Pre-Race
With the exception of my first Ironman, I definitely had more pre-race nerves this year as compared to previous years. From the moment I woke up my stomach was a mess. I didn't even want to eat breakfast in the morning but had to force my PB&J sandwiches down. Not sure why, maybe because of the expectations that I was putting on myself for the race. So the morning was the normal routine, up at 3:30 and leaving the hotel around 4:30, go to body marking, finalize the bike and transition bag setups at the Olympic oval, then make the walk over to special needs to drop my bike and run special needs bags off, then off to the swim start to wait for the family. Everyone arrived and I got to spend about 15 minutes with them before getting my wetsuit on and getting into the water. It was great to see my little girl before the race and to give her a hug and kiss goodbye.
Swim
The swim started as they all day, like a crazy mosh pit. I inched up a little closer to the starting line this year and the 1st 300 Yards or so of the swim were interesting. I first got kicked in the face right off the bat. So my eye hurt and my goggles were leaking. But since it was so early, I couldn't stop to adjust them or I would have gotten trampled, so I had to deal with it for a while. Then shortly after, I hear all this yelling. So I stop and look to see about 30 people treading water screaming for lifeguards to come over. So instantly I begin to think about Laura and Maddie sitting on shore and the ramifications of what can happen when incidents happen in the water. Finally after about 1/4 of the swim my head clears and I try to get in a rhythm. At the half-way point you need to get out cross a timing mat and jump back in for your second loop. So when I get out, I can finally adjust my goggles and I look at my watch and see its 37:33. So of course I instantly multiple that by 2 and think wow, if I can hold this pace I can do around 1:15. My previous best was 1:17:27. So I can back in and try to really hold a strong rhythm. I have never negative split the 2 loop swim, meaning you swim the 2nd loop faster then the first. But I did it this time, clocking a 2nd loop of 37:28 for a total of 1:15:01, setting a personal best by 2 minutes 26 seconds.
T1
Identical time as last year down to the second. Not my fastest, but still keeping me on track for an overall PR.
Bike
Maybe it was the excitement of PR'ing the swim, but I went out strong on the first loop, 56 miles. Unfortunately as I found out later, it was maybe a little too strong. My personal best on this course if 6:41:36 which is 3:20:45 per loop. I did the first lap this year in 3:06:21. With it being 2 loops bike and going right past our hotel practically, I get to see the family on my way by twice during the bike which is always nice. Halfway through the 2nd loop around mile 90 or so, I could start feeling the effects of the pace of the first loop. It was also at this time that I dropped my chain, my only bike issue of the day, but had it back on in about 15 seconds so no worries there (compared to last years 2 flats and a dropped chain). The last 11 miles or so of each loop is a steady series of climbs back into Lake Placid, and on the 2nd loop, it also came with a strong headwind. It was at this time that both the pace of the first loop was evident, and that my stomach wasn't feeling that great, setting me up for what I knew was going to be a painful run. I ended up doing the 2nd lap in 3:24:56 for a total bike of 6:31:17 setting a personal best by 10 minutes 19 seconds.
T2
6:32 taking over a minute of last years T2 time. At this point I am ahead of last years time by about 14 minutes. While I am excited, I am fearing what I know will be coming, as it always does.
Run
The goal for me has always been to try to run a 10 minute mile for the marathon, but my stomach never cooperates with me. I thought maybe this would be the year, especially after setting PRs on the Swim and Bike. This year the heat played a factor as well. It was 81, with a feels like of 85 and almost full humidity. Normally that is still warm, but after already being on the go for over 8 hours, it felt HOT. Things were OK for about 9 miles, a little off pace but moving along. Then I got sick, the heat will killing me, and then my stomach issues came on fast. I hate to admit it, but I walked miles 11-24. I really hate to admit that I actually considered throwing in the towel after the first loop of 13.1 miles. I was wrecked, I knew I wouldn't be running anymore and my mindset was gone. I saw Laura and Maddie, they new it wasn't looking good, but just told me to keep going and walk the rest and that they would be waiting to cheer my across the line with smiles on. If it wasn't for the fact that I knew how much all the training kept me away from the family, and how disappointed I would have been with myself for quitting, I might have DNF'd, but felt I owed it to them and myself to at least finish. It was a very LONG walk. It was hot, I had blisters on my feet, stomach pains, my hamstrings were on the verge of cramping etc.... Not a fun way to walk 13 miles. Its amazing in Ironman that if you are even running an 11 minute mile, the miles seem to go by at a descent pace, but walking a 16.5 minute mile, the miles seem endless. At least I wasn't alone, it seems like the heat knocked a lot of people out. I found 3 people and we basically walked and talked for about 8 miles or so. When I was around mile 24 or so, I saw that if I could muster some sort of run, I could maybe still break the 14 hour mark. I actually ran an 8:51 miles for the last mile. Its after the fact that you start to think/realize how much is mental. I managed to run for 2 miles, could I have HTFU'd and starting running 5 miles earlier, or is it just knowing that the finish line is right there and its almost over that your mind starts to somewhat forget about the pain.
Unfortunately my results are a big disappointment for me this year, compared to what I was hoping for. Maybe next year the 5th time will be a charm, still chasing the sub 13-hour mark.
Total Time 13:58:55
Swim - 1:15:01 (1:47 per 100yd)
T1 - 11:28
Bike - 6:31:17 (17.17 MPH)
T2 - 6:32
Run - 5:54:37 (13:32 per mile)
Friday, July 27, 2012
Friday, July 29, 2011
Ironman Lake Placid 2011 Race Report
I have not been very good at writing race reports over the years, but after reading so many from my fellow triathletes about Ironman Lake Placid, it got me motivated to try harder and get one written.
