Ironman Florida : Official Thread (Page 48)

I agree with Socks! welcome back stateside. No more riding in circles!

Do you run out of gears when riding on flats?

What type of speed do you think you will do at IMFL? What is your average cadence?

There are calculators that figure out cadence, gearing and and your speed which would be helpful to see if you need a different crank.

What kind of cassette do you have?  Do you have a 11 something? Changing your lower chainring will just overlap your biggest chain ring more.

Hi everyone! 
I am going ot sign up for IMFL 2011 and really want ot come volunteer...I did it last year and it was a blast.  However, I am not sure if logistically I can get up there to do it this year.  I was hopig ot find out how many of you were able to sign up without volunteering.  Did you sign up teh second it opened or were you able to sign up later that day?  I jsut hope i dont lose out if I cant get up there to volunteer

You "should" be ok!  YAY!!  I didn't know you were planning on this   woohoo!!!! 

My husband and son are going to be finish line catchers and our daughters are going to help with medals and chip removal for the 11 to 14 hour finishers.

They are all excited to help out and get to be at the finish line area. Now will I finish before their shift is over..or can they stay later if not? 

I got in, but I was online right when it opened.  I guess it filled in around 2 hours.  I would plan to be signed into active and ready to register right at noon PCB time.

I registered on-line for this year's event and had no trouble getting in.  Friend and training partner got in online as well.  I second the thought that if you opt for computer registration, just be ready to go once it goes live and it shouldn't be an issue. 

Thanks everyone,
 I think I'm gonna take the chance on do it online the mintue it opens.,  I am used to these type of situations since I have always done it for Phish shows which usually sell out in 3 minutes.  So, my fingers know the drill!
Good luck everyone!!! 

I bet active.com doesn't sell Phish tickets though....



90% of the problem is that active.com's site cannot handle the volume.  Be ready BEFORE it opens...it will generally open a few minutes early and that's the time to get in without hassle.  Last time I tried to register for one of these I would get all the way through the process then active.com would crash and I would have to keep doing it over and over!

That's exactly what happened to me trying to sign up for IMLP last month. I'd fill out the 40 questions hit next button and Active would freeze. I must of gotten one error code 404 100x.  I was on line 20' early and it did not open early at all.  Finally I got in and about 3' later it closed. 

It was annoying to think I was on line on time to register and I'd have to pay extra $600 for community fund slot since Active crashes...glad I didn't give up as I figured it would fill before 34' after it opened. 

Bonehead revelation # 652

I just realized that over that last few weeks I've not been fueling my work-outs properly.  The length has crept up, but I didn't keep up with nutrition.

It kind of came to a head last week after last Tuesday's workout (1 hr swim, 1 hr run + bike to work).  Basically I felt like crap all day and the following day as well.

This week I brought recovery drink to work.   I took that yesterday after the workout, and felt great all day and today as well.  Took two gels as well, one between swim and run, and one after the run before biking to the office. 

What a difference nutrition makes!

Edited by jashac 2010-08-18 12:52 PM

Nutrition really does make a difference.  Especially with the heat a lot of us are seeing.  Make sure to stay hydrated and recover well, too.

Also, today is 80 days out (well, if you look at the Ironman site 79+ whatever hours are left in the day).  Something tells me the next couple of months are going to go by very fast!    

Happy training folks. 

Heat and nutrition is right! Just got done with a 4hr ride and I feel like total crap. I didn't take in enough water or calories and with the temp hitting over 90 towards the end it wasn't a very enjoyable ending. I can't wait for a balmy 65 degree morning in Florida.

The other thing to keep in mind is that you don't have to answer all the questions.  Yes, it would nice to fill out "why are you doing an Ironman ... etc."  But out of all those questions only like 20% are asteriked as required fields. 

Most now you have fill out our the page comes up with errors and red letters telling what you need to fill in. 

It's stupid you are trying to fill out this form as quickly as possible and they are gathering info for press releases they never use for 99% of us.
 

OK, my next mind numbing question, I am trying to space these out so as not to drive you all nuts, todays topic,....

Dress Code

My longest races to dates have been warm water (non wetsuit) 1/2 IM (St Croix 4 times). I've worn a one piece tri-suit each time, but have been pretty uncomfortable by the end each time (usually end up with it rolled down to my waist).

For IMFL I'M wondering what is the best option.

I'm thinking swim jammers under wetsuit

Then tri-bike shorts over jammers, & a tri-top (or sleeveless bike top)

Then run in the jammers & light runners vest (I always run in compression type shorts)

I'm more concerned with comfort than a few extra seconds in transition.

Does anyone have spare tops in the special needs bags?

