Ironman Louisville - TriathlonFull Ironman

Once in the water we had a narrow canal to swim down. This part was congested, but compared to other IM swims I have read about, we had it easy. I only had people close to me a few times. No one hit me though.

My sighting down the canal was perfect. I hit the buoys dead on.

Once out of the canal we took a left into the river. It was here that I expected to feel smooth and fast, since we would be going with the current.

Nope, didn't happen. Where was that current I had in the practice swim 2 days earlier? Instead I had waves and couldn't feel a current. Oh well, I made sure to stay on track with my sighting and just kept swimming.

I was hitting each buoys dead on. I felt like I was doing a horrible job though, because when I would breathe to my right, I saw the pack of people swimming father out in the river. I was pretty much alone, which made me think I was way off course. But no, I had the buoys right in front me. I figured they must be off course and acting like a bunch of dumb lemmings who couldn't sight on their own. So I stayed on my course.

At one point, even though I was pretty much alone, I had some guy swim into me. He was going completely off course and swimming for the shore. DUH DUDE! It's this way! I saw him lift his head and finally get back on track.

After a few buoys, the pack was finally in the same area I was. So I wasn't swimming alone anymore. Which was fine. Again, it wasn't brutal. Sighting overall was good, because of the large bridges we were swimming towards.

Finally, I saw the swim exit. WHAT? It's over already? I couldn't believe it! As I was swimming I had been thinking about everything I would tell my support crew when I saw them at the swim exit. Then as I got closer to the stairs, I started breast stroking so I could just look at all of it! I wanted to soak it in! I also took my swim cap off so I could get my hair wet.

I got to the stairs and walked out of the water. Saw my support crew (Jonny, Ryan, Libby, Dad, Evelyn, Doug and Anna) on the sides! I said hello and kept going. I was so excited to see them and MEANT to tell them all about the swim, but I didn't.


What would I do differently? Swim faster? I did a decent job of it out there, but obviously not my fastest time in an open water swim. I did enjoy the swim though and made sure to appreciate being out there.

Since this is a IM, I wasn't focused on being fast in transitions, I was focused on making sure I was comfortable for the next event.

Went and grabbed my T1 bag and headed into the changing tent. This is the one time it pays to be a woman! With most of the field racing being men, we had plenty of room and volunteers!

I had a volunteer who helped me in the changing tent with emptying my bag and getting dressed. It was so very nice of her! I just kept thanking her for helping me out.

I put on a comfortable riding outfit and made sure I had my sun block on and was ready to ride 112 miles. Unfortunately, the ground was muddy and I had to walk in my socks since my shoes were on my bike already. I opted to take off my socks, to carry a towel with me and to take my bike up to the mount line barefooted. I knew if I got mud in my Speedplays it would be a miserable day on the bike.

Once at the mount line, I put the towel on the ground and cleaned my feet completely off. Only then I put my socks on and then I took the shoes off the pedals and put my shoes on. I have never put my shoes on while riding and I figured my first IM wasn't the time to start. No need to take a risk.

I saw my support crew, waved to them and away I went!

I drove the course on Thursday before the race, so I knew about the flat section out of town. It had been pointed out to some of us by IM Kentucky race veterans, that this is the section that a lot of people will be lured into going fast. I made sure to keep an effort level of 7. Nothing that was too easy or too hard.

I started my nutrition 15 minutes into the ride. I had my Garmin set to chime every 15 minutes for me to eat. My nutrition plan was as follows:

Hour 1- Infinit
Hour 2- Clif Bar (my only solid/real food for the entire day), 2 electrolyte pills
Hour 3- Infinit
Hour 4- Sharkies, 2 electrolyte pills
Hour 5- Infinit
Hour 6- 3 Gels

It worked in training so I was confident it would work on race day.

After riding the flat section out of town, I hit the 10 mile out and back portion with the first set of hills. I rode it the day before, as a training ride, so I knew what to expect.

It's a nice section, with high walls and lots of shade and some nice screaming downhill’s! At one point I was going really fast and thought to look at my speedometer... 37 mph! WHAT! That scared me so I tapped the brakes a little. I'm such a speed wimp, but those tires are so skinny!

It was here that Gary passed me on a downhill. I figured he was gone for the day, never to see again. I also saw Kenny when I was going out and he was going into the out and back. I figured he would pass me at some point after that. He never did, and I found out later his bike broke 10 miles into the ride so he was having a rough day of it.

As for Gary, I passed him going up a hill awhile later, never to see him again on the bike. He later found out that his back brake was rubbing the entire 112 miles. Otherwise, I know he would have owned me on the down hills.

