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Tag Archives: Ironman

RACE REPORT: 081 Ironman NY: 10:27:47

Posted on August 15, 2012 by admin Posted in All, Fitness, Race Reports, Triathlon 15 Comments

I signed up for the Ironman U.S. Championship not really taking into account that it was in the summer. I was more excited to be racing on home turf and didn’t really add up this equation: NYC + August + Ironman = (please fill in the blank).

This being my second Ironman distance I was not stressed out at all and my nerves were pretty good.

The day before the race (a work day for me) was when we needed to check our bikes in. I think I was the only guy in a suit and tie in transition. It was pretty funny looking I think. I also had a bit of a laugh when one of the volunteers checking my run bag gave me some advice. He looked in my Run Bag and saw my sneakers and a hat, nothing else because that’s all I need. He said, “Have you thought about nutrition? You know it’s an important part of the race.” Shut up! You mean, I should be eating things on the run? I immediately called Coach Sonja and scolded her for leaving out this important piece of knowledge. Seriously though, I told him I will be just fine and tied my bag shut.

That night Abbe and Claire came over for our Ironman sleepover party. We started off with some fine cheeses and some exotic beer Claire brought. Abbe then made my new favorite pre-race meal of Cacio e Pepe pasta with a tomato mozzarella salad. While making dinner the gals helped me get my gear bags in check. The whole night was really fun and you would never know I had to do an Ironman the next day! Off to bed by 10:30PM…

RACE DAY!

I woke up at 4:30AM Folgers Style. “Baker, what’s Folgers Style?” I’m so glad you asked, let me explain. You know those Folgers Commercials where people just wake up to the sound and smell of brewing coffee? My new coffee maker has a timer on it (I know, not new technology) and so I could hear and smell it brewing. I love coffee.

The three of us rolled out to grab a cab at 5AM. I had until 6 to get into transition. Did I need to? Not really, but it’s always safe to make sure your bike still has wheels.

Our first cab driver was whack. Put the scene together… we are on a quiet street off Park Avenue at 5 in the morning. Birds are starting to stir, the air is still. I get in the cab and he tells me it’s going to be $50 to go over the GW to the start. I yelled, “What? Turn on your f&^ckin meter man! I’m not paying that much to go over the bridge.” He, in turn, told me to watch my language. I called him an asshole and stormed out of the cab. He mumbled some profanity and then Abbe yelled at him, “Hey, YOU watch YOUR language!” He responded with “No, you watch YOUR language!” Since Abbe hadn’t cursed she clearly had the upper hand.

As I got in a new cab the driver calmly explained that to go to New Jersey there is a flat rate of $50. I looked at the girls and we started laughing. Why didn’t the other driver just tell us that?

We arrived at the entrance to the start at 5:30AM. The girls were not allowed in so they staked out some good cheering locations.

As I started the 2 mile walk down into transition I decided I probably needed to run in order to make it on time. I was cruising down the road when all of a sudden this car rolled up along side of me. How are cars allowed in here I thought? The driver said, “Are you running because you want to run, or do you want a lift to transition?” Hello angel in disguise! I hopped in and he told me he was a volunteer and was running late. We passed like 100 other racers going to the start, why choose me? Where ever you are Warren, thanks for helping out!

Now, with oodles of time to spare in transition I watched an episode of the office on my iPad to kill the time.

After dropping off my various gear bags I wandered over to the ferry line. I started eating my oatmeal and bananas and finished my coffee. In line I bumped into my friend Jim! We chatted for awhile about the race and our goals. (Congrats Jim!) Then, I found Neal. He was really excited and we got all jazzed up talking about the swim. We boarded the 4th (out of 6) ferries and got a seat on the upper deck. It was a sticky morning but the view on the Hudson of the swim course was beautiful.

The way the swim worked was, as a boat docked at the barge racers just filed off. When you reached the lower barge your timing chip activated and you just jumped in and tarted swimming. Imagine penguins just filing one by one into the soup, that’s what it looked like.

As we docked 20 minutes had already passed by. We walked down and after a quick fist bump to Neal my second Ironman race began.

I have never been more excited to start a triathlon swim. My training in the water has been amazing the last 2 months since joining a new pool by my office. I swim at lunch almost every day and because of that I knocked 4 minutes off my mile time! (Jim from ‘Dad Posse’ also taught me a new technique which was instrumental) I started the swim nice and easy. The water was probably the cleanest I have ever experienced in the Hudson.

I got bumped a bit here and there but didn’t get too beat up. One thing that was different about this swim for me was that I drafted off a few fast swimmers. I have never been able to do that before, but with my faster stroke I held on! For me, the swim is the calm before the storm, so I try and enjoy the serenity of the water. On every ‘left breath’ I watched the sun start to rise over Manhattan.

