Third time's a charm?? - Ironman Texas 2011 Race Report

As far as trips go, this one ranks up there in the top.  I got to meet some really cool people that I will forever call "friend" and I completed Ironman #2.

As far as RACES go - this one royally sucked.....but only my execution of it.  The course was BEAUTIFUL. It was well run for an inaugural race. The crowd was OFF THE HOOK! I just didn't do my part to make it the day it could have....SHOULD HAVE....been.

I'm not wanting to dwell on it too long, so this race report is gonna be short.  I was very ready to make this a PR race and botched it with something that may seem trivial, but to anyone who has trained for long course events knows that it was a make-or-break deal.

Pre Race Happenings

I got into Houston LATE on Wednesday night - later than originally planned too due to bad weather in Denver that included the scariest plane ride ever.  Liz's husband was gracious enough to pick me up from Hobby at the ungodly hour. We got to the house, I was shown my room, and I slipped into bed.  I had to be up early the next morning so I only got a few hours of sleep.  No biggie - it's two nights before that matters.  As I sleepily walked downstairs the next morning, I got to see Liz and meet Mikey for the first time. And with that, a weekend of fun and laughter began.

On the agenda for the day was the Underpants Run and Athlete Registration. We were out and about most of the day. By the afternoon, Ryan (White Hot) had arrived at the house and our team was ready for the Athlete Dinner.  Um, wow.  What a spread.  We were sitting with the folks from iAmTri.com right up front. I got to meet up with more people I only knew through our online correspondence - like Brian Brode (Triboomer) and Chris Donnelly. What a fun evening!

Friday we had a practice swim and the theme of the morning was "will it or won't it be wetsuit legal".  Temp was right at 76 degrees and I thought the water was great. Others didn't agree with me.  I finally got to meet Trakkers teammates Jeff Irvin and Anne Moore - YAY! Love my Trakkers teammies!   After the swim, the mission was to get bikes and bags checked in. While we were getting ready, I was able to meet up with my family.  Things were finally coming together.  They trotted around with me as I got everything turned in. I gave them some pointers on how the course is laid out and just enjoyed spending some time with them.  We all had lunch then I chilled in their hotel room until dinner where my parents and I met up with Liz and Ryan at a little Italian place - simple and PERFECT!

Race Morning

Here's where it all went wrong.  I had everything I needed to take with me laid out and ready to go.  However, I had my nutrition bottles in the fridge and wouldn't you know, I completely forgot to grab them.

I don't know how this happened, but it did.  It wasn't until I got to my bike in transition, opened up my bag and yelled OOOOOOOOHHHHHHH SSSSSSSSHHHHHHHHIIIIIIIIIITTTTTTTT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  My gut reaction - call Liz and see if her husband could bring them.  After I hung up with her, my logical brain kicked in - Transition was to close in less than 30 minutes. It would take longer than that for him to get to the Woodlands and fight the road closures and detours.  It wasn't gonna happen.  Time for Plan B. I called her back to call off the 911 to her husband.  I took all the spare nutrition I had in my Special Needs bags, dumped it in my bottles, then texted my coach to let her know what happened.  Right away she was texting me a backup nutrition plan using the on-course Perform drink.  I have NEVER used this before and had no idea how it would work for me.  It was a total crap shoot.  It could work great and I could have a stellar day.  Or, it could be a disaster.  Regardless, it would be calories and electrolyte source for the day, so at least I could move forward and cover the 140.6 miles.  My dreams of a PR went away, and I started thinking of it as a big training day.  I didn't want my high hopes to add to the pressure.  If it worked better than expected, then great. But I wasn't planning on it.

The Swim

The fam met up with me at the swim start and waited in the outrageous line for the port-a-potty.  It was great having them there so that I wasn't 100% focusing on my stupid mistake.  I eventually said goodbye and got into the herd of athletes headed towards the water.  It was NOT wetsuit legal, but the IM folks allowed people to wear them if they chipped in separately (not eligible for Kona slots or AG awards).  The water was 78 degrees, but I'm guessing peoples' decision was not based on warmth but on security.  After the gun went off - the 2600+ people churned the small venue into the "washing machine" that is often talked about.  Based on my 1:25 time, you'd never know I've been swimming so well lately.  I was in traffic the entire time.  And the guys were brutally violent.  Kicked, punched, and pulled completely underwater....I really and truly thought I could die in that swim.  I really hope they re-evaluate the swim course for next year.  Time trial?  Longer point-to-point? Something needs to change.  And the canal????  Yuck.  4ft deep and that many people churning up the water. Felt like I was in an endless pool going nowhere.

