Ironman USA Lake Placid - TriathlonFull Ironman

I was well warned about the chaotic swim start at Lake Placid. There were countless threads on slowtwitch and BT about where to start...arguments about safety...blah..blah..blah. I lined up about 3rd row and 30 feet from the dock. I was right in the middle of the chaos. I'll never do it any other way. I honestly can't see how starting farther back or way to the right would have helped.

It was by far the roughest swim start I've ever experienced...but nothing I wasn't expecting. Actually, it was exactly what I expected. You really have to fight for position. YOu can't give an inch. There were some guys who had no problem grabbing your leg and pulling you backwards. You have to kick them...HARD. It really was a battle for the first half of the swim.

I came out of the water around 31 minutes for the first loop. The second loop is much easier. It is easy to find some feet and draft your way along the buoy line. No need to every sight. Just find that line and somebody to draft.

I was really happy with my level of effort and and swim time. I was able to keep a nice pace without over extending myself. Most of the swim felt easy. This is probably one of the easier IM swim courses due to the smooth water, drafting effect and rope you can follow.

Not much really. My swim time was faster than expected and easier than expected. Some longer swims during training may have helped. But I religiously swam 4 times a week and I think that really helped.

This was the first time I ever had a wetsuit stripper. I doubt it was much faster than I could have done on my own but it was still neat to have somebody help out.

Unfortunately, I came out of the water with hundreds of others. So I didnt have much help in transition or the changing tent. I had to get my own T1 bag and my own bike. I left my wetsuit and swim gear on my T1 bag in a chair and just hoped somebody would bag it up for me.

I think my T1 will be better next time. I didn't know what to expect and was really just following directions as I went along.

Now I was on the bike and done with the swim. Long bikes are a strength of mine and I was very happy to be there. I immediately started passing people. The first few hills out of Lake Placid, I must have passed 100 people. I wasn't hammering either...just cruising along. I hit the Keene descent and topped out at 53mph. After the Keene descent, the packs started forming on the flat section towards Ausable Forks. There was really nothing you could do. Drafting was a reality unless you dropped back and sat on the side of the road while the masses passed. I was still steadily passing people. After the turnaround, I passed Fred. We chatted a bit and I headed on my way up towards Jay. This would be a theme of the bike. Fred and I would pass and re-pass each other. If we were smart, we would have just worked together and drafted our way to the finish...but I guess we didn't feel like cheating :) The 1st climb back to lake placid felt good. I took it nice and easy and got a real adrenaline boost coming through town with all the spectators. My stomach started cramping during the first lap. It wasn't bad but definately noticable. It worried me a bit. I think I ate too much, too soon during the bike. I noticed that my Infinit bottle was almost gone about 1.5 hours into the bike. For some reason, I had also been drinking some Perform...so I think I took in over 800 calories in the first 2 hours. Probably too much and it may have caused and backup in digestion in my stomach.

The second loop was clear of the masses of cyclists. Fred and I continued to leapfrog along with a few others. I didn't see much drafting on the second loop. There was some behind us after the turnaround but it was nothing like the first loop.

I took the final climb into Lake placid very easy. Fred passed me and I just told him good luck. I knew I wouldn't see him again. I really wanted a 3:30 marathon and I knew I had to get ready. I felt fine at this point except for the lingering stomach cramps. At this point, I didnt know why my stomach wasn't happy but there was nothing I could do but stay with the plan and hope it went away.

I jumped off the bike and was ready to run. I felt tired but pretty good at this point. I was focused and ready to put together a good run. I knew I had a shot at 10:10 or less.

Pay closer attention to early nutrition on the bike. Not sure why the stomach cramps persisted so long. I think this may have caused some problems during the run...but I'm really not sure.

I may have slightly overbiked the first half as well. There was a 9 minute differece in the first and second loop. I think that's pretty good but I'd like an even split next time.

Dismounted, crossed the timing mat and handed off my bike. I had to grab my own T2 bag. I really didn't waste any time in T2. I changed my socks, put on my hat and shoes and took off. Never stopped to collect my thoughts or get a drink. As a result, I had a pretty quick T2.

