"Either you run the day or the
day runs you."
Ironman Louisville - 140.6
August 25, 2013
Total Race Time = 16h 22m 21s
Overall Place = 2282/2500??
Age Group = Female 30-34
Age Group Place = 97/98
I am going to start this off in early January, where a few stupid decisions left me in a walking boot due to a stress fracture and a sprained ankle. No running for 10 weeks and no biking outside for 8 weeks. Fast forward to May - short 3 mile "runs" consisting of 1 minute run, 1 minute walk. When that was mastered, I moved to 3 minutes run, 1 minute walk. One week of that and I was on my way to Ironman training (slow and steady, listening to the doctor's orders) I am not a strong runner to begin with, so this was painful and miserable. If it hurt, I stopped. I didn't push it. I didn't run two days in a row, so this took out bricks. (I did one brick during training and that was for Chattanooga!)
I had planned on spending my winter in Energy lab, getting strong on the bike. The injury stopped this. My first ride outside was in late April. I did 2 hours on the bike while my original schedule had me at 5 hours. I knew I was behind, but I wasn't worried. Ok, I was VERY worried, but I didn't tell anyone.
4 months later......
I hit my last long run of 20 miles and began taper....in Europe. I ran 3 miles on the treadmill (a miserable run/walk.) I ran in the beautiful French town of Vannes. 3 miles out and my knee was miserable. I had to walk back. I decided that I wouldn't run anymore until Ironman. This was a little over a week out. That was it - no swimming or biking in my taper.
Pre-race: I got home from Europe on Sunday and headed north with my mom on Wednesday night. We stayed overnight just north of Nashville. Thursday morning, we woke up, had breakfast, and finished the drive into Louisville. Right after I checked in to the hotel, I went to athlete check-in. I got my number, race swag, and picked up an Ironman Louisville bike kit. It was beautiful, I couldn't resist! We grabbed a bite to eat at a 2 for 1 sushi place and then headed back to the hotel to rest. We had dinner with Matthew, Raph, and Alyssa, and then went to the hotel to get a good night's sleep.
Friday morning, I rode the run course with Raph and Matthew. I am so glad we did this. The bike didn't feel so great, but I got familiar with the run. I headed back to the hotel, showered, and then headed back out to drive the bike course. My mom and Raph came with me. Again... so glad I did this. I at least knew what I was getting in to. My mom and I went to the athlete dinner and tried to listen at the briefing. It was hard to hear, but we stayed anyway. After dinner, I ran into Phillip and Aldrin's family. I chatted with them for a few before heading back to get some sleep. (I didn't sleep much at all.)
Saturday morning, I woke up and headed to the swim preview. I swam out for 10 minutes and then back for what felt like 3. Oh goodness, a current! My shoulders felt awful, but I went with it anyway. I took a shower, my mom and I grabbed breakfast, and then headed to the Underpants Run. I wasn't planning on running just to be safe, but I went out to support ATC and take photos. It was a lot of fun. My mom and I went back to the hotel, packed up my gear, and headed to transition to check my bike and gear. It was an interesting feeling. I'm not used to getting rid of my gear before the race. We grabbed the car, went to Kroger (I needed bananas) and had a quick lunch. This is where I started to stress out. My sister, dad, boyfriend (Scott), and nephew were driving up from Atlanta and they were going to be late for the ATC dinner. (It turns out that they were on time, and this caused me unnecessary stress.)
We arrived at dinner a few minutes late and my friend Paulabeth, who had flown in from Atlanta, was waiting for us. I was not ok at all during dinner. The whole thing was just too overwhelming. After dinner my parents headed to the casino, and I headed upstairs with my sister and Scott. This was actually calming and relaxing--it turned out to be just what I needed. Back in the room, I laid my clothes and breakfast out. I was in bed by 9:30, but certainly not asleep.
Race Day: I woke up around 4:30. I immediately ate an uncrustables. (This was so unappetizing.) I wasn't hungry at all, so I grabbed a Luna bar, bottle of water, a banana, and a fruit buddy to go. I said goodbye to Scott and headed down to transition alone. I dropped off my special needs bags, threw a few last minute items in my gear bags and on my bike. I waited in line for about 10 minutes to get my tires filled and then I walked with Alyssa to the swim start. The line was already crazy when I got there! I found Beau and said hello. He motioned for me to sit down, so I did. We were near the front. I found myself much less nervous than I was for Augusta last year. We walked down to the docks and jumped in when it was our turn.