Once out of the out and back section, we headed towards LaGrange. We basically rode out to LaGrange and then did that loop twice and back to town.

This is where you hit the rollers. Up and down. Up and down. Very few if any flat sections. My whole ride was me going 8-10 mph and then 28-30 mph. Per my coach I needed to work the downhill’s which meant not coasting, but pedaling. Unfortunately, due to my weight/size when I pedal down a hill, I go as fast as a guy coasting.

I kept on top of my nutrition the whole way. I knew that sticking to my nutrition plan was important as it was setting me up for a successful marathon.

I carried my Camelbak for the ride, and I stopped after the out and back to fill it up with water and ice. In T1 the volunteer had filled it up for me, but it was hot water.

I have to say, I loved having my Camelbak. It made the day for me. It was easy for me to drink, and I had ICE COLD WATER the ENTIRE RIDE! Once I got ice in that baby, I never had hot water again. In 92-95 degree heat with little to no shade, I think ice cold water is the key to keeping it together.

With that said, I only saw like 2 other riders with Camelbak's. One was with Gorilla Sports from Dallas and I talked to him a little. We played leap frog for a long time on the course. Although, that guy was carrying the Mule Camelbak! It's a very large one! He probably could have downsized a little for the race.

So yeah, I was the dork on the road bike with no clip-on aero bars, a Camelbak and a butterfly jersey on. I didn't care though. I was comfortable, happy and passing some big boys on pretty tri bikes. ;)

I also carried sun block with me in my Camelbak. A very small spray bottle that fits nicely inside. I made sure to sun block myself twice on the bike when I stopped to refill my Camelbak. I also carried a sun block stick in my pocket, so I could apply that to my face while riding. And guess what... I didn't get burned at all.

Not sure when the wind picked up, but it did. My worst fear... WIND! So I had heat, humidity, hills and WIND! At least we didn't get rain. Rain would have been a real butt kicker.

The wind really started to wear on me, and I was wondering when we would get a tailwind. I knew I would have one going back into town, so that was a nice thought. I then reminded myself that I was doing an IRONMAN! If it were easy everyone would do it. I needed to suck it up and not let the wind bother me. Shoot, I rode in stronger wind in Dallas all season.

The first loop of the bike was pretty uneventful. Lots of people on the course. It was hard NOT to be close to someone at any given time. It was nice to have people around, but one does worry about drafting. Not sure how any could get a penalty though, there just wasn't anywhere to go.

I did get to see my Coach before I went into the LaGrange Festival the fist time. He was yelling at me on the sidelines. So that was cool! I also saw him on loop 2 as well. It was nice getting to see a friendly face out there, since my support crew was told to rest while I was out on the bike (I wanted them to be fresh for when I finished the race!).

Going through the LaGrange Festival was FUN! So many people cheering on the sidelines, it was a real pick me up! Really energizing!

Once out of LaGrange, I finished the first loop and made my turn to go for the second one. It was hard loop and I wasn't really looking forward to it. Overall I was holding strong, but it was a challenging course.

I stopped at my Special Needs bag and mixed up some more Infinit. Wasn't sure how long I would be out there, so I figured having extra wouldn't hurt. That was a wise decision on my part.

Around mile 80 my stomach started to feel questionable. Not full on queasy, but I could tell it was not happy with anymore nutrition being put in it. I knew if I started to vomit, I might not finish the Ironman... so I backed off my nutrition. At that point I just took in Infinit and instead of 2 swigs every 15 minutes, I only took in 1 swig. I also made sure to drink extra water and to back off my pace a little. The goal was to get my stomach settled and to not vomit.

The last 30 miles of the bike were not easy. I kept wanting to pull over and to sit down for a bit and rest. I would tell myself, "at the next aid station", and then I would tell myself at the next one... finally got to the point that I ran out of aid stations and I had to just keep riding.

I did see other people resting under trees in the shade. The heat was taking it's toll on people. I didn't let it get in my head though. I reminded myself that I trained in 100 degrees heat for 2 months before the race. The heat I was use to.

Maybe it was around this time (after 80 miles in) that my right Achilles tendon starting hurting pretty bad. Standing up to pedal up hills was no longer an option. I typically don't do this anyways, but it was nice to have another position to pedal in. The pain got to be too much though, so I kept my butt on the bike seat going up hills.

OH! I finally saw the guy who raced in 2007 with the long beard and cut off shorts! Everyone who saw the pictures of him were amazed that he ran the entire IM in those shorts and tennis shoes (even on the bike). When I saw him, he was resting under a tree in the shade. I later heard he didn't make the bike cut off. When I flew by I yelled, "I remember you from last year!"