Out of the swim I was actually feeling pretty good.  I was thinking back to Cozumel where my arms were tired and sore and the feeling is completely different from that.  I jogged all the way into the changing tent feeling pretty calm.   My coach had me fully prepared for the physical portion of this swim. Thanks Coach.

Transition 1

One of the big things I wanted to make sure of was NO SUNBURN on the inevitably long bike ride that was about to occur.  I put on some DeSoto Cool Wings (not easy when wet) and had the volunteers lather up my legs with sunscreen.  I can tell you today - I don't have any sunburn at all.  Success.  The fam was right by my bike and it was nice to see them before I headed out.

The Bike

Highlights:
- The day stayed cloudy and somewhat cool for most of the day.  Only towards the end did the clouds split and the sun come out.  And the wind was minimal as well.  We were fortunate - considering the weather this area has had in the weeks leading up to the race.
- The course was beautiful.  It had rolling hills, a few decent climbs, some odd pavement but mostly good.
- Aid stations every 10 miles was great. Well stocked and the bottle handups were all on target.
- Got stopped for traffic TWICE.  I would estimate at least 6 or 7 minutes total between the two stops.  The cyclists would all congregate and yell at the cops.  Then the peleton would take off.
- The drafting on this course was horrible.  At least back where I was.
- The effects of the Perform started taking effect around mile 40.  That's EARLY for stomach issues to be happening - not a good sign.  I took it easy EASY.  Stopped when I felt I needed to to use the facilities.  I was trying to salvage anything I could to maybe still have a good run.  Lots of time lost waiting for the toilets.

Transition 2

My volunteer really tried to be helpful, but other than helping me get those Wings off, she really wasn't.  That's okay though - she was trying really hard which was awesome to see.  On suggestion from Ryan and Liz, I took the wings with me to be used on the run.  Threw on my fuel belt and had the sunscreen people load me up.  I was feeling ok - post-112 mile bike ride ok.  I knew what I had to do and set out to execute the plan.

The Run

Loop 1 - go out VERY SLOW.  That was the plan.  And that's what I did.  At the first aid station, I stopped to load up my wings with ice in both sleeves - shoved one down my back and one down my front.  This was the most awesome cooling method ever!!!  I put ice in my hat too (I usually prefer a visor but wanted a way to keep ice up there).  I was set.  About 2.5-3 miles in, my stomach got REALLY upset.  It was also 30 minutes in and time to take my first scheduled hit of calories.  I hoped that going back to my standard calorie source would get my stomach back on track, so I grabbe my bottle and immediately after taking a swig I spit it out.  RANCID!!!  It had sat outside in the hot sun all day on Friday and ruined my bottles.  Fantastic.  Whatever. Why should my run go any better than my ride??

I managed to settle my stomach again to run out the last third of the first lap, and I thought I was gonna be able to go strong in the second lap.  Not. So. Much.  I was just past the start when it fired up again.  Head was woozy, ready to throw up but couldn't manage to actually do it.  Damn.  I tried all of the tricks - coke, pretzels, chicken broth, water...eventually I just stopped taking in anything.  The last 4 miles of the 2nd loop I took in nothing but a few gulps of water.  Finally, as I approached the turnoff to loop 3, I was feeling better enough to try again.  Amazingly, I could hold a descent pace for a substantial amount of time.  I did a run-walk plan through the remaining loop and was able to finish strong.

Once again, my family served as an awesome support system.  I looked forward to seeing them on each loop and knowing they were out there for me.  I just wish I could have ended their spectathlete session a few hours sooner.  Thank you to everyone that followed along on FB and Twitter, and your very encouraging notes. They mean a lot to me.

Now what??