Francis Picard - IMLOU 2017 race plan
6th IM
AGE: 36
Weight as of this morning: 61kg
VDOT: 52 TRP is 7:30
FTP used – not tested in the last 4-5 months: 275 watts. my 5hr power curve was 187 before IMMT and its now 202, that comes from the intense zwift work done during the last 6 weeks
Goal for this race? Just see how my body reacts to 2 races within 8 weeks and FOCUS on execution and see where it goes, LET THE RACE COME TO ME
I am a bit worried for the run, my volume has been capped to to 35M per week for 3 weeks before the taper
Really looking fwd to meet people I havent met yet !
Wednesday:
1) Flyng to Louisville in the evening
2) Assemble bike before going to bed to ensure everything is ok and be able to sleep well.
3)
Thursday:
1) Check in expo, all admin stuff
2) Ride course with @Brian Hagan and other people that wanna join
Friday
Sleep in, no swim for me, at least for me, I might gel influenced to
2 PM Team Coffee - Please and Thank
You, 252 East Market Street
5:30 PM - Cars depart for Kellie's house.
6:00 PM - Dinner at @Kellie Moran-Jones Home (Qdoba
Catered) – thanks again for organizing all this !!
Prepare bags in the evenning
SATURDAY
9:00 AM - Team Breakfast Wild Eggs - 121 South
Floyd Street
Noon – Watch IMWC with team and see @Coach P chase Frodeno
and Kienle
Drop bike and bags
Sunday:
1) Wake up around 3hAM for breakfast and coffee
2) Shower
3) To the T1 – 5’
4) double check my T1 and t2 bags if they havent move or something dropped out of it
5) prepare the 520 and calibrate with PM
6) Walk to the river
Race execution plan – Swim
This year is a rolling start – will seed myself in the 1h-1h05, my swim times in the pool are actually faster than they were before IMMT, I focused a lot on muscular strength and I am confident I can pull a good swim. Need to stay focus and do not go off course as I did at IMMT where I went off course by 275M.. but finish with 1h06.
Race execution plan – T1
1) Wetsuit stripper
2) Wetsuit on shoulder and run
3) Get my gear bag, put helmet on and run to bike – I will be sockless all-day
4) All food will already be in my back pockets, basically T1 should be fast and not a lot of moving parts.
5) Shoes will already be on the bike
6) be the best in AG as I did in IMMT, I guess transitions are now nailed, just need to focus
Race execution plan – Bike
This build was mostly focus on bike by increasing the intensity by racing on zwift 2-3 times a week and doing all long rides on zwift with the team.
1) Need to focus on getting the HR low in the first 5 KM –start drink & eat
2) STEADY PACING, have a discussion with my PM for 5h30, I don’t want to see my IF go over 1.06 (as Al Truscott mentioned.. got start somewhere!)
3) I don’t know at all the course, but I got be careful not to
spike the watts in the climbs, let people pass me and use the last stretch to
town to get “free speed” by staying aero and think in my head that I am racing
in Zwift 
it’s a 30M TT section!
Food/Drink on the bike
1) I have the watch setup to ring every 8 minutes to remind me to drink, that makes a total of about one infinit solution bottle per hour – 318 calories, 566MG of sodium, 74g of glucides – I have 2 bottles with me and powder quantity for 4 refills that I will mix on the fly with water – that makes 6 self-sufficient bottles
2) Every 45’ will take a gel which is the Brix maple syrup gel - 100 calories, 3mg of sodium and 26g of glucides
3) 2 salt pills/hour – 256MG of sodium
Total per hour: 418 calories, 1078mg of sodium and 100g of glucides.
Race execution plan – T2
1) Flying dismount & bike to volunteer
2) Remove helmet
3) Run to tent – take bag
4) Put shoes on and start running out with the race saver only
5) I don’t carry food or liquid on me during the run since my body can take what’s on the course.
6) be the best in AG as I did in IMMT, I guess transitions are now nailed, just need to focus
Run
1) Start running while keeping HR below 135 – 140 for first 6 miles or adjust based on RPE
2) Miles 6 to 18 – RPE only
3) Every mile, check on form, check on cadence.
4) DO NOT START RUNNING Z4 IN THE FIRST 8M – AKA IMMT RUN
5) Goal is to keep a 5m/km pacing, this gives a 3h30 marathon which would be a run PR and I know I can run long time at that pace.. I just need not to start the run at 4m/km
6) Fast walk the aid stations
7) Miles 18 to 26 will be all out, uncomfortable, let HR go up, start coke and redbull
8) Target to pass people in front of me
9) Enjoy the finish line !!!
