Week 32-33 Yippee! I Done Dood It!

I have had this last chapter of my blog done up in draft for a long time but just haven't gotten around to posting it yet so here it is almost two months later. My last week 32 of tapering went very well except for the usual of feeling guilty about not doing enough, gaining weight and feeling like I am loosing my fitness and feeling slugish. I know all too well these feelings but it is part of the body healing to it's fullest physically, all the muscles, growing to their fullest capacity and getting loaded up with all the right chemicals to make them work with efficiency. Now if there was only a way to quickly get in that frame of mind where I did not feel that guilt.



A couple of small jaunts and bike rides this week along with a few short swims. My body is responding very well and I have to keep holding myself back. I am becoming like a spring wound up to it's maximum capacity and ready to unwind. Too keep my mind from dwelling too much on the negative this week, I stay busy getting all my gear together using my check list and adding stuff on at the last minute. The van is now fixed and tuned up and ready for the road.



At long last the trip begins. Linda and I are up early trying to catch the first ferry off the island. This way, we can meet up with my friends from Vancouver, Barb and Ger and Julie and Bob. We will be travelling together to Penticton. We have the coordinates plugged into the van's GPS to get us to the the coffee shop where we are suppose to meet. The ferry ride over is quick and I occupy myself with reading magazines. Bob and Julie walked on the ferry and will be getting picked up by Ger and Barb on the other side. I keep having day dreams that my van will not start when we are suppose to be getting off the ferry. But alas we finally arrive in Vancouver and off the ferry we go. Traffic not too bad. The talking GPS we have guided us exactly to the right coffee shop and about 10 minutes later we hooked up with Gerry and Bar and Julie and Bob. Surprize! Gerry is sporting a Mowhack cut and colored red to boot! When Gerry took off his peaked running cap and everyone saw it, we just howled with laughter. That's Ger! Full of surprizes all the time. We have a coffee and on the road we go to Penticton.



The ride over there seemed short. As we were getting nearer to Penticton, we kept seeing bike riders in their Tri suits getting some of their workouts in. This has the effect on us to really start pumping and we are getting exited. We arrive at our house that we rented and Linda and I have the basement suite all to ourselves which is good for privacy and peace and quiet. Linda and I are very axious for our daughter Tam, Rob and our grandchild to show up in a couple of days from now. During this final week, still have to follow our ritual of tapering and not letting the various muscle groups get to tight on us from inactivity. At the same time we absolutely do not want to exert ourselves even a bit too much. It is a fine line that we dare not cross over.



During this week, we go off and explore the Ironman fair where thousands of people are assembling each day and taking in all the products various sports company have to offer for health and fitness and also gear for swimming, biking and running and most of all nutrition stuff. I read an article in Triatlete magazine not too sample too many of these products for fear that it would act up in strange ways on our stomachs. Especially a couple of days prior to the big event. I avoid them like the plague but collect samples for later testing out.



Finally my family arrives from Calgary and we are so happy to see them. Mitchel our grandson has grown up quite a bit since we last saw him and we all hug each other with happiness. They are hauling a big 5'th wheeler and will be staying at a campsite a few miles from where we are. They bring out the t-shirts that Tammy make with cool graphics on the back sporting my Varmint logo and name "Team Varmint" That is so cool! and I am beaming with pride at my family's enthusiasm and pending support for me. Meanwhile we spend a lot of time with each other at their campsite waiting till Ironman day on Sunday. On Friday, I picked up our package and Friday night was spent assembling all of my gear and fine tuning my bike before racking it to transition the next day. I treat it like a baby and make sure that it is sparkling clean, oiled and going through all the gears to make sure everything is working just right. Just to make sure, I take it out for a short test ride. Everything is A-OK!



Saturday, I take off with my Tri friends to register and rack our bikes, while Linda hangs out with my family. I arrive back to the campsite fairly early for a pre-planned pasta dinner that Tammy has cooked for us. I enjoy our meal but try and not too eat too much as I usually do because historically it had not been very pleasant trying to digest all this food during an evening where I try and get as much sleep and rest as possible. Linda and I depart early after supper to make sure that I check all my transition bags, 5 in total for the next day. After that, I go upstairs and gab with my tri buddies for a bit and head off to bed early with the alarm set for 4 am.



