IM Hawaii

This is an excerpt from my “Kona 2018 Rating Report“. You can download your copy here.

After her baby break last year, Rinny is back in Kona, looking for another title or at least a podium. She validated her Kona slot with a sub-9 hour second place at IM Cairns and focused on racing 70.3s over the summer, a typical Kona build for her. Even though a lot of young fast women are now racing in Kona, Rinny wants to show them that she is still competitive, and she and coach Siri Lindley will have worked hard to be able to challenge Daniela for the win in Kona. Based on her previous results she’s expected to start the run around 20th place, about ten minutes behind the podium spots. And even though she’s still my pick for the fastest run split, there are now a lot of athletes that aren’t much slower than her.

To be in a better T2 position the second half of the bike is crucial for her – that is where she has been losing most of the time to the others. Instead of riding on her own as she often had to in previous years, she could benefit from being pushed by other women around her, allowing her to minimize the time she’s behind in T2. If she can then unleash another marathon like her course record 2:50 from 2014, the last hour of the female race could develop into be a battle you shouldn’t miss.

Photo: Rinny running in the Energy Lab on the way to second place in Kona 2016. Credit: Jay Prasuhn

This is an excerpt from my “Kona 2018 Rating Report“. You can download your copy here.

Thorsten: Why have you decided to tackle Kona after working so hard for an Olympic medal?

Sarah: After a rough Rio experience, both in terms of build-up and race, it took me a while to bounce back. I realized that I was too heartbroken to continue with ITU. After a few 70.3 races last summer, I realized that I enjoyed the non-draft racing, too. Last October, the desire to race at Kona hit me strongly. I love this sport and such a huge part of it centers around the IM World Champs. I felt like my career would never be complete without racing at triathlon’s biggest race.

T: You’re being coached by Dan Lorang who also works with Jan Frodeno. How did you end up with a German coach?

S: Dan and I started working together in December. I’ve respected Dan for years and it occurred to me that it would be important to have someone who understands the ITU background well in my transition to long-course. He has experience in coaching ITU and IM and has successfully transitioned athletes between the two. He’s also a really good person of high integrity and that’s of utmost importance to me.

T: How much has your training changed since switching your focus?

S: I was actually surprised by Dan’s approach; we’ve done more intensity and less volume than I expected. I was very nervous going into my first IM since we hadn’t done any long, hard rides or runs, but I trusted his experience. 
The biggest change that I’ve really liked is that I do little training on easy days. As an ITU athlete, my easy days would still be multiple workouts and I feel as though that impacted my ability to do hard days well. My big days are bigger with IM training, so my easy days are smaller.

T: What were your expectations going into your first Ironman race in Frankfurt?

S: Before the race, Dan was very straightforward with me: the goal was to qualify with Kona with a Top 7 finish and we didn’t feel as though I had yet done the work to have a great race. We were conservative with the effort and it ended up better than expected.
There’s always a fear of the unknown and I was definitely nervous; my longest run was one 32km run and I had no idea whether I could run a marathon off the bike. The most surprising thing for me was that good nutrition and pacing could make up for being underprepared in training.

T: Please describe the way from Frankfurt to Kona. How did 70.3 Champs fit in? What have you been focusing on, how has the training changed compared to before Frankfurt?

S: When Dan and I talked in December, I stated that my one goal for the season would be Kona and we’ve structured the year accordingly. It’s been a very slow, gradual build and we should have me in peak fitness mid-October, barring any unforeseen hurdles. After Frankfurt, we took a couple of easy weeks and then started to build up to 70.3 Champs. Dan felt as though the timing for 70.3 Champs was ideal. I like Championship racing, so it was worth choosing a bigger, competitive race than a 70.3 with a weaker field. Fast races are great training and preparation for goal races like Kona.

T: What happened to you at 70.3 Worlds? You seemed to be in a great position after the swim …

S: About 30km in, I lost my nutrition and flat kit. 10km later, that proved to be a problem when I got a flat. It’s probably more accurate to say that I had one flat that I couldn’t fix properly; I used Pitstop to fix it but it didn’t hold for long. Fortunately there was mechanical support, but I had to wait for a while. I wouldn’t have been able to continue racing without them, so I’m grateful they were on the course.

T: Have you been to Kona before? What’s the goal for your first Kona?

