IM TX Bike Data
I followed Patrick's pre-race bike advice to a T and wanted to share some data. Briefly, his guidance at the pre-race meeting was to take the outbound/downwind leg easy and then settle in to work on the return/headwind section. He also said he'd buy a beer for anyone who negative split the course.
My FTP is 230, goal NP was 170. Final data: 20.5 MPH, 5:27, NP: 154, TSS: 234.
What I noticed was that the NP on the way out, downwind, was in the 140s but I was pedaling along fine and passing a ton of people. Coming back, into the wind, I kept the watts around 170 but noticed the NP just barely crept up to 154. I passed a boatload of people coming home, about 600 total if I recall the results.
Finishing with TS of 234, I know I left some time on the table but I got off the bike and felt great, better than I have felt starting the run at any IM or half. Looking back, I know I could have gone harder with the wind but the strategy of building into the ride really paid off. Thanks for the execution tips RnP, it really worked well.
P.S. Patrick: I'm pretty sure I negative split the bike. I'll get back to you when I download the data and you can mail the beer.