Swim
Comments: Jumping in with a wave that was slower than what I planned on swimming meant I was either in for a 2.4 mile fist fight with a slower swim OR a relaxing, slower swim. I opted for the 2nd. I swam with the group until after the Mill Ave bridge and then it opened up and I swam alone until the bouys. Sighting was right on. Made the turns and headed back and got into a good rhythm. I noticed about half way back I was really getting warm in my wetsuit. I had brought a sleeveless that I planned on using but got suckered into buying an XTERRA full suit and loved the fit. I could have gone sleeveless and probably been a little more comfortable. It got congested from the Mill Ave bridge to the exit. Strippers got my suit off quick and I was off to transition. What would you do differently?: Line up with the wave I expected to start with. Transition 1
Comments: What a mess transition is. All the dead grass is glued to you. Nothing glamorous at all. Changed outside, got sunscreened up and grabbed my bike. What would you do differently?: Nada Bike
Comments: Headed out. Got into a nice easy rhythm. The plan was to go conservative on he first lap to make sure I didn't burn too many matches. Saw a dude wrecked at the first aid station and felt for that guy. Total bummer. Ride out was quick and uneventful until Gilbert Rd when I could feed my S-Caps trying to wriggle out of my back pocket and just as I reached back to grab them...there they went. I knew I was going to be in trouble without them. I immediately went to plan B - except I didn't have a plan B...yet. I kept cruising and felt great. Made the turn around and let it rip back to Tempe. Made the turn around in Tempe and headed back out. Refilled my Aerodrink with Gatorade and took a Gu. Cruised up Beeline and got SMOKED By Starkowitz (Holy Crap...Pros are a different breed). Got to the turn around at mile 60 and applied some chamois butter and had a pretzel...not in that order! As I clipped back in it started to rain. And rain it did. It got colder immediately and my focus coming down Beeline was to not wreck. Once it started to rain...the flats started to pile up. I saw so many flats out there. I rode back into Tempe with 2 other athletes and we were all going the same speed. Made the turn around - CAREFULLY - and headed out. I was feeling great. I had the idea of trying to push it just a little bit on the way out and then fly down Beeline to get ready for the run. At about mile 92 I could feel my back end getting sluggish and I knew I was going flat. I got to the turn around and stopped at the Aid Station. My buddy filled my tire and I figured I could haul back to transition before it went flat. I got to Gilbert and realized I needed to stop and change it. THANK HEAVENS for the Mechanics Tent there. Those guys fixed me up. We had issues with my valve extender not working and I went through 3 tubes. It took about 20 minutes to get this stupid thing figured out. As I was standing there the rain picked up and it got COLD. The minute I stopped moving i started shivering. By the time I got back on my bike it was a struggle to get moving again. I tried to up the effort to get warm by the time I got back to transition. What would you do differently?: Maybe push it a little more on the way up Beeline. I played it safe because I wanted to finish. I knew I had the fitness to do the distance and in hindsight I had the fitness to go harder. Transition 2
Comments: Felt great off the bike. Made it quick. Dead grass everywhere. No biggie. What would you do differently?: Nada Run
Comments: Came out of transition and felt great. Cruised out east trying to keep myself reeled in...I knew it was going to be a long day. I have been battling major IT issues and had only ran about 4-5 times in the last 4 weeks leading up to the race. I knew at some point that the pain would come and I wasn't expecting much out of the run. I figured id run as long as the IT band would let me and then walk/run the rest. So heading east was a piece of cake...turning around and running along the lake was a mud run. Sloppy and sliding everywhere. It actually took my mind off of the fact I was running. *SIDE NOTE* The most amazing parts of the course for me are right around Mill Ave bridge on both sides of the lake. The Tri Team tents on the south side are amazing. The support and cheers were enough to keep you going to Priest. The PARTY on the north side was exactly what was needed at mile 23/24. Couldn't have asked for anything more. THANK YOU to all the volunteers and spectators that really made this an amazing event for an average athlete like me. Get out of the mud and over towards Mill Ave and had a good time with the support. Saw my wife and kids and stopped and talked to them for a minute. I found out right then that if I stopped I would freeze. I kept on trucking. Ran down and around to the Priest Dr bridge and walked through the aid station on the north side. I noticed my quads starting to bark at me so I picked up a tube of base salt and took a couple shots. That stuff seemed