I have a somewhat fitfull sleep that night thinking about the next day over and over again and how I will execute my plan. My goal is 12 hours or less but again that depends on how everything pans out. I just want to better my time from 2005 and not end up in the medical tent again with IV's stuck in me. At last the alarm sounds and I spring out of bed anxious to get going. After a hearty breakfast of Oatmeal and a banana and a coffee, I am ready to go. I kiss Linda goodbye and she wishes me the best. Her and the rest of my family will be following my exploits in the van throughout the day. I take off in the pitch black with my friends and arrive at the Ironman transition. I check out my tires and make sure all my gear is ready for the event. I make sure I go to the bathroom and try and get rid of the waste products laying in my stomach. Success! and a big sigh of relief come out of me. I am ready!



The Big Race



The Swim:



I am standing on the beach, in my wet suit with thousands of of other swimmers. The crowds are assembled above the beach also in the 10's of thousands. I futally try and spot my family but it is impossible amongst such a crowd. The adrenaline is building up and I am so axious to get going. I have decided to line up with Julie on the right hand side near the back so I don't get swum over at the start. We play the waiting game and then the Pro's are off. In a couple of minutes the big gun blasts off and it is our turn. I walk slowly in the water letting the crowds of swimmers ahead of us take off so I have a bit of clear water ahead of me. I am finally up to my waist and dive in and begin swimming. Everything goes good for a while. I am following so many swimmers that I lose sight of Julie and just try and concentrate on a smooth efficient stroke trying to draft off the swimmers in front of me. About 10 minutes into the swim, I start feeling very crowded and lift my head out of the water momentarily to realize that I am in the middle of a pack.



There is a lot of jostling around and there is no way of avoiding contact with other swimmers. At one point about 15 minutes into the swim, I get kicked in the head pretty hard by someone's heel and my goggles come off on one side. That kick to the temple sends me into a reel and I start feeling panic. I stop swimming trying to adjust my goggles and as soon as I have them on, swimmers are on top of me sending me underwater. A couple of times I try and surface but by that time the momentum of other swimmers against my stillness keeps me going under. I try not to panick and remain calm but it is becoming very difficult. I finally surface in a bit of clear water and start swimming a bit faster so I will not get swum over again. In the process, I swallow quite a bit of water and start coughing. I have to time my cough just right so that I get breath also at the same time. This goes on for a while and finally find myself strung out better between all the swimmers. My coughing subsides but realize I have lost lots of time. I decide not to let that bother me and just concentrate on finishing my swim with no more mishaps. It seems endless swimming towards buoys and waiting to catch up to the last buoy that would take me inot the beach. Meanwhile the swells plays tricks on my mind and stomach which is making me feel somewhat queasy. I finally see the beach and hotels off in the distance and know that I am almost finished. I swim until my hands start touching bottome and then stand up starting to unzip my wet suit. I am finally out of the water heading for the transition where a group of strippers help me strip my wet suit off my body. They help me up and I am on my way to grab my 1'st transition bag to change into my biking gear. The changing tent is so full of people that I join a few outside the tent and change into my biking stuff. During this process I had my sunglasses on the ground and saw a helper stand on them and break them. Great! I say to myself.....2'nd thing to go wrong. I later find out that it was not my glasses. Meanwhile after donning my helmet and gloves and shoes, I head for my bike which is well positioned in transition.



