Half-Baked Ironman

Well, the big weekend was finally here – my first Half-ironman, my goal race for the season.  I had done a sprint and an Olympic, and I was more pleased with the Olympic results than the sprint, so I was hoping to continue on that upward trend as the distance increased.

I was pretty nervous, in spite of 13 marathons, and 8 half marathons, this was uncharted territory –beyond my 2-4 hour range to 6-7 … I did not know what to expect.   Laura and I got there a little late for the last race talk, but we did hear them talk about the race course.  I got my bike checked into transition, but I was not crazy about the rack placement.   My spot was on a ‘one-way rack’, so the bikes next to you was sticking out on your side, so you did not have the typical staggered placement, which allows you to put some of your setup by the back wheel of your neighbor. Plus, we were right up against the sand-dune, spilling into the rack area.  This both crowded space, and made it possible for sand to get into the gears and cables overnight.  I covered the rear derailleur with a garbage bag as best I could.

I had overplanned for possible hot weather.  I brought a big rolling cooler.  This was to keep ice, cold water bottles and cooling bandanas on the run.  One thing I have to do is adjust according to the weather, and what I see on race day.  Like at TriShark, people were considering long sleeves, and I brought arm warmers.  But by the time I got out of the water, it had warmed up.  But, I had left those arm warmers in transition, and god-damn it, I was going to wear them.   At Steelhead, the weather was perfect.  Overnight temperatures just below 60, highs for race day not much above 70, a light wind.  But, I brought the cooler, so I dragged into my crowded transition spot.

My nervousness started to show when we got to the hotel.  I only brought into the hotel the gear that I needed to put on to drive over in the morning, and left the wetsuit, etc., and transition bag in the car.  But went I checked, I could not find my trishorts.  After a frantic trip down to the car, and tearing apart my other meticulously packed bags, I could not find it.  It was 5:30, and we were 15-20 minutes away from the venue, which closed at 6 pm.  That was my best shot at getting a replacement pair.  But I did not think I could navigate parking etc. and make it there.  Then I remembered that Chris Bannon was going to be checking in late, so I called him.  Yes! He was still at the registration/expo area.  I directed him to a tent that I noticed had DeSoto shorts on sale, and he got me a pair. 

Then, it was time to go to dinner and meet Chris and most of the other TriSmarties there.  Laura was going to have driving duties on the way home, but I took my usual driver seat.  Well, my bearings must still have been on the Chicago side of the lake, because I was convinced Stevensville was north of Benton Harbor, and we went 15 miles out of the way.  But we got to our dinner spot and had great pasta with the Shoemakers, Forest, the Murphys and Chris Bannon.  I turned the keys over to Laura for the drive home, even though I was not drinking.    

  

We got up at 4:15 am, and I had some coffee, and ensure, banana, half a Gatorade and a bagel with a little Nutella.  I think that is about 700-800 calories. We drove in the Eastern Time Zone darkness at about 5:15 am.  We were directed into a church parking lot by flashlight-wielding Boy Scouts.  My co-worker, Jim, who had been my swimming partner for weekly swims before work at Ohio Street Beach, had his family in a rented RV there – you can read about their odyssey and the inspiration fueling his races at www.eatpraydean.com. 

We had a short hike through the neighborhood to get to the beach transition area.   Note to self –add headlamp flashlight to gear, especially for long races in late summer in Michigan.  It took me a while to get my transition area set up, go to the bathroom, etc.  I did not feel like I had a lot of room for my gear, so I left a lot of my running stuff in the transition bag, and decided to unpack it during T1.  

Going into this race, I sometimes doubted whether I could make a good triathlete, or if I was just a 1-trick pony as a runner.  People had talked about putting little trinkets on their bikes, or in transition as inspiration,   So, I affixed a few confidence boosters to the tray I use for rinsing sand off my feet – For the run, a Boston Marathon timing chip; For the bike, a route map of the a 75 mile day I rode in RAGRAI last summer; and for the swim – a card from a surf shop in Ireland, hoping somewhere in my Celtic DNA there was a swimmer, considering my Dad grew up on the ocean.  So, it was sort of coincidental that my transition neighbor was an Australian transplant to Michigan with a steel frame bike and downtube shifters.  This bright yellow bike had stickers saying “Fork More Pork.”  I recognized that as a team from RAGBRAI called “the Whiners”.  So, I took that as a good sign for the bike leg. 

We had a mile walk to the swim start, where I would put on my wet suit.  I had got a lot of use out of it over the summer since Laura got it for my birthday.  I had taken it to Racine, in case I had a chance to do a practice swim that weekend.  I did not use it, but when I unpacked it, there were 2 superficial tears near the leg.  I had MOX Multipsort fix it, and they only charged $15, so it had held up the last month of training.   When I was putting the wetsuit on, Laura took my picture, and saw that my camera battery was dead – another race preparation detail I had neglected – but not critical.  I got a chance to get in the water and get acclimated, seal my goggles, etc.  There were a lot of TriSmarties in my wave, and others cued up a few waves behind us.  I was pretty sure that most or all of them would get out of the water before me, but I had accepted that.  My goal was to get out of the water without my heart race racing, or feeling beat up from struggling.   When the sounded the horn for our wave, I walked and skipped through the shallow water over a sand bar, and let a lot of the wave go ahead of me.  After I got in the water, there was a strong pull from all the swimmers around me, which I do not mind at all.  After a minute or so, I noticed several other swimmers doing breast strokes for extended periods, or the back stroke.  I got the sense that they had a little over excitement/nervousness going on.  I had experienced that in the sprint and Olympic earlier this summer, and I noticed that it wasn’t happening today.   So, I felt good that I was relaxed.  However, my calm attitude did not keep me on a straight line.  Every 5-10 strokes I would breast stroke, look forward, but I kept finding myself to the right of the line of buoys.  So, I just zigzagged in between all 16 of the buoys, just rounding the outside of each buoy.  I wasn’t getting fatigued with all the extra distance.  I was sort of frustrated, but just resigned to the fact that this is how swim was going to be today.  I had done the same thing every time I swam at OSB, so I knew I could make the final distance, but I would be going a few hundred yards extra.  I was glad to make the final turn and see the Ironman arch on the beach.  My drifting was not so bad, but I stood up pretty early to make sure I would finish on straight line, and get to the land-based events ASAP.  There was a crowd lining the beach, and some people from TriSmart were there, because they called my name.  I saw that John Molchin and Melanie had gotten there that morning.  I charged up the beach, happy to be using my legs.  Laura was near the transition entrance, cheering ‘I love you, I am so proud of you’.  That made me smile, because I did not think my swim was anything to be proud of, but she gives me credit for trying.

I felt good in transition, my heart rate was getting up from the run, and it wasn’t soaring during the swim.  My transition area was a little cramped, so it took me awhile to get my wetsuit off, get sunscreen on, and get everything on for the bike. I was worried about getting sunburned on the bike & run, so I wore a cycling jersey with short sleeves.  I did not feel like I desperately had to, but I decided to use the porta-potty, since one was conveniently placed every 20 yards in transition.  Someone recommended Uncrustable PBJ sandwich, so I had about half of that.  On the bike I took, Profile bottle filled with ice water, and half-liter bottles of Gatorade and water in my cages, ready to be tossed when empty at the bottle exchanges.  For nutrition, I stuck 3 Gus in the rubber band of my profile bottle, and in my Bento box, a Stinger, a Bonk Bar and Clif Blocks.  

I had about half of transition to cover to get my bike out, and I am glad that I am 3 for 3 in my transitions in not slipping on bike shoes.   I got clipped, and was off on the bike course.   Even with all the initial turns, and bunched up riders, it seemed like I was going pretty fast (22-23 mph), but I did not feel winded.  There must have been a downhill and/or a tailwind, but I figured this would not be the norm for the day.  Sure enough, the gradual uphill on Blue Star Highway brought me back to reality.  

5 miles came up quick, and I had been drinking fluids, but now I made sure I had a few bites of food every 2-3 miles.   I was doing well on the uphills, and when I went downhill, it seemed like I could gain speed just from momentum, which was not the case with my original Giant wheels.  It actually felt cool on the bike, because it was overcast and in the 60’s.    When I got to the first bottle exchange, I had to gulp water and pour it into my profile bottle, so I thought maybe I wasn’t drinking enough.  We made the turn off Blue Star Highway, and I saw the name Lee on the back of a blond woman, which is funny, because on our practice run, I had ridden with Lee to that exact spot, and stopped and waited for others to make sure they knew the route.   I was not thinking quick enough to call out to her, and I did not want to risk looking back as we made the turn. 

