Ironman Florida 2007 Race Report
2.4 mile swim- 1:20:39
Typical IM swim ie one big washing machine of flailing limbs. The first loop was rough and I got beat up as usual. My goggles got partially knocked of once and I got hit in the nose once. Some big slow guys swam over me and I had to do some diagonal navigation to get away from them. I definitely did not swim straight for the first loop. The 2nd loop was much better as always since the crowd of athletes thins out a bit. Otherwise it was uneventful and a new IM swim PR for me. I learned later that night that a woman was pulled from the water and the EMT's were doing chest compressions. The word on the street is that she is in stable condition, so let's hope that is true. Last year a man drowned during the swim and his wife raced this year in honor of him. Talk about heartbreaking.
T1 8:32
Not the easiest of transitions. The woman's tent was overflowing so I ended up grabbing my bag and transitioning right outside of the tent which worked well b/c I didn't have to change clothes. Usually there is an available volunteer to help you dump out your bag and get what you need ie slather you in sunscreen or open up any of your nutrition. This time however I had to do it all myself which was not a problem. It wasn't like the volunteers were sitting on their butts- they were running around helping whoever they could. Needless to say I was glad to get the heck out of there and out onto the bike course!
112 mile bike- 6:43:48
The bike course at FL is pretty darn flat with a few rolling hills and 2 short climbs over a bridge. The course can be known for some significant headwinds, but I didn't think they were too bad this year. Took the first 10 miles easy to get my body adjusted from the swim and was thinking that I had to pee soon. However the urge quickly disappeared b/c we were headed up the first bridge climb and it was pretty crowded since it was early on in the bike. You have to really pay attention when you are riding with so many other people (as I have learned from my stupid crash back in April) I made it up the bridge fine and was cruising down the other side at almost 30 mph when the first aid station appeared. Well some fools slowed down and tried to cut over to the right and I almost ate the pavement! I let out a loud "Shit" and swerved my bike around. Thankfully there was no crash. I don't know who these athletes are that need to grab nutrition so early on in the bike. You should have all you need on your bike for the first 30 miles if you ask me. I kept on pedaling and took my first stop at mile 30 to pee (in the woods no less b/c I was too impatient to wait at the porta potty) The race officials warned us that we would be arrested if the police caught us "relieving" ourselves in public and they were SERIOUS. Well the volunteers at the aid station told me that the woods were open and I was not the only person using them. Yes I am rebel :) Kept on cruising to mile 49 which was the special needs stop. I took a good 5 minutes here to eat a large Snicker's bar, apply more sunscreen, pop some Tylenol, and load up my bike with more nutrition (Pringles, Baked Cheetos, GU, and mini Snicker's) Cruised to mile 60 and took a pee break. I decided to wait in line for the porta and munched on some Cheetos while I waited. I was feeling strong by this point, but didn't want to jinx myself. The longest training ride I had done for this IM was only 65 miles, so I knew I had plenty of miles left to blow myself up. Miles 65ish through 76ish were really rough pavement and I had noticed that my elbow rest for my aerobars on the right side was really lose. It was so lose I thought it was going to fly off. So all that rough pavement made me really nervous and I contemplated stopping to wait for a support vehicle, but I didn't want to waste any more time. So I stayed down in the aerobars as much as possible to keep the elbow rest in place. Mile 80 was another pee stop and I was still feeling darn good. I was thinking that I could make it back to T2 without anymore stops, however mile 95 hit and my right calf started feeling crampy and weak. So I hauled it to mile 100 and got off the bike for a few minutes to stretch my legs out. This was an excellent decision and I was able to have a strong bike finish. I still couldn't believe how good I felt and how I still had a lot of energy left. A new IM bike PR for me!! I was so excited to get to my favorite part....the run!!
