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SRRC Race Reports
Ironman USA Lake Placid
by Scott Johnson
Although I trained, toed the line, and learned a lot at Ironman Utah in 2002, it was not the real deal! Ironman USA Lake Placid 2005 was the real deal. I enjoyed my race week, race, and afterglow tremendously. Above all I proved to myself that I can go the distance and have concrete areas for improvement for my next time out of the barn.
Pre Race:
It would not be appropriate to start this race report without thanking all
those who made the day possible.
• First and foremost, my wife Carol has been one of my greatest
supports and sources of motivation. Carol has always believed in me and
supports me in every hair-brained scheme I dream up. Thank You!
• My children push me in ways they will never understand. ‘nuff said…
• Injured Marine Semper Fi Fund. In this incredibly self absorbed
sport, I find it necessary to always assist others whenever possible. The
Janus Charity Challenge provided the means for me to support my fellow
service men and women.
• Coach Al of Pursuit Fitness (www.pursuitfitness,com) Al’s knowledge
not only of the distance but also of the IronmanLake Placid course kept me
my training on target and prevented me overtraining. Additionally, Al has
become a good friend for which I am grateful.
• In an effort to not forget anyone, I thank everyone else….there are
countless others who have touched my life. Many of you have no idea how or
when but I thank you none the less.
Everything leading up to this race was text-book, or rather as planned. I spent very little time at the expo or other areas exposed to nervous triathletes. My intent was to control and avoid negative energy drains. All the pre-race nervousness accomplishes nothing. On the other hand, I believe if one uses this energy to focus on issues within your control, you will continue creating the opportunity for success on race day.
To this end I spent time everyday alone visualizing and running through my race plan. When the night before the race arrived I was relaxed, calm and able to sleep. I must thank my family for according me this opportunity, although they were usually asleep. Saturday evening, I spent nearly two hours alone mixing my drinks, loading special needs bags and stretching. I used music to drive me throughout this time. Knowing I would have a lot of pent up energy I started with Rage Against the Machine and other loud stuff and progressed to Bob Marley and finally to Classical by the time I was stretching. This was very effective in allowing me to work off excess energy and focus on the tasks at hand.
Carb loading – I avoided the organized dinner and took my family out for a great dinner at Nicola’s on Friday night. As with every race I do, two nights out is my big meal with a little extra carbs included. Additionally, I cut fiber from my diet starting Saturday after breakfast and used a few shots of Hammer Gel Friday and Saturday to top off the tank.
All of my workouts in Lake Placid during race week were quality sessions. I only ran twice during race week for 30 minutes each time. Friday’s ride was especially valuable. I rode with Jeff out through the first set of rollers on the bike course and then crossed over to ride the final hills. The value in this ride was that I was able to establish a correlation between my Power Tap readings and perceived effort. (My Power Tap was not functioning during the training camp in June.) Swimming in Mirror Lake is one of life’s greatest pleasures. Thus, I hit the water everyday except Thursday. Thursday was a day of total rest.
Race Day:
As the alarm sounded at 3:45 a.m., I was ready to go. Out of bed, bagel, coffee, banana, two scoops sustained energy, shower, and out the door by 4:45 a.m. Never underestimate the power of peanut butter and honey on a bagel—great pre-race meal!
I arrived at transition as it opened and was the first through body marking. As I proceeded to my bike, all systems were go. I felt very calm and focused. After dropping some items in my transition bags, I met up with Carol and walked to the special needs drop. After this, Carol and I parted so she could wake the kids. I found a spot under a tree at the lake and relaxed. After watching the pro women take off, I put on my wet suit and made my way to the start. My mental state was exactly as it has been before some of my best efforts. As I entered the water, I felt a brief chill and a touch of tremors. I combated this nervous energy by lightly swimming back and forth until the cannon. My thoughts were now focused on the beauty of the day, and I was ready for what the day would bring!
