First Half Ironman Advice

Be ready for the heat that you will face in Muncie.

ETA:  Good Luck!!!

So I am also doing my first half Ironman at St. George on May 4. I have done an olympic before. I wonder how you pick up fluids at the aid stations during the bike? I have never done that before, and I won't really be able to practice it (or will I? Any suggestions on that?) How should I approach grabbing and drinking fluids from the aid stations? 

Thanks!

That's a good question, during my oly they gave out water bottles on the bike course, I can't imagine how they'd do cups... Going to my first 70.3 in March. I used a profile bottle and just poured the water into it.

Every race I've done that had bike aid stations, they always give out bottles with a sports cap (twist and squeeze to drink kind of thing), and the bottles more or less fit in a normal cage.  The important thing is to slow down, and get the attention of the volunteer you're looking to grab the bottle from.  Some will run a little to better match your speed, some will just stand there.  But as long as they see you, it's not that hard to get the bottle. Also, find out before the race what order the aid station will be organized in.  Then you'll know what volunteers to be looking for without having to wait and hear them call out what they're holding. For example, gatorade/water/gu/water/gatorade.   If you're wanting water, then don't head to the first person at the aid station.

If you have a refillable bottle like a speedfil, then squeeze as much in as you can and toss the bottle before you leave transition.  Otherwise, toss the bottle you have at the trash drop right before the transition, then grab a new one and stick it in your cage.

Typically, what is the length (distance) between the start and end of an IM/HIM bike aid station?   Trying to gauge how much time I have between grabbing a bottle, and dumping it in a refillable, or whether I should go with a strategy of dump and grab.

This was me last year.  My first tri was a HIM distance last august, and I used the BT plan and the support of the beginning HIM page on this site under the irondistance training talk.  There's a thread that's like 180 pages long.  don't be shy with questions, as there are others who have the same questions, and many who have very helpful advice.  I would agree with the first response to your post.  when I did the beginner BT plan, I had a background in running and no background in the s/b.  The plan was awesome at preparing me, a non-swimmer for the HIM distance swim.  It was lacking in overall long bike rides, and I substituted, or added lengths to many of the bike days, and finished my bike portion of my HIM in 3mph faster than my fastest training days.  It's overall a great plan, and if followed and tweaked for you, should get you to the start line injury free, and to the finish line with pleasing results.

Hope your journey goes well, and continue to check in.

Maybe 100-150 feet.  While not impossible, it will be difficult refilling while navigating the aid station.  I just grab the bottle and stick it in one of the frame cages and refill my Torhans once I'm clear of the aid station chaos.  Then I toss the empty when I reach the next aid station.

I think at mine they gave out 32 oz bottles of water with the cap already opened so I grabbed one from the beginning, took a drink, squirted the rest into my aero bottle and drop and the trash area.  

The first time I went through the aid station I was going way too fast and dropped the one I attempted to grab so make sure you slow down to a speed where you can grab the water without crashing or dropping the bottle on the ground.

If you are looking into HR training, you will need to understand that you might seem to be going too slow because you are used to going faster without the HRM. But the HRM will keep you in check more so because if you follow it you will have energy later on in the race rather than dying or slowing to a crawl.  

The best thing you can do with your training is pick the program and follow it through. Don't change mid program. If you miss a day here and there don't panic and try to make it up unless you have a light day. 

Most of all as stated have fun. Don't make it become a chore that you "have" to do. Stating that if you just don't have it in you that day to do the workout skip it. Granted don't skip too many but skipping here and there can provide that mental or physical recovery that you need.  

Good luck

To prepare mentally you'll want to envision yourself during each leg of the race as well as T1 and T2. Consider any unexpected things that may arise and how you'd deal with them during the race so they don't throw you off. Having Plan B is always better than just the perfect race plan and then being caught off guard.

Avoid having too fast of a start in the beginning when you're high adrenaline and everyone else is going out fast. Stick with the pace you planned otherwise you'll pay for it during the run. 

And most of all, go out and have tons of fun.