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2012-01-23 10:37 PM

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Subject: Rev3 Knoxville - Half Rev : Official Thread
Im thinking about signing up for this race as a qualifier for Long Course Nationals and going under the time standard (5:05 for me). Im wondering what the difficulty of the course is like. I read through a lot of race reports and people seem to describe it as hilly on bike and run. Looking at the elevation profiles, it seems to be pretty tame though: 1600ft gain on bike and 260ft on the run? I live near the IMKY course so Im used to constant rollers.

I also noticed the finisher times in my AG being a little bit slower than I would expect ... is this typical of Rev 3 races in general or is the course indeed that tough? My PR 4:43 from Muncie back in 09, so I should have time to spare even if there are some hiccups along the way.





2012-01-23 11:15 PM
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Subject: RE: Rev3 Knoxville - Half Rev : Official Thread

I thought the Knoxville bike was a little harder when factoring in that it's shorter (half vs full). Not sure that any particular hill is much harder, but they're a bit more concentrated. I thought it was more fun too. Knowing how to carry momentum makes a noticeable difference. Where did you get the 1600 from? MapMyRide? That is way off. I had ~3,100-3,200 ft.

The first and last 3 miles of the run are fairly flattish. They go up and down, but the grade isn't that much. Past the turn-around for the Oly course is where it changes. It's not so much the total elevation gain, but the steepness of the hills. This is not reflected well in race reports I've seen (not necessarily on this site, I joined after the race). They're kind of short, but can knock several minutes a mile off your pace and still require increased effort. I dropped from 7:30 flats to 10:30 on probably the worst one and it wasn't enough.

What year were you looking at times? Last year (2011) the swim course was long by 5 minutes. They actually acknowledged this later and I'm guessing that's why they wiped the swim times out. If the Muncie course was the same then as it is now under MDot, then it's noticeably faster then Knoxville. Muncie's bike seems to be one of the fastest in the series.

2012-01-24 7:51 AM
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Subject: RE: Rev3 Knoxville - Half Rev : Official Thread
I got those numbers from the the Rev 3 site. Is the bike course two loops, maybe thats the discrepancy? Ive done Muncie twice and set my PR there (4:43) but that race is too late in the season in order for me to sign up for Nationals. I thought about signing up for IMFL 70.3 but is a much more expensive trip as I can drive to Knoxville.

http://rev3tri.com/knoxville/course-info/elevation-charts/
2012-01-24 8:34 AM
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Subject: RE: Rev3 Knoxville - Half Rev : Official Thread

Ah, ok. They use mapmytri, which is basically mapmyride. This is a common thing with both map sites.  It is a 1 loop course.  The general appearance of the bike course is pretty much how it looks on that chart. It likely misses all the smaller scale ones, but over 56 miles they can add up considerably.

I get mixed reviews on the Muncie run course about how hilly it is, so it's hard to compare since I haven't actually done that one. The Knoxville course didn't feel like what it appears. I didn't notice a general trend of the hills like it shows, but the smaller ones were tough. They can really mess with a rhythm. I tried to force it too much and paid for it, so that may have been part of the problem.

If you can negotiate hills well (bike & run) then I think you can do it if your fitness is the same as for the PR, but it will likely be much closer than you think. It's possible conditions of the day could make you miss by a little.

2012-01-24 11:00 AM
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Subject: RE: Rev3 Knoxville - Half Rev : Official Thread
I was checking the Rev3 website and watched the bike course video for the OLY race. Are there any course videos for the Half Rev out there that people know of? I would love to have something like that for an indoor trainer video. Living in Central IN provides no opportunity to ride hills like what I will find in Knox Vegas, but part of the reason I am doing this race is to make myself better at hills. I think the indoor trainer is probably the best way to train for it (especially when it is icy roads and 20-30 mph winds outside these days).
2012-01-24 11:40 AM
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Subject: RE: Rev3 Knoxville - Half Rev : Official Thread
There might be, but the videos could be of the old course (2010) anyway. If you can go hard for a few minutes and recover quickly, then the hills should be fine.  Outdoor riding would be more for handling and familiarity with the bike. On this course that certainly does help, but don't be losing sleep over it. I had no more than 100 miles outside going into this and managed everything just fine.


