IMAZ Nov 23, 2008 - Race Report

Summary: It was a good race for me. I learned more and had to dig deep to overcome some obstacles. Weather conditions were perfect! Not too hot, cold, or windy. I could not ask for better weather. The water temp was 63 degrees, but it was fine after I got used to it. Things went pretty much according to plan until mile 11 on the run. That is where I nearly quit, but managed to gather myself and finish strong. I didn’t break 15 hours like I had hoped, but was glad to beat my time in April. It gives me something positive to build on. Plus, I have more experience and know where I am weakest, which is my quads/legs of course. I need to build up my leg strength and my running speed and endurance. Both are doable. Will need to bike and run more hills out here. Will be tough to get outside in the winter, but I will try.

Splits: Here are my splits for IMAZ Nov.
Swim = 1:29:23
T1 = 8:41
Bike = 7:23:42 (15.2 mph)
T2 = 5:06
Run = 6:16:08 (14:21/m)
Total = 15:23:00
Difference from IMAZ in April = (17:33)

Friday Practice Swim: I admit I had a phobia about the cold water since my DNF at Harvest Moon in September. We went down to the water Friday about 8:00 am. I had a neoprene swim cap this time, which really helped. It was cold when I entered. I had a hard time catching my breath for about 10 minutes. Finally, I was able to get my face in the water and swim. I swam for about 30 minutes and did fine. I exorcised those cold water demons out of my mind and didn’t worry about it any more. I knew I would be ok.

Race Day:
Swim: Did not swim well. I started too close to the front and got run over by all the faster swimmers. So I could not get into a good rhythm for a while. I should have started further back in the pack, maybe in the middle. Also, I kept stopping to clear my goggles. They kept getting fogged up and I could not see where I was going. So I zigzagged a little more than planned. Anyway, the cold water never bothered me due to the practice swim on Friday morning. When I got out of the water, I saw the 1:29 time and knew it was slower than last time, but knew I could make it up on the bike. I was relaxed, calm, and confident. Two minutes over 15 hours is no big deal.

T1: I took my time to clean my feet and get ready for a long bike. I left feeling pretty good. The weather felt great and I was not cold. I just wore my IMAZ bike shirt and no long sleeves or gloves.

Bike: This was broken down into three loops.
Loop 1: First loop went real well. There was a headwind, but not as bad as IMAZ April. I rode easy and hit the turn around at 14.2 mph versus 11.0 mph in April. So I knew I was ahead of schedule. The tail wind coming back was nice. I hit the upper 20’s on the way back and finished the first loop at 16.9 mph, meaning I averaged about 19.6 mph on the way back. I thought I was riding easy, but maybe I went out too fast.
Loop 2: This was a hard one. The wind died down but I still had to work my way out to the turnaround. Without a tail wind, I had to work my way back into town too.
Loop 3. This was painful. My legs were hurting and my quads were especially sore. I really struggled to complete this loop.

T2: I was hoping to leave T2 at 9:00 into the race. So when I left T2 at 9:06 this was not too bad. I thought I had a good chance to beat 15 hours, but it was not to be.

