Ironman World Championship 2013

No Stone Unturned

This was my fourth year of triathlon and third year of Ironman racing. Kona was my seventh iron-distance race. I had qualified at Ironman Los Cabos in March, giving me over six months of dedicated Kona prep.

My goal wasn't just to take part. It was to compete. A podium finish in my age group would require roughly 9:10 or faster. I broke it down: swim in 60-63 minutes, bike around 4:50 at 240 watts, run 3:00-3:10 at 6:30-6:50 pace.

I attacked three areas: fitness, aerodynamics, and nutrition.

Fitness: I didn't compromise my training despite having a 2-year-old and a 3-month-old. Weekly run volume hit 40-50 miles with some weeks approaching 60. My CTL peaked at 163 TSS/day, an all-time high. For comparison, my CTL before Los Cabos was around 140, where I'd gone 9:42.

Aerodynamics: I spent three-plus hours at the ERO facility in LA fine-tuning my position, clothing, and equipment choices. We validated that the sleeved suit was faster than sleeveless, that my Giro Selector was faster than the Rudy Project Wingspan (on me specifically), and that my fuel storage and bottles actually tested faster with them on than without.

Nutrition: Through metabolic testing I knew that at 250 watts I'd need over 650 calories of carbohydrate per hour. I front-loaded at 750 per hour, dropping to 500 as the race went on. I ditched gels and bars in favor of homemade "sushi-style" rice cakes after reading Feed Zone Portables.

Milestone Workouts

The confidence came from key sessions along the way:

In June, three 20-minute threshold intervals at 320, 325, and 315 watts, followed by 45 minutes at Ironman pace. In late August, an Ironman rehearsal: bike at 240W for 5.5 hours, then 8 miles at 6:53 pace. In September, a half-Ironman race: swim 25 minutes, bike 2:20 at 261W, followed by 13.4 miles at 6:36 pace. That was a huge confidence booster.

I also did extensive heat prep: riding in a hot garage with no fan, running at midday in ski gear, extended sessions in the sauna and steam room.

Going into Kona, I was very confident.

Race Day

I had left the family in Waikoloa and was sleeping at the Royal Kona resort. I went to bed at 8pm and slept well until 1am when I woke up for no reason. At 2am I ate breakfast (oatmeal, whey, raisins) and eventually fell back asleep. Up for real at 4:15.

Kevin and I were probably the last people through body marking. They weighed us after marking and I was shocked: 170 lbs. I'd arrived in Kona at 159. Kevin was also heavier than expected, so we decided the scale must be wrong.

We met in the water on the far right, about five rows back. We'd practiced swimming together. It's really useful to have feet you can trust instead of random people who can't navigate.

Swim: 1:07

People started swimming about five seconds before the cannon. In all the chaos, I lost Kevin within ten seconds. It was five minutes before I could see any blue water at all.

I felt surprisingly relaxed. The pace was a little slow, but you can only swim as fast as those around you when you're stuck. I wasn't wearing a watch, so I didn't know I'd had a slow swim when I exited. That was probably a good thing.

Bike: 4:55

I knew immediately that all was not well. It felt like every muscle in my body was over-contracting. Then my glute seized completely. I pressed my fingers into the tight spot and the muscle balled up. I could hardly move. I soft-pedalled for 25 minutes at an average of 145 watts.

By the time I hit the Queen K highway I was pretty much up to race power, settling in at 240-250 watts. I went through 56 miles in 2:18, testament to the tailwind going out.

The headwind coming back was brutal. There were pelotons that kept surging past and then slowing down, forcing me to sit up at 120 watts to stay legal. I'd wait a minute, overtake the whole group, settle back in, and then they'd surge past again. After 15 miles of this, I put in a few minutes at 270 watts to get clear of them for good. Hopefully they ended up in a penalty tent somewhere.

Run: 3:29

My plan was 6:55 pace for the first 13 miles, build slightly, then give everything to the finish. Mile 1 was 6:58, on plan. But it felt like I was running much faster than that.

I settled into what felt comfortable: 7:30-7:45 for the first nine miles. I just couldn't go faster. After Palani, I slowed to around 8:20 for most of the race. I'm not sure what caused it, probably residual effects from the glute cramping.

I really liked the energy lab. You can see the ocean for most of it, and the aid stations kept the energy high. There was one serving Campbell's soup. I wondered who would want hot soup in the Kona heat.

With a mile to go, the crowd on Alii Drive was incredible. I ran down the chute high-fiving as many people as possible. Apparently I even high-fived my wife Michelle without realizing it. Some woman gave me an "ass slap" as I ran by, which is a result in itself.

The Takeaway

I didn't achieve my initial goal, but I was grateful to have made it to the start line, overcome the cramps, and made it to the finish. This was my first Kona, and at least now I had a goal to beat next time.

Amazing to be part of this event. Superb organization, amazing atmosphere. I loved every minute of it, except the glute seizing. I even loved the energy lab.