Lessons from an Ultraman

LESSONS LEARNED FROM DOING AN ULTRADISTANCE TRIATHLON

You don’t have to go super long to be a longdistance triathlete, Kevin Heinz learned after taking on the Ultra 520 a few years ago. What he learned from the ultra experience that has helped him become a better triathlete.

Afew years ago, at the age of 53, I completed my ninth Ironman. I had a personal best swim, an average bike and a slow run to finish in under eleven and a half hours. It was an average result for me and, though I enjoyed the journey to the start line and the finish line at Whistler, the experience left me pondering, “Is there more to triathlon than this?”

Over the next few months, the answer to that question excited me. My mind kept going back to a summer day, years before, when I was on a training ride. I rode past the finish line of the Ultra 520K triathlon. Race announcer Steve King was there and we chatted. The idea of swimming 10 km, then riding almost a whole Ironman bike course on the first day, cycling almost 300 km on the second day, and then grinding out a double-marathon on the third day intrigued me more than it inspired me. King and I chatted some more. Before I left to resume my ride, he left me with the prophetic phrase “Well, do it while you still can.”

The week of Christmas 2016 I contemplated the idea of entering the Ultra 520K in Penticton, B.C. To complete the event I knew that I’d need to train more than ever before and learn to eat “real” food while training and racing. In our fridge was a big bowl of my favourite food – mashed potatoes. The Saturday before Christmas, I tried an experiment. I took those yummy spuds, a handful of gels and a bucket of Gatorade to our basement. I got on our treadmill and ran a marathon. Days later, after further contemplation and conversations, I signed up. It’s been three years since I made that decision. The point of this article is to highlight some of the things that I learned in the training and the execution of that race.

Lesson 1 I can bend time

In preparing

for my full-distance races, I never pushed myself as much as I did while training for the ultra. Swimming sessions that used to be 90 minutes were extended to as long as two and a half hours. Those six-hour bikes rides I previously considered long, were no longer epic compared to the 10 hour rides for the ultra. Over-distance training has paid dividends for my full-distance training as it gives me extra confidence knowing I can go much farther than just four km in the water and 180 km on the bike. In addition to the physical confidence, doing the overdistance training trained my mind to be able to focus more clearly on those “shorter” six hour rides.

Lesson 2 You don’t have to do the distance to do the distance

One of my motivations

to attempt an ultra was to push my limits and train longer than I ever had. One of the things I learned was that you don’t need to do the full distances in training to complete the event. You have to do what is reasonable and healthy for you. You need to have faith in your training and then execute your plan wisely

DOING MY FIRST ULTRADISTANCE TRIATHLON TAUGHT ME LESSONS THAT 10 IRONMAN RACES NEVER DID.

THOUGH I ENJOYED THE JOURNEY TO THE START LINE AND THE FINISH LINE AT WHISTLER, THE EXPERIENCE LEFT ME PONDERING, IS THERE MORE TO TRIATHLON THAN THIS?'

on race weekend. Doing an event is different than training, even if you do not “race” it. Having competitors and cut-off times add plenty of motivation.

Although I came close to cycling the 275 km in training, I never approached the 10 km of swimming or the 84 km of running. I didn’t want to inconvenience friends or family, so my longest swims were in the safety of my local pool. My longest swims were two and a half hours long. I caught meningitis two months before the event, just as I was about to increase my run distances. Those crazy long runs I was looking forward to never happened. My longest run was three hours. To compensate for my lack of long runs, I reduced my planned running speed during the race, and I took more walk breaks (every 10 minutes). It was neither easy, nor pretty, but on race day, I was able to complete the 84 km, very hilly kilometres.

Lesson 3 There is no “I” in ultra

Completing an ultra triathlon requires logistical planning and a group of selfless volunteers to be your crew. In some ways, an ultra is easier than an Ironman because of the support you get from your crew. For the swim, you are required to have a support boat. You can stop any time you want, hang onto your support boat, take on nutrition, or just rest. You don’t have these options while doing an Ironman. For the cycling segments, you need a support vehicle for nutrition and bike support. You can even have a spare bike. I used two bikes for my race, one for flatter sections and for downhills and another bike to do climbs.

For the 84 km run, you are allowed to have a pacer to talk to and to give you food and drink. Again, quite different than any other distance of triathlon. Even your competitors aren’t really competitors in an ultra. Since there are so few participants, whenever you do meet another person, it’s like a celebration. Furthermore, there is the spirit of “kokua” (helping) between participants and crews. For example, when I was going through a rough patch on the bike, another competitor’s crew gave me a bottle of sparking water that I so appreciated. On the next day, my crew helped the athlete behind me. They gave her ice and sang her favourite song to her.

Lesson 4 No Kona. No cry.

One thing I dislike about doing an Ironman race is the “what if I could qualify for Kona?” factor. As much as I tell myself I would never do Kona, even if I could qualify, the notion of qualifying lingered while I trained and raced. When training for my ultra, all those ideas temporarily vanished. Since I had very little idea of my abilities at the ultra distance, I had no time or placing expectations. I trained with the goal of finishing and was unconcerned about achieving specific wattage or pace targets. Although that’s a strategy those who “race” ultras probably don’t share, I enjoyed my training a lot more. While doing the event itself, I shifted my mindset from competing to participating. That was a liberating experience. On race weekend I did place nearly last and it didn’t matter. I finished.

Lesson 5 More respect for my body Because I was entering

uncharted territory in my training for the ultra, my primary goal was to train as much as possible, while still maintaining overall health and preventing any injury. While swimming, I tended to use a lot of swim aids, such as fins and pull buoys to reduce the amount of stress on my shoulders. For running, I didn’t do a lot of faster sessions, since they tended to aggravate my Achilles tendinitis, instead, many runs became practices to try eating real food such as perogies and pizza. In my long cycling sessions, I got off the bike every two hours to stretch out my back and re-lubricate my sensitive areas to prevent chaffing that might jeopardize the next day’s workout. My careful approach worked as I avoided injuries and I completed the distances within the cutoff times.

Unfinished Business? (What I haven’t learned)

It’s been two years

since I did the Ultra 520K. Some people ask me if I would do another one. I don’t know. Though the amount of training required to complete one is not much more than for an Ironman, there are many factors to consider, especially the cost of the entry fee and the expenses of having a support crew. Furthermore, after having learned what I did by completing the Ultra 520K, I am curious as to what I may learn from focusing on shorter distance races. Finally, at age 56, I’m starting to question the cumulative effects of all those long runs, especially if I want to stay in the sport for another twenty years. Going long doesn’t necessarily have to mean going long distances.

Doing my first (and maybe my only) ultra-distance triathlon taught me lessons that ten Ironman races never did. It brought me a sense of wonder I hadn’t experienced in the sport in almost twenty years. It made me a more humble and grateful athlete. The sport of triathlon offers us endless opportunities for learning and personal growth. Whether it’s improving your swim stroke, getting faster on the bike, or doing a different distance of race, even after many years in the sport, we can still continue to develop as athletes and as humans.

Mission, B.C.’s Kevin Heinze is a coach with TriJoy and the host of the podcast Fitspeek.com.