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 Swim
Comments: I was a little daunted the day before because there were big waves. Lots of folks were out there in the days before 'practing' in the waves. It was fun to swim with a lot of other people there and in the waves but I quickly realized I would be wasting energy for race day. The seas calmed over night and it was a typical flat quiet ocean day race day and I was glad I hadnt wasted energy. I swam very slow and relaxed. I constantly told myself to take it easy but purposeful on the swim. I knew it was a long day ahead and to stay calm. The race announcer and everyone was talking about the current and to start waaay right of the bouys. I did. I stayed with the masses. It was so crowded the whole first loop. I was always right behind and in front of someone. Its hard to sight with all the spray and bubbles. I just kept looking for the next bouy once I cut in towards the right. I was pretty excited at the first big turn bouy. The sun was in my eyes going to the next big turn. It was still manageable and I was able to find the bouy. One the way back to shore I looked to swim to the left of the tall buildng but I cut away from the crowd and swam the bouy line back. Not sure if this helped or hurt me. Lap two was less people. As i cam into shore I heard announcer staying had a lot of the athletes were already out of the water...I was like "ouch..that hurts...lol" but I was happy with my swim. I felt good, calm and ready to move on. It was exciting all the people crowded in and cheering. It was a blur... What would you do differently?: I probably could have swam a little harder and faster. I was just trying to be conservative. I am not sure if I should have staryed with the crowd on the way back to shore or stuck to the bouy line. The second lap the current changed a bit and I was off some.  Transition 1
Comments: Took my time to make sure I had everything on and done. Ran into tent, ran toward back where it was empty and grabbed a volunteer and said can you be mine? she was very sweet and helpful but young. Made sure I thought through everything. glasses, sunblock, lube in shorts etc. It was cooooolllldd...so I went with a preformance knit shirt, arm warmers, a head wrap and I wore a swim suit under my wetsuit instead of my bike shorts. Glad I did. The wet bike shorts for 112 miles would suck. Also I had some very cold bike rides right before Ironman and the cold can sap your energy as much as the heat so I opted to be warm and comfy. Glad I did. The cold wind the first few hours was miserable. What would you do differently?: Not really anything...An extra minute to make sure I had what I needed put me on the bike calmer and comfy...  Bike
Comments: I am usually a strong cyclist with a 19-21 mph race pace. My mantra the whole damn ride was "slooooww, slooowww ali slowww" I knew it had to be a lazy yoga ride to get me a run. It was painfully hard to watch everyone ride by and even worse to see the time mounting up. But I held firm to my lazy ride and then sped up when the wind was a tailwind. I was so well hyrdated it cost me a lot of time stopping to pee. No idea how to fix that one...The course is too crowded to pee on the bike without it being really gross. If I did it again, I would hope that riding faster would have increased my sweat ratio and that would help. I have never had this problem on shorter more intense rides. I knew how hungry I could be if I didnt do my nutrition right. Tons of water, some perform and gels every hour. At the beginning of the bike I ate a bonk bar because I knew I had six hours to digest. It worked great. I felt completely satisfied at the beginning of the run. Not hunry at all. I wanted to get off the bike and feel it was the start of a training day. After riding through the crowd...I shook off the road dust and realized I felt just fine. Not tired, not sapped, and not hungry. Exactly as I had hopped. What would you do differently?: Ride a tiny bit faster. Its very hard to guess the right pace and it would probably take 10 races to figure out the right bike pace. I took it waaay too easy but I would rather push on the run. Transition 2
Comments: took it purposeful but slow. gathered myself. Made sure all was in place for the run..  Run
