A Contender

“Wanna go skinny dipping?” I joked to Mark as we shuffled back to the truck near midnight.  Lake Coeur d’Alene was glassy smooth and reflected twinkling stars from the clear night. It was hard to believe seventeen hours prior that same lake had been wind whipped and frothy with swimmers churning their way around the course in their quest to become an Ironman.

The build up to Ironman Coeur d’Alene (IMCdA) 2014 had gone really well.  I’d been working with Endurance Nation (EN) Coach Patrick on a 1-1 basis for a couple of years on a “Be All I Can Be” plan which had significantly increased running frequency and further pushed my bike volume.  The goal was to enable me to finally run to my theoretical potential in my fifth Ironman on race day.

*** Work Works! Graph of Training Load Leading up to IMC in 2013 and IMCdA in 2014.  ***

After doing four Ironman Canada (IMC) races with just a few friends or teammates, this race would be very different.  Over thirty local racers from Raise the Bar (RTB) team and over twenty from my Endurance Nation (EN) team would be on the course.  Those fifty peeps brought with them a ton of mojo and support crews!    As a bonus, Coach Rich from EN would be in attendance as well.

*** Happy Campers at EN Team Dinner ***

The week included the usual few days of race prep including the EN Four Keys talk and fun EN and RTB team dinners.  Race day came soon enough and began with yet another Husband Hero save.  I’d set my alarm for 3:00 AM.  Unfortunately it was the WEEKDAY alarm.  Luckily Mark had set his too so we got out the door on time.  It’s always some tiny detail…  sheesh.

*** This is NOT How to Set Your Alarm for a Sunday Race! ***  

***** SWIM *****

The swim caused me quite a bit of trepidation over the course of the year.  Although I was considered a relatively strong swimmer, it could be argued that I was tempting fate with the notoriously cold swim at IMCdA. I’d had an incident of Swimming Induced Pulmonary Edema (SIPE) the previous summer and one of the risk factors was cold water.  I armed myself with a good understanding of SIPE risk factors after an extensive conversation with Dr. Moon at Duke University.  A new, better fitting wetsuit and more cold water practice swims than I’d have liked also helped. Luckily, the lake temperature on race day was 61+ degrees - still too dang cold but well above some of the worst swims at IMCdA which have been in the mid 50s.

After watching the pro start Mark helped me get into my wetsuit and I was off to get warmed up in the small swim area. And by warming up, really we mean cooling off!  It was important to get into that cold water to get the mammalian dive reflex out of the way so it wouldn't be such a shock when we started swimming.

The warm up went well and soon enough it was time to queue up on the beach and it was go time!
The new Swim Smart protocol (I call it paratrooper style) was awesome!  We simply lined up according to our predicted swim times and after the cannon went off everyone proceeded in a relatively orderly fashion.  No being swum over, no kicks to the face, no grabbing – no drama!

After about three strokes I had a good sense of what the outbound leg would feel like.  ROUGH!  The water was choppy, the wind was whipping and about every third breath turned into big gulp of extra special Lake Coeur d’Alene mouthwash.  I knew right away it would impact my time but it would impact everyone so I stuck to the plan and just kept chugging (literally and figuratively) along.  My time was my slowest IM swim to date but considering the conditions I was really happy with the result.  Soon enough I was out of the water and into the T1!

*** Swim Start ***

This 2’ video gives a sense of the wind we faced and also of how the swim smart protocol works. I think I’m the pink cap that trots over to the right, wades into the water in front of the first TYR flag and pushes off casually at about the 1:55 mark. 

*** Plenty of Water for Everyone! ***

Swim Time: 1:09:44 

T-1 Time: 4:36 – “Smooth is fast, fast is smooth.” – Coach Rich  

***** BIKE *****

This was my fourth IM with power.  Unfortunately a few weeks prior to the race my Power Tap Pro+ went on the fritz and I found myself with new Garmin Vector pedals.  It was a happy circumstance as I’d wanted the pedals for some time, however I hadn't had the opportunity to calibrate them properly.  In my final race rehearsal I felt they were a bit more generous so I adjusted my race plan to push 165w on the Vector pedals up from the 160w I’d been working with on the Power Tap.

Of course, that all promptly went out the window within the first hour because right off the bat where our protocol calls for us to go “stoopid easy” my heart rate was MUCH too high.  This was consistent with problems I’d had in previous IMs.  I’d do my race rehearsals at a relatively reasonable and comfortable heart rate but on race day coming out of the water it just doesn't ever seem to come down.  After about 30’ I kicked it up to what would end up being my target watts of 160.  Although my heart rate still hadn't come down, it didn't go up either so I stuck with that as the new plan for the day.  

I got quite a jolt early in the ride when I heard a tire or spoke blow out near me. I was sure it was mine but fellow RTBer Dave assured me it was not, so I pressed on, thankful my day hadn't ended that soon.

