Ironman North American Championship Mont-Tremblant : Official Thread (Page 8)

Thanks guys. Brian I'm #862. I'll see you there next weekend. Fred I've only heard good things about MT. Those I know who've done it loved it, definitely looking forward to doing this race and enjoying a little down time and seeing MT.

Where do you guys find your Race #

Never mind, you guys were talking about Syracuse.

I am having a little bit of knee pain this weekend and I don't know what is causing it. My knee really is sore and hurts to walk and flex it out. I am not going to do my run today and risk injury so I will do some RICE and hopefully it will be better by tomorrow. I am kinda freaking out that I am experiencing pain since I have been injury free this entire time. Am I over reacting or doing the right thing by being cautious and taking a break?

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Matt - I'd suggest that you take a day or two off from running and biking, and see how your knee feels. Given how much training you're been doing, perhaps your knee just needs a rest. If it still hurts after a 1-2 day rest, then perhaps consult a doctor. But given how close race day is, I wouldn't freak out over a few days of downtime (or perhaps use the downtime to get in some extra swim time), and I wouldn't wait too long to see a doctor if you knee is really hurting. If it hurts to walk and straighten, then perhaps err on the side of caution and see a doctor sooner than later....or at least make an appointment and you can always cancel it if your knee feels better.

Good luck, and hope you feel better soon.

Definitely give it a rest. If it were me, I would double up on swim sessions provided it didn't hurt swimming, and do easy turns at the wall with no kick off. Use a pull buoy if nothing else.

Typical advice would be not to run on it at all until there is no pain. What I would do would probably be wait till it hurt less, then bike easy, then hard if it didn't hurt more. Running is a bit more tricky since it can re-injure something pretty quickly, so I would wait till it hurt less, then do real easy runs probably for the rest of the week or so. Mentally its tough to do that, but provided you've had the consistency, you won't lose much fitness at all, if any, with a few easy days thrown in. If it does not get better at all over the next few days, I'd probably see an MD.

Lastly, I find when things start acting up on me, its because I need new shoes. I am really bad about that. I'll put 1k+ miles on my shoes sometimes. As soon as I start throwing another shoe or two into rotation, the little aches and pains clear up.

I had a rough week mentally(and physically to some extent) the week before last, but this past week was great. I usually don't put my long ride/run back to back, but because of my schedule this week I had to.

Saturday, I put in a solid 75 mile ride at good effort with a good deal of elevation change (finally getting outside and off the trainer!). I was averaging 240 or so watts before my bike computer battery ran out at the 2.5 hour mark, but I didn't let up with the effort or pace, and I also had a solid 4 miles off the bike.

Sunday, I expected to trudge through my long run, fatigued from Saturday, but I absolutely nailed it. Did 18 miles, with 4 miles through some hard up and down trails, and the last 10 miles I was cruising at a solid (for me) 7:00 - 7:20 min/mi pace with minimal perceived exertion. I just wait for the good days at this point, and spend more and more time visualizing the race, and that helps a ton.

I am up for the swim on Friday, and look forward to meeting you all.

Thanks for all the responses. I took off today and yesterday and will rest up and keep with icing the knee and hopefully it will be better tomorrow. The pain is under the knee cap and it hurts most when walking up and down steps. Sometimes when I extend my leg out it hurts but the pain is a lot less then it was 2 days ago. If the pain is not gone by wednesday, I am calling the DR to set up an appointment.

I am very frustrated because I have been injury free and fine up until this point. Just sucks that I am experiencing this so close to race day. I have the Challenge AC Aqua Bike in 2 weeks so I am hoping that all is well by then so I can compete.

It's nice to read some posts from others getting ready for MT!

I'm getting excited and nervous - I was there last year and had a DNF. I know what to expect for the bike course, and coming from somewhere very flat, I know that's where I need to focus most of my training. Ran a full marathon yesterday and was pleasantly surprised with both my finish time and how good I felt - that tells me that this year's plan is working.

We are planning to arrive on Wednesday and are staying in the pedestrian village. My personal plan is to swim twice, ride 1-2 short rides, and run 2x just to warm up a little after a 3 day road trip!

I will say I'm really looking forward to returning - both the venue and course are beautiful. Hope to see some of you there!

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I'm planning on a 2 piece and no change for the whole day, but I will pack clothes in T2 in case I change my mind.

Definitely up for an early Fri morning swim! We have a condo just outside of the pedestrian village.

Training is going fine. I had a relatively minor crash about a week and a half ago that has kept me off my tri bike since then, but I've been getting in lots of quality sessions on the trainer. My run isn't where I'd like it to be, but there's still plenty of time.

