Ironman WI weekend

Where to begin....

I arrived in Madison Friday afternoon to get registered. It wasn't as busy as I expected it to be. Maybe I am just used to the traffic in the Twin Cities. The line for registering was also really fast. They had you walk about a mile to get through everything. As I was walking down the stairs to get weighed (which I was surprisingly happy about especially since everyone was saying the scale was weighing heavy) I saw the Lake and the buoys and immediately it felt real. It was overwhelming actually. Most of the weekend was spent holding myself together so people didn't think I was crazy! I did a little shopping since the weather was supposed to be cooler and bought some arm warmers, flasks for my gels and salt tabs and a jacket. I am so glad I finished or else that jacked would never be worn!

Saturday was spent getting my bags and bike ready. Nick and I went for a swim on Saturday morning and saw Mark and Katie. Apparently they had not been home all night! They had spent the night drinking in my college town, I am so jealous! They looked pretty good too for being out all night! The water was much nicer and cleaner than it was at camp. I think it took us longer to get ready and walk over there then we spent in the water! I relaxed most of Saturday afternoon and went out for a pasta dinner on Saturday night. I did not sleep much on Saturday and woke up at 3:30 Sunday morning.

Race Day.... I got all my stuff together and Mike and I met Nick in the lobby. It was so nice having someone to talk to in the morning. It calmed me down a little bit. We dropped off our special needs bags and went to our bikes. I got to my bike and pumped up my front tire (actually Shelley's Zipp 303's) and tried pumping up the back. The back tire was firm but was not taking air. Nick came down to my bike rack and tried and could not do it either. He said the tire was firm and not to worry. I really wanted to believe him because he is very knowledgeable about bikes, but I was freaking out in the back of my head. We dropped some more things off and I told Nick I was still unsure so he went with me to find the mechanic. The mechanic had a special pump and air got in and everything was fine. I am so glad I did that though because I would have been freaking out all of the bike portion of the race if I hadn't.

I sat around a little inside and then got my wetsuit on. We walked down the helix and I saw Kim. As soon as I saw her I started crying. Both of us were so emotional. The atmosphere was amazing. There were so many people there, the music was good, and the weather was perfect. There was not a cloud in the sky. The weather kept saying all week that there would be rain and thunderstorms. We got in the water about 6:45. It is super easy to tread water with a wetsuit on! The pros went off at 6:50 and those last 10 minutes until 7 went super fast.

The canon went off and I took a deep breath to relax and got on my way. It was so crowded and I was near the front. Luckily I did not get hit, but I did kick a few people (not on purpose!). The swim was everything I wanted it to be. I did the breathing I had "developed" this past summer. For some reason I tried a 3-2-2 breathing patter and it stuck. I just really focused on how I was feeling and tried to stick to my line. I am fortunate that I am really good at sighting and staying on the path I start on. It was really annoying to be with people who kept zig zagging around the course. After the first loop things started thinning out a bit. I drafted off people on and off. I think the best draft I got was off of the start. So many people started out way too fast, but that was good for me for drafting. I did a light kick for most of the swim and before I knew it the 2 laps were done! One of the funnest part of the race was getting my wetsuit taken off. You lay down and a volunteer just rips it off! One of the best parts of the race for me was next. The helix (parking ramp turnaround) was lined with people cheering! I didn't even realize I was running in a wet swimsuit in 60 degree weather. My swim was 1 hour 3 minutes.

The transitions were another nice thing. I had someone help me get wet clothes off and into my bike gear. I cannot say how thankful I am to the volunteers out there. They were always nice and it was a long day for them too! I hit the port-a-potty before getting my bike and was off down the other side on the other helix.

I took the 15 miles out to the beginning of the first loop pretty easy. I ate a cliff bar and had some water on the way out to refuel. I am so glad I bought the arm warmers. Once you get out past Madison it is basically all rolling hills. The Zipps and the cassette from Julie helped out a lot. The last time I did this course I had a really hard time. Maybe it was because I had done a half ironman the week before, but I also think it was because my cassette was a 23 and really dirty and the wheels I train on are not designed with hills in mind. I felt good the whole bike. I did not push it at all. The 2 large hills were not a problem either. I think I was in the saddle the whole time for both of them on both of the loops. The people on the big hills helped a lot. There was this guy on Old Sauk Pass that was beating a drum which helped some too. I saw coaches Kris and John on that hill as well and Mike on the hill immediately following it. It was nice seeing familiar faces. I kept true to my nutrition, kept hydrated and stayed relaxed. On the end of my last loop in Verona, I saw my family. The girls, my sister, Mike and my parents were there. The last 15 miles from Verona back to Madison went by pretty fast too. My lower back started hurting so I stood a few times, but nothing else went wrong. I do think I went a little too easy on the bike. I felt like my heart rate was never really that high, but I wanted to save something for my run. Unfortunately that did not matter....

I got up the helix and gave my bike to a volunteer and went inside to T2. My bike was 6 hours 43 minutes. I had another volunteer helping me again and before I knew it I was out the door. Another pit stop in the port-a potty (thank goodness every one I went in was pretty clean) and I was off for the marathon. I walked up the little hill out of T2 because my head felt a little foggy. I started running shortly after that, but my head was still pretty bad. I ran to about mile 3 or 4 then walked for awhile to see if the fogginess and dizziness would go away. At the aid station I got some water and gels and took some salt tabs thinking that would help. As the marathon progressed, my dizziness got bad then got a little better on and off, but never went away. I started the coke and bananas almost right away to see if that would help. I know I wasn't dehydrated because I was still peeing. I am not sure what went wrong on the run, but will figure it out soon. I loved the run course though. It was flat with one big hill that you did twice because it was a 2 loop course. I think I ran past every place I lived in Madison, which is pretty amazing since I lived in 5 different places in my 5 years there! I could take my mind off of things for awhile and remember different things that happened in the places I was running. It was really neat to run in the stadium and especially cool to run on State Street. There was an SCS/Gearwest crowd on State Street as well as the Ferris family (friends I worked with in the days I was an actuary). My family was also here and there on the run course. When I had about 4 miles to go I saw Kris (a gal I had met recently on some group bikes). I thought for sure she had passed me sooner but she had some electrolyte issues in the beginning of the run. I also saw Mark, Katie and coach John. They were troopers. I wanted to steal Katie's bike and ride it for a mile to get home sooner. With about a mile to go, it started raining. Thankfully it only rained for about 5 minutes. I am hoping in my finish picture it looks like I am sweating instead! I ran the last half mile up State Street and around the Capital to make sure I came in before the 14 and a half hour mark! The run was bad, 6 hours 20 minutes, but I finished. My family and some friends watched the finish on the computer feed online.

I was pretty tired Sunday night, but couldn't fall asleep. I had a burger and a beer and watched TV for the rest of the night. Monday I went for my massage at 8am. I wish I would have taken my camera because the line of people wanting to sign up for next year was already pretty long. Poor people had to stand in the rain too! Thank goodness the rain held off for a day!

Finally, thanks to all of you who supported me throughout the season and at the race. I met a lot of nice friends this summer and would not trade this summer for anything. Mike and the girls now have be back for the weekends! Well, they have me back until the training gets heavy again for next year!

I will be back next year, I have already decided!