Derek Bushey’s 2012 FIRMMAN Race Report
OK so it might not be my first half ironman, but this is definitely one I’m going to remember so I figured I’d write a report for this race. That and the fact that everyone else is writing one got the bug into me to write a report as well. I know it’s a little long but I had a lot going on for this race.
For me it started just over 4 years ago with a bet. My brother-in-law was planning to do the Greenfield Triathlon and dared me that I wouldn’t be able to finish. He was almost right and I finished almost last. I couldn’t even run a full mile without stopping to walk. However, the moment I crossed that finish line I was hooked and wanted bigger and better. The following year, I discovered the Cyclonauts at a race and realized that was how I was going to get better. Best decision I ever made.
Fast forward to this year and I wanted to do FIRMMAN again because I missed my goal of 6 hours last year by 2:42. I owed this race another shot.
I arrived Saturday afternoon, looked at the ocean and just thought on thing….. CRAP! There were some serious waves out there. They were much larger than the year before. I loved the idea of swimming in it and pushing myself further, but I was afraid I was going to miss my goal of 5 hours 30 minutes. Oh well. Just need to work harder. Fran, Doug, and Rob showed up a little after me and we decided to try the swim. Just wanted to get the sighting down and get a feel for the swim. We tried to swim out past the waves but awave and got my goggles knocked off my face on the way out. On the way back, I got spun by a wave from the back and didn’t know which way was up. I just waiting until I stopped spinning, stuck my legs straight out, fortunately hit bottom, and kicked myself up. Once we got back in, I was done for the day.
We saw Kevin and Donna practice and they looked like they were getting beat up more than we did. We had heard some rumors that they might cancel the swim for the race. I was really hoping they wouldn’t even with the waves and the rip tide as that is part of what makes these races what they are. Just had to wait for Sunday morning and find out.
Race Day
Got up in the morning, had some breakfast, and just prepared like I did for any decent training day. What everyone has said stuck. If you don’t do it in training, don’t do it on race day. That included the meals. Left and headed down to the start. We were lucky that the waves had subsided some and it didn’t look nearly as bad. Set myself up in transition and just waited for the start.
Swim
We all walked down to the swim together. I wasn’t nearly as worried as we walked down as it just seemed like it was going to be a fun day. Once we got down to the start, the race announcer said the swim would be optional for anyone who was nervous about it. I wouldn’t have been surprised if some bailed but I never would have been able to live with myself if I wussed out on the swim. Once it started, I went casually into the water and I knew the first part was going to be the toughest. I dove under every wave and just worked my way out to the turn buoy. I even hit someone in the back of the head (might have been Kevin). Once I got to the buoy, it was just a regular swim with some rollers. The tough part was over and I settled into a pace I knew I could hold without burning myself out for the rest of the race. I ended up getting stuck behind someone doing the backstroke and couldn’t get around him as he just kept moving in front of me no matter which way I went. I was finally able to get past him and just moved from buoy to buoy. A little further on, I just started feeling something squishy in my hand on each stroke and realized someone had mentioned jellyfish. Yep, that was them! I couldn’t see them but there were a lot. I could feel them with every stroke. A little while later, I didn’t feel them anymore as I swam. I got bumped around a few more times but managed to finish my swim in 34:35.
I went into transition with just one thought; make sure I have everything I’ll need for the bike. I took my time and got everything together. Was probably slower than I could have been but I was definitely prepared.
Bike
Went out onto the bike and immediately started pushing the pace until I got to what I considered to be race pace. I settled into the aerobars and just started going. I saw Rob and Donna as the first turnaround is pretty quick. My next thought was, I wonder how long until at least one of them catches me. Oh well, just keep going at my pace. I have never seen so many flats, mechanical issues, and crashes as I did on this day. I felt bad as a few people were asking for CO2’s or tubes but I only had one of each. I knew if I gave one out, I’d end up needing it and if I didn’t, I wouldn’t need any. That’s exactly what happened. I just kept pushing along and picking off riders until I settled into a group that was my level and we just kept passing each other. I have to admit, there is no feeling like passing other people in a race. We all pulled off into the rural part of the race and was passed by a cop with is lights flashing. He pulled over next to a car with a racer standing next to his bike. I think he might have been hit. A little past this, I went down a hill where a couple on a scooter were pulled over hollering for people to go slow as it was slick. It was because there was a rider there who was just standing next to his bike and he looked out of it.
