Ironman Louisville : Official Thread (Page 40)

Just signed up for a 2 mi swim "race" in a pool! It's not really a race against each other, just a race against time. Should be interesting. It's March 26th here in Springfield. That should make me a little more confident as I train for this IM.

Hey Ashleigh, I'm the one who also works nights (5pm to 5am) with every other weekend off. It can certainly be tough for training, but I have already done 2 full IM races on that schedule so you can definitely get it done. It is really tough getting the long rides and runs in on the weekends I work, but with a little sleep deprivation and sacrificing every semblance of a life I may otherwise have, I am usually able to get it all in.

Outside of that, the biggest difficulty for me is doing races: they always start really early in the morning so it is the relative equivalent of someone on a "normal" schedule going out and doing a race at midnight. I just deal with it for the smaller races, but for something as big as the IM I start burning my days off (I get 25 per year, so no biggie). Last year I took a week off before the race and a couple days after, and I was able to get myself to sleep by 10 or 11pm by the last couple nights before the race (thank you melatonin). For this year I am thinking about either taking 2 weeks off just to get really adjusted to it, or (*wincing*) asking to switch to day shift in the spring. I hate day shift and love night shift so it would be a pretty big sacrifice, but the wife really wants me on her schedule so I may do it.

Good luck and (most importantly) HAVE FUN!

I know I am behind the 8-ball on this, but for me I am actually way ahead! I now sort of officially have my race schedule set. I have signed up for the big races, but will sign up for the smaller ones as they get close. You will notice a significant lack of marathon races because my coach doesn't want me taking the recovery time necessary after a race like that, so I have thrown in the much more manageable half-marathons in their place. I chose to do the Muncie half because the timing was right and I live close enough that I don't even need a hotel. Cash in my pocket!


-Sam Costa Half Marathon - 3/26/11 - Carmel, IN
-Kentucky Derby Festival Half Marathon - 4/30/2011 - Louisville, KY
-Thunder In The Valley, Terre Haute Sprint Tri - 5/21/2011 - Terre Haute, IN
--800m Swim, 40K Bike, 8K Run
-Indianapolis Sprint Tri - 6/18/2011 - Indianapolis, IN
--500m Swim, 10 mile Bike, 3 mile Run
-Ironman 70.3 Muncie - 7/9/2011 - Muncie, IN
-RAIN Ride - 7/16/2011 - Illinois/Indiana state line in Terre Haute, IN
-IM Louisville - Y'all know!
-IM World Champs - Sometime in December on NBC - My living room

If anyone else is doing any of these races let me know, maybe we can meet up. I hope to do at least one of the group rides on the course in Louisville too. I rode the course with my wife last year (just the two of us) and I don't recommend it. The motoring public was, to put it lightly, less than friendly. I feared for my life at several times and had several people yelling, cussing and honking at us. Maybe I am just spoiled by getting to always ride with little or no vehicle traffic on country roads in IN, but that was stressful.

Hi everyone!!! I just need to hear POSITIVE things about this race Please!!! and here is why: In the last few days I have heard very negative things like the tacks on the street during the IM race, how unfriendly the locals were, due to the time trial people are lining up at 3am? or earlier?...Ohio river water is very dirty and disgusting...ran out of hydration... etc etc...Now the above is from prior racers.

However! I am super excited to do the race and I am trying to stay away from the "bad energy people" but sometimes it is hard to shut people..lol...I also know that there will always be complainers.

But, lets hear some positive stuff from prior racers!!! ;-)

Happy training...Alicia

Hey guys, perhaps I was misunderstood or wrote that poorly about the unwelcoming locals. The experience I was referring to was a training ride with just 2 people (my wife and I) on a Saturday in June, NOT the race. I was making the point that if you plan to ride the entire course before the race, it is probably better to go in a big group because the locals didn't seem accustomed to having cyclists on those roads. Go for the strength in numbers thing.

The race experience was AWESOME! The roads were well controlled in regards to traffic and all the cars respected the athletes by slowing down and moving over. The only negative experience I had with the locals during the race was that a heckler drove by me and said my "spandex and aero helmet looked stupid." Honestly, that was more funny than anything, I was chuckling to myself about it for the next 5 miles or so. It was a good mental diversion from the grind.

And I didn't hear anything about any tacks last year, just good racing!