2013 USAT Age Group National Championship

Although I had previously qualified for the 2012 National Championship race, I was unable to attend. Therefore, I looked forward to the 2013 race with anticipation. Given the events of the last 9+ months, beginning with the injuries I sustained from being hit by a car while training on my bike and culminating with a second place finish in a local sprint triathlon early last month, I was anxious to give this race a try. I knew I wasn't going to be able to do this distance at my "best" (meaning as good as I was before my injuries) but I also viewed it as being a good marker to gauge my recovery. My previous best time for this distance was 2:58:12 from almost two years ago and I was pretty sure I should be able to beat this time. However, thinking I could do it and doing it are two very different things, especially considering the multitude of things that can go wrong on race day. I was also looking forward to lining up next to the best athletes the sport has to offer. I wasn't expecting to compete for any awards, but that also wasn't going to stop me from doing my best and seeing what would happen.

When I first got to check-in I identified my top priorities: checking in and getting by the TYR test to see Chrissie Wellington. I was able to quickly do both since I was there early. Chrissie sure seemed as friendly and vivacious as she always does.

 Since I had driven to the race, I offered to pick up my coach, Michelle, at the airport after she flew into town. We also went to packet pickup together later so she could get her race packet. She is pictured below. I am very proud of her race effort as she won and is now the national champion of her age group.

After check-in, Michelle and I met with some other athletes near the race site. I went for a practice swim to see how the water was and then went to the athlete rules briefing while Michelle took her bike out for a training ride. Later on we brought our bikes to be checked into transition and Michelle snapped the photo I was hoping to get of myself with the Texas flag. As it happened, the state flag wasn't all that far from my racking location.
  

After this was all done we were ready to head our separate ways for the night and come back ready to race the next morning......

On race morning, transition was open at 5:30 am with a 7:30 am race start time. Unfortunately, my wave of athletes was not scheduled to start until 10:02 am, which gave me a lot of downtime but not enough to feel comfortable about going back to the hotel to nap. After getting everything ready, I sat with several teammates near the swim start and chatted and rested for a while. The race was delayed for 15 minutes for unknown reasons, but then started and went smoothly after that. I wasn't really happy with such a late starting time, though I didn't worry about it since there wasn't anything that could be done about it. About an hour before my start I began to warm up with stretching and some light running. Then about 20 minutes before I got my wetsuit on and moved to join those in line for my group. I got in the water early and did some light swimming as a warmup, and then I waited until it was time to go.

1500 Meter Swim: I lined up just to the outside of the main group to avoid getting caught in the pack, which seemed to work pretty well, especially since I was far from the strongest swimmer there. My goal here was to put in a solid swim without hurting myself. That is pretty much what I did. I hadn't been as comfortable with swimming since my return from injury and I haven't done as much swimming as I should have been doing recently. However, I have also started to feel "normal" again while swimming. In a normal situation for me, I would have (and should have) had a better swim time, though for this race I did just what I hoped to do. I did stray off course a bit on two occasions, but not too badly. I finished with a swim time of 33:25.

T1: The goal was to get in and out quick. Coming out of the water and up the ramp I feel my right hamstring tighten up. I slow to a walk for a moment and then back to a trot as I take my wetsuit down to my waist. When I get to my bike, I finish stripping of the wetsuit and then grab my cycling helmet and head out. T2 was a bit slow in 2:32 but I got out without my hamstring being a serious issue and headed out on the bike.

40K Bike: As soon as I got going on the bike I knew I was feeling good and a couple miles later, even up the first hill, I knew this had the makings of a great ride. About 10 miles into the ride I was beginning the largest hill and heard a loud metallic popping noise. This was cause for concern and as I continue to ride uphill safely I look over the bike for potential issues. I discover the rear wheel is spinning out of balance but also know there isn't anything I can do about it and suspect a broken spoke to be the culprit. As I head down the hill, I can tell I am not able to get as fast as I would expect and figure the rear wheel is the culprit. I make the decision to ride on since there isn't anything else I can really do for the wheel at this point. Unfortunately, my speeds are now a bit lower and it feels like the wheels are a bit harder to push but I keep going--even with suspecting the wheel was rubbing the brake pads slightly, I didn't have any way to adjust the brakes at this point. Even with all this I still pass more people than pass me on the bike. On the way back to transition, probably near the mile 18 mark, I hear the same metallic pop. Upon inspection of the rear wheel, still spinning unevenly but still allowing me to ride, I continue on. I finish the bike in 1:14:58, a 19.9 mph pace, not exactly a slow pace but less than I'd hoped, especially since I was probably averaging 21-23 mph much earlier and felt like I should have finished 4-7 minutes quicker. Then again, I very easily could have been unable to continue by that wheel and am also thankful for still being racing at this point. I did later confirm the broken spokes and that the wheel was rubbing lightly against the brake pads.

