Ironman Mont-Tremblant

Photos and commentary about last weekend's race at Ironman Mont-Tremblant:

This shot was taken six days before I was supposed to race Ironman Texas in May. I was in the medical center getting treatment for pneumonia. I ultimately decided not to start IMTX and looked to get back into racing later this summer. I had eyed both Ironman Canada-Whistler and Ironman Mont-Tremblant as potential races. In the end, I decided to do both, with the second event of Mont-Tremblant taking place three weeks after Ironman Canada.

 

 

I took part in the Ironkids race on Friday morning. I loved seeing the kids scramble to be up front to get a better start position.

I took part in the Ironkids race on Friday morning. I loved seeing the kids scramble to be up front to get a better start position.

With Mike Reilly and Lisa Bentley at the start of the Ironkids race. Photo credit: Robert Mahaits

With Mike Reilly and Lisa Bentley at the start of the Ironkids race. Photo credit: Robert Mahaits

Day before the race involves a lot of resting and eating.

Day before the race involves a lot of resting and eating.

People always ask what I have for dinner before a race: rice, soy sauce, chicken, and orange juice. I usually have avocados too, but the local IGA's produce was a bit rough this trip.

People always ask what I have for dinner before a race: rice, soy sauce, chicken, and orange juice. I usually have avocados too, but the local IGA's produce was a bit rough this trip.

Had some Pringles too. Have to have something you enjoy when carb-loading.

Had some Pringles too. Have to have something you enjoy when carb-loading.

Taking the pedestrian gondola down from the top of the hill of Mont Tremblant village. Trying to save the legs as much as possible before race day.

Taking the pedestrian gondola down from the top of the hill of Mont Tremblant village. Trying to save the legs as much as possible before race day.

Personalized bike racks for the professionals were a nice touch.

Personalized bike racks for the professionals were a nice touch.

Drinking copious amounts of coffee at 4:00 in the morning on race day. No matter how many of these races I do, I will never enjoy how early they start.

Drinking copious amounts of coffee at 4:00 in the morning on race day. No matter how many of these races I do, I will never enjoy how early they start.

Getting the bike ready in transition.

Getting the bike ready in transition.

Looking back at Mont-Tremblant as we walked over to the swim start.

Looking back at Mont-Tremblant as we walked over to the swim start.

45 minutes to race start.

45 minutes to race start.

30 minutes to race start.

30 minutes to race start.

20 minutes to race start.

20 minutes to race start.

One minute to race start.

One minute to race start.

BOOM! At the pro meeting they told us "At the start, there will be a starting gun, a cannon and fireworks. Whatever you hear first, GO!"

BOOM! At the pro meeting they told us "At the start, there will be a starting gun, a cannon and fireworks. Whatever you hear first, GO!"

I exited the water in 5th place in 51:39. Photo Credit: Robert Mahaits.

I exited the water in 5th place in 51:39. Photo Credit: Robert Mahaits.

Awesome photo, taken by Korupt Vision, in the closing miles of the bike leg on a very fast section of the course. I exited the bike in 4th position. I was well off the lead, but 2nd-5th were within ~4-5 minutes at the start of the marathon.

Awesome photo, taken by Korupt Vision, in the closing miles of the bike leg on a very fast section of the course. I exited the bike in 4th position. I was well off the lead, but 2nd-5th were within ~4-5 minutes at the start of the marathon.

This shot was taken just before entering T2. They had moved the mount/dismount line back about 100 meters from where we started so I swung my leg off the bike way too soon resulting in me having to ride my bike in like skateboard, with one foot on t…

This shot was taken just before entering T2. They had moved the mount/dismount line back about 100 meters from where we started so I swung my leg off the bike way too soon resulting in me having to ride my bike in like skateboard, with one foot on the pedal and one pushing off the ground. Photo Credit: Robert Mahaits

Onto the run, I moved from 4th to 3rd position around 18K. At ~25K, I moved into 2nd position, but 2nd-5th remained tight all the way to the finish. Only about 5 minutes or so remained between all four position by the finish line. This shot was snap…

Onto the run, I moved from 4th to 3rd position around 18K. At ~25K, I moved into 2nd position, but 2nd-5th remained tight all the way to the finish. Only about 5 minutes or so remained between all four position by the finish line. This shot was snapped less than a mile before the finish line by Sara Gross. I like this shot as I rarely tend to look away from the ground when I run, but I think I was happy to see a friend at that point.

My wife, Brooke, greeting me at the finish line. I felt rough. Photo Credit: Robert Mahaits.

My wife, Brooke, greeting me at the finish line. I felt rough. Photo Credit: Robert Mahaits.

