HI Steve:
My best is 2:43 at IM swiss in 2012
Been under 2:50 5-6 times now
3:04 I believe on Sunday
I was coming off racing Challenge AC 5 weeks ago so this a money making day for me and IF I was in position to strike the 2nd half would go for it..Keeping in mind I will back IM Boulder up with Challenge Penticton in 3 weeks.
For what ever reason I was useless on the bike, possibly a bit stale from CAC? I for sure over heated in the swim and regret wearing a wetsuit. I too suffered a bit of upset stomach/nausea, not nearly as bad as my better half Carrie who was vomiting from 100kms in (still nearly caught me ha!) So was this from the res water? Don't know but it stayed with me the entire second half of the bike and much of the run..
Nonetheless I came off the bike clicking off 6:00-6:10 miles (first 2 miles quick being down hill) Backed off at 15kms to insure I didn't get sick as the nausea was getting bad. Went through 21km is 1:23, which is exactly where I wanted to be. At this point I knew full well barring disaster I was not going to catch Richie so I really backed off and just tried to hold my position. The 2nd half hurt, it was hot, but the course had tons of ice, I walked a ton of aid stations to get the fluid in me. Even though I backed off I don't know how much faster I could have run given the conditions and how I felt.

I have been here in Boulder since May and I honestly thought I could run 2:45 if I was on as even up here at the altitude I have been hitting run times quicker then I did at sea level all spring..But there is certainly something to be said for the hot/dry conditions and 5000ft of elevation. I also think the 5 miles slight uphill to the turn around at miles 11 and 24.5 really hurt my rhythm as I started to suffer right around that point on the first lap...

All in all this is not the place you come to, to go fast that is for sure! Would be an even more epic event if the bike took us up and across peak to peak..
Pretty bummed there will not be a pro field next year because I know there were a few guys and gals out there watching who are keen to race next year after seeing how special it was. Boulderites really appreciate the effort at the pointy end of the race and they were a huge boost when you came running through town...

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Scott DeFilippis
Professional Triathlete
Coach and Co/Founder
KIS Coaching

An earlier post in another thread claimed a DNF rate of 25% for this race? Can anyone confirm that?

I raced (first IM) so had no real expectations for the run. I live in Longmont and do all my runs on dirt or asphalt so was nervous about the pavement course. The shaded areas and great crowds were a nice trade-off, but there seemed to be almost zero flat areas on the run. Pretty much everyone I saw was walking at one time or another. Plus I'm a very fast walker so I don't think I lost time at all by walking the uphill sections.

Previous best was 3:39 in 2006 IMWI but I'm consistently in the 3:40's. I ran a 3:42 at Tahoe last year, so I've raced ok at altitude before.
Boulder run time: 5:04
Expected run time was 3:35-3:40
Flat lander - Yes (spent a total of 15 days in Boulder training over 2 separate trips this spring and summer)

I didn't ride too hard and started the run very, very conservatively. The combination of heat, direct sun exposure, and altitude was just too much for my body. I don't think there was much I could have done given that the baseline exposure was so high that biking significantly easier would have likely left me in the same spot. It was just one of those situations where humans aren't really built to run fast in those conditions. Locals and smaller builds had a distinct advantage on race day.

They're calling the course sneaky and I think that's right... but it's not a jump out and scare yell "boo" type of sneaky. The Boulder course is more like wearing on you all day and then hit you with a sledge hammer sneaky. I don't know how anyone survived the day wearing an aero helmet on the bike. I wore standard road helmet and was constantly dumping water on me and I was barely staying cool.

Previous IM best run time: 3:57 at IM Canada in 2012 (Penticton)
IM Boulder run time: 4:01 (6th best run in my age group W40-44)
Your expected Boulder run given your preparation for the race: 3:55
Reason(s) why you think you ran the way you did (if you had either a good/bad run): The concrete and constant little up and downs started to wear me down in the second half. The run back up the canyon the second time looked like a death march for most.
If you came from lower elevation: From Denver

I am not a natural runner and have never run an open marathon. My PB open half marathon is a 1:38 so given my lack of run speed I was quite happy with my run on Sunday after seeing how much the course beat up most of the field. I've heard alot of folks saying how brutal the day was, but conditions could have been much worse with winds and higher temps on the bike. I think we got very lucky... lots of competitors just underestimated how much they needed to drink on the bike.

Was pretty shocked to see how slow some folks run times were that I race with. Since did not hear anyone at IMLT talk that altitude impacted them, just the cold. But sounds like it was hot which
I over the years have seen many just die in it. So was the heat the issue? Was there humidity also?