So the trip started with our normal routine, drive up on Thursday, go to race registration, get situated in the hotel, get a quick spin in on the bike and head to dinner. Friday was an early morning swim in Mirror Lake which felt great, the water temp was just right (even a degree or two warm). Then go to the expo, refraining from buying any clothes that were directly related to the 2011 race as I feel like I would be jinxing myself. Saturday was filled with the normal day before stress, get a small brick workout in first thing in the morning and get the bike and transition bags all prepped. Afterwards head down to the Olympic oval to rack the bike and hang the transition bags. Finally, just try to relax. Luckily we were able to hook the laptop up to the TV in the hotel and watch the tour de france.
Sunday morning, the normal 3:30 wake-up and pre-race ritual began. Drink some coffee, have some breakfast, shower, apply sunscreen (which must have all washed off during the swim as my sunburn will tell you) get dressed and head down to body marking. Body Marking and Transition opens at 5 AM and I got there at about 4:50 which turned out to be a good thing. There were about 20 people in front of me waiting for transition to open and by 5:00, the line must have been about 100 deep or more.
Dropped of the items in the transition bags and then headed over to the bike for the usual, load up nutrition, pump up the tires and calibrate the SRM. The bikes seemed so much closer together then I previously remember. To calibrate the SRM I have to turn the cranks over 2-3 times which I couldn't do because the bikes were so close together. Luckily the guy next to me need to borrow my pump, so as he moved his bike to pump up his tires it gave me some clearance. About 3 people borrowed my pump thus I had to wait until everyone was done to head out to drop off special needs, but I thought it was good karma (more on that later).
Then it was off to drop off the special needs bags, make a visit to the porta potty and then head over to meet the family (my wife Laura, out beautiful daughter Maddie, and mom and dad filgate). Dad was already there, which was nice because that meant there was a seat waiting for me to just sit down and relax. A few minutes later the rest of the family arrived. This is the worst part of the day, from a nerves perspective, just sitting and waiting. Finally around 6:15 I started to get the wetsuit on, then gave everyone a kiss goodbye and it was off to get into the water.
Once in the water, I went to my normal starting point, way to the right and about halfway between the starting line and the end of the beach. So the professionals go off at 6:50 and you then know that your day is about to begin. As Mike Reilly was making his normal comments, there was one comment that he always says that just stuck in my head (little did I know then that I would be needing it later) and that was "the only thing you can control out there today is your positive attitude". Then as he always right before the cannon is about to go off is "Who's going to be an Ironman today" and that kind of gets the adrenaline going and then the cannon sounds and the race is on.
Swim (1:17:27) - Well for someone who is not a very good swimmer, who has had panic attacks before, I had yet again for the 3rd straight year, a very relaxed and calm 2.4 mile swim. My time might not be really fast, but I can say that my Ironman swim turns out to be the best swim of my triathlon season. I always settle right in to my bilateral breathing and just go through the motions. I should add that this year the water temperature was 77 degrees. Per WTC regulations, if the water is between 76.1 and 84 degrees, you can wear a wetsuit, but you are not eligible for podium finished or Kona qualifying slots (no problem here! give me my wetsuit). I came out of the first loop in 38 minutes and change and always try to come as close as possible to holding that pace for the next 1.2 miles. This year near the end of the loop 2, when you are close to the shoreline where the spectators sit (I know my family is right there on the waters edge trying to locate me) I tried to wave to them as I was taking my strokes. It was great to find out later that they did indeed see me and see me waving to them. Getting out the water after an Ironman swim always feels like a major accomplishment in itself for me.
T1 (11:28) - I really need to try to speed up next year in T1 as my time is usually pretty slow. There is quite a run from the exit of Mirror Lake to the transition area at the Olympic Oval. Then the usual grab your bag and head into the tent and get ready for your 112 mile bike ride. The T1 tent is always a mad house, this might be why I totally forget to have on of the volunteers apply sunscreen on my shoulders and neck, which I payed for later.
Bike (7:03:03) - Fighting a hip injury all year, and from training with Power, I knew that my Power numbers were no where close to what they were last year. With that in mind my goal was to just ride a pace that felt comfortable and always making sure to take that first lap a bit easy. Things were going well, I shot down the first decent on 73 to Keene, made the turn on 9 and within a few miles my rear tire was soft; so much for my good Karma. So I decided to give Pit Stop a try. Never used it before but thought I would give it a try. In hindsight, knowing that I had almost 100 miles still to ride, I probably should have just changed the tire, but with riding tubulars and still not be comfortable with the process, I thought I would give it a shot. So I continued to remember Mike Reilly saying "the only thing you can control out there today is your positive attitude" and just decided to take it all in stride. Ironman is a long day and you just have to accept and deal with what the day gives you. So the last 10 miles of each loop has you climbing back to town and I remember that this section is all about try to carry your speed through the ups and downs. I made sure to push a little on all the downhills and flats and try to carry my speed as best I could up the hills. I felt like that was the best time I had ridden that section. I am back in town which is nice because that means I get to see the family! Dad always makes these great big signs that have a picture of me from a previous race that says "Go Ken". It always makes locating them in the crowd for me that much easier as well.
I start Lap 2, go through town, am about to hit the first climb which isn't even at mile 60 yet, and my rear tire goes flat. Damn that Karma, remember Mike Reilly's saying. So I need to change the tubular, which was not pleasant as usual, and all I could think was Zipp 808 Firecrest Carbon Clinchers next year!!! So on lap 2, after the descent to Keene and the turn on 9, I felt something that I never remember feeling at Ironman, a feeling of being all alone. It seemed like there was a stretch where I could only see about 1 rider in front of me, as if I was just out on a training ride, or made a wrong turn somewhere. Luckily after a couple of miles I started to catch back up with different groups of people. Around my 80-90, in the Ausible Forks section, I started to get hot spots in my left foot that I sometimes get, and they can be quite painful. They lasted on and off for a good 15-20 minutes so I was definitely happy when they were gone. Once I got to mile 100 and was on that last 10 mile stretch back to town, I took the same approach as as the first loop and was feeling strong and that I was riding this section strong. Then around mile 105 I dropped my chain, I mean really the 2 flats weren't enough, remember Mike Reilly. I got the chain back on quickly and was off. Got back to town, and that means another chance to see the family, which is always a welcome and uplifting. I finished the bike feeling that I put in a good ride and after analyzing my data, found out that I actually averaged 5 watts more then last year. While that is great all things considered, it was a lesson learned that last year I took it way to easy on the bike.
