Half-Ironman Iceland 2009 - Triathlon1/2 Ironman

The swim start was good and I focused on kicking very little and hardly kicking with my right leg as to keep the back happy. After the first 100m on 2:00 I settled into a good rhythm and was able to keep my goal pace of 2:05/100m for the first 1K. After that I slowed down a little but always had the clock in sight so I knew I was still on track for my time goal.
My goal for the swim was sub 40minutes but I was not sure I could do this due to the back.

The swim was over before you knew it. I had to cross 3 lanes to get out of the water and once again the ear plugs worked wonders and I was not dizzy at all!!

Nothing at this point. I could have swam a little faster if the back would have been good!

I took my time on this. Did not see any reason to rush it. Had to cross 3 other swim lanes to get out of the pool and then just walked to the transition area. We were allowed to set up the transition inside which was very nice as it was raining and wet outside.

Almost forgot to take of my bathing suit which I was wearing over my sport bra and my tri-pants (as I did not want to bike and run with the bathing suit) and luckily my friend Corinna was nearby and reminded me :)
Put on a t-shirt and a long sleeve Bike Jersey and off I was.

Nothing.

This bike ride was so much fun depsite some heavy rain showers in between where we got completely soaked.
I took it quite easy on the first lap and then powered a little more on the second. Started drinking 20 minutes into the ride and finished the first bottle after the 3rd lap which was right on time. But then I also had to pee and I tried to hold it as long as possible but at some point it got quite uncomfortable so I decided to stop by the road and just went into the bushes. I trained a lot on that course during the summer and it was so much easier to bike there now with other people around then to be alone.
I had some food (about 120 calories) on every single lap (going uphill) which worked out well.
I got some more water from the aid station in the beginning of the 4th lap and a few minutes later I had to pee again!!! I tried to ignore it because I thought this can not be and I didn't want to waste more time in stopping but once again I needed to stop because it got uncomfortable. So I stopped again and afterwards had some cheese crackers and I hoped that the salt would stop me from having to pee all the time lol
The time on the bike went by so fast and it was a lot easier than I expected. We had slight headwind up the hills and tailwind down which I actually prefer as you get a good and fast rest on the downhill section.
It kept raining on and off but after a while you don't realise it anymore ;)
Toes were asleep and very cold after lap 2 already but I had gotten used to that feeling during training so it did not bother me too much.
During lap 5 I had to yet pee again (I was definitelty NOT dehydrated!!) and I decided to make a quick stop at the turnaround, promising myself that this was the last stop during the bike. I felt so much better afterwards was able to push a little harder again but then on 73km into the ride I heard a loud bang on my wheel and realised right away what it was. One of my spokes on the back wheel had broken:( It was probably the same spoke that broke the other day during training and I had it fixed but the guy in the bike store said he could not guarantee it would hold for quite a long time. At that time I got really scared that I could not finish the bike....I stopped at the Aid Station to loosen up the breaks (as the wheel was touching the breaks and slowing me down) and got lots of great help from the volunteers (THANK YOU!!). Someone disconnected the back break completely (did not need it anways) and that worked and I was able to keep going. It was only one more lap (15K) and I was just praying the whole time, that the 2nd spoke (which had broke during that training ride as well and which had gotten fixed) would hold up because when that broke last time it was impossible to bike anymore!! But at this point I was also ready just to walk the bike to the end just to finish the bike ride lol I took it very very easy on the last lap, especially down the hills and thankfully it worked out!
All in all a good bike and I made my goal of sub 3:30.
Lost probably 10 minutes in total due to the spoke episode and the 3 pee breaks!!

Nutrition wise it was very good. I had about 120 calories on every lap which worked out perfectly :)

Maybe drink less to pee less but as I was quite scared to get dehydrated I drank a lot!

