You had an exceptional performance, very inspiring for all of us here. I look forward to watching the video!

---

Strava

Awesome recap, and one hell of a run out there!

How many more miles did you need to track Gustav down? lol

Hi Matt - first off, awesome performance! It was cool seeing you running up through the last 10 guys in the last part of the race. You got some airtime!

Question - how did the bike play out from your perspective? How did the flat 2.5 mile loop course and 20m rule work? The broadcast focused on the front guys and early on there was very iffy adherence to the 20m. V Luis and Jonny got popped. Ali was dancing around the rules too in my eyes. Also, Michi Weiss (lap down) seemed to really muck things up too.

Cheers,

---

tinman

I haven’t had a chance to watch the broadcast yet, so can’t comment much on the front pack since I never saw them on the bike. From my perspective, things broke up much more than I anticipated. I was worried it would be impossible to pass because everyone would be spaced evenly in a giant line. The 20m draft made it so gaps opened up constantly.

Ha, who knows. He was definitely running well.

a) awesome job yesterday w.r.t sports. you sportsed it right up, mate! and that giant cheque really is a nice way to ease into the holiday. well-earned!

b) was it harder riding on a pancake-flat course for 80k than it would've to mix it up a bit? i'd assume that a few more hills and corners might've actually let you change position and recruit some new muscles. did you stand up once in a while to stretch out?

---

____________________________________
https://lshtm.academia.edu/MikeCallaghan

http://howtobeswiss.blogspot.ch/

Great job Matt - thanks for joining us here.

---

David
* Ironman for Life! (Blog) * IM Everyday Hero Video * Daggett Shuler Law *
Disclaimer: I have personal and professional relationships with many athletes, vendors, and organizations in the triathlon world.

Congrats!

I believe you've been disappointed with your results at the IM World Championships after having a lot of success in other races. Do you feel like going out and placing 2nd in a race with such a stacked field is a little bit of a redemption?

What was going through your head during the run? You came off the bike in 23rd place. At what point did you think (or believe) that you would be able to run onto the podium? Did you see Luis in the penalty tent and Ali Brownlee off to the side? Did that give you any extra energy/motivation knowing there were two less podium favorites that you would have to chase down?

What type of milage have you been running? And pace per mile are you training at?

Sorry, lots of questions. But super interested since we don't get a ton of top guys stopping by here for AMA's (probably our fault for monday morning quarterbacking them all the time)

---

Matt

First off, major congrats to you! That was an incredibly well executed run, and it made the last hour or so of the race probably the most exciting bit of triathlon I've seen in a while.

With a course like this, the monotony of going lap after lap on the bike in the same position seemed to really make a difference on the run. From the broadcast, it was decently easy to tell who knew how to pace themselves on the run after a bike like that. We could see on the broadcast how Ditlev chose to do the bike without any source of hydration, and then had bottles practically thrown to him at the aid station, which he chugged in an impressively short amount of time. And with all the cramping going on with various athletes, it seemed like nutrition and hydration might have played a bigger role in how the race played out. Since the distances for the bike and run were decently close to 70.3 distances, but not quite, how were you able to dial in your nutrition/hydration plan so that you didn't meet the same fate as some of the other guys?

Spectacular performance Matt. Was really cool seeing you just fly by people on the run

I'm curious about what sort of race plan did you have in mind coming into the race and how the format affected that plan compared to your race plan for something like IM FL a few weeks back. The venue made it seem to me like it would be easier to hold a steady power/pace the entire time but also easier to "race" and react to others when they made moves

Well done Matt. Probably close to the fastest running we have ever seen in a middle distance race.

My question is what is your athletic background and what would your estimated run times fresh be? I've been thinking about this ever since Texas.

Hello Matthew,

I would love to know about your running philosophy. Your technique appears to be somewhat unorthodox. Are you just making your body do anything and everything to maximize turnover and stride length at the expense of what looks like a "traditional" running gate?

Thanks,

L

You have so much heart Matt. We were sitting between turns 2 and 3 until the end, then moved to the finish line. Seeing you move through that field was amazing. Very motivating to see what is possible with the right mindset and training.

Did you answer any of the people asking what lap you were on? That seems like it could have worked against you if they decided to attempt a latch. Pretty sure by that point everybody was full gas so probably nothing to worry about?

Great job!!

---

http://www.sfuelsgolonger.com

Congrats! It seems like just yesterday we were at Ironman Arizona and I took a time split on the run on an out and back section and I had a 20 minutes early on the run but still wasn't super confident in it. You have come a very long way and it has been fun to watch!

