Ironman Coeur d'Alene - TriathlonFull Ironman

I've never panicked in a swim like this. I had practiced in this lake for three days prior and was comfortable if not used to the cold. I've trained with swim partners who purposefully put me through the washing machine effect so contact is not new to me. I'm still not sure why I reacted that way but I went through some very scary moments out there and just wanted it over. I concentrated on keeping an arm in front of my face and was very careful to watch for feet (hard to see those covered in booties!). I was only punched hard once in the head and the kind gentleman quickly put his head up and apologized. The very best part of my swim happened as I was coming into the final 200 yards. I turned my head to take a breath and there was my training partner swimming beside me. How in the world does that happen in the chaos of an IM swim? It was the first time that I knew I would be OK.

I took a very aggressive starting line and would move back and away from the buoy line to avoid the intensity of the mass start. However, my goal was to be out of the water in less than 1:30 so the 1:28 was in line with that plan. Ideally, I'd like to be closer to 1:20 - especially in those cold temperatures.

My T1 was slower than I expected. My hands were frozen in a "claw" and I could do very little on my own. The swim exit volunteers managed to get my wetsuit zipper down for me as I ran out of the water. I was able to get my goggles off but could not get my caps off of my head with my frozen fingers. The wetsuit strippers were great! They got me to my feet and headed to my T1 bag that a volunteer handed to me as I ran by. I grabbed an open chair on the lighter side of the Women's Changing Tent and a volunteer quickly came over and dumped my bag. She helped me get my caps off (I had triple capped), placed my race belt around my waist while I put on a dry bike jersey over my wet Tri top. My helmet went on like a charm thanks to the magnetic clasp (love my new LAZER helmet!). My socks were difficult to put on but the volunteer managed to get them on. While I put my shoes on, she stuffed my wetsuit in my bag. The final hurdle was putting my full-fingered gloves on. It ate a bunch of time and the volunteer rubbed my hands and blew on my fingers to get the circulation going (love her!) but I almost gave up the gloves. They finally went on enough to get going. I thanked my T1 Angel and took off to find my bike thinking "how am I going to ride a bike with frozen hands and feet?" the whole way.

Handwarmers in my T1 bag? I'm not sure how to deal with that. My core was warm so I'm thinking the triple caps were a good idea (no neoprene cap). I'm still not sure if the booties would have helped. I didn't like the way they felt in my practice swims and my feet didn't seem to get cold in practice but they sure froze up on race morning. #ihatecoldwaterswims

I really enjoyed this bike course. It was super tough but the reward of getting to fly through the crowded town of Coeur D'Alene four times was well worth the effort.

I approached the bike leg very conservatively in order to save my legs for the run. In hindsight, I might have been able to push it a little harder but since this was my first full IM, I wasn't sure what was going to be "too much". I kept my cadence up but wished I had a better cassette set-up. I was running a 12/25 and had plenty of room to play on the climbs but ran out of gears on the descents. I'd also take in more water. I was right on with my nutrition plan other than that.

A volunteer took my helmet and bike shoes while I put on my running shoes and pulled off my bike jersey. She turned my race number around while I grabbed my visor that I had wrapped up with a ziplock bag filled with extra salt tabs and a tiny body glide tube and my Garmin strap. I put the strap on my wrist on my way to the port-o-potty and shoved the ziplock in my race belt pocket. That's more like it!

I need to figure out how to use the multisport mode on my Garmin. I screw this up in every race and end up with wonky data. Better yet, maybe I'll race without the darned thing.

I enjoyed the run. It was absolutely gorgeous running along the lake and the crowds cheering along the sections through town were amazing. Just beyond mile 6 I ran by my training partner running the opposite direction. She was cheering for me but was struggling. I kept running a few more yards until I remembered that I had a virtual pharmacy stuffed in my Spi Belt pocket. I hoped something in there would help her so I stopped and waited for her to catch up. She was able to get a couple of TUMS into her system and it seemed to help a little. We ran in-between aid stations and walked to get in fluids and calories. After the turn around in town, we started walking the hills and aid stations. Eventually, all we could manage was a fast walk but we were together and that helped me stay focused and kept my spirits high. I just couldn't believe that we were going to finish together. After training for so long together, we were able to share our race day and push each other to run those last few blocks through town and cross that finish line. I'm so very grateful for that.

It wasn't the run I expected. It was the run I was given. I'm thankful for that...just the way it was.

My finish line catcher must have been pretty sure I was going to be OK because he walked me to where they handed out medals, hats and shirts and disappeared. I grabbed a bottle of water and ran over to my family waiting off to the side behind the barrier. Hugs all around. My husband told me he was proud of me, something he says often but so special to hear that night. Then I walked over to take a finisher photo...decided not to wait 40 minutes for a massage...and picked up two slices of cheese pizza that was hard to get down. Finding my family and best friend/Super Sherpa took some time but catching up with them on the sidewalk was sweet. Getting up off the sidewalk to go home was not so sweet (ouch!).


Just my inexperience held me back, I think. I decided to take the race conservatively since it was my first. I was super prepared with over 9 full centuries and a bunch of 80+ rides, a full marathon (Big Sur) and several 22+ mile runs, and a ton of Open Water Swimming in my race training. My Coach got me to the start line feeling very prepared with a solid race plan.


I love this course and venue! The people of Coeur D'Alene are beyond friendly and supportive and the setting is gorgeous. The swim here is no joke. The cold water temperatures combined with the aggressive nature of this particular mass start makes for a brutal swim. The bike course is not technical but it is challenging with some serious climbs...6% Mica Grade? Twice?! Feeling like a Rock Star pedaling through the crowded streets of CDA makes up for the burning quads on the climbs. The run course is just beautiful and a lot of fun. People all along the way were cheering...even late into the night. Finally, the final few blocks of Sherman Avenue are unbelievable! I smiled the whole way. Hearing Mike Reilly say, "Paige Mark of Marietta Georgia, You are an IronMan!" was just icing on the cake. It made all of those o'dark thirty training wake-ups worth it. I set a goal, worked really hard to prepare, and made it happen. That's what it's all about. I'm in awe of the other athletes who toed the line with me...each of them with their own story to tell. My race day ended up being less about the Swim/Bike/Run and more about the people around me - both on the course and on the sidelines. It was a very good day.

On a side note, the day after the race I was given the extra treat of hearing my 16 year old daughter say that she wanted to try her first Sprint in August. Guess that means I have some more training to do this summer because I wouldn't miss racing with her for the world!