It’s no secret that I am a big fan of Lake Placid and all it has to offer. In fact, I advocate for the village whenever possible, and have introduced many people to the Adirondacks over the years. Lake Placid is truly one of those special places that offers something for everyone. The kids enjoy the shopping, the adults enjoy the dining, and families can enjoy the active lifestyle. Training is what first brought me to Lake Placid, and the rest is what kept me there.
Although I have only done the Lake Placid Ironman twice, I have raced in many other long course and WTC races and this is my favorite. During race week the entire village is full of athletes. You can really see the area come alive when the ice cream shop has a line out the door, and the lake is packed with people in wet suits. Every car has a bike rack and pasta is consumed as fast as it can be boiled.
Last year of course we all missed this event. No big crowds, no floating in the lake the next day. It was like many other events postponed a year to 2021. This made a sad Summer for sure. Not just for me, but all of the athletes who look forward to IMLP each year. Even training was way off. Normally on weekends getting closer to race day you will see dozens of people out cycling and running the course. During dinner if you sit lakeside you will see swim buoys floating around the lake into dusk. But last year was much more subdued. No need to work it if there are no races I guess. (I did race a ‘private’ 70.3 hosted by my coach at his LP tri camp) Generally speaking it was a gloomy Summer and didn’t have the same feel as it has in the past.
But here we are. The vax is rolling out, restrictions are being lifted, and finally there are some signs that we might have a race. This is by no means a guarantee, but some of the press from the local paper indicates the race directors are going for it. After reading that the Tupper Lake 70.3 was cancelled for June, the idea of racing one month later seemed pretty far fetched, but alot can happen in a few weeks. So as of right now, I am feeling good that this thing happens.
Now with that said, we will be heading back up to Lake Placid in a few weeks, and I plan to speak to some of the locals about what they know. At the end of the day this will come down to permits and profitability. The race can’t be done without approvals, and it won’t be done unless it makes financial sense for WTC to hold it. With the Canadian border still closed, and any number of travel restrictions still in place, that might be a deciding factor.
I won’t worry too much about that though. It is out of our hands, and all we can do it focus on the training. My coach has a great plan to help work on the cycling this year and the run is on point. For now the goal remains: crush IMLP.
Float. Spin. Walk. 