'Tis the Season: Ironman Coeur d'Alene

[colby]

Colby, was this number 5?

This was my 6th Ironman, 5th in Coeur d'Alene.

[salsabike]

Are you ever going to do Canada? I hear that is also a really wonderful, crowd-supportive place.

[colby]

Are you ever going to do Canada? I hear that is also a really wonderful, crowd-supportive place.

I've thought about it. Last year it overlapped with something else, sometimes it's overlapped with the Danskin Triathlon. This year..... it doesn't!! I'm super tempted to drive up and either volunteer (if they still need volunteers) or cheer people on.

Coeur d'Alene is my home race so it's easy to do. Maybe I will sign up for both and drop one... if I can handle the Canada bike course.

[sgf726]

Colby - Great Race Report, thanks for sharing and congrats for finishing. I hope that I can say the same in 3 weeks.

I had a question about transition, in all the races I have done all your stuff is by your bike for transition. For IM there is the changing tents and I know you bag your stuff for T1, 2 etc. but what do you do with the stuff you are leaving behind - i.e. goggles/wetsuit after the swim.

Sharon

[colby]

Colby - Great Race Report, thanks for sharing and congrats for finishing. I hope that I can say the same in 3 weeks.

I had a question about transition, in all the races I have done all your stuff is by your bike for transition. For IM there is the changing tents and I know you bag your stuff for T1, 2 etc. but what do you do with the stuff you are leaving behind - i.e. goggles/wetsuit after the swim.

Sharon

Ah - they go into the bag your stuff just came out of. It makes for some wet/stinky stuff at the end of the day, let me tell you.

So if I'm in T1, I take all my stuff out of my bag for the bike, and in that bag goes my wetsuit, goggles, and anything I didn't take on the bike.

In T2, I take all my stuff out for the run, and in that bag goes my bike helmet, shoes, and anything I didn't take on the run.

If you use the special needs bags, you get them at different parts during the race, and can put stuff back in them. You can then pick them back up the day after the race.

[sgf726]

That makes sense - thanks for the info.

[colby]

After reading a bunch of race reports and recovering a little, I'm feeling a little better about myself. I know I shouldn't be hard on myself but it's difficult to overcome. Maybe writing it down will help. Thanks for listening.

27% of the race entrants in the first place were female. That means, out of 2,700 people who entered, less than 750 were women. I am not one of 2700, I am one of 750. (And if you start adding in other factors, I become more and more like a snowflake coming into focus.)

7% of people who started DNF. That's 189 people. It's not as high as St George (which was pure torture this year and is now a 70.3), but it's significant. People literally got in the water, turned around, and got back out. People were pulled from the water. People had to spend time in a warming yurt. People missed the swim, bike, and run cutoffs. I did not.

I read a pro race report that referred to the Coeur d'Alene swim as "one of the toughest in Ironman." The water is cold, the wind often kicks up on the second loop, it's very physical. Even finishers in the 1:05-1:20 range had to stop and backstroke to regain composure. While I was slow and occasionally frustrated, I had a panic-free swim. There is no feeling like panicking in the water.

The bike course was theoretically faster, but race report on race report has people going 20-60 minutes slower than the previous course. People who were well prepared still did well, but year over year the same athletes were slower.

I am recovering well. When I ride my bike, I can feel some discomfort in my hip flexors and quads, which is to be expected. When I run, my feet cry a little. Shoulders are still a little stiff (probably also due to my tight hip flexors, though).

I signed up to volunteer for Ironman Canada. I told my husband I couldn't promise that I wouldn't sign up for 2013, but that I didn't think I would. I would be faced with the choice of dropping one or doing a very difficult thing (both). I know that making the call to drop one would be hard for me to make, so I hesitate to put myself in that position. I volunteered for the finish line and transition areas.

[salsabike]

That's great. I was half tempted to volunteer myself but I think we will be away. Maybe in 2013, though. I've heard so much good stuff about Canada and the atmosphere there, and it's not that far from here. And Colby, I think your review of CDA and how you did makes very good sense. It always sounds to me like a difficult race with cold water and wind. That grit thing I mentioned--the panic-free swim---those are real assets under such conditions.

My coach has done Canada multiple times and LOVES it.

[Susan Otcenas]

I signed up to volunteer for Ironman Canada.--- I volunteered for the finish line and transition areas.

Yay!! I'm doing Canada, and would love to see a friendly face. I'm coming up alone (Jeff has some mountain climbing thing that weekend ) and so I have no one there to cheer for me. Wanna be my cheering squad?

I looked at your photos. You look amazing in every one. You *are* amazing! I have to say though, that simply looking at the photo of all those thousands of people lined up on the beach makes me a little sick to my stomach. The mass start scares the hell out of me, still. I know I can swim 4000 meters. But doing it in the midst of all those people makes me feel panicky just sitting here at my desk! What's you mental strategy for dealing with the melee??

[colby]

Yay!! I'm doing Canada, and would love to see a friendly face. I'm coming up alone (Jeff has some mountain climbing thing that weekend ) and so I have no one there to cheer for me. Wanna be my cheering squad?

I looked at your photos. You look amazing in every one. You *are* amazing! I have to say though, that simply looking at the photo of all those thousands of people lined up on the beach makes me a little sick to my stomach. The mass start scares the hell out of me, still. I know I can swim 4000 meters. But doing it in the midst of all those people makes me feel panicky just sitting here at my desk! What's you mental strategy for dealing with the melee??

