IMFL RR #2
RR #2 done a week early as I'm doing 1/2 Marathon in Hartford next weekend. Really good race-specific training for FL... Flat n windy. Some headwinds, some tailwinds and crosswinds. Really obvious at one point... Did about 21mph one way and 13 the other in the same spot.
Here are the stats (RR #1 vs. RR #2): Total Mileage & Moving Time- 90.83/6:20 vs. 88.35/5:52; Avg speed- 14.34 vs. 15.01; 1st half IF- .679 vs. .695; 2nd half IF- .666 vs. .665. (Target is about .70IF based on my anticipated bike time of over 6hrs)
Nutrition: A bit chilly so I went with my colder weather fluid intake method. I had 1/2 bottle of Infinit/Gatorade cocktail or Perform each hour, plus a little water. (about 150 calories/hour) then I had 100-200 calories/hour on top of that in the form of GU Chomps, GU, Clif Bloks and Stinger Waffles so 250-350/hour. No caffeine til 2nd half of the bike.
I felt pretty good most of the ride, with occassional ups and downs. (Seat still not 100% comfortable but I think the last tweak I made mid-ride will help) The last 20 miles were tough, the last 10 super-sucked. I purposely started out much closer to .70IF on the 1st half this time as I think I was a little too conservative last time. Interestingly enough, the second half IF from both RRs were almost identical. Don't think hydration was an issue as I peed 3x prior to mile 70-ish. (Although 1x was just cuz it was there)
1/2 Red Bull in "transition". Felt OK on the run, except I needed to find a porta-potty, 'cept there were none on the trail so I had to scope out a nice secluded tree. Anyway, got in 4.5mi in 60 mins. (avg pace 13:21- target 12:52 for first 6 miles)
1 12:22
2 13:56 (looking for tree)
3 12:56
4 13:29
5 0.50mi @ 14:40 pace
First RR I did 4mi in 51:17 w/ avg. pace of 12:45. (Much closer to target) I'm sure "nature's call" slowed me down, but I also recall walking more purposefully in RR#1 so that probably helped.
So some good learnings but I'm not quite sure what's causing me to crash and burn towards the end of my rides, even if I pace myself well in the first half. Just lack of long riding experience? (Only done 3 long rides in the neghborhood of 90 miles ever, and all done within the past 4 weeks) More calories per hour? More caffeine needed maybe? (Only 1 pack of GU Chomps had caffeine) I did do my long run on Fri. afternoon (only 95 mins- 8 mi) which may have been a factor, plus jsut overall fatigue? I'll feel great on race day, right? 
Any thoughts? I'm thinking of shooting for maybe .68IF for first half of the bike race day, but based on my past 2 RRs, not sure if that would change anything for the 2nd half...
Comments
Kim congrats on getting through RR2 and good luck in your race next weekend. Your upcoming HM should give you a solid VDOT for the IM.
It is hard to judge your pacing from the given data. DO your have more splits, amybe every 30'? Remember the first 90' is JRA pace ( somewhere around the turn off of HWY 20). It should be in the .65 range. Then pick it up to your .68. I'd suggest that your pushing too hard in the first part of your ride. I know the next shot is race day, but I would ride .65 til the 90' mark then bump it to .68 for the rest of your ride. If your feeling good at the turn off of HWY 20 to 79 then push it up to .70. This along with solid nutrition should have you feeling strong in the last hour of the ride. Another thought- Is your FTP accurate? All these numbers are based off of an accurate FTP, by now I'm sure you have a solid idea if you can hold your watts and run or not.
On your nutrition it sounds like you are juggling a lot of products, which is okay if you can manage. We are gettting close to the race, so I would just rock what your doing. My personal take on the caffeine is that I hold off on using it as long as I can. Once I start I cannot stop. I use it late in the run, around 14miles, when my legs start to put up a fight. I don't think caffeine on the ride will help for poor pacing.
Fatigue is a definite factor on RR, but hopefully not on race day. We will taper and feel great. I'm sure your legs will come to. Just be cautious of digging a hole too deep to climb out of.
Good luck on your HM and see you in PCB!
Gene- thanks for the JRA reminder. I was just trying for .70if avg for the entire ride. I bet that will make a huge diff. So much info on EN it is hard to remember everything! I think my FTP is accurate but that's a valid point. Last time I tested I bailed. I don't know if mid-IM training is the best time to test and I couldn't hold it. Even better reason to play it more conservative. I do have more bike splits so I will update post to include. I suspect my HM vdot is going to be way lower than my 5k vdot so that will prob give me better IM pacing guidance.
Re: nutrition. I will simplify on race day. Just wanted to see what stomach can handle if it had to. Seems fine with whatever. So if I had to eat something out of plan, I feel ok about it.
I am going to re-read IM execution info in the wiki for sure! Thanks again and see u soon!
Good luck on your RR #2!
Nice work sticking it out. This will serve you so well come race day.
Regarding your "super sucky" time at the toward the end of the ride: any time I feel my emotions slide toward the negative, I know the cause is low blood sugar. My suggestion: next time; eat. 100 calories, then 10 minutes later 100 more. You'll feel like a champ again.
Nice job overall on the RR, and good luck with the HM.
-long run on Friday will impact your ability for a sat RR. Good news is that all this will feel easier on race day i.e less suckiness, that is until the last half of the run.
Yes, don't forget to JRA in the beginning. It will help you to ride strong at the end.
Good job....got mine next weekend....shudder...
We have to remember that no matter how many RR's we do, or centuries, or mega Big Tri Days, that it will still be very tough to keep moving forward when we meet 'The Line' at mile 18.
Mental prep as much as physical prep. If not, more so.
great job Kim. We are getting closer to the line and that is awesome! Good luck on your race and see you at IMFL!