Post by JMcAbier on Jul 30, 2008 9:02:57 GMT -5
I realize this is a little late and REALLY LONG, but I owed it to the club to share. This is more of personal diary to remember the day...
Ironman Lake Placid 2008
July 20, 2008
11:37:22
Prologue:
Why? I have heard that question a lot during this journey. Mostly, the answer is difficult to put into words. It lies in emotions and dreams, and the deep desire act on them. In my opinion, Ironman has done an amazing job creating and marketing its “brand.” Matt Collister recently stated that few companies have established brand loyalty like that of Harley Davidson and Ironman. I truly believe that statement. For me, it is about wanting to be part of Ironman. Few things can move me to tears, but watching The Ironman World Championships every year on tv always does. I wanted to experience that raw emotion that Ironman has a way of exposing. It opens you like a book and displays your strengths and weaknesses down to your core. There is no hiding; it humbles even the greats. I am drawn to this as a way of cutting out the B.S. and gaining a deeper connection with who you are.
Lake Placid:
When we left for LP, I was still riding a high from a good luck send off Tanja had surprised me with a few days earlier. A number of people that have been highly involved in my journey were gathered on our deck. I was in total shock and amazed at the amount of support. What a great way to kick this thing off.
We arrived in Lake Placid late Wednesday evening. My little sister and her family were already there; my parents and my older sister and her family would be arriving late Thursday evening. When I stated that I would be doing this race, I was pleasantly surprised in the amount of support that I would receive. The entire family would be traveling to LP as my support crew. We all stayed under one roof which provided for some quality time together. In hindsight, the race was just one simple part of this week. There would be memories and inside jokes created among my family that will last forever. It really turned into a get to know your family (in a good way) vacation.
The days leading up to the race were very calm and comfortable for me. At no time, was I anxious or nervous. I felt like I really fit in with the other athletes in town. Coming to Angela Forster (www.aforster.net) and Eric Hodska’s (www.hodska.com) training camp here paid huge dividends. Not only was I knowledgeable with the race course and the surroundings, I had proven to myself at that camp that I belonged. What an enormous confidence booster. That is really why I felt so at ease. We filled the days with little workouts (swimming with Tanja or biking out to the downhill into Keene with my Brother-in-law Bill), walking around town, running from t-storms, or just hanging out on the deck while the kids played.
Race Day:
The forecast Saturday night showed a high of 73 degrees with a chance (like 30%) of afternoon showers. Perfect, I thought. I would be off the bike before any storms hit. I got to bed around 10-10:30 and had no problems sleeping. Carter woke Tanja and me up at 3am needing some help finding his blankie. My alarm was set for 3:30; there would be no falling back asleep. I got up and made some breakfast and coffee, then headed out for a light 10 minute jog. The temp was perfect and the stars were out. It was going to be a great day. When I left the unit, I hit the light on my watch to check the time, and the event countdown I had been reading for 10 months indicated” IRONMAN Today.” That just made me smile. It was very peaceful running underneath the street lights before most were awake. I was just absorbing the moment as today would be the day I would complete an IRONMAN. I couldn’t believe it had arrived.
I spent the next couple of hours listening to some tunes on my i-pod and trying to get in about 800 calories. As Tanja and I were getting ready to leave for the transition area at 5:30am, the house was coming awake with excitement. It was a comforting feeling knowing that everyone would be there today. It was a great walk with Tanja that morning. She understood more than anyone, why I had chosen this adventure.
By the time I finished prepping my bike and adding last minute items to my gear bags, the beach had gotten really crowded with people. Luckily, we were able to hook up with the rest of the family for last minute hugs and smiles, and then it was just Tanja and I again. Before I knew it, time had flown by and it was a rush to get on the wetsuit and head to the water.
