St George Ironman - 12:11:44
Swim = 1:06:57
Bike = 6:04:30
Run = 4:47:16
T1 = 6:48
T2 = 6:13
I swam very well today... My goal was 1 hour but I ended up with a 1:06. I had very little resistance from the other swimmers starting on the far left side. I swam the first straight-a-way nice and easy. Stayed on the outside after the turn to avoid the masses. When we made the second turn for the long straight-a-way back, I kicked it up another noche and started passing MANY swimmers. I noticed that all the swimmers were bunched up in pods. I blew past 4 pods of swimmers, but the 5th pod was hugh!! I tried to swim through it and they just kicked, grabbed, and clawed at me. I tried to go around, but it was so big by the time I got to the front the swim was over. I may have swimmed the longest distance out there by staying on the outside and that last pod of swimmers I tried to go around. But I still had an excellent swim. The last year of swimming drills in the pool 3 times a week paid off!!!
After an unusually short transition of 6:48, by my standards, the bike started out faster than planned. The weather was warm and the wind low. I did the first 20 miles in under an hour, and that was with a stop at the first water aid station to fill an empty bottle on my bike. The first loop went well with a tail wind going up towards Veyo. The wind was blowing against me coming back down Hwy 18 but I just sliced through the wind and jammed it down the mountain. I felt really good for the second loop and had an identical ride around the loop again. I drank the Perform drink during the whole ride and used the water to soak my head and body at each aid station. The temps were climbing up there during my second loop. My goal was to start the second loop by 12 noon. I made the turn at 11:44am... :D I really thought I was on for a 11 hour time for my race.
The run was a different story. My transition was a 6:13 which was still a good time for me! The temps were approaching 90 and my first 4 miles were all uphill. I did okay up to that point. I had to speed walk a quarter mile section that was just too steep for my tired body to run. After I arrived to the top the next 2 miles was a free fall and I may have ran too fast down the other side. Coming back up that 2 miles was tough and I had to speed walk a half mile section because it was just too steep to run up. I lightly ran down the next 4 miles and finished the first half of the run in a little over 2 hours.
The next 13.1 miles was a whole different race. After the turn around I realized I had stopped sweating and I had sasuage fingers and my watches were tight on my wrists. I decided then that my next loop was going to be a speed walk if I wanted to finish this crazy race!! The temps were over 90 degrees by this point and the heat coming back at me from the pavement was pure torture!!!!!!!!!! I walked the next 4 miles and ran down the hills. I drank at every aid staion by first grabbing a cup of ice, filling it with coke, downing that, and then refilling it with Perform. I would walk with the cup of ice in hand, chewing on the ice, and then starting the process all over again the next mile. I soaked myself at every aid station with the sponges. It was so hot that I was dry again before the next aid station. After I suffered the first 10 miles of that second loop I was ready to run it in. I ran at a 9 ave pace and came in strong to the finish. I was all alone coming in so I stopped to do some push-ups at the finish line. The announcer called off my 10 reps then yelled at me to finish the race since I had not crossed the chip mat yet. The crowd gave me a HUGH cheer for the push-ups and I walked off the course by my own power. I felt really good!!! I'm okay with the 12:11 finish since my original goal was to be under a 12:30. Most of my friends finished behind me. It was a tough race, and the high heat and wind made this more of a challenge!!
When I got home that night my weight was down by 10 pounds. I guess I was a little dehydrated during that run. I thought I was well hydrated. I drank so much to the point that my sides hurt for most of the bike. I drank at every aid station on the first loop. I guess the heat really did me in, but I wasn't alone! Good job to all the Ironman Finishers!!!! | 