T2: I had a pretty good T2 other than one minor issue. While preparing to get off my bike I didn't quite get the Velcro strap completely undone and when I tried to slide out my left foot the whole shoe came off, so I ran into T2 with a shoe on my left foot and nothing on my right foot. Ugh! In any case, I was in and back out of T2 in 1:42.

Run: I was hoping and planning on a good run today and was looking forward to this part. I quickly was at my upper heart rate for the early run and kept myself at the top of the zone. As much as I tried to hold an even and strong pace, my running pace slowly got a bit slower each mile. I had hoped to kick things into a higher gear for the last two miles but found there was no higher gear there. I had felt good running but I was also maxed out in terms of what I was going to be able to do on this day. It seemed that the extra effort I put into keeping the bike going took an extra toll on my legs before I got to the run. I had figured I would run in at least the mid- minute range but ended up finishing the run in 58:29.

Overall: My total finish time was 2:51:08, which easily beat my previous PR time of 2:58:12 from a couple years ago.

I was very pleased to see that even with the problems I had, I still met the basic goals I had set forward for this race. If I had gotten through the whole race without any problem, I might have been a good bit faster (which will be what I aim for the next time!!!). Part of my would normally want to feel a bit disappointed over the "failed" parts of this race. However, I do not feel that way at all.

My goals here were always twofold: 1) Do my best, and 2) Enjoy the experience. I did those and still had a great time with the overall experience. I will always be able to know that I competed in a national championship event (and am a two-time qualifier for the event as well). Both before and during the race, everywhere I looked I was surrounded by awesome athletes who were all there sharing a great experience. It reminded me of the run up to an Ironman event, but was different in its own way.

I left the USAT National Championships feeling good about what I had done and hope that I can have the opportunity to return again some day--perhaps even on a day in which I can attempt a more competitive effort. I also left knowing that I can continue working towards my full recovery and start thinking about resuming my efforts towards accomplishing my long term goals which include, but are not limited, to future triathlon goals as well. For now,I have some serious rest to do to allow my body to recover; then after that, I will look to resume some serious training and maybe look at going after some aggressive goals in the process.

Loose Ends

The end of July is allowing me to finish up some items and look forward to other. I previously mentioned a possible job change. As I understood it, I was one of two finalists for a dream-type of job for me. In the end, I accepted an offer to remain where I am. The offer includes a substantial salary increase as well as the opportunity to keep working on projects I enjoy. Perhaps the one thing I had possibly lost sight of was that over th last six-plus years, I had transformed my job into one where I was dealing with dream-job types of projects and that I am quite happy where I am now. Sometimes the grass really is greener on your side of the fence! In the end the other guy got the job; whether it was because I pulled out or he was destined for it anyway.....that's hard to say and doesn't really matter.

Now, I am looking forward towards my next triathlon in less that two weeks. Before last October's injuries, I qualified fr the USAT Age Grop National Championships for the second time. Tough I did not attend in 2012 I have decided to go this year. While I won't be at my ultimate best shape, I have recovered better than expected (at least in some ways) and I look forward to giving it my best effort and having a lot of fun, and then let the results just be whatever they will be.

I think that after this race I will be wrapping up my triathlon season to get in a bit of extra rest and turn to look at concentrating on a fall/winter running concentration. My goals will include some long trail races again. After we make it back to spring, we will see me looking back towards another Ironman Texas in 2014, and maybe this will line up to be the race I had hoped IMTX 2013 would have been before my lien juries and surgery.

Texas Star Triathlon 2013

I did this race last year and had a lot of fun. It was also the first race where I had a podium finish, winning first place in my age group. It might seem obvious that I would look forward to this race, though for this race my goal was not to win my age group but to get a good assessment of where my fitness is compared to this point last year and how far my recovery has come along. My plan for this race is best described in the words of my coach: "Focus every minute and PUSH, PUSH, PUSH." While my expectations for this race may have been more modest, my desire to get the most of this race was high.