T2 (7:44) - The only thing I hate about T2 is running in your bike shoes on the cement to get to the changing tent, it just seems slightly painful. I am always tempted to take my shoes off but always feel that with my luck I will step on a rock or something and have a sore foot, remember you still need to run a marathon. At least the changing tents in T2 are a lot less chaotic then T1. The volunteers are awesome, and this time I remember to get some sunscreen, although I think at this point the damage was done. Time to run a marathon.
Run (4:52:50) - My goal was to run as close to a 10 minute mile pace for as long as possible. I knew this was all dependent on my stomach. My last 2 years at Ironman, and this only happens to me at Ironman, I get terrible stomach pains the reduce me to a run walk. All the research I have done leads me to believe that I get intestinal bloating from the swim, I can go on forever about this but will opt not to. So I was doing my 10 minute mile pace, with my normal plan of walk the aid stations and the 2 big hills back into town. The run is great in that my family is right on the side of the road, I can see my girls and give them both a kiss twice. The first time I saw them, I am not sure that Maddie (14 months old) knew exactly who I was, but the second time I got a big smile and that was great!!!. So I get my 10 minute pace going, I could feel the stomach issue coming and coming, and then somewhere between mile 15-16 I was reduced to a run/walk for the last 10-11 miles. On my garmin watch I never look at what my total race time is as I don't want it to influence me early in the run and make me try something stupid. I finally decided to look around mile 25 and was a bit disappointed that I didn't do it a few mile prior. When all was said and done I finished running and 11:10 pace (and I know that once I get this stomach thing figured out I can put up a much better marathon split) and missing a PR by about 4 minutes and 30 seconds. I think if I would have check my watch sooner, I might have tried to gut it out a bit harder for a PR. Well there is always 2012, which I am signed up for, but for 2011 it was a total time of 13:32:32.
Post Race was filled with the same feelings of joy and accomplishment mixed with a stomach ache. As bad as the stomach can pains can be and as tough as the race seems at times, I always think of the saying "Pain is temporary, quitting is forever". Monday was filled with family and food time and going to the finishers merchandise tent to stock up on some nice Ironman clothes. We always go for BBQ Monday night, I am not sure if the rest of the family loves it, but it is something that I definitely look forward to ever year, a reward for all the hard work.
As always, I have to thank my two beautiful girls. I know that Ironman places a lot of time demands on me and my wife is always completely understanding and supportive and I cannot thank her enough. Thanks to mom and dad filgate for making the trip and being part of the cheering squad, thanks to my parents who I know are cheering me on from home, and thanks to the the triathletes both on and off the course that were there and cheering, its always much appreciated.
Already excited about Ironman Lake Placid 2012!!!
So the trip started with our normal routine, drive up on Thursday, go to race registration, get situated in the hotel, get a quick spin in on the bike and head to dinner. Friday was an early morning swim in Mirror Lake which felt great, the water temp was just right (even a degree or two warm). Then go to the expo, refraining from buying any clothes that were directly related to the 2011 race as I feel like I would be jinxing myself. Saturday was filled with the normal day before stress, get a small brick workout in first thing in the morning and get the bike and transition bags all prepped. Afterwards head down to the Olympic oval to rack the bike and hang the transition bags. Finally, just try to relax. Luckily we were able to hook the laptop up to the TV in the hotel and watch the tour de france.
Sunday morning, the normal 3:30 wake-up and pre-race ritual began. Drink some coffee, have some breakfast, shower, apply sunscreen (which must have all washed off during the swim as my sunburn will tell you) get dressed and head down to body marking. Body Marking and Transition opens at 5 AM and I got there at about 4:50 which turned out to be a good thing. There were about 20 people in front of me waiting for transition to open and by 5:00, the line must have been about 100 deep or more.
Dropped of the items in the transition bags and then headed over to the bike for the usual, load up nutrition, pump up the tires and calibrate the SRM. The bikes seemed so much closer together then I previously remember. To calibrate the SRM I have to turn the cranks over 2-3 times which I couldn't do because the bikes were so close together. Luckily the guy next to me need to borrow my pump, so as he moved his bike to pump up his tires it gave me some clearance. About 3 people borrowed my pump thus I had to wait until everyone was done to head out to drop off special needs, but I thought it was good karma (more on that later).
Then it was off to drop off the special needs bags, make a visit to the porta potty and then head over to meet the family (my wife Laura, out beautiful daughter Maddie, and mom and dad filgate). Dad was already there, which was nice because that meant there was a seat waiting for me to just sit down and relax. A few minutes later the rest of the family arrived. This is the worst part of the day, from a nerves perspective, just sitting and waiting. Finally around 6:15 I started to get the wetsuit on, then gave everyone a kiss goodbye and it was off to get into the water.
Once in the water, I went to my normal starting point, way to the right and about halfway between the starting line and the end of the beach. So the professionals go off at 6:50 and you then know that your day is about to begin. As Mike Reilly was making his normal comments, there was one comment that he always says that just stuck in my head (little did I know then that I would be needing it later) and that was "the only thing you can control out there today is your positive attitude". Then as he always right before the cannon is about to go off is "Who's going to be an Ironman today" and that kind of gets the adrenaline going and then the cannon sounds and the race is on.