In the second hour we started our first significant ascent and were greeted with a howling wind directly in our face that would last all day long.  Ug, this was gonna be a tough ride.  My heart rate was still a bit high, I was going as slow as 12 MPH at times and I already wanted to be off the bike.  Furthermore, pushing 160w seemed hard when just two weeks prior I’d pushed 175w for five hours. Oh well, in Jennerator fashion I stuck to the plan and turned my attention to riding steady and keeping my nutrition on track. Of course that meant I was passed like I was going backwards in the first loop but patience paid off as sure enough I did all the passing in the second loop.  It was difficult to pass into the wind and to make it worse there were a lot of stubborn guys who didn't want to be passed. They would surge as I got alongside them which caused me to surge even more to complete the pass.  Eventually they were behind me though, and afterwards we heard it was the windiest race day on record with sustained winds of 25+ MPH and many DNFs.

*** Very Rude to have 40 Tattooed On My Calf Two Weeks Early! ***

Bike Time: 5:49:45

T-2 Time: 2:55 – Jones Family Sighting!

***** RUN *****

I knew I was in second or third place coming off the bike but I’d been there before and faded to ultimately finish 25th or so.  To me there is an important principle difference between being run down by a better runner and fading because I couldn't keep it together.  My race execution goal was to keep it together - faster runners would have to come and get me.

And so the rubber met the road.  I was greeted just out of transition by the Jones family cowbelling their hearts out, started my watch, and I was off!   My goal was to average a 10:00 minute mile for a 4:22ish marathon and to run fairly steadily throughout the day. The first mile clicked off at 9:22 on my Garmin and I thought it was a mistake.  It felt as easy as any mile I’d run and completely different (in a good way) than I’d felt in any brick.  Hmmmm, maybe it hadn't acquired the satellites correctly quite yet. The next mile was a 9:34 – whoa Bessie… slow down!  Through mile 18 I was able to steady my pace to between 9:30 and 9:45.

*** Hi Jones Family!  Coming out of Transition ***

There were many Mojo Moments along the run.  Of course the biggest highlight was seeing Mark who popped up here and there on his bike and said just the right things at all the right places. Mark and RTBer Brian gave me updates as to where I was within my age group and it was fun to know I was actually finally in contention.   Additionally there was the RTB cowbell crew, EN and RTB peeps racing and handing out high-fives and the entire Sattler family cowbelling too!

Right on schedule at mile 18 AKA “The Line” it started to get TOUGH.  I’d been passed by a couple of ladies in my age group not so much because I was slowing down a lot but simply because they were fasties. Little victories.  Everything hurt and my entire world became about just the 5’ in front of me.  It would have been easy to throw in the towel but I knew I was on track to have my best race to date and was determined to hold it together and push to the finish.

I’d peed once on the bike and had to pee again.  I just let it fly. I hadn't stopped all day and there certainly wouldn't be any stopping at this point.  I've had legendary poo issues on long runs and in previous races and thankfully I made it all the way to mile 23 without any concerns when the need arose.  I thought I might have to stop but I simply made a decision not to. Luckily there were no consequences to that decision!  I made the final turn onto Sherman and it’s a nice easy but loooong downhill to the finish. I gave it my all and for the first time didn't savor the finishing chute – I wanted to earn every second I could!

Run Time: 4:20:37

I crossed the finish line completely spent.  A wave of emotion came over me as my knees started to buckle. “Do you need anything?”, “When did you pee last?”, “What day is it?”, a volunteer asked.  “I’m fine”, I assured them, when I spied Dave who was also in the finishing area.  “I guess I just need a hug from friend”,  I said, and promptly bawled all over Dave.  The next victim was Coach Rich, who, earlier in the week had assured me he was not a hugger.  Well, he got a big one, complete with snot and tears – sorry Rich!  More tears all over the Jones family, and of course Mark got them too as they continued off and on throughout the evening.  I’m not sure what all the blubbering was about but certainly I was thrilled that I left it all out there (sans poo) and finally executed a great race!

**** Poor Dave, Just Finished an Ironman and Now a Crying Girl?!***

Total Time: 11:27:37

We capped off the evening with post-race grub and drinks with both the RTB and EN crews. Then it was back onto the course to cowbell in the remaining racers!  Congratulations to all the finishers on a tough day!

Reflection and Learnings
I’m thrilled with the race I had in Coeur d’Alene and exceeded my execution goals.  It does sting a bit that the time of 11:27 would have earned me a Kona spot with a second or third place in both 2012 and 2013 on what were arguably easier days. This year it placed me ninth.  I can’t control who shows up, I can only give it my best effort and I’m quite sure I didn't leave the seven minutes between me and the Kona spots on the table.  Aside from a couple small blisters I think I’m only going to lose one toenail!  One notable war wound is my legs which got some unusual cuts from the grippers on my shorts.  Pearl Izumi has done a wonderful job addressing the issue so I won’t be dealing with it in the future.

Successes to Build On
1. I trained hard and as planned without getting injured or over trained.  As a bonus I am still married AND employed!
2. I stayed calm all race week enjoyed the positive mojo from the 50+ people I knew racing the same race without getting spun up.
3. I swam within myself and never went over the edge effort wise
4. On the bike I was able to adjust my game plan on the fly and was relatively steady.
5. I ran well and didn’t poop myself!

