions, don;t you think? But I know you wanted that win, and in addition to needing multiple One Things (in case on doesn;t fit the bill that day), you might consider the difference between you and the winner. First 4.6 miles of the run, he went @ a 10:47 pace. You were 9:52. While he slowed in the first half, he was close to 10:15 the second half, while you... I'm not saying starting out @ 10:45 would have given you first place (he had a real strong bike), but it might have made you feel a little better after the whole ordeal, if it had allowed you to run a 4:40 or better, or at least have the fastest run split in your AG.
IMO, the name of the game in the run is to aim for a starting pace which allows you to even or slightly negative split the whole thing, given the conditions on the day. I'm betting you knock a SUBSTANTIAL amount of time off that run nest month.