Ironman Florida - TriathlonFull Ironman

The day before the race at the Gatorade swim was the first time I was in the Gulph. It was incredibly rough-just like my nightmare had been before signing up for this race. Did one loop but was very scared for race morning. Luckily, it wasn't nearly as bad.I got to the swim start only a few minutes before the start. Talk about cutting it close! Good thing as I had no time to get nervous which makes me hyperventilate in the swim. I started out in the back like I planned and actually, there was very little of that so that was a good decision. I had planned on a 2 hour swim so even though I could have been a little faster, on the second loop, I drafted off a guy who had an Ironman tatoo on his ankle. He was swimming slowly, so I basically decided hey, if he got the tattoo, he has done this before so no need to work very hard. I was ecstatic after coming out of the swim. I even cried a little.

C'mon Rhonda, you didn't have to be so lazy. You could have swum a little faster and found someone else to draft off of (although the pickens were slim by that point). Shoulda, coulda, woulda.

That Sherri (Oliveview). She made me feel like a rock star. She changes people's lives. As head of the women's changing tent, boy does she have some stories. Transition was fast and fun. Thanks Sherri.

Hell, I can't run in those shoes and put the helmet on and all that. Not important so just took my time.

How do you people cycle that fast in so much headwind? Wow, am I impressed. This bike is hard because you use the same muscles over and over and over again, plus you stay in aero for most of the entire time. I got a little twitchy despite the salt tabs. At least I wasn't moo'd at like I was when I was here for the training camp.

I brought corn nuts, V-8 juice and a Red Bull in special needs. I never thought about where to put the corn nuts, so I put them in my bra. I had corn nuts spilling out every few miles. Quite a sight. Also should have brought some extra Carbo-pro powder as I could have used some extra liquid calories at the end of the bike. Perhaps that was my downfall later. It's pretty hard to hydrate and feed this size body. I tried and had trained to consume the correct amount of calories and liquids, but things are different on race day as I've found and since I'm a slow one, the body has a hard time absorbing (well for me) the amounts I really needed. For example, I need 350-400 per hour and a bottle and a half. It's pretty darn tough.

Again, Sherri trated me like a queen and I had many people helping me with my stuff. Sherri even called over the ART woman who worked on my calf which had started to cramp. Was I impressed. Sherri organized the tent beautifully.

Dunno, maybe I had too much stuff because not all of it made it on the run.

Okay, here's where it all broke down. From the start of the run, I had to walk. I had been training with the 3 minute run/2 minute walk the whole time and got it down pat (hey who is Pat anyway?). I was still pretty crampy andalso didn't have a ton of energy so speed walked. I figured that 15-16 minute miles would be good enough. Really loved the themed aid stations and took in calories and liquids. The bottom of my feet started burning worse than they ever did before and this was almost at the start of the run. But, my feet always burn (usually a little later) but I had a contigency plan of changing into different shoes ath special needs so sucked it up. I had tied a little jacket around my waste at T2 which was kind of annoying, but figured I would need it later when it got cold and dark. My mood was changing quickly. I lost my smile and started feeling awful.Apologies to the Bt'ers who tried to be friendly and cheer me up. I wasn't myself. I saw Cube Farm Gopher (great meeting you) who asked me how I was and I said, "awful". I just didn't feel like myself, but as I said, I'm very, very tough mentally, particularly after Eagleman where the temps were over 100 degrees and I finished and was taken by ambulance to the hospital. I slogged through though as I knew I had plenty of time."Dig deep, Rhonda, dig deep". But I started making bad decisions. I took off my jacket from around my waste and threw it away because I was hot. I was hoping I would get hit by a car to put me out of my misery. I stopped at aid stations and could barely stand. People were encouraging me and I didn't want to hear it. I couldn't talk to anyone. I mustered up a polite response to a few Bt'ers, but didn't want to talk. I had never felt this horrible before, but I kept thinking, "you can get to special needs, get your shoes, get a Red Bull and you'll make it through the 2nd loop by midnight". Thos closer I got to the second loop, the worse I felt. It was like nothing I have ever felt before. A guy came up to me in the middle of the road and said, "you will be done in a few hours and will be an Ironman. You can do this, keep going". Something was telling me, "no, this will be dangerous if you keep going". I even poured a cola over my head and threw away the jacket tied around my waste. Whaaaht was I thinking? I can admit to my BT family, that at one stage, I saw a car and was hoping it would hit me. That was bad! Oh, I wasn't thinking and guess I was starting to make some weird decisions. So I chose not to cross the timing mat after the first loop so those "watching" at home wouldn't stay up to watch me finish. I asked for help and a volunteer walked me through the crowds where all I could hear was Mike Riley's voice which was totally demoralizing. One of the Bt'ers at the party said, "next to his son being born, crossing the finish line was the greatest experience of his life." I was so sad, but at that point, I was dizzy, could hardly walk straight and was very fuzzy in the head. Got to medical where they took my bp which was 80/60 and my temp was 90. They warmed me up with blankets and fed me soup so I didn't need an IV. I was shocked at how my body started shutting down. Not sweating, not peeing. Didn't feel cold.

What can I say? Maybe if I had dome some things differently on the bike, the outcome would have been different. Of course, I've goine over and over this in my mind so I called my doctor who told me that I did indeed make the right choice, although difficult because I could have caused permanent damage. Yikes.

In the med tent for quite a long time, I was freezing and my bp was 80/60 and my temp was 90. What the heck happened? A wonderful volunteer who was also a massage therapist offered to get my bike and walk me back to the condo. Another angel from heaven with a great personality! Many, many thanks. I got backto the condo and Sherri, who had the world's longest day, and by the way is a nurse practioner, took over. First of all, she listened when I cried enough tears to get dehydrated if I hadn't been already. This was so awful and emotionally painful. Sherri, in her infinite wisdom, told me a very, very, very funny story which she made me promise not to repeat here, but trust me, it took me out of my pity palace in a big way. Then she put me in a warm bathrub and fitted me with hot towels while pouring warm water on me. She made me eat, drink and get into bed. All I can say is wow because thanks is not enough. I was so, so very sad.


Faster? Faster? Just making it through would have done the trick :) I'm a slug, what can I say.


I'm sad that I didn't get "the prize". I'm sad that I didn't hear my name and couldn't order a finisher's jacket or the photo. I will have to mourn in my own way, but it's better than people mourning for me. After hearing about te two men who died at the New York City Marathon because they didn't "feel well", heck, it could have been me. I have too much to live for. I have heard the nicest things from friends, from fellow Bt'ers, other athletes who didn't know me. I have learned so much about myself. A few short years ago, I began this journey at 50 and 285 lbs. My 55th birthday is in December (thank God I'll be around to celebrate it) and I got as far as this body could take me on that day.
Not sure if I'll try and reclaim the beast. That might be where my joureny takes me. This took a huge toll on my family and friends whom I've neglected now for about the past year. You can never say never though. Yes, not crossing the finish line was the biggest disappointment of my life, but I would also say that one of the most graifying experiences of my life was meeting and corresponding with all of you, my BT family.
From the bottom of my heart, I thank you and for those who finished, my heartiest congratulations.