As we headed west, I passed a lot of riders, still clocking splits above 20 mph, and feeling good.  I knew there were not a lot of hills for a while, but the road would get rough- first chip and tar, and then long stretches of patchwork pavement.  It actually made for some camaraderie as riders complained to each other about the road, but I assured them this was the worst part, and it would be done in 2-3 miles.  I tried to get in the profile bars, but people would pass me, and then get in front of me, and that would interrupt my rhythm.    

We meandered back south, and kept heading west, so we would get a taste of the light wind, and then lose it.  I like turns on bike courses, as long as they are marked well and 90 degrees or less.  I could probably learn to corner them better, but it seems like I don’t shy away from them, because I typically gain on people, before and during turns, but then they catch me again. 

At some point before 20 miles, I could feel my inner thighs hurting.  The friction on my rear wheel just seemed heavier, and I must have been pushing down too much.  I used to get sore like this a few years ago, when I did a lot less biking, but it had not happened recently.  I tried to concentrate on making circles with the pedals, and pushing forward at the top quarter of my stroke.  I knew I would make it through the bike, but I was not sure how it would affect my run.  My legs did not feel like this on any of my brick runs.   My pace was good, though.  Some miles would be 2:50 minutes, and some would be 3:15, so it seemed like I hovered between 18-21 mph.  I had a heart rate monitor on, and I wanted to keep my heart rate between 130 and 145.  But for long stretches, my heart rate would be 118-125.  It only rarely got above 135.   If I could have, I don’t know if my legs could keep up. 

In the first 15 miles, Forest Reeder passed me, somewhere before 20 miles, Jeff Shoemaker caught me.  A few miles later, I came up on Barb Shoemaker in her neon green top I said ‘Hi’ to her and soon saw the dreaded rumble strips.  When we rode this in practice, I got a flat within 2 miles after going over the rumble strips, I was hoping we could go around them.  But in the race talk the director clearly said you had to go over them.  But people were going in the oncoming lane.  Now I am a stickler for rules, especially when there is a race official in a pickup truck right there.  So I used the shoulder, which still had rumble strips,    but they were not painted.  Then I just thought “F# it “, I crossed over to the left lane and avoided the rumble strip.   But some energy and distance trying to avoid that, and was hoping we all would not get penalties, or that I would not get a flat.   But no penalty, and no flat, and I headed on the westerly part of the course.

Laura had suggested I practice the bottle exchange, but the nutrition/food handoff on the bike seemed iffier, because there are more items to choose from, and they are smaller to grab.  Of the 3 Gus I had on the bike, when I took my first one, I must have dislodged another.  So, I decided to start picking up Gus at the aid stations, even though I had just used my second one.  So, I tossed an empty Gatorade bottle in the net, grabbed one, and called out for GU.  Just as I squeezed my hand to grab it, the volunteer said – “It’s open !”  Yeah, I noticed that as my hand got all sticky. Oh well, 200 calories in 10 minutes, I probably could use it.  It used to bother me getting my hand sticky from Gatorade or GU, but now,  I sip some water from my profile bottle, and spit it out on my hand and rinse it off. 

The steepest hills on Steelhead are on the eastern part of the course away from the lake.  They definitely slowed my pace, so my mile splits started to show slower than 15 mph,   which I had wanted to avoid.   But my fastest splits were faster than I expected, so I was hoping that would give me a good average.    I was able to pass some people going up these steep hills, and recover to a good speed quickly.    I do not hesitate to get in a low gear, and spin at a high cadence, which sort of feels like running. 

At about mile 37, you turn south on Blue Star Highway.    I had really cruised on this stretch on our practice ride, but we had a tailwind that day.  This section is a net decline, but has some long hills along the way.    There was not much headwind, but prior to this, we had only gone 1-2 miles at time into the wind.  So, to me, the perception felt like a headwind, especially since it came at the end of the race.  What did help was that the road veers back and forth so, sometimes the wind lessened. 

At the last aid station, I  picked up two more Gus.   Someone told me to take a GU 15 minutes before getting off the bike, but I miscalculated the distance, and took it at more like 30.    So, with 3 miles to go, I had my fifth GU on the bike, in addition to the Stinger, Bonk bar, 2 Shot Blocks, and 2 bottles of Gatorade. 

Another piece of advice was to use a lower gear the last few miles, so your legs don’t feel heavy when you start the run.   But at Steelhead, the last 3-4 miles go downhill before turning into Jean Klock Park. And my attitude is that when you get a downhill, use it.  So, I kept in a higher gear to pedal down the hills at 25+ mph, and when I had a flat section, to uphill, I downshifted.   When I checked later, mile 55 was my fastest split – 22.92 mph.  I was smelling the hay in the barn, and looking forward to running in the pasture!      As we got to the center of Benton harbor, we had to slow, with a lot of people on the sidewalk, and the turn into the park.  What I did not expect was riding a sidewalk, especially a wooden one on the beach, with sand drifting over it.  Luckily it was not long, and it got us up close to the crowd – saw a bunch of Tri Smart people, and further down, Laura in her bright orange top.

T2 was one of my worst parts of the race.  I knew I had to use the bathroom, but I figured I would get my running gear on, and then bolt out of the bathroom to the run course.   It took me a few tries to get my bike jersey off, and I messed around putting sunscreen on since my running shirt had no sleeves .  Later I noticed that volunteers were there to slather sunscreen on you, and I need to keep that in mind in the future.   Further evidence of my scattered state of  mind was that I became convinced that I had lost my run bib on the bike, because I had store extra bottles in my bike jersey, and assumed I had dislodged it.     I figured I would have to talk to race officials on the way out of the run, but I was wondering if it would DQ me, and maybe I should try to get away without saying anything.  

Then, I turned my attention to my bathroom needs.  Just as I started to walk the 15 feet to the nearest portapotty, a woman got in there.  Okay, I figured, by the time I went to another 100 feet way, she would be out.  Then a guy in line behind me left, and I think he got into another portapotty.   I started to switch to another and some beat me to that one.  I went back to that line, and realized I did not take my Garmin off the bike handlebars, so I detoured for that.  Still, this woman was not out.  I saw someone get out 2 Portapotties away, so I sprinted, and made it to the open one.  As I was sitting down, I found the race bib, on my back, so at least I would not be DQ’d. 

I was happy to be running out of transition, and I tried to stay at a moderate pace at first.  My pace was showing 8:30- 9 min / mile, but my heart rate was at 151.  It did not feel that high, but it was getting warm, and the delays in T2 probably stressed me out.      My legs did not feel heavy at this point, but I figured an 8:30-9:00 minute pace was probably right, since my half-marathon pace is about 7:45.  The end of the first mile on the steelhead features a sharp turn onto a steep hill.  I had not run this in practice, but there is an even steeper hill right near the beach that doubles black onto the sand dune bluff, so I knew what to expect.   A lot of people were walking, I definitely slowed down, but used my initial pent-up energy to power up it, also energized by seeing the first three women finishers during the that first mile.  

They had an aid station in the first 2-3 miles, and normally, I would pass one up that early on a run, but the 70.3 distance, and  6-7 hour race duration was new territory for me, so I was going to be cautious when it came to nutrition and hydration.  I drank a Gatorade and picked up a couple of Gus, to stash in the side pockets of my new DeSoto shorts.   On a couple of our long runs this summer, my running partner, John Molchin used a strategy of walking 30 steps through water stops, so I was going to try that on this run. 

We left the “stick” part of the run course, and got onto the double loop of the “lollipop”.   This had some nice curves, and went through some neighborhoods, with a firehouse putting out a water sprinkler.  I was glad they did, but I would wait to see if I needed that until the second loop.  It was getting warmer, but nothing like I felt in the Chicago Marathon in 2007 and 2008, or Boston earlier this year.  When your body temperature is pushing above 100 degrees, it takes a lot of 50-60 degree water to cool it off, so the few seconds of a sprinkler feels good, but does not effectively lower your core temp.  Plus, when you run through them over and over again over the course of 13.1-26.2 miles, your clothes just get heavier with water, especially your shoes, which can lead to blisters.   I definitely respect the heat, especially after seeing several of my friends, strong runners and seasoned triathletes, in the medical tent after Racine.   My approach to today’s run was to minimize the heat’s effect on me, so I could use my long run speed without overheating.  For this I had brought a cooling bandana, and a Trigger Point Palm cooling device.  But, with the cooler temperatures, I decided to leave them in transition and travel lighter. 

I have read, and found, that using ice, or a cool cloth, or cooling bandana on your carotid artery is more effective at cooling your core temperature on the run.   The blood flow is strongest going through your neck, your armpit and your groin, so applying ice to one of those spots  for a few minutes can be more effective than pouring cold water over your head.  So, I would get ice from the water stops, and put it in my hat, then take a few cubes out, and hold it by my armpit, and my neck, and drop a few down my shorts.   In hindsight, I probably spent too much time getting the ice, but running a race this late in the day was new to me, as was running a half-marathon after 4 hours of swimming and biking.   In my first two marathons, I made bathroom stops, but I have not needed to do that since.    Likewise, I should be able to learn what my body can take at this type of distance and in hotter temps.  

