Ironman Lake Placid : Official Thread (Page 43)

Good morning everyone. Hope you all have a great day of training today, er, yeah, and commuting, working, familily time and all that other life stuff...

Question for those that may have an opinion on this: I plan on renting race wheels. I am not a strong cyclist- thinking that 6:30 is my stretch goal, but 6:45 is more likely. Was thinking of renting 808s, but I was wondering if you think that 404s would be better for me since I climb like a turtle and the weight savings would be beneficial... Thanks for the advice.

Anyone plan on buying Flo race wheels today?

Are you a big/little guy?  The 808's will move you around with some crosswind.  I have 88's (another brand) and I get moved and I'm over 200lbs.

What is this Flo race wheel thingy you're talking about?  Checking out their site it talks about pre orders...?

I'm riding my roadie. Mostly because the only other option is a mountain bike. I'm hopeful for somewhere in the 6 hour range. I thought about renting race wheels as well, and I guess I'm still considering it ... but most of me wants to just save that money and put it in the bike fund I've got going for a tri bike. That fund is only growing at a snail's pace as it is.

It's my first IM ... I'm not looking to KQ yet. This is mostly about the experience for me. The time savings just don't matter enough to warrant the cost for this particular race. I anticipate that will change in future IM endeavors. 

I think you're right, Klassman.  2011 was the first year that wearing a wetsuit removed your chance for a podium placing.  

I had a good chuckle at Mirror Lake currently being wetsuit legal.  Is it even fully thawed yet?

I'm in my second 17.5 hour week of this build cycle.  Recovery next week.

Because most of the time you are biking between the mountains a cross wind is not really an issue. Headwinds can occur and last year they definitely did but as far as getting pushed around the only time I would worry is on the decent to Keene.

I am in the mid 180s now but plan to be high 170s come LP time. Renting wheels isn't that expensive, but I don't want to rent something that could actually slow me down. If the aero advantage of the 808s outweigh () the extra weight, of course the 808s would be the clear answer. I just don't know if, at my speeds, carrying the 808s up the hills will offset the aero advantage on the flats and down that little decent into Keene.

Flo is a startup aero wheel company. Really haven't seen anything bad written about them or their wheels.

For my purposes if I were to get a new set of wheels I would probably spring for a 404FC front and rear (they are purported to be every bit as fast as the older 808 front I have now) and I would run a wheel builder aerojacket on the rear for tris and TTs. With that setup the 404s would provide a versatile set of wheels that I could also road race on. Would probably switch from tubulars to clinchers as well.

Thanks, that's what I wanted to hear.  I hope my Christmas present to myself will pay off in the bike split.

Nice - nothing like celebrating Christmas in July! what setup did you go with?

I got a lightly used Reynolds Element Disc for the back and Reynolds Assault for the front.  I'm currently in the process of watching a bunch of YouTube videos on tubular gluing as this will be my first time off the clinchers.

that will be a great setup for you - you will love it! Let me know if you want any advice - I obsessed about gluing, flat kit, carrying a spare, etc. before my first IMLP and then actually suffered a crash-induced flat on the second loop. My seemingly irrational obsession actually paid off HUGE dividends.

yeah, listen to Rusty! He is a beast and he knows about this stuff....

Fly like the wind.

Thanks for the advice and input! I'll probably end up renting 808s. Excited to see how my bike will look with some expensive wheels I really couldn't afford to buy

Just a heads up for anyone that is heading to LP in May...expect delays.

http://pressrepublican.com/0100_news/x210922030/Route-73-to-be-torn-up

The bright side is that expect a VERY FAST DECENT!!!

I thought it was quite pucker-factor last year the first time I went down. Nothing like that around Philly, that's for sure. The only problem is, what goes down, must go back up the other side!

Biking build phase now, panic setting in. Black Bear Half next month is two loops, five Cat 5 climbs on each loop.

Happy Friday to everyone. Hope the weekend of Long Rides and Long Runs goes well.

Many training plans call for a 1/2 IM done somewhere in the last week of May or first couple weeks of June. Do you plan on racing hard, or for pacing yourself at IM distance pacing?

Are any of you planning on going up to Lake Placid to preview the swim/ride/run? What about training camp?

I am doing Quassy, and am using it to test two things:  nutrition and pacing.  It will be my first race with a power meter, particularly on some heavy hills, so I want to learn there.  Nutrition wise, I think I want to use a live off the course strategy, so I to try that out as well.  

I am going to ride the bike course, likely in mid to late June.  I live in Boston, so I will probably take a couple weekdays off to ride it and run some of the R course.  Not as concerned about previewing the swim course (not many hills or surprises there, at least that aren't swimming themselves).

I get the sense that previewing the course is especially helpful there, especially the Keene descent.

I've got a set of Zipp 404's that I plan to use for the race.  Not many options available to me with 650 wheels on my baby bike, but I suppose a wheel cover is still an option.

I'm heading to LP on the Canadian long weekend in May, hopefully we will be able to get through the Keen descent.  I'd love to try out the new surfacing to see how it feels compared to last year.

May 19 will be the Black Bear HIM. Hilly two loop course, 5 cat-5+ climbs per loop. I'm in it for the experience, not looking to go so hard I need 2 weeks to recover.

I want to go train at LP and tackle that descent again. Hopefully on freshly paved roads. I'm of mixed feelings about the training camps, seems like a lot of money to just go up there and train if you've been on the course before.