Race Week
Follow Coach MT's instructions for last few days - expect some light spinning and brief faster intervals. Wednesday is when we will get prepared for the journey - I will publish a post on my 'Equipment' shortly. Chris and I leave on Wednesday evening and we plan to drive to my Sister's house in Aalter in Belgium where we will spend the night. On Thursday we will spend most of the day driving through Germany and hope to reach Austria in the early evening. Friday sees the arrival of Donna and Sue (our wives) and most of the boys, all of which are flying to Klagenfurt. I expect we will register on Friday / Saturday, drive the bike route, check over the bikes and may be go for a short swim and bike/run. We will also focus on getting a good 7-8 hours sleep each night and some good nutrition - probably a bit of carbo loading. Finally I think there is the Expo to attend - lots of Ironman kit available!
Race Day
Sunday (race day) I expect to be up early (if I can sleep at all). I think it is a 6am start so I assume breakfast will be around 4-5am. I am not going to try anything new and will go for some cereal with a banana followed by some toast. I will prepare some marmite and/or peanut butter sandwiches for my special-needs bags. Then it is down to the lake to try to get a short warm-up before the mass start. I expect there will be a number of toilet stops on the way!
Race Goals
1. Enjoy the day and finish within the deadline of 17 hours with a smile on my face - complete rather than compete
2. Finish the event under 13 hours
Swim
A quick gel before I start and line up in as much space I can, probably not to close to the front but not also at the back. I will put my goggles on underneath my race hat to make sure they are not knocked off in the 'washing machine' mass start of over 2,000 triathletes. I am going to focus on long, strong strokes although I will try to keep the arm cadence relatively high. I won't worry too much about everyone around me until a few hundred metres have gone by. I'm looking for a moderate start and then wish to settle down to a steady rhythm. My focus will then be looking for the feet of a slightly stronger swimmer than myself, benefit from drafting behind, whilst maintaining a strong and steady stroke. Time goal for swim and transition 1:30.
Bike
I hope my swim/bike transition is pretty quick although I will have to put on some socks. The plan is to do the entire race in my trisuit unless I become uncomfortable and at the transitions will have alternative kit available. I will try not to go off too fast trying to keep my initial speed below 35km per hour. After 30 minutes I expect to start eating some bars - I will have 3-4 bars cut up into small pieces in the box on my top tube. Once settled down I will keep an eye on my average speed trying to maintaining approx. 30km per hour over the entire 180km, which is simple to calculate - a 6 hour ride. I will have a sports drink / electrolyte in my aero bottle at the front of my bike, which I will top up on route. I will also carry a smaller bottle of water. Once I have eaten the bars and have had some solids in my belly I will begin on the Powershots (3 packs), which in my training I have found easier to take on the bike than gel sachets. If need be I will stop at the special-needs stop for a quick toilet break and to grab my marmite / peanut butter sandwiches - I am sure something savoury will be welcome. On the last 5km I intend to select an easier gear and spin my legs a little in preparation for the run. Time goal for bike and transition 6:30.
Run
I may change my socks for more run specific ones ( 'blister-free') but again hope to continue in my trisuit - so hopefully another quick transition from bike to run. Like the bike I must try to hold back on the first 5km and need to get my body used to the different discipline. During the run I plan to switch to gels and water. If I am really suffering then flat Coke may be the best bet. Again I will have my special-needs bag if needed. In an ideal world I will go for a negative split and a faster second half - difficult but worth trying. I will aim for an average pace of 5:30 to 6:00 mins per km (under 10 min per mile). Hopefully the crowd support will help me over the last 10km. For a bit of inspiration I will also be looking at my 'Daddy' bracelet and thinking of the Charity I am supporting. Time goal for run 4:30
Total target time 12:30
Let's hope I can get through it without any bike maintenance problems, however I still have 3o mins to play with to break the 13 hour goal.
So that's the plan!
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