Swim (1:17:27) - Well for someone who is not a very good swimmer, who has had panic attacks before, I had yet again for the 3rd straight year, a very relaxed and calm 2.4 mile swim. My time might not be really fast, but I can say that my Ironman swim turns out to be the best swim of my triathlon season. I always settle right in to my bilateral breathing and just go through the motions. I should add that this year the water temperature was 77 degrees. Per WTC regulations, if the water is between 76.1 and 84 degrees, you can wear a wetsuit, but you are not eligible for podium finished or Kona qualifying slots (no problem here! give me my wetsuit). I came out of the first loop in 38 minutes and change and always try to come as close as possible to holding that pace for the next 1.2 miles. This year near the end of the loop 2, when you are close to the shoreline where the spectators sit (I know my family is right there on the waters edge trying to locate me) I tried to wave to them as I was taking my strokes. It was great to find out later that they did indeed see me and see me waving to them. Getting out the water after an Ironman swim always feels like a major accomplishment in itself for me.
T1 (11:28) - I really need to try to speed up next year in T1 as my time is usually pretty slow. There is quite a run from the exit of Mirror Lake to the transition area at the Olympic Oval. Then the usual grab your bag and head into the tent and get ready for your 112 mile bike ride. The T1 tent is always a mad house, this might be why I totally forget to have on of the volunteers apply sunscreen on my shoulders and neck, which I payed for later.
Bike (7:03:03) - Fighting a hip injury all year, and from training with Power, I knew that my Power numbers were no where close to what they were last year. With that in mind my goal was to just ride a pace that felt comfortable and always making sure to take that first lap a bit easy. Things were going well, I shot down the first decent on 73 to Keene, made the turn on 9 and within a few miles my rear tire was soft; so much for my good Karma. So I decided to give Pit Stop a try. Never used it before but thought I would give it a try. In hindsight, knowing that I had almost 100 miles still to ride, I probably should have just changed the tire, but with riding tubulars and still not be comfortable with the process, I thought I would give it a shot. So I continued to remember Mike Reilly saying "the only thing you can control out there today is your positive attitude" and just decided to take it all in stride. Ironman is a long day and you just have to accept and deal with what the day gives you. So the last 10 miles of each loop has you climbing back to town and I remember that this section is all about try to carry your speed through the ups and downs. I made sure to push a little on all the downhills and flats and try to carry my speed as best I could up the hills. I felt like that was the best time I had ridden that section. I am back in town which is nice because that means I get to see the family! Dad always makes these great big signs that have a picture of me from a previous race that says "Go Ken". It always makes locating them in the crowd for me that much easier as well.
I start Lap 2, go through town, am about to hit the first climb which isn't even at mile 60 yet, and my rear tire goes flat. Damn that Karma, remember Mike Reilly's saying. So I need to change the tubular, which was not pleasant as usual, and all I could think was Zipp 808 Firecrest Carbon Clinchers next year!!! So on lap 2, after the descent to Keene and the turn on 9, I felt something that I never remember feeling at Ironman, a feeling of being all alone. It seemed like there was a stretch where I could only see about 1 rider in front of me, as if I was just out on a training ride, or made a wrong turn somewhere. Luckily after a couple of miles I started to catch back up with different groups of people. Around my 80-90, in the Ausible Forks section, I started to get hot spots in my left foot that I sometimes get, and they can be quite painful. They lasted on and off for a good 15-20 minutes so I was definitely happy when they were gone. Once I got to mile 100 and was on that last 10 mile stretch back to town, I took the same approach as as the first loop and was feeling strong and that I was riding this section strong. Then around mile 105 I dropped my chain, I mean really the 2 flats weren't enough, remember Mike Reilly. I got the chain back on quickly and was off. Got back to town, and that means another chance to see the family, which is always a welcome and uplifting. I finished the bike feeling that I put in a good ride and after analyzing my data, found out that I actually averaged 5 watts more then last year. While that is great all things considered, it was a lesson learned that last year I took it way to easy on the bike.
T2 (7:44) - The only thing I hate about T2 is running in your bike shoes on the cement to get to the changing tent, it just seems slightly painful. I am always tempted to take my shoes off but always feel that with my luck I will step on a rock or something and have a sore foot, remember you still need to run a marathon. At least the changing tents in T2 are a lot less chaotic then T1. The volunteers are awesome, and this time I remember to get some sunscreen, although I think at this point the damage was done. Time to run a marathon.
Run (4:52:50) - My goal was to run as close to a 10 minute mile pace for as long as possible. I knew this was all dependent on my stomach. My last 2 years at Ironman, and this only happens to me at Ironman, I get terrible stomach pains the reduce me to a run walk. All the research I have done leads me to believe that I get intestinal bloating from the swim, I can go on forever about this but will opt not to. So I was doing my 10 minute mile pace, with my normal plan of walk the aid stations and the 2 big hills back into town. The run is great in that my family is right on the side of the road, I can see my girls and give them both a kiss twice. The first time I saw them, I am not sure that Maddie (14 months old) knew exactly who I was, but the second time I got a big smile and that was great!!!. So I get my 10 minute pace going, I could feel the stomach issue coming and coming, and then somewhere between mile 15-16 I was reduced to a run/walk for the last 10-11 miles. On my garmin watch I never look at what my total race time is as I don't want it to influence me early in the run and make me try something stupid. I finally decided to look around mile 25 and was a bit disappointed that I didn't do it a few mile prior. When all was said and done I finished running and 11:10 pace (and I know that once I get this stomach thing figured out I can put up a much better marathon split) and missing a PR by about 4 minutes and 30 seconds. I think if I would have check my watch sooner, I might have tried to gut it out a bit harder for a PR. Well there is always 2012, which I am signed up for, but for 2011 it was a total time of 13:32:32.
Post Race was filled with the same feelings of joy and accomplishment mixed with a stomach ache. As bad as the stomach can pains can be and as tough as the race seems at times, I always think of the saying "Pain is temporary, quitting is forever". Monday was filled with family and food time and going to the finishers merchandise tent to stock up on some nice Ironman clothes. We always go for BBQ Monday night, I am not sure if the rest of the family loves it, but it is something that I definitely look forward to ever year, a reward for all the hard work.
As always, I have to thank my two beautiful girls. I know that Ironman places a lot of time demands on me and my wife is always completely understanding and supportive and I cannot thank her enough. Thanks to mom and dad filgate for making the trip and being part of the cheering squad, thanks to my parents who I know are cheering me on from home, and thanks to the the triathletes both on and off the course that were there and cheering, its always much appreciated.
