Tramps shared with me all of your encouraging words, so in turn here's my RR. You should know that Tramps is the best sherpa ever! I asked him if he went to graduate school for it, but he says he just took a correspondence course. Whatever the case, I'm convinced he did extra credit work in patience, humor and hugs.

The short version: The wind sucked. I finished.

13:51:20  4/16 AG;  77/147 F Overall;  463/668 Overall

The long version:

SWIM (2.4 miles)

53:02   3/16 AG;  57/147 FOA;  334/668 OA

Goal: Get out of the water ready to bike; not feel trashed

Status: WIN!

I did the aquabike last year (swim and bike without that pesky little run at the end) and got out of the water feeling pummeled and with a shoulder injury that made for a painful bike after. My goal was to have a very different swim this year.

The swim is a point-to-point swim down a saltwater channel, with a mass start. In contrast to last year, the current was in the right direction and delivered what is billed as the fastest IM swim around. My time was 36 minutes faster than last year. I attribute 5-10 minutes of that to better swimming, and the rest to picking better lines and the current (which go hand in hand because the better lines got you in the best current). My practice swim a few days earlier really paid off, as I watched a pack in front of me make the same mistake I made in the practice--missing a turn and getting pushed down a side channel by the current.

BIKE (112 miles)

7:11:30  5/16 AG;  83/147 FOA;  503/668 OA

Goal: Finish ready to run

Status: Modest success; probably parts where I should have gone harder

I made the decision to enter the aquabike last year at a relatively late date, after a stress fracture ended my tri season. I went into the aquabike under trained, and paid the price, collapsing into a sobbing heap at the end. My memory of that finish motivated me during many a long, hot workout this summer. I knew I never wanted to finish feeling like that again.

I was toasty coming out of the swim, it looked like the sun was about to break through the clouds, and I thought it was a going to be a great race for me. Five weeks earlier I had finished an IM bike split on a similar course in 6:22, and thought I was golden for this one.

Boy did that go downhill fast. There was a steady headwind of 12-18 mph with gusts up to 23 mph for the first 70+ miles, combined with rain, mist and sleet to the point I was soaked. I was really, really cold--I think maybe even mildly hypothermic as I was shaking uncontrollably--and stopped at bike special needs to put on a long sleeve jersey from my special needs bag and scrounged up a pair of dry socks. (Thank you to the angel that gave me her spare pair!)

The wind did not let up for the next ten hours.

I told myself the forecast was for clearing mid-day--that didn't happen. I told myself the headwinds would turn into amazing tailwinds when I turned around for the 40 miles back--that didn't happen. By the time I got to that turn the winds were shifting. I got some tailwind in spots, but nothing comparable to the headwinds on the way out, and there were side gusts that kept pushing my front wheel out from underneath me. The lying, deceitful part of my brain was working hard to convince the rest of me that I might as well stop at the end of the bike because I was going to be too trashed to run anyway.

I stopped watching my pace because it was too discouraging. I stopped watching my HR because it was useless--I couldn't get my HR down and keep moving forward. When I finally got to the last 40, I didn't push as hard as I could of because I was concerned about trashing my legs for the run--or at least that is what I told myself. I stopped twice and waited on port-o-johns instead of being more efficient with my time, in retrospect a sneaky way to buy a break.

I did not warm up until mile 111.5. At that point I had on four layers of clothing, I was going up a bridge, and the sun finally came out. I was in a pretty foul mood at this point, and then I remembered my coach telling me sometimes she changed clothes in T2 just to get a fresh start. So I told myself I was going to change my clothes in T2, get an attitude adjustment, and get a fresh start on the run.

RUN (26.2 miles)

5:30:32  6/16 AG;  89/147 FOA;  463/668 OA

Goal: Run each mile and walk 30 steps at each aid station; finish with a smile on my face

Status: Almost

The run course is a two loop out and back that crosses two bridges (one a drawbridge with metal grates), goes through a downtown area with cobblestone and brick lined streets, across two at-grade railroad crossings and down a bumpy path through a park. I hit the first bridge, only to have the wind slam in my face, blowing my hat off three times in the next 100 yards. The wind continued to howl for the next 14 miles.

