Ironman USA Lake Placid : Official Thread (Page 23)

bryancd - 2009-12-17 7:35 PM

Dream Chaser - 2009-12-17 6:23 PM My Goal at LP as of right now is Sub 12, and to RUN the entire Marathon.  Thoughts, feedback?  Thanks guys

You can 100% RUN that marathon. I have walked/jogged a few aid stations, otherwise I have alway RUN. Why? I trained myself to run. Your bike pacing should be what you train your long rides. You stick to that, you WILL run that marathon.

I say RUN because it took me until my 4th Half Ironman to Run the entire 13.1 miles, at a 70.3 Race.  And having to walk part of the 13.1 miles during my first three HIM's was due to lack of bike fitness and screwy nutrition, I've always been in good Running condition.   So my 'hope' is that by doing Long Rides on a Bike course that is tougher than LP, my Bike Fitness will get to a level where I will have the ability to run 26.2 miles without stopping come July 25th . 

Fred, did you see my question? 

In summation, would an 84-mile Bike in early May, a HIM in late May, and a metric Ironman 3 weeks after the HIM (5 weeks before LP) on a tougher Bike course than LP, very similar run course and similar swim course be an excellent way to prepare for LP?  I've included the profile of the Bike Course.  Even Mr. JohnnyKay himself can agree it's a challenging Loop.  I'm trying to prepare myself as best as possible.  Thoughts? Feedback? Etc.etc..etc... 

Those would be good race prep / race simulation type of events.  They won't do much as far as "training" by themselves.  The biggest impact on your race day is how the rest of the trainng goes, week in and week out.

Train well and consistently around those events ( better to be less than fully "peaked" for them, and enjoy them, but train through and keep the focus on LP ).

I don't see why you wouldn't be able to recover from those well before the IM, 5 weeks should be plenty of recovery time before the IM.  My one caveat would be don't plan on taking much if any time off after the Metric Ironman, as you'll want to hit some big training from 5-3 weeks out, and starting to taper back the big training at about 3 weeks out.  So, don't destroy yourself at the metric IM and miss the training on those key weeks just afterwards. 

To do an IM you're going to be getting up and over the race distances in training ( or at least, I would suggest that you do ) in the swim and bike ( not in the run though, obviously ).  So, doing a metric IM (2.4k swim, 112k bike, 26k run?) certainly shouldn't be too much more than just another training day.    Treat it as a race sim, and practice your plan for the IM ( use the gear and nutrition that you'll be racing with ).

My LP course impressions

The swim - it is going to be crowded, probably the most crowded it ever has been so be ready for a rough start. The first length going out will probably be the busier and then it will begin the settle in a bit. The swim itself is rather simple, go out, turn, come back, get out of the water and jump in again for the 2nd loop. A lot of people try to swim next to the under water rope/lane hence it can get the busier there; if you swim parallel to that you'll most likely get cleaner water. Since Mirror lake is a relatively small lake I've been told there is some sort of a whirlpool effect and you feel how the inertia is pulling along hence it people comfortable on OW tend to swim a tad faster.

The bike - I love that course, it has everything to keep you entertained, it is beautiful but it can be tough and unforgiving if you go out too hard or make mistakes. Coming out of transition is fast and then first 3 miles there are some hills then it settles down before getting to the descend to Keene. This might be a good time to get in some fuel before descending. The descend might be either a fun or hairy portion depending how many riders are there at once. I would suggest staying on your handle bars/breaks and enjoying the ride but keep an eye on everyone. Once you get to the bottom and turn into a Jay it will be flattish and fast. Usually there is a tail wind in this section hence it is a great place to get some fuel in while going fast. This is a wide road hence there should be plenty of space for every. Once you turn onto 86 you get IMO the toughest climb of the course, don’t blow up trying to get fast to the top, just relax and spin away. The out and back will most likely be the most crowded portion of the bike course and expect some drafting though do NOT participate, you can ride legal albeit a bit of trafficy. Once you get off this section you get back on 86 towards LP and have like 12-14 miles to go per loop. This section can be tough as it is a steady, non-steep climb with the bears and all. Also it can get windy (head wind) and depending on the temperature for the day either rather hot or cold. This portion is very pretty hence it can be use to zone out a bit and enjoy the scenery. I think proper gearing is important for this race, it is not like it is super hard climbing wise but have an easy gear to spin all day IMO will make a big difference for the marathon

The run – The run is relatively flat with 2 big climbs that you have to do 2 times but what will trash your legs the most will be the downhills. I would suggest running relaxed the downhills specially coming out of T2 and let your body get into running mode. Once you get to Riverside Dr it is relatively flat though there are a few bumps. Coming back the hills smack you 1^st @ the ski jumps and then heading to 86 onto Main Street, the steep part is where the subway is but then it keeps going up until the turn into LP Dr. This can be a bit tough mentally as you might think you are close to the turn around though you have to go out and back like 1.5 miles. The crowds along the last climb and the run on LP Dr will have the most support.

** I never raced LP but I’ve been training there for 4-5 years and I’ve done/drive the course many times.

The metrics sound good for training, but please don't plaster your car with either of these two logos afterwards.  Bad taste, really.

140.6k

cm

Metric Ironman is just a Training Day.  Metric meaning you do a 2.4 KM swim, 112K bike (69.6 miles) and 26.2k run (16.1 mile)

I have a small Taper right before my HIM and then a Recovery week following