Ironman Canada: Official Thread (Page 9)

Well, I'm wondering about Bib Numbers and the Athlete Guide.   Nothing yet as far as I can tell.

The Athlete Guide for IMLou is already posted.

What is an anxious participant to do? ? ?   What is he to do, I ask? ? ? ?

I wanted to wish everyone good luck on IMC day. I hope the weather cooperates!

We are heading to Summer Swim Champs in Abbotsford for the kids and then on to Penticton the day after, so won't be on the BT site much from here on in.

Happy Race Day to ALL

If I remember correctly, the Athletes Guide link came out on August 18th. There is some stuff online now at http://www.nasports.com/news/fullstory.php?storyid=819./>
The Ironman Canada organization had a major computer problem after the race last year, and they don't seem to have ever gotten back on track. You'll note a big chunk of the stuff on their web site is out of date and there is little content from 2008.

Keep looking through your e-mails!

Wooo-Hooooooo. . . .   Bib Numbers Just Came Out. . .

1415 for me. . . .

2686 for me..probably means my T1 and T2 bags will be on the ground.

How many are racing this year? Big field....I looked 2831 is the highest number I saw...I'm getting up there with all the old women only about 145 older than I am.


Edited by KathyG 2009-08-18 1:12 PM

2109 for me!

1735 here. I'm not sure but at first glance it looks like they ordered us by age, with men before women, and maybe pros then locals before everyone else.

#181 - wow, somebody has some high expectations for me.... I was really hoping for a long number so that it took up most of my arm and could be seen the following days half way down my arm (over my t-shirt)... I know I'm dumb... That is what the Mdot tattoo is for!

#435 for me, I don't see any hidden meanings in my number but it is nice knowing that I'm accounted for!!! Leaving for the promised land in 8 days, everything is coming together, I've even had my race nightmare already!!! Last year's dream I lost my helmet, this year I slept in till 8 and they changed the swim start location!! Maybe I'll go to the ore race meeting this year just to make sure nothing has changed!!

772 for me. Looking forward to heading west next week !

Hi Kathy... all gear bags are on the ground.. due the numbers they do not have hanging places now.. it looks cool to see almost 6000 bags

ready to roll... 5th time on the IMC beach

having some lemon/ginger tea to rid me of the dreaded taper scratchy throat

save and happy taper guys and for the 1st timers welocome to the best thing ever!!

G

Random trivia: On Aug.30 for Kelowna (closest city the website offered) the moon is due to rise at about 5:40 pm and set 45 minutes after midnight, showing just over 80% illumination. Sunset is about 6:45pm.

Barring heavy cloud cover, it shouldn't be too dark out for any late finishers.

Race number 1455, I must be getting older, my last 2 times I was in the 1200 range!!!

This will probably be the longest post in BT history but here it goes

A friend of mine sent me this the first year I did Ironman, I saved it and still read it once in a while just to get the feel for it,


TIME FOR THE QUESTIONS

Right now you've all entered the taper. Perhaps you've been at this a few
months, perhaps you've been at this a few years. For some of you this is
your first IM, for others, a long-overdue welcome back to a race that few
can match.

You've been following your schedule to the letter. You've been piling on
the mileage, piling up the laundry, and getting a set of tan lines that will
take until November to erase. Long rides were followed by long runs, which
both were preceded by long swims, all of which were followed by recovery
naps that were longer than you slept for any given night during college.

You ran in the snow.
You rode in the rain.
You ran in the heat.
You ran in the cold.

You went out when others stayed home.
You rode the trainer when others pulled the covers over their heads.

You have survived the Darwinian progression that is an Ironman summer, and
now the hardest days are behind you. Like a climber in the Tour de France
coming over the summit of the penultimate climb on an alpine stage, you've
already covered so much ground...there's just one more climb to go. You
shift up, you take a drink, you zip up the jersey; the descent lays before
you...and it will be a fast one.

Time that used to be filled with never-ending work will now be filling with
silent muscles, taking their final, well-earned rest. While this taper is
something your body desperately needs, Your mind, cast off to the background
for so very long, will start to speak to you.

It won't be pretty.

It will bring up thoughts of doubt, pain, hunger, thirst, failure, and loss.
It will give you reasons why you aren't ready. It will try and make one
last stand to stop you, because your brain doesn't know what the body
already does. Your body knows the truth:

You are ready.

Your brain won't believe it. It will use the taper to convince you that
this is foolish - that there is too much that can go wrong.

You are ready.

Finishing an Ironman is never an accident. It's the result of dedication,
focus, hard work, and belief that all the long runs in January, long rides
in April, and long swims every damn weekend will be

worth it. It comes from getting on the bike, day in, day out. It
comes from long, solo runs. From that first long run where you wondered,
"How will I ever be ready?" to the last long run where you smiled to
yourself with one mile to go...knowing that you'd found the answer.

