Marino Vanhoenacker is ready for his Kona closeup
KAILUA-KONA, Hawaii — When Marino Vanhoenacker bombed out at Ironman Hawaii for the second year in a row last year, he didn’t sulk. Instead, he and coach Rik Valcke studied what went wrong with his nutrition and changed the plan away from multiple gels to a fully loaded drink with enough calories to forestall any bonks and enough liquid to keep his digestive tract smoothly flowing. Then they decided to make sure the plan would work under Kona-hot conditions at Ironman Malaysia early in the 2010 season. It must have worked, since he dominated the race with his closest pursuer roughly half an hour behind.
The biggest piece of the puzzle remained proving that he could have his A game working on swim, bike and run all at one time. He passed with flying colors with a 47:49 swim, a 4:18:30 bike and a 2:42:03 run that brought him to the line in 7:52:05, the fourth-fastest Ironman of all time, just 98 seconds off fellow Belgian Luc Van Lierde's 1997 mark at Roth.
This left Vanhoenacker psychologically ready to settle some old scores at Kona, but given his on-off and never-great record there he did not attract as much attention as Denmark's Rasmus Henning, whose slightly slower, 5th-fastest Ironman at Roth this summer put him in as a co-favorite while Vanhoenacker remains in relative shadow.,
Over a Team Commerzbank breakfast at Lava Java, Vanhoenacker had no complaints about his stealth status with most media. But he quietly insists he finally is ready to contend for the win.
Slowtwitch: When things went wrong at Ironman Hawaii last year, what have you learned?
Marino Vanhoenacker: Especially after a bad race it is knocking around in my head for much longer than a good race. So after Hawaii I was depressed for a while but I said to myself, 'Hey there is no way I can't do better than 5th and 6th as I did before. Those were not 100 percent.' So I thought there has to be a reason. Last year I obviously screwed up with a nutrition plan during the race.
ST: What went wrong?
Marino: I basically threw down way too many gels on the bike. Eight. I overdid my stomach and then I felt good until Hawi pretty much. But even on the downhill I started feeling strange and everything came out. Really everything I ever ate that day. So 2-3 k later it was like ding sing ding – game over!
So my coach Rik Valcke and I had a look at this nutrition plan. we really studied what I did there. What we found was — way less gels. Get the energy more out of the drink. Because you drink a lot more during the day and there is a lot of energy there too. And then some bars for the first time in my career. To get something in the stomach you can squeeze. So stuff like that. And we talked to different professors and heard what they had to say. Because one guy says Ok the body can take in this much per hour.
ST: Tell me how it all came together at IM Austria?
Marino: I think for the first time in my career, everything came together. The nutrition plan obviously worked. And then for the 1st time in my life, I had a solid swim, a really good biker and then a strong run afterward. Normally It is either or. Either I have a fast bike and a steady run, or it's a slow bike and then I can run fast. Now I hammered all three disciplined,. Then I thought: OK. I am happy. Now I know I can do it.
ST: Austria is a fair course?
Marino: There are a lot of people who think it is a fast course who come to me afterwards and ask: How do you do it? o everybody is welcome to come and join me and see how fast it is. I'm fast on the course but there are a lot of guys who don't get a personal best on it. It suits me perfectly.
ST: Some say there are some short steep hills that set you up for long slight downhills?
Marino: If you go really fast, the momentum will carry you up and past the many rolling hills that have a slight aggregate downhill. Otherwise you lose the momentum. You have to get over the little humps and then it is really fast.
ST: When you discovered you were so far ahead, were you tempted to shut it down?
Marino: No nothing like that. I saw when I jumped off the bike, I saw the clock in transition. It is easy to do the math. I have so much time to break 8 hours and I know the world record time. Why not try? Yeah.
ST: What was your run split?
Marino: It was 2:42. It was a negative split. Which is perfect.
ST: What did it do for your self-confidence.
Marino: It gave me a huge boost. I was always convinced of myself I could pull it off one day. But if you really do it one day – a really fast run – your confidence spikes. I can do it!
ST: Before did you feel like Hawaii just isn’t my place/ Unlucky? Snakebit?
Marino: Snakebit? No. But I thought a little bit maybe I could never deliver the goods in Hawaii. Something always comes up.
ST: Now do you believe that it is possible?
Marino: The thing is I was 6th and 5th and was never 100 percent. Things always went wrong. So and then I knew OK. I have to get it right one day and I will be closer than 5th place. So I keep going back to that island. Then I had two bad patches here. So it was time to really change things around.
ST: Any advice from your Commerzbank people?
Marino: Yeah I went to training camp with Normann for two weeks in Mallorca, We talked. He also has bad patches in the race and still won it twice. That was something I already figured out. Everybody has bad moments here. In another race you can have it 100 percent Here everybody suffers at one stage or another. But it doesn’t mean everybody can win the race.
ST: Do you ever react to moves by your competitors?
Marino: It is dangerous I think to go out of your own comfort zone. To win this one you have to go out of your comfort zone every now and then. But you have to pick the right time to go out so you don't pay too high a price.
ST: You ever finish strong here?
Marino: Yes. When I was 6th I really picked up the pace the last three miles and passed several people. So I had that experience, which will help me in the future. But it is hard to deliver it.
ST: You communicate regularly with your daughter?
Marino: My daughter Girte and I talk every day on Skype. We both have our pictures on the computer. She is 7 now. She pretty much tells me what happened at school or with the swim club and how she is playing.
So yeah pretty much I ask what she has done the whole day.
ST: She knows you are an Ironman triathlete and that is your work?
Marino: Yes. She already did Iron Kids in Austria. My wife Elke is also racing. So it is a family trip without the daughter.
ST: You make a pact not to get each other nervous?
Marino: Heh heh. We try to give each other the space we need. the last week. But we are fine. We have been doing this for 13 years.
ST: How does the Commerzbank team help you?
Marino: It is good to know you can rely on a whole bunch of people to take care of the things you hate to do and that leaves you free to concentrate on your race. .
ST: Normann says he hates it when you ride all day and don't talk to him?
Marino: Laughs. Yeah sometimes I don't talk when I train. Maybe I couldn't because he was going too fast! We train in Mallorca but I've been here since September 17 and have had many solid days training here.
ST: You get to know the course?
Marino: Yes and every day is different. It is good to know what we might face on race day..
ST: Has the Belgian media given you more attention?
Marino: I am not trying to get that attention. But the last week it's a big boom and they are watching me in Belgium. I just keep it quiet .
ST: Do you talk with Luc Van Lierde, who lives in Bruges?
Marino:. The last few years I don't talk much with him any more. We used to live 3k away. Then I moved to Jabbeke, which is 15k away.