As we neared the end of the swim portion I could feel my heart rate increasing as my excitement grew. My bike was calling my name…

Up on dry land I ran to the wetsuit strippers and skipped over a bunch until I found Susan and Jocelyn! I said hi and they were like, “Lay down Baker, lay down!” Duh. They had me stripped lickety split and I was off. Just then, I heard my name yelled and it was my friend Gio spectating!

Over in T1 I found Neal. He had a fantastic swim! Coincidentally, we both ended up at the bike starting line together too!

SWIM TIME: 54:49 (2.4 Miles)
PLACE: 1584

As we made the ascent out of Palisades Park I tried to stay steady. When we made the turn to go up towards the bridge the crowds got thick and I saw Abbe, Claire and Maria screaming at me! It was awesome. Their cheers helped me manage the steep hill that led out onto the highway.

Once I was on the open course I smiled and yelled, “Wind it up!” I dropped into aero and started increasing my speed. I felt awesome.

The bike course was a double, ‘out and back’ so I basically broke it into 4 (28 Mile) sections. The first ‘out’ portion was fantastic. I even hit 44 MPH on one of the downhills! We were screaming down the hill and it’s really too bad there wasn’t a photographer there because I must have looked like a bat outta hell, all smiles.

The first turn around took FOREVER to appear. It was really a lot farther than I was mentally gauging. Up in the northern part of the course the streets were in pretty poor condition too. I even lost my Clif Bar after I took the first bite because I hit a bump and it went flying!

Remember that crazy fast downhill? Well, we had to go back up it on the return trip, not fun. I was playing the numbers game with my Garmin and I had just hit the 21 MPH Average speed for the course when this hill appeared and knocked me back to 20.4 MPH… not cool. I was diligently drinking my EFS and my UCANN. (they were in separate bottles. Could you imagine how gross that would be to mix them? Vomit City.) I also had my first of many pee ma pants moments. I am very courteous when I pee ma pants and make sure other bikers are a good distance behind so they don’t get sprayed. To anyone unfamiliar, this is a pretty common practice in triathlon. If you stopped on your bike to pee you would easily lose 10 minutes per stop.

Right before the second turnaround (back by the Start) was Special Needs. I screeched to an abrupt stop right in front of my helper. It feels funny going from 3 hours on a bike at 20MPH to a sudden stop.  It’s like coming out of warp speed. My bike almost fell over but he was a great volunteer who supported me. I grabbed my fresh EFS bottles and my back-up Clif Bar and was off riding again!

As the 3rd leg of the bike course began the clouds dissipated and the sun was out blasting us. It got real hot real quick. You could feel the heat radiating off of the asphalt and it was kind of slowing me down. I knew things were about to get real and the pain was to start. I had that huge downhill to look forward to and devised a new strategy. To conserve my energy I was going to quickly max out my speed on downhills then coast, resting my legs. I also ate a bit of my Clif Bar which boosted my spirits. It was, after all, past noon and therefore lunchtime.

I peed again to kill the time.

Then, out of nowhere this guy rolls up on me and says, “Hey KE! Good luck. I’m with Runner’s Roost!” I yelled something back and then it dawned on me, he must be from Colorado, the home of Kompetitive Edge, and must be a local racer. I am the NYC faction of KE so I rarely have a moment like this and I was quite excited.

I was not excited when I saw 2 brutal bike crashes. These guys were laid out and in bad shape. I hope they were okay in the end.

A few miles later we finally hit the turnaround point. I yelled out, “Bring it on home boys!” (homage to Led Zeppelin) and got some wind behind me. I knew these last 27 miles were gonna be hard, so I tried to be goofy any way I could. I even did my ‘Scotty from Star Trek’ voice a few times yelling, “Captain, were not going fast enough to make warp speed, give her some more power!” Whatever works right?

It was blazing hot and at the next aid station I grabbed a water on my drive by. I sprayed it all over me and instantly felt great. Duh Baker, your overheating, that’s why you felt crappy. I also peed ma pants again.

For the remainder of the bike my crotch and neck hurt, my legs were sick of riding and ironically, I wanted to run really bad! I cruised into T2 and the spectators were out in force!

BIKE TIME: 5:43:17 (112 Miles)
PLACE: 402

T2 went pretty smooth. I hit up the sunscreen gals (of course) since it was an inferno out there. We had to immediately run up a steep hill to get to the course. It was painful and I tried to keep my heart rate as steady as possible.

