Mission Accomplished: Ironman Louisville

I did it. It took me 14 hours 3 min on a hot, hot, hot day to become an Ironman. I'm so happy my knee held up. 14 months ago I had right ACL reconstruction with a graft from my hamstring tendons. I wasn't even sure I'd be able to run marathons like I did prior to my injury. Today I'm an Ironman. Thanks to the support of family and my Team in Training coaches, mentors, and teammates. On such a grueling day, I couldn't have done as well as I did without their coaching and support on the race course. A more detailed race report will follow.
Special thank-you to all my donors who supported my fundraising for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. You share in my moment of triumph, too.

The Day before Ironman Louisville

The weather has been nice here in Louisville. 70s in morning. About 90 in afternoon. This morning we had a nice swim in the Ohio River. Warm, water temp in 80s. I noticed I was thirsty even after a short 20 min swim. I'll have to pre-hydrate better tomorrow.
I packed my gear bags for the race. Now I'm relaxing in the hotel. Next up is our Team in Training brunch. The key word for today is RELAX. I'll probably be using this mantra during the swim and run tomorrow.

Welcome to Louisville, KY

Ironteam has arrived. We got in to our hotel after 10 pm. A 3 hour stopover in Cleveland is not fun. The view from the plane was nice. Very green. Very different from "brown" LA. If you take away the lights, the buildings, you can imagine what a beautiful frontierland this area must have been 200 years ago.

With taper, I have a lot of nervous energy. I feel like a coiled snake ready to strike. How do you relax before your 1st Ironman? Hopefully I can come up with something. Ironteam will register at expo, pick up our bikes, and go for a short bike ride today. Perhaps I'll have some KFC.

Ironman Louisville: Taper time...Bring on the Heat

The last several weeks after Vineman have been very hectic.  A 5 hour bike: 3 hour run brick workout in Westlake Village the Saturday after Vineman.  To get use to racing in the heat, I wore an extra layer and arm sleeves.  That was followed by a Sunday 30 mile bike: 11 mile run brick workout.
The following weekend to get use to racing in Real Heat, I took off for the desert to train in 90's and 100 degree temperature.  A 34 mile bike: 6 mile run brick in those conditions was tough, but made me mentally stronger and better prepared for Louisville.  I followed that up with another 6 mile run the following day.  My experience in the desert stressed the importance of hydration.  One thing I notice was that I didn't feel like eating...  But I know that for the Ironman, I will need to get some solids down because I won't get enough calories on a liquid diet.
Yesterday, our Ironteam had our last Saturday workout.  An easy 45 min run, followed by a talk from the coaches to prep us for Ironman.  I dropped off my bike with the Tribike transport truck and then went home.  On the way home, I stopped off at the gym and swam 1.2 miles. I got in some interval training. Believe it or not, it felt good.  I think I'm finally ready to do this Ironman thing.

Vineman Aquabike Race Report

I had a fun day at Vineman last weekend.  This was a training weekend for me, since I'm racing Ironman Louisville August 29th.  I was still very nervous though.  I got my transition stuff set up, used the Port-a-potty, then drank a little FRS, and proceeded to the gathering area for my wave.  The swim finally started around 6:55 am.  I stayed back and swam at a leisurely pace.  I didn't want to go out too fast and redline.  I was determined not to have a repeat of my Alcatraz Challenge experience from a few weeks ago.  The swim went great.  I was actually enjoying myself.  I remember the words of wisdom from Coach Rad: " You're going to do what kids love to do, swim, bike, and run."  So I just thought about being a kid again and swimming for fun.  The only downside to this of course is that I went much slower than I had planned.  I was planning on 1:30  Instead I took 1:43:45 for the 2.4 mile swim.  I know I can push myself a little harder for Louisville, but again I don't want to spend so much energy on the swim that I slow down on the bike.  The only other issue with the swim was the need to pee.  I have a hard time peeing in the wetsuit.  I paused several times during the swim in an attempt to pee, with no success.  Finally around 2 mile mark, I stood up and "mission accomplished."  A kayaker checked on me and told me that I just need to go a little further and I'll be finished with the swim.  Of course I knew I was almost finished, but I've been holding my bladder for at least a mile of swimming!  So finish the swim, out of the water, and into transition.

Transition: 7:59  Not bad, considering I drank a bottle of FRS and ate a PB+J sandwich.  Now with renewed vigor I tackled the 112 mile bike course.

Bike: 6:20:53  My best ride of the season.  Considering that I didn't taper and this was just a hard paced workout, I was very happy with my bike time.  I took it easy the first 10 miles or so, then gradually picked up the pace.  I paid attention to nutrition.  The weather cooperated and it was cool for the first couple hours of the ride.  By the time I hit Chalk Hill, I was in the groove and handled the hill with ease.  I sped down and returned to Windsor to complete the first loop.  I got to the Special Needs bag aid station.  I got off the bike and saw the long line for the Port-a-Potty and decided I'll skip the potty.  I found my bag and restocked my electrolyte fluid bottles and my Powerbars.  I also ate another PB+J sandwich.  Then it was off for loop 2.  This was definitely tougher.  I kept a good pace, but the hills were much tougher the second time around.  I stood more on loop 2 during these climbs.  When I hit Chalk Hill, I was pretty tired.  I used mental will-power to climb up.  The cheering supporters on Chalk Hill definitely helped pick up my spirits and gave me that umph to get up Chalk Hill.  Then it was a speedy descent to Windsor and the Finishline!  When I cross the finish, the volunteers had to stop me.  My body just wanted to keep moving.  A volunteer said, "Whoa, your race is finished!"  So after 8:12:38 I was an Aquabike Finisher.  Doesn't have the same ring as Ironman or even Vineman Finisher.  I know that on that day, I could easily have jogged a marathon and become a Vineman/ Ironman.  But I'll have to wait for Louisville.