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.
