SBR Utopia Season II - OPEN (Page 55)

Chris and I are signed up for Miami 70.3.  They posted on Facebook this afternoon that there was only 128 spots left.  Quick, go sign up before you start thinking rationally again!  

Originally posted by mndymond I've been lurking a bit lately. Bit of a slow day in the office and having some patients no show...so BT time! Its test week for me. I'm kind of afraid of how gross my times will be for the effort involved...1000m TT tonight. Started bike commuting last week once my beater bike was fixed up by a local shop. I've been signing myself up for races...might as well. Residency will likely start to kick my butt a bit, but in the meantime I'll just keep doing what I'm doing. Victoria half, ROck and roll Las Vegas...debating New Orleans again...and possibly wildflower in May...

How's the coaching going?  I predict you're gonna get fast 

Hmmmm....  that would give me an entire week to recover from the Bay State Marathon.  The only irrational thing would be NOT doing it.

Honestly, if I didn't have the full marry (it's Kim's first, and she's so stoked that I really want to be there with her), the post would have only one word in it:  "Done"

Matt

BTW, "super happy and grateful" was EXACTLY how I felt after my first (and so far only) HIM.  I think it means we're doing something right

Seems as though Power2Max is the latest ones to be dropping their prices. 

$899 for an FSA Gossamer crankset down from $1249

http://www.power2max.de/northamerica/produkt-kategorie/power-meters-en/power-meters-road/

Originally posted by mndymond  Good Starting off post IM slowly...haha. Longest run so far 8km....but I made the mistake of telling Shane about this 15min+ long hill up to the university...lol...so now that is the "test hill"...

That's one benefit to not living in the Rockies (for me).  No such hills anywhere near me!

And for the power geeks, just pulled this from Garmin Connect (TP seems not to be working at the moment) for my bike leg Sunday:

Avg Power:207 W
Max Power:612 W
Max Avg Power (20 min):222 W
Normalized Power (NP):215 W
Intensity Factor (IF):0.798
Training Stress Score (TSS):167.9
Work:1,974 kJ

The 612W might have been a bit much for a HIM.    It was after having to almost stop on a corner (the volunteers were nearly IN the road slowing you down) and then turning straight uphill and finding myself in a pass or penalty situation (which they prolly wouldn't have called, but still).

PS - Elesa, you might want to grab a six pack, as the RR is loooongish…  

Originally posted by mcmanusclan5

And for the power geeks, just pulled this from Garmin Connect (TP seems not to be working at the moment) for my bike leg Sunday:

Avg Power:207 W
Max Power:612 W
Max Avg Power (20 min):222 W
Normalized Power (NP):215 W
Intensity Factor (IF):0.798
Training Stress Score (TSS):167.9
Work:1,974 kJ

I've not tried riding quite this constantly with a PM (as mentioned, all my rides with the PM were with roadies - so more about crushing each other on hills), so am still getting the hang of the numerology.  Feel pretty good about the 207/215  AP/NP numbers (and there were definitely some zero W spans zooming down those hills!).

 

The 612W might have been a bit much for a HIM.    It was after having to almost stop on a corner (the volunteers were nearly IN the road slowing you down) and then turning straight uphill and finding myself in a pass or penalty situation (which they prolly wouldn't have called, but still).

 

Not sure what GC is using for the IF - something it estimates as FTP or if I entered it a while ago (and haven't updated, if so).

 

Aaaaaahhhhh….  data.  

 

Matt

 

PS - Elesa, you might want to grab a six pack, as the RR is loooongish…  

Where in the ride (beg, mid, end?) was that peak 20 minutes?  If it was near the end then I would say you nailed that ride.  If the course had some coasting then an AP/NP of 207/215 looks really solid.  IF looks spot on for a HIM that leads to a good run as well.

I find it extremely interesting though that you did this while monitoring HR.  I am becoming a bigger believer that power isn't all that great for long course.  It still has lots of value, but I truely believe RPE and HR should be your driving factors and power is more of a secondary (but instant) feedback metric.  If you can learn to use all three together, you would get the ultimate tool, but if you could only pick one metric for a long course race, I wouldn't choose power.

My friend sent me pics her son took of the poolside wedding

THIS IS PURE AWESOME! 

Really, every marrying couple should be this happy and relaxed.  Love it.  I got married in jeans and a t-shirt and spent the afternoon planting trees with my husband.  I love KISS weddings.

Could we talk about Worlds for the 70.3 distance? 

How do the different number of slots for each race get determined?

How should you weigh that with choosing the race?

What are all of the things you should consider when picking a course if you'd like to try to qualify?

What else should I consider that I'm too new and clueless to even ask about?

(FYI, though I'm going to try to do this next year, in all likelihood it will take me 2-3 years to do it, if ever.)

I think the number of slots per race is somewhat arbitrary.  They have regional championships setup that typically have more and new races often do as well.  Other than that I'm not really sure.

If you want to qualify, I wouldn't assume that it will take you 2-3 years.  The rolldowns often go pretty deep for the 70.3.  A friend of mine could have gotten a slot at Mont Tremblant this year simply because he was at the rolldown.  He finished 116th in his AG.