*** Coach Patrick and EN Teammate Robin give Kudos – Of Course This Prompted More Tears ***

What’s Next
I’m racing Ironman Canada in Whistler on July 27th as planned.  The second race in one year is part of my “Three Ways to Kona” idea generated last year.  One of those three ways is earning a “Legacy” spot with twelve finishes.  My theoretical best race at IMC places me well out of the running for a Kona qualifying slot but I will give it my all again as a means to solidify what I executed so well in IMCdA and to earn an additional finish.

Things to Improve
1. Although I am currently a healthy weight and it hasn't varied more than 5# since the my initial 80# loss, next year I’ll come into IMCdA 10–15# lighter.  Lighter runners are faster runners and I aim to do some of the running down next year.
2. I completely revamped my nutrition protocol after the epic fail of 2013 and although it worked well for me, I wasn't able to take in as much as I’d have liked late in the run.  It was a relatively moderate day temperature wise so I wasn't tested too much either.  I'll need to keep an eye on my strategy.
3. After two race rehearsals with a VI of 1.01 I was disappointed to see my race came in at 1.03.  I’m thinking this was due to having to pass people into a headwind but it is something to be mindful of in future races.

*** A Glassy Lake Coeur d’Alene – 17 Hours Too Late!  ***

A sincere thanks to all who have supported me along this journey and continue to support me along the way. And of course a special thanks to Mark who makes it all possible and FUN!

This quote posted at the venue resonated with me:

"What lies behind us and what lies before us are small matters compared to what lies within us."   

 --  Ralph Waldo Emerson

Finally, I’m a contender.

Ironman Canada 2013 Race Report

Ironman Canada 2013 Race Report

Smooth Swimming, a Zero MPH Crash, the Port-a-Pottie Parade, the Kona Question and Doubling Down in 2014.

It’s Go Time! It really does take a week to do an Ironman.  After a late night trip to Whistler we fell into bed at about 2 AM Thursday.  The next few days were spent checking in, doing tune up workouts, successfully launching the boat and enjoying the village.  Yep, race day came quickly!  For the first time (ever, I think) Mark was out the door before me at 4:00 AM.  He rode his bike in the dark (in the thick of bear country!!!) to rendezvous with the CBC camera crew he would be piloting at the swim start.  Heidi and I took the shuttle to the start, wished each other well with biiiiigggg hugs and got down to it!

  

 *** Mark at the raw launch in his underwear.  Why not?  ***

Swim 

The layout of the swim start was pretty unique with the start line perpendicular to the shore followed by two loops in the small shallow lake. That meant that the front of pack swimmers would venture out to start in deep water, but many folks remained on the shore creating kind of a triangle of starters.  I couldn’t bring myself to wait on the shore and seeded myself up front as usual.  My plan was to swim conservatively for the entire outbound leg of the first loop to hopefully avoid another SIPE incident.  It would be challenging with this arrangement! 

*** Swim Start – Most of the swimmers lined up within the yellow circle.   ***

And  booooom!!!!!  The race was on!  It was tight quarters for sure but I didn’t get hit in the head and occasionally even found a tiny bit of the lake for myself.  There was no panic or drama and honestly holding back was harder than pushing hard.  By the first turn buoy I knew my lungs were fine and resumed my usual pace.  Two short laps later I was exiting the water in 1:07:xx.  Sure it was well off my 1:04:xx PR but I was pleased to have had no drama, was around the top 10% of the field and excited to get onto the bike!

*** In this video you can see the swim start and Mark piloting our boat in the background. ***

Bike 

My bike was almost over before it started.  I crossed the mount line and got clipped in.   As I pushed off (straight!), a gal to my right was also pushing off.  She started to teter (left!) towards me as I shouted increasingly louder “on your left, on your LEFT, ON YOUR LEFT!!!!” to no avail. She did a 90-degree turn smack dab into me and took me out.   The crowd went from a roar of cheering and clanging cowbells (and you know I LOVE cowbells) to so quiet you could hear a pin drop.   I get it, stuff happens, but then she just pushed off without so much as an apology or checking to see if I was okay.  Now that was just plain RUDE!  My retribution would come much, much later….    

I pulled myself together and assessed the damage.  My bike was fine but my knee was scraped and bleeding.  I washed it off, gave myself a slap in the butt, garnered all available moxie and pushed off for the second time.  The crowd redoubled it’s efforts - cheering and clanging their cowbells like I was Rudy or something.  Well that was an exciting start to say the least!

Once on the road I felt great and was looking forward to capitalizing on my strength.  Within the first few miles I hit a hard bump and lost my nutrition. This would prove to be a pivotal moment, as from thereon out I relied on nutrition available at aid stations.  I pushed along at the prescribed watts, but didn't do math well on how many calories I should be taking in and got behind.  

*** Zoom, zoom zoom… ***

The course lived up to its tough reputation summed up nicely by pro Matt Russel: “I think this was the toughest bike course I've ever ridden. Trevor Wurtele thought the same. I think Trevor had a little over 6000 ft of climbing. I rode the fastest time which was 4:42. If I was at Kona I felt like my effort would have been a 4:32 as I have ridden mid 4:40's at Kona both years.”    Up and down, up and down, up and down I went on the hilly course enjoying the views and pushing merrily along save for being stung in the chest by one very tenacious bee.  

