Ironman – Page 9 – an amazing run

A Week of Jumbled Training

IRONMAN LOUISVILLE 2017 TRAINING

WEEK 14 – June 19 > June 25

I had a pretty good week of training this week. I switched things up this week due to having to travel to Minocqua to put the boat in the water so that our new boat lift could be delivered and be able to lift the boat out of the water. Yes, you read that right. I put the boat in the water so that it could be lifted out of the water.

Me and the lad trying not to freeze to death driving the boat from the launch to the house.

Training for the week was jumbled quite a bit. I did Thursday’s swim on Monday, and followed that up with Tuesday’s regularly scheduled swim. Wednesday’s 30 minute run was shortened to just under 21 minutes, thanks to a local 5K I like to do in Frankfort. You can read the report here: Short Run on a Long Day 2017 Race Recap

On Thursday I decided to do Saturday’s long bike ride. I got in 55 miles and followed it up with a brick run. Note to self: There are more cars on my out-of-town route during the week than there are on the weekends.

On Friday I came home from work and did my 7.5 mile run. After that Kari and I hit the road for Minocqua. I was pretty sore from the 5K and the long bike ride, so the 5.5 hour car ride was not something I was looking forward to.

When we got to Minocqua I realized the locals were having their annual Lake Minocqua open swim event. I knew that they had this in the past, but I had forgot about it. But to my dismay, the race started at 8 am, which was the same time our boat lift was being delivered. So, I would have to do my own OWS on Sunday like I had planned.

Believe or not, there’s a boat under there.

On Saturday after getting the boat lift delivered and successfully lifting the boat out of the water, I did the Thursday hour long bike ride that I had switched with Saturday. I had planned to ride to the Bearskin Trail, but as I was going there I realized I didn’t have any money for the dumb trail pass that you have to buy. So I did a U-turn and rode east toward St. Germain and found a paved trail by Clear Lake, about a 10 minutes from home. I had never been on the trail before, so I decided to try it out. WOW! A very nice paved trail that was super scenic and had lots of rollers and super cool things to explore.

We also had a great visit with an old friend Sara and her husband Chris, who have a cabin in St. Germain. It was really great seeing Sara again and meeting Chris for the first time.

Sunday was our final day in Minocqua, so I decided to get an open water swim in. Thankfully I had remembered to bring the wetsuit and goggles, but I neglected to bring a swim cap. A trip to Walmart remedied that, and it helped keep my head warm in the slightly chilly water. Kari and Ben jumped in the kayaks to accompany me so I wouldn’t get run over by a boat, and I just kind of swam along the edge of the shoreline until I couldn’t take the weeds any more. When I got back to our dock, I looked at my watch and it said exactly 1.0 mile in 30:57. I was pretty happy with that. Typically in the pool without a wetsuit I am over 2 min/100 yards. This average was 1:43 min/100y. I’ll take it.

fullsizeoutput_f056 — The water was very clear.

After the swim, I changed into some running gear and threw Kari’s bike into the car and we headed back to the new trail I had discovered. It was awesome having a partner riding along enjoying the scenery. Kari would ride ahead and then double back and each time had a big smile on her face. We were both having a great time there. A great way to end the training week.

A mid-run selfie. Beautiful day in the North Woods.

TOTALS:

3 Swims – 6000 yards this week / 41700 yards total

3 Bikes – 83 miles this week / 9033 miles total

7 Runs – 29 miles this week / 395 miles total

Gunners-2-1 — ***Week 14 was awesome! Almost half way to IMLou!***

Breaking the Monotony of Training

IRONMAN LOUISVILLE 2017 TRAINING

WEEK 13 – June 12 > June 18

Training for Ironman can be boring, especially when doing it alone. I am fortunate to have four other training pals joining me on this quest for another Ironman finish, but we are spread apart, living in different areas surrounding the Northern Illinois area and rarely have an opportunity get together. So when our fearless leader and Top Gunner Dave suggested we get together for a ride I was very excited to do that.

It ended up just being Dave, Jeff and myself meeting at my house for the Saturday three hour bike and half hour run brick workout. Jeff was first to arrive and was having an issue with his rear brake. We threw it on my bike stand and started tooling away on it. It appears that it has just got gunked up a little bit. Dave showed up while we were playing with it and suggested that Jeff loosen the screw for the brake cable and free up a little room for it. That seemed to do the trick, and we were soon off riding.

