This was my second ironman triathlon and I believe I went into it expecting too much of myself. I didn’t have an actual time goal in mind, other than improving all three disciplines and the overall distance, but I did expect that I would drop a significant amount of time off my first journey. I didn’t quite hit that huge PR I had envisioned, but I finished and learned more valuable lessons that I will take with me into my next ironman.

I was pretty relaxed going into race week — a little hyper, but not freaking out like last year. This year, I had a bit of an “it’s just another race” attitude. We had a top AG athlete staying with us at our hotel. He had done six IMs previously and was nervous. Why wasn’t I? I wondered if I should be and what was wrong that I wasn’t. Even when I woke up race morning, I still wasn’t nervous. Excited yes, nervous no. Perhaps my first impression when driving the bike course should have been an indication of my frame of mind... “ah, this doesn’t look so bad,” I said. ;-)

The Swim: 2.4 Miles
Couldn’t have asked for a more beautiful morning to go swimming with 1,700+ of my closest friends. There wasn’t a ripple on the water, the temperature was comfortable and the collective energy was high. I positioned myself near the back and off to the right. I’d heard that following the kayak lines a few feet below the surface was the best place to be, but that you would pay a price for it — everyone would want that line. I figured if I swam on the outside, I could use those following the lines as guides without getting beat on.

As I stood in the lake waiting for the gun to go off, my HR was only 84 bpm. Lowest its ever been race morning and another sign of how completely relaxed I was. It was a pretty uneventful swim for the most part. Bit of jostling — nothing WWF-like, but it never seemed to let up. I was on and off drafts and when I got squeezed off a draft by two guys moving in on either side of me, I finally realized I was swimming only a few feet off the kayak lines below. No big whoop, I enjoy the swim and just stayed on the lines rubbing shoulders, hips and thighs as I went. The only thing with using the lines as guides and not sighting at all — swimming right underneath the big orange buoys. It only throws you off for a second. ;-)

The first loop seemed to go pretty fast, but the second loop seemed like forever — it was two minutes slower. The jostling continued. The cool thing about that is I was never “alone” in the water. I was in a pack the whole way, and not bringing up the rear. Looks like those 6am masters classes are beginning to pay off.

Exited the lake in 1:22:xx - an eight-minute PR. So far so good.

That “long” run to T1 didn’t seem long at all, and I went through my routine smoothly. T1 was seven minutes — exactly the same as last year.

The Bike: 112 Miles
The plan for the bike was to ride easy gearing with a max HR mid-Zn2 on the first loop, then upper Zn2 the second loop. No Zn3 under any circumstances. Going Zn1 all the way would be cool as all I needed to do was run three miles of the marathon to “make up” for it, then I’d be in PR territory. Well, I was having a heck of a time trying to keep myself in check. I was going upper Zn2 on the hills from the start.

The downhills into Keene were a blast! I stayed aero and flew down them as fast as my wheels could turn. I was feeling good and having myself a great time. And then the dreaded... coming into Jay, I got a flat. Not just any flat, but one of those 2-in-1 doozies — changed the tube then snapped off the stem removing the CO2 regulator and had to change the tube again. Grrr... Good thing I had two of each. The second tire change was incident-free and I was back on the road after about 13 or 15 minutes down.

Several people had told me prior to the race that the out and back section of the course was a bit of a drain. I found it to be quite the opposite. I thought the course through there was very fair and I got a huge charge out of it. Too huge actually. I was suddenly wired for sound, barreling along passing people one after the other, singing some dance tune I heard at the turnaorund that wouldn’t leave my head for the next four hours. It was so hard to stick to my race plan and I found myself hitting Zn3 a couple times. Oops!

I finally got a grip on the miles between the out-n-back and the five little climbs at the end of the loop — Little Cherry, Big Cherry, Mama Bear, Baby Bear and Papa Bear. It started raining and I was actually enjoying how refreshing it was. That gave me another charge and I was cruising along easily with my HR in check, singing a merry tune and chatting with people as I passed by.

When I got to the cherries and the bears, they were no big whoop. The road coming up Papa Bear was lined with spectators and gave so much energy that I think I was yelling at them louder than they were yelling at me. I was so pumped up that it was extremely hard to keep my HR in check here and I think I even saw a tip into Zn4 — oh, very-very tisk-tisk.