The Bike:



Grabbing my bike, I head off towards the mounting area and start pedalling. But for some reason I can't get clipped in! What the heck! I keep reapeating to myself trying first one foot then the other. No way I can't get clipped in. For a moment I think that my friends pulled a fast one on me and fooled around with my cleats. No way they would ever do that in such a serious event I say to myself. Meanwhile I am thinking maybe I picked up some mud from the soft wet grass and it stuck in my cleats. I reach down and feel my cleats. OH MY GOD! I forgot to take off my rubber cleat covers! How dumb is that! I pull over to the side get off my bike and dispose of these near the fence. I then mount my bike again lock myself in and breath a sigh of releif. Then I start laughing to myself on that stupid mistake I did. At the time, it's hilarious and I laugh about it to myself for a while longer. Hmmm...Third thing to go wrong. That should be all right? Wrong! Once I get into a groove on the bike, I am controlling my speed and keep it low. I am waiting for my heart rate to go down to start drinking. Meanwhile I check my speed on my odometer and it is not working. I keep fooling around with it but can't get it going. I suddenly notice that my pickup magnet is on the wrong side and it will not work untless I quickly change the front wheel to the other side. I decide ...the heck with it! I don't want to waste anymore time. Besides if I go by feel of exertion, I will know how fast I am going.



My heart rate goes down and I try my first drink. But for some reason I can't seem to drink enough. I keep burping and my gatorade won't stay down. I realize that the lake water I swallowed in the swim is too much and just laying there not allowing to ingest my much needed gatorade. This goes on for about 35-40kms and then I am able to start keeping some gatorade down if I just take small sips more often. Fourth thing to go wrong! I finally get through the steep section of McClean ranch road having controlled my speed throughout. On my way through Ossoyoos, my chain drops and I have to get off my bike to get it back on. That only took a few seconds and I was off. The much dreaded Richter's pass looms ahead of me and I am am ready to start the longest climb of the day. I have not seen my family yet but it should not be too long now. I am starting to have problems near the top of the climb and my inner quads start doing their little dance of quivers. Oh OH! I did not want this too happen as this what happened to me last time and ended up with disastrous results on the run. I try and ingest more gatorade and take in salt tabs at the same time. They seem to help a bit but the cramping is there. I get passed by Barb and Julie by the top of the climb and know that I am in trouble. The heat is getting worse now and I concentrate on drinking more. By now my stomach has settled down and I am able to keep down my liquids a bit better. By the time I reach the summit of Richters Pass, I am breathing hard from the effort but the crowds of people cheering us on wills me ahead. Finally, I reach the top! Now for the downhill section! I love the speed of downhill riding. But the wind starts kicking up and gusts of wind keep trying to force the bike to the side. It is very hard to keep in the areo position in this wind and keep control of the bike at the same time. But I manage to hold on and head off to the out and back portion where the special needs bag would be handed out to us should we need it. This section is very hot with no breeze to cool us off and extremely hilly in short spurts. Somehow Tam and family try and connect up with me but they get diverted off because they are not allowed on that part of the course. However after this section, I soon see them on the side of the road cheering me on with signs and taking pictures. I wave at them and smile. I have to keep telling myself to smile even though I am feeling rough. I yelled at them that I am having problems with cramping and Linda keeps telling me to hydrate which I am doing! I am getting tired of hearing this. I have a watch fixed on my helmet which keeps beeping every 10 minutes which I can help but hear to remind me to drink. That is not the problem.



At last the last climb of the day begins. The steep climb up to Yellow lake. This is fairly short 4-5 km climb but the steepest climb of the day. The trick is to stay in a high gear and keep spinning to lessen the load on the quads and to flush out the lactic acid. I passed a lot of people on that climb and thought that I would catch up to Julie and Barb soon but did not see them. There were thousands of people near the top of the climb willing us and cheering us on. It was quite a spectacular sight to see and really encouraging. As I neared the top, I breathed a site of releif as I saw the peak. From there on it was pretty near downhill all the way. At the top I made sure I hydrated properly and my cramping was lessening. I was starting to feel better. The speeds on the downhill section towards Penticton were something else achieving speeds of 70kms/hr on some sections. The winds were fierce and at times had to get out of aero to get both hands on the handlebars to keep control. Iit was also very hard after all this time having biked without sunglasses and at numerous times my eyes were watering. The skies were now clowding over and dark clouds were looming ahead of us. There was quite a lot of congestion of traffic on this section and I realized that my family would not be able to make it down in time for my next transition. As I neared town I made sure I spinned a lot to flush out the lactic acid left over in my legs and heading into town was cheered by thousands of spectators. I finally reached the transition and got off my bike handing it over to bike handlers to rack our bikes. I then headed over to my second transition bag to change into my running clothes. My transition was quick and on my way out made sure to grabbing watermelon, bananas and pretzels to eat.