The Swim: (1:08:52 – 1:49 pace)
The plan Angela laid out was to start in the first five rows, far right of the cable. Let the others, fight for the “prime real estate”. I might swim a little farther, but the cleaner water would be well worth it. While I was waiting in my chosen spot, I saw Margit, a friend from training camp, working her way into the same area. It was great to have a familiar face to kill time with while treading water. My thoughts were all over the place. There were a ton of people. What was this going to be like??? Before we knew it, the cannon sounded and we were off. The plan called to swim the first 300 or so yards harder than race pace trying to get away from the chaos, then slow things down into a comfortable pace. The start actually went well with only a little bumping. The issue came when I chose to slow things up a bit, it took about three seconds for the horrible realization that there were, ohhh about 2,000 swimmers behind me that were going to pummel me when I slowed down. I sighted over my shoulder and caught a glimpse of the madness chasing me. I dropped the “f-bomb under the water and a few other choice words my Mother would not be proud of!” That is really the only time during the entire day that I got nervous. I ended up swimming about a ½ mile harder than I anticipated just trying to keep the others off of my feet. It was about 10 minutes into the swim when I noticed it was raining. Interesting…afternoon showers??? The turn-a-round was the first reality check of this whole Ironman swimming thing. Man, there are some aggressive people out there! Forget that, way right of the buoys I went again. I hit the shore and my watch read 33:45…hmmm, this is going well. I remember Rob Reddy writing once that the second loop was easy so I just kept repeating that and really concentrated on relaxing as I had clean water most of the time and could settle into a rhythm and just focus on my technique. I came out of the water looked at my watch and saw my second lap time was 35 minutes and change for a total swim of 1:08.52. Right where I thought I could be if things went well.
All in all, I got my goggles knocked off twice and only had to give a few people hard KICKS to let them know I was not moving; they would need to find another way around me. Otherwise, I have no idea why anyone would want to swim the cable area and fight the entire swim. I drifted toward the cable line once and it was brutal. I felt it was crucial that I had taught myself to bi-lateral breath as it not only helped alleviate muscle fatigue in my arms, but also allowed me to switch if someone was getting too close on a particular side. In addition, it helped with sighting. I would switch breathing sides to ensure I was still around other swimmers and hadn’t gotten off course.
T1: (7:52)
When I exited the swim it was pouring rain. I ran up to a stripper and lay down. As she was ripping off my wetsuit, I felt my legs give a slight twinge of a cramping feeling. Mental note made to kick up the salt a bit during the bike to avoid any issues. It seemed like it took forever to get my gear bag opened. I had tied the top shut like I had seen others do so no rain could get in overnight. Though it didn’t rain during the night, I evidently did a good job as I couldn’t get into the thing! I looked at everyone leaving to see what they were wearing and elected not to take my arm warmers. No one else had them; it was supposed to be 73, right?
Bike: (5:48:47 – 19.3 mph)
Luckily (I can’t believe I am saying this), I live in Northern Ohio and had a lot of long training rides in the rain, because it poured the entire day. I mean the type of rain that hurts when you are going downhill. The plan was to keep my heart rate on the first loop between 125-135 (+15 beats on the hills.) I was very aware of the belief that most athletes go out way too hard on the first loop of the course and are crawling by the 2nd loop. Although I was passing people like crazy, I was well within my HR zone so I just stuck with the effort and thought maybe this is what a three week taper does to you. Plus, I thought everyone was riding really conservative, I believe due to the rain. To some extent you had to in congested areas. I found that you actually had to ride your breaks to dry them out in the event you may need them. It was disappointing to have to go down large hills riding the breaks just in case someone pulled out in front of you. Overall the first loop was uneventful. I had kicked up the salt intake to three thermatabs for the first two hours, and then backed off back to the original plan. The first loop was somewhere around 2:45 and I felt great. The Devil himself chased me up “Papa Bear” screaming his head off and I gave him a “Bring it on Satan!” It was good to see familiar faces again as my support crew had spread out and gave me the opportunity to see them in various parts throughout town.
During the 2nd loop, I kept trying to stay in the moment and assess myself. Around mile 85, we entered the town of Jay and made a left hand turn toward a long 3-mile climb. This would be the first time that my legs would feel like the power was leaving. I spent the next 20 miles trying to figure out what was happening. Yes, my legs were a little fatigued, but I didn’t think I was riding any harder and the plan actually called for a higher HR on the 2nd loop. My HR monitor had stopped working so I was going on RPE only. Maybe I was riding too hard? I had gotten cold from the rain and my stomach was feeling depleted and a little yucky. I backed off the calories and the pace and waited for the feelings to pass. By mile 105, we were climbing back toward LP, when I came upon an aid station. I was thinking maybe I needed some sugar and went to grab a Gatorade, but noticed someone holding a Power gel with caffeine. I opted for the gel and that was the trick. I was able to climb back into LP feeling decent and only mildly depleted. Results indicate that I passed 340 people on the bike. Though I was far from a negative split, I thought I was capable of riding a sub-6 hour bike so I ended feeling pleased with the effort.