Already excited about Ironman Lake Placid 2012!!!
Monday, August 24, 2009
Timberman 70.3 Race Report
Swim (36:34) PR
The swim start got delayed by about 30 minutes due to a car accident out on the bike course. Luckily the water was listed at 75 degrees, so spending the extra time waiting was not too bad. The swim here always makes me a bit nervous b/c lake winnipesaukee can be a sheet of glass or it can be quite rough. This makes 3 straight years that I have had great conditions, lets keep our fingers crossed that next year will make 4 straight years. Overall the swim went well. I set a PR by about 3 1/2 minutes over last years swim. The only disappointing aspect was that it took me a solid 1/3 of a mile or so, just before the first turn buoy, before I was able to settle into my rhythm. Not quite sure why, coming off such a great swim at lake placid, but I guess that is just the way it goes. The conditions were fine, it felt a little wavy on the stretch that runs parallel with the beach, but nothing too bad. Coming back to shore I took a gulp or two of lake winnipesaukee, but a little e.coli never hurt anyone! (there was a posting a few days before the race about a high count of e.coli). But when I came out of the water and saw 36:30 on my watch I knew I had a 1.2 mile swim PR and was looking forward to getting on the bike!
T1 (2:54)
T1 one went pretty smooth, the wetsuit strippers had a little issue getting my wetsuit around my ankles, but nothing to worry about. I got my socks on pretty quickly, that is something that tends to give me trouble at times, I think the baby powder definately helps.
Bike (3:05:20) (18.1 MPH)
So the bike, the last two years I averaged 19.1 and 19 MPH on this course. Coming off lake placid just 4 weeks ago, I was going into in with a goal of 18 or so MPH. The bike was going great, the first 12 miles out to 106 were rolling by, I felt really strong going up the marsh hill monster. Going out 106 is usually very fun b/c you usually get to see the pro's coming flying by in the other direction. I hit the turn around at 106 and I was still having a great ride, songs were coming in and out of my head and the miles were just flying by. I hit the 40 mile mark in just under 2 hours, I was averaging 20.2 MPH and was thinking I might be setting a bike PR here as well.
Around mile 43 that all changed as the rear of my bike felt a bit bouncy. I thought can it be, a flat for the first time in my 4 years of racing? At the leavitt turn off at mile 44, before hit the final 12 miles of climbs and descents back to ellacoya, I thought I would dismount and check. Low and behold my tire was running flat. So, I begin to empty my spare, CO2 etc... and get to work. I ride tubies which means they are glued on. The volunteers radioed in that I needed bike support and they told me they were just around the corner and would be here in a second. That made me feel good, but I figured I should get started anyway, why waste any time. Maybe 6-7 minutes later I finally get the flat tire ripped off my wheel (yes no support yet) then maybe another 6-7 minutes later I finally get my spare on and partially inflated (yes no support yet) I also managed to rip of a hugh piece of skin on my thumb while forcing the tire on, nothing like adding insult to injury and what happened to bike support being here in a second? As I am tightening my rear skewer here comes support, they give it a quick once over, top off my tire pressure, and 17 minutes later I am back riding.
The long and short of it was even with a 17 minute delay, I still beat my expected pace, but after seeing the SRM data that for the actually time I was riding (pre and post flat) I actually ripped of a 2:41:58 bike split at 20MPH, that would have been a nice PR to have :-(
T2 (2:26)
Nothing special to report here accept getting my sneakers on without being able to use my right thumb was not easy!
Run (2:13:31) (10:12 mile)
My run defintatley wasn't great. Maybe I pushed to hard those final 12 miles in trying to make up some of the lost time, maybe it was doing an Ironman 4 weeks prior, I am not sure. I stopped at mile 2 for a pit stop which helped, but by mile 4 I just wasn't feeling it. I actually tried cola for the first time at mile 5 and 6 in hopes of a little pick me up, but I can't say it had a big effect. So I decided to just plug along and deal with the highs and lows of the run. Around mile 10 or 11 I ran into a guy that trains at my gym that I often talk to about triathlon. I believe this was his first half-ironman. I am embarassed to say, but I don't even know his name, but I hope he had a great race. So I had not looked at my running time until about my 12 and by my calculation I decided that I couldn't hit my goal of going sub-6 hour so I decided to stop and walk the last aid station why I get a quick drink. So I am back to running and tried to finish strong, which I think I did, and I crossed the line in 6:00:44 :-( I guess I should have skipped the last aid station.
Afterwards
Overall I am happy, Swim PR, Could have been bike PR minus the flat and only missing my goal by 44 seconds. Soon after I had my normal post half-ironman stomach pains but thanks to my wife, I think we might have found the remedy ICE CREAM. I had a small cup of coffee flavored soft serve ice cream and felt so much better. As always I have to say thank you to my wife Laura, she gets up a 4:00am and comes out and supports me throughout the whole day. She finds me at all of the different legs of the race and takes pictures and cheers, she is just the best! She also managed to get a post race pic of Chrissie Wellington and I, which was cool since I met Chrissie last year at a deli/pizza shop here in Gilford and was able to talk with her for a few minutes. I will hopefully post it soon to my website at http://www.kenclebak.com/.
The swim start got delayed by about 30 minutes due to a car accident out on the bike course. Luckily the water was listed at 75 degrees, so spending the extra time waiting was not too bad. The swim here always makes me a bit nervous b/c lake winnipesaukee can be a sheet of glass or it can be quite rough. This makes 3 straight years that I have had great conditions, lets keep our fingers crossed that next year will make 4 straight years. Overall the swim went well. I set a PR by about 3 1/2 minutes over last years swim. The only disappointing aspect was that it took me a solid 1/3 of a mile or so, just before the first turn buoy, before I was able to settle into my rhythm. Not quite sure why, coming off such a great swim at lake placid, but I guess that is just the way it goes. The conditions were fine, it felt a little wavy on the stretch that runs parallel with the beach, but nothing too bad. Coming back to shore I took a gulp or two of lake winnipesaukee, but a little e.coli never hurt anyone! (there was a posting a few days before the race about a high count of e.coli). But when I came out of the water and saw 36:30 on my watch I knew I had a 1.2 mile swim PR and was looking forward to getting on the bike!
