221 days.
Might as well be a lifetime, right?
WRONG.
There are those 221 days standing between today and August 25, 2012, the day before the 30th running of Ironman Canada in Penticton, British Columbia, Canada.
Let us get one thing straight right from the start (a cannon blast), I love this event. It is one of the last remaining one loop IM courses, in a spectacular location with phenomenal local support. It is my favorite race anywhere, any distance any sport. You have heard me talk about it in the past, and as we ramp up our preparations for this years contest, you can rest assured that you will be hearing more, LOTS more in the 221 following days. But why is this important today?
BECAUSE IT IS ANOTHER DAY TO IMPROVE. To do something that will further my quest to:
A) Win my age group (I looked today and that means 1 of 82)
B) Set a PR in so doing, (11:05 in 2004 got me 7 of 124)
C) Q for Kona
D) Have fun doing it
All making this day 1 of 221. And if I am going to shave 15 minutes off my time from 2004 I had better get busy. Additionally, for the record, a 15 minute reduction in time, or a 10:50 would be a course age group record, so I might as well just go ahead and add that to the list:
E) Set course AG record.
Egotistical, arrogant, outlandish, preposterous, impossible and unrealistic you say?
Maybe. But I am going to try my absolute best. I may fail. But that failure will not come as a result of effort withheld.
Here is the plan: Each of those 221 days is a gem. A shinning opportunity to expand, grow, learn and love. I am quite confident if I can squeeze maximum value from each of those days, AND THAT INCLUDES REST AND RECOVERY DAYS, when 0700 on August 26th rolls around, I will be ready.
After all, the date is already circled on my 2012 day timer.
What's on yours?
7 comments:
Are you looking for 5 minutes faster in each of the three segments?
So many ways to reach X:
S + B + R = 15
Yes, that is the math. The hard part is the science. In all reality, it would look more like this:
S (0), B (10), R (10), WOW, I just qualified for Hawaii!!! The issue is making it happen (for every minute gained on the ride what will the cost be on the run?). I have empirical data that suggests that a 10 minute bike gain can lead to a 30 run loss. One hates to lean that in a big race. A least we got day 220 of the right way!
So hold steady in the swim.
What's your average MPH need to be to make up 10 minutes in the B? 1 more mph?
Your average pace to make up 10 in the R? 5 seconds faster pace?
Very close.
Bike
@ 20mph is 5:36
@ 20.5 is 5:27
@ 21 is 5:19
@ 21.5 is 5:12
@ 22 is 5:05
So I need the <1 MPH improvement over 112 miles
Run
@9:10 pace is 4:00
@ 9 is 3:55
@8.55 is 3:51
So I need the 9 minute pace for 26.2
The interesting thing about our sport is in the attainment of them both. A killer bike split with a dud run gets you nothing and nowhere. Fast.
What should your ride and run pace be in 50 days?
In 100 days?
In 150 days?
In 200 days?
Write those numbers here and those are your targets for each of those segments.
The funny this is that I wish the race was this week. I am ready NOW. The challenge is in throttling back, getting in enough quality rest and dialing in the nutrition plan. Our LSD run on Sunday was painful in the 'S' department but still nine minutes faster than race goal. My bike fitness is fine and the swim, well, who cares? Here is a quote from my last nights reading that sums B/R challenge:
Never write a check on the bike you can't cash on the run.
Translation: You can always climb stronger to run smoother.
Thanks for all your comments.
Don't peak too soon. Kona IM is not a spring classic.
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