Winding This Blog Down

The happy time has arrived where I won't be updating this blog anymore. Rather than keep two blogs, I'll just keep one and thus put future entries on my regular blog. I'll put in training info now and then, but no daily updates - probably weekly is more than enough!

Another One?

As for doing another one... I'm really on the fence. I did have fun and it was a great time, however I'm 100% positive that grinding out another 16 hour IM won't be as enjoyable. But, I can't imagine training hard enough to shave a reasonable amount of time off that - say an hour.

The bike is tough - stopping 5 minutes every hour basically knocks down your average speed by 8.3%, changing a 16 mph ride average to 14.7 mph clock average. Or for me, changing a 14.9 mph ride average to 13.4 mph clock average. I'm not hung up on speed, but it is important to make the bike cutoff, and I cut it close. So I'd only even think about another one if I could take an hour off my bike time, which means averaging 14.9 mph clock average, or 16.3 mph ride average taking breaks into account. This represents a nearly 10% boost in bike power - not unheard of, but that would take some work on my part.

Basically, I was worried about the bike. After a while it became clear that I would be able to make the cutoff... barring a mechanical problem. Something like a flat tire might have put a serious dent into my timing.

I think with more work I could also shave 30 minutes off the run. And, perhaps 15 minutes off the swim. So I think my upside potential would be 1:45 faster, or a roughly 14:30 finish. But again, this would take some training and physical ability I'm not sure I have.

The half-iron distance is looking better and better as a "long" course challenge. I finished the first loop of the bike feeling good. Unfortunately, I forgot to look at my time. Maybe I can figure it out from looking at my HRM elevation data. Also, the first run loop felt pretty good - I think it was about a 2:45 half marathon, which would drop a little by cutting out 56 miles of biking. ;)

I think my best plan as for a future Ironman is to sign up for another if and when I can get my half-ironman time down to the 6 to 7 hour range. This would break down into a swim/bike/run of 0:45/3:30/2:30 and eventually becoming a 0:45/3:00/2:00. I think that is reasonable as a goal.

The only thing I know is I'm looking forward to slacking for many weeks. After that, I might indulge in speedwork, to see if I can get faster at sprint and olympic distances. This will be a welcome change from the long training ride and runs that IM requires.

IM Coeur D'Alene

Read all about it.

Here is my heart rate data - you can see it is quite jagged from various rest breaks I took. Overall I think I kept it near the aerobic zone.




It looks like my loop splits were approximately:

• Swim - 43 mins/45 mins
  
• Bike - 4 hours/4 hours 20 mins
  
• Run - 2 hours 45 mins/3 hour 15 mins
  

Not exactly the ideal even or negative split! I'll dig around and look for the real data, but I'm not sure it exists for the bike or run - I don't remember crossing a timing mat at the midpoint. There were mats on the run at the turnarounds, in order to catch people who cut the course.

My heart rate during the swim was solidly an aerobic effort. It is interesting that my heart rate dips during the second loop. Coming out of the water my HR spikes up until I get into transition and change into bike clothes.

My HR during the bike was higher than I wanted through the hilly section. After climbing the steepest section the first time, I worked on keeping my heart rate lower for the remainder of the ride.

The run was so jagged because I took so many walking breaks. I felt OK (i.e. not dizzy) other than sore feet, stiff legs, and tired knees. I'm clearly walking more towards the end of the marathon.

I am amazed at how accurate (or consistent) the altitude sensor on the HRM is.

Minor Jitters

It is a good thing I've read all about getting jittery the day before the big event, because I find my mind playing tricks on me. It is all subtle - mostly it is looking at other athletes and thinking "wow, they look more fit than me" or seeing somebody working out and thinking "I better do one more [swim/bike/run] workout just to make sure!!". Of course, rest is most important at this point; all the work was done over the previous weeks.

My whole goal is to finish, and have fun during the event! To that end, I will pace myself quite conservatively.

After so long, it is hard to believe the day is finally here.