The race opens with a 300 yard pool swim. I seed myself at a 5:55 pace, and have a pretty good swim that finishes at 5:44. This was just 15 seconds behind last year. I passed one or two other swimmers in the pool and was passed by none. At this point things are looking pretty good.

Next up is the 10 mile bike through the hills of Montgomery. I find a good groove and I push--or perhaps as Coach Michelle said, I PUSHED!--and I kept on PUSHING. Some of these hills felt tough, especially at this effort level, but but I kept it going. I finished the bike in 30:05 and feeling pretty good. This was just 24 seconds behind my time from last year, so I know things are going better than expected.

Now the run comes up and I take off giving my best effort. Most of the first mile is paved before running along grass fields and then through wooded trails. Because of the drought the ground is cracked in places and I have to watch my footing in places. Although the run feels tough in spots, I keep PUSHing and finish my running 23:05--31 seconds faster than last year. Now that surprises me more than any part of this race!

When you factor in my transition times being slightly slower this year, my final finishing time is 1:01:11, just 36 seconds slower than last year, which is also quite the surprise to me. Clearly I am farther along in my recovery than I was giving myself credit since I was hoping to finish within a couple of minutes of last year's time. This year, however, my age group included a much faster athlete who blew past me early in the run and finished about seven minutes ahead of me, but I was able to finish 2nd in my age group this time around. Given this result I am feeling more encouraged as I continue to go forward in my recovery. Perhaps even more important than that, I have been considering moving away from triathlon recently, feeling like I have lost my drive to keep going in the sport. For now, this race seems to have rekindled my old spirit somewhat, and I hope I keep feeling that way.

Now for some past race photos:

Karen and I. She won her age group.

 

Getting my award from the race director.

A fun photo with several of my teammates. Will (far left) was 3rd in his (and my) age group, Sasja (left) was the overall female winner, Lori (next to me) was first in her age group, and myself on the far right. We had a lot pf fun after the race!

 Next up for me in four weeks is the USAT Age Group National Championships in Milwaukee. I'm looking forward to going out there and doing my best, and having a lot of fun.

Recovery, Readjustment and Return

The last month has been one of recovery, readjustment and return. I have continued my recovery from Ironman Texas while maintaining my training at lower than the pre-race level in an active recovery mode. I have been readjusting to getting some things back on track at work and home, where some time sacrifices were made for training over recent months. Finally, I have been trying to bring my life back to normal. The return to normalcy has been difficult, mostly because it has been a long time coming. Before Ironman recovery there was Ironman training; before Ironman training there was physical therapy; before physical therapy there was injury recovery; before injury recovery there was hospitalization; and before hospitalization.....well, I was in the final weeks of training for an "A" effort race. So, normalcy has been a long ways off for a long while.

My life has been on hold in one other way for a couple months as well. I have taken the opportunity to apply for a new job position with a new agency. While I would be content to remain where I am for the foreseeable future and beyond, the opportunity came my way (almost like a barreling 18 wheeler truck) to apply for a dream job position that would enable me to have a much greater positive effect within my industry on a regional basis (plus, the pay would represent a pretty sizable increase in salary-which would help me provide longer term security for my family). This is pretty much a once in a lifetime opportunity for a unique position. In any case, I know I am a strong candidate for the position and others in the industry tell me I have to be one of the upper tier candidates for the position. On the other hand, I know there are at least one or two others who present an equally compelling case for the job as well, so it will be a tough job to secure. After interviewing last week I was told to expect at least two weeks before additional information on the process would be available to the candidates applying for the position. This leaves me waiting in limbo for the moment on this as I try to be ready to help my current employer be ready to find a replacement without also wanting to alienate them in the mean time. I'll likely post something more on this in a future post after I know more information.

As I look forward, I am two weekends out from a sprint triathlon race at the Texas Star Triathlon. It was at this race last year that I won my age group for the first time ever--the first of three last year before my injury. I will be looking to see how close I am in coming back from my injuries when I see how my time compares to last year. So far I can feel that I am still not fully recovered from Ironman Texas, though I can see improvement with each passing week. So until that race, it is just more of the same for me--recovery, readjustment and return...

