IMTX 2017 Cath Jadot Race report
IMTX 2017 F40-44 - 15th AG - 11:27
Swim 1:22
Bike 5:39
Run 4:16
I want to say "worst IM ever", but it's only my second so not very insightful.
Disappointed with my race for sure. But I think it was an excellent learning and humbling experience.
Made many mistakes along the way and some bad luck added the poor results of the race compare to my expectations.
The Swim 1:22
Goal: 1:10 (last IM 1:13)
First mistake: I seeded myself poorly.
I seeded myself with the 1h athletes, hoping to draft stronger swimmers. I think a lot of people had the same idea. It was complete mayhem. I swam over a lot of people and a lot of people swam over me. Lots of contacts. I'm comfortable in the water so didn't mind so much, but I just couldn't find my stroke because of so many people around me for the first 1/3 of the swim.
The 2nd 1/3 was getting better, more open spaces to extend my stroke but when we entered the canal I started to be cold. I thought I would speed up to warm up a little and ended up with cramps in my hamstrings. So I slowed down again.
Then my fingers started tingling.
In my "Damage Control" protocol, I have: "if fingers start to tingle, eat a banana and a salt tab."
But that's for the run! And I just had a couple of salt tabs before the swim, I don't think I need more sodium or potassium...
Then I realized I started to shiver.
I was like: "Really, Cath? Really? The water is 78ºF you're NOT having hypothermia."
I just couldn't stop shivering. My swim stroke was totally out of whack but I finished. I had a hard time to come up the stairs. I was frozen and in disbelieve... I guess I lived in the Caribbean for too long
Not everybody finished the swim, we lost an athlete. Spectators helped him out of the water and did CPR but he passed at the hospital. Very sad.
I found my T1 bag and headed for the tent, still shivering, and went through the options I had:
Luckily enough I had a trash bag to put on my chest under my jersey to cut the wind, I knew it would be cold.
It helped a little but I was still cold. And I was really bummed with my swim time, it was mentally hard.
The Bike 5:39
Goal: 5:20 (last IM 5:20)
The beginning of the bike was crazy busy. A lot of admin turns; big packs of bikes. I wasn't sure if I had to burn a match (or two) and try to pass the packs or drop behind.
Then, of course, because I wasn't happy with my swim time, I decided to pass. Apparently, I didn't pass fast enough because I got a drafting penalty....
I was like: "Really, Lady (the official on the motorbike)? Really? There are 7 athletes drafting on the right and you pick at me trying to pass them? I just should have folded into the draft pack."
But then remembered to stay in my box. And not worry/get angry about things I couldn't change. I stopped at the next penalty box and stretched and ate during the 5min. It felt like an eternity, but the penalty time eventually expired and off I went.
The weather was overcast. I was still cold but not shivering anymore. First loop out, nice tailwind, life was good for that very brief moment....
Then came the first turn around back to The Woodlands and the headwind... Hard, but I kept the HR where it was supposed to be. Stuck to my nutrition plan.
The rest of the bike was uneventful, except at the special need bags where I passed my bag (not the station) and the volunteer back 20ft wanted me to go against the flow of bikes to get to him... I told him that I was not going backward - if he could please bring the bag to me. It was a kiddo and it took him a few moments to find out if he could walk up to me with the bag - which he did...
All in all (wind - penalty - special need bag) it made for a bike split slower than I hoped for.
T2 was slow but wanted to wash off the mud from my feet before putting my socks on.
I knew that with these slow swim and bike splits, I would have to give it all on the run. My run was much stronger than before and I knew I could run fast.
The Run 4:16
Goal: 3:40 (last IM 4:07)
My plan called for 8:50 for the first 6 miles, keep heart rate around 155, but I literally told myself - "Screw it, it's now or never that you have to show what you are capable of. I can do this!"
So I decided to pick up the pace just a tad - at 8 min/mile, HR 160 - 165 (in my plan, 160 is my max until mile 23) and skipped the 20 sec walks at the aid stations. After 2 miles, I realized it was really not a good idea, and decided to get back closer to my plan at ~8:40.
Around mile 6 I started to have terrible stomach cramps and after a couple miles trying to deny the pain, I had to stop to the portos -NOW- otherwise, I'll have some major issues. It was, of course, just when I entered the area along the canal, where there're no portos and no bushes for what felt like miles... I finally reached an aid station with portos.
Explosive diarrhea and my pee was red. Not good.
The night before the race, I was reading the book "Iron War" from Matt Fitzgerald (excellent book if you haven't read it), where he describes how Mark Allen peed blood during Kona in 1987 because of food poisoning that engendered internal bleeding.