I basically have three routes that I follow and can add options to them if I need to add or subtract riding time as the training plan dictates. The problem is that all three routes basically head south, as this is the best direction for traffic free riding. Fortunately, the south/southwest wind we were having made for heading into the wind and coming back with a tailwind, which is mostly ideal. In all, we rode about three hours and 7 minutes, and a total of about 52 miles. Not too shabby of a ride.

There were two notable memories from the ride. The first is when we got to Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery and made a loop of the place before turning around for our trip back. Any time I ride in there it always leaves and impression on me, knowing those that are buried there served our country for our freedoms. It’s also an impressive place, seeing all of those headstones lined up in precision, without even a blade of grass out of place.

The other moment was when we were coming back, scooting along at about 22 mph, when some kid of maybe 13 years old blows by us on a bike like we were standing still. He was all kitted up like he was ready for Le Tour. Damn kids. He was moving.

We got home, ran an easy 3.25 miles and then jumped in the pool for a nice relaxing cool down for the day. We snacked on some fruit and junk and then they were off to their busy Saturday routines. It sure was nice not having to do the ride solo.

Sunday’s long run also had a break from the typical monotony. On Saturday, I had learned that there was an old-time coal burning steam locomotive heading through town this weekend, making several passes on the Rock Island/Canadian National tracks in Mokena. So I headed out with the plan to try to be in downtown Mokena to see it rumble through at 9:15. I was seven miles into my run when I realized I was about 10 minutes from the train getting to downtown, and I was a little over a mile away! I picked up my pace and ran a little harder on my tired and sore legs and got there in time to see the train. It was very impressive.

fullsizeoutput_f03e — An Ironman catching an Iron Horse. (photo credit: Joe Clayton)

I’m sure next weekend will be back to the typical grind, but it sure was nice to have something new to add to the training.

TOTALS:

3 Swims – 4900 yards this week / 35700 yards total

4 Bikes – 91 miles this week / 8950 miles total

7 Runs – 29 miles this week / 366 miles total

Throwing Caution to the Wind

IRONMAN LOUISVILLE 2017 TRAINING

WEEK 12 – June 5 > June 11

I first dipped my toe into the triathlon waters in 2012. I really had no idea what I was getting myself into, but I certainly was a newbie to the sport. And I had some trepidation about it all, especially the swim.

As each season passed I gained a lot more knowledge and confidence. Finishing Ironman Wisconsin in 2013 certainly did wonders for my confidence, both in the water and on the bike, taking me distances I had never covered in either discipline.

But I sometimes still have some things holding me back somewhat. I’m prone to having to use my wetsuit in open water, as it eases my anxiety a little. It’s sort of a security blanket for me. In addition to the wetsuit, I have also played it safe with using my full disc aero cycling wheel.

As you start out in triathlon, you tend to make do with what you have or invest in the entry level stuff, with the thought that if you don’t want to continue doing the sport you haven’t invested your life savings into it. But as I grew to love the sport I eventually graduated from my road bike to a tri bike, a regular road helmet to an aero helmet, an off the rack tri kit to a full custom kit, and from standard cycling wheels to aero wheels. And then I bought a full disc aero wheel.

The full disc wheel goes on the rear of the bike and thanks to some aerodynamics that are beyond my scope, is supposed to make you faster. I certainly did notice a difference, finding myself hitting speeds easier than when I used my normal set up. I also found out on the first few rides that any sort of wind made for an adventure for me. One windy day I was nearly blown off the trail with it.

I recently read some posts online regarding using the full disc wheel on the Ironman Louisville course that I will be doing in October. A guy advised that there was absolutely no reason not to use it. I saw some other comments saying that it was less about the full disc and more about the front wheel when it came to feeling the wind, mainly due to the rider weight distribution. After thinking about it a little, I decided I should ride with it more often and this week seemed like as good a time as any.

I rode with it on Wednesday for a short 45 minutes and a Thursday ride of an hour, both with a little bit of wind but nothing to difficult. Then came Saturday. It was windy. I was a little concerned because my route is mainly open farm roads with very little wind buffer. But I figured this would be a good test. So I did it. And it wasn’t too bad. I found myself leaning into the crosswind a little more than usual, but I never felt like was jockeying around too much. So I decided to race with it on Sunday in a sprint triathlon. That went really well, helping me to hit a 21.5 mph average over the 14.7 mile course.