T2 8:02
This is what I'm talking about! Hopped off the bike and there was a volunteer who whisked it out of my hand to go re-rack it. Ran into the tent with my bag and was psyched to see plenty of empty chairs and a volunteer right at my side. "Can I help you?" she asked. Yes please! She dumped out my bag in front of me and asked me what I wanted from it. She got it all ready in front of me and piled he rest of the stuff back in the bag. With a quick shorts change and a pit stop I was off and running with Sun Drop in hand :)
26.2 mile run- 5:05:30
Legs felt darn good, not too tight like in the past. Stopped for a quick kiss and photo with Ty. He and his family were parked on the run course right where our condo was. I trotted off and was psyched to be starting the run earlier in the day than anticipated. As I ran along I quickly found out how full my stomach was. This put the brakes on my running for a few miles. Had to do a fair amount of walking to get rid of the sloshing sensation. Delayed gastric emptying is very common and not something new to me. This had caused me major problems in 2004 during my first IM. I knew all I could do was to slow down. The problem is though that you still need to be taking in calories and fluids. This brings on a lovely feeling of nausea. All you want to do is burp, but sometimes you get a VURP (if you know what I mean) Sorry this is so gross, but it's not all roses out there :) I was lucky this race that my stomach started to absorb and empty after about 7 miles. Cruised back toward the finish line where the race gets cruel b/c you have to turn around at 13.1 miles and then run away from the finish for one more loop. So there are people running by you on their way to the finish, and you are just cursing them inside your head. Grabbed my special needs bag at the halfway point and dined on 3 Milanoe cookies. Was feeling strong with good energy. I made an attempt to do some math in my head which is very hard to do when you have been racing all day. I figured I could break 14 hours if I kept up the same pace. Got to see Ty and the gang and got some more energy from seeing them. At this point in the race the sun is going down and darkness is creeping in. I start craving the flat coke and chicken broth they have at the aid stations. The warm broth feels so good on your stomach and is nice and salty and the caffeine from the coke really helps. If I have another sip of Gatorade or another gel I will vomit. It's dark now and I put my long sleeve shirt on. It's hard to make out the other athletes' faces amongst all the reflective tape. As I head into St. Andrews state park I am running more and walking less and feeling stronger. It was so strange. Usually in a marathon you are really beat at mile 18-20. But I was on a high. I was actually thinking I would finish more around 13:45 if I kept up my pace. Miles 20-25 FLEW by and I was in disbelief that now I would break 13:30. This is crazy I thought...gee I could do even better if I had trained more on the bike......I can't wait till the next one....this is what was actually going through my head the last mile. And then there it was THE FINISH! The lights! Mike Reilly, the voice of IM, announcing everyone's names as they finished. I tore through the chute, passing about 7 people and hitting the tape. Ty was there with the video camera and I quote myself, "I tore that course up. I tore it up." It was awesome. Had my picture taken against the IM backdrop with Ty and then stood around with Ty and the fam......uh oh.....I don't feel good all of a sudden......uuummmm I might pass out or throw up.....so Ty and I said bye to the fam and I just needed to walk around for a good 10 min and then I was all good. Had a 15 min "flush" massage, checked out my bike and gear, and trudged back to the condo and stuffed my face with pizza and Ben & Jerry's and took an ice bath. Didn't sleep well that night at all and was tired the next day but I was moving around pretty good. Said goodbye to the fam and Ty and I had a nice lazy day. Made the drive back yesterday. It was uneventful and now I have to unpack all my crap (that's what I don;t like about the IM :) But I am looking forward to the next one!!! I applied for a lottery spot to Hawaii, but I won't find out until April 15th if I get in. If I don't get in I will be taking next year off from IM and will hopefully do another one in 2009 (pending I am not with child ;)
2.4 mile swim- 1:20:39
Typical IM swim ie one big washing machine of flailing limbs. The first loop was rough and I got beat up as usual. My goggles got partially knocked of once and I got hit in the nose once. Some big slow guys swam over me and I had to do some diagonal navigation to get away from them. I definitely did not swim straight for the first loop. The 2nd loop was much better as always since the crowd of athletes thins out a bit. Otherwise it was uneventful and a new IM swim PR for me. I learned later that night that a woman was pulled from the water and the EMT's were doing chest compressions. The word on the street is that she is in stable condition, so let's hope that is true. Last year a man drowned during the swim and his wife raced this year in honor of him. Talk about heartbreaking.
T1 8:32
Not the easiest of transitions. The woman's tent was overflowing so I ended up grabbing my bag and transitioning right outside of the tent which worked well b/c I didn't have to change clothes. Usually there is an available volunteer to help you dump out your bag and get what you need ie slather you in sunscreen or open up any of your nutrition. This time however I had to do it all myself which was not a problem. It wasn't like the volunteers were sitting on their butts- they were running around helping whoever they could. Needless to say I was glad to get the heck out of there and out onto the bike course!
112 mile bike- 6:43:48
The bike course at FL is pretty darn flat with a few rolling hills and 2 short climbs over a bridge. The course can be known for some significant headwinds, but I didn't think they were too bad this year. Took the first 10 miles easy to get my body adjusted from the swim and was thinking that I had to pee soon. However the urge quickly disappeared b/c we were headed up the first bridge climb and it was pretty crowded since it was early on in the bike. You have to really pay attention when you are riding with so many other people (as I have learned from my stupid crash back in April) I made it up the bridge fine and was cruising down the other side at almost 30 mph when the first aid station appeared. Well some fools slowed down and tried to cut over to the right and I almost ate the pavement! I let out a loud "Shit" and swerved my bike around. Thankfully there was no crash. I don't know who these athletes are that need to grab nutrition so early on in the bike. You should have all you need on your bike for the first 30 miles if you ask me. I kept on pedaling and took my first stop at mile 30 to pee (in the woods no less b/c I was too impatient to wait at the porta potty) The race officials warned us that we would be arrested if the police caught us "relieving" ourselves in public and they were SERIOUS. Well the volunteers at the aid station told me that the woods were open and I was not the only person using them. Yes I am rebel :) Kept on cruising to mile 49 which was the special needs stop. I took a good 5 minutes here to eat a large Snicker's bar, apply more sunscreen, pop some Tylenol, and load up my bike with more nutrition (Pringles, Baked Cheetos, GU, and mini Snicker's) Cruised to mile 60 and took a pee break. I decided to wait in line for the porta and munched on some Cheetos while I waited. I was feeling strong by this point, but didn't want to jinx myself. The longest training ride I had done for this IM was only 65 miles, so I knew I had plenty of miles left to blow myself up. Miles 65ish through 76ish were really rough pavement and I had noticed that my elbow rest for my aerobars on the right side was really lose. It was so lose I thought it was going to fly off. So all that rough pavement made me really nervous and I contemplated stopping to wait for a support vehicle, but I didn't want to waste any more time. So I stayed down in the aerobars as much as possible to keep the elbow rest in place. Mile 80 was another pee stop and I was still feeling darn good. I was thinking that I could make it back to T2 without anymore stops, however mile 95 hit and my right calf started feeling crampy and weak. So I hauled it to mile 100 and got off the bike for a few minutes to stretch my legs out. This was an excellent decision and I was able to have a strong bike finish. I still couldn't believe how good I felt and how I still had a lot of energy left. A new IM bike PR for me!! I was so excited to get to my favorite part....the run!!