My only frustration with the race itself was on the very flat 30 miles of the course there were long tightly grouped pacelines that went unregulated by the referees.  I’d pass these groups of 5 – 15 men only for them to get their knickers in a twist and pass me back. I knew I was riding steady watts, so that jockeying was ALL ON THEM.  This led to me having an unnecessarily unsteady effort in that segment because to stick to my plan so I’d have to pass them back as they invariably slowed few minutes later.  My only consolation was Heidi had convinced me to buy a #YOUGOTCHICKED t-shirt at the expo and I figured at least I had legitimately earned the right to wear it.   

**** Yep.  Get over it! ***

By the end of the bike I should have taken in about 1,800 calories and I estimate I took in only 700.  That I'm not sure is a clear indicator I don’t do math well within a race.  I should be able to say precisely what I took in.  This is arguably the most critical point of executing an Ironman and a total rookie mistake on my part.  D’oh, d’oh, d’oh!   In any event, I finished the bike in 5:51:xx which was also near the top 10% of the field.  I didn't realize I was behind on my nutrition at that point and hopped off ready to RUN! 

Run

I hit the run ready to execute a 10:00 pace. The first mile clicked off at 9:40. Good, I told myself… now slow down. The second was 10:03 and then I suddenly found myself struggling through a 10:30 and distinctly hit the wall like never before.  My legs felt like concrete and my head spiraled as I tried to figure out what was happening.  I began thinking through the bike leg, began realizing how behind I was and started trying to mindfully recoup the caloric deficit.    The girl who took me out at the mount line on the bike passed me. I felt horrible for not being able to execute for Mark who had escorted me on so many successful long runs.  By mile five my pace was holding steady at about 10:30 which I considered a minor victory at the moment but then the port-a-pottie parade began.  At first I was in and out in a minute or two, but the stops became increasingly unpredictable and, um, lengthy.  Sigh. 

*** Plod, plod, plod… ***

Without the lure of a PR or even what I would consider a successful run, I did some serious mental gymnastics to keep plugging along.   Everything hurt.  My knee hurt.  My head hurt.  The list of excuses and pseudo-injuries that plague any Ironman athlete could go on and on.  I’d knew I’d be seriously tempted to DNF at the half-way point as the course conveniently takes you on two loops though the village.  Why not just call it a day at 13.1 and live to fight another day?    Time to HTFU, I told myself.  

Why finish?  Pride?  Yes.   A years’ worth of training to earn at least afinish?  Absolutely.    A trip to the finisher’s merchandise tent to see if I could melt the mag strip on my credit card in the morning?  YES!         Mark’s hug at the finish line.  Unequivocally.

Mark was waiting in the village at that tempting half-way point.  We had a quick conversation while he ran alongside me for a few minutes.  I had a mini pity-party, let him know that my goals had been significantly revised and tried to find some humor in the moment so he wouldn't worry.  At that point, goal #1 (to survive) was probably still on the table.  Goal #2 (to have fun) was a bit difficult at times but I promised to do my best.  My new goal #3 was a stretch goal and that was to keep running - no walking it in!    Things were looking up.  I felt better and better as the run progressed and I re-passed the girl who took me out at the mount line of the bike.    Sweet (mini) victory. 

*** Have I mentioned the scenery?!? ***

Finisher!

At mile 20 I had my most lengthy port-a-pottie stop on the day.  I actually started to feel woozy in there had visions of passing out and not being found until the morning.  That certainly wasn't the way I wanted to end my race, so I peeked out and I asked a (saintly) volunteer to check on me in a few minutes if I hadn't emerged. She stood duty like a Canadian Mountie and met me with a bit of chicken broth to kick off that last 10K.  Thank you AGAIN volunteers! 

I was able to plod along steadily enough to the beautiful Whistler finish. I missed the bear sighting and was in before dark though perhaps that would have prompted a faster run?!?  Coming into the village the crowds lined the course and Mark popped up at all the right moments.  I crossed the finish line for my fourth Ironman in 12:26, well off my 11:35 PR.   Regardless, I can honestly say this was my proudest finish because of the mental fortitude it took to just.keep.going. 

  

“I'd rather attempt to do something great and fail than to attempt to do nothing and succeed.” Robert H. Schuller

Thanks to Nicole for the image! 

Hindsight is 20-20 Two weeks of reflection has brought me to some key points to implement next year.  Between now and then I will:

- Revisit my nutrition plan and be able to do math on the fly if I need to move to plan B.  Or C or D…

- In addition to the nutrition SNAFU on the bike, the variability of my ride was my worst to date. This had been a strength of mine and I was surprised at my result.  It means I wasn't as steady as I could have been and wasted effort.  Moving forward I will analyze my bike file after race rehearsals break the bike into logical segments. I’ll be able to identify where opportunities to smooth my effort lie and further refine the details of my race plan. 

- Figure out how to NOT poo up and down the course. 

*** Would be glad to never see another port-a-pottie! ***

The Kona Question  Yes, of course someday I’d like to race in Kona.  Fortunately, there are now three ways to get there: talent, stubbornness and luck.   