I was counting down the last 20 miles. I was ready for it to be over. I felt OK, but I was just bored. The crowds had thinned out and I was alone for the most part. I had cars dodging me on the left side and there wasn't too much to look at. At least this was the mostly downhill portion, with some shade.

It was also during this last 20 miles that my entire torso became sore. I could not longer go into the drops without my abs/sides feeling like I had just done a million crunches. It was odd. That hasn't happened in training.

I finally came into town and saw part of my support crew (Jonny, Libby and Ryan) under the first overpass I came to. Jonny was surprised to see me so soon. I stopped and chatted with them for a bit. Made sure to give them a full run down on how the bike went. They were calling my Mom and Sister giving them updates on how I was doing. I wanted them to have more to say than, "She just finished the bike."

After I chatted with them for a bit, I headed on and went in for T2.

I was happy with what I did on the bike. Even though my average only shows 15.7 for the official report, I was holding a 16.5 to 16.7 average the whole time. My average dropped for my official report due to 20 minutes of rest breaks. Which, 20 minutes for 112 miles of riding, is good for me!


I wouldn't do anything differently. I had a great bike! I only paused for 20 minutes out there, and I'm proud of that. All of my training rides had a lot more rest stops involved.

I executed my nutrition plan just like I needed to, and I even knew when to back off to keep my nutrition IN my stomach.

Gosh, this transition felt shorter than my first one, but it was much longer. I really have no clue what I was doing for that long!

Once I got into transition, they took my bike. I noticed the volunteer didn't have gloves on, to which I told her that wasn't a wise decision. I did tell her that I didn't pee on my bike though, so she could touch it just fine.

I got my T2 bag and went into the changing tent.

I brought a bottle of water with me and I had a towel in my bag. I cleaned off most of my body. I wanted to feel a little bit fresh for the run.

Once I was cleaned off I put on my running outfit. I then walked out of transition and stopped to talk to and hug my support crew. Tied my shoes in the chute and then away I went to start my first marathon ever!

I started to walk/run my first marathon ever! In fact, in training, the longest walk/run I had done was 15 miles. I was told this is common, so I had hope that I would make the entire 26.2 miles. My Coach told me to make it to mile 18 on the run, after that I would be good.

I have to be honest, for the most part... except for what happened at mile 6, 13, and 18, and 23... this portion of the race was a blur for me. I wasn't focused on time, or distance, I tried to tune that out. I just focused on moving forward. I'll do my best to put stuff in order, but no promises.

I had on Jonny's Garmin and had planned a 5/2 walk/run combo just like I had done in training many times (up to 15 miles).

I walked for 5 minutes focusing on a 13 minute mile. Then I started to run. OUCH! WOAH! Both Achilles tendons were hurting. PAIN! Not suffering, but pain.

All right, no problem, I just need to get loosened up and then it will work itself out. Walked some more and then tried to run again. Nope. Still very painful.

Time for Plan B. Walk the marathon. Walk it as fast as I can. I had taken a speed walking clinic (from the guy who coaches the Olympic team) in May, so I knew I could walk pretty fast. From training and what not I knew I could hold a 13 minute mile walking pretty easily.

I focused on the Garmin and trying to keep my pace at a 13 minute mile. For the most part I did that. Occasionally I would look down and see a 14 minute mile. The Garmin made me speed up and keep my pace.

Please keep in mind that my final per minute mile includes the times I stopped for water, to pee, to rest (we will get to that), to stretch, to change socks and body glide my feet... etc. You get the point. Obviously my per minute mile does not show the actual per minute mile I was walking out there.

My nutrition plan was to take in a gel every 25 minutes. I packed all my Gu Vanilla Bean on me, and had some replacements ready in my special needs bag. Since my stomach was not feeling great, I went with Plan B on the nutrition.... take in a gel when I felt like my stomach could handle it. Drink a lot of water, Gatorade and later Coke at each rest stop.

I got around 3 miles into the marathon and I hear some electronic music... finally! Some good music on this course! So I turn to my right to see where it is coming from... and it's my friend Chris! He moved from Dallas to Chicago to be with his boyfriend Jay. I knew Jay was racing Kentucky, and low and behold, I found Chris! I tried to give him a hug, but he said, "I'm not supposed to touch anyone today". To which I replied, "but I didn't pee on myself!" The people beside him giggled and he and did an air kiss. I didn't see him on the second loop, but Jay finished in 14 hours, so he was far ahead of me.