Swim: Goal 1:15 -1:20
From the outside looking in, Ironman Lake Placid could be one of the easiest Ironman swim courses. That all changes when 2,000 athletes enter the water, and the cannon fires. I realized how narrow the course is and seated myself far to the right and about twenty yards behind the line. My goals were to angle towards the first turn buoy and avoid the under water rope that marks the course. I executed my plan perfectly and saw the underwater line just before the first turn. There was little need to sight, however, the notch in the mountain directly above the turn proved useful. I was in a pack the entire way with frequent contact but was able to fend off any major body blows. I determined that if I am in a tight pack, then I am also in a great draft! I exited the water in 1:11 (192/366 Age group, 921/1850 Overall) feeling great. Aside from a full bladder from pre race hydration and drinking a little too much of Mirror Lake all systems continued to function perfectly.
Lesson Learned – Being over six foot tall is a great benefit in a tight pack of overzealous swimmers. I can swim in the pack and not loose my cool.
T1: Goal 10 minutes
The first transition was smooth. I was a bit disorganized for a minute or so
but quickly recovered and focused. My thoughts centered on the outcome of
every action, so I remained smooth and relaxed--probably a little too
relaxed as my time was 10:43 for T1.
Lesson Learned – I need to focus IRON MAN transitions just I do for every other distance. There is no reason I can not get these times down to five minutes or less.
Bike: Goal 6:15
Just as I expected, the first twenty miles or so of the bike saw a lot of folks go like this was a local Olympic distance race. I stayed focused on my race and raced my plan. The decent from Lake Placid to Keene (roughly 8 miles of screaming speed) saw a max speed of 45mph. This section was much easier on a warm dry July morning than a cold rainy traffic infested June day at training camp! Once I made the turn to Jay, I focused on calorie intake and staying within my present ability rather than my dream ability. As I turned onto the hardest single hill on the course (heading to Wilmington from Jay), I realized I was riding just a touch too hard and started to pull back a bit. This is where Divine Intervention kicked in, and I sustained my first race day flat ever as well as my first flat in over three years, period! After a quick repair I was back on the road and focused on continuing where I had left off.
I finished the first loop in 3:20 and started out on the second loop. Just after seeing Coach Al at special needs, I stopped briefly to kiss my kids and suck up a little extra energy form them. Thanks Guys!
The second loop was great. I remained on my plan and started passing folks on the climb to Wilmington and did not stop until I was off the bike. This whole time I never left my predetermined power zone (Z2 165-235 watts) and felt great. My nutrition plan of sipping Sustained Energy mixed with Heed and Endurolytes every twenty minutes with 1-2 shots of Hammer Gel per loop was spot on. In the end, I was able to be one of the few riders to race a negative split on the bike.
I completed the bike in 6:28 (17.3 ave/mph, 194/366 Age group, 895/1850 Overall) and given the flat and subsequent low pressure in my rear wheel for 1.5 loops of the course, I feel the goal was achieved. By standing every 20 minutes and stretching I was able to hit T2 with strong legs and a loose back.
Lesson Learned – Race your plan; suspend judgment, and focus on the task at hand! I had several times when I could have listened to my ego and went with some other riders, lost my cool at flatting, or simply just ignored my body and Power Tap. In the end I created the planned situation for T2: a body (for the most part) and mind ready to run a marathon.
Transition 2: Goal 10 minutes
Very focused and smooth. Unlike shorter races, I changed from cycling shorts
to running gear. This took a few minutes, and I hit the road. There was a
bit of a blip in T2 as I failed to focus on the tasks at hand prior to
entering the change tent. Actual time – 7:43
Lesson Learned – I need to focus Ironman transitions just I do for every other distance. There is no reason I can not get these times down to five minutes or less.
Run: Goal 9:00/mile – 4:00 marathon
As I started the run I realized my legs felt great. All of my long rides at Skyline Drive and long runs after work were paying off. As I started down the first hill leaving town I realized I had not taken a breath since T2. The problem was that every abdominal muscle I had was extremely tight, preventing me from running to what I felt was my potential. Thus, time to alter the plan. As I was having difficulty, I decided to run as long and hard as I could until my heart rate left the aerobic zone. The pace I has hitting was now in the 10 min / mile range related to frequent walks. I focused on taking in one cup water at every aid station and a gel or cola at every other aid station. Things were sustainable as I returned to town. I walked the two major climbs and felt better after these extended walks.