Talent will get you to Kona if you place within the top few in your age group.  At most races that means I’d need to be in the top two or three of 100 – 150 finishers.  They offered double the usual slots at IMC 2013 as a carrot to encourage people to come to the new venue.  A member of our Endurance Nation team summed up the result pretty succinctly:  “Just general observations, but now that all the results are in, it was extremely competitive out there in the KQ hunt. It seems like the promise of double slots drew a significant number of would-be potential qualifiers from other races. Kind of ironic that looking at the times and how tight the groupings were, looks like you'd have had a better chance to KQ at some of the less popular 50-slot races like IMLOU this year than you did at Whistler.”    Truthfully I’d have done IMC anyway.    I like being able to drive and that Mark can participate on the swim course.  I suppose I'll continue to attempt to “outwork your talent” as they say.    

If you add up my typical 1:05 swim, and 5:45 bike to my *** yet unproven** 4:20 run, plus transitions, my overall “perfect day” race would be 11:15.  Historically at IMC this would place me somewhere around 10^th – 20^th while at Ironman Couer d’Alene this would place me 4^th or 5^th.  Add a little roll-down luck to my “perfect day” and yes, anything is possible. 

Stubbornness will now get you to Kona under the new “Legacy” program. This allows a person with twelve Ironman finishes to race Kona.  I have four to date – just eight to go!

 

Luck can get you to Kona as well! The race has a lottery where ANYONE can win one of 100 spots to race. They simply have to validate their spot by completing one finish that year.

I’m moving forward on all three fronts: trying to outwork my talent, continuing to be stubborn by working towards those twelve finishes and playing the lottery for a little luck. 

I’ve asked myself and Mark the ultimate litmus test for our adventures:  “If Kona sank into the ocean tomorrow (or the Legacy program was discontinued or I was unable to race for some reason), would we be glad to have put so much into the process?”  The answer for both of us is an unequivocal YES!  We love the sport, the people and to train.  It really is about the journey, not the destination.

*** Talent, Stubbornness or Luck!  ***

Doubling Down

In 2014 we will be doubling down and I’ll be racing both Ironman Couer d’Alene and Ironman Canada.  This will give me an opportunity to earn two finishes towards the twelve for the Legacy program and also to race at a different venue which may play more to my strengths – who knows!?!  One thing is for sure - the races are four weeks apart and managing them both will be a new adventure! 

*** Looks downright tame compared to the 6K + of IMC! ***

Diana Nyad’s quote rings particularly true this year.  “I have three messages. One is we should never, ever give up. Two is you never are too old to chase your dreams. Three, it looks like a solitary sport, but it takes a team.”.  A sincere to everyone who has been a part of the continued journey. The training partners, understanding and interested friends and family, the bevvy of doctors and specialists and of course Mark for making sure it’s always FUN!   

*** A boat in T2 – Always a fun adventure with Mark ! ***

The Journey to the Start of Ironman Canada 2013

 The Journey to the Start of Ironman Canada 2013

My first 1st, an experience with SIPE (Swimming Induced Pulmonary Edema) and running all over (our new!) town. 

“Life is a journey, not a destination.” ― Ralph Waldo Emerson

Home and Health High off a solid finish and wonderful trip to the Big Island for Lavaman, we returned home to the realities of life in a new house.  A series of fantastic housewarming parties, our first $500 water bill (ouch!) and the sweet satisfaction of enjoying a quiet evening on our new patio gave way to the load of Ironman training.    Although I had learned that my shoulder pain was due to a torn labrum that will require surgery to fix, I started the build with relatively little pain and luckily it remained that way ALL year.  If I knew what kept it from flaring up, I’d bottle it and sell it!     As it turns out, I’d make it all the way to the start line yet again without so much as a cold and completely uninjured.  ***Knocking on wood now… ***

Valley Girls  A highlight of the summer was our annual pilgrimage to Valley Girl where I was lucky enough to experience leading a race from start to finish.  There certainly is something magical about swimming though unfettered water, following the pace motorcycle on the bike and being the first to cross that line! To me though, this race is truly about friends and family.  We thoroughly enjoyed our time with Annette, Steve, Patrick, Diana, Kathy, Greg, Christine, Heidi, Chris and their families.  The trip was polished off with a road trip home with four girls in Christine’s 1980s Bronco!   What happens in the Bronco, STAYS in the Bronco! 

*** My First 1st!  ***

 

 

*** Valley Girls ***

 

 

 

*** Valley Girls Road Trippin' Home! ***

 

***************************************************************

Swim Training  Introducing SIPE: Swimming Induced Pulmonary Edema  (Not so glad to meet ya.)

Seems my luck ran out on the swim this year.  I started the build slower than in previous years and it was clear I was well off the 1:05 pace I’d enjoyed with relative ease in my three previous IMs.  After a poor showing at a Friday Night Swim race, Brad provided some solid advice and suggested I up my yardage.  He even offered to do some “over distance” open water swims of 6,000 – 8,000 yards with me.    I was humbled that (ridiculously fast and experienced) Brad would take the time to swim with me and eagerly accepted.  The first over distance swim went really well.  I swam strong, recovered quickly and was eager to do it again the next week. 