My goal on the marathon was to stay POSITIVE! I wanted to have a good attitude and to enjoy my first Ironman. So, when I passed a guy with two adorable dogs, I had to stop and pet them. They were sweet dogs too who loved being pet! (Now you see why my per minute mile was so high! HA!)

About mile 6 my right heel on the outside started to hurt. Hhhuuummmm. Could be something in my shoe. Couldn't be a blister though. I had new socks on (my favs!) and I put body glide all over my feet, and I never get blisters there.

I finally decided I needed to sit down and check out what was going on. To make sure I wasn't imagining it. I tend to imagine stuff in my shoes when I have been going a long time- yes, it's odd.

A lady let me sit on her blanket, and sure enough, a blister was starting. NO! Mile 6? NO! So I put body glide all over my feet (I was carrying a travel size in my tri top pocket) and took off again. The blister never really caused any serious problems and I was fine until the end.

I saw Aaron out on the course a couple of times. The first time I saw him he walked with me for a bit, gave me some updates on my times and said I was doing a good job. Later when I saw him he said something to the affect, "There's Karen, keeping her steady pace with her speed walking!" Which was nice of him.

I crossed the Inspirational Mile at some point (what mile was that at?) and I read the message Jonny wrote to me, "K Hicks it up b-cup". HAHAHA! What? They edited his message to me (Yes Aaron, you can LOL)! It should have read: "Suck it up buttercup". Oh well, I knew what he meant to say.

So the first 13 miles were hard. REALLY HARD. What didn't hurt on me? It hurt to just scratch my arm. My feet were sore, everything was sore. I was still positive, but I was also hurting.

Around mile 14, you come into town and see the finish line. No really, it's like right in front of you and you have to turn right and go back out for the out/back again.

I saw my support crew at this point and they were really yelling and screaming for me! They came into the street and walked around me cheering and ringing the cow bells! It was great! Also very emotional. I was hurting so bad and I knew I had to keep going for another 13 miles. It was at this point that I nearly lost it crying. I held it together though, only because it's hard to exercise and cry at the same time!

Jonny walked with me a bit out of town and we talked. I can't tell you what I said, but I'm sure it was along the lines of "I am going to finish this. I can do it". Never once did I think I wasn't going to finish. I went into the marathon with a decent amount of time to finish, and I knew if I kept a steady pace, I could finish. I was counting down my time though, making sure if I kept X pace that I would finish by X time. Of course, Jonny's Garmin was in military time and set to CST instead of EST. That made for fun mental games for me!

Headed out on the second loop and this is when I hit my low point. They all say that during the course of the day, you might hit a low point and that is when you have to dig deep to keep going. I knew I would keep going, but I was starting to feel how hard doing an IM was.

It was then that I started saying out loud (I made sure no one was close by), "Stay positive! You can do it! It's all about attitude!", over and over again. It got me back in the game and the low point didn't seem all that bad.

On the second loop my pace slowed down to a 14 minute mile, then a 15 minute mile and towards the end it was hard keeping a 16 minute mile.

I tried to find people to make friends with, but everyone was running (which there was no way I could do that), or walking way too slow. I had a few people reach out to me to try to include me in their walk/run, but I just wasn't going their pace.

At one point I noticed we were passing Louisville University (?). I looked at it and then said to a guy next to me, "I didn't notice that on the first loop." He replied, "Neither did I". Ah, I wasn't alone in my craziness. Cool.

I saw various BTers out the course. Most seemed to be doing good. Mike had a smile on his face and Gary was running (and passed me when I used the restroom). I saw Kenny, and he was hurting pretty bad. He kept a good face, but he wasn't moving as quick as he needed to, to beat the time cut off. Kenny had a really rough day and the ambulance picked him up at mile 20. I'm glad I didn't hear that until after I finished. That would have crushed me to know when I was racing.

On the last loop there was definitely more carnage than the first one. Us, in the back, we were suffering. I did my best to ignore anyone I saw on the side throwing up, etc. I heard the ambulance sirens constantly going, but I told myself they weren't for racers... when in fact they were.

After mile 18 I ran across a lady from Dallas. Awesome! Wait! Not awesome! She was having a HORRIBLE day of it. To which she told me all about. Normally I'm cool listening to people, but come on, at mile 18+ of that stinking marathon... we were ALL HURTING. I mean really, who wasn't miserable at that point?

I listened and then politely said, "Well this is my first IM and I'm just trying to have a good day.... I'm trying to stay positive." She acknowledged that I said it was my first IM and then went back to complaining. I had to lose her, so I picked up my pace and left her behind. Now, I did see her finish after me, and I found out from my Coach (who knows her) that she normally finishes her IM's in 13 hours. The heat took it's toll on people, that is for sure.