My mind was racing (pun intended):
"What's going on? Should I mention something to a medic, a volunteer? If I do so, my race is probably done. Mmmh, very tempting solution right now...
I had no solid food on Friday. What did I eat two days before that could have caused food poisoning? Nothing really. I had vegetables and protein bars.
So, what else could make me pee red?
I usually eat pretty clean so maybe it's the food I'm getting on the course and all the colorants? But the Gatorade is yellow, not red. My nutrition is chocolate flavored, so not red. I can't remember eating any red food at any aid station.
So it can't be food colorants.
Maybe, it is the 1/2 liter beet juice that I downed 30 min. before the swim? "
On Friday, I had the brilliant idea to stop by Whole Foods and buy beet juice for the race. Something I never tried before. Of course, this is something every athlete should do: Change your nutrition plan the day before the race.
When I was researching on-line, the day before the race, how much beet juice I should drink and studying half-life charts, to see when I should drink it, I read that some people may have stomach issues with beet juice, but it didn't stop me anyways...
The rest of the run was pure agony, between the portos stops, the stomach cramps and the pace falling apart, I was not 100% sure that my pee was red because of the beet juice and not something worse.
I did the best I could to keep it together and push the last 3 miles, using my HR as a whip. I just wanted to be done with this race.
I passed the finish line in tears... Physical pain, yes, but emotional pain also.
It was not the race I trained for. I feel like my racing self didn't honor my training self.
My spirits were not very high on Sunday, but the Pro speeches at the award ceremony helped me put it in perspective.
The take-home messages from these speeches:
"You have to be able to ride the lows to appreciate the highs. If it was always easy, you'd take the highs for granted." Matt Hanson
"Why is a frog always happy? Because he eats what bugs him. So find what bugs you and eat it!" Jodie Robertson
It's Monday morning and my pee is finally not red anymore. I still have stomach cramps, I have a sore throat and I run a little bit of fever.
We'll be home tonight, I had a lot of time to think (and write this RR). I know what bugs me.
I knew better, I knew I had to stick to my plan, use the checklists, not try anything new on race day, but I thought I could wing it. I can't. This is an Ironman. Respect the distance.
This race is a learning experience:
1. I'm still a rookie, even if I finished 4th in my first IM, with a cool 10:50, it doesn't mean I don't have to stick to my plan anymore.
It went extremely well @ IMMD because I stuck to my plan and rehearsed mentally every single part of the race several times.
And even when I won't be a rookie anymore, I'll still have to stick to my plan, otherwise, no point of making a plan. Even the Pros have a plan and rehearse mentally the race.
2. I was underprepared and overconfident.
I half-assed many moving parts that made race morning very stressful. No need to add that level of stress, the race in itself is stressful enough.
Swim 1:22
Bike 5:39
Run 4:16
I want to say "worst IM ever", but it's only my second so not very insightful.
Disappointed with my race for sure. But I think it was an excellent learning and humbling experience.
Made many mistakes along the way and some bad luck added the poor results of the race compare to my expectations.
The Swim 1:22
Goal: 1:10 (last IM 1:13)
First mistake: I seeded myself poorly.
I seeded myself with the 1h athletes, hoping to draft stronger swimmers. I think a lot of people had the same idea. It was complete mayhem. I swam over a lot of people and a lot of people swam over me. Lots of contacts. I'm comfortable in the water so didn't mind so much, but I just couldn't find my stroke because of so many people around me for the first 1/3 of the swim.
The 2nd 1/3 was getting better, more open spaces to extend my stroke but when we entered the canal I started to be cold. I thought I would speed up to warm up a little and ended up with cramps in my hamstrings. So I slowed down again.
Then my fingers started tingling.
In my "Damage Control" protocol, I have: "if fingers start to tingle, eat a banana and a salt tab."
But that's for the run! And I just had a couple of salt tabs before the swim, I don't think I need more sodium or potassium...
Then I realized I started to shiver.
I was like: "Really, Cath? Really? The water is 78ºF you're NOT having hypothermia."
I just couldn't stop shivering. My swim stroke was totally out of whack but I finished. I had a hard time to come up the stairs. I was frozen and in disbelieve... I guess I lived in the Caribbean for too long
Not everybody finished the swim, we lost an athlete. Spectators helped him out of the water and did CPR but he passed at the hospital. Very sad.