T2: (2:43)
Mostly uneventful. By this time, you knew it was going to be a long run in really wet conditions. My feet and hands were already pruned from being wet for hours.
Run: (4:29:11 – 10:17 pace)
After the race, Tanja stated when I left T2 and stopped to give her a kiss, this was the only time that she felt concerned. She stated that she saw some doubt in my eyes when she asked if I was ok. Quite honestly, she knows me well. By this time, I had been burning calories for seven hours and was remembering how I felt for those 20 miles on the bike. Yikes, I am going to run a marathon now…My very first marathon! What would lie ahead? Answer = RAIN and lots of it!
I was actually running well and by the first mile marker, I had already started playing a game with my head. I said, I only had to do that 25 more times…mile marker two, I only had to do that another 24 more times…
I was able to run fairly well until around the 9.5 mile mark, then I really started to feel drained. I determined that I needed some real food. The feeling I had was like I had skipped lunch. Wait a second, I did skip lunch! So at the 10 mile aid station, it was truly a buffet. I grabbed a ½ of a banana, two slices of an orange, a couple cookies, etc. That was the trick. I started snacking at every aid station whether it was a cookie or two or some fruit. It was raining so hard at times, I would find myself saying “are you f’ing kidding me?” I couldn’t block it out any longer. It would not let up. Just over the ½ way point, I started to get cold again and a little nauseous. By then, I feel mentally I started to shut things down. I was constantly running the math. I had averaged around 9+ minute miles on the first ½ of the marathon and I was well on my way to making my goal of a sub-12 hour event. I wanted to finish in good shape and turning in the best time possible was no longer a goal. I started to walk all the aid stations and all the hills. By mile 15, I was drinking coke. Angela had told me that when I started on coke to stick to it at every aid station. I blew by the 16 mile aid station feeling great. About another couple hundred yards later, I realized why she said to stay on coke. I crashed hard. Mile 16 was something like a 13:30 mile. I ordered a coke immediately at the next station. Some things you have to learn for yourself, I guess. From that point forward, I would run to an aid station, grab a coke and a water, maybe a cookie, then I would walk until I ate what I wanted and would give my stomach time to settle the coke. As soon as I stopped running, I would get uncomfortably cold. To force myself to start running again, I would pick a land mark and tell myself that I had to start running by that point. Most of the time I would, some of the time I would cave and say I meant that driveway up further, not this one
The last miles weren’t getting any easier, but I was determined not to walk once I got into town. I tried to use the energy from the crowd to pull me toward the finish line. When I entered the Olympic Oval I immediately saw my parents and Kyle was waiting for me on my side of the fence. This was an obvious change of plans as Tanja and I had decided that I would not pick between the two boys on which one could run with me; neither would. I just yelled are you going to finish with me Kyle? He yelled yes, so we held hands and continued on together running through the several inches of rain that had collected on the track. We crossed the line and I never heard them call my name (though the rest of the family did.) When Tanja asked with jubilant eyes, you did it…how to you feel, my only response was “man that was hard.” It turns out that it was a last minute decision of my parents to lift Kyle over the fence. Carter completely understood at he was only 5 ½ and you had to be 6 to run with a finisher.
Post – Race:
After a quick massage, we headed home for a hot, hot shower (I was freezing), some dinner and a few beers. It took a long time to warm up. Tanja stated that Angela wanted me to take a cold soak as it would help my legs and let me sleep better that night, but there was no way I was going to prolong the cold feeling any longer. I just could not do it!
Reflecting back on the day, I couldn’t have asked for anything better. There were the expected highs and lows. Some are explainable, some I couldn’t narrow down, but it didn’t take long to think how I could limit the lows next time. I realize how lucky I was to have a large support crew out there all day long in the pouring rain. Spanning the crowd as you went by and seeing familiar faces was huge!
For me, the emotion of the day came not at my own finish, but going back to the finish line at 11:00pm to watch the last athletes come in. I am so glad we did. What a party! I got teary eyed on nearly every finisher. In a way, it was weird to get more emotional over complete strangers finishing than my own, but it gave me a great sense of belonging. I now am a part of something very special. And that continues to bring a big smile to my face.