Run: This was broken down into three loops as well.
Loop 1: I ran pretty well on the first loop. I averaged about 13:06/m and felt good, relaxed, and confident. I was hoping to average about 13:00/m for the marathon, about 5:40 overall. This would have meant a sub 15 hour IM. Everything seemed to be falling into place, until the second Loop.
Loop 2: I was doing ok until mile 11. My pace was ok, and then my stomach started to rumble. I had to stop for a long time to try to get it right again. I’m not sure how much time this cost me, but I think it was around 20 minutes. At this point, I was feeling so bad that I thought I would DNF again. It happened so quickly too! It came out of no where! I had 15m to go and thought I could not run any more. Then I thought, “I ain’t walking 15 miles!” I thought I would just cut across the bridge and DNF. I got pretty disappointed in myself. Finally, I thought “Dang it! I am NOT going to quit again!” It will be one full year before IM Cozumel. Plus, I had already covered the 2.4m swim, 112m bike, and 11m on the run. I had come too far to quit! I was NOT going to have this thing hang over my head for another year! So I gathered myself and just started walking. I thought, “I have 15m to go and over 4 hours left to finish. Finishing before midnight is better than a DNF.” So off I went. The next little piece was an incline, so I just walked it. I noticed others walking it too. By the time I got to the top where it leveled out, I was feeling better and decided to shuffle, waddle, lumber, slog, jog, or whatever just to put one foot in front of the other. I decided to “run” to the next aid station and get some chicken broth, coke, and oatmeal cookies. Those 3 things seemed to settle my stomach. I did this for the next few aid stations. Before too long, I found myself thinking maybe I could beat 16 hours if I kept this up.
Loop 3: By the time I started the 3rd loop, I was feeling better and my adrenaline kicked in. I threw away my fuel belt with gels and my water bottle opting for chicken broth and coke instead. Someone hollered, “What time is it?” Someone else answered “8:20!” Then I thought, “Hey, I have 1:40 left to beat 15 hours. I’m going to go for it! I’ll just lay it all out there and do the best I can no matter what and leave nothing on the table!” So off I went running, for real. I ran from aid station to aid station and walked the aid stations to get more chicken broth and coke. I could not find any more oatmeal cookies and nothing else appealed to me. I started passing people and getting some encouraging words from runners and spectators, which fueled my adrenaline even more. About mile 21, I decided to pick it up a bit. I ran the next mile at 11:00/m, which was too fast. I paid for it when I got to the next aid station. I thought, “That was stupid! I went too fast and it cost me some energy.” But it was fun and worth it. By this time, I knew I could beat 16 hours and was on pace to beat 15:30, which was a far cry from where I was at mile 11 some time ago. I ran between the aid stations, but walked a little more too. Then I began to plan my finish. I was thinking this was my last Ironman and maybe my last triathlon so I wanted to finish well and remember it. I read a sign that said, “Roll for ALS!” I remembered the Blazeman and decided to do it. No regrets! So when I got to the end, I took off my two long sleeve shirts so everyone could see my Ironman Arizona bike shirt. Then I ran through the chute, high fiving all the spectators. When I got to the end, I dropped down and rolled across the finish line. It was memorable!!!

After the race, I ate some pizza, got a massage, then got the chills and started shaking. I wrapped one of those tin foil blankets around me until I warmed up. I got my bike to the bike transport place, picked up my bags, put on some dry clothes and went to watch the rest of the people run through the chute. This was my last IM and I wanted to be there for the other people and to watch it to the end, thinking I would never be there again.

I hobbled home, showered, and changed my flight to Tues. No way was I able to get up Mon morning, pack, and get to the airport in time. So I stayed the day to rest. Only I spent it running around with some friends, which was a blast.

Monday: My legs were in deep pain and I could not walk. My legs were killing me! My quads and IT Bands were screaming! I must have looked like a 90 year old man when walking. Even Mon night, when we went out to eat, I was done with IM.

Tuesday: I packed up, boarded the plane, and flew home to MS.

Wednesday: I got another massage and was finally able to walk some. That night, my mom noticed my right ankle was swollen. I knew it had been hurting but never even looked at it. Three days after the race and it was swollen to the size of an orange. I don’t know where I twisted it during the race. I put some ice on it to reduce the swelling.

Thursday: We drove to spend Thanksgiving with my in-laws. While sitting there after the meal, I was finally over the physical and mental exhaustion, ready to put this one behind me, and start planning ahead. So I got on the pc and signed up for New Orleans HIM on April 5. I decided to do New Orleans HIM instead of Gulf Coast HIM since more friends will be there from MS. Plus, I can fly in and out of New Orleans easier than Panama City. New Orleans should be flat and fast, so I plan to do well there.

I will take off 2-3 weeks from training, and then start back slowly until after New Year’s. Then I plan to hit it hard so I can PR in New Orleans. I need to come in around 6:30-6:45. Race wheels will help, but I really need to get my quads stronger. Training in COS has put my cardio in GREAT shape! I never breathed hard during IMAZ at all! But my quads were dying! So I have to strengthen my legs for speed and endurance.

Can’t wait for IM Cozumel!!! I’ll be ready and plan to break 15 hours for sure!!!