Toughman Long Duathlon National Championship
Summary
This Long Duathlon National Championship was every bit as a tough as advertised! I placed 2nd overall on a 70.3 distance Duathlon with 3400 feet of elevation on the bike and over 900 ft on the run. I lost time to the leader on the bike and could not close the gap during the half marathon.
Training
My training was close to 30 hours in the structured build weeks and using my TRC Performance Coaching workouts and Duathlon plan – www.trccoaching.com. It consisted of endurance rides, Brick workouts, and varying paced runs. I employed 2 training camps at higher elevation and raced going to into this event at Duathlons of varying distances and a Road Race in the elevation gain expected on the course.
Gear
My race day kit was my all black and gold tri kit with sleeves. My bike was a Project One Speed Concept with FLO 77s front and back, an aero bottle up front and in the the frame, as well as a bottle behind the saddle. My shoes where Nike Next % and my watch is a Garmin.
Nutrition & Hydration
I employed a 2 day increased simple carb build, hitting around 700-800 grams. Race day morning I woke early to eat 2 simple almond butter and jelly bagels at 3 am. My Hammer Nutrition race plan was spot on. It consisted of an aero bottle with a Perpetuem and water mixture and 9 Hammer Gels in my Bento which I took in every 15 or so minutes. Prior to race start I took in 1 gel. On the Half marathon run I alternated between gel, water, and Gatorade. No Hammer Heed offered on course.
Planning
I travel in my diesel motor coach and that keeps things pretty stress free, although I did drive on the wrong roads in NYC! We arrived 4 days prior to the race so that I could get a look at the bike course and do a couple recon rides.
Reflections
I would consider the race a success even though I placed second. Each race is different and one variable or another can change the outcome. I was confident in my pre race buildup, nutrition, and power plan. The only thing I would do different is run the disc on the rear with the 77 up front.