I was having a lot of fun on the run course, talking to some of the spectators, and commenting to a few fellow runners.   But was really fun was passing people.  Not only was I fresher, but I felt unrestrained from the drafting and passing rules on the bike.  I take the inside on corners, left side or right side,  cut the tangents between curves, and accelerate around people.  Hopefully, I am not a jerk about it, but I am carving my own path in a race,  so I anticipate the position I want to be in, and hold that line-  if someone else is faster, they can get ahead of me, then I will have to adjust my pace or path.  But I noticed some younger, faster looking runners, who did not always seem to be willing to do that.   The only place where I would not take the shortest distance was when there was a pitch to the road, and I tried to stay on the flatter middle part.  I also tried to avoid the gravel shoulders.  I like the softer surface, but when you run between two surfaces like that, your foot can slip if it catches a piece of both.

As we wound around the Whirlpool/Maytag campus, we could see runners coming back from that loop and then turning in front of our path, where they ascended up a looong hill, and we turned to go on the loop.  So, you get a preview of this killer hill a few miles before you actually have to climb it.   Part of that mental torture was alleviated by seeing John Molchin and Brian Comiskey at this spot, taking pictures and cheering me on.   I won’t ever be as good a triathlete as these two guys, but I know they respect my running, so I had to live up to that rep.    After I passed them, I could see Forrest in his TriSmart gear.  I knew he had issues with his calf, and was planning to run/walk the half-marathon.  He was walking, and I could see a hitch in his stride, so I slowed to a walk and check in with him, hopefully distract him from this toughest part of the race for him.   Forrest seemed ready to pick up his running again for a while, so we went at a steady pace.    After a few minutes, we came to a water station, so we went back to a walk.  As we left, I wished him luck, and went back to my pace.  My brother is a  firefighter (and a runner) too, so I knew Forrest was tough/stubborn enough to finish, I just hoped that it would not set him back for Ironman Florida.   

The next part of the course was one of my favorites – the Whirlpool Campus trail.  We started downhill on a narrow, worn asphalt path.  I have done 5 marathons that have partially used paved running paths, and sometimes it seems people go back into “training mode” on these trails.  Usually, there is no oncoming traffic, so you can use both sides.  I like the change from the streets, and try to keep the pedal  down .  The only thing, is that on this trail, we took a sharp turn, onto grass, and then back onto the trail.  Luckily, the grass was not wet, and for a half mile or so, we had pretty good shade.     For all the turns, the course was well marshaled and marked.   Pretty soon, I was coming out of the loop to see the spot where Molchin and Comiskey were waiting.  That was a good boost, so I took the 180 degree turn past their spot and went up that hill that had been waiting for me for 3 miles.   I heard a running coach tell her client on some hills in the Grand Rapids Marathon to “Look Down and Pull Up (with your arms)”.  The idea is that you do not want to keep your focus on the height you have to cover and get discouraged,  just the next few steps.  And when your legs are tired, like at the end of a race, or the work is extra hard, like on hills, you recruit the counterbalancing locomotion of your arms to help your legs.

While getting up that hill without walking seemed like an accomplishment, knowing I would have to do it again with another 5 miles under my belt, and weighing on my legs was daunting.    Maybe that slowed me down as I ran about a mile so on Blue Star Highway, because that seemed like one of the tougher parts for me.     I came to a water station, and was getting to the turnoff to start the loop again, and there were Melanie Neuman and Tom Randich.   I was not expecting them out there, and felt so glad to see them.  Tom did the Rockman 70.3 which was Laura’s first, and the first one I went to, and the last triathlon for our good friend Michelle Chaput, who we lost to breast cancer a year later. (Ask Tom about the bike he rode for that race).  Melanie had been on the course when I ran Boston for the second time, so I got a flashback to the sheer joy of running that race brings me.   They were cheering, and telling me how strong I looked, which was better than I had just been feeling.

As I started the loop again, my colleague from work, and OSB swimming partner, Jim Burns was starting his first loop.   Thanks to Jim picking me up at 4:45 a.m. every Wednesday to drive downtown and get into the water by 5:30, I had gained a lot more confidence in open water.   I had to check in with him, and see how his race was going. He looked his usual, laid-back self.  As a former water polo player, the swim was a given for him, and he felt the bike went good. We ran together for a little while, and I started seeing all the spots on this loop I had hit before, so I was ready to attack them again.   Just like when I hung with Forrest for a little bit, I felt so energized after talking to Jim , and sped up as I left him.     

And sure enough, some of my splits on the second loop were in the neighborhood of the first ones –good and bad, so  I think it was the terrain, not fatigue.   As much as I passed people, there was one guy consistently 10-15 yards ahead of me, wearing a “Maryland Iron Crabs” shirt.  He just seemed be going so steady, where I would speed up – slow down –speed up –and never get any closer to him.

I was a little concerned about my nutrition on the run-  I had not really planned out my calories exactly, and on the run, I would be entirely reliant on Gatorade and GU.  My stomach started to feel full from frequent cups of water and Gatorade.  I felt the hydration was good, but seeing a lot of athletes with compression socks/sleeves, I was hoping my calves would not cramp.  I had put 2-3 Endurolyte capsules in my new Trishorts.  I planned to take them with just a little water, so I would get the electrolytes without getting bloated with a lot more sticky-sweet Gatorade.  But when I looked in the pockets on each side, I only found Gus.  That meant I might have to take more Gatorade.  But the next time I checked, there were actually TWO pockets on each side, and the Endurolytes were in the upper pocket. 

In some ways, the second loop was mentally harder, because I knew the challenging parts were coming up, but physically, it was like my muscle memory kicked in to run a section the same way I had a half hour ago.  By the time I came to Molchin ‘sand Comiskey’s viewing spot, I was on autopilot,  - smile for the camera, turn right, go up hill.  So, it was with mixed feelings I saw my friends there, glad for the  encouragement, but fearful of that hill that came next.  They said they would pace me up it, and I thought, that will make me seem slow, these guys will be all fresh.  But then I realized they had ridden bikes out, and I figured grinding up from a dead stop they would not be going very fast.   So, I was determined to get as far up the hill before they caught me- sort of a man vs. machine.  I almost made it to the top , when Brian pulled next to me, saying that out of respect, he had not shifted into the little ring.  They gave me some last words, and I ran on to Blue Star Highway- point back towards the finish. 

I finished the double loop, and started the 2-ish mile run back past the last outbound runners.  Near this crisscross of paths, Barb Shoemaker jumped alongside me, cheering, and holding out a water bottle with just some powder in it.  I was confused, because I thought she wanted me to ingest it, and after 4 Gus on the bike and 3-4 on the run, I did not want anymore.  But she said something about getting it to her husband Jeff at the finish, and then it clicked, so I took that bottle of what must have been his recovery drink.  I had seen TriSmart member on the run, but I figured Jeff was far enough ahead of me at the finish that he would be done 5-10 minutes before I got there.  But subconsciously, I figured he is supposed to have a recovery drink soon after the finish, so I kept my pace going, like a man on a mission.

I came upon the first outbound water station, doing double duty as the last outbound one, just 1.5 miles from the finish.  I did not take anything, but I thanked the volunteers for the last time.  I felt a lot better cruising past that water station than I had at some of the others where I had walked through them.   I think the loss of momentum from walking through cost me some time;  if I am going to go 30 steps through water stops, I have to keep it in high gear until I walk, and then quickly ramp back up. 

At the start of the last mile, you get to go down that first big hill, so that ups your speed.  But that hill was so steep, it was not like and easy glide down.  After 6 hours on the triathlon course, it would be easy for too much momentum to make me stumble down this hill, especially with the steep turn back into the park area.  So, I was a little more cautious going down this hill than I normally was.  Then I saw the guy in the Maryland IronCrabs shirt walking up the hill.  Wow, I thought, that guy really picked it up and put a mile between us and was doubling back after the finish.  I wasn’t demoralized by that, but I congratulated him.  A few minutes later I saw anther IronCrab shirt just ahead of me at the finish, and I realized it wasn’t the same guy.