Thanks in advance

I always race a one piece...it stays put - no riding up or down and I don't waste time changing. Fir both IMFLs I've put a ls top on the 2nd loop of the run. Last year wore leg and arm warmers through the 1/2 way point on the bike. It's what works for me.

i wear two pieces. and the bottom changes for each sport. the team tri top stays the same. i wear desoto 400 mile bike shorts and nike running shorts. i dont mind changing and it feels nicer to me to be with extra cushion for the bike and extra air for the run.

i am going to change shoes half way this year. and possibly socks, no disrespect to our Socks 8)

Do you get your special needs bags back if I were to drop items of clothing off in them half way through the bike? I was thinking trisuit with a pair of bike shorts overtop for the bike. I'm also not apposed to complete costume changes during transition. I'm going to do the trisuit only on an upcoming half and see how that goes.I've trained those distances and it seems to have worked fine.

You may get your sn bags back. If you put something in there assume you will loose it so don't put your favorite expensive xx in it.

First IM, wore tri shorts and sports bra under my wetsuit put on bike jersey in T1; T2 changed tops and put on clean pair of shorts.

Second IM, worse what I was going to wear all day...tri shorts, sports bra and tri top with 3 back pockets like a bike jersey with Zoon calf sleeves..no changing. I had spare set of clothes in a sealed gallon ziplock so if I needed to change I could but I didn't dump out my T1 or T2 bag and have lots of extra stuff.

Second IM my transitions were half the time of first IM.

IMFL I'll do what I did for second IM, and add in disposible arm warmers in T1 as it can be chilly race morning. I've been to 3 IMFLs out of last 4 years, and it has been upper 40s or low 50s at race start two of the years.

Yes, it's time to start thinking about what to wear on race day.  In all my training and previous racing, I go with 2 pieces.  Tri shorts are worn for everything - even during century rides, so I know I'll wear tri shorts.  I always have to pee at some point on the bike and I don't want to mess with a one piece.  

For me, however, I'm trying to decide what kind of top I want.  All my past racing has been with tri tops - some with built in bras and others with a sports bra underneath.  I had toyed with the idea of creating a custom jersey so my family could spot me well, but am running out of time for that.  The other thing.....all my tri jerseys have small pockets.  I don't plan on carrying much stuff on the run, but have been training with cliff shot blocks.  If I carry those I'll need more room than one small pocket on a tri jersey.  For you females, if you have a tri jersey with big or multiple pockets, where did you get it?  Do any of you wear a tight fitting bike jersey instead so you have the extra pocket space?  I figure it wouldn't create drag on the swim because it would be under the wetsuit.  Thoughts?

Also, speaking of the cliff shot blocks and nutrition.....

I know we had the discussion a while back about salt tablets.  When I went to stock up on nutrition the other day I saw the Nuun tablets and almost bought some to experiment with because of the heat we've been having here (over 100 with heat index over 108).  I don't think I will need them for the bike because I am using Infinit.  If I need them, it would be for the run.

Right now on my training runs, I am doing water with cliff shot blocks every 20 minutes.  It works for me.  I can't do straight gatorade because it upsets my stomach, but I can do it every so often in small quantities.  I bought some of the Powerbar Endurance to see how I do with that as I plan on living off the course for the run, with the exception of the shot blocks.

When I looked at the Nuun tablets, it looks like you need to dissolve one in at least 16 oz of water.  That would mean carrying a water bottle on the run which I do not want to do.   For those of you that use the Nuun tablets or other salt tablets, do you carry bottles with you?  Is there some kind of tablet that could be carried and then taken with water from the course?  Since Florida won't be as hot, I may be ok without it, but would like to try it now just in case.

Sorry for the long post. 

regarding race clothing, I did it like Phatknot.  One top (BT of course).  Speedo under the wetsuit, regular bike shorts for the ride, and run shorts for the run.  I just thought that for my slow self comfort over the long day was a good thing.

It worked well and I felt good the whole day.

I did wear a vest and arm warmers out of T1 (I get cold easy).  And had a long sleve run shirt I wore under my tri top for the second half of the run. (it got a little chilly after the sun went down).

You guys are getting me all excited talking about race day.

Funny story (sort of).

I got into the changing tent at T2.  Opened my bag and got my run shorts out.  Grabbed my bike shorts by the waistband, bent over and stripped them down to my ankles.  THEN I noticed, looking between my naked legs, that I could see directly out of the changing tent door to the transition area.     I felt a little... exposed.  It didn't take me long to get into the run shorts.

One other note:  I wore a BT tri top the whole day.  It was really cool the amount of support from the croud.  Lots of people yelling Hey BT!  or Go BT. 

It felt like I was a part of a team. 

If the mood strikes you I recommend doing the race in BT kit.