Comments: My run plan was crazy but it worked for me. I divided the run into all kinds of mental seqments. The first five miles I ran and chanted slow, slow. I allowed myself to walk only 30 seconds every 2 miles. Then the second part was seven miles that i allowed myself to run at a comfy pace. Again stopping every 2 miles for just a few seconds. I took some tums and a tylenol, spaced out...during the first five. Helped with my leg pain. After the seven I then let myself jog with a walk to the special needs pick up. Then started running again until I was back into the neighborhood. Then I did 3 with the slow, slow mantral again. Then 5 stopping each water station and running comfy. Then i slogged out the last part until I got to the final two miles. In my brain I was running with all my heart...my legs were like.."uh...no.." The final mile and a half I ran, and soaked it all in..I was gonna be an Ironman. A year of major heartbreak and loss, training hell, being homeless, being a mess and I somehow got it together and made my dream come true. That last mile or so was just about the greatest moment in my life...No matter what happens in my life...nothing can take that feeling and that memory away from me. I know why people go back to do Ironman over and over again...Its that high...they chase it...Its worth every hour alone on the bike, every morning of cold, tired 4 a.m. swimming where it almost feel painful to get into the water. All time times you hurt but ran anyways. The hours of being without your friends or family just hearing yourself breath. That last mile takes all that time and erases it from your memory and oputs in a feeling of accomplishment that changes who you are forever. Well...at least that is how it is for me. I stand a little straighter now. I feel pride in myself that runs deeper than anything ever before...As I did my silly dance in the finish shoot and crossed the finish line I became an Ironman...part of the fraternity...and it was worth everything... What would you do differently?: Not a single solitary thing. Post race
Warm down: I was so high...talked to some friends, hugged my boyfriend,went to our condo and ate a small bowl of pasta and water. I felt just awful then.fell deep asleep..happy but sick as hell. The next day I was sore and walked like a cowboy, got up early, went and bought finisher stuff (the line starts at 7 am lol) then went to condo and had a champagne breakfast while crying tears of joy and looking at the ocean... What limited your ability to perform faster: I am 42, not thin and missed three months of training due to some major life upheavals...But even without all that i think I did just as well as I could have hoped for.. Event comments: (!!!This is my final journal entry from the day after the race!!!) Its 5 am. The Day After. Its never felt so good to hurt so bad. My feet and legs and neck and tummy all feel horrid. My soul feels like I won the lottery. If you are a first timer you probably are doing what I did..pouring over race reports looking for some nugget that says you will finish. My advice which was gained from four years of tris and being coached by good coaches boils down to two things... 1. Have a plan for what you will do, wear and eat race day and practice it over and over like a dress rehersal. Then dont change it race day as if finishing depends on it because it does. 2. Race day ride the bike as slow as you ever have even if you are lance armstrong. Today feels like the first day of a new life. Today I am someone different. I am a success story in my own pathetic little way. I owe it to so many people to thank them. All I can feel is happiness and pride. I wonder what my life will bring next? What is my next mountain to climb? Times and pacing and rank is just so stupid and wasteful. I did something so very few people do: I followed through.... Last updated: 2011-04-04 12:00 AM
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United States
Ironman North America
71F / 22C
Sunny
Overall Rank = /
Age Group = 40-45
Age Group Rank = 91/120
This report is more of an overall journal of my experience. Some folks may not like it because I was really honest about stuff. If you are are a first timer who just wants to finish...I wrote this for you...
A lot of this is parts of journals I had written...
(THIS SECTION WRITTEN PRE_RACE Early October 2011) Today is roughly a month out. I am feeling such a weird mixture of emotions. I am scared shitless, I am pumped, I feel ready and I feel I will never be ready enough. Things that seemed impossible are now routine...three hours workouts are considered light. I started this year behind. I signed up in Nov and my ex asked for a divorce in January. In March, I emailed Ironman and asked to quit. They dont let you quit as it turns out. You get back only $150. So I didnt quit. (Thank you Ironman for NOT letting me quit easily). From Jaunary until May I was basically homeless. I got fat, drank too much but still kinda kept working out. Then in May I decided I might as well go for the swim and bike. My coach told me I could finish but "it would be ugly". My training buddy who is using Endurance Nation pointed out his program was just getting started about the same time as mine. I knew I was behind by a lot but I had a new house, was settled in and wanted to live up to the commitment to do an Ironman.