Ironman Texas 2013 Race Report

Ironman Texas 2013 was my third Ironman race. After a first race that left me less than fully satisfied in 2011, I had a much better race in 2012. The early signs (at least from my point of view late in the last training year) were that I could beheading for another big improvement for 2013. Of course that all changed when a car swiped me and caused an extended period of recovery that continues to this day; however, as that has already been well-covered I will not say much more about it for this report.

For me the final preparations for a big race begin with greatly reduced workouts and a changed diet on race week. Cutting back a high volume of workouts can leave you feeling like their is a gaping hole in your schedule and suddenly leave you with more free time than you've seen in months. During this time I allowed myself to eat more carbohydrates than I usually do to make sure my body was fully fueled--this included my regular pre-race Wednesday burger and fries, as well as other healthier selections during the week. On Wednesday, I was at the expo to check in shortly after it opened. I met up with friends for this process and then spent some time looking around the expo and Ironman shop. After all of this I had to to work to finish clearing my schedule for the week. If there is one downside of a local Ironman, it is that you may still have many of your normal life distractions.

On Thursday, I spent a bit of time around the expo before resting most of the day. Thursday evening was the Athlete Banquet, which is always a great highlight of Ironman Texas. The evening included good food, as well as good times with friends, teammates and fellow athletes all around. After spending so much of my training time with many of these people (particularly Karen, Amber and Angie) it was a lot of fun to have some pure social time with them before the race.

Friday was the last day before race day. While this was to be my third Ironman race, it was the first time I participated in the practice swim the day before the race. This proved to be as much social time.  as practice time, giving me the opportunity to meet a large number of friends. After the swim I completed my bike preparations and got ready to take my bike and transition gear bags to the mandatory check in. I met Karen and Amber for lunch and then we all headed to turn in our gear at the transition area (well, except for Amber who had already turned hers in, but she still came with us).  After this there was no more to be done around the race area until morning, when I left the area I went home and completed preparing my special needs bags and bike nutrition bottles. Then I finished setting my morning gear that I would wear aside and then I was done. After several months of training I was done with every bit of preparation and could only wait. After a quiet evening at home with my wife, I went to bed and slept well until my alarms began to go off.....race day had arrived!!!

I woke, ate some oatmeal, put my bags in the car and headed out. I arrived at transition and checked my bike and loaded up my nutrition and water bottles, and then headed to the swim start area to drop my special needs bags. I carefully monitor my intake of calories, liquid and electrolytes during the pre-race hours according to my plan throughout this time. Given the heat of the day, I remind myself that I need to be conservative in dealing with a very hot day and then I have one last meet up with some friends and before I now it, it is time to enter the water for the last bit of waiting for the non-wetsuit wave.

Swim - I began by entering the water and staying near the second pier back on the right side. I move forward in the 30 seconds before the gun goes off. Unfortunately, I find that I am behind a large group that entered the water and then stepped off to the side of the water at the pier ahead of me. This forces me to slow down and try to get through and around this mass of non-swimming swimmers walking along and into the water from the shallow areas to the side. I manage to make my way through and get to work trying to find my stroke and pace. Once I clear the group I try to keep right a bit and angle towards the first turn buoy about 1500 yards into the course. I don't push too hard but feel like I swim a pretty straight line for this part. I get into a bit of a crowd at this buoy and work my way through a bit of a crowd as I head back the other way. For the most part I stay clear of packs and comfortably swim through the next 1500 yards to make the turn for the final leg of the swim up The Woodlands Waterway canal. The more I head down the canal, the greater the crowd support becomes. There is an awful lot of cheering through this part and I allow this to help pull me along. As I get near the end I maneuver towards a  more open path to the ladders and come up and out of the water. I finish the swim in 1:44:49. Not quite where I wanted to be but I felt good coming out of the water, in fact I felt better at this point than during either of my previous Ironman efforts.

T1 - I run up the path and grab my bike gear and move on to the changing tent. I take in some nutrition and put on my cycling gear and head out feeling pretty good. Leaving T1 in 6 :35 was 1.5 minutes better than my otherwise best IMTX T1 time and, more importantly, I head out on my bike feeling good.

