Ask Me Anything: Debut Win & 8:10 Course Record at IMMT!

Triathlon Forum
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I put together one of my best performances to win my Ironman debut in Mont Tremblant. Highlights from the day included a personal best swim (2nd out of the water in 52:35), a course record bike split riding solo all day (4:24:28), a sub-2:50 run, and being the first Canadian to win this race. I was very nervous, but well prepared and confident in my fitness going into this race coming off three Ironman 70.3 wins in 2018 and a 9 week block focused entirely on IMMT. In fact, my coach/mentor David Tilbury-Davis and I predicted my splits with eerie accuracy!

I’m still working on my video recap, but I wanted to do an AMA here in the meantime. Slowtwitch will always hold a special place in my heart since you guys were collectively like my first coach in the sport! No subject is off limits since I strive to be as transparent as possible about every aspect of my process. Please bear with me if I’m slow to respond since this week has been overwhelming to say the least!

Ask away!

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I’ll answer one common question in advance: No, I won’t be racing Kona this year. First, I haven’t qualified. I’d need a few hundred more points to qualify, despite this win and my other 70.3 wins. To me, this illustrates why the new slot-based system being implemented next year is superior. Ultimately, Kona is about who can bring a huge performance on the day, not who can string together a season of consistent but unspectacular results. I think the new qualification system better reflects this. Secondly, I don’t intend to target Kona for 2-3 years. I bided my time to get my Ironman debut right and I intend to do the same with Kona. I have too much respect for the unique demands of that race to jump the gun. I feel it would be an utter waste of my time to race Kona before I feel more confident in my ability to race for the top ten.

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Powerfile?
Also you think your seats too high?

4

No questions here. Just wanted to offer a huge congratulations! Great work! You are an inspiration, especially for someone like myself who is just getting into the sport and has big goals. Best of luck!

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I was checking in on the tracker all day - really amazing race!

Even for experienced 70.3 athletes, the first full can often be a challenge, but you nailed it on the first try. To what do you attribute both your confidence and ability to ride hard (seems like it must have been a pretty hard ride?) and still run really strong all the way through?

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First, congrats, that was a huge result. I always appreciate your openness, both here and on social media.

What was your nutrition plan, and how did it differ from 70.3? Any issues with race day nutrition execution?

And I understand not racing Kona this year, even if you qualified. But are you already saying you definitely will not race it in 2019, if you qualify?

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First off: Congrats!

My question: In previous races, you have seemed to thrive in raw TT style courses, where the speeds are steady and high, and you can crank away in a fast aero position. Did you do any different, specific training for the very undulating course of MT? Where you had to constantly change from TTing, to climbing, to fast descending.

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Firstly congratulations. Been a fan since your IMtalk interview.

You won by a sweet margin.

Were you going flat out running scared all day or just stuck to your pre race plan?

What model sketchers did you run in?

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Can you tell us what you nutrition is like for the day? In full disclosure, are you sponsored by the nutritional (food) you eat and/or drink?
Congrats! Good to see you move up in distance and be successful!

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How long will you wait until you do another 140.6?

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Powerfile?

Here’s the power file on Cyclo-Sphere and Strava:
https://cyclo-sphere.com/w/29225401cfbc17d0d8c0ea477cb8f25d090a36d47cb26729860c6cac94296ab1
https://www.strava.com/activities/1789412556

Average power was 262W and normalized power was 273W. I don’t consider the ride to be particularly well executed. I was on target power (~270W AP, ~280W NP) for the first lap and then gradually faded. Then again, everyone else did too!

Also you think your seats too high?

Smh

12

Congrats on an awesome race!

Do you plan on doing a write up showing your standard week for the last 4-8 weeks like you have for a few of the 70.3s? I’ve gained a significant amount of knowledge from your blog over the last several years, especially since your polar vortex cycling post. Best of luck going forward!

13

Congrats on the big win!

A couple questions pop to mind
-At what point/if any did you realize that you had really dropped Lionel and what went through your head to keep you going?

-You said Kona in 2-3 years, so can you give an idea as to how you plot out that progression at a high level? Are you planning out longer term goals to get there or are you more of a short term focus right now?

-Where does your focus go for the rest of the year, racing or off season?

14

Just wanted to say congrats and well earned! And I also would like to know how you tackled the nutrition angle on your first IM attempt. Specifically what did you do in training to test the plan. Thanks.

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I was checking in on the tracker all day - really amazing race!

Even for experienced 70.3 athletes, the first full can often be a challenge, but you nailed it on the first try. To what do you attribute both your confidence and ability to ride hard (seems like it must have been a pretty hard ride?) and still run really strong all the way through?