Out in the park I made my way towards Mile 1. There wasn’t an aid station there which disappointed me because I was in need of water and potato chips bad. I think it was more like the 1.4 mile mark when it showed up. I poured 4 cups of water on my head, drank 1, ate chips, drank more water, grabbed a cold sponge, stuffed it down my short and kept going. I would repeat that process basically at every aid station in order to stay hydrated, cool, and sane.

The first portion was a 2 loop out and back totaling 14 miles, little did I know it would be hell on Earth.

There is this notorious hill in Palisades Park that bikers know. It is a 1 mile ascent that is grueling on the legs even in the lowest gear. As we rounded the corner I saw that we got to run up it, twice in fact. I said out loud to someone, “You have got to be kidding me!” I slowly ran up, not wanting to waste any leg power as this was only Mile 2. The only good thing about these first miles was that there were periods of shade. The air was still and humid though, like an oven. I was dry by the time I got to each aid station and I tried to just take the race one mile at a time.

At Mile 3.5 we turned around. I tried to be positive but these rolling hills were beating me up bad. I was still doing my ‘systems check’ and trying to figure out what my body needed. I had eaten a ton of chips and pretzels, now I was onto orange slices to try and get my mind in the game since I was starting to  wonder if I was going to make it to the end.

I tried to make up time lost going up the big hill by cruising down it at break neck speed. Mission accomplished. I was running at an 8-8:30 pace the first half and wasn’t happy about it.

Back at the turn around by the start I was walking through the aid station hosing myself down and eating more pretzels when I heard someone yell, “Baker, what are you doing walking! Get your ass moving!” It was Gio who was joined by Gallagher! I chuckled and ran over to get some high fives replying, “Guys, it’s a freaking inferno out here!” “We know!” they said as I started up again. Always good to see buddies on the course and this was just the beginning!

Lap two felt a little better, especially since I had the aid stations and the course mapped out in my head.

I saw something slightly disturbing (I wonder if people are writing that about me) on the final return lap. I started to feel really good and strong and was passing people. As I was passing this gal I noticed some wires flopping around. She was listening to an iPod! Totally illegal but I was secretly jealous.

As I was finishing up my second lap of the double out and back I saw my buddy Jim who gave me a high five, then Neal showed up looking great who also hit me with a fiver! Way to go fellas!

Passing the start area and moving onto the final 12 miles felt great. (Sounds silly to get excited to only have 12 miles to run.) The course cleared out a bit and got quiet which was very peaceful. I was listening to the wind in the trees and the birds, knowing that mighty Manhattan would surely bring the noise. 2 factors knocked my mile pace way down right here at mile 14-15. One of them was the monster hill heading up toward the GW Bridge. I know this hill well because I bomb down it on my bike all the time thinking, “Wow, it would suck to have to ride ‘up’ this.” Then, as we entered the North side of the GW we were confronted with maybe 5-10 sets of staircases leading to the pedestrian walkway. Not cool IM Corporation.

As I ran across the flat GW Bridge I looked to the south at my beautiful city and got fired up. My pace increased and I was once again passing people. As I exited the bridge and started moving through the streets I saw Michelle and Tavia right at mile 17 screaming at me! Awesome! Through out the next 9 miles I would see countless friends, so please excuse me if I missed you on my shout outs!

Miles 17-21 happened in a heart beat. Along the flat path I saw Lam at an aid station. I also ran up along side of my Runner’s Roost buddy. I introduced myself and told him that I was part of the East Coast faction of the Kompetitive Edge Team. We had a few chuckles before I took off wishing him a good race.

Next, I caught up with my friend James (the Iron Cowboy) who is attempting to break the world record for most Ironmans raced in a year. I think this was his 15th or something!

I was moving at a sub 8 pace now, but I was exhausted. We were now right next to the river on the running path and I was praying that the cloud cover we had would remain. Then, off to my left across the West Side Highway was this group of super loud spectators making quite a scene. As soon as I saw Claire’s giant foam finger I was like, “Hey, its my crew making all the noise!”

I wound around the course and started heading up towards them. I saw my friend Julianne here who wished me luck! Then, as I approached my gang I saw Abbe, Claire, Erica, Gillian, Kelly, Susan, Bojana, Elyssa, Maria, and Maura! They made a Power Arch and I blasted through it high fiving as I went by! Go Runner Army!

Right after them I entered this out and back zig zag part of the course that was a total mental killer BUT it was great for spectators. I saw my friend Jason here and gave him a sweaty high five.

As I rounded back I was now higher up in the park on a beautiful paved walkway. The whole crew ran up there and was now joined by a second gang of friends… Jeff, Billy, Ali, Todd, Ila, Keenan, Asher, Ilka, and Adelaide! This was a serious cheer force. I was so tired but the support really fired me forward. On the return I passed them one more time (Mile 24 or so) and headed into my final 2 miles. I saw my triathlete friends Michelle (Trilife) and Amanda (Terrier Tri) here who cheered me on.