So there you go. I have now graduated from being over-conscience about using the full disc. I’ll be training with that sucker as much as I can leading up to IM Lou.

I also graduated from having to use the wetsuit for every open water swim, doing without it at the ET Batavia Sprint triathlon. It’s a short 400 yards in a man-made sandy bottom swimming hole, but the water is usually too cold for me. Today’s race day water temperature was 73 degrees, so I decided to do a swim warm up and test out my tolerance for swimming without it. I acclimated quickly and found myself swimming comfortably.

I’m starting to feel good about testing my limits. We’ll see where that takes me in this crazy sport.

You can read my ET Batavia Triathlon race report here: 2017 ET Batavia Triathlon Race Report

TOTALS:

3 Swims – 4600 yards this week / 30800 yards total

4 Bikes – 89 miles this week / 859 miles total

7 Runs – 23.5 miles this week / 337 miles total

Week 11 Fun: Training and Racing

IRONMAN LOUISVILLE 2017 TRAINING

WEEK 11 – May 29 > June 4

Week 11 was the first week of the Build Phase of the Be Iron Fit training plan that I am following, and I expected it to be a little harder. There was a third swim added, along with some additional yardage to the swim. I was a little surprised that the long Saturday bike was a half hour shorter than Week 10’s 3 hour ride, but I see that the plan now adds a short run after it. The 1/2 hour spin on Sunday was also added, which seemed to feel pretty good to me thanks to some tired legs from Saturday. All in all, not a bad way to start the Build Phase of training.

Speaking of tired legs, I also ran my first road race of the year, a 5K near my home. I wasn’t sure that it was a good idea, as my feet and legs just always seem tired. But I decided to give it a go. I was glad I did, as I finished 10th overall and 1st in my age group.

You can read about the race here: 2017 Summertime Stride 5K Race Report

Speaking of racing, I will be doing my first triathlon of the year, the ET Batavia sprint triathlon in Batavia, Illinois. I’ve done this race three times and I really enjoy it. The swim is super short, about 400 yards, the bike is fast, and the run is a heart pounding 4.1 miles. I’m hoping that the water will be warm enough to forego the wetsuit. I struggled getting the dumb thing off last year and it cost me some valuable time. I do have a speed suit that I might try out this time. Never used it before though. I might have to play with it this week during one of the three swim workouts.

The last bit of news is that my wife Kari bought a new road bike, a Specialized Roubaix from Spokes in Wheaton, Illinois. We were there picking up my race packet and she had been talking about getting a bike. I think she was impressed with the bike shop, and definitely the custom fit that the owner put her through. We were there for almost 4 hours looking at bikes and getting the Roubaix dialed in. They really did a good job and I think Kari is going to have many happy miles of riding. I’m looking forward to having a new riding buddy.

TOTALS:

3 Swims – 5200 yards this week / 26200 yards total

4 Bikes – 89 miles this week / 770 miles total

7 Runs – 35 miles this week / 313 miles total

Memorial Day Reminders

IRONMAN LOUISVILLE 2017 TRAINING

WEEK 10 – May 22 > May 28

I hope everyone enjoyed the Memorial Day holiday as much as I did. Our plan is to make it up to our new lake home at least once a month and take advantage of the extra day off that a holiday affords us. It can never be that simple though, as my daughter Rebecca is in the marching band and they had to participate in the Memorial Day parade at home. So we took Friday off to play at the lake home for three days, then headed back home Sunday night.

Our town of Mokena, Illinois does Memorial Day right. Led by officials from the local VFW, they start at one of three cemeteries in town and parade to the next, stopping at each one and reading off the names of the veterans no longer with us. A snare drummer plays a 7-stroke roll after each name, and when they have all been read, a trumpet player plays taps. It is somewhat of a somber affair. Heads are bowed, hats removed. Our most recent fallen soldier from town was killed a few years ago. The town certainly keeps his memory alive.

I was not able to do my Saturday bike ride in Minocqua, and I saved it for when I got back home. Due to the wind blowing from the southwest, I chose to ride into the wind and come back with it at my back. The route takes me toward Manhattan and Elwood, where I generally turn around. This turn around spot is just across the street from the Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery, where many local veterans are buried. Normally I would ride into the grounds for a lap and head back out. Today there was a line of cars coming off the main highway as far as the eye could see. It was another reminder for me that there were those that served our country so that we could all live free to do what free people do. For me it was riding a bike on paved roads under blue skies and next to farmers planting their crops. Not sure if they were planting amber waves of grain, but it certainly is their option to do so thanks to so many who gave their lives serving our country. A glorious Memorial Day indeed.

