Aaron Davidson's Group -- Closed. (Page 60)

wbayek - 2010-09-22 8:59 AM Matt,
Just out of curiosity, what difference does it make how deep the water is?  Once it's over your head, isn't 8 feet the same as 1008 ft?

Either way, you will hammer that course.

wbayek - 2010-09-23 7:35 AM Bob snuck in a tri last weekend too!  7/72 in his AG, awesome job.  No details on the RR but amazing times.  Good job.  Top 10% AG finish qualifies your for nationals I think.

mdfahy - 2010-09-22 10:37 PM

Smokin' times Bob!!! Great job!!

mdfahy - 2010-09-25 6:35 PM AquaVelo Quick update: Swim went great, better than expected based on my timex swim watch, I was in the transition tent a 1:12.  Bike went good until mile 86, heat took its toll again, kept my AHR below 130 I think, but then got some heat sickness and didn't feel like eating or drinking and slow down, then not taking any nutrition caught up to me and my legs started cramping, but I struggled through the last 10 miles and FINISHED in around 9 hrs (AquaVelo). 

Headed out for my post race meal...Angus Cheeseburger!!

Thanks again for all of your support team!!  I greatly appreciated it and it always helps get through the tough ones, which happens to be all of them apparently!! ;~)

GO RAY GO BABY!!!

ray6foot7 - 2010-09-23 12:03 PM Nice job Bob!  Awesome results.

Bill, congrats on a successful 70.3.  Sorry it was so long in coming but internet availability has been slim lately.  Way to hang tough and get the job done.  Rock on Clydesdales!!

I took today off of work to gather up all of my stuff.  I can't believe the journey is just about to come to an end.  The local newspaper called me yesterday.  They had heard I was doing an Ironman and wanted to do a story.  Crazy.  My wife has told me of all the people that have called her to find out when and where to meet so they can watch me.  Crazy.  I can't believe all the support I am getting.  The quirks of living in a small town.

I am driving up tomorrow for the whole packet pick-up, practice swim, etc.  I'm not nervous, scared, excited....  I'm just ready to get it done.  The computer program predicted a 12:30 finish time.  I am not that confident.  I will be happy to finish by midnight, and hopefully without any crawling.  I believe they have race day tracking on redmantriathlon.com.  My bib #is 197.

Thank you for all of the support over the past 9 months.  There were several times when I didn't want to get out the door and train.  But thinking about the inpires and positive feedback I'd get from this group was great motivation to get the job done.  BIG THANKS to the group.

billsorg - 2010-09-20 9:24 AM

Hello friends! Thanks again for helping me through the race!  I can honestly tell you that I thought about you all when I was out there and, believe it or not, you really picked me up and got me to the finish line.  The race was really tough... much tougher than I expected.  The water for the swim was 61 degrees and I started cramping up pretty badly at the end.  I was only about 25 yards from the swim exit and both legs completely locked up... calves, thighs, hips.  Once I was able to struggle out of the water, I had to stretch for a while. 

Then the bike course was utterly brutal.  The first 12 miles were all uphill… I mean WAAAAY uphill… So I was seriously considering of packing it in after the bike.  But that's where you guys picked me up.  I thought about Matt, Rene, Warren and Bob all knocking out their first HIM's.  How Matt and Warren overcame so much adversity to get it done.  I thought about Jennifer overcoming her demons to knock out her first tri.  I thought about what Ray is about to undertake for the first time.  So I gobbled down a bunch of salt tablets and ate Hammer Jels like they were thanksgiving dinner and the cramping and lack of energy eventually subsided.  I knew I was properly hydrated (maybe too hydtrated) because I had to stop twice on the bike and once on the run to pee.  Also, had to stop 3 times on the bike for mechanical issues... had a tire rubbing on something and couldn't find out what it was... Ultimately, I just decided to ignore it.  Anyway, after the bike I was feeling just good enough after the bike to go out on the run.  About halfway through the run, Samantha McGlone rode by on her bike and gave me some encouragement... Love her!  Long story "short", I crossed the finish line… total time; 7 hours 1 minute.  BOO  YAH!

This race, while the time may not show it, tested me more physically and mentally than anything I've ever done before.  I left it ALL out on the course. I'm so proud of this result and I'm looking forward to ratcheting my distances down and working on speed.  As I told my wife... 2011 is the year of the SPRINT!

Full race report in the next day or two.

P.S. I'm barely able to walk today.  Never has so much pain felt so satisfying!

mdfahy - 2010-09-21 8:20 PM Awesome race Bill, you really dealt with alot on that course, way to overcome the day's challenges and finishing strong!!

Ray, sorry to hear about that accident but thank God no one got hurt.  Good luck on your IRONMAN this weekend!!!  YOU ROCK!!

So my AquaVelo is just 3 1/2 days away.  I got a new Adamo saddle, those long rides were getting very uncomfortable in my old saddle.  And I heard you all talking about them, then my neighbor got one and loved it so I broke down and figured I couldn't get any more uncomfortable, even with a new seat.  I also just bought a new VORTEX 3 FULLSUIT on ebay from xterra, looks like they are starting to clear out some 2010 models, so the price was pretty decent for brand new.  I have 4 planned open water race swims including CDA, assuming I make it past this weekend, so I justified the cost rather than renting each time.  So other than that, a friend looked up the swim course on a website for water depths and it showed 6-7 ft is deepest part, hope that's right, it sure helped my confidence if it is.  I guess I'll ask someone when I check in to confirm, but since he's a sailor, I think he's probably pretty accurate.  My plan is like Bill's, just try to finish (and stay within my limits this time).