As I started the second loop I ran my first complete miles. I was able to run more consistently during the first half of the second loop and was really focused. In the past, I have been reduced to talking to other athletes at times like this. Today, I avoided their negative energy and focused on what I had to do. There were numerous mental images I used to accomplish this task and I am proud of my ability to remain focused. At the turn around on the river (about mile 19) I started feeling the effects of the day. After a not so brief stop at a porta potty, I had to reach deep and really focus. I struck up a brief conversation with a woman from Ashburn, VA. at this point who was on her first loop. My focus was to take my mind of my issues and focus on helping her pick up her pace. (Be the leader not the follower and act rather than react.) This lasted for about a mile, and then my focus had returned. This period coincided with the aid stations running out of cola which I was now dependant upon. As I returned to town I vowed to run the final hills and did! The crowed was great and spurred me on to the finish. As I ran the final mile, I allowed all the emotion to rise to the surface and carry me to my kids who were waiting to cross the finish line with me. Time: 4:57 (209/366 Age Group, 994/1850 Overall)
Lessons Learned- Now I have a clue as to the level of mental preparation and tenacity required for Iron Distance racing. Professional Triathlete and legend Karen Smyers summed this up best, and I now know what she means in the following quote. “No matter how well prepared you are, on race day you will always have to dig deeper than you ever thought you could!” By the way, Karen, a former World Champion, raced Lake Placid and as a 43 year mother of two finished as the fifth placed professional woman…
Finish:
The finish chute at Ironman Lake Placid is phenomenal. Although I was
nowhere near the pointy end of the spear, the crowd never let on and brought
me home as a champion! I had each of my three children with me as I heard
the words…Scott Johnson! YOU ARE AN IRONMAN! This is a sensation I don’t
think I will ever forget. All of the frustration from Ironman Utah and the
subsequent years of sacrifice and work had come to fruition.
Time: 12:55:38 (196/366 Age Group, 932/1850 overall)
Analysis:
• Achieved fundraising goal of $10K for the Injured Marine Semper Fi
Fund
• Pacing is so important. By pacing my bike appropriately I created
the opportunity to run a solid marathon.
• Nutrition worked – Always establish what works in training (pre race
as well as during the race) and use this in the race. My nutrition plan was
a “no brainer” as my mix had been tested many times in training, at camp,
and during shorter more intense races.
• I think I may have spent too much time in the water in the days
prior to the race. The additionally swimming probably contributed to the
tight abdominal muscles and breathing difficulties on the run
Areas for improvement:
• Need to develop functional and core strength – Establish program of
using Swiss ball, medicine ball, yoga, other functional exercises, and the
all important kick sets in the pool
• Although my mental toughness was on, I have now found a new level of
mental toughness required to push beyond the present limits. Keep working
mental toughness in daily life as well as seeking events and training
activities that challenge the limits.
• Overall endurance –
o Swim – I am happy swimming in the 1:10 range as this is near the
median swim spit and coupled with a strong ride and run will serve me well
for a few more races.
o Bike – Endurance and Strength are the areas I feel I need to
improve. Although, I raced pretty close to my present potential, I know in
my heart that I am capable of a better bike split
o Run – Endurance and Strength – run frequency and eventually more
experience with longer distances.
Final Thoughts:
Now as I look to my future of Iron Distance racing, I am left with a
recurrent thought perhaps summed up best by Blues Singer Buddy Guy. . .
“Where, Where, oh tell me where is the next one coming from!?”
Next time . . . yes, there will be a next time, and I will break 12 hrs
July 2005
The SRRC would love to hear about your running, racing, or crewing experiences! If you would like to submit a race report, to be posted on the SRRC website, please email srrunner@srrunners.org.