Ironman CdA Race Report
Coeur d'Alene Race Report
Course Description:
Swim: cold. Fortunately, the water settled for race morning and wasn't really choppy.
Bike: the middle section of each loop isn't 'hilly', it is mountainous. That isn't a bad thing, its just not 'rollers' as claimed on the IM CdA website.
Run: moderately flat with the exception of a massive hill at the turn around. It is quite fun.
Race support: awesome! We were practically never without people cheering us on, even way out on the bike.
Finishing time: 11:02
Pre-Race:
- I sipped Gatorade/Powerade throughout the day on Saturday. I had a heavy pasta-type lunch on Saturday, and ate a chicken caesar salad for an early dinner the night before. Then, I woke up at 2am and had a Gu, a Nutella sandwich, and some Gatorade. I went back to bed (which was surprisingly not hard to do) and slept until 4am. At that time, I had some more Gatorade and some chicken noodle soup. While in transition that morning, I had a bottle of Gatorade and felt just right for race time. This was a great pre-race fueling setup.
Race morning set-up:
- I went into transition with a checklist and worked the list until it was done, then I got out of there. Short and simple and effective.
Swim:
- I felt good getting ready for the swim start. I took a quick dip in the water to prepare myself for what I knew was going to be a really cold swim. Fortunately the waters were calm...chop would have made the swim unbearable! I spotted some Endurance Nation friends and chatted a little about starting positions, and then settled in and waited for the gun. It was crazy to have 2400 people standing there, all awaiting the start together. I ended up seeding myself about 4-5 people deep, about a third of the way over from the buoys, and I think this wad about right. I really didn't have to climb over many people, and not many people scaled over me. However, there was plenty of battling for positions going on...it just wasn't quite as rough as I had prepared myself for.
- The first loop was a little congested, and I was always looking at someone when I was breathing, and very often was in contact with others...but nothing too bad. The best take-away was the advise I got from Rich Strauss, "get in your box and stay there - counting your strokes is a great tool for doing this during the swim". So true!
- The second loop was where I started having trouble. When I got out of the water to cross the mat and hop back in, I almost fell over and really couldn't walk straight...not sure what the deal was with that. Then, from the moment I got back in the water and started swimming, I was completely freezing and miserable. I threw up a little and then had the shivers so bad that I couldn't move my legs, and could hardly get my arms to turnover. I finally felt a little better as I approached the first turn buoy, then got across to the next one and headed back to the beach. As soon as I got settled and headed back, I started shivering again. I really almost couldn't move. Finally, I made it to shore and concluded the swim.
- Lessons learned: there is no better tool for getting into and staying in your box than counting strokes. I never got higher than 20 or 30, but the simple exercise of counting forces you to focus on form and breathing, which are all that you can control.
T1:
- I had a great set-up, with simplicity in mind. My helmet, shoes, arm sleeves, and glasses were all that were in my bag. I might say the arm sleeve could have been worn for the swim, but I was hesitant since I never tried that before, and I was concerned about them being cold and wet to start the bike. The real problem wasn't my set up though, it was the fact that I couldn't feel my fingers or my toes, and I could barely breath I was so cold. It took something like 6 minutes to get through transition when it was all said and done...but, I fault the cold for this 100%. I really wouldn't change much about how I did T1.
Bike:
- The bike started off just like the swim and T1...cold. I shivered for probably the first 25 miles. I went way over on power, and couldn't eat or drink...I was in survival mode trying to warm up. When I finally could start to get into a rhythm, it was right where we got into the hills outside of Hayden. I managed to get back "into the box" though, and started working on my power average. I was proud of myself for getting through the hills with my average power about back to what I was shooting for (goal was 168; I ended the first loop at 170). I ended up mixing in a bunch of Powerade to supplement for the bars that I had been struggling to get down due to the cold, and I lost my salt tabs at about mile 60. As I got into the hills for round 2, I was right in line with where I needed to be power-wise. I was still feeling tired from being cold for so long, but had managed my nutrition, my effort, and my mind enough to go through the second set of hills feeling alright. When I hit the flats heading back into town, I really started struggling to keep my power up and I was a little surprised by that. When I finished the bike, I came in at 163 for my average power, with very few spikes during the hills. I just couldn't keep my power up.