They made us go up one more hill right at the end. It hurt bad.

As I cruised into the long finishers chute with no one else around me I decided I was going to celebrate a bit on the way down. I slowed up to almost a walk and threw out my arms, big smile on my face! As soon as I crossed the finish my friend Elizabeth was in the Press area (she works for TNT) and she gave me a huge shout out!

RUN TIME: 3:42:13
PLACE: 137

OVERALL TIME: 10:27:47 (a 50 minute PR!)
DIVISION PLACE: 30

Look! There’s my friend Elizabeth taking my picture to the right!

Right after I finished my 2 handlers (as I like to call them) started asking me questions like, “What’s your name? Where do you live? Let me see your eyes, please take off your sunglasses.” Once they saw I was fine they asked what I needed. “Pizza. I saw someone with pizza so just point me in the right direction.” Right before I could make it into the pizza tent the whole crew caught up with me. Abbe gave me a sweaty hug even after I warned her!

The true New Yorker in me came out when I was at the pizza table too as I asked them what restaurant the pizza was from, as if I was going to not eat it.

After my pizza, Abbe, Claire, Maura and I caught a cab over to my place so I could shower. We then went to Brother Jimmy’s and had a few quick pints with Jeff, Ali and Gillian before hightailing it over to watch Neal finish. We caught him right at the end as he was coming through! Awesome work Neal!

Finally, Erica hosted us at her place for beer and pizza for the final celebration. Whew!

—

This, my second Ironman, was an amazing experience. What I learned was that the mind truly IS more powerful then the body. Having done one of these before I mentally knew I could complete it, even with minimal food sources, making it that much more easy. It doesn’t matter how physically fit you are, what matters is that you believe in yourself. If you can do that, then your legs will do the rest.

Thanks to Kompetitive Edge, my sponsor, who provides me with the support needed to accomplish such a race!

Thanks to Sonja, who has trained me in such a way that all of this keeps getting easier!

Thanks to my cheer squad up and down the course, especially Abbe and Claire who hiked around NJ for 3 hours before the race!

Big ups to Neal. You sir, are an Ironman!

 

…and remember to always have some fun out there no matter how difficult things get.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ironman NYC

RACE REPORT: 068 Ironman Arizona – 11:13:56

Posted on November 30, 2011 by admin Posted in All, Race Reports, Triathlon 22 Comments

My hunger for endurance sports started in 2008 when I ran my first race, the NYC Marathon. Since then it has literally changed my life, inspiring me to chase goals that at one point may have seemed impossible. One of these goals was to race an Ironman.

Earlier this year I began my training for Ironman Arizona, which always takes place in late November. After a few runs and a bike here and there I started to think that maybe my lofty ‘train when I feel like it’ plan might not cut it on race day. That’s when I recruited the help of Sonja, a 6-time Ironwoman, to coach me. her and I have similar outlooks on racing and life in general so I thought she would be perfect. I was correct. She whooped me into Ironman shape and although it was far from easy, it made all the difference on race day.

—

I arrived in Arizona on Thursday night before the race. It was late and I needed to rent a car and get to our hotel. Did I mention that the last time I drove an automobile was over a year ago? One of the pros and cons to living in mighty Manhattan, you don’t need a car! Exhausted, and quite excited to see some desert terrain the next morning, I went to bed.

Waking up to a dessert sunrise is amazing. I had some coffee and watched the news before setting out for the athlete check-in. SIDENOTE: Ironman isn’t as important to the people of Arizona as one might think. The news cast went something like this… “Tomorrow looks to be an exciting day here in Tempe as ASU gears up to play! Sunday is the Ironman race so watch out for traffic delays.”

Check-in was relatively painless and within 15 minutes I was all set. The Expo was bumpin’ and very full of energy. It’s very different from a Marathon Expo, I don’t know why. Actually, I’m lying—I do know why. I have a breakdown for endurance sports, but it might offend some people, but that’s life. Remember, I do all 3 of the sports I am about to bust on.

Level of laid back, most sportsman like in order:
Bikers = Total assholes
Runners = for the most part, very cool, with 50% being anti-social jerks
Swimmers = laid back hippies, always friendly and willing to chat before a race
Triathletes = 99% laid back friendly with a 1% asshole ratio because there are bikers involved

Next I went to ride the bike course! From my hotel it was a straight shot out onto the Beeline Highway, where 80 percent of the ride takes place. I was in awe of the scenery! There were lots of other riders looking very serious, but here I was with a huge smile looking this way and that, trying to find the perfect cactus (I’m such a city slicker). One thing I did notice was the heat. I could tell that even though I wasn’t sweating, I needed to keep hydrated.