 

 

*** Lake Sawyer Over Distance Swim ***

 

I arrived at the second swim excited to get another over distance workout under my belt.  We were joined by our friend Julie and once assembled we jumped in and were off!   Within the first few hundred yards I knew something was wrong. Brad and Julie swam ahead as they typically did, but they seemed to be pulling away faster than usual.  Hmmmm.  I slowed down and did breaststroke for a bit. They waited.  When I got going again it felt like I was swimming though quicksand and they were pulling away faster than ever.  I couldn’t catch my breath.  My wetsuit felt tight.  I stopped again and tried to catch my breath.  Self quiz: Was I having a panic attack?  No, I wasn’t breathing fast or scared, I just felt like I couldn’t get enough oxygen with each breath.  Was I too cold?  Hmmmm, nope – it was the middle of July and I was in a full wetsuit!  Is this what asthma feels like?  Sheesh – I don’t know because I don’t have asthma!  

We had gotten about a third of a mile down the lake when we regrouped again and Brad knew something was wrong.  He could hear my lungs crackling (I thought it was my imagination!) and knew what SIPE was.  After some conversation and a few attempts to get going again, I ended up getting out of the lake and doing the “walk of shame” back to my car. I took this video shortly after getting out so that I could share it with my doctor.  Warning: It’s not pretty.  ;-(

 

*** This SIPE Thing SUCKS! ***

Mark met me at my car and my lungs continued to crackle with fluid, though they did start to improve after I took my wetsuit off.  After a few tears I headed off to work.   I was extremely lucky to have been with Brad who knew what my symptoms meant as that cut my research time down dramatically.  A cursory internet search brought me to Kat Calder-Becker who is the Ultra Distance Triathlon Champion of Canada. She was kind enough to call me and walk me though what SIPE is, how she is managing it and what I can do to mitigate the risks. She helped write an article on Slowtwich that resonated almost precisely with my experience.    Additionally, she put me in touch with Dr. Richard Moon of Duke and he was also kind enough to call me.  It so happens that Dr. Moon is doing a research study that I am being considered for. 

As I understand it, the risk factors I can control are getting a thorough warm-up, not being over hydrated and not overexerting myself at the start.  Obviously, these three tips are almost the exact OPPOSITE of what an Ironman start looks like so I’d need to change my plan for race day significantly.  Additionally, if my lungs started to fill with fluid, I'd been advised to scrap the entire day as it takes at least several hours to resolve and additional exertion would only increase the damage to the lung tissue.  Sigh.   I did get back in the water the next week and had a couple more successful (and FUN!) over distance swims.  My yardage topped out at about 16,000 – 18,000 yards with one week at 20,000.  I was feeling strong and back to my usual pace, but my confidence wavered with a mass two-loop swim start at a new venue to face on race morning.    My race plan was to go easy for the outbound leg of the first loop and if my lungs felt good to bump it up to a more typical race pace. 

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Bike Training  The bike continued to be a relative strength for me this year and I improved my functional threshold power from about 200w to 219w.   I did a lot of hard work in our new Pain Cave and although it wasn’t flashy or easy those hours certainly paid off.  On Sundays I enjoyed trying to keep up with the big boys on the Northwest Tri and Bike ride and the accompanying Strava smack talk. Pride can be a painfully effective motivator!      

*** Our New Pain Cave ***

 

I did big ride up Mr. Rainer from Crystal Mountain for my first race rehearsal.  In the end I was on the mountain over seven hours and it took quite a bit of bargaining with myself simply to NOT hitch a ride up the last six mile climb back to Crystal! At one point I got off my bike for a few minutes to regroup and wondered if I looked pitiful enough that someone would stop and offer a ride.  But, alas, NOBODY was going up Crystal that late in the day.  Ultimately I made it and was rewarded with hitting a milestone of over 10,000 feet of climbing on the day.  I felt my bike was well prepared and my race plan was to stick to the prescribed wattage and let the time result fall where it may. 

 

*** Mt. Rainier Mental Toughness Test***

 

 

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Run Training Even though it certainly isn’t my strength, my run training also went really well.  The frequency increased on the Endurance Nation “advanced” plan and I was actually surprised at how well I was able to manage the load.  I was running faster and longer than ever and was lucky enough to be escorted by Mark on most of my long runs.  We had lots of great long chats (him talking, me nodding…) and you never know when you’ll need a TP delivery man!  My long runs alternated a mile at my “easy pace” of about 9:55 with a mile at “marathon pace” of about 8:25 up to a couple of 20 milers.  These were by far my longest runs at any accelerated pace and my confidence increased each week.  My race plan was to hold a 10:00 pace for the first half of the marathon and then see what the day had in store. 

 

*** Husband Hero Exhibit: TP Delivery! ***

 

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Race Rehearsal  Two weeks prior to the race we headed to Whistler for our scheduled a race rehearsal with our friend Ann.   My oh my, those are some HILLS!  I’d been advised to check my time goals at the border and that proved to be true!   Ann, Mark and I enjoyed the first half of the course together.  For the second half, Mark proved to be our knight in shining (Ford F350) armor delivering high fives and Diet Coke at just the right moments to get us through it. The next day we ran one loop of the run course and I also splashed around in the lake a bit.  We also scouted the boat launch which, frankly, looked a little sketchy as it was a “raw” launch without pavement or dock which could prove challenging launching the boat for race week.  All three of us left Whistler feeling much more prepared and confident for a successful race week!   

