Below is the little write-up I did last year after the half iron-man. It was really fun to read it again this year and re-live the event. It will probably bore most of you to tears. 2 of you may actually enjoy it... |
Duke Liver Center Half Ironman |
September 16, 2007 |
Day before the race
I left Charlotte around 2 PM on Saturday to make it to InsideOut Sports to pick up my race packet. It was just me, my endurance and nutrition podcasts w/ Dave Scott, and the jeep à a good road trip. Along with our swim caps and race numbers we got a really nice tee-shirt and some event branded running socks. Then I headed for the race venue for a pre-race meeting and to scout out the transition area.
I had packed 2 PB&J sandwiches, almonds, apple, and a peach for my dinner which I ate on the way. They say you should have about 10 hrs between dinner and breakfast so I had to eat around 5 PM… The race site is really nice – it is at a public boat access area with a huge parking lot, 4 boat ramps, and a dock – the whole thing sits up on a hill above the lake a little bit. I immediately went out to look at the swim course and thought “that doesn’t seem to far.” I would later laugh at that thought…. I walked the beginning of the run course and found my spot in the transition area. I was the first row on the swim side. Great location since you cannot get lost J
Then I headed for the Courtyard, checked in, made 4 bottles of Accelerade, filled my fuel belt with Accelerade, set out all my clothes for the morning, put my race numbers on my helmet and bike, got all my nutrition staged for the bike (bento box with Cliff Bloks, Cliff bars, and gels) and run, and went to bed at 9:30.
Breakfast
I can’t tell you how unappealing a full cup of oatmeal is at 3AM. That’s right, I set an alarm to get me up at 3AM in order to eat breakfast and have plenty of time for the large quantity of food to be digested by race start at 7AM. I managed to choke down all 400 calories of oatmeal + 150 calorie shake (Endurox) before going back to bed till 5AM.
Arrive at the race site
My second set of watch alarms + the wake up call roused me out of bed at 5AM. I took a quick shower, put on my tri shorts and tri top + a long sleeve biking jersey and headed for he race venue. I ran the heat the whole way there b/c it was pretty cold outside – 53 degrees. As I pulled into my parking spot in the auxiliary parking lot I took it all in – the bright stars in the dark sky, the distant light from the race area, the echoing music and announcements – I was buzzing with excitement! I put on my headlamp, gathered my gear, put 120 lb of air in my tires and rolled to transition.
Pre-race Activities
I took all my stuff right to my rack – number 21. Then I went out and picked up my timing chip and visited the body marking tent to get tattooed with the #21 on both shoulders and the tops of both legs + my age (31) on the back of my right calf. The calf marking is super important while you are out there b/c it helps you figure out who you are competing with (when the 55 year old passes you on the bike you think “I should care that I just got passed by a grand-pa, but he is not in my age group so I guess it is ok…”).
At this point I am starting to get a little cold so I hop on the bike for a quick spin. It was quick b/c I realized that it was a lot colder to ride than it was to stand around…so I went back and put on running shoes and went for a 8 min jog to warm up. Next was the ceremonial visit to the port-a-john, and then back to my rack to get ready for my swim wave (#2 leaving at 7:04). The sun had started to glow on the horizon by this point and we were all treated to an AMAZING sun-rise. The few clouds that were in the sky were arranged in a V and provided a great spot for the suns early morning orange light to be captured.
Swim: 1.2 miles – 47:14 Overall 235/286; Age Group 28/34
They had done a water temperature reading that morning at 6AM and said it was 78 degrees which meant wet suits were legal. That is great b/c wearing a wetsuit keeps you warm while you wait to swim and then once in the water it really helps you swim faster. It isn’t great if you are one of 500 people who don’t own a wetsuit…bummer. So at 6:56 I took off my shirt, grabbed my goggles, and headed for the swim staging area. The Men’s Elites were already in the water and all us 30 – 34 age groupers in our white swim caps stood at the top of the ramp and shivered while we waited to get in the water. They let us get in a little early – the water was a lot warmer than the air.
The swim was really hard. It started out ok, but we quickly made it out of the shallow cove and into the exposed lake where the 15 MPH winds were making some serious chop. My arm would be up in the air, head to the side to get O2, and all of a sudden a huge wall of water would just slam you - it was unbelievable. Like swimming in the ocean I swear. There were many times when I would turn my head to get some air and you get hit by a wall of water and have to go back in w/o getting anything. That really throws off your breathing rhythm…imagine that! I thought coming back from the turnaround would be better b/c we were going with the wind, but it was also challenging b/c your body was never flat on the water – you were either pointed up at the sky or at the bottom of the lake (or so it felt). I thought it would never end (and after some choking and gasping I really thought it might not J ) but I eventually made it back to the steep and slimy boat ramp for the laboring run back to Transition.