Ironman Lake Placid 2008
July 20, 2008
11:37:22
Prologue:
Why? I have heard that question a lot during this journey. Mostly, the answer is difficult to put into words. It lies in emotions and dreams, and the deep desire act on them. In my opinion, Ironman has done an amazing job creating and marketing its “brand.” Matt Collister recently stated that few companies have established brand loyalty like that of Harley Davidson and Ironman. I truly believe that statement. For me, it is about wanting to be part of Ironman. Few things can move me to tears, but watching The Ironman World Championships every year on tv always does. I wanted to experience that raw emotion that Ironman has a way of exposing. It opens you like a book and displays your strengths and weaknesses down to your core. There is no hiding; it humbles even the greats. I am drawn to this as a way of cutting out the B.S. and gaining a deeper connection with who you are.
Lake Placid:
When we left for LP, I was still riding a high from a good luck send off Tanja had surprised me with a few days earlier. A number of people that have been highly involved in my journey were gathered on our deck. I was in total shock and amazed at the amount of support. What a great way to kick this thing off.
We arrived in Lake Placid late Wednesday evening. My little sister and her family were already there; my parents and my older sister and her family would be arriving late Thursday evening. When I stated that I would be doing this race, I was pleasantly surprised in the amount of support that I would receive. The entire family would be traveling to LP as my support crew. We all stayed under one roof which provided for some quality time together. In hindsight, the race was just one simple part of this week. There would be memories and inside jokes created among my family that will last forever. It really turned into a get to know your family (in a good way) vacation.
The days leading up to the race were very calm and comfortable for me. At no time, was I anxious or nervous. I felt like I really fit in with the other athletes in town. Coming to Angela Forster (www.aforster.net) and Eric Hodska’s (www.hodska.com) training camp here paid huge dividends. Not only was I knowledgeable with the race course and the surroundings, I had proven to myself at that camp that I belonged. What an enormous confidence booster. That is really why I felt so at ease. We filled the days with little workouts (swimming with Tanja or biking out to the downhill into Keene with my Brother-in-law Bill), walking around town, running from t-storms, or just hanging out on the deck while the kids played.
Race Day:
The forecast Saturday night showed a high of 73 degrees with a chance (like 30%) of afternoon showers. Perfect, I thought. I would be off the bike before any storms hit. I got to bed around 10-10:30 and had no problems sleeping. Carter woke Tanja and me up at 3am needing some help finding his blankie. My alarm was set for 3:30; there would be no falling back asleep. I got up and made some breakfast and coffee, then headed out for a light 10 minute jog. The temp was perfect and the stars were out. It was going to be a great day. When I left the unit, I hit the light on my watch to check the time, and the event countdown I had been reading for 10 months indicated” IRONMAN Today.” That just made me smile. It was very peaceful running underneath the street lights before most were awake. I was just absorbing the moment as today would be the day I would complete an IRONMAN. I couldn’t believe it had arrived.
I spent the next couple of hours listening to some tunes on my i-pod and trying to get in about 800 calories. As Tanja and I were getting ready to leave for the transition area at 5:30am, the house was coming awake with excitement. It was a comforting feeling knowing that everyone would be there today. It was a great walk with Tanja that morning. She understood more than anyone, why I had chosen this adventure.
By the time I finished prepping my bike and adding last minute items to my gear bags, the beach had gotten really crowded with people. Luckily, we were able to hook up with the rest of the family for last minute hugs and smiles, and then it was just Tanja and I again. Before I knew it, time had flown by and it was a rush to get on the wetsuit and head to the water.