10 WEEK BASE PHASE WRAP UP

This week marks the end of the base stage of training. I’m feeling pretty good about where I am at this point in training. I feel pretty strong, and the workouts never were too taxing. I chose to do a simpler version of the swim training plan and I feel that I am doing just fine with it. I’m pretty sure I will be adequately prepared for the swim. My buddies will probably out swim me, but they did that before when I followed the harder plan too.

I did some bike preparation prior to starting the 30-week training plan and I think it has paid off. I seem to be averaging around 17.5 mph on my rides, staying in Zone 2. Hopefully I will see an average closer to 18 mph toward the end of this next training phase.

Running is holding on, and I am holding my breath that I won’t suffer an injury during the remaining training. One day my feet will be killing me, and then another day they won’t bother me at all. They never seem to hurt while running though. And my deep butt pain (yes, I’m a pain in the butt) has good days and bad days too. I’m starting to wonder if the pain may be hip joint-related and not muscle related. I guess I am getting old. Too many miles on the body. I’m going to enjoy it while I can.

On to the Build Phase!

TOTALS:

2 Swims – 3100 yards this week / 21000 yards total

3 Bikes – 88 miles this week / 681 miles total

7 Runs – 25 miles this week / 278 miles total

Week 9 Wrap-up

IRONMAN LOUISVILLE 2017 TRAINING

WEEK 9 – May 15 > May 21

This week flew by and I barely remember much of it. Here are some of the highlights:

We had temperatures very much consistent with summer, upper 80’s, sunshine, etc. Then the bottom fell out. On Wednesday I ran in shorts and a t-shirt. Friday I ran in pants, jacket, gloves, and a beanie. The temperatures are supposed to rebound, so I’m not panicking.

My pool was driving me crazy! Every year when I open it, it is something new to deal with. Last year it was a torn liner. This year the auto-chlorinator wouldn’t work. And that means my pool was going without chlorine – a situation that would not be ideal. In my usual fashion, I started throwing parts at it. First it was this dumb little microphone that is attached to the pump and is supposed to signal the computer that controls the chlorinator that the pump is on. It has been the issue in the past, so I ordered a new one. Nope. Wasn’t the problem. Next up for me was deciding to keep throwing more money at other parts, or say goodbye to a system that is nearly 13 years old. I decided to buy the water flow sensor just to see if it was the problem. BINGO! That was it! Thankfully, I dodged having to spring for a new $2000+ auto-chorinator.

I have been continually dealing with my high hamstring tendonitis, and to add to that I think I am starting to have plantar fasciitis as well. Yay me! I think I can handle the two issues, but I can’t neglect stretching. I should also probably part ways with my dumb running streak. I’m into year three, but if running everyday is going to affect whether or not I can tackle Ironman Louisville, well I just may have to give it up. My 53 year old muscles need to recover, and I’m not allowing them to do so.

Saturday I had the joy of watching my son Ben graduate college. The day of the graduation was miserable, and I was only able to get in about 3 miles of running, instead of the 1.25 hours that the plan had called for.

Since I couldn’t ride on Saturday, I did the 2:45 ride after the long car ride back from Dubuque, Iowa on Sunday. I thought I would pay for that idea with soreness, but it wasn’t too bad. Maybe it was the nasty cold and wind that took my mind off of it! It turned out to be a decent ride, averaging 17.1 mph over 46.5 miles. My heart rate monitor would disagree with me, seeing that it was alarming me to being out of my prescribed zone, but I felt good.

So the week went well, all things considered. I got in two swims, did my rides and runs (with an abbreviated weekend long run), and got to see my son graduate college! I can’t complain.

TOTALS:

2 Swim – 2600 yards this week / 17900 yards total

3 Bikes – 76.5 miles this week / 593 miles total

7 Runs – 25 miles this week / 241 miles total

I Will Need Two of Everything

IRONMAN LOUISVILLE 2017 TRAINING

WEEK 4 – April 10 > April 16

I spent Thursday through Easter Sunday in our new lake home in Minocqua, Wisconsin with my family for the first time. It was awesome to get to spend the Easter holiday in our new home on the lake. I had a great six mile run with my son Ben on Friday, and enjoyed our somewhat new running routes. We had vacationed in the area for many years, so the Bearskin Trail is nothing new to us. But it is refreshing to be running on such a beautiful trail again.