Question on gearing/hill pacing: I'm racing with power for the first time and am really enjoying it, but I'm worried about exceeding my FTP on the hills. I have a 12/28 on the back right now and a 53/39 up front. The hills around here are all relatively short and steep, so it's nearly impossible not to exceed my FTP on them. How are most of the hills at MT? Long and steady where one can keep under FTP, like CdA, or super steep? (I'm thinking 9 weeks before the race is a rather inopportune time to be finally thinking about this...)

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Thanks Fred! I'm about 3.1 w/kg, so nowhere near the safe limit I'll get a compact.

Got a Doctors Appointment scheduled for tomorrow... Heres hoping it goes well and I am not screwed......

On a side note, went swimming today with the Masters Team. Told the coach about my injury and she had me doing pull bouy work and upper body strength drills in the water. No pain during the swim but I felt it in my knee on the walk out of the gym

Have you changed your bike fit recently at all? I find that injuries crop up on me that I initially attribute to running when my bike fit is off.

If alleve, ice, and rest don't help, I'd go see a doc. Then I'd go see someone who specializes in A.R.T. for a second opinion. Just my $0.02, though.

Good luck!!!

Not quite at 4.1 -4.2, my best guess is that I am in the 3.9 - 4.0 range. I'm not really sure though, I haven't tested since March or so. I was at 300 FTP (299 really, but I like saying 300), but I weighed about 7 - 8 pounds more than now and I "feel" like I've lost some power based on where I am hitting my workouts at. Its hard to tell though, I also feel like I have a lot of cumulative fatigue going on.

I will likely have 53/39 up front, and 11/28 on the back. I am not sure where my W/Kg will be race day. My weight is in the 165-166 range, but one morning I was at 163 (hopefully not dehydration!). If I can get to the low 160s, and push my FTP up even 5 or so watts, assuming I am probably in the 290s now, I can get close to the 4.1 you recommended.

It's my first year training with power, so I am still learning at this point. I was doing 2 x 20s early spring very close to FTP (98 - 99%), but either I am too tired from my other training and overall bike volume, or just mentally weak. I've been keeping up with sweet spot workouts, and VO2max workouts, and my long rides. Somehow if I miss a ride, it ends up being my threshold work. So I am honestly considering the mental aspect. I hope to do 4 x 10 min next week at threshold and would like to see 295 or even 300 watts.

I know that if I drop my run volume I will be able to hit my bike workouts harder and probably have a better race at IMMT, since I've heard many times that it doesn't matter how good of a runner you are if you cook yourself on the bike. But I am also hoping to take a shot at a sub-3 hour marathon this fall, and I want to stay in the 50 mpw range so I can pick up my running at a good point after the IM without too much of a build since between recovery and taper I will only have about 8 weeks of solid training. .

Also, with regards to a change in clothes. Last year I went 2 piece and changed from my tri-short to running short in T2, and the bottoms change probably takes 15 seconds, so I'm going to do the same this year. Even if I wouldn't chafe, its nice to be wearing something dry, even if it is only for a few minutes.

I'm vacationing in Montreal and Mont-Tremblant the week before the race...mostly so I can scope out the course and get a sense of the hills before I sign up for next year. Let me know if I can do any course recon for anyone! (I wish we could have been there to volunteer and sign up on site...but my friend is getting married that weekend and I can't miss it.)

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Went to the Doctor yesterday and was told I have Patella Tendonitis. Doc says 7 days no biking or running and to keep ice on it and stay off my feet as much as possible. Tough pill to swallow but if it will make me better, I am all for it. Doc says I can still swim which is good and did another all pull bouy session today with the Masters team. Hoping this gets better fast

Just wondering if there are any notable Pro's that are racing IMMT this year? Looking at the participant list is a little difficult as there is no indication of Pro or AG'er. Heading to MT to volunteer this year and might end up putting my name on the dotted line for 2015

That definitely is a bummer but it doesn't sound that bad which is a good thing. You still have plenty of time and missing a week of biking and running isn't ideal but it's not the end of the world either. I hope you have quick recovery and are able to get back to fully training without any setbacks.

Fred,

I definitely would like to avoid exceeding my FTP, and best guess for a 1 hour time trial would probably put me in the 290s. I raced my HIM last month at 259 and ran reasonably well off what would be 86% FTP, so I think my guess is in the ballpark for my actual FTP. Then again, that guesswork is based of my very limited experience.

That said, I dont see myself anywhere near 310 by race day.
My problem is that I have my PM is on the crank and I cant see myself switching to a compact at this point.

I can do a 11/32 cassette, but am a bit concerned about the gaps. Is this something to consider?

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