2022 IRONMAN MONT-TREMBLANT
If you’re considering signing up for your first Ironman and live in MA – sign up for IMMT. I promise you, you won’t regret it! Before discussing the actual race day – I have to give a little background. I started working with Dave approximately a year ago. I was new to triathlons and felt like I had so much to learn.. and never actually thought I would do a full Ironman. Dave had full faith in me and believed that I could complete an Ironman – and I thought in my head “hmm I don’t know, I bet he just says this to everyone.” I continue to tell Dave I wasn’t ready and would never be able to swim 2.4 miles. Let alone adding a 112 mile bike ride and then a 26.2 mile marathon. Dave for some reason never gave up on me though and stayed patient. Or as patient as he can be with my antics.. lol.
It was finally in January when I decided I was going to register for IMMT. To be honest – I still wasn’t fully committed. I only registered because I read that they had a deferral process and my hotel had a good cancelation policy as well. I only told Dave and my family that I had signed up. I didn’t even tell my closest friends – who some were also registered for IMMT! However Dave mastered a perfect training plan for me.. and as I built more confidence in myself and my abilities – I finally started to tell people I was registered. The support from Revel Racing, Dave, my friends, family and the triathlon community was incredible.
Fast forward to race week!! Signing up for a “local” race made this experience a lot less stressful. For starters I was able to drive up to the race, and not have to worry about the logistics of flying. Second, I was so incredibly happy that there were so many members of the triathlon community racing – trust me this makes such a difference on race day! The course is set up as 2 bike loops and 2 run loops so seeing each other on the course all day gave me so much energy. Third, I was so lucky to have my family, friends, and teammates on the course cheering. This was my family’s first time at an Ironman and they loved it. I think this experience helped them truly understand why I do triathlons, and why I train so much, and why I just love doing this. In addition, it was so special to me to have Dave on the course encouraging me and letting me know I was doing a great job!
Race Morning:
IMMT is a great venue – the village is magnificent and it’s convenient for friends and family to spectate but still be centralized by food and drinks! I stayed at the Tour De Voyagers in the village. This was great because I was about a one minute walk from transition/the finish line. I woke up at 4 am and headed to transition at 4:50am. Things finally were starting to feel REAL. I took a moment to take it all in and remind myself how incredibly lucky I was to be able to do this. How lucky am I that my body is healthy enough to do this, that I could afford this sport, that my lifestyle was flexible enough to allow this training.. I needed to remember that just getting to the start line was a huge accomplishment in itself! They started playing Somewhere Over the Rainbow through the speakers, and my friend Sam who was racing came up to me to say Good Morning! I hugged her and immediately started to cry. These were happy tears – I could not believe that we were doing this!! I had so many emotions! I had to get the tears out of the way and told myself next time that is allowed is when I cross the finish line.
Having a hotel room right there was great because after we were done at transition we were able to go back to my room to put my bike pump away, and use the bathroom ( many many times.. because well that’s how race morning goes!)
Swim: At 6 am we walked to the swim start. Age groupers were starting at 6:45 am so it was almost go time. When we got to the swim start – I gave one last hug to my teammates, friends, and coach and it was off to the swim I went. I did a quick warm up – about 5 minutes – just to make sure my goggles were good to go. I am notorious for having goggle issues. Also it felt good to just swim a little to make sure I was ready and calm before the race began. I then seeded myself in line to start the swim. I was so grateful that my two friends Sam and Lee Ann swam around the same pace so we all lined up to start together! The swim was self seeded on time, and they let out 6 athletes every 5 seconds. I hugged my friends and then it was FINALLY time for the BIG DANCE! IMMT is one swim loop – so you basically just swim out a mile then back in. People had warned me that the water could get choppy as you got further out because the lake was so big. I started my swim, and it was pretty crowded. Lots of big men around me that kept swimming over me. I kept calm though and just focused on moving forward with good technique. I got all the way to the turn around point and was shocked. That felt pretty good I thought in my head. At this point I figured I would hit some serious chop. But nothing. The water was so pleasant! I continued my swim back in and before I knew it I was done with the swim. I got out of the water and looked at my watch. It read 1:18. I was PUMPED. This was a 1:52/100 yard swim pace. I have never swam that fast before in a 70.3 – let alone a full ironman. This was an incredible feeling to me – especially since one of the big reasons I didn’t want to do a full ironman is I felt really weak in my swim skills. I still have goals to get faster, but to see my swim time go down from a 2:33/100 yard in a half ironman to a 1:52/100 yard in a full ironman meant something with the training was working! I was smiling and running out of the water. I had an extra burst of energy!
T1: No wetsuit strippers at IMMT this year – I ran to transition and pulled half of my wetsuit off in process. Once I got to the changing tent I peeled off the rest of my wetsuit – luckily a volunteer helped me out which was so nice because my wetsuit was caught on my timing chip! I ate a Maurten gel while running to my bike and was ready to go!