OMG this was slow!!!
BUT right when I came in we had what you can decribe as a torrential downpour! It rained so heavily that I was soaked within seconds. Thank God all my stuff was in a plastic bag but technically that did not help much, as it kept raining and raining.
During the whole bike I was looking forward of putting dry socks on but that was not possible.
Socks and shoes got soaked as soon as I took them out and I had some trouble getting the wet socks over my wet, cold feet with frozen toes.
I finally managed and got the shoes on as well. There was a porta potty in the transition area and of course I had to pee AGAIN!!! At this point I was just laughing about it as it was crazy.
Funny enough I enjoyed that minute in the porta potty as it was DRY in there lol


Try to go faster!!

I decided in T2 to start running in my Bike Jersey as I was a little cold and I needed something to cover my MP3 player during this heavy rain because I need the player to keep me sane ;)

It was so much fun to start running. My legs were completely fine and they were just happy to be running and my toes where happy to get a chance to wake up again and have socks and shoes around them and they slowly started to wake up (took 2km though). I decided to just run by feel and see how it goes.
Took my 1min walking breaks after every 9 minutes as planned although I really had to force myself to walk in the beginning as I felt so good but in the end I was definitely glad I did.
I had to stop for a minute during the 3rd K as I had a few small stones in my shoes (under my sock) and I decided it was worth the stop instead of running with it for 18K more.
The rain kept going and I was soaked completely so I decided to take my bike jersey off after the first lap as it had gotten quite heavy. From then on there was steady rain but thankfully hardly any wind :)
Had some jelly beans during the run and alternated Leppin energy boost and Water.
On km 7 I had to pee again!!!! so I stopped by the road and went. No other choice at this point and I was scared I get tummy problems if I don't go.
Had some fast Ks after this and I slowly started to think about if I could actually break my Half-Marathon PB which is 2:26:12 (6 years old). I know its a crazy thought to break a Half-Marathon PB after a 90K bike ride but somehow this thought did not leave me so I decided to go for it and picked up the pace slightly and also focused on walking a little faster during the walking breaks.
I was so happy during the run mostly because of the fact that I had no hip pain at all and finally after 2 long years of injuries I was able to run a Half-Marathon again. I smiled so much and people probably thought I was crazy lol
The plan for the run was to take the walking breaks until 17K and then go for it the last 4K if I feel like it.
On km 14 my left quad started to get a little tight but I did not worry about this as I never had any problems with my quads...

By km 17 both quads were really tight and running got harder and I had to pee yet again (this was really annoying!!) It was all fun until then but suddenly it changed to hard work and I knew that now was the point where my mental strength needed to kick in, as my body was ready to be done. I kept telling myself "It is just pain" and kept running. I tried to eliminate the walking breaks and pick up the pace but I had to walk again three times in those 4 km as it was just so painful. Kept smiling and kept running though...after all it was just pain.... but I realised that a PB was no longer in the cards for today...
On km 20 I went by the aid station and saw my husband and my friends but still had 1K to go (which was kind of mean) and it took a lot of willpower to keep going. I wanted to walk so badly but did not let myself...

I am very happy with this run. I ran faster than I thought was possible (goal was 2:45) but I think I might have gone too fast in the beginning (but you never know).



Nothing

My husband and 3 of my friends were waiting by the finish line and I was very happy to see them. Lots of hugs and kisses.
I was very overwhelmed and actually had some breathing problems so my husband tried to run (he just finished the HIm in 4:36 and was quite sore)over to my T2 bag where my Asthma spray was in and I felt better after taking it.

Afterwards we drove back to the pool to get our stuff and take a shower and then we had the medal ceremony. We were only 4 women competing and I was surprised to hear that I actually got 3rd ( beforehand I thought for sure I would get last overall) which was really cool but I kind of couldn't care less.

I am so proud of myself for finishing this. I sure had my doubts during the last months up until the last minute!
But it was not just about the race, it was about the last 16 weeks of training, of committing to a heavy training plan and sticking to it and ending it with a very good race!!
It was lots of fun and I will for sure do it again!!




My weight as usual.