UMC: FAQ.
I've been asked the same questions by a lot of different people, so I thought I'd take a moment to pretend like I have any idea what I'm doing, and answer some of those questions to the best of my ability!
Q: What is this event you're training for?
A: Ultraman Canada
Q: What is it, exactly?
A: It's basically just over two Ironmans-worth of distance, but over 3 days.
Day 1: 10k swim (6.2 miles), 90 mile bike
Day 2: 171 mile bike
Day 3: double marathon (52.4 mile run)
Q: Like.. continuously for 3 days?
A: Each day we have 12 hours to complete the activities assigned to that day. On day 1, the time cut-off is 6 hours for the swim, 12 hours for the whole day. Days 2 and 3 you have 12 hours for the bike, 12 hours for the run. 36 hours for the whole event, in order to be an official finisher.
Q: Where is this event?
A: Penticton, British Columbia, western Canada, but not so west as, say, Vancouver.
Q: Hey, isn't that where Ironman Canada used to be held, before they moved it to Whistler?
A: It sure is. We swim in the other lake, but it uses a lot of the same bike course.
Q: 10k is a long way to swim, won't you need to eat/drink?
A: Indeed. (Well, I could not, but that really seems like a bad idea.) I am required to have a kayak escort for my swim, which will be Matt. He will paddle along beside me and give me fluids and calories at regular intervals. This will be a new experience for me (and for him), and is one we're practicing right now.
Q: How far apart are the aid stations on the bike and run?
A: No aid stations! Once Matt is done kayaking, he will hop in a van with the rest of my crew (Karen and Ryan), and they will be my support for the bike and the run. They will drive up ahead, stop, get my stuff ready, give me whatever I need as I ride or run by, then drive up ahead again and wait. We haven't yet discussed how far ahead they'll drive, but maybe 6-10 miles on the bike, 1 mile on the run? They will repeat that for a lot of hours. They will probably hate the van and possibly me by the end of day 3!
Q: Is it draft legal?
A: No drafting. On the swim or the bike.
Q: Can you have pacers on the run?
A: I can have one pacer at any time on the run (after the first mile or so). All of my crew are runners, so they'll have to sort out who wants to run how far and when. They will probably carry my water for me (which will be a rare treat, since I'm used to carrying a handheld water bottle for every run I do), open and hand me food, sing to me (hear that, Ryan?), and generally try to keep me moving, preferably running.
Q: How many people are doing this?
A: I'll be one of 30 participants. My picture's even up on the participant page!
Q: Are you going to win?
A: My goal is to finish under the time cut-off. Anything more than that is just a bonus.
Q: Why are you doing this?
A: I have no answer to that question. "Because." "Why not?" "It seemed like a good idea at the time." "To see if I can."
Course info:
The swim is in Skaha Lake, average water temp 74 degrees, wetsuit legal. It's point-to-point, and since Matt and I have been practicing with loops, hopefully it should be a no-brainer for us. (pdf of the swim course)
Bike day 1 is roughly a loop, starting and ending in Okanagan Falls and going over the infamous Richter Pass (pdf of bike day 1).
Elevation profile for bike day 1:
Bike day 2 is point-to-point, starting in Penticton and ending in Princeton. So while we'll generally be home-based in Penticton, we have a hotel room in Princeton for night 2. It continues to be not-flat. (pdf of bike day 2.)
Elevation profile for bike day 2:
Day 3, the run, continues the theme of not-flat, traveling point-to-point from Princeton to Summerland. Allegedly roughly 1/3 of the course is gravel roads, which I've heard referred to lovingly, so hopefully not the crappy kind of gravel roads. The good news for everything but my quads is that it seems to be a pretty notable downhill to the finish line. (pdf of the run course.)
Elevation profile for day 3, the run:
Uh, and that's all I know for now, I think! If anyone has any particular questions I didn't address here, I'm happy to try to answer them.
Q: What is this event you're training for?
A: Ultraman Canada
Q: What is it, exactly?
A: It's basically just over two Ironmans-worth of distance, but over 3 days.
Day 1: 10k swim (6.2 miles), 90 mile bike
Day 2: 171 mile bike
Day 3: double marathon (52.4 mile run)
Q: Like.. continuously for 3 days?
A: Each day we have 12 hours to complete the activities assigned to that day. On day 1, the time cut-off is 6 hours for the swim, 12 hours for the whole day. Days 2 and 3 you have 12 hours for the bike, 12 hours for the run. 36 hours for the whole event, in order to be an official finisher.
Q: Where is this event?
A: Penticton, British Columbia, western Canada, but not so west as, say, Vancouver.
Q: Hey, isn't that where Ironman Canada used to be held, before they moved it to Whistler?
A: It sure is. We swim in the other lake, but it uses a lot of the same bike course.
Q: 10k is a long way to swim, won't you need to eat/drink?
A: Indeed. (Well, I could not, but that really seems like a bad idea.) I am required to have a kayak escort for my swim, which will be Matt. He will paddle along beside me and give me fluids and calories at regular intervals. This will be a new experience for me (and for him), and is one we're practicing right now.
Q: How far apart are the aid stations on the bike and run?
A: No aid stations! Once Matt is done kayaking, he will hop in a van with the rest of my crew (Karen and Ryan), and they will be my support for the bike and the run. They will drive up ahead, stop, get my stuff ready, give me whatever I need as I ride or run by, then drive up ahead again and wait. We haven't yet discussed how far ahead they'll drive, but maybe 6-10 miles on the bike, 1 mile on the run? They will repeat that for a lot of hours. They will probably hate the van and possibly me by the end of day 3!
Q: Is it draft legal?
A: No drafting. On the swim or the bike.
Q: Can you have pacers on the run?
A: I can have one pacer at any time on the run (after the first mile or so). All of my crew are runners, so they'll have to sort out who wants to run how far and when. They will probably carry my water for me (which will be a rare treat, since I'm used to carrying a handheld water bottle for every run I do), open and hand me food, sing to me (hear that, Ryan?), and generally try to keep me moving, preferably running.
Q: How many people are doing this?
A: I'll be one of 30 participants. My picture's even up on the participant page!
Q: Are you going to win?
A: My goal is to finish under the time cut-off. Anything more than that is just a bonus.
Q: Why are you doing this?
A: I have no answer to that question. "Because." "Why not?" "It seemed like a good idea at the time." "To see if I can."
Course info:
The swim is in Skaha Lake, average water temp 74 degrees, wetsuit legal. It's point-to-point, and since Matt and I have been practicing with loops, hopefully it should be a no-brainer for us. (pdf of the swim course)
Bike day 1 is roughly a loop, starting and ending in Okanagan Falls and going over the infamous Richter Pass (pdf of bike day 1).
Elevation profile for bike day 1:
Bike day 2 is point-to-point, starting in Penticton and ending in Princeton. So while we'll generally be home-based in Penticton, we have a hotel room in Princeton for night 2. It continues to be not-flat. (pdf of bike day 2.)
Elevation profile for bike day 2:
Day 3, the run, continues the theme of not-flat, traveling point-to-point from Princeton to Summerland. Allegedly roughly 1/3 of the course is gravel roads, which I've heard referred to lovingly, so hopefully not the crappy kind of gravel roads. The good news for everything but my quads is that it seems to be a pretty notable downhill to the finish line. (pdf of the run course.)
Elevation profile for day 3, the run:
Uh, and that's all I know for now, I think! If anyone has any particular questions I didn't address here, I'm happy to try to answer them.