Ironman Arizona : Official Thread (Page 5)

I'm wondering why it's a 2 disc set....  it's 3 identical loops.  The hardest part about IMAZ IMO is being in aero for almost the entire 112.

The RealRide instructions said "If you want to ride the entire course you have to watch the 2-disc set 3 times."  uuuuggggly.

What does the spinervals video look like?

edit> PS: some of my friends train Cda using the RealRoad IMCdA video and have voiced positive comments.  Maybe it's the nature of the course.  Where IMAZ on the beeline there is not much visual to break the course into mental chunks. Other than the turn around at shay and the 2nd turnaround near t2, the course is sorta featureless.

im actually headed to tempe at the end of march for a dragon boat tournament.  iirc, my dragon boat racing will occur in the same area as our swim start.  since i'll be in the area, i'm planning on staying an extra day and bringing my bike along to do one loop of the course.  unfortunately, i dont have anything to use to record my ride.

and probably drive the run portion at some point during the weekend, if i can.

but i've also read it's relatively flat and pretty fast

Cheers

You won't be able to drive the run portion as much of it is on the trail that goes around Tempe Town Lake.  I ran part of it when I was there this year to volunteer.  The part I ran was pancake flat, but I heard there is a "hill" on the backside.  I know the definition of "hill" means different things to different people.

I have the spinervals IMAZ course but have not viewed it yet.  I'm hoping to do so in the next couple of weeks and I'll post thoughts at that point.  It was a Christmas gift and I figure if nothing else can at least get me motivated to be on the course.

I did SOMA in Tempe this past year and if it's the same hill that people are talking about, it's taking you from the lake level up to the bridge level. I know part of the run course is the same but I'm not certain that this is the hill people are talking about The rest is pretty flat which is good

The hill everyone refers to is Curry Rd on the north side of the lake.  It is about .4 miles uphill (I do not know the actual grade, but it is a good uphill run), then you catch the downhill making your way back to run along the north side of the lake.  If you Google Map the Tempe area north of the lake (Curry Rd and 68th St/College Ave), that is where the uphill starts (running west), then you take Lake View Rd back downhill and under the bridge (202 Fwy).  Use the street view (little yellow/orange guy) on Google Maps to get a true look at the hill.

I saw many people walking the hill this last year (IM AZ 2011), but then again I saw people walking the whole course, so I do not think the hill made anyone really worry too much.  I was able to run it on all three loops.  The downhill is actually harder than the uphill, in my opinion.  Definitely more fun, but harder on the knees and feet.

As for the bike course, it really is pretty basic, and not too scenic overall (and I live here, so I would not purposely ridicule any landscape).  Having ridden it often, I made note of certain things (buildings, other) that I used as my "milestones", outside of the different streets and turns.  The route goes over two (2) canals, and above each are white/orange marking balls along the power lines.  They look like fishing bobbers in the air, and you can see them a ways off, so I always look for them as a motivator and milestone.  Between McDowell Rd and the AZ canal on Beeline Hwy is an old building that used to be part of a local race track (eons ago - east side of Beeline Hwy), and I look for that too.  On the return to Tempe Town Lake, just west of Beeline on McDowell is a 3-4ft high telephone pole (n side of McDowell Rd) that someone decorates, dresses up, etc in different seasons.  So it is fun to look for it and see how it is decorated.  Outside of those, there are not many markers to note, other than the different street turns, freeways and bridges you pass by or go under.  Those may sound odd, but hey, when you are riding 76-112 miles on the same terrain over and over, you have to find anything to make it interesting.  HA HA

hm.. how long are you staying? i'm contemplating arriving on Wednesday and staying through Monday.  Not really sure what people usually do tho, so any input would be appreciated!

Im doing exactly that.....arriving Wednesday for early check in than leaving Monday afternoon.....

How is everyone doing?  Anyone doing any early season racing?

I'm hoping to do a 70.3 in April if it works with the kids' schedules of soccer and volleyball.

ugly mudder trail race in February than the Ocean Drive Marathon in March.....than its time to focus on Arizona for me...Got some fun 5k's too.  But my tri's will begin in June with Philly sprint, than an oly in August and diamond man in Sept, leading up to Arizona.....cant wait 

I have now watched most of the Spinnervals Arizona course video.  As noted above, there isn't much to it.  I know there are some shallow grades on the course that might be considered "climbs," and that will likely hurt me at some point, but on the video its hard to tell where they are, and the course looks like it is almost entirely flat.   Seems like the real key is being comfortable in an aero position and being able to lock into that position for almost the duration.

Happy training!

Maybe I'll see you at Alcatraz!  Do you have anything planned or potential races between Alcatraz and AZ?  About halfway between those two I'm hoping to find a HIM to do, otherwise looks like a nice relaxed schedule so you can focus on training for AZ.

You hit the nail on the head.  The "uphill" is gradual until you get to the upper parts of Beeline Hwy, then it starts to incline a bit more, but never a real "hill" as we have come to define them.

This course provides great opportunity to be in aero for the entire race (except for turn around points, obviously).  Even many of the standard turns can be taken in aero if it is not crowded at the bend.  I planned on being in aero for a good portion in 2011, and was impressed that I remained in it for more than 95%.

Did you accomplish this by spending hours on end on your trainer in the aero position or riding for hours in that position?  Or by a good set of core strength exercises?  Or both?

i'm doing super seal olympic in march as my early race.

in an  other thread, i discussed my slow swimming. i'm happy to report i now have a swim coach. hope to start that in 2-3 weeks. in time to improve my technique for my march race and definitely become a stronger swimmer by november!

excited.

If you're interested, Schwaggle has 50% Total Immersion swim package right now.  $40 for the book and two DVD's I think.