So for at least the last 5 miles of the marathon, I was spent. When I stopped to fill my water bottle, I would sway. Standing up straight was a challenge when I was not moving. I wanted to talk, but couldn't really. I wanted to thank the volunteers (which I did the entire day), but nothing really came out.

The last 3 miles were torture. I was close, but so far. I knew I would make it in 17 hours, so I stopped to rest three times. Yes, I sat down. Horrible I know, but I just needed to rest some to keep myself going.

Jonny came and found me with 1 mile left to go. I talked to him and started making jokes about how it was like a club out there... glowsticks, pills on the ground, baggies with white powder, trash everywhere... HA! I also sat down one last time (3rd time). I did that until I started to cramp up, then I got up immediately and started moving again.

Jonny called my Dad at this point to let him know I was coming in. My Dad thought he meant, quitting, versus "coming in to the finish line". Then my Dad told the rest of the support crew... who then got all upset. He finally understood was Jonny was saying though and everyone stopped worrying.

FINALLY... I saw the finish line! And I could stop this time! I took everything I had on me off and handed it to Jonny. I wanted an amazing finishing line picture.

I got into the chute and I made sure no one else was with me. I started high fiving everyone I could. I found my Dad, Doug, Anna and Evelyn, and hugged them all. I then found Libby and Ryan and hugged them. I also hugged and kissed my Ironsherpa Jonny and thanked them all for being there.

Now, if you watched me finishing, you know I milked it. I was soaking it up. Therefore the announcer said my name like 5 times on the mic! My family and friends watching said I got mentioned the most times and they even mentioned "KSH's Support Crew"! HA!

Here is my finish on YouTube...enjoy...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Ix5zaDlji8&feature=email


So, I FINALLY crossed the timing mat... and guess what... my freaking head was turned to the left the whole time! I have a horrible finishers picture. Yep. All that planning and I screwed the pooch. At least the picture in from the IM wall with my medal on turned out good.

I do have to say that Tammy from BT caught me at the finish line! How cool is that? I was caught by someone I met the day before! I made sure to get a picture of her... and she was kind enough to send me that YouTube video of my finish (her hubby was filming).

Once I crossed the finish line, I had to walk about a block to where the food and everything was. WALK? Ugh. No thanks. I kept moving though and made it to the convention center. Then I finally had to sit down against a wall. No more moving for me. Jonny was kind enough to get me food and I tried to eat it sitting down.

I didn't want any food. My stomach still wasn't 100% and I was just tired. After chatting with my crew some, I said it was time to go. I knew I couldn't walk, so I asked Jonny to bring the car around. Doug and Ryan then carried me to the car. Yes, I was hurting that bad. If you know me, you know I was hurting real bad if I let them do that.

We got back to the hotel and I had help getting up to the room. I then had to shower sitting in the bottom of the tub. I got out and tried to go to bed. I just hurt so bad. By Monday around 3:00 PM I could finally eat and not feel sick to my stomach. By Tuesday I was kind of walking normal again.

In closing... I want to send love to my dear Ironsherpa Jonny! He really came through for me! There is no way I could have done this race without him there. Just like the sherpa's help people climb to the top of Everest, Jonny helped me finish my Ironman. I couldn't have done it without his love and support. No way.

I'm also honored and delighted that my Dad, Evenly, Ryan, Libby and Anna all made it out to watch me race! I was so lucky to have such an amazing support crew cheering me on! Just knowing they were waiting for me helped me keep going!

I am completely amazed at all the people I know who weren't there who watched me online all day and watched me finish! I can't believe how many people said they tracked and watched me! My sister and Mom were by the phone and on the computer and my sister even sent me a really cute report of what they did all day. My dear friend Kimberly said she stayed in her jammies all day keeping track of me... and wouldn't leave her computer until she saw me cross.

Once I got back home my sister and Jonny's family both sent me flowers! How sweet is that? I'm so very lucky!

So thank you to everyone who watched me race! Just knowing that BT, my friends and family were watching, made me want to keep going. I never felt like giving up, but each time I crossed a timing mat, I thought of everyone who would know that I was still going.


What would I do differently? Uh, I would run instead of walk the whole way! With an IM you take what the day throws at you and keep going. They day threw Achilles tendons issues and I did the best I could. But running some of the marathon would have made it a bit more enjoyable (and shorter!).

Well, being this was my first IM I don't really have a lot to compare my experience to. Other than spectating at IM Arizona.

I know it had been said there might be a shortage of volunteers, but I never noticed. There were tons of volunteers, all day long helping us out. With them we coldn't race, so thank you to all the volunteers!