Bike: 56 miles – 2:53:42 Overall 122/286; Age Group 17/34
The bike is usually my best of the 3 events so I was looking forward to it. It was super invigorating to head into the cool air with a wet body – it was only code for a couple minutes until your skin started to burn and then go numb. I noticed right away that my left hip was a little “tweaked” and that would stay with me for the whole race.
I felt like I was “racing” the bike for the first 20 miles. After that I started to slow down and some people I passed were passing me – never a good thing. At mile 40 my legs felt hollow and empty and my avg speed must have been down I the 17’s…. The last 10 miles were really hard and I thought “There is no way the run will be as hard as this was.” Again, I would later laugh at such silly thoughts…
Nutrition on the bike is really important b/c it is a chance to get some calories in your system before the run where most people’s stomachs cannot handle solid food. I had hoped to eat 2 packs of Cliff Bloks (200 calories each) and 2 Cliff bars (250 calories each). By mile 40 my stomach was starting to talk to me and it was saying “Sucker, you better stop putting this sugary crap down here or I WILL SEND IT BACK!” When Mr T takes over your stomach you listen. I then switched to gels (2) and Accelerade (total of 48 oz over the 56 miles).
Run: 13.1 miles – 2:02:43 Overall 142/286; Age Group 19/34
The tough thing about triathlon is that you can look at the event distances on paper and they don’t seem that bad. However, when you put them back to back on race day at race pace, they are HARD. I went into the run thinking I could crank out 7:30 miles for the entire 13.1 miles… After the first killer hill, I quickly started slowing my pace expectations… The course was 1/3 uphill, 1/3 downhill, and 1/3 flat. All on gravel, packed clay, or firm grassy ground. It took concentration to keep an eye on your feet b/c the ground was far from even… I stopped 3 times to stretch my tight legs, walked for 20 seconds a couple times, and walked while drinking water at aid stations. That was all tough for me b/c I had the expectation coming in that I would run the entire race – and run it hard. It ended up being impossible as I had nothing left. I think I was on empty from a muscle perspective – I think I still had plenty of aerobic and calorie reserves left – something to focus on for next time. It was the hardest run I have ever done both physically and mentally. I wanted to stop so many times and just walk the rest of the race b/c it felt so good to just walk.
I ended up drinking about 10 ounces of Accelerade during the run – I had wanted to drink 24 ounces. I also only did about 2 gels – I had wanted to do 4. I just could not stand the thought of drinking more of the sugary fluid replacement drink – water at the aid stations tasted SOOOO good. This may border on too much info, but there were lots of those burps that ride the knife’s edge between air and bile… I guess that is the body struggling to digest what you put in the stomach while all the normal blood and water that would be used for digestions was shunted to muscle groups under duress.
By far, the highlight of the race was being able to see Karin, Lynn, and the girls 3 times during the 2 loop run course. They had made huge signs that said “Go Daddy” and “We are so proud of you daddy”. It really gave me something to look forward to on the long sections of desolate trail knowing I would see them in 2 or 3 miles. Each time I ran past I stopped by and got kisses from both Ellie and Ava – who needs nutrition when you can be fueled by love!!??
Post Race
My cheering squad was front and center as I approached the finish chute. They were cheering, taking pictures and video, and giving me the motivation to finish strong. I finished in 5 hrs and 48 minutes. I went straight for the water as soon as they took my timing chip and then found the family. I did some stretching and then thankfully fell into a chair they had brought. My whole body was just humming with emptiness and it felt so good to just sit – one daughter on each knee. We chilled out for a while, they pulled me back to my feet, we had some food and drinks and then headed for home. We stopped at Cracker Barrel on the way back I had a meal that I was more excited about then any recent meal I can think of. The idea of real, solid food sounded so good that I wanted to cry. Country fried steak with mashed potatoes and gravy, corn, and green beans. Oh man was it great! Thinking of that meal still makes me smile.
People keep asking will I do it again, do I still want to do a full Ironman? Right now I am pretty darn excited to have my 72 hrs (534 miles) of running, 65 hrs (1100 miles) of biking behind me and to not be thinking about a major race. However, I think I am addicted to training for races – not necessarily doing the race, but training for the race. The full Ironman is still on my list of life stretch goals – it may happen yet J
Thanks to all my friends who shared in my athletic endeavors this year – thanks for continuing to hang out with me even though all I talked about was how many calories I needed to eat for X workout, how significant it was to go .3 mph faster on X ride, and the latest theories on endurance sports.
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