I went into loop two feeling great and having fun. It had stopped raining but the roads were still wet. Lots of people were riding their brakes on the descents into Keene — except me. ;-) I didn’t go aero this time, just tucked down on the drops and let ‘er rip. I was blasting past everyone like they were standing still and yelling, “Waste not the free speed, people!” I love that stuff!

I started losing my thrill a little just before the out-n-back section, and the return part of it is where my messing around on the first loop started catching up on me. I didn’t get as much of a charge as I did the first time through and somewhere around the 90-mile mark I stopped singing. The headwinds kicked up, about 15mph+ or so, the sun came back out and the humidity began creeping up.

The miles between wearing me down this time. I was down to my easiest gearing and looked for that mythical “one more gear” a couple times. When I reached the cherries and bears, they still weren’t scary climbs, but the spectators had moved on and my emotional energy took a dip. My split wasn’t looking so good — even without the flat I was still going to be about five or so minutes slower than last year. I kept telling myself it was okay, I was saving it for the run... sure freakin’ hope I can run!

I pulled into T2 after 8:17:xx on the bike feeling a little spent emotionally. I sat down in the change tent for a minute to collect myself. I spent nine minutes in T2 — exactly the same as last year. Hmm... two-for-two. I really do need to work on on my transition times. ;-)

The Run: 26.2 Miles
I had no reason to sit around there wasting time, so I got up and immediately felt better when I stepped out of the tent. Hot and stuffy in there, I guess. I hit the streets running and found I actually could run — I even felt great doing it. Okay, that makes up for my lame bike split. :-)

The plan was to “run the run” while walking the aid stations and hills. For the first 10 miles it was all good — I was sticking to the plan and holding a steady pace that would get me where I needed to get to well before midnight.

I hooked up with three women along the way — Debbie, Mary and Thora. All three were IM virgins and one was a complete triathlon virgin! We stuck together for three or four miles, keeping each other going. I had to stop at a porta potty and the girls kept going. When I started running, thinking I’d pick up the pace enough to catch up with them, things started going downhill. I lost my run partners right when I was starting to hurt and my stomach started debating whether or not it wanted to rebel.

Its funny how fast things change. I took a pretty major mental plunge for the next couple miles and really have no idea what set it off. The good thing is it wasn’t as long as at IMC, the bad news was it was much heavier. Last year I wanted to cry for about eight miles, this year I was pissed off like nobody’s business for about two miles. I was pissed that I was going to be pushing the clock again. I was pissed that after a solid year of training I was the same. I was pissed that my favourite leg, the bike, sucked. I was pissed that it hurt so much. I was pissed that I didn’t have the fitness to do these things, and I was most pissed that I got so pissed.

Two things turned me around and got me going again. One was the V8 juice I’d put in my special needs bag (I highly recommend that!) and the second was the biggie — Rrrod! Rod Nesmith was a marine, father, husband, Ironman and dear friend of the Lounge Peeps here in SoCal. Earlier this year, he was killed when his helicopter went down in a training mission. Losing Rod hit the Lounge hard and everyone got together to create a jersey in his memory and a fund for his family.

I was wearing my Rrrod jersey, and as I walked through town with my head down, just past the mile 13 marker, I heard a voice say, “Do it for Rod, baby. Do it for Rod. He was a friend of mine too.” I looked up into the most sincere eyes I’d ever seen and was immediately speechless. How could I not do it? “Stay hard!” Rod would say. I smiled, grabbed his hand and mumbled something to the effect that I would go finish this thing now.

An amazing thing happened then — I could run again and I felt good. I was back on the plan, feeling great, my head clear of all negativity, and all was good again for the next five miles or so until my body started breaking down. Somewhere around mile 17 everything hurt, my run was really only a jog, the aid stations got longer and what constituted a hill got lower. My mind, however, stayed strong and positive right to the end. I knew I was going to finish and I was going to PR both the run and the distance. I kept myself in check by listening to the river I ran alongside in the dark and saying, “I’ll do what I do and get there when I get there.”

Heading back into town I was reduced to a shuffle, but I was still moving, still feeling good, and getting hungry. Pizza and beer. Pizza and beer. Pizza and beer. :-) Then the thunder and lightning and rains came. I absolutely loved that! I was laughing and wooohooing everytime the sky lit up and was completely out of my body. There’s no better pain reliever than that.

