Ford Ironman World Championship : Official Thread

Bumping this for any Lottery Winners!

QUICK! Start training!!!!

OK Brian you need to give us the scoop on the bike and run. I'm trying to read as much as possible (including your race report) and I know it all depends on wind. Are there any real climbs? I know you climb to Hawi but remember I just qualified at IMSG which had brutal climbs on bike and run.

I'm in easy recovery/mental break mode for a couple weeks and then it's time to go again.

Congrats and welcome to the party! No, the Kona course isn't really difficult from the standpoint of total climbing. You do a long, gradula climb over the first 5-6 miles, turanround and drop back down to the hill at Palani Rd, which is short and steep, and then get out on the Queen K. The Queen K is a lot of long rollers. The clinb to Hawi is long but never too steep. The winds can pick up and be head/cross on the way back, so that's the challenege. It's usually not too hot until the very end of the bike (looking at you swim/bike splits, you should be off before the heat really sets in). The Queen K is so exposed, there's always a breeze. Now the first 10K of the run, that's a different story...

After running in 95 degree heat and 80% humidity yesterday I watched the Kona broadcast from last year. I'm just trying to prepare physically and mentally for the heat.

My name is Casey and I won a lottery spot for kona.   My biggest concern is the Bike and I am looking at upgrading to get some racing wheels.  Right now just on bontrager aero select.  with the wind should i just look into a rear wheel or both and any suggestions on brand.

Welcome and congrats! You want to buy a wheel set as they are often designed to work together. For Kona, a Zipp 404 or 606 are a great option.

Can you get away with 808 front/rear combination on a calm day? I will definitely have 808 on back and am considering bringing both 808 and 404 front wheels with me.

Yes, and I have the same option available to me, however I am going to contact my rep. at ZIPP to discuss that as a 606 (404 front, 808 back) is designed to work in tandem and I'm not clear that running an 808 front/back will be worth the potential handeling issues I'll let you know what I learn.

OK, spoke with Sonja over at Zipp and they say deeper better front and rear. I thought maybe having a staggered front/rear was better but nope. So I am going to be racing on 808/808.

I rode that setup today as I'll be racing an Oly with the 808 front/rear Monday and it sure is faster. My only conern for Kona are the possible crosswinds. I'll probably bring both my 404 and 808 front wheels just to be safe. If I can get away with 808 front/rear I'd be happy.

The worst of the cross wind seems to be the descent from Hawi. I got pushed around while on the aerobars going 30+ with a 404 front. One scary moment. Having said that, now that I know what to expect, I just need to be more aware and run that 808 upfront as it's so much faster along the Queen K.

wooooot! won my slot yesterday at hawaii 70.3! ill see you all there! woooooo!

18 weeks until race with 15 weeks till taper and I officially started my race training today! After 5 weeks of recovery workouts coach says it's time to start building back up. I'm looking forward to it as I need to have the additional focus. I've talked to my coach about my goals for Kona and while he thinks it possible, he's also told me we have a lot of work to do.

Congratulations! Guess you'll be going back in October. Unless of course, you live there.

Haha, i'm a 2 hour drive away from the kailua pier and alii drive

I'm trying to figure out the run course as I like to break the run up into sections. Easy to do since both IM's I've done were 2 even loops.

How far out do you run on Alii Drive before you turn around? How far on the Queen K before you get to Energy Lab? And, how far out the Energy Lab before you turn around?

Thanks for the Info on the wheels.  Is it true that all speed suits will be banned in sept. for Ironman events.  If so What do you all plan on wearing.  I considered tri suit with just tri shorts and jersey underneath.   Also should i expect my swim time to be slower than florida IM. 

Yes, according to WTC all "current" speed suits will be banned for Kona. I say current because most companies are working hard to create some sort of speed suit that still meets the WTC requirements. I use both an Xterra wetsuit and speedsuit and they have told me they are currently in the design phase for legal suits. I'm guessing all companies want to have something available for Kona.

If nothing new comes to market before Kona then I'll just swim in my tri shorts and will pull my tri shirt on in T1. Always fun to do when you're wet.

And yes, I would expect your swim time to be slower in Kona since you won't have the benefit of the wetsuit you wore in IMFL.

The out and back on Alii is about 10K total, distance, maybe a little less. The Queen K to the entrance to the Energy Lab is likely 4 miles or so. Once in the lab, it's about 1.5 miles to the turn.

If these companies do end up designing "something" for this year's race, will it make a difference to the MOP (maybe BOP for this race)?  I am about a 2:00/100 swimmer in a non-wetsuit/non-seawater swim.  Not sure if anything short of a nice thick wetsuit would help me.  Just curious.  The swim does seem to rank highest on my kona worry list.  Just barely above the run, and then #3, the bike.  =)

Brian 

I'm in!!!  Just punched my ticket at IMCDA.  See you all there.

Brian,

I believe a speedsuit really helps a weaker swimmer more than it does a strong swimmer. A stronger swimmer is usually already in a better swim position and has better form. As an average swimmer myself, I'll take any help I can get so I'll be using whatever becomes legal for Kona. A wetsuit makes me at least 10 seconds per 100 faster and a speedsuit 5 seconds per 100 faster so even a 2-3 second improvement is worth it to me.