I gauge it on gps (which we all know is fabulously accurate in water) and time. I was 5 mins slower at Taupo '15 compared with Roto '15 a week later. I'm pretty sure I didn't get that much training effect from the first half.

I dunno. Maybe I was more keyed up for Rotorua.

---

Swim. Overbike. Walk.

Awesome, thanks for the advice

Surely the roads can't be that bad. What are you comparing them to? I'm use to riding on pretty rough roads at home, on about 105 psi. I was thinking I might drop to 95 just in case.

What does Tom A's crr data show with psi and rolling resistance? I thought I could remember a really good chart he posted but can't find it.

Regarding the impact of surface quality - he's found that there's a break point where road roughness is a far bigger factor than anything else. Rolling resistance drops with pressure increase until you hit that break point and then resistance increases significantly with added pressure. The conclusion was that you're much better off erring on the low side when it comes to tyre pressure.

the thing isn't the speed vs pressure that's important. It's the hammering your legs take on a rough road. I lab test will find the optimum pressure for any surface, to get max speed, but that won't tell you how it will affect your body.

180km on those roads just simply beats you up. 110 psi might get you to T2 5 minutes faster than 90 psi, but you'll run like you're on clay quads and lose 10 minutes. to top that off, virtually the entire run is on concrete sidewalks. Very little relief on asphalt for example.

---

TriDork

"Happiness is a myth. All you can hope for is to get laid once in a while, drunk once in a while and to eat chocolate every day"

I did it last year on 23 mm 4000IIS at 95psi.

The roads are a bit rough but it's no issue in the grand scheme of things.

There are quite defined truck marks on the road, where it is smoother. Go on those and you'll pick up some easy gains.

Kent

The 180k bike does beat you up, but on the 3 loop run, probably 26k to 28k of it (~65%) is on chipseal asphalt - so not that bad :)

Most of the outbound loop all the way to Four Mile Bay is on asphalt, and probably about a third is on asphalt on the way back - you hit the concrete at that little crossover by Chad, and then it's concrete path pretty much all the way from Two Mile Bay to almost the trout on Lake Terrace before hitting the asphalt again.

---

Team Kiwami
Instagram

 
180km on those roads just simply beats you up. 110 psi might get you to T2 5 minutes faster than 90 psi, but you'll run like you're on clay quads and lose 10 minutes. to top that off, virtually the entire run is on concrete sidewalks. Very little relief on asphalt for example.[/quote]

The 180k bike does beat you up, but on the 3 loop run, probably 26k to 28k of it (~65%) is on chipseal asphalt - so not that bad :)

Most of the outbound loop all the way to Four Mile Bay is on asphalt, and probably about a third is on asphalt on the way back - you hit the concrete at that little crossover by Chad, and then it's concrete path pretty much all the way from Two Mile Bay to almost the trout on Lake Terrace before hitting the asphalt again.[/quote]
Doh,
I only did IMNZ when it was a 2 lap run, not the more recent 3 lap version. My bad. I just remember the concrete sidewalks destroying my arthritic hips after the pounding they took on the bike.

Still, IMNZ road surfaces remind you the difference between the lab and the real world.

---

TriDork

"Happiness is a myth. All you can hope for is to get laid once in a while, drunk once in a while and to eat chocolate every day"

Oh man.... I did this race a few years back, and my teeth rattled for about a week!!!


Seriously though - it was a great day.

God don't ever do Ironman australia.

You must be traumatised, as there's not that much concrete at all, and the year you did it (2 laps) there'd of been even less as a percentage than the current course, because you ran out to Mahuta Drive and back, which is effectively all tar seal as you're on the highway.

That said, it's a tough run, you see how tough when you sit out on a kayak looking back at shore and see the elevation changes of the course.

---

http://www.sweat7.com
Facebook Page: Sweat7
Twitter: @sweat7coaching

A friend of mine lived in Taupo for a number of years. She trained on the course year round. She routinely rode with 160-180 PSI tires! One day I saw here pumping up before a ride. She lifted the T-Handle of the pump all the way up, leaned on it, took her feet off the ground, then bounced up and down until the handle reached the bottom. I queried why and she said "It says 180psi on the side of the tire". Unsurprisingly, she had a bad habit of falling off any time she tried to corner in the rain. I feel sorry for the person that bought her used bike.

I'd be surprised if she has any sensation left in her nether regions after years of riding Taupo roads at 180PSI. Or any fillings left.

---

TriDork

"Happiness is a myth. All you can hope for is to get laid once in a while, drunk once in a while and to eat chocolate every day"