Ironman Canada 2011

Yesterday, I registered for Ironman Canada 2011, which is on August 28, 2011 in Penticton, Canada (about a 4.5 hour drive from Vancouver).  Check out on a map here

Distances:  2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike, 26.2 mile run (marathon).  I'm excited for this challenge, although I'm terrified of the 2.4 mile swim.  Ironman participants have 17 hours to complete the event (the race starts at 7am and closes at midnight).  I suspect that I will finish in the 15-16 hour range.

My friends PN and MM from Vancouver will be doing this race with me.  Marlene went to college with MM.  Who would have thought that she and I would be doing an Ironman together 15 years after meeting?

I'm told that the bike ride is tough - very hilly with 2 very large ascents.  Check out the course maps here:

Swim Map

Bike Map and Elevation Profile

Run Map

I'm currently "base building" while training for the Chicago Marathon.  I'm still debating whether or not I want to train by myself or if I want to join a team or get a coach.  My friend BG sent me an Ironman training program that he used.  It is a 20 week training program and assumes that one has already been training at least 8 hours per week before starting Ironman training.  As a reference point, I trained 9 hours last week.  The program peaks at about 18-20 hours of training in one week.  A lot of this is on the bike and in the pool at a low impact to the body, which is why one can train so long without getting hurt.

As this will be my first Ironman, I'd love to see my family and friends come to watch the race in person!  Of course I will chronicle my Ironman training on my blog.

One of my triathlete friends sent me this Ironman motivational video.  Pretty amazing, my favorite shot is the aerial one of the swimmers (I'm assuming that this video was taken during the Kona Ironman).  I'm going to apply for the Kona lottery this year (for the 2011 race).  There are very limited spots, so it is very unlikely that I get in.  My friend and physical therapist AL qualified for this year's Kona Ironman on 10/9/10.



Here are a couple of other cool Ironman videos. You'll be able to see why I'm terrified of the swim



I recently read a book called 17 Hours to Glory,  great book, I recommend it.  It motivated me to want to do an Ironman.  The book has stories about various Ironman participants as they complete the Kona Hawaii Ironman.  I found many of the stories compelling.  The 2 that inspired me the most (and there are many more than 2 that inspired me) were about Dick and Rick Hoyt and Julie Moss.

The video about the Hoyts is a must see.  Check it out.  Make sure to watch the entire video, as the best part is in the last 4 minutes when they show live footage of them finishing an Ironman.  Amazing.



Julie Moss - tough for me to watch, game changing for the Triathlon sport

Week 9 of Chicago Marathon Training is done

Week 9 of my 17 week Chicago Marathon training is done!  Work finally calmed down, so I was able to have a solid workout week.

Week Summary

• Worked out all 7 days this week - total workout time for the week = 8.6 hours
• 5 runs (4.5, 7.29, 4.49, 15.5, and 5.5 miles) - total 37 miles
• 2 bike rides (36 miles and 24 miles)
• My legs feel great, only tiny twinging in my right knee
• Cyst behind left knee is still there, although it seems better than the week before
• Still no time to swim - will do so next week

Over the last month, I have been trying to take a day off to hang out with my kids.  Finally, I was able to do so on Friday.  We saw Toy Story 3 at 10:30 A.M. on Friday morning.  This was the first movie for my kids, and they loved it.  My younger daughter Kaiya (22 months) was able to sit through the entire movie, no problem.  Our older daughter Mikayla (turning 4 on 8/31) could never have sat still at that age.  Here's a picture of the event (note that there were only 5 other people in the theater when we saw the movie, which was perfect!).  The kids got to eat a lot of goodies (popcorn, strawberry milk, m&ms, cheerios, goldfish, etc.)

Over the weekend, we visited my friend RS at his new home in the Hamptons.  It is an amazing house and we had a great time!  We spent Saturday and Sunday in the Hamptons, which meant that I had to move up my running schedule by one day (usually I run Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday).  Therefore, this week I ran on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday (long run), and Sunday (5 days).  I added an extra day, as I have made it a tradition for me to go for a run whenever I am travelling.  I ran around the South Hampton neighborhood on Sunday and was amazed at the size and quality of the houses there.  They are amazing! 

Click here to check out the Garmin File from the run to see where I ran.  I like to click on the map to zoom in and out to see where the Hamptons sit on Long Island.  Pretty amazing all this data comes from the watch.

Here is a summary of the week:

Monday - ran 4.5 miles, average pace 8:35 per mile, 151 average heart rate, 38:46

Tuesday - ran 7.29 miles, 8:38 pace, 148 average heart rate, 1:02:59

Wednesday - 4.49 miles, 8:40, 150 average heart rate, 38:59

Thursday - 36.3 mile bike ride, 19.0 mph average, 139 average heart rate, average cadence 70, 1:54:30

Friday - Ran 15.56 miles, 8:50 pace, 146 average heart rate, 2:15:51.  Click here for my Garmin Watch Summary.    Half marathon split was 1:56:16 and ran negative splits the entire way. Average heart rate was 142 after 12 miles, very low for the pace I was running. 70 degrees and 70% humidity, it felt much cooler than this. When I started, I felt like I was running very slow. I wasn't warmed up until the 5th mile. When people used to tell me that it took them miles to warm up, I used to think they were crazy. Now I understand!

Saturday - Rode 24.28 miles, averaged 18.2 mph, average heart rate 120 (assuming that my maximum heart rate is 197, this was 61% of my max.  Can somebody that trains in heart rate zones explain to me what zone this is?  This workout was extremely easy), average cadence 66 (too low, I need to increase this). 1:19:03

Sunday - ran 5.5 miles very easy, average pace 8:56, average heart rate 143, 49:12.  Ran in the Hamptons.

About 7 weeks left until the Chicago Marathon on 10/10/10.

I am now actively trying to figure out what Ironman I am going to sign up for next year. I'm told that they sell out a year in advance, almost immediately.  I am looking at Ironman Florida and Penticton, B.C. Canada in late 2011.  Anybody have any advice?

http://www.ironmanflorida.com/.  Of course, the registration for this race is on 11/7/10 at noon, which is the date of the 2010 ING New York City Marathon, so I may need somebody to help me register for this one.

Bonus Material

Here is a video of me finishing the 2009 ING New York City Marathon (I purchased a video and my brother edited it down to this - Thanks John)!  The quality is poor, but it is still pretty cool.  The thing that still amazes me in the number of people around me.  I finished just under 4 hours at 3:58, so nearly everybody around me was trying to do the same thing!