T1 (2:54)
T1 one went pretty smooth, the wetsuit strippers had a little issue getting my wetsuit around my ankles, but nothing to worry about. I got my socks on pretty quickly, that is something that tends to give me trouble at times, I think the baby powder definately helps.
Bike (3:05:20) (18.1 MPH)
So the bike, the last two years I averaged 19.1 and 19 MPH on this course. Coming off lake placid just 4 weeks ago, I was going into in with a goal of 18 or so MPH. The bike was going great, the first 12 miles out to 106 were rolling by, I felt really strong going up the marsh hill monster. Going out 106 is usually very fun b/c you usually get to see the pro's coming flying by in the other direction. I hit the turn around at 106 and I was still having a great ride, songs were coming in and out of my head and the miles were just flying by. I hit the 40 mile mark in just under 2 hours, I was averaging 20.2 MPH and was thinking I might be setting a bike PR here as well.
Around mile 43 that all changed as the rear of my bike felt a bit bouncy. I thought can it be, a flat for the first time in my 4 years of racing? At the leavitt turn off at mile 44, before hit the final 12 miles of climbs and descents back to ellacoya, I thought I would dismount and check. Low and behold my tire was running flat. So, I begin to empty my spare, CO2 etc... and get to work. I ride tubies which means they are glued on. The volunteers radioed in that I needed bike support and they told me they were just around the corner and would be here in a second. That made me feel good, but I figured I should get started anyway, why waste any time. Maybe 6-7 minutes later I finally get the flat tire ripped off my wheel (yes no support yet) then maybe another 6-7 minutes later I finally get my spare on and partially inflated (yes no support yet) I also managed to rip of a hugh piece of skin on my thumb while forcing the tire on, nothing like adding insult to injury and what happened to bike support being here in a second? As I am tightening my rear skewer here comes support, they give it a quick once over, top off my tire pressure, and 17 minutes later I am back riding.
The long and short of it was even with a 17 minute delay, I still beat my expected pace, but after seeing the SRM data that for the actually time I was riding (pre and post flat) I actually ripped of a 2:41:58 bike split at 20MPH, that would have been a nice PR to have :-(
T2 (2:26)
Nothing special to report here accept getting my sneakers on without being able to use my right thumb was not easy!
Run (2:13:31) (10:12 mile)
My run defintatley wasn't great. Maybe I pushed to hard those final 12 miles in trying to make up some of the lost time, maybe it was doing an Ironman 4 weeks prior, I am not sure. I stopped at mile 2 for a pit stop which helped, but by mile 4 I just wasn't feeling it. I actually tried cola for the first time at mile 5 and 6 in hopes of a little pick me up, but I can't say it had a big effect. So I decided to just plug along and deal with the highs and lows of the run. Around mile 10 or 11 I ran into a guy that trains at my gym that I often talk to about triathlon. I believe this was his first half-ironman. I am embarassed to say, but I don't even know his name, but I hope he had a great race. So I had not looked at my running time until about my 12 and by my calculation I decided that I couldn't hit my goal of going sub-6 hour so I decided to stop and walk the last aid station why I get a quick drink. So I am back to running and tried to finish strong, which I think I did, and I crossed the line in 6:00:44 :-( I guess I should have skipped the last aid station.
Afterwards
Overall I am happy, Swim PR, Could have been bike PR minus the flat and only missing my goal by 44 seconds. Soon after I had my normal post half-ironman stomach pains but thanks to my wife, I think we might have found the remedy ICE CREAM. I had a small cup of coffee flavored soft serve ice cream and felt so much better. As always I have to say thank you to my wife Laura, she gets up a 4:00am and comes out and supports me throughout the whole day. She finds me at all of the different legs of the race and takes pictures and cheers, she is just the best! She also managed to get a post race pic of Chrissie Wellington and I, which was cool since I met Chrissie last year at a deli/pizza shop here in Gilford and was able to talk with her for a few minutes. I will hopefully post it soon to my website at http://www.kenclebak.com/.
Friday, July 31, 2009
IMLP 2009 Race Report
Ironman Lake Placid – WOW where to start.
Special Thanks
I think that its only proper that I start this race report with saying thank you to some people, for they are the ones that not only help make things like this possible, but also make it so enjoyable along the way. Obviously the biggest thanks go to my loving wife Laura. Thank you for putting up with all training hours, the countless triathlon talk and of course the amount of $$$ that I put into triathlon; NONE of this would be any fun without getting to share it with you.
Thanks to both my parents and Laura’s parents for making the trip up to Lake Placid to watch the Ironman. Being able to enter/complete my first Ironman with my family looking on and cheering made it that much more special. To my Mom and Dad, thanks for battling the hills, I know it wasn’t easy. To Mr. & Mrs. Frigate, thanks again for the sign, it made spotting you all that much easier and thank you SO much for capturing my finish on video; having that is priceless.
To all the people at my work and to all the members of Facebook that Laura had been in communication with during the race, thank you for your support, best wishes and congratulations. Finally, and not that they will be reading this, but a huge thanks to all the 3000+ volunteers and countless spectators at Ironman Lake Placid, your support, and especially your incredible attitudes truly made this an event to remember.