to do the trick. I liked it and it was super convenient and easy to carry. Then came what seemed to me to be the toughest part of the run...from Mill Ave to the turn around. It seemed to take forever. Ran down and around Papago Park and up the hill...the down hill damn near killed my quads. The party under the overpass was awesome. Got some gatorade and water and kept cruising. When I got back to the Priest Bride is when I first felt my IT band twinge. I shortened my stride and focused on my form. I made it through the first lap and saw my wife and kids again. This time it got real. I had a breakdown moment and thought I was going to cry like a baby. At that point I knew that I was going to finish. Even if I walked it I knew I was going to make it. It was getting dark quick and as I ran east it was getting colder. This time I didn't have much room to run the "mud run" so I walked a majority of it. I got a huge boost at Mill Ave again and that fueled me to Priest. I walked the bridge and run to Mill Ave (north side) and walked and talked with a few athletes. From the Marina to the top on the hill was a blur. I don't know what happened or where that time went. I just knew that my IT band was hurting and I NEEDED to keep moving. I made it back to Priest and walked the bridge again. I was in PAIN...but I was almost there. I was about 1/2 mile from the finish and there was my son and my wife. He ran to the finish chute with me and he got a TON of cheers from all the spectators and was loving it. My wife grabbed him as I entered the chute and instantly any pain I was feeling was gone. I ran down the chute to the lights, high-fiving people the whole way down and heard it..."TODD MORAN...YOU ARE AN IRONMAN!" What would you do differently?: I don't know. Ask me in a month. Post race
Warm down: Walked through the athlete area and had some chocolate milk. Immediately started to freeze. I grabbed my gear and got out of dodge. My sister is a massage therapist and she gave me a good rub down and stretch when we got home. Ate some pizza and wings and got to bed. What limited your ability to perform faster: The rain. The flats. I don't mind the cooler weather. I honestly don't mind the rain. I don't trust others in the rain so I slowed around others. Not running the last few weeks definitely had an impact on my run BUT to be able to get through nearly 20 miles without MAJOR pain was awesome. This being my first IM I wanted to finish. Moving forward I will definitely ride harder and build a bigger run base. I felt confident in my bike going into the race and I should have ridden harder. Event comments: The race was great. Great Venue and host City. I'd love to do this race again. Last updated: 2015-11-18 12:00 AM
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United States
World Triathlon Corporation
60F / 16C
Precipitation
Overall Rank = 1337/2681
Age Group = 30-34
Age Group Rank = 130/195
Cruised out to Arizona on Thursday and stayed with family in Mesa. Got checked in on Friday and checked out the expo, grabbed some food and headed back. Came back on Saturday so my 4 yr old son could run the Ironkids race (He was so stoked), I could check in my bike and gear bags and get a quick swim in. My wife volunteered for the race also so she had the meeting while I hung out with the kids. Bought a new wetsuit, went for a quick dip, checked in the bike and headed home. BEAUTIFUL day on Saturday. 80 degrees with little wind. Hung out and had a light, early dinner and hung out with the family. Headed to bed at 9...
...and woke up at 5! HOLY CRAP! The plan was to wake up at 4, eat, get my stuff together and be out of the house by 5! Now I'm stressing...I jump up, wake the wife, shower quickly, get my clothes on and head to the kitchen. Pop in my oatmeal and start filling my bottles. Grab my bag, bottles and keys and head to the car at 5:20.. We get parked and briskly walk to transition. Find my bike and I FORGOT MY BOTTLE THAT FILLS MY AERODRINK! My wife is awesome and runs back to the car. I get everything else situated and get in line for the toilets and got body marked at the same time (win). I am next in line and I hear the announcement that pros are starting in 10 minutes and we should be lining up in our swim corrals. I do my business quickly...run out and begin the process of putting my wetsuit on. 10 minutes later my wife shows up and I fill my bottle, run over to drop my special needs bags as the pros start. I get my cap on and try to weave my way through to the 1:10 swim group and couldn't move past the 1:40 group. I can't tell you the literal stress case I was up to this point. Then I had a moment of clarity and I noticed the song playing was "Best Day of my Life" which is my kid's favorite song and I envisioned them jumping around singing it at the top of their lungs. All the stress I had melted away and I said to myself..."Nothings getting me down today." I knew that no matter how crappy I did, how slow my swim or how much I walked on the run my kids would be so excited to see me. I'm ready to do this.