I came down that last stretch to the finish line in the pouring rain, splashing through puddles, my runners getting heavier by the second. I used up whatever was left in the tank (which wasn’t much) to make some semblence of a running stride. Holy ouch, Batman, it really hurt to run!

I think I was one of the last people through the finish before they had to shut down the PA because of the lightning. The rains were monsoon-like now and spectators were still out there cheering and banging on the finish chute walls and sticking their hands out for high-fives — they are so great! I just love that final stretch feeling. I didn’t have anything left for a jump over the tape and when I stopped on the other side I did a little backward sway just to keep the volunteers on their toes. ;-)

A journey that had started at 7am under a warm blue sky finally ended at 11:36 pm under a raging storm — and I was still smiling. I managed to pull off a 25-minute PR on the run and an overall 13-minute PR on the distance. Not as much of a PR as I wanted, but I had a great swim, a much improved run and my nutrition plan was about as spot-on as it gets. More importantly, I finished another Ironman and any Ironman finished is a good Ironman. :-)

Post Race
I felt worse than I did after IMC. I just didn’t feel ‘right’. For a few minutes there, I was a little worried that they might send me to the med tent. One of the volunteers sat me down out of the rain while she went to get my gear bags and find Alynn. How cool is that? I sat there drinking my recovery Endurox and spotted Lori Bowden. She had been out on the run course cheering folks on and gave me a much needed mental lift. I hobbled over to thank her. She said she remembered seeing me out there and got up and gave me a hug. What a sweetheart, she is! I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again — the people in this sport are amazing!

Alynn was such an awesome supporter and sherpa. Not only did she have blisters from ringing her cowbell all day, she got me on the shuttle bus back to the hotel and rode my bike home in the pouring rain! That was no small feat as I’m a touch taller than her — she couldn’t reach the pedals while sitting on the seat! And to top it off, she had pizza waiting in the fridge! Does it get any better? You ROCK, Miss Alynn!

The Aftermath
I learned some good lessons from this race. I had gone in hoping for more of an improvement and felt confident that I would see it. Maybe I got a little too cocky. Maybe I didn’t have enough respect for the distance. Maybe I was too relaxed... it was ‘just another race’. Wrong! Ironman is not ‘just another race’.

I’m glad I waited and let my emotions settle before I wrote this race report. I am so grateful to my Mom, Gordo, amazing friends in the Lounge, the Underground, and all over the world for helping me see that I did have a good day out there, there is much to be proud of, and there is much I will take from this experience into the next one. I can only be a better athlete for it.

Yes, I told Alynn during my mental gap out that this was it. These were too hard and I didn’t have the fitness to do them, and that I was going to stick to 1/2 IMs — the perfect distance. Ha! At least I didn’t walk into T2 offering to sell my bike for beer. ;-) I now have a new list of “things to do to improve” and seven months to apply these lessons for Ironman New Zealand next year. I really want to do well at this, ‘cuz even though it hurts like hell and I sometimes question what the freak I’m doing out there, I LOVE THIS STUFF!!!!

Thank You’s
One of the biggest reasons why I love triathlon and ironman distance triathlon is because of the people. I love the sport, I love the lifestyle, I love the people. I can’t close without thanking everyone that was a part of my latest adventure. In order of appearance, a huge thanks to...

Tom for picking me up at the airport, driving me all the way to Lake Placid, and being great company. Alynn for being the best-ever sherpa and all around support. Matt for the T2 sock tip — worked like a charm! Alynn and Matt for the great company, laughs and all-around good fun. Good vibes and laughs with the G-Crew at dinner. Clive for the bike course recon and points to note. Terry and Sherpa Bob for the awesome surprise card on my bike in T1. All the Peeperoni’s for their good vibes, clang-clang and hips swayin’ side to side boomshakalaka all day long race day. Racer number 1242 for passing me shortly after T1 and saying, “Great swim, sweetie!” Who was that man? Thanks for the big smile! :-) All the volunteers that help to make our day so much better. Debbie, Mary and Thora for the run company. Bus and Rrrod for getting me going again. Lori for spreading her infectious smiles. Thunder and lightning for the pain relief. Gordo for always being there for me and seeing me through another year. Ally for being the best twin that side of the international date line, and all my SoCal training buddies for keeping it real and keeping it fun.