My tummy started hurting around mile 10 or 11, like somebody was pounding on the inside of it. I felt sugared out and couldn't stand the thought of another gel, so I started taking some chicken broth every other mile. It was yummy, but not many calories to it. By mile 17 I was hungry and discouraged, so I made a plan to go sit in a port-a-john at mile 18 (to get off my feet and out of the wind, have a gel, and rest for one minute) and this is where my pace started a downward nosedive.

My stomach started hurting again after the gel, so no more of that; had a piece of banana at miles 20 and 22. I had front loaded my calories on the bike, consuming about 2/3 of them before mile 50 in an effort to get warm, so I think between that and only one gel on the second half of the run I started to run out of juice.

It was somewhere around mile 21 or 22 that the lying, deceitful part of my brain came back and tried to convince me that I really, really could walk faster than I could run, and it really, really was OK to walk 60 steps instead of 30 at the aid stations, and it really, really was OK to walk them S-L-O-W. I won the first argument by picking off walkers in front of me to prove I could run faster than walk. I lost the second because I couldn't think of anything to counter it.

Mind you, nothing was screaming to stop. My legs felt pounded, but my quads weren't burning, nothing was cramping. Later, I realized that all day I never said the things to myself that I usually do to make myself push harder. They didn't even occur to me. In my mind, that is the difference between the solid, respectable performance I had for my first 140.6, and the really great 70.3 and IM aquabike races I had earlier in the season. I guess there’s only one way to learn the mental part of an IM, and that’s the hard way.

The finish chute wove for ¼ mile through port-o-johns, changing tents, a desolate parking lot and over rough gravel patches. A fellow racer described it as a “test mouse maze.” All I could think of was “keep the legs moving,” “don’t trip” and “where is the finish?” Preoccupied with those very basic thoughts, I didn’t get choked up thinking about what this finish met, or even have the chance to smile. Before I knew it I was across the finish line, and there was Tramps waiting for me. Best hug I’ve ever gotten!

A 73 year old woman from North Carolina was the last racer to finish. She crossed the line at 16:58:52. I want to be just like her when I grow up.

Wonderful race and Race Report Iron Woman

Ya know, you're description of your experience was very articulate and inspiring to me, but I do know....your race is about the most difficult of all endurance events. And the mind games you mentioned are a huge part of such a race....oh, stop - walk - slow down - quit. But I see more in this RR than meets the eye...a very tough race, raced by an incredibly tough Lady. Wind...that kind of wind totally sucks while cycling, I get that.

Dang, you're a strong swimmer...almost twice as fast as me - lol

How you put up with Tramps, well, maybe we have a better idea now

Amazing indeed !

Well done !!!  

Tim

Wow - you rock Mrs. Tramps! You did everything well in less than ideal conditions. Great report too. I've always heard that the goal of all ironman competitors is Hawaii. Ready to sign up for that one yet?  

Absolutley Fantastic Mrs Tramps!!!     I cannot imagine just running a marathon in those conditions let alone a whole IronMan!      Thanks for sharing your journey with us.  

I told her the tough iron-woman image would be undermined by all that talk of hugs, but would she listen?  No.

Don't tell her I posted these.

Day before the race: gorgeous weather; the view from our hotel. Race day would be very different.

Funny story: the day after the race, the weather was sunny again so we went down and enjoyed the outdoor jacuzzi where we met another couple doing the same thing.  It turns out the woman had won DW's AG! She was an ultra runner who mentioned she'd once done a 50-miler on only flat Coke and M&M's.  Ewwww!

Here's the swim start on the beach; pitch black.  We were waiting for it to get light enough for the Coast Guard to give the okay to start.  DW's the one in the black wetsuit and blue swim cap.

Swim over and she's off on the bike ride (in blue):

Now to finish up with that little 26.2 run.  (I swear I hear the "Rocky" theme when I see this pic.)

Yeah, DW's pretty cool.  

Very nice IronMan !!  I really like your descriptions of the feelings you had. You know this makes you a very strong person now as you look back at what you accomplished!  You've come a LONG way since when I saw you last!

There must be some intense Boot Camp in the woods of Virginia!

Congratulations!!

Yep--that's pretty dang amazing.  Thanks for the report!

Wow!  That is some AMAZING racing - great job!!!

Nice pics, too. I can't believe how fresh you look as you take off on the run.