Almost Liftoff...again...IMAZ 2012 Part 1

Sub 20 days to IMAZ...time to start getting serious again!  This will be Ironman #5 for me, 5 Ironmans inside of 2 years.  As these races approach, they have a tendency to overtake your life for the final few weeks (which has started already in my case...).  Here's my prep so far:
 Swim: new goggles specific to the course---in the case of IMAZ, I'll go with clear lenses because the start is somewhat dark.  For IMAZ 2010 and 2011, I used tinted goggles, which made it seem much darker out than it was.  They didn't inhibit sighting, but I think clear is the way to go to sight the best.  Checked the wetsuit, all is good...and that's about it for the swim.

Espresso..

Vr Bottle

Bike:  Lots of tinkering here always.  Wheels:  Zipps...going with an 808 Firecrest up front and a 900 disc in the back.  With my frame being uber stiff, I felt that the Super 9 disc was just too stiff (used one for IMAZ 2011), bouncing me all over the place.  These are tubulars, and I will carry a Espresso from Effetto Mariposa in case of any flat issues along with a CO2. Tire condition is good. I put a new chain on 2 weeks ago---ultra light gold colored chain by KMC (yes, it's gold colored...sa-weet!).  I think I'll be riding my ISM Time Trial Seat (I fidget with seats...Fizik sometimes wins out last minute).  Bottles:  I will use a Delta Sonic Setup by X Lab to hold one bottle behind my seat (this part is made for the Cervelo P5, but I have the same type of seat post setup...), the Vr bottle by Torhans on the frame (which I won in their Kona Prediction Contest!!!  Pete Jacobs was my man!), and I haven't decided on the front aero bottle setup yet...either a Torhans Aero 20 or a vertical bottle held in with a hair tie (yes, a hair tie...works brilliantly).  I am also going to do some sewing!  I will sew velcro onto the bottom of a Stealth Pocket by X Lab so I won't have to deal with the straps to hold it in place on my top tube, but this probably won't be necessary if the Vr Bottle sets up like I think it will.  The Vr bottle won't hold liquid, but instead will house the Espresso (tire sealant), Co2 and any food stuffs (CLIF bars + EFS Liquid Shot).  Recap:  2 bottles...one with OSMO Active Hydration (behind seat), the other always water (aero bar location).  Check out the OSMO products by the way...Dr Sims has some VERY cool videos on how their products work, and after testing them out over the past month, they  create a perfect environment in my stomach for absorbing water---just as the vids show.   I will use OSMO PreLoad the night before and the morning of (Coach Chris turned me onto this product...next gen from Scratch Labs stuff ;-)   I'll be shooting for 300-350 cals/hr on the bike and will only use Special Needs in case something "special" happens...like dropping those cals on the road ;-)  I will refresh with water of course at the Aid Stations, and use a bit of Perform as well once the OSMO runs out (spare bottle in Special Needs if the Perform isn't sitting...which has been an issue sometimes in the past).  One thing I may try once the OSMO runs out is to put some dilute Perform in the Torhans 20 (which is what I want to use if it sets up well), and put the water to the rear cage (reversing the starting setup..).  Jay at Airpark Bikes has my bike tuned and ready for Nov 18th...the Storck is a fantastic bike, but it's a lot like a fancy car or a high maintenance girlfriend (had to add, couldn't resist!)...unreasonable TLC is needed!

With all that, I think we can say I have a game plan for the bike!

Run:  well, 90% of that is deciding on a pair of shoes and sticking with it...and I have it narrowed down to two pair, both are Saucony.  Over the summer I decided it was time to change running shoes (forever a Nike fan)...I've tried:
Zoot Ultra TT5.0 (a tweener for me...not enough for long runs, and love the Kiawe's for fast stuff)
Zoot Kiawe (my favorites for Olympic Distance)
On Running Cloudrunners:  good for long distance runs, but not race day shoes for me
Saucony Ride: ditto the Cloudrunner comment
Brook PureFlow: ditto Cloudrunners again
Saucony Kinvara 3: love em
Saucony Fasttwitch: love em

Zoot Kiawe

Saucony Kinvara 3

The winner is....Kinvara 3 (I think!).  There's just a bit more posting in this shoe over the Fasttwitch.  Both are fast shoes, but I think I need a little more in my shoe now that I am 40 ;-)

Other Run sorties are nutrition of course...now that Gu is the on course nutrition, I am one happy dude. Gu, Perform, then Coke, orange slices, potato chips, and tons of water.  200 cals and hour of those fine products ;-)  Some people comment about how those foods are horrible...unless you have put yourself through an Ironman, then you simply don't understand.  When you can't handle anything but almost straight forms of suger, Coke is the saviour.  Need salt and some calories?  Nothing tastes better than chips.  The Orange slices...a craving I have in every IM...must be the citrus.  I'll carry a bottle of cold water out of T2, but otherwise nothing (well, maybe a 5 Hour Energy for that time when the $%it gets real...)

So that's it for this episode of Ironman 5.0 prep...I'm sure I will post pics of my bike once it is set up.  I'll probably add my plans for race strategy in there as well.  Up next is a Blood Lactate Test to determine the right wattage on the bike, which prompts me to post an Article Carlos Mendoza posted about racing with power... a must read!!!  Cheating with a Power Meter Article  Joe Friel is one of the leading guys when it comes to knowledge on training with power so read it!!!!

20, 19, 18, 17,........