I think this photo captured how I felt moments after finishing. The heat and the effort had taken a major toll on me and I felt it. Around ten minutes after crossing the finish line, I became very sick and probably threw up everything I had tried to…

I think this photo captured how I felt moments after finishing. The heat and the effort had taken a major toll on me and I felt it. Around ten minutes after crossing the finish line, I became very sick and probably threw up everything I had tried to put down in the last part of the run. It wasn't pretty. Photo Credit: Robert Mahaits.

Fortunately, I didn't throw up on the reporters.

Fortunately, I didn't throw up on the reporters.

Awards ceremony. Glad I wore shorts because it was hot in there.

Awards ceremony. Glad I wore shorts because it was hot in there.

Good buddy, and EC athlete, Rob Mohr, made the podium in his AG with a 9:39 (in his 2nd IM ever).

Good buddy, and EC athlete, Rob Mohr, made the podium in his AG with a 9:39 (in his 2nd IM ever).

Nice sunset view from the Gondola in MT.

Nice sunset view from the Gondola in MT.

My cats' reactions when I told them I had a good race.

My cats' reactions when I told them I had a good race.

Racing IM Canada and IM Mont-Tremblant three weeks apart was one of the more challenging things I have attempted and completed as an athlete. In the end, it worked out pretty well with a 3rd and 2nd place finish, though I'm not certain I would attempt that close of a double again (at least not in the near future!). Hopefully I can recover soon enough and try and race a little more before 2015 ends.

Cheers,

Justin

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ironman Canada - Whistler

Horstman Glacier.

Horstman Glacier.

When I used to be into snowboarding, I had numerous places I wanted to to visit for that purpose. Since I've started triathlon, I've made trips to Park City, Queenstown (NZ), Wanaka (NZ), Lake Tahoe and now Whistler… …all in the summer months. Not what I would have thought many years ago.

For those that weren't following the race, it was, by far, the most difficult race I have ever competed in. Ironman races are generally pretty challenging. Ironman Canada has a solid bike course making for some additional challenges in ideal conditions. However, this year's race brought cold temperatures and heavy rain. Putting all those components together and you have an extremely challenging race.

The weather in Whistler during race week had seen cool temperatures and sporadic rain leading into the event with the race day forecast being the worst of the week. The bike course in Whistler loses elevation across the first half and gains it all back in the second half. With that in mind, I felt that if the weather could just hold out until mid-morning, we would be 'just fine' even if heavy rain rolled in. However, we basically had the opposite occur, with the heaviest rain falling during the first half of the bike (beginning as soon as we started the swim) and eventually letting up on the back half. I don't know how cold it was early on, but my Garmin showed an average temperature of 44 degrees for the whole bike. With those conditions, you can see why a number of folks were pulled from the course for hypothermia.

 A basic recap of the day was something like:

The swim start just before the rain rolled in….

The swim start just before the rain rolled in….

1. The swim:

Bell, Barrett and Buckingham exited the water at about 48:20. Ambrose and Symmonds came out around 51 high, and I came out of the water with a group right at 53 minutes. Generally felt good in the swim.

The 2010 Winter Olympics Ski Jumps near the turnaround on Callaghan Road. (Photo not from race day)

The 2010 Winter Olympics Ski Jumps near the turnaround on Callaghan Road. (Photo not from race day)

2. The Bike:

0-32K: Was able to stay warm enough because of the ~12K up Callaghan Road.

32-45K: Trying not to freeze descending Callaghan.

45-79K: Trying to stay warm.

80K: I think this was the coldest point of the race for me. I remember seeing the 80K sign and I felt like I was shivering uncontrollably. 

95-120K; flat part of the ride in Pemberton Valley, which is also almost 2000 feet lower than Whistler. There is a turnaround on this road and I could see Kyle (Buckingham) had a big lead, but 2nd-4th where not too far out of reach. First time since the end of the swim I'm starting to think about 'racing' again.

120-145K; tried to stay on top of things back across the valley, but starting to fade a little. Hoping the final climb will bring me back to life.

145-180K; climbing back up to Whistler. Originally, this had been the point in the race where I hoped to put time into everyone else. However, I felt totally wiped.  This final section I tried to just do my best and make it to the start of the run.

Running back to town on the first loop of the run.

Running back to town on the first loop of the run.

3. The run:

3K: Moved into 4th

Maybe 10K?: Moved into 3rd; 

10-30K: This was probably the best section of running for me, got the split to Victor and Kyle (running together in 1+2) down under 3:00 at one point. Thought there might be a chance for one more spot.

31-32K: starting to fade; gap to front is going out again.

32-42K: looking around every corner for that finish line.

42.2K: 3rd place.