Ironman Louisville - 140.6
August 25, 2013
Total Race Time = 16h 22m 21s
Overall Place = 2282/2500??
Age Group = Female 30-34
Age Group Place = 97/98
I am going to start this off in early January, where a few stupid decisions left me in a walking boot due to a stress fracture and a sprained ankle. No running for 10 weeks and no biking outside for 8 weeks. Fast forward to May - short 3 mile "runs" consisting of 1 minute run, 1 minute walk. When that was mastered, I moved to 3 minutes run, 1 minute walk. One week of that and I was on my way to Ironman training (slow and steady, listening to the doctor's orders) I am not a strong runner to begin with, so this was painful and miserable. If it hurt, I stopped. I didn't push it. I didn't run two days in a row, so this took out bricks. (I did one brick during training and that was for Chattanooga!)
I had planned on spending my winter in Energy lab, getting strong on the bike. The injury stopped this. My first ride outside was in late April. I did 2 hours on the bike while my original schedule had me at 5 hours. I knew I was behind, but I wasn't worried. Ok, I was VERY worried, but I didn't tell anyone.
4 months later......
I hit my last long run of 20 miles and began taper....in Europe. I ran 3 miles on the treadmill (a miserable run/walk.) I ran in the beautiful French town of Vannes. 3 miles out and my knee was miserable. I had to walk back. I decided that I wouldn't run anymore until Ironman. This was a little over a week out. That was it - no swimming or biking in my taper.
Pre-race: I got home from Europe on Sunday and headed north with my mom on Wednesday night. We stayed overnight just north of Nashville. Thursday morning, we woke up, had breakfast, and finished the drive into Louisville. Right after I checked in to the hotel, I went to athlete check-in. I got my number, race swag, and picked up an Ironman Louisville bike kit. It was beautiful, I couldn't resist! We grabbed a bite to eat at a 2 for 1 sushi place and then headed back to the hotel to rest. We had dinner with Matthew, Raph, and Alyssa, and then went to the hotel to get a good night's sleep.
Friday morning, I rode the run course with Raph and Matthew. I am so glad we did this. The bike didn't feel so great, but I got familiar with the run. I headed back to the hotel, showered, and then headed back out to drive the bike course. My mom and Raph came with me. Again... so glad I did this. I at least knew what I was getting in to. My mom and I went to the athlete dinner and tried to listen at the briefing. It was hard to hear, but we stayed anyway. After dinner, I ran into Phillip and Aldrin's family. I chatted with them for a few before heading back to get some sleep. (I didn't sleep much at all.)
Saturday morning, I woke up and headed to the swim preview. I swam out for 10 minutes and then back for what felt like 3. Oh goodness, a current! My shoulders felt awful, but I went with it anyway. I took a shower, my mom and I grabbed breakfast, and then headed to the Underpants Run. I wasn't planning on running just to be safe, but I went out to support ATC and take photos. It was a lot of fun. My mom and I went back to the hotel, packed up my gear, and headed to transition to check my bike and gear. It was an interesting feeling. I'm not used to getting rid of my gear before the race. We grabbed the car, went to Kroger (I needed bananas) and had a quick lunch. This is where I started to stress out. My sister, dad, boyfriend (Scott), and nephew were driving up from Atlanta and they were going to be late for the ATC dinner. (It turns out that they were on time, and this caused me unnecessary stress.)
We arrived at dinner a few minutes late and my friend Paulabeth, who had flown in from Atlanta, was waiting for us. I was not ok at all during dinner. The whole thing was just too overwhelming. After dinner my parents headed to the casino, and I headed upstairs with my sister and Scott. This was actually calming and relaxing--it turned out to be just what I needed. Back in the room, I laid my clothes and breakfast out. I was in bed by 9:30, but certainly not asleep.
Race Day: I woke up around 4:30. I immediately ate an uncrustables. (This was so unappetizing.) I wasn't hungry at all, so I grabbed a Luna bar, bottle of water, a banana, and a fruit buddy to go. I said goodbye to Scott and headed down to transition alone. I dropped off my special needs bags, threw a few last minute items in my gear bags and on my bike. I waited in line for about 10 minutes to get my tires filled and then I walked with Alyssa to the swim start. The line was already crazy when I got there! I found Beau and said hello. He motioned for me to sit down, so I did. We were near the front. I found myself much less nervous than I was for Augusta last year. We walked down to the docks and jumped in when it was our turn.