 

Back toward the hotel I was feeling a bit hungry so I went in search of food. What did I find? A deli that made a hero-style sandwich that was very close to New York City standards! I gave it 8 out of 10. After which, I chilled out at my hotel before picking Abbe up from la aeroporta.

On Saturday, we both went for a leisurely run (me having a leisurely bike ride before of course) before heading out to pick up one of my best friends from college, Alex. We then dropped off my bike and transition bags before hitting a local venue for some tacos!

After lunch I just had to drive them out onto the bike course, it was THAT cool! We went out to the Red Mountain (the turn around on the course) and explored a bit.

The rest of the day was spent by the pool before we headed out to Old Scottsdale for some pasta!

In bed and asleep by 9PM! (I’d be lying if I didn’t confess that there were a few beers thrown in to help me sleep!)

RACE DAY!

I awoke without my alarm at 4AM and set about making coffee, oatmeal and preparing my Special Needs Bags for the bike and run. We were out the door by 5:15 and I was in Transition by 5:30.

SIDENOTE: I look like crap. An Ironman? Really?

The energy was beyond amazing. It was pitch black out and everyone was going about their business setting up T1 and dropping off Special Needs Bags. I was done with those tasks by 6 and had an hour to chill, so I busted out my oatmeal and people watched. One thing I noticed was how disorganized some people were, cutting it really close with all the drop-offs! I mean, c’mon people, it’s an Ironman, punctuality should be the least of your problems!

Thirty minutes before the start I went into Transition and started changing into my trusty wetsuit. The water was 61 degrees, but from swimming in the Hudson in early May every year I was ready. We all huddled together (very March of the Penguins-esque) and slowly moved to the swim entrance.

The Pros went off at 6:45 and we had 15 minutes to get in the water and swim the 200 meters to the Start Buoys. Some people were questioning whether we would set off on time. Personally, I wasn’t too concerned, knowing that the water was icy cold, the less time before the start gun the better even if I was in the back. I was actually extremely calm and relaxed.

I jumped off the dock into the lake and was hit with a cold water shock. Knowing that I simply needed to generate some heat I started calmly swimming up under the bridge. I was to the right, midway back, right where I was supposed to be. I floated on my back to conserve energy and because I was really happy. In my head I thought, “This is really happening, I am at the start of the Ironman…”

Without warning the cannon (yes, a cannon) fired and the piranha attack began. I put my head down and started easing into the masses. I was almost immediately kicked square in the eye socket and had to fix my goggles. Arms and legs were everywhere, a giant swimming ‘Rush Hour’ if you will, where the only place to go is forward. I have been beaten up pretty bad in a swim before, but never like this. I was also in no way scared, which is night and day from my childhood swimming experiences. For the whole swim I was elbowing or being elbowed, shaking off hands from my feet (thank God I’m not ticklish). Within 300-500 meters, I found a groove and stuck to it. I knew that my swim time would be the worst, but I also knew it’s part of the protocol and had to get done, so that’s what I did.

We were swimming into the sunrise and it was a very beautiful thing. The light was almost like a blinding guide to the turnaround point, which actually came quick.

This (I think, anyway) is where my swim turned to garbage. As I made the giant turn to come back home I felt some slight fatigue set in. It also didn’t help that people were swimming over top of me. In fact I was so annoyed at one point that I literally pushed someone on my right with my foot and sent them 5 feet to the right, Ninja style, punk. You can’t train for that move, can you?

The bridges at the Start just weren’t coming fast enough. I felt slow and sloppy. I had been swimming for 1:30 now and the cold had now set in and was affecting my performance. “Get it done, Chris,” I told myself. I even thought about quitting for a hot second, before flashing back to what happened to my Dad. He sure as hell didn’t quit his fight with cancer. This was just a silly race—a race I chose. So I swam.

Popping up onto the stairs, I went right to the wetsuit strippers. My guy yelled at me, “Lay down man!” and in one swoop had me stripped of my wetsuit. Wow, if only I had that at every triathlon! Thanks guys!

Running along I suddenly realized  that I was shaking from the cold. Run, just run and get the legs warmed up. Arriving in the T1 tent I was happy to see it was heated. I slowly pulled my arm warmers on as a volunteer checked on me. “Hey man, how we doing you okay?” “Y-y-yes. J-j-just freezing.”

TIME: 1:44:01   PLACE: 2293 out of 2500 (yikes)

Riding out of T1 I saw Abbe and Alex (who snapped this amazingly timed picture!). A gal next to me looked over as we were getting moving and said, “So. Cold. So very very cold.” I, also freezing, yelled at her, “Hang on, we are almost in the sun!” Hours later we would all be wishing for that cold back as the dessert is no moderate place to race.