Friday we all took a trip to the local Ace Hardware store to get some stuff for the house. We bought a ladder, a rake, and a bunch of other junk that we already own in our main home. But now that I have another home to care for, I need two of everything. And apparently that includes triathlon gear.

I came up for the weekend without my bike so I wasn’t able to get any riding in, and with buying two of everything else for the house, I started to consider buying another bike to have on hand up north. It didn’t help that I had Triathlete and Bicycling magazines on hand with several pages of guides to new stuff to look at. But just with all the other stuff with the house that I know we need, I have learned that we will have to pace ourselves with what we get next. The lake home bike will be a very low priority, but it sure would have been nice to have had one up there.

As for the rest of the training week, I only got one swim done, but it was a decent one. The planned called for a 1600 yard swim with a workout, but I decided to do a straight swim and ended up stopping at 2000 yards. Felt pretty good.

Only two bike rides this week, both half hour spins with a brick run after each. I missed the hour and a half Saturday ride, so I will make that up on Monday of Week 5.

Runs will always total seven unless I break my leg or something. I had a nice uptempo 6 mile run with Ben, who told me that he has some pretty cool running ambitions after he wraps up his collegiate running career upon graduation in May. He’s come a long way as a runner, and I see a bright future for him as a marathoner if he pursues those goals.

fullsizeoutput_e616 — Easter Sunday in Minocqua

TOTALS:

1 Swims – 2000 yards this week / 5200 yards total

2 Bikes – 16.5 miles this week / 152 miles total

7 Runs – 25 miles this week / 98.25 miles total

Texting and Ironman Training

IRONMAN LOUISVILLE 2017 TRAINING

WEEK 3 – April 3 > April 9

fullsizeoutput_e604

During last year’s training for Ironman Lake Placid, our group of five buddies decided to get a group chat going through texting. Seeing that we don’t all live that close to each other, it was a good way to talk shop and build support for each other.

But it quickly turned into a competition. To be the first one done with the day’s workout was always a good feeling. And to send that text saying “Day Done,” was just as fulfilling as hitting the stop button on the watch at the end of the workout. It also became quite annoying when the late-night finisher texted “Day Done” at 11:58 pm. I finally figured out that there was a “Do Not Disturb” feature for the group and switched it to ON.

I thought that maybe we would not be as text happy this time around, but I was wrong. We must all have iPhones, because there is a new feature where you can add a response on a text, adding a thumbs up, or a couple of exclamation points, or even a “HA HA” if it struck you as funny. This just makes it easier to respond to a text when you might not have done so before.

The interesting thing about the texting is that we have a group of guys that are supportive of each other and keep each other honest in our training for another Ironman. We all know what the day calls for, but sometimes you can’t do it. And even though you get creative and arrange to fit it in another day, you still feel obligated to tell the group that you missed it or had to do something else. The text is sent, making it known to the others that you fully intend not to let the others down and will definitely get it done. We hold each other accountable, and we hold ourselves accountable.

It can get annoying getting a text from the group that their day is done, and yours is still in the works. But if it takes a text to get us to the finish line together, I’m all for it.

Day Done > send ↑

Week 3 Wrap-up

The weather is starting to get better, with the weekend climbing into the 60’s and 70’s. The pool was closed for Tuesday due to Election Day voting going on at the school. Not sure how that is sufficient reasoning to close the pool, but they did it anyway. And I was away at a conference Wednesday through Friday, so I missed the Thursday swim. So here I am being accountable once again for missing the swim training. Just like the texts we share with the group, it’s a just a little note to remind myself that I need to hold myself accountable and get it done. It’s early yet, and with the weather getting better, I will have my own pool open soon and won’t be at the mercy of the school schedule.

Cycling and running went well, with a few indoor runs and trainer rides. I am starting to get that sore calf issue again, along with some calf cramps that seem to be common when I start adding mileage. I know that it will eventually even out.

The last thing on my mind has been my weight. It seems like I struggled to keep the weight off in January/February/March, getting up around 175 pounds. I have never been that high ever. The puzzling thing is that I am still doing at least a run every day and watching my intake. But it just snuck up on me. After my long ride on Saturday, I weighed myself and was glad to see I was back under 170. I hope to see sub-165 soon.

