Ironman Florida : Official Thread (Page 8)

That sounds like a lot of fun Kathy! Good luck with that today!!!

We have reservations at Laketown Wharf! 

11 months to go!

IMFL is still an Ironman. You will still need to swim 2.4, bike 112, and run 26.2. If you finish no one can take that away from you. Having raced it; yes there is drafting. However, much of it occurs up front with some midpack but not as much. Can you avoid it? If you want to, and you follow the rules yes you can. If someone is telling you IMFL is inferior I would ignore them. The reality is that it is a great race, in an awesome location with wonderful volunteers. Enjoy the training, enjoy the race, and don't let anyone drag you down.

At IMFL in 08 I got out of the water mid packish.  when I got on the bike heading out of town there were two continuous lines of bicycles riding pretty much "bumper to bumper" for as far as I could see both ahead and behind.  I thought a lot about drafting, but there was really no where else to ride.  You either rode in the right hand line (slightly slower) or the left hand line (slightly faster)  Once we passed the first aide station there was a little more space, but until then you either rode in the line or didnt' ride. 

I didn't find that 10 miles of drafting made my 112 mile ride much different than any of the other 112 mile training rides I'd done.  (perhaps it's like having a little tail wind for part of the ride)  And after 14hrs and 16 minutes I SURE felt like I'd completed an IronMan.

I suppose each race has it's own obstacles.  Some folks are terrified of an open ocean swim.  Some don't like cold water, or hills, or river current, or riding through hot lava.  IMFL may be one of the "easier" Ironman races, but it's still a certified Ironman event. 

Oh, and by the way there are tougher races than Ironman, just in case anyone has too big a head. 

The two big races I am concentrating on are IMFL and White Lake Half which is May 1st. I will do the BT IM plan leading up to IMFL and the BT HIM plan leading up to White Lake. They fit together pretty well. I may throw a couple of sprints or half marathons or something in there but those two will be my focus.

Duuuude I'll be doing Eagleman and Nations too! oh yeah and IMFL haha

Check out the Kinetic International Distance on May 9th(?), www.setup-events.com puts it on and they do good stuff.

Shanks

My races:

Breast Cancer Half Mary - 2/21(R) - FL
National Half Marathon - 3/20 - DC
Brandywine Duathlon - 3/28 (R) - PA?
Kinetic Half - 5/8 - VA
Cascade Lake Triathlon - 5/16(R) - DE?
Breezy Point Triathlon - 5/30 - VA
Eagleman 70.3 (A race) - 6/13 (R) - MD
Ironman Lake Placid Training Camp 6/17-20
Philadelphia Triathlon Oly - 6/27(R) - PA
Cannonman Triathlon - 8/22(R) - PA
Nations Tri - 9/12 (R) - DC
Augusta 70.3 - 9/26 - GA
Cape Henlopen Triathlon - 10/10(R) - DE?
Ironman Florida (A race) - 11/6(R) - FL

Shanks

RE: drafting.  I can say there was WAY less drafting this year than last year and that the USAT officials were actively trying to break it up.  They had a much much more visable presence on the course and I saw packs of people in the penalty tent.  I was actually very impressed with how well they did this year.  It is a one loop 112 mile course and they can'tbe everywhere at once.  If you choose to cheat thats your issue.