Bike - Given the warm morning and the hot day ahead--not to mention the injuries I was coming off--I had a conservative bike plan ahead. My original plan was to cycle up to a heart rate of 155 beats per minute but with this weather I lowered this to 145 maximum for at least the first half of the bike, with a plan to evaluate after the halfway point. I make it through the 30 mile split in 1:33:00 (19.35 mph). I was feeling good through this part of the ride and trying to not push myself through this easier portion of the day. Given the weather and lower heart rate target I am using, I am surprised I am at this pace. Then next 26 miles are a bit tougher with some hills and general elevation climb as well. My split time for this is 1:33:54 (or 16.61 mph). This is pretty well on target for this day, and even a bit ahead of my hot weather plan for the day. I hit the special needs stop and I pull over for my bag and make a planned stop of about 5 minutes (though it may have been a few minutes longer, as these stops tend to be). While I stopped I changed my socks and checked my feet--these were good. I review my race nutrition--300 to 325 calories an hour is keeping me feeling strong at this point--once again, I feel my best at this point in any Ironman to date! The back half of the bike begins with the toughest 25 or so miles of the bike for the day with the worst hills and a stiff headwind as bad as I have felt all year on this course. I spend relatively little time in aero position due to the wind and my lack of feeling stable because of it. Fortunately, my nutrition plan feels strong and I press on. When I get to the aid station around mile 82 the place is such a mess of cyclists all over the place I have no choice but to pull in and stop. I use the extra stopped time to fill up on water and move my nutrition bottles where I want them. I also put some extra ice in my main bottles and pour some cool water over myself and let volunteers put some extra sunscreen on me before I move on. This probably cost me another 5+ minutes but I feel good and a bit refreshed as I head onward. What I didn't realize at this point was the number of cyclists sitting around the aid stations who were succumbing to the heat. Over the remaining 30 miles I saw a number of cyclists who had pulled over to stop and a fair number that had fallen over from the heat as well. I was starting to feel a bit of fatigue on this part of the course, though I still felt strong. I wanted to push harder but kept the more conservative heart rate guideline in place. This served to keep my speed down from where I might have liked but it also kept my from overtaxing my body. I came in to finish the bike in 6:35:28, a bit slower than I had hoped, but there was no doubt that I still felt good coming in off the bike.

T2 - At an even 10:00, it was a bit slower than I'd hoped. I took a bit of extra time to add some body lube to a few spots and probably added an extra 1-2 minutes making a last minute decision to change from tri shorts to running shorts (after I had put my running shoes on). In the end I think I'd have been happier staying with the tri shorts. I notice a couple of guys laying in the transition tent napping or resting as I head out on the course. It is only around this point that I begin to realize just how brutal the day is becoming, and how much my nutrition plan has worked to get me this far. After getting lathered with sunscreen by volunteers, I head out to begin my run.

Run -As bad as this day was for this race--hot and humid--I began the run feeling pretty good and averaged under 11 minute miles for an early start. Unfortunately, I felt a hamstring twinge during this period and began to walk a bit extra in the late part of the second mile. This feeling persisted throughout most of the rest of the run. I was generally okay on flat ground, but every incline or decline brought with it that twinge radiating from the hamstring area. While this was a bit disappointing, especially since I was initially thinking I might be able to push a bit and aim for a 5 hour marathon, I knew I wanted to do what it took to finish this race. On this day, that was going to mean that I would walk more than intended.  :-/  So, I did incorporate more walking as I needed. I also took the time to stop when I came alongside friends who were walking and chat with them a bit--doing this definitely made the process more enjoyable. I probably averaged around around 13 minute miles the first of the three loops for the run. During this time, as well as the rest of the run, I was being constantly vigilant of my nutrition and fluid intake and I never got too far away from where I needed to be. When I was taking in too much water I switched to more food, and vice-versa. The period from miles 9 through 21 were a long and brutal period, but also one in which I chatted with friends along the course and friends on the course. When I lack actual friends in my vicinity, I made new ones from the people around me. I spent at least a mile with a fellow race who came to Texas from Brazil just to do this race, and also met lots of other friendly people, many of whom were having a tougher day than I. Around mile 22 I chose to stop at a picturesque bench location near a park and aid station to look over the lake to pick up my feet for a few minutes and think about this process that brought me here. This was about the time of day I had finished last year and it was beginning to be dark now and I could see all the homes lit across the lake. I considered for the first time today just how much I had really had to overcome to get to this point. Through much of this process since \being hit by a passing car last October, I didn't really know if I could make it--I was always determined to succeed, but determination is not always enough--but I knew I would do all I could to make it happen. From this point at this moment there was nothing left to stop me, a thought which still brings a tear to my eyes. I had caught the attention of the volunteers at the nearby aid station, and one of them walked over to check on me. I took the water he offered and let him know that I was about to be on my way. On this day where more than 1 in 6 did not finish, they were being careful to monitor their runners. From this point I decided I could make it to the finish line in under 15 hours if I pushed myself, so off I went. From this point on I averaged about 12:35 miles for the last 4.5 miles or so left in the race. I did slow a bit in the last full mile to chat a bit and then picked it back up for the final push. My friend Erica saw me just before the finishing chute and was urging me on to beat the clock under 15 hours. With her last bit of urging, I pushed myself harder into the finishing chute and take the turn for the final uphill. As I come near the finish line, I slap several extended hands from the crowd and look up to see that  there is still a 14 on the front of the clock and trot the final few strides in to finish in 14:59:56.

