Racine Results

Swim: 39:24

T1: 3:43

Bike: 3:05:22 (18.1)

T2: 2:19

Run: 1:50:51 (8:28)
TOTAL TIME: 5:41:39

NOTES TO LUC...

I headed your advice and stuck to the gameplan in Racine. While I feel that I could have posted a better time by going faster at points in the race, I truly believe that I raced smartly and am hopeful that this is going to pay off in Madison when it really counts.

My swim time was acceptable, however, I am not pleased that my heart rate jumped so high at the start of the race. It was choppy for me and I could not get a significant amount of open space. This was good practice for IM. I was able to settle down a bit once I hit the first marker and felt strong at the end of the race - like I could keep going. I don't know that I would have wanted to do another 1.2 miles but I felt stronger at the end then I did at the start.

The bike was very interesting for me. I maintained a heart rate of 121-128 throughout. I felt like I could have gone much faster for the first two hours but stayed within my zone and allowed literally a ton of riders to pass me - at one point a peloton passed me on the left!!! Instead of keeping up with them I raced my own race. I executed the nutrition plan that we worked on (see attached). I felt very solid for the first half of the ride as if it was easy but definitely labored more on the second half. I was ready to get off of the bike by mile 50. This is a little concerning to me - remember, I have not done any century rides this year and am questioning whether I have put in enough time in the saddle to get me through IM Moo. My biking time consistently seems to be much slower than everyone else. Let me know your thoughts on this. The other issue for me on the bike was a mental one. I spent so much time thinking about heart rate, cadence and nutrition that I was not just out there, enjoying the scenery. I know that this is practice but I am going to have to relax a little bit in the next race. I was consumed with when I was going to take my next sip/shot/bar that I was not enjoying the ride as much as I think I should have.

My run was great. I averaged 148 beats per minute and felt that I had plenty of energy. I felt like I could have pushed the heart rate up to 160 but stayed where you instructed. If I feel half this good on the run in Madison then I will have a tremendous race.

Overall, I am pleased. I know that the tendency in IM is to go out too hard on the bike and that did not happen to me - I stayed within my zone despite the fact that I felt like I could go faster/harder. Again, I am the most concerned with my biking. In terms of my overall nutrition -I got everything down and it stayed down. Could I double that for IM???? I don't know. My time in Racine in 2007 was very comparable to my time in 2006 despite all of the training/coaching. However, I feel that I learned a tremendous amount by racing this way. Tell me what I need to do in order to get through the bike in Madison - that (along with nutrition) remains my number one concern.