OK – Now to the Race
Swim (1:19:42)
I never thought that I would say that my best and most comfortable swim would have been had in my very first Ironman, but that was definitely the case. My initial goal was to swim somewhere between 1:30 – 1:45. Based off of some pool swims, I thought that if I had the swim of my life, I might be able to pull off a 1:25, so to go sub 1:20 was just amazing. Before the race started, it began to rain. Never having swam in the rain before, I didn’t know what to expect and needless to say, it added to the nerves a bit. I was ready to go and just wanted to get into the lake to warm up. Once they said we could go in, I think I was the first person into the lake. A minute later I had to exit the lake, as they announced that they only wanted the pro’s in at that time, time to wait a little bit more. Finally they let the age groupers in (around 6:35) and I was able to warm-up and get to my start spot that was way off to the side and back from the starting line. I got a little nervous that I had positioned myself too aggressively when some people around me were talking about swimming a 1:07 split, yikes!
As advertized, the first lap was definitely more congested that then second, but by staying wide it wasn’t too bad. Luckily I settled in almost instantly and felt calm throughout the entire swim. Being able to bilateral breath, thank you Laura for signing us up for those swim lessons, made all the difference in the world. The only real mayhem was going around the turn buoys on the first lap, for the first time I had my goggles partially knocked off, but a quick adjustment and I was back on my way. Coming out of the water after the first lap and seeing the clock at 38:50 got me so excited, too much I think as I went out probably a little too hard to start the 2nd lap. Once around the turn buoys for the second loop, I was starting to get a bit tired, but I knew that I was on my way to a great swim split so I just cruised in!
T1 (12:42)
Well my goal was 10 minutes, but it is quite a run from Mirror Lake to transition, plus with stopping to go to the bathroom, I guess my time wasn’t too bad. Maybe it’s because you get to sit down that you don’t realize that it’s taking you longer then it feels. I have to be honest; I don’t know how people pulled off sub 5 minute T1’s here. There is still definite room for improvement; something to work on next year!
Bike (6:44:40) (16.61 MPH)
The bike went great, I followed my plan which was to take it easy on the first lap, just spin up all the hills and keep my watts around 150. The rain had ended sometime during the swim, but it made for wet roads on the beginning portion of the first loop. That was a concern for me as there are a few miles of steep descents between mile 7 and 14. I decided that staying upright on the bike was the most important thing, so I decided to just stay up on the base bar and ride the brakes a bit and not exceed 30-35MPH. The first lap went by fairly quick and at the end I stopped at special needs to be pleasantly surprised that my frozen bottles were still cold.
By the start of the second loop, all the roads were completely dry, which made for a quicker descent this time around 40+ MPH. I stopped once at mile 60 to hit the bathroom. I thought it was a good sign, my body was taking in fluids and things were functioning properly (I only mention this now because it will become an issue later in the day). The wind was out a bit, especially the last 12 miles or so climbing back into town. All-in-all the bike went well. My final average was 16.61 MPH which was great. My thoughts going in would be to finish somewhere between 16 and 17, so I was psyched. The only negative portion of the bike was around mile 90-95, I could begin to feel some fluids sitting pretty high in my stomach and I was wondering if this was going to become an issue later in the day.
T2 (9:43)
Similar to T1, I really didn’t feel like I was in transition for almost 10 minutes, but that was the case. While there I tried to go to the bathroom, but no luck L I knew at this point things were going to get a bit rough during the marathon.
Run (5:31:08) (12:38 mile)
So it only took about 2 miles of running to know that my body was not absorbing liquids and that it was going to be something I was going to have to deal with for the entire run. Originally my plan was to go out and start running between a 10:00 – 10:30 mile pace. I accomplished that early but by mile 4 I was stopping to try to go to the bathroom and was walking the aid stations. I stopped again another couple of times to try to get the liquids out (in more ways than one :-) but NO luck. I decided to walk the challenging hills and at the halfway point, my half-marathon split had me doing 11:25 mile splits. Considering I stopped 4 times or so, walked the aid stations, and the challenging hills I was completely happy with that.
Luckily for my own mental well being, I knew this pace wasn’t going to last but I was OK with that. The bloating was getting worse and the pain increasing. I saw Laura and her parents at the halfway point, I handed my fuelbelt to Laura as the pressure of it against my stomach was too much. But I knew if anything I would be walking my way to becoming an Ironman and I was completely at ease with that. Finally by mile 17 it hurt too much too run and I was walking. I ended up walking 7 miles from mile 17-24. During this time I got to chat with a few fellow soon-to-be-Ironmen. The one nice thing about Ironman is when and if you are walking late in the race, you are defiantly not alone. This helped because while walking, my legs still felt OK and so did my cardio conditioning, it would have been very easy to really get down on myself by thinking What If??? At the 24 mile marker I looked at my watch, and I estimated that if I could run the final few miles, I might be able to pull off a sub 14-hour Ironman. I compressed my mid-section with my arms to limit movement/sloshing; I put my head down and went for it. After uploading my Garmin data afterwards, I see that I ran a 10:44 split for the last 2 miles to run under the clock reading 13:57:55!!!!
Afterwards
After the race a great volunteer walked around with me a bit as my stomach was killing me causing me to be hunched over. Then it was time to start taking it all in. Overall I am very happy with my results, my C Goal was to finish, my B goal (realistic goal) was to go sub-15 hour and my A goal (dream goal) was to do 13 hours. Looking back, I know that if not for the stomach issues, I would have been damn close, possibly even beating my A goal. In a way I am actually happy about it, b/c I am already looking forward to going back next year and hopefully bettering my time!
Special Thanks
I think that its only proper that I start this race report with saying thank you to some people, for they are the ones that not only help make things like this possible, but also make it so enjoyable along the way. Obviously the biggest thanks go to my loving wife Laura. Thank you for putting up with all training hours, the countless triathlon talk and of course the amount of $$$ that I put into triathlon; NONE of this would be any fun without getting to share it with you.
Thanks to both my parents and Laura’s parents for making the trip up to Lake Placid to watch the Ironman. Being able to enter/complete my first Ironman with my family looking on and cheering made it that much more special. To my Mom and Dad, thanks for battling the hills, I know it wasn’t easy. To Mr. & Mrs. Frigate, thanks again for the sign, it made spotting you all that much easier and thank you SO much for capturing my finish on video; having that is priceless.