It wasn't a pretty day for me, or for anyone here on this day, but in the end I had accomplished what I set out to do. Yes, I could have finished the run faster, but I also took the time to enjoy myself and those around me during this process. In 209 days I had gone from the being carted away from the scene of being hit by a car in an ambulance; recovered from surgery, numerous broken bones and a bruised lung; and endured the road to recovery with the help of God, family and so many friends. As I said above, I spent a long time not knowing if this was possible, but the people around me never let me allow this lack of belief to get in the way of my determination to succeed. In the end I was the all by myself as I crossed the finish line that night, but it was the help of so many that allowed this dream to become reality. I offer all of these being a greater thanks than I know how to say.

Perhaps the greatest thought I take from this year's IMTX race experience is that I saw and met so many who had a more inspiring story than I in terms of what it took for them to finish this race. Completing an Ironman race is never an accident. So much goes into the race preparation and the race itself. While the race can control much of his/her preparation, the events of the actual day are often beyond our control. In the end every athlete has a story, and we all have to overcome something.

That is as it should be.

My 2013 Ironman Adventure Story

Normally, I do my own storytelling around here. However, this time I will share someone else's words about me. Jon Walk, a local writer and sports enthusiast (among other things) wrote a story about me for Ironman.com's pre-race coverage of Ironman Texas. The story can be found at this link here.

While I would generally just prefer to live my own life under the radar, I have had to acknowledge in recent months that my story can be an inspirational one. If just one personal can find some inspiration that they can overcome their problems and go forward, then I will consider this story a success.

Thank you to the author, Jon Walk, for giving a lot of personal time to put this story together.

The full version of the story can be found here on Jon's personal blog.

For those waiting to read how the race went, I'll be working on my race report soon.

Ironman Texas 2013 Race Day Pre-Planning

With Ironman Texas 2013, or "Ironman 3" as I call my third Ironman race effort less than 13 days away, I will now begin the process of organizing my written and mental notes into a written plan for the May 18, 2013 race day. Whereas last year was a fine-tuning from the previous year, this year is more of a back to basics reworking of a plan. While I have retained and rebuilt much of my aerobic base since the injuries and surgery of last fall, going into training mode late and coming into the race less prepared than I'd like to be. In the end, I know this can't be the race I would have wanted it to be (which would have been a concentrated effort to finish a tough Ironman race course in less than 12 hours) but I am happy to have this opportunity to do the race and still be have a good race opportunity even though I am not ready to be at my best--an opportunity which appeared questionable six months ago.

This race plan will begin with a more conservative base than the last two times out at this race. For the swim, I merely plan to perform at a solid and steady rate that doesn't overtire me. This may put me in the 1:40-1:50 swim time finish range but the few minutes I lose with a slower swim are minimal. If I am feeling good on race day, I may push a good bit faster than that time range. The bike will be about maintaining nutrition and heart rate at appropriate levels and not about speed, which is actually pretty much much what the previous plans were for this part of the race. The first 1/2 to 2/3 of the run will be similar to the bike plan, after that it will be more based on feel. From that point I will concentrate on doing what it takes to get me across the finish line.

With that outline in place, I will also review the last two month's of long workouts and my early April 70.3 race and work out a more specific plan, including writing out an exact measuring plan for measuring out nutrition to be placed into bottles and for water intake, as well as planning for additional nutritional and optional clothing needs.

There's the start of my plan. By next weekend I will have it worked down to more exact numbers and be ready to start putting powder into bottles. Fortunately, there is plenty for a obsessive Ironman to obsess over in planning for the race.