My long-term goal has been to earn a Kona spot by 2022. Thanks to the Purple Patch squad keeping me primed, injury free, and race ready, I was able to show up and dig deep at Ironman Florida. I finished 3^rd in my age group (13^th overall amateur), and secured a spot for the 2021 Ironman World Championships.

Leading into the Race

This past year has been a good one for training – even if COVID was a mess. Without my commute to work, I’ve been able to stay very consistent in hitting all the planned sessions on the squad baseline plan. I often add in a few optional workouts as well, averaging 12-15 hours a week of training (although I try to ignore that volume number).

Four weeks out from the race, I found that I could defer my entry from another cancelled race and sign up for Ironman Florida. I was nervous because I’d just been on the baseline plan. I threw on the 4-week Ironman build race plan into Today’s Plan and committed to show up and celebrate the opportunity to no matter what.

The 4-week plan got me primed and tapered well. A week out from the race, however, I got some gnarly poison ivy all over me from yard work. I worried all week that the poison ivy rashes would hold me back. “There will always be other races, so don’t stress and just go for it,” was what I tried to tell myself, although I was still a nervous wreck. My motto for the day was to “Show Up and Dig Deep” – I knew participants would be limited, so just by showing up at this race, my odds of doing well would increase significantly.

Swim – Rougher Waters and Work to Do – 1:07

My swim in 2019 was 1:05, and this year was 1:07. The pro times were a tiny bit slower than last year, so I could justify my longer swim – but many of the top finishers in my age group had much better swims than me. The water were a bit rough, although my sighting was good. I got stuck in traffic a couple times and didn’t have as many drafting opportunities as I’d hope.

One factor that held me back here was the lack of swimming the week coming into the race. Because of my poison ivy, I’d stayed out of the pool, and only did one practice swim in the ocean two days before.

I see a huge opportunity to improve my swim – I’d love to get under an hour. I might have to just increase my swimming significantly over the winter and see if I can boost that a bit over the next four months.

Bike – Headwinds and Tailwinds and Meeting my Goal – 4:45

The bike is pancake flat – and sitting in aero position for close to five hours was extremely tough. My goal was to hold around 240w average power (my FTP is 350 – although there’s no way I can hold that in aero position). The first half of the ride was all headwinds, so I held higher power the first half of the ride. My average for the first half was 233w, and the second half was 214w. I had a goal time of 4:40 – so with power being a bit lower than goal, a 4:45 is fantastic. I averaged 23.3 mph the first half, and 23.7 the second.

I see loads of room for improvement here as well. I was not used to riding that long in aero – and obviously couldn’t hold a high enough power for that long. For future races, I need longer aero rides at a sustained race power so that race day isn’t the first time I’m doing that. I’d done a couple longer rides in aero – but 1-2 hours is different than 4-5.

Nutrition was good for the first ¾ of the ride. The last hour I was starting to feel a bit spent, and probably could have taken on more to set me up for the run. The aid stations felt a tiny bit far apart, although there was only one time I ran out of water – and I had to go 10 miles to the next aid station without my normal pattern of sipping. I used my homemade infinit-like drink mix, which seemed to work fairly well – although I’d be open to trying some other options.

Finally, I think a bike fit could help me produce more power in aero. Sitting up, I can smash out some big numbers in Zwift. Outside in my current aero position, not as much.

Overall, I felt good at the end – although I could not wait to get out of the saddle.

Run – Hot, Calorie Deficit, and Good Enough – 3:27

In 2019, I ran a 3:20. The weather was hotter in 2020 by a bit, but I was hoping for an amazing run of around 3:05 or so. I felt decent the first few miles, but I started to slow down. I started walking the aid stations, which helped, but I just couldn’t hold my goal pace of around 7 minute miles. Also – my motivation was starting to sink.

I didn’t realize it at the time, but looking back now, I’m sure I was running out of calories. I’m usually good at catching when I have too many calories (I start to burp). Logically I know a lack of motivation means I need more, but I didn’t recognize it. Just 10 miles in, it started to get dark. This surprised me, since last year I completed the first half of the run so easily. By mile 13, I was almost contemplating quitting – it was just painful and I was slowing down. I felt awful.

I saw my wife and three young kids at the 13-mile turnaround. They knew I was in a rough spot. They yelled and encouraged – and that’s probably the only thing that kept me going. Finally, at mile 15, I walked very slowly through the aid station and drank lots of Coke and Bed bull. I’d been trying to hold off on these, but I knew this was my last chance.

Suddenly, just minutes later, I began to rally. The calories did their work, and my pace started to pick up. My pace chart for the whole race looks like a big V – decently fast at the beginning, quite a bit slower in the middle, and then back up to my highest speed in the last few miles. I probably should have done Coke a lot sooner – that stuff works magic on me.

My wife was giving me my position and time splits in the second half of the run. I was in 4^th, but I could catch third. I knew who it was, and he was only 60 seconds ahead. I pushed and overtook him with confidence. With four miles to go, I was holding 3^rd with a two-minute lead, and was down ten minutes from 2^nd. I pushed with all I had, and finished in third – six minutes down from 2^nd.

It was a disappointing run, although I think it was a nutrition and calories issue, not a run fitness problem. I’d been running 6:40 miles earlier that Monday at Zone 2 heart rate and they felt so easy. Of course running off a 112 bike is different, but I think being better fueled could have easily helped me find ten or fifteen minutes.

Thoughts a Week After

I knew my age group would get two Kona spots, and I was thrilled when I received the email telling me my age group actually got three. So much of the goal depended on who showed up. I showed up, and thanks to many answered prayers and miracles (like my poison ivy never acting up in the race), everything worked out.

It wasn’t the perfect day. It was a “good enough” day. I’m thrilled it worked out, and very motivated to push and train more. I believe I’m capable of a sub-9 performance (on a flat course), so now it’s a never-ending puzzle to figure out how to unlock that performance.

Being part of the Purple Patch squad played a major role in helping me achieve my goal of qualifying for Kona. The coaches and my fellow squaddies have kept me motivated, injury-free, and hungry to grow. No matter the challenges ahead, I’m confident that Purple Patch can help me achieve my next hairy, audacious goals.