The Swim: (1:08:52 – 1:49 pace)
The plan Angela laid out was to start in the first five rows, far right of the cable. Let the others, fight for the “prime real estate”. I might swim a little farther, but the cleaner water would be well worth it. While I was waiting in my chosen spot, I saw Margit, a friend from training camp, working her way into the same area. It was great to have a familiar face to kill time with while treading water. My thoughts were all over the place. There were a ton of people. What was this going to be like??? Before we knew it, the cannon sounded and we were off. The plan called to swim the first 300 or so yards harder than race pace trying to get away from the chaos, then slow things down into a comfortable pace. The start actually went well with only a little bumping. The issue came when I chose to slow things up a bit, it took about three seconds for the horrible realization that there were, ohhh about 2,000 swimmers behind me that were going to pummel me when I slowed down. I sighted over my shoulder and caught a glimpse of the madness chasing me. I dropped the “f-bomb under the water and a few other choice words my Mother would not be proud of!” That is really the only time during the entire day that I got nervous. I ended up swimming about a ½ mile harder than I anticipated just trying to keep the others off of my feet. It was about 10 minutes into the swim when I noticed it was raining. Interesting…afternoon showers??? The turn-a-round was the first reality check of this whole Ironman swimming thing. Man, there are some aggressive people out there! Forget that, way right of the buoys I went again. I hit the shore and my watch read 33:45…hmmm, this is going well. I remember Rob Reddy writing once that the second loop was easy so I just kept repeating that and really concentrated on relaxing as I had clean water most of the time and could settle into a rhythm and just focus on my technique. I came out of the water looked at my watch and saw my second lap time was 35 minutes and change for a total swim of 1:08.52. Right where I thought I could be if things went well.
All in all, I got my goggles knocked off twice and only had to give a few people hard KICKS to let them know I was not moving; they would need to find another way around me. Otherwise, I have no idea why anyone would want to swim the cable area and fight the entire swim. I drifted toward the cable line once and it was brutal. I felt it was crucial that I had taught myself to bi-lateral breath as it not only helped alleviate muscle fatigue in my arms, but also allowed me to switch if someone was getting too close on a particular side. In addition, it helped with sighting. I would switch breathing sides to ensure I was still around other swimmers and hadn’t gotten off course.
T1: (7:52)
When I exited the swim it was pouring rain. I ran up to a stripper and lay down. As she was ripping off my wetsuit, I felt my legs give a slight twinge of a cramping feeling. Mental note made to kick up the salt a bit during the bike to avoid any issues. It seemed like it took forever to get my gear bag opened. I had tied the top shut like I had seen others do so no rain could get in overnight. Though it didn’t rain during the night, I evidently did a good job as I couldn’t get into the thing! I looked at everyone leaving to see what they were wearing and elected not to take my arm warmers. No one else had them; it was supposed to be 73, right?
Bike: (5:48:47 – 19.3 mph)
Luckily (I can’t believe I am saying this), I live in Northern Ohio and had a lot of long training rides in the rain, because it poured the entire day. I mean the type of rain that hurts when you are going downhill. The plan was to keep my heart rate on the first loop between 125-135 (+15 beats on the hills.) I was very aware of the belief that most athletes go out way too hard on the first loop of the course and are crawling by the 2nd loop. Although I was passing people like crazy, I was well within my HR zone so I just stuck with the effort and thought maybe this is what a three week taper does to you. Plus, I thought everyone was riding really conservative, I believe due to the rain. To some extent you had to in congested areas. I found that you actually had to ride your breaks to dry them out in the event you may need them. It was disappointing to have to go down large hills riding the breaks just in case someone pulled out in front of you. Overall the first loop was uneventful. I had kicked up the salt intake to three thermatabs for the first two hours, and then backed off back to the original plan. The first loop was somewhere around 2:45 and I felt great. The Devil himself chased me up “Papa Bear” screaming his head off and I gave him a “Bring it on Satan!” It was good to see familiar faces again as my support crew had spread out and gave me the opportunity to see them in various parts throughout town.
During the 2nd loop, I kept trying to stay in the moment and assess myself. Around mile 85, we entered the town of Jay and made a left hand turn toward a long 3-mile climb. This would be the first time that my legs would feel like the power was leaving. I spent the next 20 miles trying to figure out what was happening. Yes, my legs were a little fatigued, but I didn’t think I was riding any harder and the plan actually called for a higher HR on the 2nd loop. My HR monitor had stopped working so I was going on RPE only. Maybe I was riding too hard? I had gotten cold from the rain and my stomach was feeling depleted and a little yucky. I backed off the calories and the pace and waited for the feelings to pass. By mile 105, we were climbing back toward LP, when I came upon an aid station. I was thinking maybe I needed some sugar and went to grab a Gatorade, but noticed someone holding a Power gel with caffeine. I opted for the gel and that was the trick. I was able to climb back into LP feeling decent and only mildly depleted. Results indicate that I passed 340 people on the bike. Though I was far from a negative split, I thought I was capable of riding a sub-6 hour bike so I ended feeling pleased with the effort.
