Tag: ironmanlakeplacid

Discipline thyself: Tips for Racing Ironman Lake Placid

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If this is your first time preparing for Ironman Lake Placid, you are no doubt wondering (fearing?) what to expect. If you’ve done the course before, you may be wondering how to master the challenge that is IMLP, the oldest Ironman course in the continental U.S. The course may not be the most difficult Ironman on paper, but it is challenging, and has humbled its fair share of athletes. It features one of the best lake venues for swimming (although it can be a tight squeeze), ~6000 feet of climbing in the bike course (much of which comes in the …

How can I do better next time?

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An endorphin-craving, wild-eyed smurf-like triathlete sits on my shoulder and consistently asks this question after every race, and most training sessions. While visible only to me, you will simply have to trust that she exists. In fact, she looks exactly like me, but just in miniature smurf size. With three weeks elapsed since IMLP, she has grown persistent and insistent in asking this question. She must be answered. I can no longer hide inside the post-race glow. It’s time to reflect reflect upon what worked–those strategies that helped me achieve a personal best by 41 minutes–and what didn’t work–those strategies …

Guest Post: Shake Dreams from Your Hair – John’s IMLP Race Report

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The following is a guest post by my husband, John Jenkins. My race report from a few days ago gives you the mid-packer’s view, but John’s will give you a sense of how the fast boys and girls roll at IMLP. Shake dreams from your hair… ~ Jim Morrison 3:30 a.m. I woke up to allow time to take in some fuel. I had to force the calories in as I do not care for eating so much in the early morning. But, I was kind of hungry since we hadn’t eaten later than 6 p.m. the night before, which …

IMLP Race Report Part 3: Making buddies with the beast

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(Looking for part 2 of the race report? Click here. For part 1, click here.) The Ironman Lake Placid marathon is a tricky beast that requires considerable patience to tame. Last year, I royally messed up my pacing by running as if I were starting a “regular” marathon, rather than preparing for 26.2 miles after I’d already gone 114.4 miles. (Last year’s run report can be found here.) All year long, I’ve been committed to running patiently and not repeating the same mistake. Here’s a little snippet from the run portion of the race plan I wrote for myself: DON’T …

IMLP 2011 Race Report Part 2: Sticking to the Plan

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(Continued from yesterday: IMLP Race Report Part 1: Everybody was Kung Fu Swimming.) Immediately after you exit T1, the bike course makes a short descent on a narrow strip of gravel and goes directly into almost 180-degree turn.  This area is lined with other bikers trying to clip into their pedals and spectators trying to catch a glimpse of their athletes. Suffice to say, it’s a tight squeeze. Rather than get caught up in the throng, I walked my bike to an open space just after the apex of the turn. I clipped in and was off for 112 miles …

IMLP Race Report Part 1: Everybody Was Kung Fu Swimming

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Training, racing and finishing a second Ironman is not like the first. It is both easier and harder. Easier because all of the mysteries, like the behind-the-scenes details of transition, were revealed during last year’s race. Harder because you know what’s coming. Easier because you’ve done it once, and there isn’t the pressure of wondering whether or not you can do it. Harder because there is the pressure of doing it better, faster, stronger. Going in to this year’s Ironman Lake Placid, I was feeling the pressure. It’s not like I didn’t have pressure last year, but it was more …

Extraordinary Moments

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Life offers precious few truly extraordinary moments. These opportunities are particularly limited if we do not seek them out.  We cannot wait for the extraordinary to come to us. We must make the extraordinary happen. But, it is hard work that brings with frightful challenges and frustrating barriers. Yet, meeting the challenge and overcoming the barriers lead to a reward so rich, so deeply fulfilling that I cannot help but seek these moments. Let’s face it: I’m an addict. Endurance sport is the fix. The challenges of training for and racing Ironman push me past my comfort zone and are …

The hay is in the barn, but the bats are in the belfrey

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With Ironman Lake Placid just a week away, there isn’t much that I can do that will make a substantial difference in my speed or endurance on race day. The hay is in the barn. So, that can only mean one thing: It’s taper time. For a week now, my body has been at work putting itself back together after months of abuse training. Cell by cell, fiber by fiber, my body gets stronger. For the past two months, I averaged about 18 hours of training per week, with over half of that time maintaining 20+ hours. So, I was …

Go Team Crazy!

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It was Monday night, 11 p.m. EST, and I was in a panic. Earlier that day, John had brought our bikes home from the Pro Pedals Bike Shop, where they received their final tune up and check over before Ironman Lake Placid, now just 10 days away. Normally, I go to bed at at 9 p.m., but I had drank a foolish amount of green tea, and couldn’t sleep. So, I wandered over to my bike, which was sitting in the living room (a.k.a., the CompuTrainer room), to check out the new tires the mechanic Jason put on my rims. …

Really running again

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With all the attention I’ve been giving to cycling for the past few months, some of you may have started to wonder if I should change the name of my blog to cycling a life. Hey, not so fast there, buddy. Let’s get something clear: if it wasn’t for running, there would be no reason to do triathlon, to punish myself on a bike, to slog through yards of swimming despite the fact that I am clearly NOT a fish. Running is, and always will be, my sport of choice. The swim and the bike are an elaborate warm up. …