Swim: There were about 4 minutes worth of people when I jumped in the water. As soon as I hit the water, I immediately started swimming. I also knew immediately that this would be rough. Because of the way the race is set up, many of the weaker swimmers start first to allow for more time to swim. It was so crowded. I couldn't really get in any kind of a rhythm because I was swimming over people. Just when I thought I had an opening between people, it would close. No one was swimming straight. I fought my way through the canal and it was a little bit better once we reached the open water of the river. Once I hit the turn around, it was smooth sailing. I may as well have been swimming completely alone in the river! I felt ok. I wasn't going too fast, I wasn't going too slow. I had a little trouble sighting and finding the finish line, so I found myself breaking stroke a lot more than I wanted to. Since I only swam once a week (sometimes twice a week,) my shoulders started getting fatigued towards the end--again, I broke stroke more than I wanted to. I finally saw the exit and was so thrilled! I stood up on the stairs and made my way up the ramp. I didn't see my family and I was a little bummed, but I didn't let it get to me.
Takeaways: I need to start closer to the beginning to I don't have to swim over people. Once a week swim training is enough to get through ironman, but not enough to give me the performance that I want. I got the time I wanted, but I didn't geel great about how I got there.
Swim Time: Somwhere between 58:50 and 59:05 (while I had my timing chip on, it didn't work, so I have no idea what my official splits are. My Garmin decided that Ironman was the day it was going to mess up as well)
T1: I had decided to do a full change of clothes. I wanted to be comfortable, and I was ok adding a few minutes to my time. My number was yelled out as I came close. A volunteer handed me my gear and I ran into the tent. Another volunteer came up to help me once I was in the tent. I pulled off my speed suit and bathing suit. The volunteer helped me put on my sports bra, my shirt, my compression sleeves, my socks, my shorts. It was wonderful. I did one thing, she did another! I ran through the sunscreen station, got lathered up, grabbed my bike and headed out on the course.
T1 Time: 8m 30s or so
Bike: I trained for an Ironman from scratch in 4 months. It showed on the bike. I started off feeling great. I took it slow, keeping my legs moving, but in a very easy gear. People were passing me all over the place, but as a strong swimmer, I am used to that. Bethany quickly passed me and asked about my swim. I saw Ted and Chris go by right after that. The first part of the course was flat, and I was thankful for that. It typically takes me about 20 minutes to get my legs "bike ready." My plan was to take it easy on the course. I don't really push the hills-- I shift to an easy gear and spin up. It’s not fast, but it doesn't take the toll on my legs, and more importantly, my knees.
The hills hit, and I was
still doing ok. My watch buzzed every 15 minutes - take a sip of Infinite. I
hit the out and back portion of the course. Alexandra and Rick passed me soon,
with Beau shortly after. This part was scary. It had some very fast declines
and a few rough inclines. I fell on my bike about 5 weeks prior to the race and
since then have been much more cautious on downhill sections.
I hit the turn for the first loop of the course and saw the sign for LaGrange. This is where the spectators would be. My family hadn't said they would be there, but they hadn't said they wouldn't either. This small section of the course is crazy! It is lined with spectators, screaming and cheering! It was hard not to smile and wave back! I got to the end of the section - no family. A little bummed, but I tried to shrug it off.
It turns out that since my timing chip wasn't working, they didn't know I was out of the water. They had missed me by about 30 seconds or so. They waited and waited for me to finish the swim. Finally, they had to ask a volunteer to check and see if my bike was still in transition. They thought the worst, but I was long gone. With all this going on, they were unable to get to LaGrange to see me ride by on the first loop.
After LaGrange, we turned onto a narrow road. At one point, I was headed uphill. I shifted my back gear up two gears, and my front gear down one. Coach Robert taught me to go up hills this way and it typically works. Unfortunately, my front gear didn't shift. I had too much resistance on my bike. My pedals stopped moving and I toppled to the right..... in a ditch. Daria was coming up right behind me and saw the whole thing. She stopped to make sure I was alright, which I was. Unfortunately, we were on a hill. We both had to walk to the top of the hill to get moving again. Thanks Daria for checking on me!! Robyn passed me shortly after that. I brushed off the fall and started going again.