Nothing.

I started the run feeling like I was running really easy. I was holding back a bit trying to get a feel for how my run was going to go. I can usually tell early in the run how things are going to go. I crossed the 2 mile mark in 14:30 and thought that was a lot faster than it felt. The first few miles are downhill so it wasn't surprising.

My stomach was still cramping quite a bit but I still stuck to my nutrition plan. Water and perform at the aid stations with a gel every 40-45 minutes. This would give me my 250-300 calories per hour. My running felt pretty good for the next hour or so. Even though the stomach didnt feel good, my running was fine. After the 1 hour mark, I started to feel the strain in my running form. Nothing too bad but definately not as smooth as early in the run. This feeling cleared up after a few miles though.

My first run up the hill into Lake Placid felt great. I really ran those few miles well. I got chills from all the fan cheering and yelling at me. I crossed the halfway point at 1:41 and felt really good at this point. I remember thinking that 1:50 would be a good estimate of how long the second half should take and that 10:10 was very realistic. I even had thoughts of even splitting the marathon and getting close to 10 hours.

The run back out of Lake Placid felt OK. It wasn't as fast as the first trip out but still sub 8 minute pace. As soon as I turned onto the out and back on river rd, I started feeling "not so good". How quickly things can turn. Within a couple miles I probably slowed to around a 9min/mile pace. At mile 18 I felt bad and by mile 20 I was already in survival mode. My stomach was cramping badly and I just couldn't stomach any more food. I switched to coke, which helped...but not too much. I walked the last few aid stations and just tried to hold on. My hopes of 10:10 quickly faded and I stopped thinking about time.

The 2nd run back to Lake Placid was bad. Barely faster than a walk. I did get a bit of a boost when I realized I only had a couple miles to go. Running past the finish and realizing you still have a couple miles is pure torture...I don't know who designed that run course..but they suck.

I started feeling a bit better during the last mile. I picked up the pace and cruised into the finish. I passed right by my wife and kids in the finish but I didn't even see them. I crossed the line with a huge sense of relief. The catcher held me up for a while and then I walked off to the recovery area.

People always talk about the emotions they get when they cross the line. I never really had that. I was relieved to be done...but definately not teary or weapy.

More run training. Slow down during the first 10K of the run. I think this was my downfall. I had a great first 10K and a terrible final 10K. If I could even this out...I probably take off 6-8 minutes.

The weather was perfect so I can't complain at all about. I just didn't execute the run properly and I paid for it at the end to the tune of 10 mintues. Still, not bad for a first time IMer. I still have work to be done and will be back to tackle this course.

I sat in the recovery area, drank some water and ate some pizza/subs. I talked with Fred (who finished in 10:22) and James. Met (cusetri) briefly. We were too tired to really have a meaningful conversation.

I met up with my wife and kids after about 20 minutes. They had been waiting at the finish and had a very long day as well. They waiting patiently while I recovered. After 30 minutes or so, I grabbed my bike and we walked slowly back to the hotel. Sue went out and picked up the rest of my gear, and something to eat for me. I watched movies with the kids and layed in bed until midnight. I really couldn't sleep.

I know it's been said a thousand times...but when you have a family, IM training is a family affair. 7 hour weekend workouts, 5am mornings, 8pm bedtime, dealing with fatigue. There is no way I could have done this without the support of my wife Sue. She was always there for me and very understanding. I thank her for this all the time.

No IM for me next year. Too many projects I put off this year. I'll be back in a few years to see if I can crack this IM and make it to Kona.


I would say my nutriion plan was the main reason I cracked in the last few miles. It didn't work out terribly for me...but it could have been better. I think I ate too much too soon and it came back to bite me at the end. I doubt I go much faster tha 10:10 but I definately lost some time towards the end.

I also need to think about pacing. Better bike and early run pacing may have worked out better for me. Not sure about this though...need to put some more thought into it.


Lake Placid is a great race, great town, great atmosphere. Really by far the nicest race I've done. Be prepared to spend lots of money though.