T2 8:02
This is what I'm talking about! Hopped off the bike and there was a volunteer who whisked it out of my hand to go re-rack it. Ran into the tent with my bag and was psyched to see plenty of empty chairs and a volunteer right at my side. "Can I help you?" she asked. Yes please! She dumped out my bag in front of me and asked me what I wanted from it. She got it all ready in front of me and piled he rest of the stuff back in the bag. With a quick shorts change and a pit stop I was off and running with Sun Drop in hand :)
26.2 mile run- 5:05:30
Legs felt darn good, not too tight like in the past. Stopped for a quick kiss and photo with Ty. He and his family were parked on the run course right where our condo was. I trotted off and was psyched to be starting the run earlier in the day than anticipated. As I ran along I quickly found out how full my stomach was. This put the brakes on my running for a few miles. Had to do a fair amount of walking to get rid of the sloshing sensation. Delayed gastric emptying is very common and not something new to me. This had caused me major problems in 2004 during my first IM. I knew all I could do was to slow down. The problem is though that you still need to be taking in calories and fluids. This brings on a lovely feeling of nausea. All you want to do is burp, but sometimes you get a VURP (if you know what I mean) Sorry this is so gross, but it's not all roses out there :) I was lucky this race that my stomach started to absorb and empty after about 7 miles. Cruised back toward the finish line where the race gets cruel b/c you have to turn around at 13.1 miles and then run away from the finish for one more loop. So there are people running by you on their way to the finish, and you are just cursing them inside your head. Grabbed my special needs bag at the halfway point and dined on 3 Milanoe cookies. Was feeling strong with good energy. I made an attempt to do some math in my head which is very hard to do when you have been racing all day. I figured I could break 14 hours if I kept up the same pace. Got to see Ty and the gang and got some more energy from seeing them. At this point in the race the sun is going down and darkness is creeping in. I start craving the flat coke and chicken broth they have at the aid stations. The warm broth feels so good on your stomach and is nice and salty and the caffeine from the coke really helps. If I have another sip of Gatorade or another gel I will vomit. It's dark now and I put my long sleeve shirt on. It's hard to make out the other athletes' faces amongst all the reflective tape. As I head into St. Andrews state park I am running more and walking less and feeling stronger. It was so strange. Usually in a marathon you are really beat at mile 18-20. But I was on a high. I was actually thinking I would finish more around 13:45 if I kept up my pace. Miles 20-25 FLEW by and I was in disbelief that now I would break 13:30. This is crazy I thought...gee I could do even better if I had trained more on the bike......I can't wait till the next one....this is what was actually going through my head the last mile. And then there it was THE FINISH! The lights! Mike Reilly, the voice of IM, announcing everyone's names as they finished. I tore through the chute, passing about 7 people and hitting the tape. Ty was there with the video camera and I quote myself, "I tore that course up. I tore it up." It was awesome. Had my picture taken against the IM backdrop with Ty and then stood around with Ty and the fam......uh oh.....I don't feel good all of a sudden......uuummmm I might pass out or throw up.....so Ty and I said bye to the fam and I just needed to walk around for a good 10 min and then I was all good. Had a 15 min "flush" massage, checked out my bike and gear, and trudged back to the condo and stuffed my face with pizza and Ben & Jerry's and took an ice bath. Didn't sleep well that night at all and was tired the next day but I was moving around pretty good. Said goodbye to the fam and Ty and I had a nice lazy day. Made the drive back yesterday. It was uneventful and now I have to unpack all my crap (that's what I don;t like about the IM :) But I am looking forward to the next one!!! I applied for a lottery spot to Hawaii, but I won't find out until April 15th if I get in. If I don't get in I will be taking next year off from IM and will hopefully do another one in 2009 (pending I am not with child ;)
posted by Em at 12:23 PM
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