The bike course is a 3 loop out and back, and when I say out I mean it! You ride 19 miles out into the dessert to the Red Mountain! SO sinister sounding right? The beauty of the course is that it is relatively flat.

The mighty Red Mountain!

My body was hurting for the first trek out to the mountain. I even said to myself, “Wow. That swim kicked my ass.” I couldn’t get comfortable and my lower back hurt right from the start. I just followed our plan and kept my heart rate up and steady, drinking my EFS every so often. I was told not to focus on passing people, but I was passing everybody.

Arriving at the Red Mountain is something out of Mad Max. Here you are riding along this desolate (very desolate) dessert highway and then, ‘Blam!’ you round a corner and it’s like an aid station party in the middle of nowhere! People cheering and handing out everything possible. As I turned around I dropped it down to a low low gear and blasted back toward Tempe. The return is more of a downhill, so you can really crush it. I think I was pushing 35 MPH.

Somewhere along here I ran into my friend Michelle who races with Tri2Be. We had a quick chat before I kept going. I saw many Tri2Be racers out there and cheered them on every time I saw them, yelling “Tri2Be NYC Go!” I even yelled to their coach, Ramon, and said hello, confusing him. (I looked into joining their team a year ago so I had emailed with him a few times.)

Back in sunny Tempe, Arizona I was roughly 2 hours into the bike, 1:50 to be exact. The crowds were thick (as thieves) but I was soon out of their sight as I looped around and headed back towards the sands. I really had to pee so, remembering what a few Ironman friends had told me, I started peeing. I would have lost 10 minutes easy by pulling over to pee. That’s right, I peed my pants on the bike. The funny part is (not to anyone around me) is that I was moving at 20MPH. That’s right, lets put the facts together. Peeing your paper thin Tri Shorts while moving 20MPH… it sprays EVERYWHERE behind you! The funny thing is I didn’t realize it was leaving a wake until I looked back and was like, “Oh my god!” I chuckled and thought, “It’s the Ironman, could be worse.”

Back on the Beeline Highway heading North by Northwest I felt 100 times better than I did the first lap. I was drinking my EFS, water and munching on Clif Bars, maintaining my pace. Every now and then a group of the Pros would blast by at like 25MPH. Totally bad ass.

As I rounded the turn about, this time I pulled over, grabbed a water bottle and jammed it into my aero bottle. Also in my peripheral was this box of mini-Powerbars. I grabbed one. I emptied it in and sped off with speed, much like a Formula 1 racer might do at pit stop. I was quietly proud of myself.

As I prepared to enter Mach 3 on the downhill portion of the bike, a new factor presented itself… the Mighty South Wind! It was easily gusting at 20-30MPH and slowed me down to 17 MPH from 29. It angered me. In fact, the wind always angers me when it rears its head because it’s this invisible thing. Where does it come from? How does it start? Is the jet stream this constant roller coaster of air? I don’t know because I went to art school, but I sure can decorate a house.

Bike Special Needs is your opportunity to refill on any goodies you might have used up on the previous 3 hours of the bike. You pull over by your number and they bring you your bag, which you hopefully filled with something appropriate. Mine had 2 fresh water bottles and a Clif Bar. I swapped out the old stuff with the new and took off, excited to drink more EFS! It’s so good, especially the 3rd and 4th bottle of it! That was an example of sarcasm.

Back in sunny Tempe, I (once again) turned around and headed back toward the dreaded (once mighty) Red Mountain. I needed to destroy the One Ring in the fires of the Red Mountain, wait, wait, different race. I did however have to pee again and—no joke—peed right on the same stretch as before. I’m like a cat.

Out on the Beeline for the last time I changed my strategy. Instead of taking it steady up the highway, I blazed a path, knowing the wind was at my back. It worked and I made up a lot of lost time as evident in my quicker split.

Looping around for the last time I had never been happier to be returning to sunny Tempe. My ass hurt and the wind was really pushing me back. I wanted to run. I had drank all of my EFS, loads of water, eaten a Clif Bar, Powerbar and a Honeystinger Waffle. I felt great as far as nutrition was concerned.

Pulling into T2 a nice volunteer grabbed my bike and said, “I got it, go!” Before I could tell him to be careful, she is a delicate (and yet ferocious) bike, I was off barreling towards the changing tent. My volunteer laughed when he saw I had 2 different colored New Balance running socks, but before I had a chance to tell him about my Laundromat’s Sock Vortex, I was gone.

TIME: 5:43:57   PLACE: 1139 (catching up!)