 

 

*** Penticton Race and Whistler Rehearsal Comparison ***

 

 

 

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Soon enough it was race week and with boat in tow and Heidi tucked into the crew cab of the truck we were headed to Whistler!  I felt very prepared although I knew I’d have to temper my excitement on the swim start to ward of another SIPE incident.  Although nowhere near as light as the “fast girls”, I headed into the race lighter, faster and stronger than I had personally been on any year to date.  We were ready! 

 

 

 

*** MOJO Exchange with Ann *** 

Lavaman 2013

 

From “DQ” to “#2” and We Say “Oh YES” to an Ono Recovery Fishing Trip

We arrived on the Big Island for our fourth tri-camp and Lavaman retreat with mixed emotions.  A year ago we had been joined by my entire family including my parents, my brother Kyle and his wife Katie.  In the year that transpired, Katie had passed away and as the plane touched down we found ourselves unusually contemplative.  Kyle would join us along with our friend Kaitlyn, but the family was different and Katie was gone.  Lavaman hosts a 5K run on the Friday before the race.  By sheer coincidence, it was held precisely on the six-month anniversary of Katie’s passing.  Kyle and Kaitlyn ran the race in shirts honoring Katie. 

 *** Honoring Katie: The stencil is in Katie’s handwriting. ***

On a happier front, the six weeks prior to the race had been a flurry of decidedly NON-triathlon house buying activities. We made an offer on our dream house January 28^th, closed February 15^th and moved in on March 3^rd. Zoom! We were immersed in an entirely different kind of chaos that included completely repainting, re-flooring, furnishing and moving into the new house in addition to renting our old house. For the first time in several years I missed planned workouts and arrived at the race feeling much less prepared than usual. But, with a healthy dose of perspective firmly in place, I was mindful that these are good problems to have and vowed to simply enjoy my time and to do my best.

 

 *** Training Cliff: Not exactly an ideal build for Lavaman.  Or maybe a double-top-secret taper? ***

Lavaman!

We had a glorious week of swimming, biking, running and pupu-ing (Hawaiian appetizers!) with our first coaches Julie & Duncan, and our motley crew of like-minded tri geeks. Soon enough, the morning of Lavaman was upon us! 

*** Pre-Lavaman Group Ride: Fun in the sun! *** 

Swim: 29:16

After a minor meltdown over my (lack of) swimming progress over the winter, superhero Mark had swooped in to save the day. He enlisted the help of local tri-stud Erin E. and I’d spent ten weeks working with (the ridiculously patient) Erin at zero-dark-thirty on Friday mornings. He helped improve my stroke significantly and if 1,000 yard time trials were any indication, I was swimming faster than ever. Logic would dictate that my Lavaman swim time would be improved as well but alas, it wasn’t meant to be. I got a good start and felt I swam well but still came out of the water almost three minutes slower than last year.

  *** Out of the Water: Not thrilled with my time but perspective firmly in place! ***

 

I heard from a lot of other racers that it was a “slow swim”with the current working against us. While the results seem to validate their sentiments, it certainly would have helped if I’d swum a straight line! D’oh, d’oh, d’oh! I reminded myself that in the grand scheme of things all that mattered was that I do my best and headed up the beach to T-1.

 *** Swimming Straight: It’s an art I haven’t mastered, apparently. Mark offered that perhaps I was trying to swim the outline of the Stanley Cup? Thanks Mark. Superhero status revoked, for now. *** 

 

T-1: 2:24

T-1 was no drama mama. There were still a lot of bikes on the racks which gave me hope that I wasn’t DFL coming out of the water, but I was pretty sure the fasties were well in front of me.

 

Bike: 1:06:34 (22.4 MPH)

Here’s where it got (and stayed) interesting. Right off the bat I launched my water on a speed bump coming out of the Hilton. A helpful volunteer picked it up for me but I couldn’t bear the thought of the time lost (and potential crash caused) by turning around to retrieve it so I elected to push on without. Luckily, it was an overcast day and I didn’t feel thirsty until I approached the turnaround where I grabbed a bottle at the aid station.

 

 

*** Feeling Groovy: Pushing the targeted watts outbound and considering turning it up on the return! ***

 

I was able to Jennerate (ha!) the targeted 180 – 185 watts comfortably and felt pleased with the effort. I hadn’t been passed by a single woman but again, figured the fast gals were in front of me and guessed based on the swim time I was still sitting at around 15^th place.

 

Then, without warning coming out of the turnaround, the shizz hit the fan. As I got back up to speed on the turn, I came upon two cyclists who were camped out on the shoulder. My options were: 1 – run into them, 2 – stop suddenly and have someone run into me or 3 – pass them on their left and (slightly!!!!) cross the (one of FOUR!!!) white fog line. I passed safely and got back underway only to be swooped upon by a referee from behind who announced like an umpire: “You’re out!” Um… “Excuse me?” I asked. “You’re over the white line and disqualified!” and he zoomed off. WTF? 

