Ironman Coeur d'Alene - TriathlonFull Ironman

The gun went off and some of us were startled. I didn’t hear a countdown, although looking back at race videos, Mike Reilly was giving updates up to race start. The mass swim start was hectic but AWESOME. Water temp was probably high 50s. I think it was 1000m before I took a stroke that didn’t make contact with someone. Got kicked in the goggle pretty good twice. Elbows and arms to the head and back, but just remained calm. Focused on calm controlled breathing and a relaxed stroke. First swim lap came in at 35:40. 2nd lap focused on smooth efficient stroke. About halfway through the lap I began thinking of my fueling plan on the bike and realized I had left my bottle of accelerade in the freezer at home in Spokane. :/ Oh well! Never really pushed it on the swim. Winds picked up and we had some nasty waves to fight against on the way out, but on the way back in, it really helped. 2nd lap time of 38:56. Very pleased with the 1:14 time on the swim. Always felt calm and in control. I really enjoy swimming in open water.


Not much. Maybe pushed a bit harder. Best swim of my life so far.

Good. Great volunteers. Didn't rush it and took time.

sped it up a bit.

Was feeling super confident after a great swim. Started out very strong on the bike. Saw Haley and Deb in downtown CDA. Myk also got some great pics of me on the bike leg. The bike in town and to Higgins Point was great. Lots of spectators and support on the course. Heading out on 95 settled in for the grind of a long day. Stuck to my plan of a gel every 30 minutes and had to drink a lot of Perform on the bike. When I would empty out a bottle of Perform, I would mix a new bottle with accelerade. The perform bottles are smaller, so the solution was very sweet and concentrated. This made me drink more water to wash it down. As a result I think I stopped to pee 6 or 7 times during the bike course. I bet I spent a total of 10-15 minutes of my bike just in the bathroom. The aid station support on the bike was great. Rocking music and lots of volunteers to get you fed and hold your bike when you need to get off. The climbs on the bike were not that bad. Long and sustained, but not HARD. I loved having a triple on my crank. Just dropped it into the easiest gear and spin my way up on the hill. Saw lots of people on doubles mashing up the hills. I’ll take the extra couple of grams having a triple than not having enough gears with the double. First lap was pretty fast for me. Got a bit of drizzle, and then the sun started to come out. The south portion out 95 is ALL UPHILL, some good climbs and the rest is gradual. The way back into town is all downhill and is a fast fast 20 miles back into city park. On my first lap, saw the family at the turn up Lakeside and had Reilly call out my name as I made the turn. 2nd lap in town was great and I began to feel some fatigue in the legs around mile 65. Then started the 2nd out section on 95. The wind had come up, so this leg was all uphill and into a pretty decent headwind. Nothing extreme, but probably between 10-15mph. I just tried to be patient and found myself whistling along the way. A lady that I was riding close to asks, “What song are you whistling? I like it, but don’t recognize it.” I told her I was whistling a hymn and then joked, “I’m calling in all my favors today!” The turnaround seemed like it took FOREVER to arrive, but when it finally did, I knew it would be downhill all the way into CDA. My legs were feeling pretty fried, and I knew that I was going to pay for it on the run. I had gone out too fast on my first bike lap and worked a bit too hard. There’s a couple of no pass zones that made for some slower going, but overall the bike course was very nice. It was awesome to have our own lanes on 95 and the portion in town has so many people. There were a lot of people that had done CDA in previous years and they said they thought the sustained climbs made the new course harder than the old course. Saw the family as I coasted into T2 with a 7 hour bike split. Averaged just under 16mph on the bike. Slower than I really wanted, but with all the bathroom breaks and the headwind on the 2nd lap, I was happy to still be within range of a 13:30-14 hour finish.

More bike training. Not leave my nutrition at home. Not drink so much.

Really took my time in T2 and got changed. Got sunscreen and my neck really stung. I realized I had pretty bad wetsuit rash on my neck. Got a kiss from family and headed out. Guy next to me says, “Alright, marathon time. This is going to suck.” I said, “Its my first IM and I’ve never run a marathon.” He says, “Well. It really sucks.”

Speed it up a bit.

Well he was right. The run was HARD. I ended up walking much more than I had anticipated. The spectator support was great and the aid stations were incredible. Themed stations and tons of help. Rocking music and people in goofy outfits. They were each a little oasis a mile apart. I saw Haley for a bit on the run out and got encouragement and she shot some pictures. I held to my walk run strategy of only walking the aid stations for the first 6 miles until the hill at the turnaround. Walked the hill and resumed the walk aid station and run strategy until about mile 10. At mile 6 I started to feel like I was going to puke, so I stopped taking in food and only drank perform for calories. At mile 10 I realized that I was underfueled and HAD to eat. Just had to choke it down. At this point the walk/run went out the window and I found myself running 6 minutes and walking 4 minutes. Still walking aid stations. I was feeling pretty miserable at the turnaround until about mile 15. Encouraged by seeing friends from mile 16-19 I hit the turnaround with only 10k left and began to feel the excitement of finishing. Resumed a more aggressive pace for the last 10k. Haley caught me right before the last 3 miles and got some pictures of me as I turned onto Sherman Ave for the finishers chute. She was an angel out there on the course. I don’t think I could have finished sub 14 if she hadn’t been out there to encourage me, joke with me, and fire me up. Turning onto Sherman your heart just soared. Downhill to the chute, you heard names being rattled off in the distance as others finished. The sea of people lining the mile down the chute was incredible. I rolled into the final stretch, passing some others and seeing my family. I gave my son a kiss and crossed the line. Savoring the words, “Jeremy Wang from Wayne, Pennsylvania: You’re an Ironman!”

Better nutrition plan. Train more for running

Got my medal, shirt, cap and picture taken. I felt great. Had a lot of energy and talked with family and got some food. Didn’t want to wait for the 40 minutes for a massage so we just got out of there after dropping of my bike for transport. FIL had a nice cold beer for me back at the car. Ice Harbor Kolsch. One of my summer favorites!


Could have trained more. Could have 'dug deep' and put out more effort on the run.


My first Ironman was everything I dreamed it would be. I've seen a bunch of photos people took and can't believe how much I was smiling all day. What an experience. I loved doing IMCDA as my first. Lived in the pacific NW for 14 years and really love it here. CDA is one of my favorite places on the planet. There's not a better place than the inland NW from June to mid September. Great venue, great support, great race. Couldn't be more pleased.