---

---

Save: $50 on Speed Hound Recovery Boots | $20 on Air Relax| $100 on Normatec| 15% on Most Absorbable Magnesium

Blogs: Best CHEAP Zwift / Bike Trainer Desk | Theragun G3 vs $140 Bivi Percussive Massager | Normatec Pulse 2.0 vs Normatec Pulse | Speed Hound vs Normatec | Air Relax vs Normatec | Q1 2018 Blood Test Results | | Why HED JET+ Is The BEST value wheelset

A lot of trainer time definitely helped prep for this race. I took 3 small breaks out of aero. One to refill my BTA bottle, and then the other two trying to stretch out my back on the last 2 laps. The aero break ended up costing me about 15 seconds per lap despite not letting the power drop. So it was easy to get feedback quickly to remind you the importance of staying pinned in the bars.

unbelievable effort out there matt, it was a joy to watch you run all those dudes down, congrats and thanks for the AMA.

with this event having a unique layout, such an elite and varied field, unique distance, and unusual circumstance (for many, the only chance to race all year), how would you say this result ranks among your career achievements to date?

I have not had a great day as a pro in Kona, and that remains my number one priority at this point. I don’t see this really as a redemption at all, more just a validation that what I think is possible in Kona is actually possible. I just need to execute.

I was never really focused on the outcome, it was all about the process on race day. On the run, my only focus was on catching the next guy. I really didn’t know where I was in the field until the last lap when I got an update that I was only 30 seconds down from 2nd (and sitting in 9th) at that point. I wasn’t really focused on any other guy specifically. Vincent came out of the penalty tent about 20 seconds before I left T2 so I was able to key off him for the early miles and then run with him for a few more after before finally getting a gap. Being able to see everyone in front of me was motivation enough because it was easy to see the gaps closing.

I hit 75 miles/week leading into Ironman Florida a few weeks back. I had one more high mileage week in between races. I typically run my aerobic runs around 6:10-6:15 and faster work at whatever coach Julie tells me to do :).

yikes - that's a real impact. when i was teenager, i found a training plan dave scott had put together (back in the 90s). it included the suggestion to stand on the pedals at regular intervals to recruit fresh muscles, circulate some blood, etc.


second q:
-any smack talk out there on the race course?

---

____________________________________
https://lshtm.academia.edu/MikeCallaghan

http://howtobeswiss.blogspot.ch/

Nutrition has always been a huge part of any race longer than 2 hours. Obviously, having a number of long course races under my belt helps dial in the calories and fluids per hour I need to target. I actually fell a 1/2 bottle short of target on the bike and was struggling early on the run fighting off some cramps. I was able to get some calories down early and ran with a water bottled for the early miles of the race to get back on top of it. I was probably the only guy running with a full water bottle for miles at a time, but I’ve made the mistake of not getting enough fluids and calories enough times in other races to not want to let that derail my day when everything else was firing at 100%.

Was there any wrestling for cross training in between the 10km swim + marathon run so that you would be ready for the swim pack mayhem? OK all kidding aside, fabulous race....for a while I thought that closing the gap on the run was possible, but not enough real estate, plus Gustav probably had juice if there was a head to head.

• What's you're top end mile speed on the run and your 400m swim speed?
• How was your recovery from the 10km swim + marathon ?
• What did you like least about the course?
• What did you like the most?
• Did you find that having a long extended period of no racing allowed for a solid block, or was it tough keeping motivation for a longer term goal always worrying that Challenge Daytona itself could get the axe from the local authorities (thankfully it did not)

Actually both races had a very similar race plan. Florida was a flat course as well, although it had more wind and turns of course. Both races, the plan was to stay steady and consistent on the bike and set up a great run. I fell a few miles short at Florida, the heat and humidity got my the last few miles and I wasn’t able to close out the race strong. I made conscious choices to let people go on the bike both races hoping it would set me up for a stronger run. I had a VI of 1.01 on the bike for both races, so pretty steady and consistent the entire ride. I went for broke from the start of both runs. The target at IMFL was securing a Kona slot, so I was a bit more conservative at times during that run. For Daytona, I felt I had nothing to lose so I went out as aggressive as I dared to and ended up negative splitting the run.

Hi Mr. Hanson .. your catch up really gives reasons .. [it's hard to keep me in front of tv] .. and how cool is your AMA !! The [german] commentators were speaking of bike top speeds of about 36mls/h some time .. was there wind on the track ?? And how was racing on the circuit from your / an athletes perspective in comparison to a course through the countryside ?? Thank you for the exciting presentation !!

---

*
___/\___/\___/\___ the s u r f b o a r d of the K u r p f a l z is the r o a d b i k e .. oSo >>

Congrats Matt, great race, and UBER exciting to watch the entire race.

I wrestled all through high school and in college until a dislocated hip ended that dream. I did run a bit in high school and then in college after my hip injury, but never really poured into the sport. I sometimes wonder what I could have done in high school and college, but have no regrets. I loved wrestling and it was always a way for me to continue to connect with my dad, who got me into the sport.

Honestly, I don’t know what I could do in any open running races. I don’t care too much to find out at this stage of my career. Running an all out marathon or 1/2 marathon seems like it would hurt a lot. I might save that for after the triathlon dream is over, but who knows. Right now it is all about prepping for these big races.