It is worth it. Now that you're at the taper, you know it will be worth it.
The workload becomes less. The body winds up and prepares, and you just
need to quiet your worried mind. Not easy, but you can do it.

You are ready.

You will walk into the lagoon on August 27th with 2200 other wide-open sets
of eyes. You will look upon the sea of humanity, and know that you belong.
You'll feel the chill of the water crawl into your wetsuit, and shiver like
everyone else, but smile because the day you have waited for, for so VERY
long is finally here.

The bagpipers will walk across the beach. Steve King will ask you to sing
along. You will.

O Canada!
Our home and native land!
True patriot love in all thy sons command.

With glowing hearts we see thee rise,
The True North strong and free!

>From far and wide,
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.

God keep our land glorious and free!
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.

You will tear up in your goggles. Everyone does.

The helicopters will roar overhead.
Maranatha will roar. The splashing will surround you.

You'll stop thinking about Ironman, because you're now racing one.

The swim will be long - it's long for everyone, but you'll make it. You'll
watch as the Penticton Lakeside Hotel grows and grows, and soon you'll hear
the end. You'll come up the beach and head for the wetsuit strippers.
Three people will get that sucker off before you know what's happening, then
you'll head for the bike.

In the shadows on Main Street you'll spin out of town - the voices, the
cowbells, and the curb-to-curb chalk giving you a hero's sendoff. You won't
wipe the smile off your face for miles as you whisk along the lakeside, past
fully stocked, silent aid stations for the run to come.

You'll spin up McLean Creak Road. You'll roll down towards Osoyoos, past
the vineyards glowing in the morning sun. You'll settle down to your race.
The crowds will spread out on the road. You'll soon be on your bike, eating
your food on your schedule, controlling your Ironman.

Richter Pass will come. Everyone talks about it, but it's really nothing.
You'll know this halfway up, as you're breathing easy and climbing smoothly.
Look to your right. Look how high you're climbing. Look at all the bikes
below, still making their way there. You're ahead of them. All of them.
You'll climb over Richter, and descend to the valley below. You'll ride the
rollers, one at a time. You'll start to feel that morning sun turn to
afternoon sun. It's warmer now. Maybe it's hot. Maybe you're not feeling
so good now. You'll keep riding. You'll keep drinking. You'll keep moving.
After all, this is just a long training day with valet parking and catering,
right?

You'll put the rollers behind you. You'll head into the Cawston out and
back. You'll put on your game face, fighting the urge to feel down as you
ride the wrong way for what seems like hours. 10 miles in, you reach
special needs, fuel up, and head out.

By now it'll be hot. You'll be tired. Doubts will fight for your focus.
Everyone struggles here. You've been on that bike for a few hours, and
stopping would be nice, but you won't - not here. Not today. You'll ride
on leaving Cawston behind you and head for the final showdown at Yellow
Lake.

You'll grind the false flats to the climb. You'll know you're almost there.
You'll fight for every inch of road. You'll make the turn towards the
summit as the valley walls close in for the kill, and put your head down.
The crowd will come back to you here - the cars are always waiting to cross
the summit, and you'll soon be surrounded in the glorious noise that is the
final climb of Ironman Canada. Let their energy push you. Let them see
your eyes. Smile when they cheer for you

- your body will get just that little bit lighter.

Grind.
Fight.
Suffer.
Persevere.
Summit.

Just like that, you'll be descending. 12 miles to go, and no climbing left.
You'll plunge down the road, swooping from corner to corner, chaining
together the turns, tucking on the straights, letting your legs recover for
the run to come - soon! You'll roll back into town - you'll see people
running out. You'll think to yourself, "Wasn't I just here?" The noise
will grow. The chalk dust will hang in the air - you're back in Penticton,
with only 26.2 miles to go. You'll relax a little bit, knowing that even if
you get a flat tire or something breaks here, you can run the damn bike into
T2.

You'll roll into transition. 100 volunteers will fight for your bike.
You'll give it up and not look back. You'll have your bag handed to you,
and into the tent you'll go. You'll change. You'll load up your pockets,
and open the door to the last long run of your Ironman summer - the one that
counts.

You'll take that first step of a thousand...and you'll smile. You'll know
that the bike won't let you down now - the race is down to your own two
feet. The same crowd that cheered for you in the shadows of the morning
will cheer for you in the brilliant sunshine of a Penticton summer Sunday.
High-five people on the way out. Smile. Enjoy it. This is what you've
worked for all year long.
That first mile will feel great. So will the second.
By mile 3, you probably won't feel so good.