I had a curvy stretch of road entering the park, and then a left turn into the finish.  There were a lot of spectators here, and even people just walking out past us. I noticed a lot of runners following the contour of the path, staying to the right, but I made a beeline from one major curve to the next, using minimum number of steps.   I started looking for ages on guys legs, and I passed a couple, but I could see one guy with a 42 that was accelerating as much as I was, so I was not catching him.  Just as we passed under Blue Star Highway, I passed a guy in my age group who was much bigger than me, so I kept my pace up, and figured, if he was able to pass me at this pace, he deserves a higher spot at the finish.  I did get passed by a guy in the last half mile, but he had 33 on his calf, so I did not feel bad at all.  The crowd was 3-4 deep near the beach, and as we turned into the chute, I passed inside a couple of women side-by-side.  I figured if the other 50 year old guy was going to try to catch me, he would have to spend more energy going around them.  I could hear Laura cheering, I knew she was closer to the finish.  I was almost laughing out loud I was smiling so much.  I saw a group of TriSmart spectators near the curve, and one of them who stood out was Dario, who I did not know had come to see the race.  When I called out  “Dariooooooo!!”, the crowd erupted in a cheer.  Now, I could see Laura on the right, I was still coming in fast, she was leaning over the barrier saying she loved me and that she was proud of me – I got in close and kissed her, barely breaking stride, and surged to the finish line, with my arms raised up. 

I was pretty pumped, but this was one part of the race where I was not sure what would happen.  It was a cooler day, but 6 hours even in the 70 degree temps, and running at an 8:00 minute pace that last mile  -you still get heated up.   I needed  someone to steady me while they took off my chip, but I would not end up in the medical tent like I did when I first qualified for Boston in the Green Bay Marathon. 

It was a blur seeing Laura and our friends from TriSmart – all of them with so many full and half Ironmans under their belt, but genuinely impressed by my debut.   I got Jeff his recovery bottle, and we took some pictures.   By my watch, I knew the run time was under 1:55, so that beat my goal of 2 hours.  And I was pretty sure that I got a little under 3 hours on the bike.  But it wasn’t until the way home that someone texted me that my time was under 6 hours that I beat my best case scenario -  by only 41 seconds.  But to be anywhere close to 6 hours was great, and nice to have a five in the first digit. 

My splits were:

Swim: 49:18

T1: 11:49

Bike:  2:55:47

T2: 8:58

Run: 1:53:27

Total: 5:59:19

Laura convinced me to walk into the lake to cool my muscles off, so I am sure that helped me recover.  We watched for other people to cross, and saw Forrest, Chris Bannon and Jim Burns.  Even though the temperature was cool, there was no shade by the beach, and I had be careful not to get burned.  It was a great day to experience half of that Ironman experience, and I am going to want to do it again next year. 

Lake Zurich 2012 Triathlon Race Report

This was my first Olympic distance triathlon. I did TriShark sprint earlier this summer, and had issues with my goggles that threw off my already shaky swim. Since then, I have gotten in about 5 swims in Lake Michigan, so I was feeling better about this race. However, with the recent heat wave, the water temperature was in the low 80’s making wetsuits either illegal, or like swimming in a sauna. And for me, the wetsuit has been the only thing keeping my skinny legs afloat – and when they don’t float, they want to frog kick.

So, while the air temperature finally dropped last night so we would have our first day below 90, the water temperature was still 83 degrees. I opted to go without a wetsuit, because if I am going to do a half-Ironman in August, then that water temperature might not allow wetsuits either.

My wife, Laura and I had stayed at a Holiday Inn right across the street from the park where the race was based out of, so we just walked our bikes and tri-bags across Rand Road. Laura and I were both in same wave, so I knew she would be out of the water long before me, but that’s okay, my priorities in this race were to (a)just finish the swim, and (b) not be so beat up from my heart rate jumping from thrashing the water for 0.93 miles.

We started the swim from standing in the water after ‘chipping-in’ across the mat on the beach. I deliberately started at the inner side of the counter-clockwise course. You see, I have a tendency to drift to the right, probably because I only breathe on my right side, and to top it off, the buoys were on the left. I didn’t mind having other swimmers around me, it gave me a good sense I was going the right way, but after most of the wave passed me, I realized I was not just drifting right, but more like heading toward 2 o’clock. I probably did not pick my head up to sight soon enough because the other swimmers were around me. I took several course corrections to get headed back towards the buoys, and to get my heart rate down from the initial excitement and the extra work I was doing. I was okay in the murky water, but I was not comfortable being so far away from the other swimmers.

Making the first turn put the wind behind me and gave me the rising sun over my shoulder to sight. So I thought I was doing better, but I kept coming up the back of one guy, and I did not want to wear myself out trying to pass him with over half a mile to go. I even held up and let him pass, but he still veered into me. As we passed a buoy, I figured out why. Apparently, the race organizers had lost a buoy the night before. Their regular buoys are red, and the turn buoys are green, but they used one green buoy in the middle of a segment. They repeated several times to turn at the SECOND green buoy on that segment, but there were 4-5 swimmers including my bumper-pool partner angling for that buoy to mistakenly head for shore. If I saw that option 5 minutes before when I was considering hanging on a kayak if I saw one, I might have taken it, but now I was committed.

I believe the wave (or maybe 2) behind caught me on the last leg back to shore; I probably kicked some people, and made the mistake of going outside them, which exacerbated my tendency to drift right. In any case, I could easily sight the swim-in arch on the beach, so I just tried to keep my form from deteriorating as my arms tired. Interesting thing about Lake Zurich – the water was much colder by the beach than it was in the middle of the lake. If it was 83 near the start, it must have been 5 degrees warmer for 80% of the swim, so I would have been boiling like a kielbasa if I had worn the wetsuit. But the relatively cooler water felt good, both for comfort and, and to know I was close to shore.

The shore was both mucky and rocky when we got out, much to the amusement of the spectators watching friends try getting to shore. Lake Zurich has a very long run from swim-out to transition, probably 300 yards. It was just about all on grass, which was hard from the drought, but also fairly even. They conveniently had kiddie pools outside transition to rinse your feet off. I brought my own tray with water in it, but I have heard SOME people don’t bother and just step in a nearby bucket/tray; poaching off someone else’s planning and hard work (you know who you are!) So, hopefully that cut down on such despicable behavior (JK).

Transitions are still slow for me; I want to get everything I need. Even though it started out much cooler and cloudier, it is still July, and for someone with parents from Ireland, and a history of skin cancer, my skin needs sunscreen for even 1 hour of exposure, so I lubed up before the bike.

The first part of the bike is on Route 12/Rand Road, which is a busy four-lane, separated highway. They gave us one lane, and a pretty good shoulder, but racing with speeding traffic going by is a little unnerving. After about 2 miles, we took a hairpin turn, and went back up the hill we just came down on a parallel road. One thing that give you an idea of how hilly the Lake Zurich area is- their running club is called the Alpine Striders. Once we got off Rand Road, it was a great route, lots of rolling hills and turns, following the contour of the lake. We even passed a Civil War Reenactment, with rows of canvas tents, cannons and soldiers in blue and grey. Most of the course was pretty well marshaled, where there was just a basic turn. These roads were generally closed to traffic on our side, but if people needed to get out of a neighborhood, they let them.

The bike course was 2 loops, and close to the transition area, there are series of hairpin turns at the bottom of a hill. On the first loop they did a good job of directing riders, but some of the course marshals seemed distracted when I came by the second time, and it was hard to see the spot to cross oncoming traffic and head toward the finish. Otherwise, I liked the 2 loops, because I knew what to expect from the course, and probably took some turns quicker, and downshifted sooner on some hills.

One of my challenges on the bike is to make sure I eat and drink enough. My profile bottle straw is hard to reach, but I figured out if it is pretty full of water, I can pull it out, so I emptied most of a Polar bottle in there, and drank more as it got hotter. On our training rides, I used to eat trail mix and licorice –more snacks than fuel. I have started taking GU’s more on the bike; after 13 marathons and hundreds of long runs, they are kind of sickeningly sweet, but I tolerate them fine, so now they have a place in my bento box.

As you finish the bike, runners share the road coming at you in another lane for several blocks, so I looked for Laura. I gave up looking for her because it was too distracting to pick out faces while I was speeding by in a congested area. I also figured her strong swim and stronger bike put her pretty far ahead of me. I did see Bridget Bogdan, who had started in the wave behind us, so hopefully she heard me shout out to her from the bike.

I dismounted and got into transition with no issues, which is an accomplishment, because it is only the 3rd time I have done that. I only put sunscreen on my neck and arms before I biked, because I figured I would have my head down a lot. So in T2, I put some sunscreen on my face. Good thing I did, because I was almost over the mat when I realized I did not have my cap. So, I circled a few bike racks to get it, I always run with a cap – the white material is a better reflector of heat than my black hair.

One part I did not like about the run course is that just after transition, they have you run between two landscaping area- 3 feet high timbers with a 3 feet gap at a 90 degree turn. I felt like I was cutting through someone’s gangway as a kid. It is not a good course design, because with heavy legs coming off the bike, someone could easily whack their shin against it.