The Run:



I finally headed out of transition and began my run. Suprisingly, I was able to get into a quick stride right away without cramping. A couple of kms out, I heard Tam and family cheering me on and spotted them. After acknowledging, smiling and waving at them, at took off at a brisk pace. Low and behold the rain started sprinkling. This was a blessing in disquise at it would keep me cool and prevent me from overheating. As I approached about 3-4 kms, I saw Julie and before I passed her, gave her a big hug and and wished her well. She mentioned that the run was going well and wished me well also. I figured Barb would just be ahead but a km further, she came up behind me. I must have passed her in transition or an aid station. After a few words and a hug and was feeling not to bad so took off ahead of her. As I neared the half way turn around point however, I began to experience cramping. I say my buddy Bob running effortless on his way back from the turn around and he seemed to be feeling good. I knew at that moment that I would not be catching him as he had too much of a lead on me. However he was 12 years younger than me and was having an excellent 1'st time Ironman. I had to get my focus back, dig inwardly for more strength to keep me going. By the time I hit the turn around at OK Falls, my cramps were severe and the camber on the side of the road was making it worse. I was hurting really bad. I decided to run mainly towards the middle of the road to ease the cramping. That helped and could hardly wait to get out of that really hilly section. At that time, I also started consuming a lot of chicken soup and coke. This seemed to help and I was able to walk and run in a fairly quick stride. I knew I was on better pace on this run than 2005, however I had lost 10 minutes on the swim and 20 minutes on the run, so I would have to make that up somehow. I looked at my watch and my 12 hour mark passed by so now it was just holding on, digging deep and try and gain some momentum. I was never so glad to see town approaching. I kept up my stride avoiding the walking now and soon I was in town and saw my family. I quickly stopped and gave Linda, a big hug and said I was feeling much better. Tammy said she would run with me a bit on the way back. I waived to Mitchel and said bye. About 10 minutes later, I had turned around and was heading back towards the finish line. Midway through that kilometer I saw my family , again and waved at them. Tammy then joined me to run towards the finish line. She stayed with me till near the finish line and handed me my cell phone so we could connect amongst the 10's of thousands of people there. As I crossed the finish line, I saw the clock and smiled. I had beaten my last time by about 12 minutes so it was still an improvement and felt good about my performance. As I approached the finish line I was high fiving lots of spectators and then finally crossed the ribbon with arms held high in Victory. I was a happy man. I achieved 3 out of 4 of my goals: To be in the top 10 in my age group which I came in 7'th, I had bettered my time by 12 minutes and I did not end up in the medical tent with an IV in my arm. Yahooo! My final result times for the even were as follows: My Swim - 1:30:26, Bike - 6:41:03 and Run 4:40:29. I came in 7 out of 52 in my age group and 1184 OA out of 2200+ participants. It was such a grand day and the best part was having all my family there to support me. Special thanks to my wife for all the support while spending endless hours away from home training. And thank you Tammy for bringing Team Varmint with you and cheering me on. Thank you Brent for your long distance support by tracking me on line all day. It means a lot that you were there for me too even from afar.

My future goals are now focused for Ironman Wisconsin for 2010. My Time goals are unsure at this time as I am getting a bit older and cannot expect to improve in this sport indefinitely but you know what? You can never tell. The next course will be flatter so maybe a PR time for an Ironman is not out of the question just yet. We shall see! For this next year I will take it easy and spend more quality time with my wife, expecially golfing with her. With final retirement looming just around the corner, life seems rosier as we go on. Rock On!