Experience Matters: How Matt Hanson Achieved a Top-10 at IRONMAN Kona

With an inquisitive mind and a doctorate in exercise science, Matt Hanson is one of the most technically savvy triathletes in the world. That’s why Quintana Roo trusted Hanson to help develop the new V-PRi, which he rode to a top-10 finish at this year’s VinFast IRONMAN World Championship Kona.

With a victory at IRONMAN 70.3 Chattanooga and a second-place finish at IRONMAN 70.3 Boulder, Hanson currently sits second overall in the 2024 IRONMAN Pro Series. He is one of the most experienced and consistent IRONMAN athletes around, so I decided to call him up and find out what it took to achieve his best World Championship finish to date and how he sets up his custom V-PRi.

Note: This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

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Getting Injured Before IRONMAN Kona

Matt running on the Queen K

Quintana Roo: You’ve been dealing with a knee injury this year and you’re currently recovering from knee surgery. Did that affect your prep going into Kona?

Matt Hanson: Definitely! I've been fighting this knee injury all summer and it kind of peaked in September. So I went three weeks with no running and then I had very limited running after that. I was probably already at 50-60% of the mileage I would normally put in over the summer, and then I did a block with absolutely no running.

I got somewhat healthy about 16 days before the race. I did a little bit of running before that, but I only did 2 tough runs, 16 and 13 days before the race. Those went okay so I just thought, ‘Well, I’m running with this fitness.’

QR: So you came into Kona with imperfect preparation. How were your nerves?

MH: Honestly, not bad. This was my 8th Ironman World Championships. In the past, I would be extremely nervous the week out. Obviously, I was tired from the build, so there's that component, but I really didn't feel like the nerves were getting to me. I've thankfully learned how to deal with them from past experiences

Matt’s IRONMAN Kona Race Recap

I needed to stay with them until the top of Hawi and then let them go because I thought that most of them would probably ‘overbike’ and I didn't want to be one of them.

QR: How did your race go overall? Did you have a plan? Did it go according to plan?

MH: If you have a specific race plan going into Kona when you aren’t a first pack swimmer, you’ve got a plan to fail.

The race is so hard that you just never know what’s going to happen. I never would have anticipated the temps being as cool as they were early in the morning. I never would have anticipated that 18-20 guys would stick together the entire ride. Usually, it blows up, you have one guy off the front, and it breaks up a couple more times behind that at least.

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Talking to my coach the day before the race, I told her that the ideal situation for me would be to swim about where I did. Really, the best-case scenario would have been to stick to that 48.5-minute group that was 90 seconds in front of me. That would have made my day a whole lot better, but when the break happened in the water, there were two people in front of me and I wasn't able to get around and close the gap. You know when that happens, that's where you're coming out of the water.

I had no idea how many racers were ahead of me, how fast they were going, or how much time I was losing. But I've been in that situation before and I had faith that the race would come back to me.

For the bike leg, I figured that if I came out with that 50-minute group, I needed to stay with them until the top of Hawi and then let them go because I thought that most of them would probably ‘overbike’ and I didn't want to be one of them. So I stayed with them and I was riding quite hard in the first half, especially because it was really cool in the morning. Then somebody let a gap go about a mile and a half before the turnaround in Hawi.

I could have tried to close it, but since I was planning on letting the group go at the top of Hawi anyway, I decided that it was a sign and let the group go early. Then I just stuck to my own steadier, more consistent power numbers. I was on my own the rest of the way back. It was a lonely, lonely 50-mile stretch.

I had no idea how many racers were ahead of me, how fast they were going, or how much time I was losing. But I've been in that situation before and I had faith that the race would come back to me. I just planned on being able to run into the race at some point and that actually happened quite quickly since a lot of people were blowing up!

Matts IRONMAN Kona Splits

Lowlights, Highlights, and Lessons

Matt toughing it out through the Energy Lab

My knee was not feeling great at that point. You just kind of have to figure out how to shut that off.

QR: In events this long and difficult, it’s common for athletes to hit a low point during the day. Did you experience that?

MH: Honestly, I really didn't. I was able to stay in a pretty good mental space throughout the day. When things are kind of going how you penciled out your day to go, and you’re not thinking about anybody else, it feels good. I was also seeing good numbers most of the day.

I did start cramping in the first mile of the run, but I was able to get my nutrition sorted and get on top of that. There was a mile in the Energy Lab where I was not feeling very good. It was by far my slowest mile of the day. I had to kind of battle a little bit to get back on pace and just fight. My knee was not feeling great at that point. You just kind of have to figure out how to shut that off. I wouldn't call it a mental low point. It was just something I had to fight through.