10) Get all my stuff, go back to my hotel room, clean up and come back to cheer teammates still on the course !
Summary:
This is unknown territory for me as I don’t know at all the course, I raced 8 weeks ago. The main goal of this race are:
1) Apply lessons learned from IMMT
2) See where my fitness is
3) Crack the top 15-20 in my AG is the goal
4) Be the best in transitions
5) Have a steady bike, no watts spiking
Thanks
for reading !
Comments
2 salt tabs per hour? Holy cow! Those must be some low sodium salt tabs. I could not handle that much. I know you've done like 17 race rehearsals this year, but something does not sound right with that.
Remember to have that table reserved for a beer after the race! See you Thursday!
I'm excited to see what you can do. Forget about MT. Focus 100% on this race, this day. If you allow yourself to think that MT may have left you with flat legs, that could quickly become an excuse on race day to slow down or walk (i.e., "I did race 8 weeks ago, so that's probably why I feel like crap, I've eanred the right to walk").
I suspect you really, really like to race. Because your MT plan was to ride with steady watts and start the run conservatively. And we know what happened there. Truly trust the EN approach, truly commit to the plan, and don't ad lib on race day even if you feel great. If you tend to lose focus, see if you can set watt alerts on your 520. If you hit 250 or so watts, then have some horrible, annoying sound invade your world. Make it loud. If you can customize it, make a Celine Dion song. Make it last 30 seconds. Bet you won't hit 250 a second time.
Same thing for the run. Your plan has too much flexibility, not enough discipline. 135-40 is too big of a range. 135-40 or RPE? Knowing you, that means "as fast as I can go if it feels ok." The IM run never has and never will reward those who start too fast. If 140HR is the number, then set an alert and make your watch play a Justin Bieber or Nickleback song or some other horrible sound as punishment. Once you get to Mile 18-20 on the run, then and only then can you let Racer FP out of the cage.
You have all the physical tools to stand on the podium. Execution is your barrier. But you're in the right place to fix that.
Above all, have fun playing a game you obviously love.
MR
if you have to write "patience" and "discipline" on your forearms, do it! The 4 keys have a phrase that says "if you think you didn't go hard enough on the bike, you have 26 miles to prove it.
This should be adopted for the run as well: "If you think you didn't run fast enough in the first 18 miles of the run, you have 8.2 more miles to prove that!"
Agree with the general assessment that you should dial in your plan, and think in advance the levers you have to pull if that plan doesn't come to be.
202w on the bike is convervative in my view...but I'd go with that because you are a strong runner and that should set you up with a 5:15ish bike and it will set you up for a very strong run. 5 IMs is a good base, so you know what to expect......settle into your target HR early and that will set you up to break hearts from mile 18-26.2
Will be rooting on from WI
You are a proven strong runner with a solid base. Don't let the recent lower volume concern you.
I had my best IM run in Kona last year where I had a 3 minute PR in easily the worst conditions I've faced. I did this on a very solid base the year prior, but in the 8 weeks prior to the race my volumes averaged under 35 with only one week above 40 and two weeks (not including taper)( below 25 miles.
I just confirmed that the 520 does allow you to set up power alerts. I've done it in the past for the run, with an annoying alrm every time my HR got above a pretermined level. But it forced me to slow down. Setting a power alert on the bike could be a big help for you.
MR
each pill is about 250MG, Since @Mike Roberts suggested me to hit 1000mg on my IMMT RP, thats what I have been doing on long rides and it cut down a bit the leg cramps in the last 30' of the bike.
@Mike Roberts
Man Celine Dion would be awful !!! Thanks for all the advice, it will be a mental game this time, I took your suggestion of having alerts on the 520. I already have some setup for drink, gels and salt, will add a cap one on the watts
@Coach Patrick
no first 8M @ z4 right ? :P
@Scott Dinhofer agree.. this race will be all about execution, I tested some stuff in Tremblant now its time to totally commit to test the EN execution way until the last 8M of the run.
@JeremyBehler
Yes I agree, run fitness is there, it was only to maintain and I must not use this "low volume" last 4 weeks to justify a bad run. I think that running the first 18M (28.8k) @ 5m/km and go all out for the last 8M could make a great run.. just need to execute correctly the bike.
@Jeff Kane and @Derrek Sanks
see you next weeks guys ! thats gonna be a fun week end
Overall solid plan...and the additional of the above comments only enhance it. At this point I think you have some great advise so simply looking forward to racing with you again. Travel safe and will see you next week!
Good luck!
Excited for you and your race! Have fun, be focused and save that z4 stuff for after the line!