I found my T1 bag and headed for the tent, still shivering, and went through the options I had:
- Stop the race, it's just too cold,
- Do some jumping jacks to warm up, or
- Continue moving and hopefully I would warm up.
Luckily enough I had a trash bag to put on my chest under my jersey to cut the wind, I knew it would be cold.
It helped a little but I was still cold. And I was really bummed with my swim time, it was mentally hard.
The Bike 5:39
Goal: 5:20 (last IM 5:20)
The beginning of the bike was crazy busy. A lot of admin turns; big packs of bikes. I wasn't sure if I had to burn a match (or two) and try to pass the packs or drop behind.
Then, of course, because I wasn't happy with my swim time, I decided to pass. Apparently, I didn't pass fast enough because I got a drafting penalty....
I was like: "Really, Lady (the official on the motorbike)? Really? There are 7 athletes drafting on the right and you pick at me trying to pass them? I just should have folded into the draft pack."
But then remembered to stay in my box. And not worry/get angry about things I couldn't change. I stopped at the next penalty box and stretched and ate during the 5min. It felt like an eternity, but the penalty time eventually expired and off I went.
The weather was overcast. I was still cold but not shivering anymore. First loop out, nice tailwind, life was good for that very brief moment....
Then came the first turn around back to The Woodlands and the headwind... Hard, but I kept the HR where it was supposed to be. Stuck to my nutrition plan.
The rest of the bike was uneventful, except at the special need bags where I passed my bag (not the station) and the volunteer back 20ft wanted me to go against the flow of bikes to get to him... I told him that I was not going backward - if he could please bring the bag to me. It was a kiddo and it took him a few moments to find out if he could walk up to me with the bag - which he did...
All in all (wind - penalty - special need bag) it made for a bike split slower than I hoped for.
T2 was slow but wanted to wash off the mud from my feet before putting my socks on.
I knew that with these slow swim and bike splits, I would have to give it all on the run. My run was much stronger than before and I knew I could run fast.
The Run 4:16
Goal: 3:40 (last IM 4:07)
My plan called for 8:50 for the first 6 miles, keep heart rate around 155, but I literally told myself - "Screw it, it's now or never that you have to show what you are capable of. I can do this!"
So I decided to pick up the pace just a tad - at 8 min/mile, HR 160 - 165 (in my plan, 160 is my max until mile 23) and skipped the 20 sec walks at the aid stations. After 2 miles, I realized it was really not a good idea, and decided to get back closer to my plan at ~8:40.
Around mile 6 I started to have terrible stomach cramps and after a couple miles trying to deny the pain, I had to stop to the portos -NOW- otherwise, I'll have some major issues. It was, of course, just when I entered the area along the canal, where there're no portos and no bushes for what felt like miles... I finally reached an aid station with portos.
Explosive diarrhea and my pee was red. Not good.
The night before the race, I was reading the book "Iron War" from Matt Fitzgerald (excellent book if you haven't read it), where he describes how Mark Allen peed blood during Kona in 1987 because of food poisoning that engendered internal bleeding.
My mind was racing (pun intended):
"What's going on? Should I mention something to a medic, a volunteer? If I do so, my race is probably done. Mmmh, very tempting solution right now...
I had no solid food on Friday. What did I eat two days before that could have caused food poisoning? Nothing really. I had vegetables and protein bars.
So, what else could make me pee red?
I usually eat pretty clean so maybe it's the food I'm getting on the course and all the colorants? But the Gatorade is yellow, not red. My nutrition is chocolate flavored, so not red. I can't remember eating any red food at any aid station.
So it can't be food colorants.
Maybe, it is the 1/2 liter beet juice that I downed 30 min. before the swim? "
On Friday, I had the brilliant idea to stop by Whole Foods and buy beet juice for the race. Something I never tried before. Of course, this is something every athlete should do: Change your nutrition plan the day before the race.
When I was researching on-line, the day before the race, how much beet juice I should drink and studying half-life charts, to see when I should drink it, I read that some people may have stomach issues with beet juice, but it didn't stop me anyways...
The rest of the run was pure agony, between the portos stops, the stomach cramps and the pace falling apart, I was not 100% sure that my pee was red because of the beet juice and not something worse.
I did the best I could to keep it together and push the last 3 miles, using my HR as a whip. I just wanted to be done with this race.
I passed the finish line in tears... Physical pain, yes, but emotional pain also.
It was not the race I trained for. I feel like my racing self didn't honor my training self.
My spirits were not very high on Sunday, but the Pro speeches at the award ceremony helped me put it in perspective.