To all the people at my work and to all the members of Facebook that Laura had been in communication with during the race, thank you for your support, best wishes and congratulations. Finally, and not that they will be reading this, but a huge thanks to all the 3000+ volunteers and countless spectators at Ironman Lake Placid, your support, and especially your incredible attitudes truly made this an event to remember.
OK – Now to the Race
Swim (1:19:42)
I never thought that I would say that my best and most comfortable swim would have been had in my very first Ironman, but that was definitely the case. My initial goal was to swim somewhere between 1:30 – 1:45. Based off of some pool swims, I thought that if I had the swim of my life, I might be able to pull off a 1:25, so to go sub 1:20 was just amazing. Before the race started, it began to rain. Never having swam in the rain before, I didn’t know what to expect and needless to say, it added to the nerves a bit. I was ready to go and just wanted to get into the lake to warm up. Once they said we could go in, I think I was the first person into the lake. A minute later I had to exit the lake, as they announced that they only wanted the pro’s in at that time, time to wait a little bit more. Finally they let the age groupers in (around 6:35) and I was able to warm-up and get to my start spot that was way off to the side and back from the starting line. I got a little nervous that I had positioned myself too aggressively when some people around me were talking about swimming a 1:07 split, yikes!
As advertized, the first lap was definitely more congested that then second, but by staying wide it wasn’t too bad. Luckily I settled in almost instantly and felt calm throughout the entire swim. Being able to bilateral breath, thank you Laura for signing us up for those swim lessons, made all the difference in the world. The only real mayhem was going around the turn buoys on the first lap, for the first time I had my goggles partially knocked off, but a quick adjustment and I was back on my way. Coming out of the water after the first lap and seeing the clock at 38:50 got me so excited, too much I think as I went out probably a little too hard to start the 2nd lap. Once around the turn buoys for the second loop, I was starting to get a bit tired, but I knew that I was on my way to a great swim split so I just cruised in!
T1 (12:42)
Well my goal was 10 minutes, but it is quite a run from Mirror Lake to transition, plus with stopping to go to the bathroom, I guess my time wasn’t too bad. Maybe it’s because you get to sit down that you don’t realize that it’s taking you longer then it feels. I have to be honest; I don’t know how people pulled off sub 5 minute T1’s here. There is still definite room for improvement; something to work on next year!
Bike (6:44:40) (16.61 MPH)
The bike went great, I followed my plan which was to take it easy on the first lap, just spin up all the hills and keep my watts around 150. The rain had ended sometime during the swim, but it made for wet roads on the beginning portion of the first loop. That was a concern for me as there are a few miles of steep descents between mile 7 and 14. I decided that staying upright on the bike was the most important thing, so I decided to just stay up on the base bar and ride the brakes a bit and not exceed 30-35MPH. The first lap went by fairly quick and at the end I stopped at special needs to be pleasantly surprised that my frozen bottles were still cold.
By the start of the second loop, all the roads were completely dry, which made for a quicker descent this time around 40+ MPH. I stopped once at mile 60 to hit the bathroom. I thought it was a good sign, my body was taking in fluids and things were functioning properly (I only mention this now because it will become an issue later in the day). The wind was out a bit, especially the last 12 miles or so climbing back into town. All-in-all the bike went well. My final average was 16.61 MPH which was great. My thoughts going in would be to finish somewhere between 16 and 17, so I was psyched. The only negative portion of the bike was around mile 90-95, I could begin to feel some fluids sitting pretty high in my stomach and I was wondering if this was going to become an issue later in the day.
T2 (9:43)
Similar to T1, I really didn’t feel like I was in transition for almost 10 minutes, but that was the case. While there I tried to go to the bathroom, but no luck L I knew at this point things were going to get a bit rough during the marathon.
Run (5:31:08) (12:38 mile)
So it only took about 2 miles of running to know that my body was not absorbing liquids and that it was going to be something I was going to have to deal with for the entire run. Originally my plan was to go out and start running between a 10:00 – 10:30 mile pace. I accomplished that early but by mile 4 I was stopping to try to go to the bathroom and was walking the aid stations. I stopped again another couple of times to try to get the liquids out (in more ways than one :-) but NO luck. I decided to walk the challenging hills and at the halfway point, my half-marathon split had me doing 11:25 mile splits. Considering I stopped 4 times or so, walked the aid stations, and the challenging hills I was completely happy with that.
Luckily for my own mental well being, I knew this pace wasn’t going to last but I was OK with that. The bloating was getting worse and the pain increasing. I saw Laura and her parents at the halfway point, I handed my fuelbelt to Laura as the pressure of it against my stomach was too much. But I knew if anything I would be walking my way to becoming an Ironman and I was completely at ease with that. Finally by mile 17 it hurt too much too run and I was walking. I ended up walking 7 miles from mile 17-24. During this time I got to chat with a few fellow soon-to-be-Ironmen. The one nice thing about Ironman is when and if you are walking late in the race, you are defiantly not alone. This helped because while walking, my legs still felt OK and so did my cardio conditioning, it would have been very easy to really get down on myself by thinking What If??? At the 24 mile marker I looked at my watch, and I estimated that if I could run the final few miles, I might be able to pull off a sub 14-hour Ironman. I compressed my mid-section with my arms to limit movement/sloshing; I put my head down and went for it. After uploading my Garmin data afterwards, I see that I ran a 10:44 split for the last 2 miles to run under the clock reading 13:57:55!!!!
Afterwards
After the race a great volunteer walked around with me a bit as my stomach was killing me causing me to be hunched over. Then it was time to start taking it all in. Overall I am very happy with my results, my C Goal was to finish, my B goal (realistic goal) was to go sub-15 hour and my A goal (dream goal) was to do 13 hours. Looking back, I know that if not for the stomach issues, I would have been damn close, possibly even beating my A goal. In a way I am actually happy about it, b/c I am already looking forward to going back next year and hopefully bettering my time!
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