Bike: Here came the longest section of the Ironman! I just was praying for no mechanical issues. I remembered my power targets and tried to stay consistent. From what I’ve heard – people typically go out way too hot on lap one and then die lap two of this course. I remembered what my friend Brendan had told me – Race your own race! – I didn’t worry about anyone else on the course but tried to bike consistently and smooth as Dave had told me to do. I break up the bike course into three sections: Montee Ryan, Highway 117, and Chemin Duplessis. Note that each section is broken up by U-turns. So you will need to do about 6 uturns while racing, but they all are wide enough where you can slow down and safely turn around.
Montee Ryan: this first section is rollers. Nothing too steep but definitely some climbs going out Montee Ryan. There is one no passing zone in this section going over this small bridge where it gets a bit narrow. Going out on Montee Ryan is a little bit more uphill and then coming back is more downhill. Overall this is a fun section if you race smart and don’t overdue the power on the uphills!
117: Majority of the course is on highway 117. This was my time to really get some speed and stay consistent. It is pretty cool, they close down one side of the highway for us so we get to ride in the highway lane. You’re going straight out so really can get cozy in aero and stay on your power targets. There are some hills on the highway.. but this course is hilly so I expected that! The first loop going out 117 was rainy, but then the second loop was super sunny. 117 has no cloud coverage so I really made sure to stay on top of my hydration. I grabbed water at the aid stations and took some sips but then also dumped some on my body to stay cool. This was my first time ever using aid stations – so I was very happy I was able to grab and use the bottles. If you are afraid to grab the bottles like I was – don’t be. Just slow down and make sure the volunteer knows you want to grab a water and it is a pretty smooth process. Also make sure to thank the volunteers – they rock!! The way back on 117 is pretty fun, except for one big hill – Labelle. You’re basically in your lowest gear here just cranking up the hill. The good thing is there is an aid station right at the top. The second loop of 117 was tough because coming back in there was a big headwind. It made it difficult to hold power , speed, or stay in an efficient position. However, I knew once I got off the highway the wind would die down it just was extra strong in this open road. After 117 is complete – you turn back into town on Montee Ryan and head back towards the village / Chemin Duplessis.
Chemin Duplessis: Here is the part of the course everyone warns you about. This section is no doubt the hardest part. I think what makes it so hard is it’s placement on the course. At the end of both laps. Going out on Chemin Duplessis you are climbing and working hard. However the climb is more like a stair case where you climb hard and get a tiny bit of recovery then continue climbing on repeat. The first loop isn’t so bad if you raced smart ahead of this, however the second loop is tough.. but atleast you know you are almost done. After you make it up Chemin Duplessis, you u-turn and come back down. This part of the course is amazing!! It was so much fun to ride. There are still some uphills but if you ride smart you can use your momentum from the downhills to carry you up some of the hills.
It’s a tough bike course with a lot of elevation, but this course is a lot of fun if you race smart!
T2: As soon as I finished the bike ride I was relieved – no mechanical issues thank god! Now it was time to run a marathon!! I got off the bike and immediately noticed my right ankle hurt. I have no clue why. I must have strained it somehow on the bike, but figured this is an ironman need to keep moving forward!
Run: The run was amazing! I remembered three things while running 1. Don’t go out too fast. I didn’t want to explode! I told myself I didn’t need to be fast, I just needed to be consistent!! 2. Watch my heart rate. If it ever got too high I would either slow down or if needed to walk that was an option too. 3. Nutrition nutrition nutrition! The first 5k of the run course is hilly. It’s tough – I am not going to lie. But the crowds are amazing. My mantra during the run course was to keep smiling and moving forward – when I was smiling, the crowd fed off my energy and as a result I fed off their energy and it was just an AWESOME experience. My team, friends, family were giving me SOOO much positive reinforcement during the run. After the first 5k you end up going out and back on a bike path for majority of the run. This is great because the path is shaded. Some may not like that there’s no crowd support on the path. However, there are plenty of athletes. It was SOO fun seeing teammates out on the course. We would high five each other every time we passed by. Also the triathlon community is so amazing that I found myself making other friends on the course that I cheered for who also cheered for me. After the bike path you run back through the village and some more rollers – however running through the village was so much fun. The crowds were incredible. The energy was unmatchable. You then do the loop again before heading to the finish. The finish line was an experience of a lifetime.
This is a day I will cherish forever. I completed my first Ironman!! I accomplished my number one goal which was to just have fun and enjoy the experience. I was smiling all day long and I couldn’t have asked for a better day. The venue was great, the course was everything I could ask for, and having my support system there was incredible. The community is what makes this sport so great. I am ready for some R&R, but I am so excited for what is next. If you ever are questioning doing an Ironman – similar to me – believe in yourself, I promise you can do it! Dave had me prepared not only to finish an Ironman, but to finish happy and strong!! I am forever grateful for this opportunity! :)