 

*** Scene of the Crime: I’d crossed a white fog line and been declared disqualified while maneuvering around a couple of camped out cyclists. Never mind that it was one of FOUR fog lines at that point and that I was avoiding a collision. Sigh. ***  

 

 

Here’s where my mental toughness was tested. What I really wanted to do is pull over and cry. Crying, as we will see later, seemed to be my default reaction to any strong emotion on the day. What I did instead was push on at those targeted watts. Would they pull me off the course as I headed out onto the run? Would I be banned for life from any future triathlon? Oh geeze – stop with the drama I told myself. And remember, in the grand scheme of things what really matters is you do your best and the bike was my strength. So, I stayed strong (ish), pedaled on and headed back towards T-2.

 

 

T-2: 1:34

I arrived in T-2 a bit discombobulated. Half surprised there was no referee waiting with handcuffs, I found myself free to continue onto the run. Simple enough, you’d think. Take off left bike shoe, put on left run shoe. Take off right bike shoe, put (back!) on right bike shoe. Start to run. D’oh! Turn around. Take of right bike shoe AGAIN, put on right RUN shoe and yes, now I was off on the run!
 

Run: 50:41 (8:10 mm)

Other than the mental challenge of knowing I’d likely been disqualified, I felt good on the run. And there was a silver lining: For the first time at Lavaman I wasn’t passed by a parade of fleet footed women. In fact, I was only passed by a few other ladies and they didn’t appear to be in my age group. Figuring I was simply holding my position within the race and that I wouldn’t record an official finish anyway, I ran strong to the finish. I repeated the mantra to simply DO MY BEST!

 

*** Lavafield Run: Tricky footing along the coastline but FUN! ***

 At the finish line I was cheered in by Kyle and Katilyn. Shortly thereafter (with a PR finish!) Mark joined us. I hadn’t said much other than I’d had a good race, not wanting to sour the atmosphere. The organizers had flyers posted all around the finish area where you could use your smartphone to look up your finish time. I scanned, plugged in my number and my result popped up: Second in my age group – what would be my highest finish ever. At that moment, I began to consider that it just might matter after all. 

 

 

*** Lavaman Results: Second of a hundred finishers in my age group! It also appeared I’d had the fastest bike split and a not-quite-horrible swim.   ***

 

We headed out to pick up our bikes and I still hadn’t said much, though the peeps were already encouraging me to challenge the ruling. I didn’t want everyone to have to wait for me to talk it over with a referee and it had been a long day already. I intended to just head back to home, but as I rolled out of transition I noticed it had a little strip of red duct tape tagged on my shifter, like a scarlet letter. Yep, IT MATTERED. I handed my bike off to Kyle and promised to just have a quick chat with a referee to validate the decision so we could get out of there. 

Back at the finish line I rounded up a nice referee easily enough and explained the scenario with my lower lip trembling. He seemed interested and even drew out a diagram (while I cried, apologetically) of the course and what happened to make sure he understood. Mark, Kyle and Kaitlyn joined me while the referee called the most senior referee to talk it over. More tears. More waiting. Finally the referee came over and let me know that the ruling had been overturned, and I was no longer disqualified. He was rewarded with even MORE tears. Classy, I know. 

 



 *** Overturned! ***

What a relief! My finish would hold and I’d be back on the podium! Unfortunately, that meant more waiting for the ever-patient peeps, but they were glad to do so and soon enough I was collecting some hardware!     Thanks again for hanging out Julie, Duncan, Mark, Kyle, Katilyn, Andy, Jenn, Gene, Stacey and our own paparazzi Cris! 

 

 

*** Team Chillin': Post race beers help keep the peeps happy while we wait! ***

The awards included a mug, a custom Lavaman bracelet, a gift certificate to the local bike shop and the requisite lei!

 

*** Women’s 35 – 39 Age Group Winners! Yes, I cried. Go figure. ***

 

 

 

 

 

*** Julie and Jenn: Double Hardware! ***

 

Race Recovery Fishing Trip: We say “Oh Yes” to Ono!

After a long day at the races, we’ve begun to somewhat regularly reward ourselves with a nice relaxing day of fishing.  This year we were invited by Julie and Duncan’s Kona neighbor, Ernie, to spend the day on his boat fishing off the Kona coast.    Ernie proved to be an extremely gracious host who clearly revels in sharing his love of fishing with others.  With that, first thing Monday morning we were on the water enjoying the sunshine with our feet up. 

 

*** Fish On! Hey now, so much for relaxing - this is hard work!  ***

 

 

*** Fish in the Boat! No getting out of here now, Mr. Ono. ***

 

 

*** Weighty! Kyle gaffed it and after Mark beat it with a stick we were eager to get an unofficial weight. ***

*** Big ‘Un: Let me try to lift this myself… ***

 

 

*** Mark to the Rescue: Much easier to just cheer him on.  Superhero status reinstated! ***

 

 

 *** Official Weigh In: Go Team! ***

 

***Ernie: Our gracious host was quite pleased with our catch and this fillet! ***

 

 

*** Just Add Wasabi: No cooking necessary!  ****

 

A big Mahalo to all who enjoyed this trip with us and those who cheered us on from afar.  We may not be back next year, but will always treasure our time on the Big Island!