It was like being a sardine the way everyone was jostling for position before the horn went off. The horn went off and the first 300-400 meters were a pretty fast pace with a lot of bumping going on. Nobody was climbing and nobody was intentionally hitting or pulling which was good. I will have to admit though, the peeps in front of me were swimming anything but a strait line. I had the same set of legs cross in front of me 3 or 4 times before I finally went around him. He did a 3 mile swim if he kept that up! I got into a nice groove after the first 500 meters or so and was going arm to arm with a guy for the rest of the first loop. We had the exact same cadence and it was nice to swim with someone like that. The problem was that when I spotted there was nobody in front of us. we passed the 1000 M mark in 13:00 and the 2000 M mark in 26:00. At this point I dropped back on his feet and said "To the finish line James!!" and stared at his feet for the next 1.2+ miles. My Hr dropped from the 160's to the 140's and I was coasting! I was at 39:00 for the 3000 M and not working. Perfect!! I came out of the water feeling very fresh and got over to the strippers. When I got down on the mat my hamstrings started to cramp and for some reason I thought of Trixie! Strange thing. The cramps went right away when I stood up and it was effortless getting up the helix with all of the crowd support!

Jump on a set of feet earlier but I will never complain about my swim at IMWI!!!

This was a good T1. The run up the helix took some time. I got my headsweat and helmet on, glasses on and grabbed my shoes and gloves and ran barefoot out to the bike. I had to run a couple hundred yards with the bike before the mount line so I carried my shoes and put them on just before I left transition.

Put my gloves on before I grabbed my bike.

I got on the bike and started my 112 mile ride by yelling "WHEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!" as I went down the helix. When I got onto John Nolan Dr I sat up and put my gloves on then settled down for a short while before a lot of little turns led to a bike path and into a parking lot before finally getting on a road that you can get into a rhythm. The road out to Verona, where the 40 mile loop starts, felt great. My legs felt good, back felt good and I had already started my nutrition plan. I started off getting some solids in with Snickers Marathon Bars and fig newtons along with water. I had a swig of gel every 15 mins with water, salt tab every 30 min and solid food every 30 min. I refuelled my Gatorade and water at the aid stations and had a banana every now and then in place of the solid food. My back started bothering me about 15 miles into the race. It didn't slow me down at all on the bike but I was not looking forward to the run. No need to worry about that, I still have 100 miles to go!! I realized that I may have been going a bit too hard when I passed Hillary Biscay and saw how smooth she looked, hardly breathing at all. I told her that she was great as I want by. More on Hillary later!! There were a lot of corners on the course and one landed me in someones front yard. I was able to come out of the aero bars and regain control and get back on the road but it was a bit nerve rattling. After hitting the rollers and hills on the first loop I regretted putting the 11-23 back on. A 25 cog would have been very nice on the hills. Oops!! The crowds on the hills were awesome!! There is soooo much energy that comes off them that I barelt felt the hills on the first loop. Superman slapped me in the ass and I think I still have a welt there. I bounced a gel flask on the first loop somewhere but knew I had more at the special needs station so I didn't worry about it. The volunteers at the aid stations were great, I was able to grab water and Gatorade at almost 20 mph and I love my NeverReach for refilling!! When I came to the special needs bags I yelled out my number, the volunteer got my bag and handed it to me at just shy of 20 mph! I sat up, grabbed my gel flask and tossed the bag. I am liking the support on this distance race!! On the second loop I was trying to give words of encouragement to the people on the first lap, most took it very well and I could tell appreciated it. I was glad to be on the second loop as my back was not getting better. The wind throughout the day seemed to get worse. The last 16 miles back to Madison really seemed to take a toll on me. I was in the bottom chain ring most of the way to keep my cadence up and on some small inclines I was almost in my 23!! OUCH!!! The coolest part of my whole ride was at about 1/2 mile from the helix Hillary passed me and said that I was almost there and I'm doing great!! That was inspiring!! I followed her lead and took my feet out before the helix and followed her up the helix and heard Riley say "and here's Hillary Biscay and right behind her Bob Stocks!!" That was GREAT!!!!!!

Back off a little going out and start looking for a tri bike for a more aggressive position.

I had a great T2 going until I started out the door and my back was killing me!! I saw the ART therapists in the changing room and asked them for help with my back. They worked on me for about 5 minutes and got me out on the course. It was painful but I felt that I could get through it, just not very fast.

Not do hay the week before an Ironman!

I had a lot of fun on the run but just couldn't push a pace at all. My back hurt for the first 15 miles or so then my knees started hurting from changing my gate. I hit the first porta-pottie I saw to get rid of what I couldn't get myself to do on the bike and then some. Got into a slow pace and decided to make the best of the day and worry about the 10 hr mark another day! The volunteers and crowd support on this run course was phenomenal!! Running out and back State St with crowds hanging around the tables and fences just sends a rush of energy through your body! Awesome!! I had a smile on my face the whole race except for a few grimaces here and there but I am sure they even looked like smiles. At one point some one yelled "What about Bob!!!" and I put my hands behind my back and came back with "I'M SAILING!!!!". Another one of the kids kept asking "Sponge.....Bob?" so the next time I came through the aid station I yelled "WHO LIVES IN A PINEAPPLE UNDER THE SEA?" They got a good kick out of that one. Trixie, Zilla, Dollar were near the Capital and it was great seeing them. They have energy to spare and I was glad to take some. I managed to walk at just about every water station to stay hydrated. At mile 13 my feet were soaked so I stoped and put on my dry socks.......Boy did that feel good!!!! I stuck with the walking through the aid stations, walked a few other times and ran in the last few miles when I saw that I could come in before 10:45. I felt great going through the finish and hearing my name. It was definitely a cool experience that I am already looking forwad to the next one!!

Not do hay a week before an Ironman!!!

Walked around looking for an ice bath, nothing. Forgot about a massage. Went to the food tent and was pretty disappointed with the slim selection of food. (Although it did taste great!!)


Injured back!


Everything for 3 days before the race and the race itself was great. Once you cross the finish line it felt like IMNA just forgot about you. The food tent was terrible, no ice baths, I forgot about the massages and no one mentioned anything to me. That was my only disappointment.