I put the blinders on and started to work. At first the workouts were not so bad. I had more bike that i realized from prior years of doing shorter tri races. My running has always been weak. I had run some in off season. I started to run a lot and tried to build a base. Then I got hurt. A back/leg injury. Another set back. By now the training had consumed my life and I was starting to resent it. I can't date or party or do anything a newly divorced person wants to do. I am in bed at 9 and up at 5. I was hurt and sore. PT Solutions worked on me. I slowly got better. My run is a joke. I am realistic that I will walk a lot of the run...and that is on a good day. But as I sit here I honestly feel I tried hard. I tried damn hard. I stuck to my training plans. I did all the big workouts. I listened and followed my coach. I feel like if conditions are typical I have the swim and the bike. The black period will be the second loop of the run..That is where it will all come together. I think about it constantly. I visualize myself fighting through every possible bad thing happening. I am prepared for the battle. It helps me think in terms of a fight. Its like all the anger I had about my divorce I can kinda put here, and my sadness, and my happiness at being free...at surviving life stuff. Most of my friends look at me like I am a stranger..Ironman training does that...when you have no time for a life, you end up with no time for your friends. There is a lot of downside to Ironman Training. Hours of boredom. Sacrafices your family and friends make. It changed me. In some ways its been lifesaving. In other ways its made me a bit of a jerk. If I had know how long and lonely the road to Ironman is..I probably wouldnt have done it. Then again, I probably needed all this healthy time to think through my life. My deepest regret is that I miss my kids. They live with me but my quality time with them is not great. Mom is always tired. Mom is always gone in the mornings, gone on saturdays and sundays...Being honest with myself I needed this time to get me together so I can help them go through the changes...I simply must finish this...for them as much as me...
(THIS PART WRITTEN Mid-October) NOW ITS TWO AND A HALF WEEKS OUT I have been completely alcohol free for three weeks. Now I am cutting out caffine so I can absorb it race day. Honestly I hate IM. I cant stand to be alone for these 6 and 7 hour training sessions. Its just depressing and miserable. Now its cold and I want to cry at the thought of saturday which will be in the 30's and completely alone and miserable for 7 hours. I have tried every possible avenue to find people to train with. I even begged my coach for help but there is just no one around doing a similar ride. They are all done with their tri seasons. I am missing my kids, my life, halloween...everything...Everyone is pissed at me because I can never go anywhere or do anything...Most of my friends stopped asking months ago...by now even my kids just look sad and frustrated when I constantly tell them how I can't do x,y or z because I will be training. I would never have done this if I had known it would be like this these past few months. Im scared that my bad attitude is gonna mess me up...I actually am so looking forward to race day...finally to be around people, finally to be riding with others etc...race day will be the only fun day in the whole thing. Race day will be a party. When I used to read other people's reports or talk to IM people who seemed well...unhappy...I always thought it was just them...that it would be different for me...It hasnt been...Its not been fun at all....OK I can run 20 miles no sweat and I lost some weight...I can do cardio forever but so what...I just am so unhappy...I just have to get through two long workouts...then its all shorter stuff...Right now that is all I can focus on...just survive this week..maybe next week I will feel better...I am usually a happy funny person but the training took my mojo...I am writing this because when I read reports no one talked about what it took to get to race day. Race day is nothing...the journey to race day is the real battle in IM. Writing that makes me feel a little better...In the end, finish or not, I did the hardest part...I survived the long lonely days, I pushed through pain and fatigue over and over and over again...I already am an Ironman in my heart regardless of whether or not I cross the finish line...But OMG I better damn cross it! lol...
WRITTEN One week OUT...
I am so scared and excited. I feel better all the worst training is over. But taper? WTF? What taper? i was still running and riding long stuff even the weekend before. I feel like I am about to have a baby now. I am worried about getting sick, tripping, getting my foot cut...ALL I can think about is the race...planning my pace, planning my lists...always visualizing...I can't believe I could actually do this...but I am afraid to dream it...I am so worried something could go wrong...I want that finish so badly...