I had a couple takeaways from this race:

1. Coming back from pneumonia in May made this race a bit emotional for me. I was so sick a couple months ago and being able to competently compete again was very fulfilling.

2. I tend to do better in races of attrition, but those races almost always involve hot weather. Being able to work through a day like that in the cold was also very fulfilling.

Until the next one,

J

Top 3 in Whistler.

Top 3 in Whistler.

Awards Ceremony.

Awards Ceremony.

Pizza oven at Creekwood Pizza in Creekside Village.

Pizza oven at Creekwood Pizza in Creekside Village.

Green Lake near the run turnaround.

Green Lake near the run turnaround.

The downhill mountain bike scene in Whistler is amazing.

The downhill mountain bike scene in Whistler is amazing.

Olympic Village

Olympic Village

 

 

 

Ironman Texas Withdrawal

This afternoon I have to give the unfortunate news that I will not be starting Ironman Texas this year. Last Sunday I was diagnosed with pneumonia. If this had been any other race, I would have withdrawn that moment, but this race has, and does, mean so much to me. With that in mind, I wanted to wait until the last possible moment to make a final decision.

After a final examination from my physician this afternoon, I feel the risk to my health is too great to make the start tomorrow. I was driven all week by my emotions, but I had to set that aside when making this final, difficult decision.

Thank you to my family, sponsors and The Woodlands community for providing so much help and support while preparing for this special race.

Good luck to everyone racing tomorrow; I will be joining you again next year.

-Justin

 

 

San Juan 70.3

We saw Brett Favre in San Juan while eating breakfast one morning. We didn't bother him, but we did snap a shameless photo bomb while he was posing with others for a photo.

It's hard to do much pre-race riding so we kept loose on the local exercise equipment in the park. The locals made it look substantially easier than I found it to be.

San Juan has a lot of historical landmarks all over the city making for some pretty awesome backdrops. This is looking across the final few hundred meters of the swim course.

The Race:

I made a decision just before the Endurance Corner Tucson camp to come down and race San Juan for the third time (raced in 2011+13). I would have preferred to wait a little longer post-camp, but I felt this race had the best dynamics as it relates to IMTX, with a non-wetsuit swim and a warmer run. Plus, I just like this race and was excited to go back.

Time goals should never be set in stone, but I make them anyway:

For this race:

Swim: 25:29, Bike 2:09:59, Run 1:19:59 (this run course is challenging). I thought those three would combine for a podium finish.

My actual splits:

Swim: 26:04, Bike 2:10:40, Run 1:23:35. 

The swim and bike times weren't too far off target, but the run certainly was. That had less to do with run fitness and more to do with feeling a bit worked on the bike. I felt fine through 70K, then tired the last 20K. I thought it might just be low blood sugar so I hit the calories a bit harder on the run, but I still never felt like I came back to life. As it is, it's really just a sign that more bike fitness was needed, not more sugar.

Regardless, I managed to hold onto the last money spot with a 6th place finish and was able to get some good insight into how my fitness is really stacking up. It's one thing to feel good about your training, but racing shows you so much more.

I'll now be moving into the meat of my IMTX training and it looks like I have a good bit of work to do. I'm looking forward to returning to The Woodlands for my fifth consecutive year.

Thanks to NINOX, Shimano, Javelin Bikes, Voler Apparel, On Running, SLS Compression, Xterra Wetsuits and Powerbar.

-justin

 

 

 

2015 Sponsorship Announcement

It is with great pleasure to announce the following additions to my team in 2015:

NINOX: My title sponsor for the 2015 racing season. 

NINOX is a designer menswear label based in Boulder, Colorado.  NINOX was founded in 2014 to create sophisticated apparel using the finest materials & production. The vibrant energy of the city, the free spirit of the West, and the connection between the outdoors & everyday life are sources of inspiration for NINOX.

NINOX launched their first collection of menswear in the Fall of 2014, which combined luxury performance fabrics with manufacturing in Los Angeles, New Jersey, and Vancouver.  NINOX clothing is available at select boutiques and on the brand's own e-commerce store at www.ninox.cc

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SHIMANO: My groupset, wheels, aerobars and cycling shoe sponsor for the 2015 racing season.

To read more about Shimano's complete product line click HERE.

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ON RUNING: My shoe sponsor for the 2015 racing season. You will find me racing on the Cloudracer this season.

To read more about ON's unique technology click HERE.

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SLS: My compression sponsor for the 2015 racing season.

View their complete line of compression products by clicking HERE.

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In addition to these new sponsors, I am excited to continue working the following sponsors for 2015:

Javelin Bikes 

Voler Apparel 

PowerBar

Xterra Wetsuits 

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Triathlon is an individual sport made possible by a team of support. Thank you to my new, and returning, sponsors for helping make all of this possible.

