Ironman Arizona - TriathlonFull Ironman

Aside from the start, I had a great swim. The start was just packed with people! The gun went off and away we went, but I had a few people climb over me, elbow me, smack the back of my head, and one person knocked my goggles halfway off! Luckily the goggles have 2 straps and one of them stayed put, but I did have to stop and get the water out of them so I could see. The swim actually went a lot faster than I had anticipated, though. I kept to the outside once I got into a rhythm, and that seemed to keep me away from the masses, although it made the course a bit longer. I left the water feeling great and ready to hop on the bike!

I might start in a different location, but overall it was a great swim.

I left the water, the wetsuit strippers were great at getting the suit off over the timing chip, and they handed me the suit and off I went to the change tent. I didn't change, but I did use the port-o-potty and got my helmet, shoes, and sunglasses on and ran out of the tent. The bike fetcher guys were great and had my bike brought out to me. I turned on the Garmin and ran to the bike mount line. It was crowded, but I managed to find a spot off to the side so I could get situated. Surprisingly, I actually remembered to put the bike in a lower gear this time, so the bike start was easier.

Use the potty BEFORE putting on my gear!

Whew!!! This was the windiest bike I've ever experienced! A lot of my training rides were in at least some wind, but nothing this strong by far. I looked at the weather report that morning and it said max 13mph around 11am, then it would die down to the single digits. Well, that was far from what happened! Sorry to the guys from Iowa(?) that I met on the bus and assured that the wind wouldn't be that bad! Oops!!

I did feel great starting out on the bike, and I made sure to keep it in a low gear on the way out, then I had to put it in the highest gear on the way back into town, and even that wasn't enough resistance! The tailwind was a great break, but it leaves me wondering how my bike would've gone if the wind had been calmer. I also had trouble with the heat--I knew that I would have to drink extra and be sure to get enough salt, so after the first loop I upped my gatorade intake to about 1 large bottle per 10-15 miles. That left me taking port-o-potty breaks every aid station, but it kept me from getting dehydrated, so it was well worth it. The only problem was that I saw NO SHADE anywhere except the penalty tent. I briefly considered trying to get a penalty so I could stop and sit in the shade, but there was nobody within range to draft off of (plus, there's the whole dignity thing ;-). During the last lap, I was dumping water over my head every 5 minutes to cool off, but I was still stuck with a raging headache and a bit of dizziness.

Cool off better, maybe by wearing a white shirt and some arm cooling sleeves.

Well, what can I say about a 32 minute T2? I wandered into the change tent and managed to convince the people on the way that I was feeling fine, even though I was extremely dizzy as soon as I got off the bike. I was afraid of being pulled from the race, so I wanted to keep going as long as I could on my own power. As I sat down in the change tent, I felt really lightheaded and the wonderfully kind volunteer who was taking my bike shoes off brought a medical volunteer over, who asked if I was dizzy or nauseated. I told her I was a little bit dizzy and she suggested that I go lay down on a blanket in the corner, to which I replied "I'm not dropping out!" She assured me that I could lay there as long as I wanted, gave me a cool towel, some ice, and some chicken broth to get my salt intake up, and she checked on me every few minutes. After about 20 minutes, I felt well enough to put on my socks and running shoes. The volunteer had filled my hat with ice, and another volunteer asked if there was anything she could get me. I saw that someone had a bag of ice and asked if she had any more. She managed to wrangle up one and I thanked her as I left the tent to walk for a while until I felt better. I was definitely hydrated, but I had just gotten so overheated that I needed to cool my head and torso, then I felt better. I knew that I had time to walk for a while, then the sun would go down and it would cool off enough to run some.

Hard to say...I could look at T2 as a disaster or see it as a wonderful thing that I managed to recover enough to continue. I do know that I owe the volunteers my race, as I would never have been able to continue without their care!

I started out on the run with a bag of ice water sloshing around in my top, which made a huge difference in keeping cool. As I came out of transition, the spectators were great! I saw my parents and my sister by the art building, and they had the whole row of people cheering for me by name, so that was really cool. They also told me that my uncle had been following me online and had been calling them with updates when I crossed timing mats.

I started the run at a slow walk, which got quicker as the day got cooler. On the other side of the lake, I passed a guy who was sitting in the shade, and it looked like volunteers were calling for medics. I gave him my ice bag, which was just cool water by then, but I hope it helped him.

After a while, I made some attempts at shuffling along but my stomach was upset from all of the Gatorade I drank on the bike. I have horrible stomach problems with pure Gatorade, but my nutrition plan (diluting the Gatorade the way I had during training) went out the window when the temperature hit 90. I figured an upset stomach was better than getting dehydrated, so I just sucked it up. It made for an interesting run since I had to stop and throw up a few times to force the air out of my stomach, but after I did the puke and rally, I felt well enough to jog for a few miles until I needed more fluids and the cycle began again. I was still pissed that my legs felt great and I definitely felt like I could run a marathon, but the rest of my body just wasn't up for it. It seemed like a lot of people had the same idea, though, so it was good to know that I wasn't alone. I later heard someone say that they had never seen so many people walk the marathon before.

After 6 hours of the shuffle/walk combo, I came to within a 1/4 mile of the finish line. It was all running from there! I gave my dad a high-five and said hi to my sister as I headed to the turn into the finish chute. He shouted that my mom was around the corner. I waved to her as I ran down the chute and I found a sudden surge of energy when I saw that I would still make it in under 16 hours. I think I messed up my photo because they didn't get the tape back up in time after the guy in front of me. I have some great memories, though, and those won't be going away any time soon. The feeling of running through that chute and having someone drape a medal around my neck was unforgettable. I didn't catch everything that was said about me as I finished, but I did hear "you are an Ironman!" Apparently there was also something about me being in the military, but I was so wrapped up in the fact that I was done that I couldn't hear that part!

Find another hydration technique. Maybe I'll try Infiniti. I think I could cut the run down by at least an hour if my stomach cooperates next time.

Walked to the food tent and chowed down on pizza and fries! I couldn't stop eating all night, then the next day I was ravenous. I had my planned Chipotle burrito for dinner on Monday and that made the experience complete. Oh, and I dragged my parents out to watch me get my tattoo! I'll post a pic when I'm back at home.


HEAT!!!! WIND!!!!! I know I can do it now, though, and I'm ready for the next one. I was sitting in the finish tent, eating my pizza, and I said something to my parents about picking a race in a cooler climate next...all they said was "well, I guess that answers that question then!" They were about to ask if I thought I'd ever do it again!


This was one phenomenal race. From the pre-race events to the post-race excitement, it was very organized and made me feel as if I was really doing something I'd never forget. The volunteers were fantastic! I can't believe how many people stayed out to run the aid stations in that heat! I can't believe how many spectators stayed out there, too! There were people throughout the course well into the night. I have to say thanks again to the medical volunteer who helped me cool off, to the volunteers who took care of me during T2, and to every single person who was out there to help that day! Big thanks to the spectators for making me feel so special during this race. They really made the atmosphere exciting and kept me in a positive mood throughout the race. There were parts when I didn't want to take another step, but then a spectator or volunteer would say "you can do it! You're going to be an Ironman!" and I would have a renewed energy!

I also want to give a huge hug to everyone who set out on Sunday and didn't make it across the finish line. It was just a really tough day and I'm proud of everyone for sticking it out as long as they did. I guess we saw firsthand why the race would be better in November. Hopefully those people can use the DNF to fuel their future training.