Hi folks,
As you can see, the place is becoming busier. The tents are up around the transition area, and this is when you can pick up your race packet and really start to enjoy the excitement of the race.
Tents up around the transition area three days before the race. Lake Placid Ironman.
The most tense time, for me at least, during an Ironman is organizing the gear bags that come with the race packet. Five bags are provided, but I only use three, swim-to-bike, bike-to-run and run-special-needs. Having picked up the packet, been weighed, signed all the waivers, had my chip activated, and returned to the hotel (Adirondack Inn, 100 yards from swim start!), I lay everything out on the bed, as in the image below.
Gear setup for Lake Placid Ironman. Click on image for larger and clearer view.
From front to back, left to right, we have timing chip, ankle strap, swim cap, sun screen, bike claim ticket, Endurolyte capsules, race number belt, butt butter, race numbers, nine Power Bars, number stickers for bike and helmet, 11 Hammer gels, three transition bags, and two water bottles. Add swim goggles, bike, helmet, clothes, and running gear, and that’s it. You then pack stuff in the appropriate plastic bags, turn this in with the bike, and wait for the gun to go off on Sunday morning at 7:00 am.
Packing these bags is an art, as it can save you transition time through good organization. One year there was so much rain that the transition tent was a sea of mud and almost totally pitch black. You can’t practice transitions enough.
I’m looking forward to another fun day, and we’ll see how it goes.
Predicting your race is like picking stocks. You never know what will happen.
Hi,
I hope LPIM went well for you today. I used your planning advice from this blog to organize the transitions in the sprint triathlon that I did today with 3 of my friends; it was very useful, especially in reducing the panic of a “newbie”.
It appears that you are also very strong swimmer – is this a youthful talent or also something you perfected later in life? As always, I enjoy your blogs.
Pauline
Hi Pauline,
Race went fine, apart from a poor time, which is really not a surprise (see tomorrow’s blog), but I was very happy to finish and feel great the next day. I played water-polo for about 10 years in my teens to early 20s, which would explain my comfort in the water. The LPIM swim start is a zoo, so it must be hard for weak swimmers. I was glad that you found something in my blogs to be useful and that you enjoy reading them. I really enjoy writing.
Too tired to talk much more today. Funny that!
Cheers,
Kevin