TOTALS:

0 Swims – 0 yards this week / 3200 yards total

4 Bikes – 52 miles this week / 135 miles total

7 Runs – 27.75 miles this week / 73.25 miles total

Treadmills, Rocking my Brain, & New Digs

IRONMAN LOUISVILLE 2017 TRAINING

WEEK 2 – March 27 > April 2

The weather forced Friday’s 45 minute run indoors to the old dreadmill. I’m very grateful that I have access to two treadmills, and I am very glad to have that option when the weather is bad. But my goodness they can suck the life out of you.

I decided to use the treadmill at work for my run. The workout room has a TV, but it’s mounted on the far wall, hasn’t worked in a couple of months, and I can never hear it anyway. But we do have a rockin’ speaker system that I can connect my iPhone music to through Bluetooth. So I usually flip that thing on and crank up the classic rock that was once new rock when I first heard it. Maybe I’m classic now, too.

I pulled up a playlist and hit shuffle. The first artist was The Heavy, with a song called No Time. My kind of tune. After that came Bruce Springsteen’s Thunder Road. After that song came Runaround by Blues Traveler. It was at that point I decided to try to remember all of the artists that played during my run. I was surprised at first that I couldn’t remember the first artist. It came back to me and then I began repeating them over and over.

Next up was Lynyrd Skynyrd. Then came Billy Joel. He was followed by a band called Grouplove. After each new song, I would restart the process of repeating the artists in order, sometimes having momentary memory lapses, sometimes flipping Blues Traveler with the Boss, and often forgetting about Billy Joel. But it would eventually come to me.

The next groups were Pearl Jam, Genesis, Robert Randolph & the Family, and Jack White. Gerry Rafferty finished up my 5.25 mile/45 minute run with Baker Street.

I must say that trying to remember the names of the artists was somewhat difficult, but also fun. If one of my coworkers had walked in while I was repeating them over and over again, they would have thought I was strange.

But I got my planned run in, exercised my body and my mind, and actually enjoyed the dreadmill for once. I think I will make this a habit.

The rest of the week was easy but also exciting. I wasn’t able to swim due to spring break at the high school and the pool being closed. That’s the easy part. The exciting part is that my wife and I closed on a lake home in Minocqua, Wisconsin. We were up there for the closing on Monday, and spent a couple of nights there. I got in a couple of runs on the local roads and trail, and scoped out the riding options that look to be very hilly. I can’t wait to get up there every month and do more training, especially some open water swimming in the lake!

Can’t wait to enjoy the training perks that the new lake home has to offer. Just need the ice to melt first.

TOTALS:

0 Swims – 0 yards this week / 3200 yards total

4 Bikes – 42 miles this week / 83 miles total

7 Runs – 25.5 miles this week / 45.5 miles total

2014 Ironman Muncie 70.3 Race Report

Note from me: I originally posted this on a blog site called iamtri.com. Unfortunately, that website is no longer valid, but through some magic performed by my computer knowledgeable college son, he was able to recover my posts. I am sharing them here so that I may preserve my memories from my first Ironman 70.3. Chris

2014 Ironman Muncie 70.3 Race Report

July 12, 2014

My First IM 70.3!

For my third triathlon of 2014 and designated “A” race this year, I decided to pick a 70.3 distance, and since I live near Chicago I had three really popular choices to choose from: Racine, Steelhead and Muncie. After hearing about a horrible swim in Racine in 2013, and seeing Steelhead is in the same Lake Michigan body of water, I opted for a reservoir/lake located in the middle of Indiana – Muncie! The only negatives that people had about this location was that the run course was hilly, and that it was hot. Aren’t they all? Signed up in February and goaded my buddies to join me.

Location

The race is held just south of Muncie in the Prairie Creek Reservoir. It is very rural and peaceful. The lake is pretty large, with a great swim area and a new facilities building for washrooms and showers. After hesitating on booking a hotel in Muncie, we opted to stay at the Hampton Inn in Anderson, which was a popular choice with many of the other racers. It was about a half hour away from the race site, but the town had plenty of dining and other options.

I watched this helicopter fly in and land on Thursday night. I wish I knew there was helicopter parking, I would have flown in myself! (Just kidding – triathletes can’t afford a helicopter.)

