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Ironman Florida - TriathlonFull Ironman


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Panama City Beach, Florida
United States
Ironman North America
75F / 24C
Sunny
Total Time = 12h 27m 6s
Overall Rank = 1132/2277
Age Group = >40 Clydedale
Age Group Rank = 25/64
Pre-race routine:

Well, where to start? I flew from home in Spokane early in the morning, on Wednesday before the race. On the way to my brother's (soretaint) that morning to drop off my car, it was 19 degrees so I was happy to be heading to Florida to have a few days in the warm weather!
Flew to Denver, Houston, and finally into Pensacola that afternoon. All my luggage and bike box made it just fine which was a big relief. Drove over to Panama City Beach and found the Boardwalk Hotel and decided to wander around the race site for a bit and check out the beach for the next morning's swim. On the way back up from the beach, I ran into a friend of mine from Coeur D'Alene in the parking lot so got to catch up with him a bit before heading for my hotel.
Got up pretty early on Thursday morning, had breakfast (more on this later) and headed for the practice swim. Swam one loop of the course and was pleasantly surprised by the lack of rolling waves and that the salt water didn't make me sick. Just swam easy and enjoyed the warm water.
Later that morning, I met the Gators (G8RLA94 and G8RSAX) and we got registered for the race and checked into the condo. A huge thanks to them for putting the condo together too!
By Thursday afternoon I was starting to feel a little queezy. I wasn't sure if it was just all the travel, different food, or just a quick bug, but I wasn't feeling real hot. By later that evening I was really feeling terrible and couldn't stay out of the bathroom. I don't know if it was the breakfast (ham and cheese omelet) at the Waffle House but that's what I'm blaming it on! Needless to say, there wasn't much sleep to be had that night. Friday didn't get any better either. My stomach was upset all day, frequent trips to the bathroom, and worrying about how it was going to affect my race had me kind of down. I was able to eat a little bit of dinner that night but was still feeling really crummy when I went to bed. Even had a fever most of the night before the race.
HOWEVER...I woke up on race morning feeling great! Or relatively great anyway. I was hungry and able to eat without feeling like it was going to come back up so the race was on!!
Event warmup:

Woke up a little before 0400 and had two bowls of oatmeal and a glass of milk. Then started working on a bottle of Gatorade. All the last minute stuff in Special Needs bags and headed out the door with Mike and Wendi.
Special Needs bags in the right place, check. Tires pumped up, check. Bottles on bike and aero bottle filled up, check. Timing chip secure, check. Wetsuit on, check. Goggles, cap, check. Ok then, I guess the only thing left is to wander down to the beach. Shuffle down to the beach is more like it but there was plenty of time so no worries. Somewhere along in here, I saw a guy still fully dressed in street clothes with his special needs bags in hand, ask a volunteer in T1 where to put the bags...all this with less than 10 minutes until T1 closed. A little unclear on the concept I think! Got down to the water, swam about 10 strokes and then waited for the cannon.

Swim
  • 1h 13m 14s
  • 4224 yards
  • 01m 44s / 100 yards
Comments:

I had a lot of trepidation going into this swim, as the only other ocean swim I'd done in a race made me really seasick. The water here was really calm though and I didn't have any problems like that so that part of the swim was good.
That being said, this was the worst swim, bar none, that I've ever been in. I have never seen so many swimmers in a race who had no clue what they were doing. I lost count of the number of times I had swimmers cut across, almost sideways in front of me, completely clueless on what direction they were going. There were a ton of slower swimmers who seeded themselves right at the front and took off like crazy, only to come to a complete stop 300-400 yards out and cause massive traffic jams. I even had two guys swimming BACK toward shore, right through the middle of everyone, about halfway out to the first turn buoy. All that combined with the normal Ironman swim fisticuffs and wrestling matches made it really difficult to get any kind of rhythm during the first lap. The second lap wasn't quite as bad, except for the people who had no clue how to swim straight, and I was able to get some clear water and get a bit of rhythm going, especially after the last turn buoy.

