Well, I’m only half crazy. Last Sunday, 26 Jun, I participated in my first triathlon which happened to be the inaugural Ironman 70.3 Coeur d’Alene (CdA). After hearing from a cousin about this event back in August, that she was going to do the run portion for a relay team, and having a few friends who have competed in half and full Ironman events, I decided it was time to commit in participating in one. Especially one that was located in my old stomping grounds as I was born and raised in Spokane and used to hang in Coeur d’Alene during the summers. So as soon as I could, I joined the Y as I needed to learn how to swim again. As a kid I grew up a half block from a pool and participated on the summer swim team as well as taking all eight levels of swim lessons they offered. However, I haven’t been in the water since 1990 when I left Guam, where playing in the ocean was almost an everyday occurrence.
Going into this event my mantra was “Survive the Swim. Enjoy the Ride. Conquer the Run.” The weather on Friday in CdA for sign in was stormy. Saturday morning for my practice swim the temps were in the low 50’s with the wind blowing in from the south (in our face as we stood on the beach) creating some nice chops on the water. During my practice swim, those chops hit me in the face and water went up my nose and down my mouth. I didn’t panic and was able to spit everything out. I chuckled as I said to myself, “Great! Drown the day before the event”.
Sunday was absolutely perfect. Clear. No wind and sunny. The temps were forecasted to reach the mid 80’s which they did. As I stood on the beach waiting to start the air temp was colder (56) than the water temp (60). The swim start was a rolling start and I was in the back in the estimate 45-minute swim time group. The cannon sounded at 6:10am and the pros were off! When they reached the beach about twenty minutes later my group hadn’t even started yet…lol
Finally, it was time to go and any nerves that I may have had prior to the race were suddenly gone. I started out slowly trying to find a good object to spot from, gain control of my breathing (the cool water takes some getting used to) and to keep an eye on any swimmers ahead of me. Like the guy to my left who was backstroking (?) and crossed a few yards in front of me and proceeded to run into another swimmer. I found a large yacht that stationed beyond the course in between the buoys and the rescue paddlers. I slowly made my way to the first turn, made my turn and spotted off the sun as that’s all you could see. Made the second turn, looked up and saw the athlete’s village, sighted off that and headed to the finish. My swim time was 48:56. I’ll take it. All those early hour swim sessions paid off as I survived the swim and now it was time to go enjoy my ride.
My transition to the bike was a little longer than I wanted but that was due to breaking some serious cycling etiquette by donning my compression socks so all I would have to do were to change into my running shoes during the next transition. Besides, I knew I wasn’t going to win by age group or anything. With shoes and helmet on I grabbed my bike and hustled to the mount line and mounted my bike and took off.
The course took us east/southeast through downtown and adjacent neighborhoods where the locals were out in force. With my adrenalin pumping it was hard not to go all out to soon. I had to reel myself in some and find a nice steady tempo. The course was hilly but nothing that hard. The toughest hill was comparable to the hill going out to Carbonado. A nice steady climb where you could sit back and ride with a good tempo. Since I was one of the last in the water and probably close to being the last out I was passing people left and right. Also, not to brag, but since I was wearing my Cyclopaths jersey I’m proud to say that not one person passed me going uphill. I did all the passing. In fact, anyone who passed me on a tri-bike going downhill or on a flat I caught them on a hill and put distance between us. I went from an overall rank after the swim of 1971 to 1709 after the bike. If anyone passed me, it was at the last aid station where I had to stop. You see, before the race, I did what every good triathlete does, or so I’ve heard, I waded waist deep in the water and relieved myself prior to the start. So I’m good, right? Wrong. After starting on the bike I felt the urge to go thanks to the effect of the cold water. I played it off telling myself I can wait until the next transition. Well keeping myself hydrated along the way made matters worse and I wasn’t going to go on my bike. Five minutes later I was on my bike perusing the people who passed me. I finished the bike portion in 3:20:07. Even though I enjoyed the ride, I was a little disappointed in my time as I was shooting for closer to 3.
My transition into the run was seamless and I headed out to the run course feeling great and looking for a solid run performance like the week before in the Seattle Rock n Roll Half where I set a personal best of 2:02:00.
Wrong! Two miles into the run the balls of my feet started to hurt and tingle. I stopped a few times to loosen my laces but it never went away. I just tried my best to push through the discomfort. The run course was two laps that took us through a park out to a residential area, where again, the locals were out in force showing their support, and out to the road that was the first part of the bike course. However, for the run we were on an adjacent MUP. At around the six-mile point on the MUP we looped back the same way we came. Then the temps started to take its toll on me and other runners. It wasn’t blistering hot, but the mid 80-s aren’t cool and there wasn’t much shade. When we made our way to the park there was a fork in the road with a sign that read, “2nd Lap/Finish. I told the volunteer, “That’s’ cold. I guess I’ll see ya soon”. On the second lap that is where I started to break down. Not being able to get fully comfortable on the run due to the balls of my feet nagging at me and the temps, I started to do more walk/running than running. Also, I really wasn’t hungry or thirsty and grew tired of drinking and popping gels. As I made my way back to the park, I was a block away when I pulled myself together and started running so I could finish strong. It helped that there were many along the way cheering you on, especially when you left the park, went up block, which was a small hill, then turn the corner for a small downhill finish on the main drag, where people were lined up two to three deep on each side cheering you on. Like any good cyclist, before I turned the corner, I zipped up my jersey and headed towards the finish with a time of 7:10:58. I was hoping for better than that but I’m pleased that I finished. My overall rank was 1733 out of 2449.
Toughest event I’ve ever participated in and I would do it again in a heartbeat. In fact, I plan on going back next year to improve my time. Who knows? Perhaps someday I’ll give a full Ironman a tri. Until then, I’m only half crazy.
Congratulations on a great performance and thanks for sharing your story. ~Les
ReplyDelete