The sunscreen girls would not let me leave before smearing me with zinc oxide saying, “You Sir, are a prime candidate for the sun screeners!”

Passing the 1st aid station, I grabbed loads of water and a sponge in which I attempted to clean my messy self up with. My legs felt a bit worn out, but I knew it wouldn’t be until mile 5 before they would kick in. I was running my 7:30 pace as Sonja and I had planned, taking it easy compared to a normal marathon pace. This was also a 3 loop course and I wasn’t sure how I was going to deal with the monotony. I was consistently passing people now and would never get passed (unless looped by a Pro). In my head I thought about my poor swim and my semi-decent bike, wondering where I could improve for next time. Then I almost said aloud, “Lookout people, we’re running now, you’re on my turf!” But I didn’t. That’s unsportsmanlike, after all.

At aid stations 4 and 5 I thought it wise to get some salt in me, so I slammed down some Ruffles with Ridges (seriously). They were delicious and my body immediately felt better. SIDENOTE: The aid stations in Ironman are like giant buffets. Each mile marker has one and they are identical. Sponges-Water-Gatorade-Powerade-Poweraid Gels-Potato Chips-Pretzels-Cookies-Bananas-Apples-Powerbar Gels-Poweraid-Gatorade-Water-Sponges. It’s an all you can eat aid station buffet around every corner! (Sometimes with a DJ, sometimes with hot girls dressed as cops)

At Mile 4 and 8 Abbe and Alex were cheering me on! Abbe asked how I was and I told her I was doing well. They had a great spot by one of the bridges where they could see runners on the out and back.

As I finished up the first loop I started to feel good. Not great as if I woke up from a nap on the beach, but I was feeling peppy. My hat was bothering me as I never run with a hat, but seeing as how I’m really pasty and have a crew cut I though it wise. Oh yes, and it’s the desert!

Miles 10-12 were uneventful aside from the fact that I was longing for the 13th mile so I could be halfway done. My nutrition was on par and all I was taking in at this point was water and Gatorade. Right around this point I saw Hillary Biscay cheering and I yelled to her, “Hillary, I love reading your blog!” like a good dork blogger should to which she replied, “Thank you! Good luck!”

When I saw Abbe and Alex on the second loop I gave them my heart rate monitor which had been annoying me. I also told them I wanted an In-N-Out Burger when I was done! I also yelled, “It’s about to get REAL.”

As I came back around to the start to begin my 3rd loop something strange happened. I kept telling myself that when I hit my wall at mile 17 or 18 (when it happened like clockwork 2 weeks prior in the NYC Marathon) I would walk to ease the pain. Guess what? I never hit that wall. In fact this would be the only marathon I have ever run where I didn’t walk! Instead I had this crazy sense of urgency to finish. I was rocking an 8 minute pace, far from my typical running times, but this was Ironman and I’ll take it. The pain in my legs seemed to dissipate as I cruised forward passing groups of people. I had heard about the ‘Ironman Carnage’ and now I was seeing it. 90% of the marathoners were walking. I am by no means criticizing, because it’s every man’s individual race, it was just wild to see the end of a long day and what it did to all of us.

Sonja had warned me of people trying to draft me once I was cooking and it happened at mile 18. This big 6 foot fall dude I passed sped up and was shadowing me. I don’t like to be shadowed, I live in New York City for god’s sake. Maybe this fella was gonna try and pinch my wallet. I punched it and was kicking some 7:30s again and before I knew it he was an after thought.

I had also heard the phrase, “Once you start on Coke, you can’t stop.” I am referring to an endurance race and not a night club. Seeing as how I had 6 miles to go I figured why the hell not, and so I had a shot of Coke. It made me feel amazing, maybe because I never drink soda! I had a shot the next 2 aid stations and then started thinking… “They shouldn’t ever give this to kids! Holy cow.”

The last 4 miles were easy. I’m serious and I’m not trying to sound like a jerk, they just were. My legs were on autopilot and mentally I was somewhere else. I would be lying if I didn’t say I was emotional. I was thinking to myself, “This is really happening, I’m going to complete an Ironman.” I was also thinking of my Dad and how six months to the day I was telling him as he lay dying that every race I do from here on would be for him.

Running the last mile I encountered lots of crowds. The sun was down now and the course looked just as it did when we started the swim 11 hours earlier. I cruised into the finish chute and held my hands up high. As always with me, the finish itself isn’t as momentus as actual key points in the race. Abbe and Alex were there in the stands and I yelled and waved to them!

