Which is easier: Racing a half IM or finishing a full IM

Finishing/participating in an IM by far!  To me that is a joke in comparison to actually racing at your limits in a HIM.  To truly "race" a HIM, you are going to need to be right up on your LT for almost the whole thing.  That is really tough to do.

I could putz my way through an IM and still break easily 17 hours.  That may not be the case for everyone, but for a typical 11 - 13 hour finisher it would be a leisurely but long training day to just participate and finish.

For me, I agree with those that say racing a HIM is MUCH harder than just finishing an IM. 

But I think it probably depends on the individual and their fitness level.  If 'racing' a HIM still takes a person much over 6:30 (just guessing at the right number here), then just 'completing' an IM within the time limits would seem to be a pretty big challenge and I would guess that is tougher for them.

And that's based on what? How many have you finished?  

Definitely finishing an IM is easier; consider the athletic ability required to finish a HIM around the 4 hour mark compared to that required to finish an IM.

For most athletes (barring injury or the effects of age), training to be able to finish an IM is achieveable however, very few would be able to be at the pointy end of a HIM.

Shane

I think it's obvious that finishing an IM is easier.  I 2nd (or is it 3rd or 4th or 5th) this opinion.

I did IMWI in 13:17 and felt like a million bucks and absolutely did not have to dig deep down for anything that race.  Walked and talked most of the marathon with a good friend of mine (see race report if you're curious) and stayed well into zone 2 for the entire bike...never having to breath through my mouth on the bike...even while climbing.

Don't take this the wrong way as...."Steve is describing how great of an athlete he is"...that's not my point of this post....rather....my point is if you race well below your limit and IM race is just a nice long enjoyable race with an incredible atmosphere and support. 

My IM training leading up to that race was a TON HARDER than the actual race...that's for sure.

Look at it this way....if you make the bike cutoff....you can walk the entire marathon and still eek in under 17 hours...if that's not "easy" I'm not sure what is.

I missed the definition of 'racing' as being at the pointy end of a HIM.  But everbody else seems to be assuming it.  I guess I don't really race that often.

I may have read too much into the idea of racing; however I was assuming that the OP was talking about being competitive in the race (either overall or in one's age group).

Shane

I'll let you know in Sept, it might be the first time I try and "race" a HIM. The first was just to finish the distance, the second was build up to IM. I am thinking I want to "Go for it" on the third.

But I would suspect racing a HIM would be much harder.  As had been said, IM was just a long cruise for me at upper zone 1 lower zone 2 for most of the day. 

I think the term RACING needs to be defined at this point.  Somehow this thread has devolved into comparing finishing a HIM around 4 hours vs. just finishing an IM.  Since very few people can finish a HIM around 4 hours and most people who enter an IM finish this is not a reasonable comparison.

If racing is defined as something like "Pushing one's self at or near one's limits in order to complete a race in the shortest time achievable with little regard for the temporary pain this may cause", then we may have a fair comparison.

Under the above definition, my vote goes to finishing an IM.  My experience is as follows:

Finished '07 SOMA HIM in 6:15.  I know this isn't a great time, but I felt I was racing...no walking, pushing hard and felt like I had little to nothing left at the finish.

DNF'd '08 IMAZ at mile 13 of the run.  Like JeepFleeb said, there is way more to the nutrition/pacing at an IM than a half IM.

Finally, I think the answer depends upon how good you are to begin with.  If you regularly race a HIM around 5 hours then you probably wouldn't have to push too hard to just finish an IM.  If you race a HIM around 6.5+ hours, then you are probably going to have to push yourself pretty hard to make the bike and run cut-offs.

Yes, that's the definition that I was assuming. Running at or above threshold for the entire length of the race regardless of what the time is.

Your point is valid. For some to finish IM, they would have to be at threshold all day, for others they could be very aerobic and cruise in.

Edited by tripastor 2008-06-19 10:01 AM

I don't agree or disagree. I don't have the requisite experience yet to opine.

It just seems to me that your 4 word response was unfounded.

why not explain your rationale first since that's all he asked? 

I still think the answer is "it depends".

And why is that? Either you posted because you disagree for a particular reason or you are just trolling as you know I've never done an IM. if you believe you can't provide a sound opinion because you've never completed an IM well, then you don't understand endurance training very much. Even with my basic understanding about sports physiology I understand that racing a HIM at the best of an athlete’s capabilities for an HIM is more difficult than just completing an IM.

Let me ask you this; how come athletes with a decent fitness level can run a lot farther of what they are adapted to by going slower for instance but the same athlete has a very difficult time completing 1 hr running at threshold pace so much many need many attempts to do so?