T2: (2:43)
Mostly uneventful. By this time, you knew it was going to be a long run in really wet conditions. My feet and hands were already pruned from being wet for hours.
Run: (4:29:11 – 10:17 pace)
After the race, Tanja stated when I left T2 and stopped to give her a kiss, this was the only time that she felt concerned. She stated that she saw some doubt in my eyes when she asked if I was ok. Quite honestly, she knows me well. By this time, I had been burning calories for seven hours and was remembering how I felt for those 20 miles on the bike. Yikes, I am going to run a marathon now…My very first marathon! What would lie ahead? Answer = RAIN and lots of it!
I was actually running well and by the first mile marker, I had already started playing a game with my head. I said, I only had to do that 25 more times…mile marker two, I only had to do that another 24 more times…
I was able to run fairly well until around the 9.5 mile mark, then I really started to feel drained. I determined that I needed some real food. The feeling I had was like I had skipped lunch. Wait a second, I did skip lunch! So at the 10 mile aid station, it was truly a buffet. I grabbed a ½ of a banana, two slices of an orange, a couple cookies, etc. That was the trick. I started snacking at every aid station whether it was a cookie or two or some fruit. It was raining so hard at times, I would find myself saying “are you f’ing kidding me?” I couldn’t block it out any longer. It would not let up. Just over the ½ way point, I started to get cold again and a little nauseous. By then, I feel mentally I started to shut things down. I was constantly running the math. I had averaged around 9+ minute miles on the first ½ of the marathon and I was well on my way to making my goal of a sub-12 hour event. I wanted to finish in good shape and turning in the best time possible was no longer a goal. I started to walk all the aid stations and all the hills. By mile 15, I was drinking coke. Angela had told me that when I started on coke to stick to it at every aid station. I blew by the 16 mile aid station feeling great. About another couple hundred yards later, I realized why she said to stay on coke. I crashed hard. Mile 16 was something like a 13:30 mile. I ordered a coke immediately at the next station. Some things you have to learn for yourself, I guess. From that point forward, I would run to an aid station, grab a coke and a water, maybe a cookie, then I would walk until I ate what I wanted and would give my stomach time to settle the coke. As soon as I stopped running, I would get uncomfortably cold. To force myself to start running again, I would pick a land mark and tell myself that I had to start running by that point. Most of the time I would, some of the time I would cave and say I meant that driveway up further, not this one
The last miles weren’t getting any easier, but I was determined not to walk once I got into town. I tried to use the energy from the crowd to pull me toward the finish line. When I entered the Olympic Oval I immediately saw my parents and Kyle was waiting for me on my side of the fence. This was an obvious change of plans as Tanja and I had decided that I would not pick between the two boys on which one could run with me; neither would. I just yelled are you going to finish with me Kyle? He yelled yes, so we held hands and continued on together running through the several inches of rain that had collected on the track. We crossed the line and I never heard them call my name (though the rest of the family did.) When Tanja asked with jubilant eyes, you did it…how to you feel, my only response was “man that was hard.” It turns out that it was a last minute decision of my parents to lift Kyle over the fence. Carter completely understood at he was only 5 ½ and you had to be 6 to run with a finisher.
Post – Race:
After a quick massage, we headed home for a hot, hot shower (I was freezing), some dinner and a few beers. It took a long time to warm up. Tanja stated that Angela wanted me to take a cold soak as it would help my legs and let me sleep better that night, but there was no way I was going to prolong the cold feeling any longer. I just could not do it!
Reflecting back on the day, I couldn’t have asked for anything better. There were the expected highs and lows. Some are explainable, some I couldn’t narrow down, but it didn’t take long to think how I could limit the lows next time. I realize how lucky I was to have a large support crew out there all day long in the pouring rain. Spanning the crowd as you went by and seeing familiar faces was huge!
For me, the emotion of the day came not at my own finish, but going back to the finish line at 11:00pm to watch the last athletes come in. I am so glad we did. What a party! I got teary eyed on nearly every finisher. In a way, it was weird to get more emotional over complete strangers finishing than my own, but it gave me a great sense of belonging. I now am a part of something very special. And that continues to bring a big smile to my face.
