Ironman Wisconsin 2013 Race Report

 The night before Ironman Wisconsin, I went to dinner with a small group.  One glass of wine quickly became 2.5, to help me sleep of course.  I watched the Michigan v ND game until half time.  I was pretty pumped up, but had to turn it off to get a good night sleep.  Feeling somewhat like an unloyal fan, I trusted the boys in blue would prevail.  And they did.

 I had  my alarm set for 4:30 am, but I heard people in the hallways and getting ready around 4:00 am.  I started to get nervous I would be late.  So I got up and tried to be sort of quiet so Jason could sleep.  I ate a banana and two packets of maple and brown sugar oatmeal before waking him up.  And off to transition we went.  It was still so dark it was hard to see to pump up my bike tires.  I got body marked and went down to the swim start to hang out.  The energy was great.  Loud music, excited athletes, everyone helping one another.  I waited a bit to long to use the port-a-potty and the line was SO LONG.  I started to panic that I wouldn’t get my position in the water in time.  I entered the corral and it was taking FOREVER to get in.  I watched the clock tick down and I still was not in the water with 4 minutes left.  This was the worst I felt all day.  Totally terrified.  I sprinted out to the start line, but didn’t have time to get in a good position before the cannon went off.

BOOM!  And it began.  It was windy and really choppy water, but I didn’t notice at first.  Back to  my old stroke pattern.  Four strokes, breathe right, four strokes, breathe right, three strokes breathe left, three strokes sight.  It keeps me calm and helps me keep good form.  But all hell was breaking loose.  Elbowed square in the googles, then elbowed in the ear, someone was hanging on my left foot making it hard to kick.  Some one swam over top of me. It’s one thing for accidental contact like this but grab my hand and don’t let it go- repetitively, or hang on to both of my feet at that same time? That is not incidental contact. I had enough.  So after that, I decided I was the regulator of swimming etiquette.    F-with me intentionally more than once, I might just pull you up, look you in the eye and say “STOP IT.”  I’m not kidding.  I did that, and actually got an apology.  If I couldn’t do that, I might teach you a lesson, water polo style.  We reached the first turn, and true to tradition it was packed.  We were all upright, being pushed by the people behind us.  And we all MOOed like cattle.  Crazy triathlon humor.  We turned to swim north, the wind was insane and suddenly the waves seemed real.  Not Lake Michigan real, but I certainly had to work for it.  Overall I felt comfortable the entire swim, I never pushed myself too hard but I was a strong steady pace which I am happy with. 

Out of the water and ran straight up to Lore A who was a wet suit stripper.  I flopped down and she ripped it off shouting words of encouragement as my Dad and took photos.  I ran up the helix.  SMILING FROM EAR TO EAR.  This is so fun.  Lines of people screaming, cheering, jumping up and down with costumes/signs.  I saw some of the well fit people and they shouted out my name.  Into the changing area.  A nice girl helped take my bathing suit off, put on my socks and sports bra for me.  Gave me water.  I ran outside in no time and more people put on my sunscreen.  I heard Jay cheer for me.  I saw Anne R, who was an unexpected surprise that made me so happy.  My bike was on the far end of transition so I ran barefoot carrying my cycling shoes until I got to my bike.  A volunteer handed me my bike and off I went for an 112 mile ride.  

The weather was cool and windy.  I was flying.  I was afraid I was going to fast and would tire out.  I didn’t realize at the time it was because I had a tailwind.  Overall the bike was fantastic.  So much easier for me than in 2009.  I was on pace to finish a good hour faster.  I had great support on the big hills and in Verona.  Abby and her family made me a sign.  The hills were lined with people in costumes and with funny signs.  I particularly enjoyed the WellFit cheering crowd and the devils that chased me up the first of the three big hills.  Jay, Dad and Lore stayed on the top of a huge hill both loops cheering me up along .  Every time I was biking on a north bound street, it felt like I had a flat tire.  As it turns out it was just really strong wind.  It was so hard to keep momentum.  I read the signs on the side of the road to make me laugh.  "140.6 because 140.7 would be crazy,"  "Don't Pee on Highway P,"  and the sign Lore made in my honor "Don't Trust a Fart at Ironman."   I made up for my slow pace up the hills by barreling down the steep hills.  Max speed 43 mph on at least 4 hills.  Totally terrifying and totally exhilarating.  The last 15 miles were supposed to be easy, but they were straight into the wind.  I knew I had plenty of time to spare for the bike cut off, so I wasn’t worried.  Just annoyed as I saw my much improved bike time differential from 2009 slowly evaporate (I still did about 30 minutes faster).

 Transition to the run and off I went.  Unlike 2009, I used plenty of Vaseline and avoided the most painful part of racing- chaffing.  I also never felt the delirium that occurred that year.  I never had weird joint pains either.  I ran and I ran well.  I ran the first 6 miles without stopping (my goal) including the aid stations.  Then I started to walk the aid stations for a bit.  I ran into Tom P who was on his second loop.  We gave each other words of encouragement and some much needed camaraderie for a little while.   I stopped in 4 port-a-potties, apparently a tad bit overhydrated.  Just before I came in to finish the half marathon, Tom barreled past me and gave me a pat on the back.  He was only a few minutes from becoming an Ironman,  I was so excited for him I borrowed his energy for a little while.  At mile 13 I was very pleased with my time (2 hours and 40 minutes)  The second half marathon I felt pretty good.  When I ran, I felt like I was running in my normal pace and form.  After about 8 minutes my legs would feel so heavy and I would walk 2-3 minutes.  I met a nice young girl named Chloe who was doing her first Ironman.  We talked about the importance of staying positive and enjoying the final moments of the race.  I was able to keep this up all the way to the end of the race.  And I had my second fastest marathon time ever (first fastest was the 2009 Ironman, so maybe I should just never run marathons ? or always swim and bike before a marathon?)  

 Jay, Dad and Lore waited at the finish.  I fist pumped and celebrated.  Then they told my timing chip had not been working.  I panicked.  What if I didn’t get credit for all the work I just did.  I went to the timing booth and they explained that I would have a finishing time but they might not be able to give me all my splits.  That is kind of a bummer, but since I stared at my clock all day long, I have a good idea of what I was doing.  We stayed until the final finishers crossed at midnight.  What a party.  What a unique culture where a huge crowd stays to support the very last finisher.  In the end, no matter what the reason people are racing, becoming an Ironman is a surreal and irreplaceable experience.  It’s emotional to see someone achieve that goal. 

 The first Ironman was a social experience with a well laid out plan by my coaches.  A far fetched goal.  A transition or one lifestyle to another.  This time around, I learned to rely on myself.  I trained mostly in solitude.  I trained between 1/3 and 2/3 the volume of 2009.  The Ironman was no longer the main focus of my life, but something that motivated me to be active and push myself.  The challenges were completely different and I am so happy and proud of myself for overcoming.  

Special Thanks to Lore A who although not training for anything this year, made several trips to Madison to ride the loops with me, send me endless words of encouragement and introduced me to the best sunscreen and nutritional supplements on earth.