Nigel's IMMT Race Report

Nigel’s Ironman Mont Tremblant race report – August 21, 2016

Coles notes:  Swim = 59:17, Bike = 4:46, Run = 3:20 for 9:13 finish, 1st in AG (45-49), 12th overall

It’s been a while since I have written an Ironman race report and that’s because it’s been a while since I’ve had an IM race that was worth of writing about J. Back in 2012 at the first Ironman Tremblant I had a peroneal (lower leg) issue come up that forced me to walk the 2nd half of the marathon. Since that time, I have struggled with a number of different running injuries that have stopped me from being able to race properly, so it was nice to finally be back and able to race healthy again!

A few of you may have noticed that I raced age group (AG) this year, after 23 years of racing Pro, Triathlon Canada denied my application for a Pro Card this year, something about being too old, too fat and too slow, thanks TC! Therefore, things were about to change for me, I would be starting in an AG wave, in the middle of the swim waves, after years of starting at the front. This definitely had me concerned about the swim and the possible congestion I might have out there. But in the end I was pretty lucky, I started front row off to the far left and at the gun it was a short run into the water, a couple of dolphin dives and I had clear water. My plan was to just stay wide and avoid the congestion along the buoy line and this worked great, I hardly had anyone in my way for the whole swim. However, choosing to swim wide meant I didn’t have feet to swim on and likely lost a little time around the swim turns but that’s the choice I made.

After the first turn things got choppy, having the offshore wind on the way out made the first leg faster but making the turns back home meant a headwind and chop therefore slower. I found the work I have done in the last year on having a higher turnover in the water made handling the chop just fine, the return leg was slower for sure but I was still able to swim relaxed and not waste energy in the water. Out of the water in 59+min, first step done.

Post swim, my next concern was congestion in T1 and on the bike, fortunately, I came out of the water in the top part of the field and it wasn’t that busy at all. Smooth and efficient was the plan through T1 and then onto the bike.

My game plan coming into the bike this year was to not overcook it, I knew that even though I was running again my run fitness still wasn’t where I wanted it to be so I didn’t want to make things worse by over doing the bike. My goal was Average Power (AP) = ~230 watts, Normalized Power (NP) = ~240, once I got out onto Montee Ryan I just settled into those numbers and tried to ride them as easy as I could. The start of the ride was great, I had very little traffic around me so I was able to ride smooth and efficiently. Once out onto 117 I saw Gord one of my NRG athletes who had had a great swim and we had a quick chat. The long outward section on the highway had a really good tailwind this year so it was fast going out, especially given its net gradual uphill so it was fun flying along. Out along the highway I would catch small groups of riders here and there but I was on my own for the most part just staying relaxed and riding efficiently. At the turn it was now time to see what the headwind coming home was like and to my surprise it wasn’t as bad as I thought. This is where good equipment choices make a big difference as my Cervelo P5, Hed Jet Disc and Jet 9 (front wheel), Castelli Free San Remo NRG suit, POC cerebral helmet and a good aero position all made a huge difference. Even coming back into the wind I was still going 40+kph while holding my numbers (and even a little lower, I was actually closer to AP = 220-225 watts at this point). Then it started to rain, just a sprinkle at first but then the taps were opened and it started to pour, not really letting up until later in the day, thankfully it wasn’t too cold. The rain definitely made a difference in how I executed the ride, there were numerous sections now that I would have to touch the brakes where I normally wouldn’t and my ride became more variable. However, having ridden/raced in all conditions, the rain, if anything, was to my advantage as I would still brake less and go quicker than most. Ultimately my preference is a hot sunny day but the rain was manageable. Even on the downhill from Lac Superieur it was just a case of taking the right lines and being smooth, and watching out for Dominique the race director who was out on the downhill getting athletes to slow down! In the end with the rain my power numbers were low with an AP = 215 and NP = 229 and a VI = 1.06 it was a bit lower and more variable than planned but I had ridden efficiently and my bike split was quick. I had done it with a very conservative effort level so I was happy with that. Next up onto my feet.

Getting off the bike I could feel I had decent legs and was excited to be running for a change, but at the same time I wasn’t super confident in what I could do for the marathon. So after getting on my Hoka’s and heading out of the tent I settled into a 4:30/km pace as I felt a 3:10 marathon was about as good as I could hope for right now. This went well for the first lap and a bit, but the 2nd time through the hills as I got back to the rail trail my legs really started to hurt, not an injury hurt, but a “you haven’t run enough miles to do this to me hurt!” Things then started to slow down and it was just a case of getting it done. I spent most of the run going back and forth with Mary Beth Ellis the women’s leader/winner as she would pass me on the downhills, when my legs were screaming and I would then catch her back again on the uphill’s where there was less pounding/screaming. I passed the NRG coaching/support crew of Fiona, Sylvie, Joe and Shannon at the top of the last hill about 1km from home, it was great to have them and all the supporters cheering us on despite the rain! It was also nice to finally finish an Ironman after 4+years of aches and pains. Coming through the finish line I ran 3:20 for the marathon which was I was ok with and it was a step in the right direction for sure!

Lots of people have asked about me going to Kona and I will be there this year, but only to coach. Having spent much of the last 4 years hurt I don’t want to go back down that road again and I also need a good year of running to get myself back into a run fitness I am happy with. So my goal is to come back next year, race under 9hours and run a 3hour marathon and show Triathlon Canada that I may be old but I am not that slow yet J

A few thank you’s to my long term sponsors: Enduro Sport, Power Bar, Cervelo, Oakley, Nineteen and Hoka, thanks for your support over the years! To my coaching staff of Fiona, Sylvie, JJ and Ryan, you are a great group of coaches to work with, thanks! To the athletes that work with us, you guys are the ones that enable me to feed my passion for the sport by continuing to allow me to train and race, thank you! And best of all was having my daughter Ashley on course and at the finish line sharing in my race!

Nigel