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 Swim
Comments: I was literally one of the last 10 people in the water. This was by design. I could stand on the waters edge and not waste energy treading water. When the swim started I just took my time and really focused on being relaxed and have excellent technique. The swim was uneventful except for the occasional running into someone or clogging at the corners. What would you do differently?: Position better, I passed so many people and spent the whole race navigating people who seeded poorly  Transition 1
Comments: With so many people saying they want to simply finish the race as their goal, why the heck to so many people run through the transitions? Especially at Ironman Wisconsin where you have to run uphill (helix)? I don’t get it. I was the only one I saw walking. Maybe others behind me were walking but I saw no one ahead of me walking the transition. What would you do differently?: Nada....I raced just like I planned. I could've ran but why?  Bike
Comments: I was set on biking slowly the first 2 hours, and I did. In fact the third hour I didn’t let myself push much harder because of the heat. I modified my nutrition to simply take in more water. Bike was fun for the most part. I’m 200 pounds so I don’t typically climb well. For some reason or another I was passing people up hills. I was working hard, but not too hard. I never stood on a hill, I always remained seated, and I was passing people who were grinding so hard they could barely breathe. The last 5-10 miles were cool. They were with the wind and I could smell the corral. It was a great feeling knowing I was almost home. I had always told myself I knew if I got to T2 I would finish the race, because I could walk the marathon if needed (see race goal #1). What would you do differently?: Nothing....again, here I did well. I could've pushed harder, but why? Transition 2
Comments: Took my time here again. Changed clothes, made sure I was ready to go and off I went. What would you do differently?: Nothing....  Run
Comments: Saw my wife at the start and that was fun. I stopped gave her a kiss and I was on my way. Feeling very good in the legs. The run was very good. I played games with myself. Run for five minutes walk one. During the walk breaks I would drink some of my water or Infinit that was in my fuel belt. Once I was on my way I ran really well actually, just not “fast” but again, this race is about being steady and not slowing down, so I comforted myself with knowing a good run would be simply running evening (not fast, then walking a ton). As the run went on I made the turn at about 10:55 (elapsed time). I wanted to break 14 hours. I figured I could do it if I simply averaged about 4 MPH. The second loop was up and down, sometimes feeling good and moving well, other times I wanted to walk. In the end I finished well. I was very pleased with myself. Didn’t have any knee pain or ITB problems or anything like that. Cramping was nearly non-existent. When my calves started to twitch I tweaked running form and got some food in me. I never stopped. I didn’t want to. I figure that if you stop (to drink, to eat, to stretch) the finish line is moving no closer. If I wasn’t running, I was walking as fast as I could, always reeling in the finish line. What would you do differently?: I'd like to run more. I need to hydrate better. I just was always thirsty. Post race
Warm down: Went for a walk...sat down to talk to friends/family. Passed out...spend the rest of the Warmdown in the med tent. What limited your ability to perform faster: MY BODY. Event comments: Awesome race. Tough course exacerbatted by conditions. Last updated: 2005-09-13 12:00 AM
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United States
Ironman North America
95F / 35C
Sunny
Overall Rank = 821/2100
Age Group = 25-29
Age Group Rank = 94/186
The number one goal is to finish. Time was to be considered somewhat, but I wanted to finish first. After finishing was seemingly assured, then I would worry about time. I wanted to go easy but steady on each event. Run three solid events, not a solid swim and and bike and then a poor run, but a solid race from start to finish.
My motto was, “Plan your race, race your plan.”
I arrived in Madison Thursday and registered. Took it easy but was already feeling the buzz from Ironman presence.
Took it very easy in the days prior. I did all the promotional fun stuff that I wanted to do, such as getting my swim video taped and the Gatorade swim. I really enjoyed the Gatorade swim; it was a lot of fun just being around the scene a few days before the race.
Other than those things I tried to stay away from people. Triathletes tend to be a particular group of people. They remind me of my grandfather and his friends who recount war stories. I wanted all weekend to stay calm, not worry about the race. It was going to be hot, yes, but there is nothing I can do to control the weather, so let’s not worry about it. I cannot control the hills on the course, so let’s not worry about it.
So outside of meandering a bit around Ironman Village I stayed out of the Monona Terrace area as much as possible.
Race Morning:
I went to bed at 9:30 Saturday night and called the front desk for a 2 AM wake up call. At 2 AM I woke up and went to Dennys and had some oatmeal, toast, and some eggs. (Let me just say that there are some very interesting folk at Denny's at 2:15 AM on a Saturday night/Sunday morning). Got back to the hotel about 3 AM and went back to bed. Got up at 4:45 then packed final stuff and got down to Monona Terrace. This routine worked well. My stomach was well fed, but more importantly settled. I didn’t have the nervous “gotta poop” feeling that was clearly common among everyone.
Nothing...it's a freaking Ironman, I figured 2.4 mile swim was warmup enough!