Water stops were frequent enough on the run, at least every 1.5 miles, but the first one was only 0.75 miles after you got water coming out of transition. Most of the water stops did not stock Gatorade, and when then did it was the neon blue kind. I feel that that is a kiddie flavor, and something like Gatorade Performance in lemon-lime or orange or fruit punch goes down easier. One of the water stops when you came back for the second loop was in the middle of a curve on a hill, so it really slowed your momentum to get back going.

I shouldn’t complain about that, because as I said to someone in T2 – ‘Now comes the fun part’. I enjoyed getting out of my comfort zone for swimming and biking, so having the run last is like a reward for me. I probably went a little fast at first, under a 7 minute pace for a quarter mile, but I settled in to like 7:30-8:00. We ran through neighborhoods, through the old downtown area of Lake Zurich, and right next to the lake where we could see private beaches/marinas where people keep their boats across the street from their houses. And we started to experience some of those hills we rode on the bike, up close and personal. That was okay with me, I have been running a hilly course near my house with John Molchin the last few weeks, so I do okay on hills. I also find that other people are not willing to go as fast downhill as I am, so I can pass a few people there, too. Laura read that a good way to run downhill is to pick your knees up, so that your feet stay under you. This reduces the impact on your knees and quads that a lot of people get from leaning back as they run downhill.

I think 2 people passed me on the run, one guy in the first mile was dogging me with heavy footsteps – I expected him to be linebacker sized, but he was close to my height- even slimmer, but pretty strong. We traded leads for a while, but he pulled ahead when I walked through a water stop to have a Gu. The other person that passed me, I barely heard –it was a willowy thin young girl, dressed more for running than for a full triathlon, so maybe she was part of a relay team. She had an incredibly high back-kick, almost hitting her butt with her heels. She got out of sight pretty quick.

I have not actually run that many 10Ks, more 5-Ks, marathons and half-marathons. So, my pacing, and focus may not be as good as the other distances. I felt good, and tried to push myself, but I was unsure if my nutrition was adequate during the whole triathlon. I saw a lot of people cramping on the run, so I took some Shot Blocks that I did not use on the bike, to make up for the lack of Gatorade. I did seem to get a good push in the last few miles, and I am happy with my run pace of 7:51. But last August, I ran the St Jude’s 10K after running 12 miles as a training run, to get in my 18 mile long run for fall marathon training. I was able to run a 7:39 pace that day, and get first in my age group and 3rd overall in that small local race. Six weeks later, that experience helped me around mile 19-20 in the Fox Valley marathon to hold an 8:00 minute pace to qualify for Boston. I need to transfer that sort of experience to the triathlon, and “Run with Faith”, that I can finish just as fast after swimming and biking.

Towards the end of the run course you are on Rand Road, looking at traffic, and part of it on sidewalk, so it made it hard to pass people, but I smelled the hay in the barn, so I turned it on. As soon as I was in sight of the finish at the grassy park, I could hear Laura cheering, so I knew she could see me, too. I felt slightly embarrassed that she finished so far ahead of me that she could make it back to cheer for me, but many more times glad to see and hear her, just as I have been at so many of my races that she has been there for me, all over the course, and at the finish.

They had ice bags at the finish, which was a good idea even though it was not 100+ heat index. They also repurposed the kiddie pools from transition to have water bottles buried in ice. The park has lots of shade and tables, so it made for nice gathering spot for racers and families, especially kids. Overall, I would recommend the Lake Zurich triathlon. It was a good entry race for me, and seems to have attracted more competitive triathletes, too. My overall time was 2:58:29. My swim time was 41 minutes, my bike speed was 18 mph, and my run pace was 7:51. So, you can see where my strength lies. But I did the swim without a wetsuit, and given my wayward swimming, I may have actually swum close to a half-Ironman distance, so I am ready to commit to that. My running has not translated to the bike as much as I would like, but this race put me just over 1000 miles on my speedometer, after riding 400+ on RAGBRAI last summer. So, more time in the saddle should help with that. It was good to see other Tri-Smarties like Brent White and Bridget Bogdan there, but of course, the icing on the cake for me was sharing the experience with my wife Laura, who has shown me the way into this sport. Laura beat her time from her one previous Olympic Distance Tri by 5 minutes, with a 2:53:59. She had a great race overall, in spite of breaking her little toe a couple of days ago. She is a warrior wife and one tough cookie. Maybe one of these days I’ll catch her on the run.

Boston Bound

It's the morning of the Boston, and I am in the lobby of the Westin.  Last night we had a great dinner with Gil and his family at a old Italian restaurant (Cantina Italiana) in the North End neighborhood of Boston.  That classic Italian neighborhood was jam-packed with people in Boston for the marathon.  With the warm weather, the restaurants had their front windows removed, and people had tables on rooftops and patios. 

I need to get to the Boston Commons to meet Gil, and the plan is to take the a combination of buses and and trains on the Boston MBTA public transit line.  Not a big deal, but I hear that the hotel is running a free shuttle bus.  Less walking, so I wait for that.  The street where they line up school buses to take us out to Hopkinton is packed, and so is the park.  Gil and I exchange a few texts, and while I am waiting for him, I see someone in a Palos Half-marathon shirt from the first year they ran it.  I ran Boston 2009 wearing that shirt.  It is Ken, from the Park Forest Club.  I knew he had run Boston before, but I wasn't aware he had qualified this year.  We both get calls from people meeting us, so we shake quickly and exhange good wishes for the race.
Gil shows up, and within 5 minutes, and 2 busloads, we are heading to Hopkinton.  Each time I have run Boston, getting on these buses has gone smoothly.  In less than an hour, we are pulling up to the high school in Hopkinton where they set up the pre-race waiting area called "Athlete's Village".  It is quite an array of tents and porta-potties, and decorations, with giveways from shoe vendors, fod and coffee, music and lots of excitement. 
In past years, staying warm in the early morning dew soaked grass was caled for.  This year, by 8 am you can already feel the sun on the sidewalks and walls of the school, so the shade under the big top tent is the welcome.  There are always and interesting array of people around, but this is the first time I haven't seen anyone else from the Park Forest running club here at the start.  Even with over 2 hours to wait, there is not a lot of time not filled with getting food, waiting in line for a porta-pottie, taking pictures, or taking stock of things like gel packs to take on the run. 
Because the Boston start is on a narrow country road, and space is limited in Hopkinton, they let out three waves of runners - we are in wave 2, and will start at 10:20 am.  Each wave has 9 corrals of 1000 runners each, ranked by qualifying times.  So, in the 13000-13999 corral, people range from a 3:25:00 to a 3:35:00 qualifying time.  The first wave has actually started by the time we stow our gear bags on designated buses to be shipped back to Boston.

The mood is electric with anticiaption as a steady stream of marathoners walk about a half-mile to Main street in Hopkinton.  It is about 10:15 by the time we get to Corral 5.  We just have time to have someone take a picture of us before we hear the gun for our start.  There is the usual ebb and flow of a big race start before we cross the starting mat, and maybe 2 minutes pass before our chips get triggered.  The pace quickly picks up, because it is pretty pronounced downhill start.  The road is narrow, but the runners move quickly, because we are so precisley seeded by proven qualifying times.  The crowds may not be as thick as Chicago, because there is not as much room, but they are cheering appropriately loud for this special event. 

The pace does not seem too fast - I notice my watch is set to minutes per kilometers from the last time I did speedwork.  We are going about 5:10-5:20  minutes per km, and i fgure that is close to a 8:00 - 8:30, which is about 1 minute faster than we want to go.  Sure enough, at Mile 1, we see 8:23.   We try to stay at an easy pace, the gravity, the thick stream of runners and excitement carries us.  The second mile brigs us past a roadhouse with lots of Harleys in the lot.  Some Heavy Metal is blaring, and they have a Sam Adams 26.2 flag flying. 

Even in this country setting on the outkirts of Hopkinton, there is rarely a spot without people on the side cheering us on.  We get to the 5K mat, and I am glad that my time is not faster than Laura's 5K time yesterday.  That's what happened in 2010, and I knew my pace was too fast.   We are still at under the 9 minute pace we wanted.  We are getting close to 11 am, and losing the shade.  The pace makes us feel the heat, and we take fluids at all the official stops which are not real frequent in the fist few miles, but then show up every mile or 2 afterwards. 

The town of Ashland comes out in force to see us, and it is great to have the crowds.  We have a groupe of people that we leapfrog as we go from mile to mile, and we trade observations and encouragement.  Gil is just floating along on the experience, and it makes it all fresh for me too.  In the next town, Framingham, I see a long gray pony tail, hanging in front of a shirt that says "Frogger 26.2"  It's Dave "Frogger" Mauger, from the Park Forest Running club.  I jump ahead of him while he slows for water, and I take my phone out to take his picture.  He gives me a high five as he runs by, and surges ahead.  He qualifies with a slower time than me, but he always does much better in Boston than I do. 