I really took my time with this debut. I was getting questions and subtle pressure to take a crack at IM since my first 70.3 win in 2015. Instead of following other’s agenda, I stuck to my plan and timeline. I set aside two months without racing in the middle of the season to focus entirely on this Ironman build. All that time allowed to do multiple significant training sessions and recover well without feeling rushed. That gave me a lot of confidence. I’ve also been relatively stronger every time I’ve stepped up in distance and I was pretty sure the trend would extrapolate to Ironman.

16

Hey Cody, your blog was one of the first I started following as an example of how to enter and what to expect in the pro triathlon world. I’m hoping to get my pro card by the end of this year. Thank you for being so transparent!

In your power file you linked here it says your average cadence was 80rpm. Is that what you normally ride/what you shoot for? Or do you not think about it. I’ve noticed that my ‘comfortable’ cadence is climbing higher and higher but I’m not convinced that I should be okay with 93-95 during a race. Am I overthinking it or does cadence go into your race planning?

17

First off, congrats! I saw you racing at an MSC event years ago and was blown away by how fast you were laying it down. We spoke briefly after the race and I was again surprised by how humble and engaging you were. It’s so awesome to see someone succeed when you know they truly deserve it.

My question might have been asked already but…what’s next? You targeted this race pretty specifically, and nailed it quite spectacularly. What’s next on the agenda?

Good luck with it, whatever it is!

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Most people will ask about technical aspects of racing. I’d like to get a little more personal.

No success is solitary.
You mention your coach of course.
Any others who helped you along the way? Who’s your support crew?
Did you have someone at the race on the sidelines?

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I’m sure others will cover any questions I had. Just wanted to chime in and send a huge congratulations, and thank you for doing the AMA!

20

First, congrats, that was a huge result. I always appreciate your openness, both here and on social media.

What was your nutrition plan, and how did it differ from 70.3? Any issues with race day nutrition execution?

Thank you! My nutrition plan was one of the biggest positives from the day. I’ve long suspected that I’m an outlier when it comes to absorbing high rates of carbs without GI issues. That’s a factor that can really start to separate the best IM athletes. I put a lot of thought, planning, research and testing into my nutrition plan. I also consulted my coach, David Tilbury-Davis, nutritionist Pamela Nisevich Bede, my friend and sports science wiz Matt Hanson, and many others.

For 70.3, I mix my own blend of all liquid nutrition. It’s been a 2:1 ratio of maltodextrin to fructose flavoured with anything from Coke to Redbull to lemon juice. I’ll add caffeine and light electrolytes depending on the course and conditions. I aim for about 2.5-3 bottles worth (including the 1.4 L Ventum integrated reservoir) containing a total of 800-900 calories. On the run, I use several gels and sips of whatever is on course. This works out to about 100 grams of carbs per hour. I’ve only once had minor GI issues and never once thrown up in my adult life.

For Ironman, I also added amylopectin to my blend. It’s a starch, unlike the other two carbs. I used a 2:1:1 ratio of maltodextrin to amytopectin to fructose with a little F2C Electro-Durance for electrolytes. Here’s what I carried on the bike:

-BTA bottle: 2:1:1 bottle flavored with Redbull and lemon juice (~700 cal)
-rear bottle: 2:1:1 bottle flavored with Redbull (~700 cal)
-Ventum integrated bottle: 2 scoops F2C Glyco-Durance + maltodextrin + Redbull (~400 cal)

I then picked up a bottle of Gatorade (~150 cal), a gel (100 cal) and took quick gulps of water at a few aid stations. The total for the bike was well over 2,000 calories or 100+ grams of carbs per hour, which is nearing the max anyone can absorb.

On the run, I started with a ~300 cal flask with the same 2:1:1 blend and then took in Redbull, Coke, a few gels, Gatorade and water at every single aid station.

I deliberately train with a wide variety of fuel to acclimate my GI system to all sorts of abuse. I’ll often buy whatever sugary junk drink is on sale that week.

And I understand not racing Kona this year, even if you qualified. But are you already saying you definitely will not race it in 2019, if you qualify?

It’s hard to say that for sure after such a successful debut, but Kona doesn’t currently appeal to me for 2019. It’s possible that sponsors or other incentives could still make it worth my while in 2019, but it wouldn’t really be intrinsic motivation driving me there so soon. I’m sure my first Kona will be humbling and a learning experience, so maybe there’s something to be said for a lower pressure and earlier debut there.