Michael Q's IMMOO Race Plan
Michael Quinton, 36, 6'3" 173 lbs. FTP 285, Vdot 54. St George 70.3 in May was my only race in '16 up to this point.
Background: This will be IM #3 after learning a lot in #'s 1 and 2. IMMD in '14 was a classic case of over-cooking the bike and dying on the run. IMCHOO in '15 was my first year w/ EN (and training with power) which resulted in a 53 min improvement over IMMD but felt like I left some time on the bike course but followed it with a strong run. The goal for Wisconsin is to take what I've learned from my previous race experiences in tandem with all the learnings gained from this community to execute a strong effort on this legendary course. The mojo from the IMMOO group has been awesome for the last several months...I can't wait to share this experience with such an awesome, tough-as-nails crew of athletes!
So here's what I have so far... all comments are welcomed!
Thurs: Fly into Madison Thursday night. Get settled into hotel, grab dinner and get into bed early and adjust to new time zone.
Friday: practice swim, athlete check-in, 4 keys, pick up bike from TBT, bike course recon, pack race bags, dinner, get into bed early.
Saturday: sleep in > big breakfast, bike/gear bag checkin, get off my feet, relax and watch some football. Big lunch, light dinner, bed early.
Sunday: up @ 4AM, shower. Coffee, bagel w/ PB + Banana, start sipping SD. EN Kit, HRM, watch, Road ID, sunscreen, vaseline/DZ Nuts, warm clothes on. Grab swim bag w/ wetsuit, cap, goggles (+extras), throw-away flops, GE, and powerGel.
5:45 Make my way down transition with bike nutrition, extra bottles, bike computer.
Wetsuit on, line up for swim start, eat gel 20 mins before canon and get fired up.
Swim- goal is to survive the first 500m unscathed and find some tranquil waters and hopefully some bubbles...count strokes and try to maintain a smooth, steady stroke. once out of the water googles up, unzip and find a wetsuit stripper and jog up to transition. Goal 1:12:00
T1: Grab bag, remove cap/goggles, remove helmet and strap up. Remove shoes, throw cap/goggles in bag and hand to volunteer w/ wetsuit. jog to bike w/ shoes in hand, jog to mount line, use bike and barrier to create safe space to quickly get shoes on and onto the bike. Goal 6:30
Bike- consume the 2 bottles of GE on my bike before first aid station > settle into the race. Drink 2 bottles of GE/hr, Eat 1/2 powerboat every half hour and 1 gel/hr. Salt consumption dependent on heat. Stay focused on what the course throws at me keeping p norm between 190-200. Extra focus on the steep inclines not to spike watts and do the opposite of what everyone else is doing....stay disciplined and patient. Strategically find speed when the course offers it. Goal 5:45:00
T2: dismount, hand off bike, remove shoes, remove helmet, jog to get run bag. pull out shoes + rolled socks, go-bag. Throw shoes and helmet into bag and off I go w/ go bag. Inside go bag: visor, fuel belt w/ bib, 4 gels, base salt and Coach P's red wrist run bag and hand sanitizer. Goal 2:30
Run- my strongest of the disciplines so goal is to not self-sabatoge with a stupid bike ride. goal is to match avg HR from bike for first 6 miles drinking 1 cup of GE and 1 cup of water at each aid station. 1 powerboat Gel/hr as long as I can stand it. Consider Base salt consumption depending on heat. Assess the situation at mile six to find a sustainable pace/effort level. Stay disciplined and focused through mile 19 and reassess to see if the intensity can go up another level. if not, reassess @ mile 22. Finish strong and have a great time on the run course. Goal 3:50
Comments
I think after you review the screen cast, others race plans and drive the course you will know where to find speed out there. The weather should allow you to perform very well on the bike and run compared to your home heatbox! Me thinks the newlywed will crush it!
MQ - better bring warm clothes... this is going to feel arctic to you after all the hot training days you have had in AZ! Here are a couple ideas:
Looks like you are on about 425 cal/hr on the bike (2x16oz GE = 2x00 + 1/2 bar = 125 + gel = 100)? A couple thoughts:
- It may be hard to get two bottles per hour down if temps are much cooler than what you are used to training in... missing 1 bottle would cost you 100 cal. If that happens, to stay on your plan, probably need to either grab a banana at aid station (100 ca per whole) or eat a whole bar per hour instead of a half.
- I tend to fare better on the run when I stack some extra calories in the first half of the bike and reduce/move to liquids for the last hour or two on the bike. Fewer calories helps stomach transition to running.
- I do tolerate bananas pretty well and put one in T2 bag to eat right at the start of the run
I leave my shoes on the bike. No fancy dismounts, but if you haven't done it and are considering this, you should practice undoing shoes while riding and putting feet on top of shoes. The biggest advantage of this is that when you get off the bike, you are on your feet rather than slipping along in bike shoes. I'm always afraid that a little slip will trigger a cramp or something unexpected that I will have to deal with on the run. Once I started doing this, I would never go back.
Same comment about T1. I leave shoes on the bike with a rubber band holding the pedal in place. I don't do a flying mount or anything like that, but being able to run through T1 in bare feet rather than bike shoes is one less thing to worry about. I mount the bike with feet on pedals and adjust while moving. It is one less distraction in T1. If you want to carry your shoes, like you mention here, consider putting a rubber band around them so that you can carry in one hand. Grab your bike and go all the way to the mounting line then manage it all there. Just break the rubber band when you pull the shoes apart.
Looking forward to racing with you and watching you bring it all together!!
LOVE the idea of clipping shoes on the bike and holding them in place w/ the rubber bands. I've definitely seen this done (without the sweet mounts/dismounts) and think I can save some precious time while being much safer!
Really appreciate the tips and look forward to catching up later this week!