Ironman Florida - TriathlonFull Ironman

I don't know where this swim came from. I started almost in the exact middle of the pack. It was a little rough out to the first turn bouy but not as bad as I expected. The almost constant contact kept me entertained for a while, which is good because I usually get bored while swimming. I got a good tip from Steve when he told me to sight off of the boat right next to the bouy and that worked out well. I went out pretty easy and settled into my distance-per-stroke method of swimming. My turnover was verry slow but I seemed to be moving well and I felt like I was going very easy. I couldn't see the second turn bouy because of the sun so I just tried to follow the crowd. On the way in I tried to swim as far as I could before standing up and I think I passed a bunch of people there. When I got out of the water at the end of the first lap the clock said :45 which was about what I had expected to do. Right before the first turn bouy on the second lap I realized that the :45 was the pros time and that my first loop was actually :35. I decided to back off some more. I couldn't believe my time when I got out of the water. It blew away what I thought my ideal swim would be, especially considering how easy I felt that it was.

Nothing at all.

This transition was really bad. When I came out of the water I was a little groggy. I got to the wetsuit strippers and hadn't even started getting my wetsuit off. I stood there like an idiot while two girls tried to get the wetsuit off of my shoulders. I finally came to and got the suit down below my waist. I got down on my butt and waited while the girls struggled to get it off. This whole process took at least a minute. Then I headed up to transition. I walked up the hill because I was afraid of setting off my HR and BP. I got my bag and walked into the darkest, most crowded tent I have ever seen. I finally located a chair and started to pull things out of my bag. I was a little confused and tried to put my wetsuit in the bag before I had everything out. Then I emptied it all out again after I realized that I had left my sunglasses in the bag. I finally I got it all together and headed out of the tent. I had to stop in the port-o-potty before getting my bike. Somehow I managed to put my Garmin in a ziploc bag with my goggles and leave it in my T-1 bag.

Either take the wetsuit off myself or find the biggest, meanest looking volunteer in the wetsuit stripper line. Put my Garmin on my bike instead of in the T-1 bag.

Right from the start I didn't feel very good on the bike. I don't know if it was due to the new BP meds or that I was a little sick but I just didn't have it. The bike is my strongest event and I fully expected to easily average over 18mph. Other than some terrible roads and a headwind for the first 50 miles or so the bike was just a long, boring slog. The scenery in Florida is nothing to get excited about. There were a lot of people who were clearly drafting and it was nice to see two people get red carded. At about mile 60 I was just out of juice and I was disappointed with how I was doing but I never really despaired. I knew that I was going to make it and it was just a matter of time before I got back to transition. My time was not bad but I know I'm capable of doing much better.

During the bike I had to stop regularly to check my blood pressure. It started off at 156/88, which was good enough, and went down each time I checked it. The last few readings I got were in the neighborhood of 130/80. That was so low I assumed that my BP measuring device was not working right.

This transition was much better. Steve came over and we talked while I got changed. I had everything I needed and headed out.

Nothing.

I was pretty beat when I got off the bike and knew that I wasn't going to have a terribly fast run. I started off alright and probably did a 10:15 or so first mile. Just before the end of mile 2 I ran into a couple of the roving EMTs and asked them to check my BP. I was pretty surprised when the reading came back at 122/64. Unfortunately he insisted on checking my temp and it was 100.4. It appears that although my meds are supposed to negatively impact my performance they are pretty good at keeping my BP down. I stopped three more times to have them check it and the BP was good every time.

It was fun to see a bunch of people sitting outside and watching/listening to the GA-FL games. A couple had whiteboards and were updating the score on a regular basis. I knew that I while I was having a rough time, Brett and Meredith were having a rough day too. He-he. The jungle-themed aid station and boy scout aid stations were neat. The first run out to the turnaround in the state park went well. Right before going into the park there was about 200 yards of handmade signs. I got choked up reading the inspiring messages that people had written. I thought of all the people who have been supporting and inspiring me over the last two years. I had trouble breathing and actually had to stop for a minute or so. I tried to keep from reading them the next couple of times I went by. The park was desolate as advertised but at least I got to go through it in the daylight the first time. When I got to the motivational mile and saw that my message read "J. Miller you are a winner" (I go by Felix) I knew that Leslie would be kicking herself for not putting in anything. That gave a good chuckle then and again on the second lap. On my first lap I got passed by a ton of fast people who were doing their second laps. I started off the race running except for the aid stations. By mile 4 I was walking more and more. By the last few miles I was walking at least 1/2 of the time and my run had gone from a 10:30 pace to maybe a 13:00 pace. I got to special needs and was able to smile for the cameras. All I wanted was the Tylenol I had to take the fever down so I gave the extra socks and tri-shorts to Anna.

There were fewer people out on the second lap and it got dark so it was a little depressing. As I got closer to the finish it was inspiring to see some of the people who were just starting out and were struggling even then. Most of them were exhausted and hurting but they had the guts to keep going. As I was headed in I ran until I couldn't run any more. Then I ran again when I recovered. I didn't want to have anything left in the tank when I finished. As I got near the finish line I got worried that I would have to walk down the chute. I ended up walking about 1/4 mile to the corner right before the chute to save up energy and started to run the best I could. As I ran down the chute I was worried that I wasn't going to be able to make it. I kept thinking that so many people had said that going down the chute felt so easy. But I just kept thinking "don't stop running!" I think I raised my arms as I crossed the finish line but I'm not sure. It was a blur.

I don't know.

First I tried to keep from crying. Then I walked about .3 mile back to the condo and took an ice bath and a shower.


Crazy high blood pressure which now requires 4 different meds to keep under control that drive down my HR and energy level. A bit of a fever.


A little over two years ago I was a recovering couch potato that could barely run a mile. With the constant support of the folks on this site, and in particular the people in the North Atlanta Multisport Club, what seemed like an impossible dream 2 years ago has become a reality. Along the way I have had a few setbacks, including two leaky heart valves and high blood pressure, but my friends never gave upon me and were always there to lend encouragement and support. I don't know how to adequately express to them how much they mean to me. I get a little teary-eyed just thinking about it.

Thank you. Just Thank you.