The 2015 racing season begins next month at San Juan 70.3. 

See you all soon,

Justin

 

 

EC Article: Swim Challenge Follow Up

Written January 22, 2015.

For over five years, Endurance Corner has put together a swim challenge for our athletes and for the last two years, we have posted daily workouts on our site to help encourage a broader participation level. 

READ MORE...

EC Article: EC Swim Challenge 2015

Written January 9-17, 2015.

Every year Endurance Corner puts together a two-week challenge for our athletes to up their swim training during the dead of winter. Like last year, we wanted to expand this challenge beyond our team and encourage anyone who visits the EC site to join us.

READ MORE...

EC Article: Steel Challenge Follow Up

Written January 4, 2015

A few days ago Endurance Corner wrapped up the Big Steel Challenge. For one month each winter, we encourage athletes to strength train more than most likely would and log each pound they push, pull, squat, lift, etc. Last year around this time I really felt that strength training was coming to the forefront (more than usual, at least) as a topic in endurance-themed articles. 

READ MORE...

EC Article: December Steel Challenge

Written December 1, 2014

A few years ago, an idea came up on our forum to put together a “Steel Challenge.” The idea was basic enough: track the amount of weight you lift for one month. And while adding up the amount of heavy stuff we picked up and put down may or may not have been the best measurement of work, it was certainly the simplest and easiest tracking method.

READ MORE….

EC Article: So Now What?

November 26, 2014

In my last article I covered what to do when you take an offseason. Assuming you took a break from the swim, bike, run world, the next question is: So now what? The answer, as with many things is: “It depends.”

Read more...

Hawai'i 2014

In 2010, I raced Kona for the first time as a professional. Following a less-than-stellar race that year, I made the decision to not return to Hawai'i until I won an Ironman. It took me almost four years to make that happen, but it finally did and I made my way back to Kona last week.

As I mentioned in my previous post, my original plan to close out the season included racing Ironman Lake Tahoe 20 days before Kona. With Tahoe being cancelled, I had to adjust my training and preparations and I felt as though I did my best with the time I had.

The race:

Initially, the swim started out pretty well for me. I was tucked in the 2nd group, but just as we neared the turnaround I lost contact. I'm not sure if it was from a lack of focus or another reason, but I was on my own for the second half of the swim.

 

I came in from the swim and flew through transition trying to make up some of the ground I had lost. I quickly mounted my bike and got out onto the course, but something felt really wrong. I felt completely restricted in my range of motion. Then I looked down and realized I was still wearing my swim skin. I pulled over and tried to get it off as quickly as I could, stuffing it down my kit and riding on. I've done a lot of races, but new mistakes still manage to happen.

Shortly after removing the swim skin.

Shortly after removing the swim skin.

 

This was definitely not the start of the day I was preparing for, but I tried my best to settle into a rhythm on the Queen K. However, something still felt way off. I wasn't sure what, but I kept rolling as some races take a while to settle into. A few riders came by and I couldn't respond as I was just didn't have anything. I kept trying to get myself going, but nothing seemed to help.

By the time I had reached the turnaround in Hawi, I was almost dead last. Pretty discouraging.

I was running through a rolodex of ideas in my head to try to find something positive, but there didn't seem to be a whole lot available. So I started with my seed number. I was number 44 and I was racing somewhere around 50th position, so I convinced myself that if I just keep rolling, I can beat my seed. 

By the time I got back onto the Queen K, I had managed to catch a few people so I figured I had probably made that goal. Now I made the goal to get into the top 40 as there are more points for 31-40 than 41+. By the time I got back to transition I had moved into the mid 30s. Now I made it my goal to try and get inside the top 30 by the end of the marathon. "Pace doesn't matter, just don't stop" was what I told myself.

Hawai'i has a huge amount of spectators on the run (except the Queen K) and that made such a difference after only hearing the sound of (strong) wind in my ears for nearly five hours. I kept trucking along and by the time I made my way out onto the Queen K I had moved inside the top 30.

The opening miles of the run

The opening miles of the run

 
Running South on Ali'i drive early in the run.

Running South on Ali'i drive early in the run.

 
More Ali'i.

More Ali'i.

 
Running back through town around mile 9.

Running back through town around mile 9.

 

The final half of the marathon was long and challenging and I was very happy to make that final turn onto Ali'i to the finish line. The crowds along the finish were amazing and I took my time to high five as many people as possible. Soaking in their positivity was a great way to end such a long day.

Shaking hands with a friend as I made my way to the finish.

Shaking hands with a friend as I made my way to the finish.

 

Ten+ weeks ago I fought to win a race. Last weekend I fought just to finish a race.

They both have their own rewards.

Until next year,

Justin