Best first IM and longest training ride for IM

Thanks for the feedback,

I'm thinking since I don't have alot of hills I might shoot for IM florida rather than the moutains of IM canada.

I'll work up to the 6 hour ride time. I did almost 3 today and it tired me out. Guess I have a long way to go.

you shouldn't need to worry about qualifying spots. since you are preparing this far in advance already, just register a year in advance.

1. no. i use the beIronFit plan
2. i agree with yaqui. they all have +'s and -'s. florida is fine if you are not a hill fan, but then again, you'll have to deal with saltwater and (from what i hear) sub-par scenery.
3. the general thought is that the 100mile ride 5mile run brick is the most important workout. it gives you a chance to test fitness, nutrition, logistics, etc. thant being said, it is hard to overtrain on the bike. ride lots. 2 centuries are better than 1. 7 hour rides are better than 6 hour rides.

I did my first IM last year at IM USA. Because it's close to me,about 4 hours away.

I'm no great hill climber so that slowed me down a bit. I was able to maintain about a 14 mph average with a total bike time of 8 hours. I had a flat that cost me about 25 minutes and used the porto-potties 3 times. I wasn't trying to qualify for hawaii, so i didn't feel it was necessary to pee on my bike. Actually getting off felt pretty darn good.
My swim time was 1:22, bike 8:07 and run 5:30 for a total of 15:18. Oh, and like 10 minute transitions....i ran into some friends in the changing tent.

Yeah, its a long day when you are slow, but I had a GREAT time and will PR next time. I'm signed up for IMFL this november, so we will see how much that makes a difference in time/terrain etc. Aerobic training is the key for me. For IM FL I am going to try to knock off 2 hours from the bike and 1 hour from my run. (shorter transitions too)

I didn't really use a training log or plan, but I would do events that would get my body used to being out there for a long time. So I did a few century rides (7 hours) and a hard 1/2 IM (8:20) and an adventure race (8:30).

In talking to people on the run, i found that I was well trained for what I wanted to accomplish. Some people had hardly trained, I couldn't believe it! But they were walking the marathon and I was running it.

So, for your first IM, plan on having a great time! IMLP is great because its a small town and the whole town gets out and supports you on the course which makes a HUGE difference. It's hard to be out there when there is no one cheering you on....for me anyway.
Sorry this is long, just wanted to get in some advice/experience.
Good luck to all!

I agree w/ Weds...

You can't really spend too much time on the bike, unless you 'overkill' the hills and fry your legs! LSD...Long, STEADY Distance...

I agree with Yaqui. Think about the logistics.

I've flown to two races, and driven to 4. Believe me, driving is 1000 times better.

Flying (from Seattle) to Florida and California with a bike was awful. Add in the wetsuit, run gear, nutrition, etc., and it was a major pain. Triathlon's a wonderful sport, but it's not light in the gear department. Add in trying to get a rental car while loaded down, etc. Yuck.

The driving races, however, were wonderful. (One was 6 hours, 2 were 4, and one was 40 minutes). Much nicer. you've got your own car. you can load it whenever. Travel at your own pace. No bike box. No busted derailleur when the #*&$#*^ airline charges you $85 and thinks that "FRAGILE - Bicycle" really means "hop up and down and trash this muthah"... Oops, maybe that's a bit of a tangent, but it happened to me, 2 days before my CA iron-distance.

Suffice it to say, I'm a big fan of races you can drive to. You can drive the course, or even train on it. Etc.

Unless you have a burning desire (ie, Kona), or other major reason (spring race in AZ, for instance), I'd go with a local-ish option. IMFL is flat, yes. But unless you are totally paralyzed by hills, that's not a big enough reason to opt out of LakePlacid or Wisconsin.

Good luck!