I will totally be your cheering squad. I'm hoping I get finish line so I can cheer all day and right to the end!!

For the mass start, two big things:
1. On the one hand, it's like any other race. If you're a slower swimmer (not going to finish under 1:10 or even 1:20), move to the outside or hang back. If you don't want to get swam over, do not swim directly in the buoy line, where most people are going to be. Usual triathlon stuff, at a larger scale.

2. On the other hand, it's 2,700 people!! Some thrashing, swimming very closely, and running into people, even if you hang back or to the outside, is nearly inevitable. Remember, DO NOT PANIC. The more confident you are in the swim and in your open water swimming, the more tolerant you will be of the other factors. (If you aren't worried about making the distance or the cutoff times, you are less likely to be in a straw that broke the camel's nerves position.)

Things that can happen:
1. You cannot breathe for multiple normal breaths because you are surrounded. Be prepared to stay calm, try breathing on the other side, switch to breaststroke/backstroke. It is scary, but breaths will come. Panic will make it worse.

2. You cannot take a stroke on one side for multiple strokes because someone is on top of your arm. Keep kicking, take strokes with the other arm, navigate away. Stay calm.

3. You are surrounded by people that are going randomly different speeds and directions - getting passed and passing people simultaneously. Try to stay calm. If you feel yourself starting to panic, swim out of the crowd. Stopping is a worse idea, more people will swim over you. Often you can swim out of the crowd, regain composure, and swim back in.

4. You have no clue where the buoys are because you can't see anything but swim caps for what feels like miles. You probably do not want to stop because people will swim over you, but people will be stopping around you. Keep swimming, keep sighting. Not all that different from any other race, but the # of people is sometimes staggering. If your head is aiming toward heads, you are probably going the right way

5. It will be crowded at the turn buoys. Sometimes there are so many people you can't even move. Keep swimming, consider going a little wide, it's faster than stopping.

6. I am not sure how the sun is in IMCA, but in CdA, you make your turn right into the sun, and swim into the rising sun until the next turn. If it's sunny, be prepared to not be able to see the buoys as often as you think. It helps to see the swim course ahead of time to mentally think through what the conditions are going to be like. Use your usual "I can't see the buoys, swim a few more strokes and I will be able to" technique.

7. Again, not sure about the swim in IMCA, but in CdA you have changing conditions to factor in. The second loop often has way more wind, current, and chop, which leads to a slower second loop and feeling like you're going nowhere on a swim treadmill. Nothing like being at mile 1.8 and thinking you're never going to get there (totally like mile 18 of the marathon). Stay positive, whether it's on the out, the back, or the turn.

8. People will probably thin out, which is good and bad. Good, now you have room to swim. Bad, you're not quite there yet, so you need to stay focused and get it done. Once you get to the point where you can hear the beach again, you're home free!

If you are sensing a theme, you're right. Stay calm, don't panic. Trust in your training and adapt to the conditions. Get out of the crowd if you start to feel panicked and can't calm down. I have read that the Coeur d'Alene mass start/swim is one of the roughest because the beach is so short. That could mean you also need to contend with being TOO FAR down the beach and having to swim extra distance, so the trick is figuring out where to plant your feet and still have a great swim. I find that if I'm in the crowd, I swim faster, but I also am more likely to feel those things that make me panic, so I need to be confident in my training.

It's going to be awesome!!! I will dream up some good sign ideas.

[Susan Otcenas]

I will totally be your cheering squad. I'm hoping I get finish line so I can cheer all day and right to the end!!

Woot!

These are great tips, Colby. THANKS!!! I'm doing a 70.3 this weekend and will try to put them to good use.

How's your recovery going??

[sgf726]

+1 Great Tips on the swim.

I am a slower swimmer (hope to be about 1:50 for IMLP) and am really nervous about the mass start. The good news is by halfway throught the second lap is shouldn't be too crowded :-)

Sharon

[colby]

Woot!

These are great tips, Colby. THANKS!!! I'm doing a 70.3 this weekend and will try to put them to good use.

How's your recovery going??

Not bad! The first week, just tired, exhausted. The second week, I feel better, but when I ride or run I can feel every muscle that's still tired, often really deep, deep down there. I raced a sprint triathlon over the weekend and felt pretty solid, but I know I wasn't at 100%, part of it is just the sheer amount of mental recovery. Ironman is a huge commitment, so sometimes it's really hard to convince myself that I NEED to commit to anything after doing that for so long

[colby]

+1 Great Tips on the swim.

I am a slower swimmer (hope to be about 1:50 for IMLP) and am really nervous about the mass start. The good news is by halfway throught the second lap is shouldn't be too crowded :-)

Sharon

All of my finish times are between 1:40 and 1:55, so I know where you're coming from. The first lap will be fairly crowded but not too bad, the second lap will be pretty thin. Sometimes I struggle with feeling like I'm the ONLY person out there on the second half of the second lap when it's really thinned out. My advice in that position is to just keep swimming, sighting, and moving forward, and try not to get frustrated.

If you know you're going to be slower, hang back and choose a less aggressive angle. When I know I'm going to be slow or haven't focused on my swimming, I just ease up and would rather have a really consistent, even, quality, low stress swim than fight it out.

[Susan Otcenas]

I just ease up and would rather have a really consistent, even, quality, low stress swim than fight it out.

Precisely!