Friday/Race Day Eve

I got to Anderson late on Thursday and checked in. My friends and I met up on Friday morning and started planning our day. We opted for a short 20 minute run to settle our nerves and knock the cobwebs off of a rest day on Thursday.

We hopped into our cars and headed to the race expo. We decided to take advantage of the optional bike racking on Friday to avoid one less issue on Saturday/Race day morning. After picking up our packets, we stuck the stickers on our bikes and wheeled them into the transition area.

The KX5 all racked and ready to go.

After checking out the expo, buying the expensive Ironman event merchandise and grabbing something to eat, we sat and listened to the race talk. There were hints that the water temperature may be just cool enough for an unusual for Muncie, wetsuit legal swim.

Race Morning

Wetsuit legal! Just barely, but many of us were relieved. The wetsuit for me has become a security blanket of sorts, although I have done races without one. Anytime I spend time looking at a big body of water, I get nervous. Wetsuits take that anxiety away for me.

We got up at 4am and hit the road at about 5am. I slept well, thanks to taking 1/2 of an Ambien that my physician buddy gave me. But I did wake up twice due to stomach issues. Spent a lot of time in the port-a-potty line, and was able to get things taken care of.

I set up my transition, pumped up my tires to 120 psi, and took some time to visualize the trip from the Swim Out to Bike Out.

It has taken me some time, but I’m starting to see the benefit of not bringing all my junk to transition.

The race started at 7am, but my wave didn’t start until 7:55, so I had plenty of time to watch others and my other racing buddies start the race.

Bride and bridesmaid. I had my buddy Dave help me zip up an obviously too tight for me wetsuit.

Can you tell which triathlete needs prescription goggles to see? That would be me. Dave and I picking our swim line.

1.2 MILE SWIM

The water was a perfect temperature. Usually I don’t do well in cold water, but this water was perfect. I chose to swim the inside of the buoys until the turns and had no issues at all with other swimmers. Zig-zagging was minimal. I did start to get a calf cramp in my legs about 2/3’s of the way into the swim. I just slowed down, kicked a little less and was fine. I started to notice that I was catching the white and pink capped swimmers that had started in waves 5 and 10 minutes ahead of me, respectively. That was a positive sign for me that I was having a good swim. Toward the last four or five buoys to go, I decided to pick up the pace. I could see some athletes were standing, but I swam until my fingers hit bottom.

Out of the water declaring “Piece of Cake!” It really was the most uneventful swim.

After getting out of the water I sat down and the volunteer wetsuit strippers (or peelers, as they prefer) yanked off my suit and it was a slogfest up to T1. It was uphill on a rocky path, which was covered with thin carpet. But everyone seemed to be walking. I was like, “Hey, get out of the way! This IS a race, right?”

SWIM TIME: 42:17

After getting by the field of swim zombies heading to T1, I got to my bike and quickly dried my feet and head off and changed into the cycling gear. Heading to the exit, I spied the toilets and went in. I had to go while I was in the water, but just couldn’t do it while I was swimming.

T1 TIME: 5:48

56 MILE BIKE

Everything I heard about the bike course at Muncie was that it was flat and fast. Nope. I will give you fast, but it wasn’t flat. I guess that I’m just too used to the flat rails-to-trails trail that I constantly ride at home. That is flat. The portion of the course that leads to and from the looped highway is 16 miles of hills, turns and potholes. The race announcer said at the course talk that when prepping the bike course, they normally go through about 3 bags of cold patch asphalt. This course required more than 30! Admittedly, it was a little rough, but easily rideable.

My heart rate monitor started chirping at me right away. I was trying to stay in Z3, but was well into Z4 for the first 45 minutes or so. Finally got it settled down and locked in. The two loops were done on a closed highway, which was new for the course. Two twenty mile loops. The two aid stations rocked, helping me reload my bottles while I used the bathroom again. Peeing was a good sign for me, as I was sweating quite a lot. Since I was in a later start wave, I had a lot of fast riders zipping by me on my first loop as they finished their second loops. It was a lot less crowded on my second loop.

Heading out of T1 for 56 miles of “flat” riding. Yeah, right. My son and daughter are behind me in the green and pink shirts.