2012-01-24 2:59 PM
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Subject: RE: Rev3 Knoxville - Half Rev : Official Thread
I've done both Louisville and Knoxville and think Louisville is much harder. The hills there are non-stop. In Knoxville, the hills maybe a bit steeper, but you get to take advantage of the downhill portions more. The run on the other hand is mainly flat. I don't remember it being bad at all...a lot like Louisville. Like someone else mentioned, the swim was long last year and seemed to be against the current a bit. It is a really fun course though. I live in Memphis and am not used to hills, but didn't think Knoxville was that bad.
2012-01-29 11:56 PM
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Subject: RE: Rev3 Knoxville - Half Rev : Official Thread

I just signed up for the half today.  Figured it would be a good test of my winter trainer work.

I, like many, am a little apprehensive about the hilliness of the bike course.  Looking at the elevation maps it doesn't seem like it's going to be much worse than some of the routes I ride in training, but everyone says this one's a challenge.

2012-01-30 5:28 PM
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Subject: RE: Rev3 Knoxville - Half Rev : Official Thread
This course is being discussed over on ST as well. The guy with the best bike split here last year was 19-20 minutes faster at Steelhead for the bike alone. He also has a 5:10 at Cour d'Alene. I don't remember anything there being the stuff of legends, but it will slow you down.  Have some decent gearing to get up the hills and expect to take a little longer. That's all there is too it. If you force it, you will pay.
2012-02-01 6:13 PM
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Subject: RE: Rev3 Knoxville - Half Rev : Official Thread

Got an email today from Rev3 saying the transition was being moved from last year's location to accommodate more racers.  It's now going to be in the ground floor of the parking garage closest to the river...

Sounds fine to me; especially if it rains that day.

2012-02-28 4:41 PM
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Subject: RE: Rev3 Knoxville - Half Rev : Official Thread
Really looking forward to it. This will be my 4th effort at the 70.3 distance. So far my PR was a 5:30 at Longhorn 70.3 in Austin, followed by slightly slower efforts in Orlando and Boulder (all in 11 months). Shooting for 5:29 in Knoxville!

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Dad's, chime in on the conversation!

Edited by BellaDad 2012-02-28 4:44 PM


2012-03-26 6:53 PM
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Subject: RE: Rev3 Knoxville - Half Rev : Official Thread
So, looking at the elevation maps for the bike, I can replicate the overall hilliness of this ride locally.  The only difference is that it's made up of lots of little hills instead of the 4 or so cat 5 hills followed by long downhill sections and flats of the Knoxville course.  Will this make a meaningful difference in speed, or is it all a wash?
2012-03-26 8:03 PM
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Subject: RE: Rev3 Knoxville - Half Rev : Official Thread

wbattelie, can you downhill well? Knoxville isn't very technical, but there is just enough that people who are nervous will slow down. I was flying past people as I'm fine on sweeping turns in aero at 35 or so. Something about the Knoxville route just slows things down in general. Go ahead and replicate the volume as best you can, as it's better than nothing. But it might be a few min slower than what you're used to. It was cooler and the air just seemed heavy last year too. The longer uphills really aren't bad as long as you use your head. That actually goes for a lot of the course. If you try to force it, you'll use up energy noticeably, and you'll want it for the run. I'm from Illinois and did just fine on the bike with a 2:39. It would have helped if I had gotten more than 100 miles outdoors before this race, and it was my first race of the season.

The sound of your terrain should help out a lot for the run. Nothing was that big, but at the far end (past the Oly turn-around) they get rather steep and there wasn't that much flat area.

BellaDad. Good luck, but this is a tougher than it seems course to PR on.



Edited by brigby1 2012-03-26 8:05 PM
2012-03-26 10:51 PM
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Subject: RE: Rev3 Knoxville - Half Rev : Official Thread

Good advice; thanks.