Shortly after this we got onto a few straight aways before turning back to head to the highway. On the turn, I saw a woman recovering from crashing herself. I thought I had slowed enough but I was wrong. All of the sudden, I realized my bike was sliding out and I was going down. My head hit the pavement and I was out of it (I looked at the helmet later and let’s just say I need a new one). For a few seconds, I had no idea what had happened. The next thing I knew, another racer was asking where it hurt. Then my wise attitude came back and I just responded “Everywhere.” Then it hit me, I was losing time. I jumped up and looked back at the ground to see what had caused me to slide. I couldn’t see it so I just got on the bike and started to go. I went 10 feet and realized I should check the bike. I stopped, looked, saw no issues, and continued on pushing my pace to get back up to where I was. I realized my right hand hurt, and looked down real quick and saw some blood. I realized my hand had been pinned between the road and the handle bar. I looked for other areas of blood and was bleeding from my knee. I later found out I was bleeding from the side of my leg through my shorts as well. None of that mattered. The only thing that mattered was hitting my goal. My hand was definitely messed up as I had trouble shifting after that. The only thing that kept it was causing too much trouble was the adrenaline. I just kept going along and thought, just get to transition and I won’t have to worry about my hand. My pace was slower than before but I made it. Finished the bike in 2:51:36.
Once I got to transition, I changed into my shoes and started to peel off the riding gloves I had been wearing. Now THAT hurt! I looked at my right hand and there was blood everywhere. The knee wasn’t too bad so I went out on the run.
Run
The run went exactly as planned. I settled into a comfortable pace and popped a Shot Block ever mile. I walked through ever single aid station and drank Gatorade. I wanted to make sure there was no chance of bonking on this race as I had the year before. At the first aid station, I reached for the cup and the woman said “Oh my God! Do you need some bandaids?” I actually responded with “No it will slow me down.” I didn’t see many runners for the first couple of miles but there I started to get to the out and back sections and saw plenty of people I knew. As I saw Kevin, Fran, Doug, and Rob so close to each other, I tried to push them by saying they were right near each other. Then I saw Steve Camp at one of the turn arounds. I caught up to him and just ran with him for a while. I showed off the damage and he was a bit surprised I was even running. After a little while, I started to pull away from him. At another aid station, I grabbed some Gatorade and the woman working it called me Toughman. I can live with that. Although, I did yell back that crashing sucks (or something like that). At about mile 10 I had a back spasm that seized up every muscle in my lower back. I thought about walking but decided if I did that, I wouldn’t start again. Then at mile 12, my left leg had a huge cramp. Again, I figured I was almost there and couldn’t stop now. I just kept pushing along the course, heard a few more people make comments to each other about my injuries and headed to the beach. Running on the beach was tough as the sand was soft everywhere. Just kept running as fast as I could because I knew the end was just ahead. I forgot to check the time, but I figured I did alright. I ended up finishing the run in 1:55:15. That’s actually a PR for a half marathon for me.
In the end, my finishing time was 5:26:26. I reached my goal and smashed last year’s race by 36:16. This is definitely a fun race and well organized. I’d recommend it to anyone for a first race or a 10th race. Congratulations to those who completed their first race this year.
I definitely want to thank the Cyclonauts for turning me into what I am today. Never would have been able to do this without joining the club. Every time I train with you guys, I end up getting pushed harder and faster even if it’s just for a short while. Thank you everyone! I can’t wait til the next race!