(3 days out This is how I wrote out my perfect day visualization)
330 wake up
Coffee and bread and pb
Water and potty
Teeth rinse face nose
430 dress
Swim bottoms race bra and top
Garmin
Timing chip
Lube up
Set hair
Sweats and pants
Pink flip flops
Get stuff for bike
Pump
Special needs bags
Wetsuit
Goggles
Spray
Cap
5 Have Ken carry to trans bus with me
Pics
5-6 go to trans set up bike 2 bots, 6 /u, prezels bar. Tylenol and tums. say out loud MY BIKE ROCKET IS READY drop off bags, meet back with Ken
6-7 water, sit! 630 get suit on take gu and water
645 watch pros turn on garmin.
7 start
First 3 bouys settle into pace and stay to right then fourth bouy cut in. Follow around
8 start second loop. Relax but work. Drink water at aide station walk into water.
Stay on bouys.
9 exit take off wetsuit look for Ken wave and be happy but jog efficiently to trans. Yell number 432 get bag go to rear of tent.
Shorts off bike on. Water from ears, eye drops if needed. Get garmin strap on and working. Wash off feet dry. Calf guards, socks, arms warmers. Put on sunscreen. Helmut glasses shoes exit. YeLl no for bike while walk jog to rack. Go to mount start. Yoga ride 15 min. Eat bar, lots of water. Say CALM. Once on 79 ride to feel but z1. Small chain on bridge- water perform each hour. Gu each hour. Water at aide stations into aero bottle. At half stop reload. Lube up.
Bike should be utterly slow and lame. Ur lamest ever. If at end of race I say I took it waay too easy that's ur best race ever!!!! If feel ok speed up at turn. But still mellow. Per dan after 75 can push a bit. Spin legs before get off.
4 get off bike. Feel excited to run and glad bike was so dull. Yell number. Get bag go to sides.
Shorts off run on. New socks. It will be hot, gloves and arm warmers off. Run shoes on. Go potty. Belt with gu water bottle and pretzels tylenol and tums. Switch over garmin. Visor.
First set 5 slow slow slow walk stop every 2
7 easy pace stop every 2
2 at turn mild get back with notes and snickkers re lube. Get glow sticks out n ready
3 slow slow slow
If pain take a tylenol.
(Read a note from kids each 3 of this set ) 7 easy stop each stop
2 run like a kenyan celebrate walk finish arms up hat off try to think about look cute. Dance
Race Day:
Pretty much followed my plan. I felt so calm. Strangely calm. I took everything in. I wanted to enjoy this moment in my life. I was so organized, it made me KNOW I had put all my stuff into my bags. There are two you must drop off the day before. Your bike bag with everything including your shoes etc (not allowed to leave shoes on bike at Ironman). Race morning you can put air in your tires and water in your areo bottle etc but that is it. There is no transition area to set up. Your bag IS your transition area. You also drop off your bag for your run transition. I made lists for each. Put all my stuff on top. Had a friend double check my lists. Then put the stuff in and did not touch it again. Its hard not to mess with it.
I slept well thursday becuase I knew I wouldnt sleep friday and I kinda did. I was up and ready at 3:30. I ate. Got to the bus which is a few blocks away from venue in a big Walmart parking lot. I went to the special needs bag drop off. Special needs are the bags you get halfway through your run and bike. I put lube in mine (makes saddle sore a lot less bad), snack, more hydration..whatever you think you might want or need that they might not have on course. For the run I had notes from my kids. Those helped that seocnd loop a lot.
After transition went into hotel ans sat there with everyone else. It was cold outside. We all sat quietly and then about 6:15 people started putting on wetsuits and heading out to beach. I brought a blanket to wrap around me. The sand is freezing so I wore old flip flops and handed them off at the last minute. The sun came up. This is Ironman. I wanted to cry, I was so proud of myself to be there. I knew deep down that despite all the set backs I was ready and I was going to finish. I felt and looked like an Ironman.
The blast went off...