Around 40 miles I had an issue. A little before I had taken a drink of Gatorade and got back into an aero position and had a little acid reflux. Nothing too bad, but gave me some discomfort. But the real issue I had was I tried to eat a GU and I swallowed it a little rough, causing some coughing and throat irritation. I dealt with that for at least ten miles. I couldn’t get my throat cleared, and it was to the point I was gagging. Finally got over it, but it was not fun.

The last of the second loop on Highway 35.

The sun had finally made an appearance on an otherwise cloudy day. I knew with the run coming up, having the sun out would not be good. Fortunately, the skies cloudy over again.

My kids watching the action on the bike course. Well, Ashley was watching with her eyes closed.

Coming in to T2 I had that feeling that 56 miles was hard. Even though I had done a full Ironman less than a year before, I couldn’t fathom having to do another 56! Glad I was coming in for the run.

BIKE TIME: 3:01:31

The second transition was quick. I grabbed the water bottle that I had in transition for rinsing my feet off, and used it on my head. A good sweat rinse felt great. I downed another GU, put on the visor, bib belt, and running shoes and I was off to get some sunscreen and run a half marathon.

T2 TIME: 3:16

13.1 MILE RUN

I was concerned I had pushed too hard on the bike and would suffer a little on the run, but in reality I felt great. I got to the first aid station in 7:45 according to my watch. I told my self to back it off. I hit the first of several really great aid stations and hit the water, ice, cola, and pretzels to get me going down the road. The aid stations are about a mile apart, and were well stocked and manned. The volunteers were once again, pretty awesome.

At every aid station I would take ice and shove it into my trisuit to get my temperature down. Seemed to work pretty good. Take some ice water, drink the water and then shove the ice in my clothes. I took a banana a couple of times, but mainly stuck with my eating a GU every half hour, plenty of fluids, and a salt capsule every hour or so.

Around the 5.5 mile area, I spotted my buddy Dave ahead and started to catch up. Just before seeing him go by, his brother John was passing by heading back to the finish. Big boost to seeing him. John started in the wave before us with a 5 minute head start. I knew I had work to do to try to catch him, so I gently started picking up the pace. I passed Dave right around the turn around, and started in on the hills back to the finish.

The hills were brutal. A lot of athletes were walking up them. I just kept my turnover going and powered through. At mile 9, I decided to start pushing. I passed a lot of people those last 4 miles. In all, I can only remember getting passed by one guy on the course, who was younger than me, and he had a good pace going. The only other runner that passed me was a younger girl who outkicked me in the chute after I had already passed her a 1/2 mile earlier.

I had driven to the event site several times on that run course, so I knew I was getting close. The few sprinkles that had started were more of a relief than a bother. I was already soaked. My feet squished when I took a step. I got to the final climb and really pushed through that last hill, feeling relieved to see the tents and finishing chute. I could see my family and hit my watch to see that I had easily broken 6 hours in my first 70.3 attempt.

RUN TIME: 1:53:18

FINISH TIME: 5:46:10 (PR)

RECOVERY AND POST RACE

I knew I was spent and just wanted to walk a little. I met up with my family and sat down in a chair. After a few minutes I decided to head to the medical tent to see if I could get some Perform to drink, and after talking with the staff, I decided to enter and sit down. They got me a wet towel and I put it around my neck, and started drinking the cold Perform. Thank goodness it was Lemon-Lime flavor. Before I knew it they had a blood pressure cuff on me and advised me that I was 100/70. A little low, but not dead. I told them that I had hydrated well, and had taken a salt capsule every hour. The doctor offered an IV, but I turned it down as I was starting to come around.

Once out of the medical tent, I met my buddies who now had all finished. We swapped stories and race recaps and ate a little from the athlete food tent. After laying around for a while, we claimed our bikes from transition and headed back to the hotel in Anderson.

THANKS

Thanks go once again to my great family, who spent their weekend watching me do my thing. It is truly a blessing to have such support. The photos my wife and kids took were awesome.

Thanks also to Carla for setting up our hotel for the weekend and being such a great planner and photographer.

And finally, I know I wouldn’t have as much fun doing these tri’s without my lifelong friends, Dave and John, and also Dave’s son Alex. I love the fun we have, and certainly the friendly competition. Alex, being only 19 and on the U of Iowa Tri-Hawks team, will always come in first. But with the finish order this year – John, me and Dave – we now have each had a race in which we have won. That is pretty cool.

Another awesome triathlon experience, shared with my best buddies and family. I am blessed.