The take-home messages from these speeches:
"You have to be able to ride the lows to appreciate the highs. If it was always easy, you'd take the highs for granted." Matt Hanson
"Why is a frog always happy? Because he eats what bugs him. So find what bugs you and eat it!" Jodie Robertson
It's Monday morning and my pee is finally not red anymore. I still have stomach cramps, I have a sore throat and I run a little bit of fever.
We'll be home tonight, I had a lot of time to think (and write this RR). I know what bugs me.
I knew better, I knew I had to stick to my plan, use the checklists, not try anything new on race day, but I thought I could wing it. I can't. This is an Ironman. Respect the distance.
This race is a learning experience:
1. I'm still a rookie, even if I finished 4th in my first IM, with a cool 10:50, it doesn't mean I don't have to stick to my plan anymore.
It went extremely well @ IMMD because I stuck to my plan and rehearsed mentally every single part of the race several times.
And even when I won't be a rookie anymore, I'll still have to stick to my plan, otherwise, no point of making a plan. Even the Pros have a plan and rehearse mentally the race.
2. I was underprepared and overconfident.
I half-assed many moving parts that made race morning very stressful. No need to add that level of stress, the race in itself is stressful enough.
Tagged:
0
Comments
Very nice report on a tough day. If you do this long enough, we all have those days (trust me, my 12:37 PW was a whole lotta of no-fun). We learn, get pissed, get stronger, sign up for another one, and overcome.
I load up on beet juice before big races and pee bright red during the race (and the next day). It's an extremely common side effect, although alarming when it happens - until I realize that it's just the beets. Lower GI "issues" is also a side effect, but it never has been for me in the hundreds of times I've taken it long before race day (hint, hint). Not saying that's what happened to you, but the fact that you drank beet juice probably puts the odds of it being the culprit of the red pee at 90%.
One "problem" of making checklists and posting race plans, IMO, is we get accustomed to them. I rely on them like a crutch. I've done a race plan for every single race I've done with EN. Until a 70.3 I did last month for fun. I just winged it. And . . . right on cue, I got on my bike with my speed suit on, ran out of liquid on the bike and ran off course for 0.5 mile on the run. Lesson learned. Never again.
I try to follow Gerry Rodriquez' advice and jog an entire mile prior to putting on my wetsuit or speed suit. Even when it's cold, I'm pretty warmed up and loose after a mile.
That swim looked pretty brutal. I'm sure there were pockets of clean water; you just happened to be stuck in the washing machine. The only "solution" I've come up with is to start at the very front and beat 2,300 people. Of course, that doesn't always work. I've done two IMs in which a racer died in the swim. Very sad, unfortunate reality in this sport. Perhaps IMTX will implement a more controlled rolling start (like 10 swimmers every 10 seconds) to prevent the log jams at the end of the swim in the canal.
Just plain stupid that they give out drafting penalties during the early part of the MOP race. Chalk it up to bad luck.
If the beets weren't the sole or major contributor to your GI distress, I would go back and see if you can determine how many grams of carbs you consumed per hour on the bike. If it was more than 60 or 70 grams, you may have simply eaten more than your gut could process. Again, an extremely common, pervasive mistake/issue in IM. When I dial in the grams of carbs I know I can digest on the bike (from tons of practice), and I move to a low-residue diet three days out (not the day before), I tend to skip the GI issues and give myself a better opp to focus on racing towards the finish (as opposed to the next porto).
Finally, don't let this one race wreck your confidence. Overconfident to the point of not respecting the distance or cutting corners is one thing, but don't discard the confidence you've earned. You didn't ace IMMD by accident. That simply doesn't happen. You aced it because you've got all the skills/tools to ace any IM on any day.
MR
P.S. We've got a great group starting our build to Lake Placid in a week, so there's time. Just sayin.
"My plan called for 8:50 for the first 6 miles, keep heart rate around 155, but I literally told myself - "Screw it, it's now or never that you have to show what you are capable of. I can do this!"
So I decided to pick up the pace just a tad - at 8 min/mile, HR 160 - 165 (in my plan, 160 is my max until mile 23) and skipped the 20 sec walks at the aid stations. After 2 miles, I realized it was really not a good idea, and decided to get back closer to my plan at ~8:40."
100's if not thousands of EN IM marathons are screaming back at you, either from the problems which ensue when you go out too fast, or the success which results from following the plan, "Really???" I've had both experiences, and trust me, it's a lot more fun to follow the plan, and ALWAYS faster. Running 9-9:15 the whole way will give you an IM marathon PR next time. And don't forget the impact of temperature/humidity on ideal run pace. Once you tickle that 4 hour mark, then work your way down from there.