What would you do differently?:

Not much you can do when there are so many people making life difficult. I expect an Ironman swim to be a slugfest for the first lap at least but the general lack of navigation skills in made it even more entertaining.
Might have been 2-3 minutes faster without getting caught in all the mayhem. Still happy with the overall time.
Transition 1
  • 06m 24s
Comments:

Ran up the beach and found Wendi doing her wetsuit stripping duties. It was pretty sandy where we were laying down but no worries really. Wendi shucked me out of my suit and headed for the showers. The fresh water was really nice to rinse out my mouth. I really hate the taste of salt water!
The volunteers (who were awesome all day!) had my bag for me without any delays and I was lucky enough to find a chair in the changing tent. Took a little time to relax, wash out my mouth with more water and get a big drink, and then get my shoes and helmet on. Headed out for the bike and got slathered with sunscreen then was off.
What would you do differently?:

Not much. Could have been a little faster probably but it's a long way from the water to the changing tent and then from the bike racks to the bike mount line. I have no idea how some of these guys are doing this transition in less than 2 1/2 minutes.
Bike
  • 5h 43m 28s
  • 112 miles
  • 19.57 mile/hr
Comments:

Started out feeling awesome on the bike and I was hoping that being sick wasn't going to catch up with me. The first few miles I just cruised and worked on getting my legs warmed up. I was surprised at the pace I was able to keep while still keeping my HR low and feeling like I wasn't really working at all. Passed Mimi (MimiR) around mile 10 I think. By about mile 15, I had to pee but I didn't want to stop and lose time so I figured if I held it longer I'd eventually have to go bad enough that I could pee on the fly. More on this later.
The miles were flying by and I was amazed at how good I was feeling, despite being sick and not eating the previous 36 hours. I passed Jeff (Bostic) in here somewhere and then got passed by Rick (Daremo). It was cool seeing fellow BT'ers out on the course. By special needs I was averaging right at 21mph and felt great. Took about a minute and a half there to switch out Perpetuem bottles and grab a peanut butter and honey sandwich. Right after special needs we made the turn to the South and started to fight a headwind, which would steadily increase the rest of the day. It had been a crosswind most of the time up until now. Somewhere in here, around mile 55-60, the lack of nutrition and being sick started to catch up with me. I could feel myself starting to bonk a little bit so I pulled the throttle back and slowed down. I also started to get sick again. I was getting nauseated and couldn't eat or drink much for probaly 30-35 miles along here. Also, the section of road from around mile 70 to 90-95 was ridiculous. It was extremely rough and difficult to get a peddling rhythm going. There were lots of lost bottles and aerobottle meshes along here. One really cool thing though was the Pirate themed aid station! Those guys rocked!
I can't remember for sure but I think it was around mile 60 when I just couldn't hold it any longer and had to stop at a port-a-john and pee. The problem was, there were only two at each aid station and the lines were long. At the athlete meeting they had REALLY stressed automatic DQ if you got caught peeing anywhere but the johns and then they didn't have enough of them. Kind of disappointing. Anyway, probably lost 5 minutes to waiting in line here and had tons of riders go by who I'd already passed. Need to work on peeing on the bike!
The closer we got back to the beach, the worse the wind got. When we turned back onto Highway 79, it was right into the teeth of the wind which seemed to be growing stronger by the minute. I understand the pros and fast AG riders didn't have near as much wind to contend with but that it grew worse as the day went on. The saving grace was when we turned for the home stretch back to T2, we had about 6 miles of a good tailwind.
I don't know if that's what it was but along in here I started feeling better, the nausea went away, and I was able to start drinking and even eat a Gel along here.
What would you do differently?:

Not be sick the day before the race. Other than that, I think I would have had a real good ride. As it was, it was still ok.
Transition 2
  • 06m 4s
Comments:

Nothing much to say here. Took my shoes off and was able to run to the changing tent. Again, the volunteers were awesome and took care of us well. Saw Chris (cbost2678) right after I handed my bike off; great to see a familiar face helping out! Put a fresh tube of Endurolytes in my pocket and headed out.
What would you do differently?:

Nothing.
Run
  • 5h 17m 58s
  • 26.2 miles
  • 12m 08s  min/mile
Comments:

As crummy as I'd felt the last couple hours on the bike, I was really not sure how the run would go. But when I ran out of transition, I felt surprisingly good. All of a sudden I was ravenously hungry so I was looking forward to the first aid station!
I intentionally kept my pace slow the first mile, just getting my legs under me again, and even so the first mile wa 10:10. Got to the first aid station and got a water, cola, some grapes, and a cold sponge. I would repeat this little sequence at every aid station for the next 22 miles. Kept my pace nice and easy out to the turn-around, usually under 11 minutes per mile. By the turn-around though, I was again starting to feel the lack of nutrition the last part of the bike and being sick. Aerobically I was fine, in fact I don't think my RPE ever really got above Z2 or low Z3. But my legs just didn't have it in them. No cramping but they just didn't have the oomph they usually do so I resigned myself to finishing with a decent time but not making my goal time that I had hoped for. Somewhere on the first loop I passed Rick (Daremo) who was having a tough run and got passed by Jeff (Bostic) who was paying me back for passing him on the bike! You had a killer race Jeff! Also saw Ed (Ellasdad) running in his kilt!
The second loop of the run was more of the same, only my legs were fading more on me now. My lungs felt like I could have run another 30 miles but the legs were just not there. This course is really flat, except the speed bumps in the residential sections seemed a little steep at times on the last 6 miles!
Finally, with about 3 aid stations to go, the chicken soup came out! Whoohoo!! I'd been waiting for that all afternoon! Did the Ironman shuffle for the last 3 miles until the finish line came into sight. Then all the aches, pains, and stomach troubles faded into nothing! That is such an awesome feeling to come down that chute to the finish! Saw Wendi (G8RSAX) along here; again, it's so great to see a familiar face! Hit the tape with a better than 3 hour PR over IMCDA last year.
What would you do differently?:

More run training and not get sick.
Post race
Warm down:

Got my finisher swag, got the picture taken, then headed over and scarfed a couple pieces of pizza. Slowly gathered up my bags and bike and walked them to the car.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Obviously being sick limited me some and I know I need to work on my running before IMCDA next year.

Event comments:

Overall, the race went about as well as I could have expected, all things considered. The water was great, and most of all, it never did feel too hot. I was really worried about that, coming from the already cold northland but it was just about ideal conditions.
Really enjoyed meeting so many cool BT folk! A big thank you to the G8R's for their hospitality and a huge congratulations to all the BT'ers who perservered and finished the race.
I was a little disappointed in the organization of the race here. Parking was an issue on race morning, kind of far away. They ran out of finisher medals for the people finishing toward the end and I understand the voluteers were handing out medals to everyone who crossed the finish line at the beginning...family members included. C'mon! Bike special needs bags drop-off was a hike too. And I understand the medical tent was grossly understaffed and unprepared. Mostly little things but I guess I'm spoiled by IMCDA.
All in all though, it was a great experience. The volunteers were great (especially all the BT volunteers!) and the atmosphere surrounding an Ironman is just so cool! I would do this race again in a heartbeat.