S: I’ve never been to Kona, so I’m really looking forward to the experience. I will be on the Big Island between 70.3 Worlds and IM World Champs, so I’ll get to know the course and conditions well.
I want to show up to the start line fit and prepared for a great race. I can’t control how others perform, so ultimately it’s about bringing my best to the race and trying to let my preparation shine. It’s such a tough race; so many incredible athletes struggle with adversity there, so I know better than to have any clear outcome goals. That said, it’s very expensive and I have to figure out how to pay for my travel expenses. Finishing in the top-10 would help.

T: Tactically, where do you see yourself “fit” in the Kona field?

S: Honestly, I only have a vague concept of how I’ll fit in the field. We were definitely conservative in Frankfurt, but the conditions of Kona also warrant some caution. With Kona, I’ll be surrounded by 34 other terrific and experienced IM athletes. I’m guessing that I won’t be that lonely! The key will be using others to help me perform to my best without getting too excited and pace harder than I can manage.

T: How surprised were you by your 2:54 in Frankfurt? And what do you think you can run in Kona?

S: Before the Frankfurt, I asked Dan about pace and his answer was funny: “I have no idea. Until you race an Ironman, I can’t give you an estimate”. I used pace to make sure I didn’t go out too hard the first 10km, but I just relied on perceived effort. It didn’t feel that hard, so I’d like to think that I can run faster in similar conditions. Of course, I’ll be biking harder, so that will impact my run. While the temperature for the marathon in Frankfurt was similar to average temps in Kona, the humidity is much higher in Hawaii and that will slow me down. How much? I have no idea!

Photo: Sarah on the bike at IM Germany with the Frankfurt skyline in the background. Credit: James Mitchell

This is an excerpt from my “Kona 2018 Rating Report“. You can download your copy here.

Andrew’s made a great recovery from a serious accident when he was dragged under a truck and it looked as if he might struggle to walk again. He returned to racing a year ago and hasn’t changed his racing style: Hammer the bike leg and then hold on as much as possible on the run. By winning IM Louisville one day after Kona 2017 he secured a Kona slot and there will be a lot of eyes on his return to Kona.

As a front pack swimmer he is quite likely to take the lead from Josh Amberger early on the bike. He has indicated before the race that he wants to light up the bike course similar to when he rode the first sub-4 IM bike leg in Texas. Andrew has been setting bike course records in his last four Ironman races, and I’m sure that he wants to continue that series in Kona even if race day conditions have a huge impact on the Kona bike times.

With a fast bike leg Andrew might even be able to hold off the uber-bikers who are slower swimmers until T2, but in order to be competitive in Kona, he will also need a great improvement on his run – so far his best marathon is a 2:58 from Florida 2013. But he’ll be aiming for a new PR on the marathon, and a sub-3 marathon would probably see him finish in the Top10. Just like Lionel, Andrew will be fighting hard, so we might see a late explosion – or a spectacular break-through performance.

Photo: Andrew leading the bike in Kona 2013. Credit: Eric Willis

This is an excerpt from my “Kona 2018 Rating Report“. You can download your copy here.

Thorsten: You’ve been struggling to figure out “your Kona puzzle.” Have you been able to make progress or come up with new ideas and plans?

Meredith: All you can do with Kona is keep learning, adjusting and tweaking some more until you can finish feeling good about your race – and have really RACED IT! I have yet to accomplish this, so it is always back to the drawing board, taking the good things that happened and changing the negative ones. The list is too long to properly discuss: from mercury poisoning, periods, swallowing salt water, heat strokes, crashing, and so on. The competitor in you keeps coming back, and that’s why we as triathletes love racing. This sport is genuinely a beautiful and perplexing type of pain and an enriching and rewarding type of pleasure.
The bottom line, working with Darryl Griffiths of Shotz Nutrition has helped dial in my nutrition and hydration, training in humidity should hopefully help the body adapt better to the heat, getting Mak on a good schedule should allow more rest, and having the goal to finish with gusto should all be positive things. In addition, I have the utmost trust in the team to get me to the start line ready to fire. Now, you just race and see how it plays out.

T: How’s the recovery from Mont Tremblant been for you? Have you been able to get in another “big build phase” for Kona?

M: There was a lot of information that I learned from racing Mont Tremblant, so you take that and apply it to your training and lead into Kona. I had been racing on adrenaline the past few months, and this deficit came to fruition during the later stages of the marathon. It’s been key personally to focus on the pillars of performance outside of training and racing such as recovery, sleep, nutrition, hydration and whatnot – the ones that I preach yet haven’t done a good job practicing myself since Mak was born and that is on ME to correct. The primary objective is to fix this heading into the world championships or else, like in many previous years in Kona, I will be in a coffin on the Queen K!
The goal for Kona is to execute a race where I finish like the athlete I started and show better GUSTO out there. I’m hopeful that training in the humidity of Ohio will help a bit as my experience from countless failed attempts trying to perform up to par on the Kona course.

