IM 70.3 Mont Tremblant Race Report
Ever since joining Strava, my posts have few and far between. I figured I put down a race report on what is possibly my last attempt at the 70.3 distance.
Prerace: I woke up at 430 after going to bed at 9pm. It was odd hitting the sack when the sun was still up, but luckily I fell asleep pretty quickly. The day before the race involved a little 10 mile spin, a little swim, foam rolling and some time in the hot tub. Anyway, I ate my usual 2 larabars, a banana, coffee and coconut water before I walked down to transition and setup my kit. Transition was packed, over 2400 racers, bigger than the Lake Placid Ironman. Then it was back to the hotel to relax by 6 for 7:52 swim wave start. This was by far the most comfortable, most relaxed pre-race morning I have ever had.
Swim: 45:48
I started with a little warmup in the chilly water, around 63 degrees. It really wasn't too bad as long as I stayed in the sun after getting out of the water. Throughout the entire swim there was lots of contact especially as I got closer to the buoy line and at the turns. Lots of zigzagers too. I felt strong through 2/3 of the course then I got a huge mouth/nose full of water that slowed me down. I opted to use the wetsuit removers when I finally came out of the water, it was cool and much easier to run to transition without the suit.
T1: 4:57
0.25 mile red carpet run. It was fun because I was glad to get out of the water and we were surrounded by supporters. It was a challenge because it was a long way on a hard surface which wasn't too comfy for my plantar facistis. Once I got to my bike, I made quick work of getting my bike gear on. I went with arm warmers because I figured I would be cold and wet.
Bike: 2:45:22, average speed 20.36, max speed 48.3 mph, estimated average power 243 watts
I felt strong and confident for most of the course. I didn't go full aero on the big downhills since I didn't know the course too well and considering I'm a bit of a wuss since crashing 2 weeks ago. The climbs were rather easy, except for the last 10 miles of the course that consisted of a bunch of steep rollers. My legs were pretty chuffed towards the end but nothing like Battenkill or the IM. The arm warmers were effective until I dried off and then they served me well as snot rags for the rest of the bike.
I sucked down 2 bottles of 3x concentration Skratch electrolyte drink. I used some course water to dilute the last half of the second bottle. I also ate 3 Hammer gels along the way (the only Hammer product I can stomach since doing the Ironman).
T2: 1:39
Nothing really notable, I just went as fast as I could.
Run 2:05:45
I had the goal of keeping my pace at around 8 min/mile before the race. I figured that this would put me under the 5 hour 30 minute mark I wanted to beat. Unfortunately, that soon fell apart. My energy level was good, I didn't feel nauseated, crampy or dizzy despite the hot weather. My feets struck again, bad pain in the ball of my left foot. I kept moving my toes around in the shoes which helped a bit but I ended up walking the aid stations to try and stretch my metatarsals out. I was banking on the Newtons to diminish the pain at least a little but they weren't particularly effective. If I hadn't walked the aid stations, the pain would have caused me to walk miles 6-13. Anyway, the run course was gorgeous, basically through the woods on a bike trail and mostly flat or downhill on the way out and slightly uphill on the way back. The course was much more pleasant than other courses I've done that involved 2 loops. The last 1/2 mile was a big hill that put us into the middle of the pedestrian village amongst the crowds of people. We ran right down the middle and finished up on a ramp just like in Kona.
Overall time: 5:43:31
I made the mistake of assuming I'd be able to break 5:30 on Sunday. This isn't realistic considering Quassy, Timberman and Tremblant are such different courses. I had my chance to beat 5:30 at Timberman last year but I was exhausted and beat up from the Ironman.
Course and Venue:
Best race experience I've had so far. Swim: clear, clean lake, bike: smooth, safe roads, run: picturesque and often shady. The resort was great, everything was so close and the roads were setup for people to run and bike on safely before the race. My family was able to see me 4 times during the race and crowds were awesome. I think if I were able to stay in town for Lake Placid it would be hard to decide which venue got the gold. Tremblant would likely take it considering the poutine, free for all athletes at the finish, pretty incredible.
Thoughts:
My fitness level is not on pair with last year around this time but I'm not a mess. I've tried to concentrate on quality not quantity this season due to time issues and injuries. My swim is suffering due to lack of time in the pool. I'm slow as shit and I'm thinking it's my stroke rate or a weak pull. I emailed a local coach today to work with me in the pool. My shorter distance runs are on point but I have to address foot comfort on the bike so I can preserve them for the run. My bike is okay but it can always be better. On training rides I average 18-19 mph but I race in the low 20s on much more difficult terrain. I need to get my training average speed up over 20 so my legs are used to that wattage.
Next:
NYCTRI olympic distance in midtown Manhattan, looking to put down a solid run after a very fast bike
SOS triathlon in Shawangunk mountains, hoping to finish, big runs and big swims, looking to have some new info on the swim and stronger feet for the trail runs.