Gil is real interactive with the crowd, and wants to take whatever little kids are handing out, oranges, candy, water.  I appreciate the support, but I am a little more selective taking food from nonofficial people without gloves.  Somewhere in the first 10 miles, Gil mentions the heat.   The temps are in the 80's now.  The wind is mostly behind us, so you do not feel the cooling effect.  I had carried a baggie with me, and I go up to some guys with a cooler on a lawn, and get some ice.  I put some in my hat, and tell Gil to put some on his neck.  Your skin does the job of a radiator, using evaporation to cool off.  But at acertain effort and temperature, your body will not be able to cool down quick enough.  The issue is not the skin temperatrue, but your body's core temperature, which affects the internal organs and the brain.  Pouring 8 ounces of 40 degree water into ot on a 160 lb, six foot body mass  will not have a discernible effect;  immersing your self in cold water will, but we don't have time for that.  So, the best way to cool your core body temp with ice, is to put it on the major arteries and veins: carotid in the neck, axillary under the arm, and femoral in your leg.  So, the ice bag goes on the side of your neck, and the blood gets cooled as it leaves/returns the heart.  (note to self:  invent running shirt with pockets under arms for ice packs. ) 

Our 10K time is close to a 9 minute pace overall, so we are slowing down.  Gil has taken to running through every sprinkler and hose he can.  I know that the soggy clothes and shoes can weigh you down and cause blisters and chafing, plus I am carrying my phone, so I stay out of the direct spray.  But on these narrow roads, there is sometimes no avoiding it.  Every town's fire department has some sort of cooling device, and there are misting tents, hydrants opened up.  Eventually, I get Gil to hold my phone while I run through.  After running Chicago and 2007 and 2008  in 90 and low 80 degree heat, I know that 80-82 is my limit for actually "running" a marathon.  But that was a 7 am start, and the flat Chicago course.  This race started close to 10:30 am, and the course is notoriously hilly.  I know that I will have to scale back, so it is agood thing we are not pushing for time.  Gil wants to take a bathroom break around mile 10, so I take that opportunity to make more room for fluids.  Natick is a cool town, and we pass St. Patrick's church  right at noon while the bells are ringing. 

Gil has a habit on long runs of going into a sideways "carioca" skip.  He says it helps him stay stretched.  It is both inpiring and demoralizing.  He has an utter joy for running, but while I am struggling to keep up our pace just going one foot in front of the other, he is going sidways at the same speed - Really?!    So Gil starts breaking into his sideways shuflfe-step about once every  mile or 2 , as we go by a band that's playing or some kids.  I actually egg him on at times, like when we go by a store with mirrored windows with a sign that says "Check out your form".  He did the same thing during the Fox Valley Marathon when we qualified for Boston.

We are doing okay, but making sure we check our fluids, and take some gels every 45-60 minutes.    We come towards the halfway point and go by the famous Wellesley 'scream tunnel'. The girls are offering kisses, and holding up signs, saying 'Kiss me, I'm Italian'.  'Kiss me, I'm liberal'.  I am running by slapping hands and ytelling back, and then stopping to kiss the girls with the more clever signs.  (I believe there must have been at least one guy, because Gil read off a sign that said "Guys Need Kisses too."  Okay, just not from me.    The last person in the line was a post-middleaged guy in full Indian headress with a sign that said "Kiss Me, I'm Red Cloud"  That was wrong on several levels, and spoiled the image.

It was well  into the afternoon, and the bigger towns like Framingham and Wellesley brought wider, sunnier streets with more heated-up concrete, and less shade.  At times we picked up the pace, or hit a hill, i could feel my heart raxcing, and would ease up.  This was my 13th marathon, and I have made it to the starting line and the finish line of every one, and I was not going to break that streak today.  Yes, it was hot, but the diverse crowd of runners and the spectacle of the spectators, cheering us on, offering refreshments, and spraying us with hoses kept it fun.  I started to see people getting medical attention on the side, ambulances and gurneys.  In my past 2 Bostons, I  had seen a few runners pull up with strains and sprains, but these were people that semed to have dehydration/heat exhaustion issues.  It was still a long way to see Teresa and Laura, and first we had to go up Heartbreak Hill.

At 88 feet, Heartbreak is not that very tall of a hill.  But it comes between mile 20 and 21, and is the fourth of the "Newton Hills"  which begin at mile 16.  With the long descent at the beginning of the race, those hills seem all that much magnified, esepcailly coming that late in the race, with your legs already shot. 
The first year I ran Boston, I did nto walk on the hills.  The second time, I tried to run most of the time, but I know I walked a little on one of them.  This year, I knew that I had to walk up these hills.  My "run" was not much more than a shuffle, and if I kept at that for more than a few minutes on the hills, I my chest punded and I got lightheaded.  Gil would look back, walk through the water stops while I caught up, and wait until I was ready to plod along. 

After we crested Heartbreak, the activity of Boston college started to take over.  This was an early afternoon frat party/homecoming/street festival in full swing.  We were yelling back at the crowds, and I told Gil where to expect to see our families.  We knew that his wife especially might be worried because our chip times would have showed us slowing down drastically.  We are on a gradual downhill after the crest of heartbreak, and Gil tells me I have really sped up (anything must seem fast compared to walking!) But I tell him that when I know I am coming up to a spot to where I see my wife, it helps me pick up my pace for at least a mile before, and a mile after.  Unfortunately, I can only see Laura at one spot on Boston's point-to-point course, but at Chicago and Green Bay, she gets to 5-6 spots all over those loop courses. Then Gil spots his wife's blond hair, I run over, and high-five her and their son and his wife, and then  I see Laura, and I know I can make it. It is already longer than my last total Boston time, and the last 5 miles could be even slower.  But we get some Gatorade, some hugs and kisses and pictures, and we head off. 

As it gets later in the afetrnoon, it seems the crowd is more and more bositerous, maybe a littl over-served on this sunny day off work and school in Massachussetts.  But they are all for us, whether we like it or not.  Drunken guys yell things like "You guys are F***IN AWESOME!.  Near Fenway park, a thick-necked guy with a crew-cut tells the runner next to me checking his cell phone to turn it off and run, "Technology rules our lives! Turn off the technology"  I yell back to tell him that I turned off my running watch 2 miles back. He thumps his chest by his heart and points toward me  "YEAAH!"  I think if I was closer he would have tried to chest-bump me.  Gil is waving to the crowd, and he does his side-step as we cross an overpass, but he stumbles, and the crowd gasps, but he catches himself.  I tell him no  more for the rest of the way.

We come up to a banner saying one more mile to go, and I consider reaching up to hug or kiss it.  I didn't want to stop for fear I could not get going again, so I run by and leap up and slap it - getting a big cheer for the crowd.  Gil looks over at the wide street, with crowds lining the greenway in the middle and decides that the left side isn't getting enough attention, so he decides to run by and slap everyone's palm.  I catch up to him, and tell him to get ready two quick turns - right on Hereford, and left on Boylston.  We go by an underpass, and on the grassy hill, the pramedics have a runner with his head downhill, with an exygen mask on.  I guess I 'smell the hay in the barn', because Gil tells me not to speed up so much.  I don't know if he wants us just to have the same finish time, or he's afraid I'll collapse, but we soak up the crowds on Boylston street, and pass more runners, and a few fallen on the side, within sight of the finish line.  We cross, at 4:51:02.   The finish area is hot and crowded, we feel spent and exhausted, but we have to walk a few blocks to get any water, even warm, and our medals.   My legs are stiff, and my back is sore from holding ice up by my neck while I ran.  The post-finish area is a carbon copy of the otehr years I ran Boston, sunny, full of banners and really good runners, and I am proud to be one of them, and glad to have made it again.

Duel in the Sun Rematch

After the morning races, I staked out a spot in the Boston Public Library Auditorium. Runners’ World was sponsoring a number of talks by panels of famous runners and health experts (this was in addition to another 2 days of talks sponsored by the Boston Athletic Association). The main event was going to be a Alberto Salazar talking about his new book “14 Minutes”, which covers his life story as a running prodigy, marathon champion of Boston, NY and the Olympics, culminating with the heart attack he had while coaching this generation’s prodigy, Galen Rupp, at the Nike distance running facility in Oregon. They say that he had lost his pulse for 14 minutes, hence the title of the book.