That's okay. You knew it couldn't all be that easy. You'll settle down
just like you did on the bike, and get down to your pace. You'll see the
leaders coming back the other way. Some will look great - some won't. You
might feel great, you might not. No matter how you feel, don't panic - this
is the part of the day where whatever you're feeling, you can be sure it
won't last.

You'll keep moving. You'll keep drinking. You'll keep eating. Maybe
you'll be right on plan - maybe you won't. If you're ahead of schedule,
don't worry - believe. If you're behind, don't panic - roll with it.
Everyone comes up with a brilliant race plan for Ironman, and then everyone
has to deal with the reality that planning for something like Ironman is
like trying to land a man on the moon. By remote control. Blindfolded.

How you react to the changes in your plan will dictate your day. Don't
waste energy worrying about things - just do what you have to when you have
to, and keep moving. Keep eating. Keep drinking. Just don't sit down -
don't EVER sit down.

You'll make it to halfway at OK Falls. You'll load up on special needs.
Some of what you packed will look good, some won't. Eat what looks good,
toss the rest. Keep moving. Start looking for people you know. Cheer for
people you don't. You're headed in - they're not. They want to be where you
are, just like you wanted to be when you saw all those fast people headed
into town. Share some energy - you'll get it right back.

Run if you can.
Walk if you have to.
Just keep moving.

The miles will drag on. The brilliant Penticton sunshine will yawn, and
head for the mountains behind the bike course...behind that last downhill
you flew down all those hours ago. You'll be coming up to those aid
stations you passed when you started the bike...fully alive with people,
music, and chicken soup. TAKE THE SOUP. Keep moving.

You'll soon only have a few miles to go. You'll start to believe that
you're going to make it. You'll start to imagine how good it's going to
feel when you get there. Let those feelings drive you on. When your legs
just don't want to move anymore, think about what it's going to be like when
someone catches you...puts a medal over your head...

..all you have to do is get there.

You'll start to hear town. People you can't see in the twilight will cheer
for you. They'll call out your name. Smile and thank them. They were
there when you left on the bike, and when you came back, when you left on
the run, and now when you've come back.



You'll enter town. You'll start to realize that the day is almost over.
You'll be exhausted, wiped out, barely able to run a 10-minute mile (if
you're lucky), but you'll ask yourself, "Where did the whole day go?"
You'll be standing on the edge of two feelings - the desire to finally stop,
and the desire to take these last moments and make them last as long as
possible.

You'll hit mile 25. You'll turn onto Lakeside Drive. Your Ironman Canada
will have 1.2 miles - just 2KM left in it.

You'll run. You'll find your legs. You'll fly. You won't know how, but
you will run. You'll make the turn in front of the Sicamous in the dark,
and head for home. The lights will grow brighter, brighter, and brighter.
Soon you'll be able to hear the music again. This time, it'll be for keeps.

You'll listen for Steve King. Soon they'll see you. Soon, everyone will see you.

You'll run towards the lights, between the fences,

and into the nightsun made just for you.

They'll say your name.
You'll keep running.
Nothing will hurt.
The moment will be yours - for one moment, the entire world will be looking
at you and only you.

You'll break the tape. The flash will go off.

You'll stop. You'll finally stop. Your legs will wobble their last, and
suddenly...be capable of nothing more.

Someone will catch you.
You'll lean into them.

It will suddenly hit you.
You will be an Ironman.

You are ready.

Hurricane Bob
* You are ready. *

^^^ that's very cool what your friend shared....hope all our days are full of enjoyment, challenge and accomplishment.

Anyone have suggestions of where my family watch on the course? Our place is on the run course so they will probably be there for the run. But how about the swim? Bike? Places to park? How easy is it to get to those locations.

At Lake Placid we had gone the previous year so knew good places to park and watch without having to cross the racers path which is a pain.

Sorry to hear you wont make it this time, but heal well, train smart, and come back stronger another time. Good Luck!

From Ironman.ca FAQ's - "The Athlete Info Guide can be downloaded from the website when it is available. It will be announced at the top of the site homepage, it is typically posted two weeks prior to the race"

Nowhere to be seen! Getting kinda close!

Yep, I read that last week.  And Boy Howdy, it is getting close.  I sure wish they would post it soon.

Are you taking your bike to RBM on Friday for Tri Bike Transport to pick up?  That will really make it reality.

I'll be taking my bike up there tomorrow. I'm still debating if I should take off my seat cages (TBT says its a good idea, but I dont see how it could get messed up). The problem is that I'll have to compete (Take on the Heat) with my road bike over the weekend.

Wow! ! ! !    Check out the long range weather forecast:

http://www.accuweather.com/canada-forecast.asp?partner=accuweather&traveler=0&postalcode=V2A%205H7&metric=0&set=3