TIME: 3:33:42   PLACE: 458

I finished in 11:13:56. I was very happy with my time. In fact I really could have cared less about my time as it was my first Ironman and finishing was my goal. A woman threw on my space cape and asked me how I was. “I’m good! Wow, what a day right?” She walked me over to where you get your pictures taken and once she deducted that I wasn’t going to pass out if she left me. I saw Alex in the crowds and told him to meet me by the bikes.

I cruised through a very quiet transition and made my way out to Alex and Abbe. I got a huge sweaty hug from Abbe (I was sweaty, not her). We made our way to the car and over to the hotel where I wolfed down my In-n-Out burger, chased with a beer! My throat was dry and sore from the dry desert weather and it was tripping me out. After some conferencing with Abbe and Alex we decided to go across the street to Duke’s to have dinner and some beers. I wore my medal and seriously, nobody batted an eye. The bartender did buy me a shot of Jameson once Abbe and Alex force fed her the Ironman news.

In-N-Out Burger after the race. So good.

Back at the hotel we were all asleep by 9PM. I wanted to go to the midnight finish but just didn’t have it in me, nor did I want me cheer squad to endure any more Ironman torture!

—

It’s been a really hard year for me. I always considered my family (who I am really tight with) immortal. Two great-grandmas who lived past 100 and my current grandmas and their brothers are still kicking it at 90. My grandma has a boyfriend for god’s sake (yeah, she’s awesome)! But my father lost a two year battle with cancer in the span of 1 week. One week from hell that I will not soon forget, as it haunts me constantly.

I was in the middle of training for Ironman when he suddenly died. I had taken on a coach for the first time and my volume was increasing in a way I had never experienced. His death set me back physically and mentally. Sonja, said coach we are discussing, told me to chill and let me know when I was ready to hit it again.

As my Dad lay in an altered state, breathing tube in his mouth, IV in his jugular, heart rate irregular, with no hope in sight (and believe me it goes against all I stand for to say hope is lost) I told him  that every race from here on was for him.

This race, this Ironman distance triathlon, was for him. At every point in which I thought I couldn’t stand the pain, I thought of what my Dad endured just to try and live another 10 years with us. He suffered day and night at Johns Hopkins, looking for a cure, a cure that doesn’t exist. Still, he fought, and I thought to myself, “If Dad suffered through days and nights of pointless chemo, then I will endure this race and the pain I feel as I am alive and must be thankful for this.”

I held tears back during the race as these thoughts flooded my brain on the swim, bike and run, then my tough guy alter ego kicked in and I forged ahead. My Dad never got to see me race, but I’m pretty sure he was there cheering for the first time at my first (and not last) Ironman.

Big ups:
Coach Sonja: for setting me straight. I now see what all of your tricks were for! Couldn’t have done it without your supreme coaching.
Coach Sean: for my swim moves, even though they need some work.
Alex: for kicking it mafia style in Arizona with Abbe and I. Your presence was needed.
Abbe: for being the best girlfriend and Ironman Support Crew a guy could ask for.
Dad Posse: for being my die-hard triathlon teammates
Runner Army: for being awesome and killing it with PRs at the same time I was in Arizona!

The Ironman. If you’re looking for something to believe in, why not believe in yourself?

 

Arizona Ironman pain

Bike Talk

Posted on August 11, 2011 by admin Posted in All, Fitness, Training: Cycling, Triathlon Leave a comment

To truly know me, is to know bikes and how much I love them.

Bikes are awesome. Anyone that thinks otherwise should be locked up. Seriously, watch out once I become Mayor cause you’re going to jail naysayer!

In the last year I have slowly been building up my TT Bike (Time Trial Bike or ‘Triathlon Bike’) to get it up to Ironman worthy status. (Ironman Arizona is fast approaching) A new cassette, a new saddle, adjusting things after rides, new shoes, handlebar streamers, and finally my rear water bottle cage.

I hate excess, but unfortunately in any distance race you need to be prepared for flats as well as have ample nutrition. My solution was the Profile Design RMC (in white of course to match my saddle). I installed it last night and can’t tell you how thrilled I am with it.


It sits under your saddle and back a bit, creating this like ‘bucket’ area to put things! Inside I have my Co2’s and tire levers, and underneath my spare tube! Oh, and you also have to water bottle cages for nutrition. Its perfect! Now I can load up the front of my bike with snacks (like my Race Burritos!)

Cervelo P2 gear Ironman Profile Design
  • RACE REPORT: 162 Brooklyn Half Marathon – 1:24:45
  • RACE REPORT: NYC Marathon – 3:09:25
  • RACE REPORT: 158 NYC Marathon – 2:58:30
  • RACE REPORT: 157 The Boston Marathon – 3:00:00
  • VIRTUAL RACE REPORT: 156 #TCSNYCMarathon – 3:13:44
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