I caught the end of the talk prior, which included Greg Meyer, the last American-born male to win Boston in 1984, Amby Burfoot, multiple Boston winner in 60’s and 70’s ,and writer for Runner’s World; Katherine Switzer, the first women to complete the Boston marathon; Lorraine Moeller, women’s winner of the ’82 Boston marathon, and my personal favorite, Dick Beardsley, who finished 2nd to Salazar by 2 seconds in record time in a wire-to-wire battle in the 1982 Boston Marathon famed in running legend as the ‘Duel in the Sun’. Dick was also going to join Salazar on stage for part of his talk to recap the 30th anniversary of that race.
The few minutes I caught were very lively, with these old road warriors talking about the difference between the elite American running scene then, and now. These days, there is a focus on running a certain time in a race – back then, all they cared about was beating the other guy – how to crush him on the hills, how to psych him out. One of the panelists was not an elite runner, but the coach of the Dana Farber charity team. He talked about the running for a cause being the “superman” or “wonder woman” cape for charity runners. That resonated with me, because I raised money for the Arthritis foundation for my first marathon, and Laura did the same when she ran her’s two years later. And besides that inspiration of helping people like Laura afflicted with arthritis, we also got the fringe-benefit of becoming closely acquainted with Dick Beardsley, who was a “celebrity coach” for them. Since Laura spoke at a past dinner when Dick gave a speech, he has treated us like old friends each time we have seen at the Chicago marathon, and at Boston. So, when Laura arrived, and Dick saw her in the hall, he called out her name, and gave her a hug. He is so genuine, and interested in other people. He will ask about our races, and remembers that Laura is doing triathlons.


After the first panel, I went up to talk to Greg Meyer . He is not as charismatic as Beardsley or Salazar, but back in the day, his credentials were sold, winning Boston and Chicago. I asked him to sign a poster for a friend of ours who was running the Boston marathon for charity. He had been the top single fundraiser ever for the Chicago Marathon last fall. When I told him that, Greg Meyer signed the poster ‘From one Chicago Champion to Another.”

We settled in for the main event, which was pretty much a book tour publicity stop for Salazar’s book. Runner’s World’s top writer, John Brant wrote the book with/for Salazar, and the Editor-in-Chief was the host. They showed a video recapping Salazar’s heart attack, and seeing the boyish Galen Rupp recount his coach/mentor/idol’s near-death experience was heart-wrenching. I had read an excerpt of the book in Runner’s World, and Salazar’s life is certainly fascinating, from training with Boston legends like Bill Rodgers, to the Duel in the Sun. I learned some new things, such as his father was a friend of Fidel Castro’s, but left Cuba when Alberto was 2 years old, mainly in response to Castro’s planned suppression of the Catholic Church. I bought the book, and I am looking forward to reading more.

The eventual interchange between Salazar and Beardsley did not disappoint. They both denied any lingering rivalry from the disputed finish where police motorcycles seemed to cut Beardsley off in the last half-mile, yet they playfully traded jabs about their shoe-sponsorships. Dick is such a great conversational storyteller, we have seen him give several speeches, planned and impromptu, and spent several hours getting a guided tour of the marathon route from him in 2010. Salazar is definitely charismatic in his own right, he is very matter-of-fact about his abilities, accomplishments, as well as his flaws and failings. He seems content to sit back and let others weave the narrative, but like a good kick, his timing and wit can punctuate the finish. Beardsley was talking about having Alberto sign hundreds of posters produced by New Balance of their Duel in the Sun. The intent was to raise money for Beardsley’s Foundation, but the posters showed Dick in the lead with a pained look on Salazar’s face. Just as Beardsley was saying how great a sport Alberto was, Salazar jumped in and said – “I had my son Albert do all the signing, and he wrote over all the New Balance logos.” -which I think was said jokingly, but like I said, Salazar lays it out there.

I would have liked to get pictures/autographs with one or both of these legends, especially together, but it was very crowded, as is the day before the Boston marathon. Laura and I feel lucky to have gotten to know Dick and his wife Jill, personally, and it is good to know that whether I show up at Boston again, or see Dick on the circuit before marathons from Napa to Grandma’s, he will welcome us back. Beyond his running accomplishments, his personal story of his battle against being addicted to painkillers is riveting and inspiring. John Brant wrote about both Salazar and Beardsley in the book “Duel in the Sun”; Beardsley wrote his own life story in “Staying the Course”, and they are trying to make a documentary movie about his life called “Against the Wind”. I have had some people in my life struggle with dependency issues, and getting a window into Dick’s life story, and seeing that the current chapter is on course to a happy ending helped me to not be judgmental to the people who maybe needed my help, or at least patience while they got the strength to help themselves. It seemed that if addiction can hit a 2:08 marathoner, one time potential Olympian, that maybe you can’t just blame it on personal “weakness”. If anyone in the local running community ever has an opportunity to get a speaker before an event, I would highly recommend Dick, or if you want to learn about his foundation, and maybe contribute, visit his website. Hearing a lot of aspects of Dick’s lifestory and seeing his personal interactions with hundreds of runners and people of all kinds of backgrounds and abilities, I would say he came out of the ’82 race a winner.

RockStars of Running

I really look forward to the BAA 5K. There used to be an unofficial “fun Run” the day before the marathon, but in 2009, they made it an official 5K with entry fees, t-shirts and medals. So, Laura got to run in the inaugural BAA 5K, and this will be her third, just like my third Boston marathon. With the streets closed off to traffic, but without the intense marathon security and crowds, it is a chance to soak up the finish line atmosphere up close – kind of like backstage at a dress rehearsal before the opening of a Broadway show. I stake out a spot in the bleachers near the finish line. I can visualize my finish tomorrow, and see the start and spots along the course on the JumboTron.


With 6,000 people, it is a huge race, with a pretty good elite field. They actually have a wheelchair field, which is the first time I have seen that in a 5K, but they are here for the marathon, so why not. The Boylston street start is pretty wide, but there is a mix of casual runners and walkers and Boston Qualifiers who are tuning up for the next day, which can be pretty fast. There are a lot of turns and a couple of particularly steep hills around Boston common going up to Beacon Hill. Laura actually PR’d her 5K in this race a couple of years ago, but she has had a bad blister on her foot, so she scaled back her runs the last few weeks.

The race starts, and they have professional announcers doing the race, giving the background of the racers, like that one of the leading women is married to a top men’s marathoner, and they are one of the fastest marathon couples in the world. Desiree Davila of the Brooks Hanson Running team and last year’s second place Women’s Boston finisher (with the fastest time ever for an American women) is one of the ‘rock stars’, but not one of the favorites.

The first place finisher comes in with a solid lead. He is a past winner of the race, and was born in the New England area. What is great about the race is that is part of the BAA Distance Medley they just started this year. A 5K, 10K and Half marathon at different times of the year. You sign up for all 3, and the cumulative times determine the standings - and the winner of a $100,000 prize. So, even after the first three finishers are in, the next 5 or 10 do not let up, because they could make it up in the longer distance.

Laura came in strong in the 25 minute range, looking strong, passing people. I knew it would not beat her PR, the filed was more crowded, it was a little warmer, and she has had issues with blisters on her feet. I met her by the finish line, and she said when saw the splits, her first mile was 10 minutes, and her second mile was 7 minutes, but that caught up with her, and she slowed down to an 8:30.

Even though our hotel wasn’t close by, it was easy for Laura to blend in with hundreds of other runners and go into a hotel lobby and use the bathroom to clean up and change in to dry clothes (it was a Westin, which is the chain we stayed at). The rest of the day’s events were like a running festival. Laura joined me in the stands, and I showed her messages I had texted to the JumboTron text crawl “LauraN –Run Like a Girl!” “Love to Laura from Tom”. Just my way of telling her she’s number one to me, even if she doesn’t place in her age group like she does most times in small races back home.

We watched male and female races at 3 levels:

• Middle School Invitational 2K

• High School Invitational Mile

• Elite Invitational Mile

For the schoolkids, they had 2 boys and 2 boys from each of the eight towns on the Boston marathon route. The 2K was 2 laps around the city block in front of us. The mile was 3 laps. There were family members of some of the kids in the bleachers around us, and you could just tell how proud they were and excited to see their kids and grandkids in this worldclass setting. It reminded me of the joy of seeing our son Ross in thrilling high school football playoff games. I have heard someone comment that what American track and distance running is missing is the ‘rock star’ popularity that the team sports, especially football and basketball garner. In some European countries, track meets and distance races are big events for the community, and the kids get a lot of attention. I guess that would might foster more talent in running, but maybe it would be at a cost of the groundedness and humility that runners seem to have. Yes, there are scholarships, prize money and endorsements, but you have to start out willing to train, loving to run and compete. On our way back from Chicago, we met some guys at the airport from Louisville Kentucky. They said that the men’s winner, Joseph Korir (2:12) went to their church in Louisville. He ran for University of Louisville, worked as a janitor at the school while he worked his way up the distance racing circuit. He was not allowed into the elite field in the 2011 Chicago marathon, but he placed 4th anyhow. He was using his winnings to fund a medical center in his village in Kenya. They chatted with him over the weekend, and were very proud. That is what is awesome about marathoning – the accessibility of the athletes, and the motivation they bring to their races, so it makes them rockstars to me.  And I have to say, from the comments and congratulations from people in my running and triathlon club, I feel like a rockstar in those circles.