- Lessons learned: 112 miles is a long way and management of your mind games and emotions is critical, especially as you start winding down the second loop. You really have to focus on the question, "what can I do right now to keep me moving forward?". The concept of the box was by far the biggest take-away for the day for me! I basically shut the bike down with 1 mile to go and started stretching and rehearsing T2 in my mind and laid out a plan to get to the first aid station. Also, apparently I am getting to a point where I don't need to rely on the salt tabs so much...I didn't even miss them.
T2:
- This was uneventful. I didn't move quite as fast as I probably could have, but, I stopped to pee in the change tent, which took an extra minute or two. Other than that, it went pretty smooth.
Run:
- I started out not feeling great, probably partly because I felt defeated after the swim and what I knew had to be a slow bike (I didn't keep overall time). But, I forced myself to hop into my prescribed pace (zone 1 plus 30" a mile) and cruised on to aid station number one. I gave in to Rich's advise to walk all of the aid stations from the get go to reward myself for running between them, and this was a great strategy (I honestly never though I would agree with that!). I really ran at about an 8 min/mile average and walked 10-15 seconds per aid station, focusing my mind on just getting from one to the next for the first 13-15 miles. This is the perfect mental game for the IM marathon - "alright, Steve, lets just get to the next aid station". This worked until the big hill the second time around, which is about mile 16 I guess. At this point, I was mentally devastated because I knew my goals were shot and I started focusing on my 'one thing' which was all of the people I knew who were supporting me. I did everything I could to keep myself moving as I imagined them tracking me in front of their computers and rooting me on. At that point, my "box" had shrunk from the next aid station to the next inanimate object that I could spot and reasonably expect to reach without having cramps or spasms in my legs. So, I managed the pain and kept moving forward with a combination of running and walking...it was tough, but, I knew it would be. As far as nutrition goes, I went off of feel and forced myself to hold back from eating everything I wanted, and I felt good nutritionally. By the time it was all said and done, I had enjoyed a little of everything, but, I think I managed this aspect of the race really well.
- Lessons learned: the IM marathon really is about not slowing down. IF I had simply held my pace for 8-10 miles I could have salvaged a decent race. Of course, everyone feels that way I am sure. I think the couple of long runs I missed due to sickness and travel/work ended up coming into play a little. The next time, I feel like I might want to really focus on really hitting every minute of every run workout, including every brick. I think I cut a lot of them 5-10 minutes short as the training went along, and I think those last minutes really could have helped. I also think that this run suffered, in large part, because of the preceding 9.5-10 hours of disappointment with the swim and bike struggles.
Last thoughts: I went into this race, my first Iron distance race, with the goal of breaking 10:15. When the possibility of breaking that goal was taken from me due to conditions outside of my control (my body simply not responding well to the cold), I didn't have a backup goal that would keep me moving forward other than simply finishing. I am proud of myself for gutting it out because those first 2.5 hours were simply demoralizing. I am happy to be an Ironman. I don't think I want to sign up for another really cold swim for a while.
Comments
It was good to meet you- you raced very well impressive to that fast on your first.
cheers - mark
SA - I can fully understand that you feel some disappointment in your race - being your own best (worst?) critic is essential to continued improvement. Success in IM is a multi-year enterprise, and you have gotten off to a great start. Keep it up and you'll be surprised how far you go.
@Al...thanks for all of the advise. I feel like you have been my go-to person in this endeavor. I am proud of your effort and to be on the same team as you...you are a warrior for sure!
IM is really hard. You learn a lot by racing that you really can't learn by any other means. 11:02 is a great frist attempt. You will only get better. Oh and it is wrong to have a RR without splits or power files...
solid first time! you should be VERY pleased. you'll only get faster.
Great first race. 11:02 sure sounds fast to me. Well done and you'll be faster next time.