WTC decides the slots. They tend to be fairly stable in amount from year to year. Some races get more due to the importance WTC wants to place on that race. Races with more slots tend to have most of them go to the mens 30-45 groups as those tend to be the most populated. Some others might get 1-2 more. Not sure that the women's side gets much more, I haven't looked as I'm not really going to be eligible there. Do be mindful of races potentially attracting a strong field. More slots and especially Kona slots (a few 70.3's can still have this) are part of what can do that. Anything California is going to be really competitive, for another example. A brand new race tends to have more spots the first year and may or may not have as much competition depending on when it is and when it's announced.

For the course, know what you're good at and not so good at relative to other fast people. Don't just look at compared to average, but to others who do well as this is your competition. Strong bike & run tend mean more hills for each, but also know how you're good at them. Are you better on a roller coaster type or big sustained climbs. Weaker swimming tends to mean avoiding known rougher swims, possibly getting a downriver one. Are you better in hotter or cooler climates? Weather can be a crapshoot, but there are still odds on various locations generally having fairly well known conditions.

Do know that Worlds is going to be moving around each year going forward. This year is still Vegas. Next year is Mont Tremblant. After that it's going more global for a couple years. Not sure they've announced specifics yet, but looking at Europe in there for sure.

You can try to factor all this into a decision, or just go do races that look fun and what happens happens.

Agree with Arend on not assuming it'll take that long.  The M35-39 (or 30-34... I forget) had 4 slots go completely unclaimed at Timberman, so the last 4 finishers could have gone to the WC if they'd stuck around.

Three of us stuck around (I always try to stay for the awards and cheer, and then we decided to see what Rolldown was about as it was, at least for me, my first WTC event).  We each were one person away from a slot at World's (or if I'd finished 10' faster, I'd have bagged one regardless), despite finishing 17th/32nd/52nd in our AGs (the one finished 52nd had the slot go to a guy who finished 50th - a ~2 minute difference, and my buddy had 10' in transitions...  OUCH).

Hadn't really entered my mind, as I only just figured out the AGN thing, but it sure has now.    More because Kim (my *much* better half) said she'd love to go to MT but has no interest in a "Lost Wages" vacation (so, it's a good thing the venue has changed).  That's also the same driving force behind going to AGN next year - she wants to check out Milwauke!

Might have to try for WCs, too, just to be able to participate (and it will still take considerable luck in the Rolldown for me, I know - but it could happen).

As for slot allocation, I get the feeling they save some out to bump up attendace at the last minute (for a race that is lagging or, as Arend said, a new race).  This year they announced a 150% increase in the number of slots (40 to 100) at Timberman on June 12th, apparently to bump up the registration.  It worked (and also made the field more competitive, as it was the first qualifier for the 2014 WC - I would have been 10th in my AG last year with the same time... 'Course there's no way to tell if that's directly related, but seems likely as the Rolldown didn't go far in my or most other AGs at all).

Something fun to think about!  Besides, all it costs you is sticking around at the beer tent cheering for the podium finishers - how cool is that?

Matt

OK, thanks everyone for the info.  That all really helps:)

So the only races that have slots are officially "Ironman" brand 70.3s, right?

I have tried to figure this out at the site, but there just really isn't a lot of info :/

I am trying to think about my schedule for next year...how much time between 70.3s do you schedule if you really want to race both (or more).  I'm guessing this is really an individual thing, but just kinda curious how you all have judged that from season to season, and the relative successes and failures of your race scheduling. 

I'm thinking I could possibly do 3, but they'd have to be pretty spaced out--like an April, July, October.  I'm thinking I'd like to have enough time to do a focused training block between races to address my main weakness.

Along side that mental side is which seasons are you willing to train through?  Do you live somewhere that would force you indoors for the winter and would that bother you?  I am not sure I could get HIM volume on the bike indoors without going a bit insane.  An hour to hour and a half is my limit on the drainer

Ben brings up a good point about the 70.3 WC moving from year to year going forward.  If you look at past results, both when the race was in Florida and now in Vegas, the vast majority of participants were from the US.  While the 70.3 WC is gaining popularity, it's just not a race that some folks feel is worth traveling long distances for.  Especially if say you qualified in June or July and the race is in September...not much time to plan vacation, travel, training, etc.  People are much more willing to do it for Kona.

So if you do plan to qualify in a given year, you can likely pick your races with some strategy.  If the race is in MT next year, I'm guessing the roll down will be less likely if you're doing a north eastern qualifying race.  Or if they move the race to say Switzerland...and you're willing to travel...you may find the roll down go a lot deeper in US based races.  I'm not sure though if they will reallocate the amount of slots in that case.  Maybe European races will get far more slots when the WC is held in Europe and the US races will be left with say 1 slot per AG? 

How do people do 3 hour trainer rides???  Do I just need to HTFU?

I had to peek and see where you're from Marc.  I'm guessing your winters are even colder than mine (Iowa). 

OK, I'm thinking 2 now, guys.  This is really helpful, thanks!

So, if you qualify in June or July you race Worlds the September of the same year? Oly AGN to worlds isn't like that.  Can you delay a year?