Last updated: 2007-10-05 12:00 AM
Swimming
01:13:14 | 4224 yards | 01m 44s / 100yards
Age Group: 0/64
Overall: 1078/2277
Performance: Good
Suit: Ironman Stealth Farmer John
Course: Two loop rectangular, counter clock-wise.
Start type: Wade Plus: Shot
Water temp: 73F / 23C Current: Low
200M Perf. Below average Remainder: Average
Breathing: Average Drafting: Good
Waves: Navigation: Good
Rounding: Average
T1
Time: 06:24
Performance: Good
Cap removal: Good Helmet on/
Suit off:
Wetsuit stuck? No Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike:
Getting up to speed: Good
Biking
05:43:28 | 112 miles | 19.57 mile/hr
Age Group: 0/64
Overall: 856/2277
Performance: Good
Wind: Headwind with gusts
Course: Mostly flat with a few little rollers between miles 38 and 50.
Road: Rough Dry Cadence:
Turns: Good Cornering: Good
Gear changes: Hills:
Race pace: Comfortable Drinks: Not enough
T2
Time: 06:04
Overall: Good
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike
Running with bike Good
Racking bike
Shoe and helmet removal Good
Running
05:17:58 | 26.2 miles | 12m 08s  min/mile
Age Group: 0/64
Overall: 1475/2277
Performance: Below average
Course: Flat
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Good
Mental exertion [1-5] 4
Physical exertion [1-5] 4
Good race? Yes
Evaluation
Course challenge Just right
Organized? Yes
Events on-time? Yes
Lots of volunteers? Yes
Plenty of drinks? Yes
Post race activities:
Race evaluation [1-5] 3

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2007-11-06 11:26 AM

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Expert
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Coeur D'alene, ID
Subject: Ironman Florida


2007-11-06 11:52 AM
in reply to: #1040141

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Elite
3223
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Hendersonville
Subject: RE: Ironman Florida
Congrats, Stan! I was nice to meet you! Hope you enjoyed your time at the Kissing Booth! You ROCK!!
2007-11-06 11:57 AM
in reply to: #1040141

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Extreme Veteran
387
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Pennsylvania
Subject: RE: Ironman Florida
Way to crush that Ironman time from last year!
2007-11-06 11:58 AM
in reply to: #1040141

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Master
2808
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, Minnesota
Subject: RE: Ironman Florida
Great RR and congrats on your finish. Gotta love that chicken broth. Nummy!
2007-11-06 11:58 AM
in reply to: #1040141

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Champion
19812
50005000500020002000500100100100
MA
Subject: RE: Ironman Florida

Congrats!

3 hour PB in an IM after being sick the 36 hours before the start...man you nailed the race!

Fun report and loved how you shared your ups and downs and how you adjusted. 

How you feeling now? 

 

2007-11-06 12:18 PM
in reply to: #1040141

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Master
1472
10001001001001002525
Subject: RE: Ironman Florida

Way to go, unbelievable improvement on your time from CDA!

Not so sure about it being what you ate. Every single person in my imediate family has had this same "bug" over the last 9 days. Passed in a day and a half or so. And my brother and his family over in Spokane came down with it over the weekend. Could be some bug you transported to Florida with you.

At any rate, glad it passed and you had a great day! Congrats!

 



2007-11-06 12:20 PM
in reply to: #1040141

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Champion
5529
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Nashville, TN
Subject: RE: Ironman Florida
Congrats Stan!!!
2007-11-06 12:40 PM
in reply to: #1040141

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Extreme Veteran
407
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Greenwood, SC
Subject: RE: Ironman Florida
I can't believe you were so sick like that and managed to crank out such an awesome race! Congratulations!
2007-11-06 4:27 PM
in reply to: #1040141

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Master
1704
1000500100100
Long Island, NY
Subject: RE: Ironman Florida
Congrats and thanks for sharing your day with us!
2007-11-06 4:57 PM
in reply to: #1040141

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Champion
7704
50002000500100100
Williamston, Michigan
Subject: RE: Ironman Florida
Awesome Job Stan Esp after beign sick and all  You looked great out there on the COURSE!!!  Never would have known you had been sick!!  Congratulations
2007-11-06 7:00 PM
in reply to: #1040141

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Master
2005
2000
South Florida
Subject: RE: Ironman Florida
Way to fly by me on the bike Stan!!!  You passed me and just kept going   Nice race, great report.  So Waffle House, huh?  Fever?? *shudder*  Hate to think about what THAT was from! That'll learn ya!