On the IMTX FB page, a few athletes were recommending to implement a self-seeded start by AG. It seems like a good idea to reduce the number of swimmers that are in the water at the same spot at the same time.
Preventing construction/city workers to dump stagnant water in the canal just a few hours before we swim in it, sound like a good idea too...
Thanks for your kind words about IMMD, it does make me want to try again
@Al Truscott
Hey Al! You're absolutely right. When I wrote my RR, I knew EN peeps would get on my back and just think - well that's what the coaches are telling us all the time, just watch the EN 4 key talk or read any of the training plans. I've watched the videos and read all the articles... First race "seemed" too easy, now I know I passed my limits.
Temperature was WAY under what I usually train in, maybe I thought it'll help me more.
Thanks for your comments guys, good to feel the support of the team when things are going the way you expected.
CJ
Appreciate your honesty and reflection here. In our side chats pre-race I know you know I was picking up on the level of preparedness. I'm gonna be shitty honest here and I hope it's helpful. A certain WSM (or six) has done the same for me and honestly that's where my biggest breakthroughs have come.
1 - Are you all in? And if you are, what does that look like? Are you willing to cross every "T" and dot every "I" such that on race day you can confidently say "I did everything I could" at the finish? Things like race selection and yes, tire pressure and if you're willing to spend too much money on silly shoe covers 'cause they might save you 2'..... and did you PRACTICE with beet juice so you would have known if/why peeing red... and... and... (<-- only examples, apply to YOUR opportunities/equipment...) I'm not saying it's right, I'm just saying it isn't exactly getting easier and there are athletes willing to do these things.
2 - This is a Coach P-ism: One of the best ways to get to Kona is to not.quite.get to Kona. I would have qualified in 2014 if a drug cheat had been out of the equation. Being so close forced me to re- re- re- examine again and again 'till (four podiums later) I was a MUCH BETTER ATHLETE when finally qualified. You've tasted it, you now have an idea of what it takes. Use this as an opportunity to refine, refocus and GO GET YOURS!
3 - You know this, but just to reiterate: control what you can control and be YOUR best athlete on race day. Sometimes being one slot or two away from a spot feels "so close" 'cause just one less athlete in your AG on race day and you'd be in! On the flip side, sometimes that athlete is/was 30' up the road from you (not so close... woe) so keep striving to get the best out of yourself and find "free" speed where you can.
You're smart. You're on THE BEST TEAM IN TRIATHLON. You're talented. You're honest with yourself. You can do this! I'm sure the convo with Coach P will be insightful. Keep us posted on your plans to lock and load for the next one. We've got your back!
All the best to you! - Jenn
1. I agree I could/should have been more prepared AND I should have trusted my training. Coach P was telling me today during our debriefing chat that changing my nutrition plan, questioning my tire pressure, etc. the day before the race is probably because I lost confidence in myself and my training. I always used the same nutrition/ the same tire pressure/... it worked well for me - I should not have questioned these (and that's exactly what you told me when I asked you that before the race).
2. YES
3. This is THE big lesson for me. Don't think too much about what the other athletes are doing. Be the best I can be. and crush it only at the END of the marathon.
Thanks for your support Jenn! That what makes this team GREAT!
Sorry to hear you were disappointed in your race. When I check your results, I suspected you would. Did I miss your race report for Texas? You had a really strong bike! You had a strong race -period- considering it was only a few weeks after IMSA! You're a BEAST!
I think I'm very much like you in a sense that I'd rather see another race venue than repeating the same event. It just keeps things exciting
What are you doing in Octobre? Fancy to join for IM Louisville (or FL)?
@Catherine I did not file a race report but I did put out a comparison of South Africa and Texas from a venue standpoint. Look in the race review/selection folder if interested.
Louisville is a nice venue but I've done it and I have a busy fall already. Plus another Ironman this year would not be wise. Besides Canada in late August, I think I'm going to add IM70.3 Augusta on 24 Sep and I already have Miami Man on 12 November. The latter is USAT Long Course Nationals and qualifies for ITU Long Course Worlds in Odense, Denmark the following summer (14 July, 2018 to be exact). Denmark might be old home week for you (practically in Belgium's backyard), but I love racing in Europe and I want to set up a double on back to back weekends to extend my 2018 tri-cation.
I've done Florida twice, and I went to High School in Panama City so if you have any questions about the area, or even about Louisville, let me know. The two races are very different so choose the one the works to your strengths.