ChesapeakeMan Ultra Distance 2011
A little disclaimer: This is a long read but I wanted to give the full experience.
It all started out on a cold night in December when I hit the submit button on the computer screen and officially signed up for my first full Ironman. What the hell was I thinking? Moreover where did this idea even come from? Racing a full was never on my bucket list. The seed was probably implanted on all of those rides and runs that I did with the ‘Nauts and listening to their stories.
Anyway, now came the hard part…getting to race day and being both mentally and physically prepared. I decided to go into this full steam ahead and dedicated 9 months to getting ready for it. I made tons of sacrifices, changed my diet (again), trained twice a day during the workweek and put in 4-8 hour workouts in on the weekends. Most people I talked to, who are not into this sport, never grasped why I would put myself through this. Nevertheless, I embraced every minute of the training, stuck to the training/nutrition plans, and got myself into the best shape of my life.
With the car stuffed to the gills with gear and three bikes on the roof Lauren, Kristin and myself embarked on the almost 8 hour road trip to Cambridge. I remember thinking on the way into Cambridge that the bike portion (my strong point) was going to be really boring. The roads are straight as an arrow and have nothing along them. I thought riding through the farms up in my neck of the woods gets boring, but at least there are hills and things to keep me occupied…not here.
We checked into the hotel and unloaded the gear. After packet pickup, I spent an hour getting my nutrition in order and loading up the gear bags. This was made incredibly simple because I already prepared the bags and filled the bottles with HEED. All I needed to do was reconstitute the HEED and transfer everything to the right bag. By 6pm I had my race bags ready to go and I moved onto the bike. After another hour I had the bike squared away and ready to go.
Friday morning rolls around and I am up before the alarm (which I intentionally set later to allow me to sleep in). It sounds like a torrential downpour is outside. I think to myself that it would not be a triathlon weekend if it did not rain. Except when I walked onto the balcony I realized that the rainstorm was really the fountain at the front entrance. Duh! Anyway, my Friday was a rest day and I intended on doing just that! I spent most of the day lounging around reading and watching Netflix. I went on two walks around the property just to stretch out and made a quick trip over to T1 to drop the bikes off and see the swim course.
Race morning finally arrives! I up at 3:45 to shower and eat breakfast. We’re out the door at 4:00 to head to the high school. In the dim light of one truck’s headlights we drop off our race bags and stand in line waiting for the shuttle. After the third shuttle we final get on and are off to the swim start. It is around 5:15 now and I load the bike nutrition up and do a last once over before getting psyched up for the race.
I do a 5-minute pre-swim stretch and grab my iPhone for my last psych up. Oasis’ “Supersonic” and Motorhead’s “The Game” are just the ticket. If I wasn’t ready (little chance of that) I was now. Prerace festivities are finishing up and were called to the water. As I cross the timing mat and wade down the boat ramp I realize I have no butterflies at all. This is unusual because the swim is not my strongest and I am always a little concerned before the swim. They give the count down… beep! I thought to myself “well that was very anticlimactic” and start out on the first lap.
The water was choppy but it was not as bad as I thought it would be and I was easily in a grove. My plan was to swim wide and stay out of the carnage near the buoys. It seemed to be working because I felt great in the water! About .3miles into the swim I had my first run in with a jellyfish. Before I knew it lap one was over and I was heading out of lap 2. This time the chop was stronger on the way out. I took it easy and focused on getting a good catch and pull and cranked through the second lap. About mid-way through the back half of the lap I get entangled with a 3-foot long jellyfish that wraps itself around my right arm. Let the stinging ensue! I persevered and made the final pull into the boat ramp. I finished the swim in 1:36:45…when did I become a swimmer? I had planed for a 1:50 swim based on Providence.
After finishing up in T1 I get on the bike and head out for a leisurely ride. I start out a little over my plan but I was feeling good and was not pushing. After about 20 miles I settle in and realize that my pacing is slowing and seems to continue to drop. Chalking it up to the wind, which did not seem that bad, I continued on.
Funny story about the bike is right before the race they said the bike course was dry. I thought this was great because in years past the wildlife refuge sometimes had flooded roads. About 55miles into the bike what would I hit? Flooded roads. Great! I navigated multiple sections like this and thought to myself that it would be better to have a boat right now.
At bike special needs I refilled what I needed to and fixed that pesky brake that kept slowing me down. I was off again with a newly found vigor and I really picked it up. The second loop was fun as I was slowly picking people off. The flooded section was deeper this time, which made it trickier to navigate. After surviving that it was time to just spin the legs out and get them ready for the run. I finished the bike in 6:13:45, just a little slower than my target but not bad at all.
Heading out on the run was interesting as the humidity was going to play into it. I hit my first two miles at 9:00 minutes and according to the plan I was going to drop to 8s and hold it. I tried this three different times during mile three but I just didn’t have it to sustain that pace. I thought to myself that my legs just needed a little more time. After the first turnaround I tried it again but could not hold the 8. At this point I just planned on getting through the marathon. I finished up the first lap and did some mental calculations and figured I could still hit my goal as long as I kept to my new plan. I hit special needs and was back out for my second loop. I felt a little better and started to pick up the pace a little (nowhere close to where I thought I would have been). The good thing about this run course is that you always get to see people.
After hitting up special needs the second time I take my electrolytes and some Advil (my knee was starting to hurt a little) I was out for my last lap! Just like on the bike I was feeling like a new person after I left the special needs area. I was straying a little from the new plan but was feeling good and checking off the miles. My pace was picking up and I was making good headway. I was able to watch the sunset half way out to the turnaround. At mile 24 it was pitch black and I was running on instinct at this point. My pace had livened up and I knew that this race was mine for the taking! I did some more calculations and figured that I was on track to beat my goal.
I put the hammer down and ran those last 2.2 miles like a 5K. As I rounded the last turn into the finish shoot I turned the afterburners on and crossed the line. I finished the marathon in 4:38ish. A new marathon PR for me! The gun clock said 12:43, a full 17 minutes under my predicted time. The DJ at the finish told me that I had the strongest finish that he had seen all night. After congratulating a couple of people I met on the course we headed back to the hotel for some much needed food.
Overall the race was really well run with plenty of aid stations on the bike and run course. The volunteers were great and really made it fun along the way. Road conditions were good for the bike (except for flooding) and run. The swim is choppy and filled with jellyfish. However, it is not that deep so it takes some anxiety away. Boring, is the only way I can explain the bike. The course is nice but you hardly see people, which, makes for a long inner monologue to pass time. This is balanced out with a nice run setup that lets you see people the entire time. Pre-race they had a nice carbo-dinner and the morning after they have a breakfast buffet for the awards ceremony.
Now the obligatory thank you section:
- I have to start with my Mom for always being there for me through this, even though she really never understood why I wanted to do it.
- My friends and family for putting up with me during training. Especially to Sarah and Tawana for listening to countless hours of triathlon talk and supporting me the whole way.
- Lastly to all the Cyclonauts for everything that you have given me: Lauren for keeping me company on many of my workouts, Jim and Paulito for all the invaluable advice leading up into the race, Paul “Mik” for pushing me on many of the rides during the late season, and to everyone else that I have had the pleasure to train with. This really is the greatest group!!!