Somewhere around mile 50, I started to struggle. I wasn't having trouble on anything specific, my legs were just fatigued and didn't want to keep moving. I kept with my plan and kept moving forward. Here is where my fatal mistake came in to play-- my calculations for Infinite were off. When measuring everything out the night before, I second guessed myself. I was short by 30 minutes. Once at special needs, I got more Infinite and a Rice Krispy Treat (it never tasted better than that moment.) I tried to make up for the 30 minutes of lost Infinite and that may have been my downfall. At this point I realized my watch was no longer on the bike portion of the triathlon. I had no speed, cadence, or heart rate. In addition, my watch no longer told me when to drink. Needless to say, the last 40 miles were a serious struggle.
My family was at LaGrange for my second loop. I had been racing for 5 and a half hours and it was the first time I had seen them all day. It was so great!! Once I got back to the flat portion of the course, I thought I would be fine. My legs were so fatigued; I cruised through a lot of it instead of using a continuous pedaling motion.
Takeaways: Be sure to calculate nutrition correctly. Never second guess yourself last minute - it could cost you big time. I didn't put enough saddle time in for this race and it showed.
Bike Time: 7h:56m (give or take 5 minutes)
T2: Heading into transition, my family was there again to cheer me on. I got off my bike and handed my bike to a volunteer. I walked to get my gear bag and then walked into the tent. I was lightheaded and a bit dizzy. How on earth am I going to run a marathon?!?! I had another complete change of clothes in the tent. I stripped everything off and put on a new sports bra, my tri top, tri shorts, and clean socks. The volunteer had me sit down - apparently I didn't look so good. She got me a cup of ice, which I poured down my bra. She filled up my water bottle with ice water, filled up my belt with my goo. I headed to sunscreen and got lathered up again. I was off.
T2 Time: 20 minutes or so
Run: I knew my family was at the exit, so I made sure to run when I passed them. They were there cheering and screaming like crazy. As soon as I passed them, I started walking. Holy crap! It feels like I had already run 13 miles. I have never run a marathon. How on earth was this going to happen? My plan going into the race was to run for 4 minutes and walk for 1 minute. The first mile I did what I could. I passed ATC and boy did that make me feel like a celebrity! Wow - you guys rock!! The mantra for the run was "Keep moving forward." There was no way I was quitting, but this hurt like hell.
I hit the turn for the first loop of the course and saw the sign for LaGrange. This is where the spectators would be. My family hadn't said they would be there, but they hadn't said they wouldn't either. This small section of the course is crazy! It is lined with spectators, screaming and cheering! It was hard not to smile and wave back! I got to the end of the section - no family. A little bummed, but I tried to shrug it off.
It turns out that since my timing chip wasn't working, they didn't know I was out of the water. They had missed me by about 30 seconds or so. They waited and waited for me to finish the swim. Finally, they had to ask a volunteer to check and see if my bike was still in transition. They thought the worst, but I was long gone. With all this going on, they were unable to get to LaGrange to see me ride by on the first loop.
After LaGrange, we turned onto a narrow road. At one point, I was headed uphill. I shifted my back gear up two gears, and my front gear down one. Coach Robert taught me to go up hills this way and it typically works. Unfortunately, my front gear didn't shift. I had too much resistance on my bike. My pedals stopped moving and I toppled to the right..... in a ditch. Daria was coming up right behind me and saw the whole thing. She stopped to make sure I was alright, which I was. Unfortunately, we were on a hill. We both had to walk to the top of the hill to get moving again. Thanks Daria for checking on me!! Robyn passed me shortly after that. I brushed off the fall and started going again.
Somewhere around mile 50, I started to struggle. I wasn't having trouble on anything specific, my legs were just fatigued and didn't want to keep moving. I kept with my plan and kept moving forward. Here is where my fatal mistake came in to play-- my calculations for Infinite were off. When measuring everything out the night before, I second guessed myself. I was short by 30 minutes. Once at special needs, I got more Infinite and a Rice Krispy Treat (it never tasted better than that moment.) I tried to make up for the 30 minutes of lost Infinite and that may have been my downfall. At this point I realized my watch was no longer on the bike portion of the triathlon. I had no speed, cadence, or heart rate. In addition, my watch no longer told me when to drink. Needless to say, the last 40 miles were a serious struggle.
My family was at LaGrange for my second loop. I had been racing for 5 and a half hours and it was the first time I had seen them all day. It was so great!! Once I got back to the flat portion of the course, I thought I would be fine. My legs were so fatigued; I cruised through a lot of it instead of using a continuous pedaling motion.
Takeaways: Be sure to calculate nutrition correctly. Never second guess yourself last minute - it could cost you big time. I didn't put enough saddle time in for this race and it showed.
