Scott Imlay's IM Boulder Race Report
Main Goal: Finish!
My first attempt at full IRONMAN distance, 2016 IM CdA, ended in a DNF after I badly messed up my nutrition on the bike. I knew I was in bad shape when I stopped at the last aid station to try to cool down. I woke up some time later covered in ice bags with EMT’s hovering over me. In Boulder, this was an experience I wanted to avoid at all costs!
Execution Goals
1. Follow the nutrition plan – especially on the bike!
2. Maintain a steady (average) pace/power!
3. Stay in my box!
Race Conditions
IT WAS HOT! Because of the heat, and the altitude, I knew it was going to be a challenging day. Most of my training was at sea level in cool (less than 60 degrees) temperatures. The forecast temperature for race day was 94 degrees. Because of this (and team comments on my race plan), I increased my bike nutrition plan to two bottles per hour. I’m sensitive to Gatorade Endurance so, based on team advice, I carried a concentrated bottle of Nuun Hydration (my preferred nutrition) which I mixed with water obtained from the aid stations.
Swim
I seeded myself in the 1:30-1:40 group. Overall the swim was really nice. To be consistent with my overall goal (FINISH) I didn’t set any time goals. Instead, my goal was to come out feeling strong and ready for a strong bike. My swim time was 1:37 – a little faster than my CdA swim and a whole lot more relaxed.
T1
Full confession, I am not very good at transitions! I haven’t practiced them, and I don’t have a good routine. My T1 time was 14:33.
Bike
My FTP at sea level is 194 Watts. I was told that I should adjust that down 5% to 8% for the altitude and heat, so the adjust FTP was between 178W and 184W. I was shooting for 70% of FTP so my plan was to maintain between 125W and 129W.
On the first lap the nutrition strategy and power plan worked well. I managed to consume two bottles of Nuun hydration per hour (6 bottles total) and I held a normalized power of 126W. To combat the heat I used ice in my nutrition bottles (before mixing in water) and sprayed my body down with the excess water. Mixing the concentrated Nuun with water in my aero bottle worked well, in spite of not practicing it ahead of time. Overall I felt pretty good as I headed out on the second lap.
The second lap, unfortunately, didn’t go quite to plan. I
ran out of Nuun about 2/3 of the way through and had to resort to Gatorade
Endurance (GE). The aid stations started running out of ice and I was really
starting to cook as the day heated up. I did manage to choke down a couple
bottles of GE but only consumed 4 bottles of nutrition on the second lap –
three less than I should have. The final couple of climbs were really difficult
and my normalized power for the second lap dropped to 113W (12W short of the planned
range). When I finally pulled into T2, after 7:11 on course, I was tired and
dehydrated, but happy to have made it this far! =
T2
Slow again (15:09)! Part of this was me desperately trying to cool down and get a little hydrated before the start of the marathon, but I’m not sure my efforts really made any difference.
Run
I’ve been fighting a periodic runners-knee issue for the last 2 months, so I was planning to use a run-walk strategy to lower the stress on my legs. Specifically, I was planning to do a 9/1 run/walk based on repetitions of 3’ of running followed by 20” of walking. In addition, my plan was to keep my heart rate on the first few miles below that for the last hour of the bike – which turned out to be 140.
As I headed out I felt dry but otherwise pretty good. My HR was 110 bpm as I walked out of the changing tent. After the first 3’ it had spiked over 170 bpm. This is Zone 5 territory for me. After the next 3’ run it was 175 bpm and I knew I was in trouble! On the fly I decided to shift my strategy to “run until my HR is 140, then walk until it is 120”. This worked well for a the first few miles. Unfortunately, I was so nauseated that I couldn’t keep and fluids down and my dehydrations continued to get worse.
By mile 8 of the run my situation had gotten really bad. I was basically in survival mode. I couldn’t keep anything down, I was getting wobbly, and I was basically walking at a 20 min/mile pace. What finally saved me was the chicken broth. For some reason it settled my stomach and I started to feel a bit better.
For the second half of the marathon I gradually increased the percentage of time running until, by the last 8 miles, I was able to do the 9/1 run/walk strategy.
I finished after 6:36 on the run.
My total time for the IRONMAN was 15:54.
I lost 9 lbs (6% of my body weight). It took three days before I finally felt rehydrated.
Lessons Learned
1. If I’m going to a race that may be hot I need to get acclimated to the heat! Sure I live in a cold climate but heat can be generated indoors. I could have put my bike/trainer in the master bath, cranked up the wall heater, and did 5 to 6 miserable hours at 95 degrees.
2. I need to consider the expected race conditions when I develop my hydration/nutrition strategy – especially on the bike. It’s a little embarrassing to admit I made this mistake! Sure, 1 bottle per hour worked on my long rides in 55 degrees in Seattle, but it wasn’t nearly enough for the altitude and mid-80’s expected in Boulder. The fact it actually turned out to be in the mid-90’s just made it worse. Thankfully EN teammates commented on the 1 bottle per hour strategy in my race plan and I made a last-minute change to 2 bottles per hour. It still wasn’t enough, but 1 bottle per hour would have been a disaster!
3. I need to practice my transitions. I spent nearly 30 minutes combined in T1 and T2. I should be able to get that down below 5 minutes each with a little practice. That would give me a 20 minute faster time with virtually no extra effort! 20 minutes would have moved me from 18th place to 16th place in my age group (60-64).
Comments
Great race report! First, it was more in depth than some of my previous efforts (or, sometimes, absence thereof).
Second, it sounds like many of the same issues I had with IM Cozumel regarding the heat. The lack of heat acclimation for a November race killed me, and I under hydrated based on that. I choked down 1.5 bottles/hour on the bike, alternating between Gatorade and water (because, like you, I can't consistently stomach GE), and that wasn't sufficient, which led to me being unable to absorb anything on the run (and puking everything back up at ~37km). I'm hopeful that, if nothing else, the heat acclimation will help me get used to needing to drink more.
Third, you finished! Nothing else needs to be said. You finished faster than I did (as a 44 year-old) in November of last year. Yes, there are some opportunities there, but you are an Ironman, and that's more than the vast majority more than anyone else on Earth can say.
I forgot to mention the Cliff Blocks. My plan was to consume a sleeve of Cliff Blocks (200 cal) per hour, but that probably wasn't realistic. On my race rehearsal rides I consumes 1/2 of a sleeve of Cliff Blocks (100 cal) per hour and that is about what I did for the first loop of the ride in Boulder. Unfortunately, I don't think I consumed any Cliff Blocks on the second loop of the bike. I'm not sure why, other than heat and weariness messing with my thinking. So I was definitely low on calories at the end of the bike.
Now you are a whole lot smarter and can expect to see big improvements for future races.
Welcome to the club!
SS
Heat acclimation: the number one thing which helps in the heat is fitness - the fitter you are, the better your body will handle the heat. Its kinda like riding into the wind or up an endless hill - the gorilla always wins, you just have to work within the limits he sets. If that means a lotta walking, that's what you gotta do, and no amount of sauna or running in the heat in advance will make it feel any easier.
Transitions: more than practice, you need a plan that you commit to. There are articles in the wiki which help with that. No question, if you eliminate all the unnecessary actions and time spent staring into space, you can drop your T1/2 times by more than half. Its basically a question of commitment, more than practice.
There is so much to learn from any IM let alone your first. I believe that is the bug, the lure whatever you want to call it. Going back and figuring it out. Transitions can be practiced. You have to get tunnel vision and block everything out. I like to be near the exit of the tent because it's less sensory input.
You did great. When I saw you on the run course you were moving forward. KMF