I typically try to climb seated, especially in a race just to make sure I don't blow up.  As far as the downhills go, i'm OK with carrying decent speed in aero.  At about 45mph+ I might start to get a little nervous though.

I have read through some of the race reports and it seems the common theme is that the course is "tough, but fair."  To me that means there hopefully aren't many braking areas on the downhill to rob us of our hard earned descent.

2012-04-16 6:52 PM
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Subject: RE: Rev3 Knoxville - Half Rev : Official Thread

Pretty quiet in here!

Went for a 54 mile ride on Saturday with 2300 feet of climbing...  If the Rev3 site is correct at 1600 then I feel pretty good about the upcoming race.





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2012-04-17 10:13 AM
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Subject: RE: Rev3 Knoxville - Half Rev : Official Thread

How did you come up with those elevation numbers? Garmin 800's & 500's tend to be more like 3,100 or so. Rev3 uses MapMytri (or Ride), which tends to way underestimate things.

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/85923047



2012-04-17 12:55 PM
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Subject: RE: Rev3 Knoxville - Half Rev : Official Thread
I noticed that the Map my ride course says 1600 or so feet of elevation. That is a pretty big difference. Am I better off doing it on a road bike if there that much elevation change?
2012-04-17 2:41 PM
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Subject: RE: Rev3 Knoxville - Half Rev : Official Thread
Definitely Tri bike here and get the gearing right. It's not that technical of a course, you just need to pay attention in some spots. Road bike would be if there were lots of turns where a high degree of control was needed.
2012-04-17 6:23 PM
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Subject: RE: Rev3 Knoxville - Half Rev : Official Thread
brigby1 - 2012-04-17 10:13 AM

How did you come up with those elevation numbers? Garmin 800's & 500's tend to be more like 3,100 or so. Rev3 uses MapMytri (or Ride), which tends to way underestimate things.

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/85923047

The elevation was from my 305.  I just plotted the same route on mapmyride and it cut the elevation gain from almost 2300 to 1330 feet of climbing.

So Rev3 has 1600 feet listed on the website (sourced from mapmyride) and the true elevation is over 3000...  should be a good day!

2012-04-18 7:27 AM
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Subject: RE: Rev3 Knoxville - Half Rev : Official Thread
I just hope I have something left for the run. This will be my second ever triathlon and first Half distance event. Getting nervous.
2012-04-18 3:39 PM
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Subject: RE: Rev3 Knoxville - Half Rev : Official Thread
How much current is there on the river?


2012-04-18 4:13 PM
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Subject: RE: Rev3 Knoxville - Half Rev : Official Thread
I haven't had a chance to swim there, but from what I understand the current is very minimal.
2012-04-18 4:42 PM
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Subject: RE: Rev3 Knoxville - Half Rev : Official Thread
Question for the more experienced athletes. With two and a half weeks to go, I am having a slow week and quite frankly feel tired and in need of rest. If I took it easy this week to rest some, would it be wise to have a hard training week next week and taper the last week? Or should I do what I can this week and taper the last two as planned? Will post om the general forum as well. Thanks for all of the feedback so far.
2012-04-18 6:02 PM
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Subject: RE: Rev3 Knoxville - Half Rev : Official Thread

ramiedd - 2012-04-18 4:42 PM Question for the more experienced athletes. With two and a half weeks to go, I am having a slow week and quite frankly feel tired and in need of rest. If I took it easy this week to rest some, would it be wise to have a hard training week next week and taper the last week? Or should I do what I can this week and taper the last two as planned? Will post om the general forum as well. Thanks for all of the feedback so far.

Don't know that i'm "experienced" but have done a few tri's.  My personal take on this is try to maintain the volume even if you need to back off the intensity.  Then do your planned taper.

I am continuing to build volume, especially on the bike, over the next week and a half.  I'll taper some the week before the race, but I typically don't go for a huge taper.  

FWIW, my legs are asking for a break too but i'm trying to ignore them.  If you don't feel like you're about to injure yourself you're probably fine to train through it.

2012-04-21 9:41 PM
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Subject: RE: Rev3 Knoxville - Half Rev : Official Thread
any idea on the temp of the water in the river?
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