QR: What was the best part of Kona for you? Other than finishing in 10th place.

MH: Crossing the finish line and having my wife and 7-month-old right there. That was important to me. A lot goes into getting ready for these races. There have been so many times that I've buried myself leading into the World Championships and had nothing to show for it. I finally had a day on the island that I could feel good about and got closer to the sort of result that I have been looking for. To have them there to celebrate that with me meant a lot!

On the Big Island, it's really about ‘running on’ rather than ‘hanging on.’

QR: Did you apply any lessons from previous IRONMAN Konas? Or did you learn anything new this time around?

MH: You always learn something! I've been doing this for quite a while so I guess the lessons get a little bit smaller each time. Hopefully, I've made all the big mistakes already and gotten them out of the way.

In 2022, I think I was 40th or maybe even 45th at the turnaround in Hawi and I ran my way back up to 15th. On the Big Island, it's really about ‘running on’ rather than ‘hanging on.’ So I learned a lot from that.

This year, the biggest thing that I changed was doing my build from home instead of going to a camp. This added some stress, of course, because when I go to a camp I can just pretend everything else doesn't exist. But I also think that being home, maintaining that home routine, being around family, and just being in your own bed definitely helped this year. I think it helped me more than the additional stresses took away.

I don't think I'll do a month-long pre-Kona camp when I’m there again in two years. It’s just not worth the time away from home or the added expense. I’ve shown myself that I can have a great day on the Island without doing that.

QR: What are your plans now that Kona is over?

MH: The plan is to race the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship. If I have a setback with my knee though, I'll shut that down. Otherwise, I'm trying to get through 2024 before I focus too much on 2025.

Matt Hanson Racing

Matt Hanson’s Custom Quintana Roo V-PRi

In heavy crosswinds or at really high speed, the V-PRi is just so stable.

Groupset: Shimano Dura-Ace Di2
Crankset: Shimano Dura-Ace, 56/44t, 170mm
Cassette: Shimano Dura-Ace, 11-30t
Wheels: DT Swiss ARC 1400 DICUT DB 80
Front Tire: Continental Aero 111, 26mm
Rear Tire: Continental GP 5000 S TT, 28mm
Cockpit: Drag2Zero .66 aerobars + Quintana Roo Intelligent Integration Carbon basebar
Saddle: ISM PN 3.0

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QR: So you're not onto the super short crank trend?

MH: Absolutely not! I like 170mm. It was never something that I felt the need to chase.

QR: I see you’re on tubeless tires. What tire pressures do you run?

MH: I'm a fairly light guy (~66kg). Depending on the course and conditions I’ll adjust my pressures accordingly, but I was using 70 PSI at Kona.

QR: Did you carry any spares or tools in the V-PRi QBox?

MH: I actually raced with just a plug kit and a CO2 cartridge in there. So I don't carry tubes, but I have a plug kit that's preloaded with the plug in case I ever have an issue. If you have to change a tube in a race, your race is probably done. I’ve only had one time in a race where I've had to plug a tire, but I only lost 30 seconds. I can make that up.

QR: Is there anything about your setup that you want to tweak?

MH: You're always trying to find the latest and greatest thing. I'm pretty happy with the Absolute Speed BTA bottle between my arms and being able to clip the V-PRi hydration straw to that. That tests very, very well and I saved quite a bit of drag there. So I’m very happy with that.

The behind-the-saddle system that I'm running, I've used since 2015-16 and it always tests very well. But that's where I think some possible future improvement could come. I've tested a bunch of others and haven't found anything that works better yet, but I'm exploring some options.

QR: How do you do aero testing?

MH: I've been to the wind tunnel twice. I've got a GiBli aero sensor that’s good for comparing one run to another run. I’ve been beta testing it. It’s got a better user interface than what I was using before, you don’t need 5G, and it connects to your Garmin as well. Then I also do post-race analysis with software that shows you the CdA clusters.

QR: What do you like most about your V-PRi?

MH: One of my favorite parts of working with Quintana Roo is being involved with the development of the V-PRi. All the internal storage is great. The new Intelligent Integration base bar is fantastic. But my favorite thing is that all the aero improvements actually make a difference. The original V-PR was already great in the wind, but now it's even better. In heavy crosswinds or at really high speed the V-PRi is just so stable.

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