An email I just received from Ironman Arizona

Check out the email I just received from Ironman in preparation for my big day. I especially love the line, “…the race starts at mile 80 or 90 on the bike…” Only 9 days away!
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Your upcoming event is just 2-weeks away.

Congratulations on making it this far! Many times the most challenging aspect of Ironman racing is merely making it through the training and arriving on the starting line in one piece. If you’ve made it this far, the battle is more than half over. As we watch athletes go through the usual waves of confidence and terror that precede an Ironman, we want to remind you of a few things which may or may not help you:

Nothing you do in the last week is going to make you fitter. Before each “workout” you have planned you should ask yourself, “Is this workout going to make me more fatigued or will it allow me to stay loose, mentally sane, and continue to recover?” If there’s any doubt, shorten the session, make it easier, or skip it altogether! …yes, even if it’s on your program schedule.
Don’t change anything! There is a lot of energy and are a lot of ideas floating around Ironman races in the final week and too many athletes blow all of their preparation by changing some aspect of their training, nutrition, equipment, or clothing. You know what has worked for you over the past 4-5 months – stick with it. This doesn’t mean you should be inflexible but rather that you should be confident in YOUR plan.
Have a plan! The 24-hours before the start at 7a.m. on Sunday, November 22nd should be planned out. That means knowing when you’re going to eat the day before, what time you’re going to wake up, put on sunscreen, eat, have time for the bathroom, get to the start, get numbered, turn in special needs bags, put bottles & food on your bike, pump your tires, have time to chill out, put your wetsuit on, get to the swim start area by 6:40am, etc. It is approx 200yds from where you are required to enter the water to get to the swim start.
Pacing, Nutrition, and Hydration! While it’s important to have some goals in your head, it’s even more important that you NOT have any expectations with regard to finishing time, place, or worrying about getting one of those coveted Hawaii Ironman qualifying spots! That doesn’t mean you don’t want to do well but rather that your focus should be on having your best possible race in the given conditions. If you do that, those tangible results will take care of themselves. Focus on simply finishing – everything else (time, place, qualifying, etc.) is gravy.
We’ve said it before but it’s worth mentioning again, THE RACE BEGINS AT THE 80 TO 90 MILE MARK ON THE BIKE!!! If you’ve paid attention to your pacing, nutrition, and hydration up to this point, you’ll have a great day. Yes, this means when you start the third loop of the bike leg this is where the race BEGINS! The wind picks up over the course of the day and the final stretch up and down the Bee Line Highway will be tough if you have pushed too hard or over-geared in the early part of the ride – this is the crux of the race.

The Ford Ironman Arizona course consists of a one loop swim, three loop bike and a three loop run. Use the first half of each leg of the swim, bike and run as a warm up for the second half. On the first half of each segment (especially the first half of the bike), keep your effort one to two notches below what you know you’re capable of. On the first half of the bike (again, for the first 80-90 miles), ride in one gear easier than you’re capable of. As the day wears on, it WILL get warmer and windier. Ironman races are about maintaining a realistic average effort/speed and minimizing low points. If you’re conservative early on, you’ll increase your chances for doing exactly that! You almost have to make it feel easy early on to pace the bike optimally.

Stay in the moment. Don’t dwell on what’s behind you or give too much energy to what is 5-hours ahead. Pay attention to what you’re doing right NOW! If you’re having a low spot (and you’ll have many), ask yourself, “What do I need? What do I want? What can I do to feel better?” Sometimes the answer is as simple as slowing down (pacing). Other times, the answer may be nutritional – “I need to eat something.” or even “I need to stop eating so much.”
Expect nothing but be prepared for anything. We covered expectations in #4 above but consider what you need to be ready for. In general, you can count on nothing at Ford Ironman Arizona – it’s been VERY windy in past years, and it has been close to perfect as well. So, don’t assume conditions will be like…anything. It is the desert and we can only hope for conditions similar to last November.
Conditions are an unknown until race day. Watch the weather forecasts for the local area, and make sure you have race clothing appropriate for ANY conditions. What should you wear on race day? Ask yourself what you would wear if it was a long training day back home in similar conditions. That’s what you should wear.

Check out: for more weather information.
http://www.weather.com/outlook/travel/businesstraveler/local/USAZ0233?from=search_current When you’re feeling a bit overwhelmed at the thought of it all, remember that what you’re really going to do on Sunday, November 22nd is have a long training day. This time, however, you’ll actually be rested, you’ll have 2200 of your closest friends as company . . . and it’s catered!

We’ll see you soon!