.

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Dave Campbell | Facebook | @DaveECampbell | h2ofun@h2ofun.net

Boom Nutrition code 19F4Y3 $5 off 24 pack box | Bionic Runner | PowerCranks | Velotron | Spruzzamist

Lions don't lose sleep worrying about the sheep

I felt like the heat was a multiplier on the altitude. It affected nutrition absorption for several people I talked to which also contributed to implosions. The front page said it was 82 but my spectators said local reports were 89. The Accuweather "real feel" was 95+ much of the day... and it felt every bit of that and more.

Not sure if you have ventured to the front range but we have a different kind of heat here. We warned people in the lead up to the race about it. It's not like gulf coast or southern US humid heat. As (i think) steve put it.... "Texas is a steam room and Colorado is an oven." While the temp topped out in the high 80s and was dry it's still a very strong and very direct sun. Shade can provide a massive decrease in perceived temperature. It can be 50 on top of a 13er or 14er in the middle of summer and you'll be sweating your balls off. Less atmosphere, more solar radiation that just nukes your insides. Some of the guys were already feeling it in the last 20 miles of the bike and they train here!!! As best i can guess a 65 degree day here is like an 80 degree day in Portland or Seattle. So while for a spectator it wasn't all that hot for an athlete it can roast you. Now extrapolate this out to a 100 degree day.... that's gonna get ugly.

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36 kona qualifiers 2006-'23 - 3 Kona Podiums - 4 OA IM AG wins - 5 IM AG wins - 18 70.3 AG wins
I ka nana no a 'ike -- by observing, one learns | Kulia i ka nu'u -- strive for excellence
Garmin Glycogen Use App | Garmin Fat Use App

Interesting. So I guess the cold at IMLT is better than heat.

I knew folks who run a 3 hour marathon did like a 5 hour run.

So there was not much shade it sounds like? I am used to racing in "dry heat", but for an IM, that is a whole different game.

Wonder if this weather is a reason the race as not sold out yet, (assuming this is the case) like IMLT has not?

.

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Dave Campbell | Facebook | @DaveECampbell | h2ofun@h2ofun.net

Boom Nutrition code 19F4Y3 $5 off 24 pack box | Bionic Runner | PowerCranks | Velotron | Spruzzamist

Lions don't lose sleep worrying about the sheep

cold.... you can always wear more clothes.

there was shade on maybe 30-40% of the marathon. ZERO elsewhere. Man, we aint got trees here. The word "canopy" is not in our vernacular. It's the one thing i do miss badly living here. (everything else is bad ass tho :)

The day was actually a bit cooler than average. You saw that much distress on a "cool" day!?!?! Just wait till it's 100. Triathlete genocide!

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36 kona qualifiers 2006-'23 - 3 Kona Podiums - 4 OA IM AG wins - 5 IM AG wins - 18 70.3 AG wins
I ka nana no a 'ike -- by observing, one learns | Kulia i ka nu'u -- strive for excellence
Garmin Glycogen Use App | Garmin Fat Use App

Since some folks say that IMLT has not filled up because of the weather, what about IMB? Not hearing that many talking about the heat or am I missing the threads? Is this a race that is going to last?

.

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Dave Campbell | Facebook | @DaveECampbell | h2ofun@h2ofun.net

Boom Nutrition code 19F4Y3 $5 off 24 pack box | Bionic Runner | PowerCranks | Velotron | Spruzzamist

Lions don't lose sleep worrying about the sheep

Boulder got the best of me on Sunday, too.

I ran a 3:35 at Wisconsin last year.
Boulder run time was 4:35. Coming from Washington, DC.
Hoping to pull off a 3:20-3:30. Been running in the "just under" 3 for open marathons.
I'm still scratching my head. Maybe altitude? The sun def got to me the last 40 miles of the bike, even though i tried to back way off.
I had to take off a couple of key weeks off 4-5 weeks out from Boulder because I was fried from overtraining. Perhaps I was still tired, maybe not enough run volume leading up to Boulder (backed way off run volume once I hit the overtraining wall). In the end, i'm not sure. Probably a combination of everything. For me personally, one of the hardest days to get through.

interesting... our first athlete to come forward that trains in an oppressive humid heat and was not in a position to do better at the race because of that. I'm starting to wonder what it is about hot, dry, high altitude heat that is so crushing?