2007-11-06 7:32 PM
in reply to: #1040141

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Master
1728
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Pulaski TN
Subject: RE: Ironman Florida
Way to go out there Stan. I know you felt bad leading up to the race and I am glad you kicked that bug.Best wishes for Courdelane!!!
2007-11-06 8:05 PM
in reply to: #1040141

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Master
1480
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Plant City, FL
Subject: RE: Ironman Florida
Congratulations my friend!!   As always, it was awesome to spend the weekend with you and enjoy watching you freaking PR huge.  I can't wait for next year and some more Waffle House!!
2007-11-06 8:43 PM
in reply to: #1040141

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Extreme Veteran
401
100100100100
Plant City, Florida
Subject: RE: Ironman Florida
Iron Stan Great Job Buddy nothing to say but you rock!!!  Thanks for all of you help all weekend....  next time make sure not to hit the Waffle House until after the race
2007-11-06 9:05 PM
in reply to: #1040141

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Master
2314
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Gulf Shores, AL
Subject: RE: Ironman Florida
Super race and an excellent report.
2007-11-07 9:31 AM
in reply to: #1040141

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Master
3546
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Millersville, MD
Subject: RE: Ironman Florida

Really sweet race, PR, and RR.  Nice chatting with you a bit at the BT house too!

I worked finish line from 3:00 until midnight, and I assure you we were not handing out medals to family members.



2007-11-07 9:42 AM
in reply to: #1040141

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Extreme Veteran
487
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Spokane, WA
Subject: RE: Ironman Florida

Ummm........kissing booth?? Somehow, you failed to mention that!

Awesome job big bro! Someday when I grow up I'll be an Ironman too! You tore it up out there!

2007-11-07 11:40 AM
in reply to: #1040141

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Expert
782
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Wandering through AZ
Subject: RE: Ironman Florida

Awesome job out there Stan! Next stop CDA and another PR!

2007-11-07 6:51 PM
in reply to: #1040141

Master
1728
100050010010025
portland, or
Subject: RE: Ironman Florida
Congratulations, and good luck at CdA next year. Fortunately there are no Waffle Houses there.

Sorry to hear you were sick leading into the race.

scott
2007-11-07 7:39 PM
in reply to: #1040141

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Master
1791
1000500100100252525
Raleigh, North Carolina
Subject: RE: Ironman Florida

Dude...you shattered your old PB and you did it while sick.  You're next one is going to be insanely fast.  You look great as you went by on the bike!  19.57 mph.  Holy crap!!!  I could only dream of going that fast.

It was such a pleasure to race with you...and soretaint is a trip too with all this inspires to harass you.  Is he somehow paying you back for something in your childhood.  heh heh heh.  You're one hell of an athlete.  Congrats once again IRONMAN!

2007-11-07 9:30 PM
in reply to: #1040141

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Veteran
306
100100100
Subject: RE: Ironman Florida

I look forward to reading about all the 'peeing on the bike' training you'll do before CdA!

Congrats on a great finish, despite the wicked ways of waffle house and swimming in nasty saltwater! 



2007-11-08 8:54 AM
in reply to: #1040141

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Champion
6931
5000100050010010010010025
Bellingham, Washington
Subject: RE: Ironman Florida

Southern cooking is too rich for your bland NW Diet.       Good job on not freaking out in the swim with people torpedoing back through the pack...

Very good job on getting a new PR.

2007-11-08 5:57 PM
in reply to: #1040141

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Westminster, CO
Subject: RE: Ironman Florida
great race!  Incredible accomplishment for being ill leading up to it (Waffle Houses are evil!  I can't even eat there drunk anymore).  Way to stay collected and get to the start line ready to race.  Wow!!
2007-11-09 4:21 PM
in reply to: #1040141

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Expert
783
500100100252525
Spokane, Washington
Subject: RE: Ironman Florida
So sorry that you were sick, but Wow...just...Wow!  over a 3hr PR from CdA?  On top of not eating for 36 hours.  Nice job, can't wait to see how you do in CdA next time without all the troubles.  Congrats on a great race!
2007-11-12 7:34 AM
in reply to: #1040141

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Expert
1049
100025
Jacksonville, FL
Subject: RE: Ironman Florida
Great race, sorry about you getting sick. You are tough!!
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