T: How much of a rhythm have you been able to get with Mak and how is that affecting your ability to train hard?

M: Sticking to a schedule and being efficient is a must when also caring for the life of a human. He is my world and priority so you need to work around his needs and dictate, as much as you can, a regular schedule he can adhere to. Some days this happens with clockwork-like precision and others it is a little touch and go.
 As mentioned, the biggest thing that I learned after Mt. Tremblant is that I need rest and recovery; I couldn’t operate at the pro athlete elite level with getting an intermittent three to four hours of sleep per night. My husband and I devised a plan to get Mak semi-sleeping through the night which has helped me get the training/rest/recovery balance back on track.

T: In your 2018 IMs you’ve been struggling to have a good run towards the end of the marathon. Have you figured out where this is coming from, and have you been able to work on it for Kona?

M: It is always a work in progress since having Mak. No manual tells you how to give birth to a child via an emergency C-section and work your way back to pro athletic condition. In addition, no manual tells you how you can also nourish your child (most important) and return to racing at the same level as well. You learn as you go through trial and error. As I have said before, all of your deficiencies show up in the second half of the marathon. They surely would, even if I didn’t just have a child! In my case, if you were not getting proper sleep a month before a full-length triathlon and nursing your son four or five times per night, your legs would feel it on mile 20. If you didn’t make the time to hydrate the weeks leading into a race, it would hit your hard once your legs hit the pavement. I know better and was flying high on new mom adrenaline, which I thought would help me do better in that back half. SO: shame on me! Those are things that you can hide in a half Ironman – less so in a full Ironman!
So, to answer your question, the reason I have raced so much through the summer was to qualify for Kona and to figure out my body after it has gone through such a rigorous procedure, childbirth. Yes, you have to worry about nutrition, hydration, rest, recovery and training. But, as a female, after giving birth, you have to deal with hormones, milk production, interrupted sleep, etc. These are not excuses in the slightest, they are simply the reality that a considerable portion of the population navigates through if they are trying to come back on their athletic journey. It is all new to me, so we train, race, learn and do it all over again until you have the formula somewhat down.

T: All in all, what’s your plan for this year’s race? Any plans on following the super-fish Lucy and Lauren or is it going to be “race your own race” (maybe until late in the marathon)?

M: I know it sounds cliché yet this Kona race is me against the course and conditions because they eat me alive year after year. If I get to that run and all systems feeling somewhat vibrant, then maybe I might start thinking about the competition. If I am in Energy Lab and not in a coffin, I might check out who is around! The goal is to cross the finish line with my wits about me and hold Mak in my arms and give AK a big hug – this will be a good day!
ALSO: Lucy and Lauren are in a league of their own.  In Mont Tremblant alone, Liz and I had a little laugh after the race as we tried to stay with Lauren for literally 20 yards before we realized that it just wasn’t going to happen!  So us “front pack” swimmers are going to be chasing those fast fish! The goal would be to try to keep them within even 5 minutes…that would be good!

T: I’m sure that after your Kona your season won’t be over and that you’ll be racing Arizona again? How much is the new qualifying system affecting your race plans?

M: Although I will continue racing for as long as the body will allow, I know that I am on the pointy end of my career. These old legs still have several years left in them and I hope these next few years are the better years within the career! You got it – aside from last year when Mak was born IMAZ weekend, we have never missed a running of that event.  We look forward to being back in Tempe mid-November and then we will head to race Challenge Daytona in early December.
My husband and I will then sit down and map out 2019. We have been dreaming of taking Mak to our haven of Taupo, New Zealand so we look forward to heading there in March for Ironman New Zealand with a stop in the South Island along the way for Challenge Wanaka, a race that we have been wanting to do for a long time!  It would be a luxury to qualify for Kona, as that means you won an IRONMAN so we will just have to go with the flow on all of that or it might be an offshoot if things play out that way. After 60+ Ironmans and countless half races, it sometimes is beneficial to step back and smell the roses without any particular race or objective in mind!

Photo: Meredith and son Mak after winning 70.3 Mont Tremblant. Credit: Sachin Shresta