Bike Time: 7h:56m (give or take 5 minutes)
T2: Heading into transition, my family was there again to cheer me on. I got off my bike and handed my bike to a volunteer. I walked to get my gear bag and then walked into the tent. I was lightheaded and a bit dizzy. How on earth am I going to run a marathon?!?! I had another complete change of clothes in the tent. I stripped everything off and put on a new sports bra, my tri top, tri shorts, and clean socks. The volunteer had me sit down - apparently I didn't look so good. She got me a cup of ice, which I poured down my bra. She filled up my water bottle with ice water, filled up my belt with my goo. I headed to sunscreen and got lathered up again. I was off.
T2 Time: 20 minutes or so
Run: I knew my family was at the exit, so I made sure to run when I passed them. They were there cheering and screaming like crazy. As soon as I passed them, I started walking. Holy crap! It feels like I had already run 13 miles. I have never run a marathon. How on earth was this going to happen? My plan going into the race was to run for 4 minutes and walk for 1 minute. The first mile I did what I could. I passed ATC and boy did that make me feel like a celebrity! Wow - you guys rock!! The mantra for the run was "Keep moving forward." There was no way I was quitting, but this hurt like hell.
I took salt sticks every half hour and Gu. After 3 Gus, I couldn't stomach them anymore. On to plan B. The problem - there was no plan B! I tried to sip on some Coke. At each aid station, I tried something different. Pretzels, chips, chicken broth, oranges.... The only thing that seemed to help me was the juice from an orange. At this point, I was nauseous. I had a water bottle on me and I sipped water continuously. I used sponges to cool myself and I pretty much kept ice in my bra through the entire run. After about 2 miles, I was able to keep up with my run/walk plan. I also walked all of the aid stations.
I kept my eye out for my team mates as it was a huge pick-me-up to see them on the course. I saw Bethany, Daria, Robyn, Beau, and Alexandra. Everyone looked awesome! I saw the ATC tent and I knew I was close to halfway. Once again, I was a rockstar. It was so awesome. The bad part.... so many people were finishing. I was so close to the finish line. But I had another 13.1 to run. I passed by ATC and my family again. I knew it was the last time I would see them for the next 3.5 hours or so - I needed to make it count. Even though my stomach and system were off, I kept up my run/walk. Raph caught up to me and stayed with me for a few miles. He left me around mile 19 (I told him it was ok.) At this point, I really hadn't eaten anything in the last 5 hours. I was so nauseous; I was ready to pass out. There was no way I could run anymore. I checked my overall time, and I was good to go to walk the rest of the way. I would still make the cutoff. I found a friend who was walking as well, and we set out on the last 7 miles of Ironman together.
At every station, I continued to try coke and chicken broth, only to spit it out. I couldn't seem to take anything in. One foot in front of the other, I managed to make my way towards the finish line. This is the mental part of the race. I needed to keep going. We passed ATC and they were so loud. Almost there! As we turned the corner, my friend and another athlete we had picked up along the way took off running. I was going to wait until the finish line, but my legs started moving. I was running!
The crowd and atmosphere was better than I could have imagined. I started high fiving everyone as I made my way through the finisher's chute. I was having so much fun, I almost missed my family! I waved at them and then crossed the finish line, an Ironman. Unfortunately, since my timing chip wasn't working, they didn't call out my name. I was upset, but it didn't matter, because I was an Ironman!
Takeaways: Always have a plan B for nutrition.
Run Time: 6h:59m
Post Race: My volunteer gave me some chocolate milk, which I downed. My
stomach was fine all of the sudden. It was almost 11:30 at night, so once I
took photos with my family, we went our separate ways. I took a shower and then
was ready for a slice of pizza. I looked at the photos Scott took and then
settled down into bed for a restless night's sleep.
Rate your overall experience with this race: Louisville is awesome! The only reason it gets a 4 out of 5 is because the city beat me down. The heat got me and the day got me. The crowd support is amazing and the finish line couldn't have been better. I am so glad I picket IM LOU as my first 140.6!
Rate your overall experience with this race: Louisville is awesome! The only reason it gets a 4 out of 5 is because the city beat me down. The heat got me and the day got me. The crowd support is amazing and the finish line couldn't have been better. I am so glad I picket IM LOU as my first 140.6!
"Strength does not come from winning. Your struggles develop your strengths. When you go through hardships and decide not to surrender, that is strength."
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