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36 kona qualifiers 2006-'23 - 3 Kona Podiums - 4 OA IM AG wins - 5 IM AG wins - 18 70.3 AG wins
I ka nana no a 'ike -- by observing, one learns | Kulia i ka nu'u -- strive for excellence
Garmin Glycogen Use App | Garmin Fat Use App

I hear you, MarkyV. I have a lot of consistent run training in some pretty brutal conditions here throughout the years, but my body just didn't want to go. It was just a different beast for me...but like I said, one factor out of a variety...

The DNF rate was 16%. The non start rate was quoted to me as 23%.

Do you ever not work either Tahoe or power cranks into your posts?

sometimes :o)

.

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Dave Campbell | Facebook | @DaveECampbell | h2ofun@h2ofun.net

Boom Nutrition code 19F4Y3 $5 off 24 pack box | Bionic Runner | PowerCranks | Velotron | Spruzzamist

Lions don't lose sleep worrying about the sheep

Previous IM best run time and the race/year that you ran it: 3:17:56. Kona 2010

IM Boulder run time: 4:12:01

Your expected Boulder run given your preparation for the race: 3:30

Reason(s) why you think you ran the way you did (if you had either a good/bad run): I wasn't moving as expected on the bike so rather than settle in and give up a little time, I forced the issue. Stupid. This was from miles 20-70. Stupid. My inner quads were gone with 42 miles left in the bike and killed me for every step of the run. Stupid.

If you came from lower elevation: Y/N -No, from Colorado Springs so actually came from higher elevation

Anything else you'd like to share: I think I would have changed my predicted time of 3:30 to 3:40 due to all the ups/downs on the course. They weren't all real steep but all had an ass kicking effect. Heck, even during all the walking I did, I still felt the ups/downs.

Steve - Thanks for making this thread. I was hoping I wasn't the only one who folded and sucked ass on the run Sunday.

Previous best: IMFL 12 - 3:10
IM Boulder Run: 3:32 - I missed the finish turn off and would have been a 3:26 - 3:27 without that mistake
Expected: 3:12 - 3:15
I went for broke and I broke. That's why the back half sucked. I instantly felt that I BLEW UP right when I hit the non-shaded part of the second loop. Mile 14.5?
Boulder native
I felt that I biked well within my range. Rode a 4:42 off of a crazy low 204w AP with no crazy long spikes in power. I have no idea why I folded but I did. As a side note, I was going to quit during the swim when my body locked up on me. Everything cramped on two different occasions and I grabbed a dock to rest. Don't know if it just wasn't my day or what.

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New Training/Racing Log - http://www.earthdaykid.com/blog --- Old Training/Racing Log - http://colinlaughery.blogspot.com

Impressive. A 1:38 open 1/2 marathon as a PB and you have run a 3:57 and a 4:01 at your last two IMs. That's pretty solid numbers.

I thought the bike course was much hotter than Ironman Texas (last year when it was 90+ and humid) as well as Louisville (high 80's and humid) and it was what, mid-80's at the hottest when getting off before noon? I stayed hydrated and fueled and maintained a steady dose of water on the head every few minutes and still felt hotter than I did at those races to start the run. I attributed it to a lack of heat adaptation (since I had no training for this race), but maybe it was something different. No wind, no shade; hot, thin air; definitely makes for a very fast bike course, but not necessarily a fast run I suppose. Also, the out and back (off pearl and foothills pkwy joining up with creek path) was maybe like a mile and a half or more without an aid station and zero shade. And that hill outside Eben G Fine Park...

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-Bryan Journey
Travel Blog | Training Blog | Facebook Page

The dry throws off peoples hydration maybe? You lose moisture just breathing around here.

didn't see that coming.

For those from hot humid climes how did the heat here compare to home?

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36 kona qualifiers 2006-'23 - 3 Kona Podiums - 4 OA IM AG wins - 5 IM AG wins - 18 70.3 AG wins
I ka nana no a 'ike -- by observing, one learns | Kulia i ka nu'u -- strive for excellence
Garmin Glycogen Use App | Garmin Fat Use App

that's a good point. not being able to keep up on hydration and then not sweating as much as one should will allow core temp to rise to a point of central governor shutting you down.

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36 kona qualifiers 2006-'23 - 3 Kona Podiums - 4 OA IM AG wins - 5 IM AG wins - 18 70.3 AG wins
I ka nana no a 'ike -- by observing, one learns | Kulia i ka nu'u -- strive for excellence
Garmin Glycogen Use App | Garmin Fat Use App

Maybe I'm interpreting the stats on the results page for IM Boulder but it looks like 10% DNFed. Ther was about 2400 starters and 250 DNF.