Gil and Tom’s Excellent Boston Adventure

We knew late in the week before Marathon Monday that the temperatures were going to be 25-30 degrees above the mid-50’s average high for this time of year for Boston. Especially with the late 10:20 a.m. start, and a SW tailwind, we would feel the peak temps. But with this being my third Boston, and Gil’s happy-go-lucky attitude, we were not really concerned about our finishing times per se, but agreed to enjoy the culmination of our journey of training, and qualifying together, just as we passed 50.


Laura and I arrived in Boston Saturday afternoon, which is the peak day for the expo. It usually is at the Hines Convention Center right near the finish on Boylston Street, but apparently there is a big trade show that comes to town every 4 years, so they move the expo out to the Seaport Expo center. We stayed at the Westin Waterfront, which seemed to be the base for New Balance, since all the doors, elevators; key cards were emblazoned with the New Balance “Qualified…” taglines. All the employees wore the newest models of New Balance shoes (a little garish, but I guess so are my Mizuno Wave Rider 15’s)

The Expo is an experience unto itself. The shoe and gear companies put on their best face, with impressive booth displays, like a Brooks “Heavenly Running” setup in a gauzy tent with puffy white carpeting, and toga –clad harpists playing while you get a free gait analysis.

There is also a cool mix of local and niche Mom and pop outfits from the rich Boston/Northeast running community. I bought a pair of sunglasses with a bifocal reading glass section at the bottom. Now, when I wear my contacts for distance when I run or bike, I can still read my watch display or text messages on my phone. Pretty good way to tap into the demographic of aging Baby Boomers staying active like me.

I guess it was a blessing that we did not have long to spend in the expo, because the money goes fast here. Picked up some mementos for the kids and commemorative marathon gear for me, and stuff like a “Will Run for Wine” Bondi band for Laura.

Gil Hannon, his wife Theresa, their son and his wife were staying over in Cambridge, so getting over to meet them for dinner seemed impractical. We decided to meet for a beer later, and Laura and I headed in the general direction of the downtown/Faneuil Hall area midway between our hotel and Cambridge. It is advised not do a lot of walking, saw when I saw these rental bikes which you pick up at one place, and drop off at another; I thought that would be better that walking. But without helmets, Ms. Safety Nurse Practitioner vetoed it. It seemed like a good deal. For a $5 swipe of your credit card, you get unlimited 30 minute rides around what looked like dozens of bike kiosks around Boston.

We had not walked very far when we came past a pretty happening Mexican restaurant in an otherwise desolate stretch of loft building. We had read about it in some guides, so we figured we would get in before the crowds hit. Very colorful decor, with a young vibrant crowd. It was advertised as a tequila bar and Mexican café. It seemed to be popular with groups of young ladies apparently celebrating bachelorette parties. It was early, so there were no shenanigans (Dang!).

We had homemade guacamole made at our table, and some very strong margaritas. I had some chipotle salmon with rice, and Laura had excellent fajitas.

We heard from Gil, and arranged to meet his posse at Faneuil Hall/Quincy Marketplace. This is a touristy outdoor plaza with shops and restaurants. It was developed from an old produce market by the same developers that redid Navy Pier. We met at “Ned Devine’s” a faux-Irish bar named after one of my favorite Irish comedies – “Waking Ned Devine”. The post-race party in 2009 was at the nightclub portion of the bar, so it held fond memories, and I was familiar with its location.



One of the priorities for Gil and I was to sample a special edition “26.2 Marathon Brew” put out by Sam Adams for the marathon. We were not going to be around long enough to go on private tours for marathoners of the Brewery later in the week, and get a “26.2” commemorative mug. There were other limited edition Sam Adams brews, but we were told that 26.2 would only be available on tap along the actual marathon route. That turned out not to be totally accurate, because later in the weekend, we were dropping off a race packet for a friend staying at the Ritz, and the concierge, who had run Boston and Chicago, steered us in the direction of “Beantown Brew Pub”, which he told us actually overlooks Sam Adams grave. Sorry you didn’t get your 26.2 beer Gil, but like the Irishman with the brother in America, I had one for you, even though I abstained myself.

If the Shoe Fits

Over the weekend, we went to an “open-house” at a running/bike store out of our local area. To be polite, I thought I would buy a pair of running shoes, since I like to wear relatively new ones in my races, so I would have time to break them in before Boston in April.


But there wasn’t any kind of discount on the Mizuno Wave Riders that I have worn for 11 of my 12 marathons. Plus, I sort of felt like I was cheating on my local running store, “Running For Kicks” in Palos Heights. They were the first ones to point me to Mizunos, and have offered discounts to our running club (The Park Forest Running and Pancake Club).

The next day, my running partner, John, stopped at the house and mentioned that there was a big sale at Running for Kicks. I had seen emails about it, but I had dismissed it because I was going to have a busy weekend, but it turned out my Sunday had just enough free time left to make it to the store before they closed at 5 pm.

I grabbed a couple pairs of old shoes (of the 5-6 I have) to donate to RFK’s ongoing collection for “Share Our Soles”. As soon as I walked in the door, I felt like the prodigal son. Yes, I had strayed and flirted with the glitzy national chain, but there was friendly Mel Diab, greeting me across the busy store, greeting me like a cousin at a family reunion. As I handed him my old shoes and started to say I needed a new pair, he put commerce aside to tell me how impressed he was at my wife’s accomplishments (and my support for her) in running and doing triathlons in spite of her arthritis. If there is one way to get on my good side, it’s being complimentary of my wife or children. It was another 5 minutes before we finally got around to getting me new shoes. We talked about both running the Boston Marathon again this year, and traded cell phone numbers to plan to meet for dinner in Boston. We talked about Mel running the Fox Valley Marathon that Gil and I had qualified in, and I told him I was proud that another local marathon had taken root in the Chicago area, and that he set the bar with the First Midwest Bank Half-Marathon, and that was becoming the most popular distance.

There was a great price on last year’s model of Mizuno Wave Riders, but he was sold out in my size. Mel brought out the Wave Rider 15 Anniversary Edition. I knew the price would be higher than the old model, but they felt really light. As Mel was lacing up the shoes, we talked about our long runs on the weekend, and he encouraged me to join the group in downtown Palos Park on Saturdays. I talked about who would run at my pace, and when he mentioned a slow long run pace, I explained to him the F.I.R.S.T program where with only 3 running days a week, there were 20 milers that peaked at only 15 and 30 seconds slower than marathon pace, plus there are FIVE 20-milers in the 16 week program. Mel seemed intrigued, and said that after 45 years of running, he needed to have more breaks. He asked me to write down information at the program.

So, as I paid for my shoes and a handful of Gu Energy gels, I wrote down the website (www.furman.edu/first) and book title (“Run Less, Run Faster”) – giving advice to a local running legend who has hosted elite marathoners like Meb Kezfleghi at his races and is recognized as a top independent running store/ in the country.
Now, either I have earned my stripes in the running community to have Mel’s respect, or he is an awesome salesman, because he got me to walk out of there with more shoe than I wanted to spend for, or its’ some combination of both.

Third Times a Charm

I am going to run the Boston Marathon again this year, for the third time in 4 years.  It should be a lot of fun.  My friend Gil Hannon qualified in the same race I did, the Fox Valley Marathon in St. Charles, IL.   Since we are both 50 years old, we thought we would need a 3:35 to qualify.  But because so many people get locked out, the BAA decided to make the qualifying times more stringent, starting in 2013- back to a 3:30, just like I needed when I was 45-49.  In the transition year -2012, the qualifying time was still 3:35, but the entrants would be rank-ordered by time so that a 3:29 would get in before 3:30 and 3:31 before a 3:32, etc until all the slots were filled.  So you could get a qualifying time and not get in.  So Gil and I decided to pace ourselves for a 3:30 time (about an an 8:00 minute per mile pace).  It was a great race, with a strong solid pace group.  It was cool, and started to rain at the end, and Gil finished in 3:29:57 and I was just behind him in 3:30:48.     As it turned out, the cutoff time for our age group was 3:33, so we made it with time to spare.
Of course, I used the F.I.R.S.T training program again, outlined in the book - "Run Less, Run Faster" .
And since I first qualified in the (spring) Green Bay Marathon with a 3:30:34, I have only gotten 14 seconds slower.  So that's pretty good for 3 and half years.