I got this book for Christmas, and started reading it today. It's hysterical. It's the story of the life of Jesus Christ as told by his childhood best friend, who also happens to be a real asshole. I haven't made it too far into the book, but I've already laughed out loud several times.
The book is by Christopher Moore (www.chrismoore.com), and I'm sure you can get it at amazon.com.
So far, I highly recommend it.
So we moved to the mountains... finally. We've been here since late August. I haven't been skiing yet. So what do we do? We go skiing on Christmas Day. Actually, it was great... less crowded, since people want to spend the day with family.
We went to Keystone, and decided to learn to snowboard, instead of ski. I gotta say... snowboarding ROCKS!. It's really hard to stay balanced, but I hear that once you learn, it gets much easier, much more quickly...
What's the saying? Snowboarding is hard to learn, but easy to master... skiing is easy to learn, but hard to master.
Ironman was a month ago. I haven't done a thing since. I'm going to turn into a big, fat bastard if I don't start running, biking and swimming again.
Where do I start with this? What an incredibly awesome experience the Ironman triathlon was! It will be a snapshot in my life that I will always remember. Now, on to the RR. For those that want the short version, I've put that on top. The long version is below.
The Short Report
Results
Age Group: Men 30-34
Swim: 1:10:33 - 153/390 AG, 698 OA; Avg. 1:52/100 m
Bike: 6:01:21 - 142/390 AG, 610 OA; Avg. 18.6 mph
Run: 5:00:29 - 170/390 AG, 872 OA; Avg. 11:29/mi
AG Finish: 149/390OA Finish: 644/2188
My Thoughts on IM Moo
This was a fantastic course. I can't compare it to other IMNA course, because I haven't done them. The crowd support was phenomenal! People were all over the bike course, and having an urban run course made it easy to have huge crowd support for the marathon. The crowds and the volunteers made everything so much easier than I thought it would be.
The swim was probably what you would expect. Lots of arms and legs flying all over the place. It will always be like this. Expect it, and try to minimize any damage you sustain. Wear your goggles strapped under your cap, so that if they get kicked off, you won't lose them. The water is clean, if not clear, and if you end up drinking a lot of it like I did, you should still be fine.
The hills on the bike course were brutal. I knew it was hilly, but I expected my average speed to be a little better than it ended up. Those hills really took it out of me. I had to slow down a bit on loop 2, or I knew I'd be in for a death march on the marathon. My advice for future Moo participants is to practice LOTS of hills, even if you have to synthesize them on your trainer. Also, do lots of bricks where the bike course is hilly.
The run ended up being much easier than I expected. If I'd been able to find my run legs a little sooner, I could have had a very good day on the marathon. Observatory Hill was the only really tough part of the course, IMHO. However, a good regimen of hill repeats in your training will more than prepare you for this course.
I loved this course, and I will definitely be back some time. I'll take next year off of IM racing (a promise to my wife) and maybe shoot for UltraMax in 2006. My goal for next year is to qualify for and compete in the Half IM Championship, which is being held this year at UltraMax in Kansas City in two weeks.
Congrats to all IM Moo participants and finishers. It was a great day, and I hope you all met or exceeded your expectations.
The Looooooooong Report
Pre-Race
We arrived in Madison on Thursday afternoon, and basically just hung out. I registered, and then my training partner, Matt (who also did the race) and I went for an easy 30 minute run. Friday was another low key day. We did some shopping at the expo, and then took out bikes out to the bike course. We drove the course once and then went out 6 miles from the start of the loop and back to loosen up the legs. I was beginning to think that Sunday would be a long day on the bike course after that "warm up," 'cause the there was a lot of hilly terrain. Saturday was very mellow. Matt and I rode most of the run course, and I felt pretty good about it, as there didn't seem to be too many hills.
My mom and my twin brother arrived from Texas on Sat., as did my friend, Mason, from St. Louis. We had a nice leisurely dinner, and then we called it a night. I hit the hay at about 9:30 pm for what I hoped would be a good night's sleep.
Race Day
I woke up at about 2:30 am, and kind of dozed until 4:30. I got up and immediately put my timing chip on (didn't want to forget that). Then, I mixed my four bottles of Spiz, put two of 'em in my special needs bag, and filled my water bottle. I went over my special needs bags to make sure I had what I wanted, and then packed up the rest, kissed Laura, and headed out to meet Matt at the special needs drop-off. I met Matt, and immediately realized I'd left my wetsuit in the hotel. So, I scampered back to the room and grabbed it... Sure glad I realized that early on!!!
We went to the transition area, where I put the other two bottles of Spiz in my behind-the-seat bottle launchers and the water bottle in my frame-mounted cage. Then, we went to check over the transition bags. I had bought some reflective tape, and wanted to change out the tape I had used before, because it didn't seem to stick well, and I was afraid I'd lose it on the course, and get tagged for a penalty. Matt had some scissors, and I cut the tape into strips... Unfortunately, I also managed to cut my left hand at the "webbing" between index finger and the middle finger. I bled like a stuck pig, but never really felt any pain. I hoped it wouldn't be a factor on the bike. Matt joked about me being "shark-bait" on the swim.
With about twenty minutes to go, we changed into our wetsuits. I noticed I'd left my sunglasses in my dry clothes bag, so I had to run back to my T1 bag to drop them off. I was a little ticked off that I seemed to be so disorganized, after going over my plans so many times. I was really nervous that something important might be overlooked. But... with only a few minutes to the start of the race, I figured I'd just have to deal with it.
Once in the water, I took the time to look out at the Terrace and the helixes (helices?). It was an incredible sight to see so many people there, and I was so appreciative that so many people were there to support us. I knew it was going to be a good day!
The Swim (a.k.a. "The Floating Barroom Brawl" )
Goal Time: 1:10 - 1:15
Actual: 1:10:33
153/390 AG
698/2188 OA
Avg. 1:52/100m
The swim wasn't nearly as bad as I thought it would be. After hearing some of the stories about the "meat grinder" I was prepared to fight hard, if need be. I started too far forward, but toward the outside (I was near the front, right outside of the ski ramp). The first 500 meters was pretty clear, until people started catching me. After that, I had to do a little fighting, but for the most part, I just latched on to a draft and swam to the turn. The turns were where things got bad. all those people bunching up at the turns made for some rough water. I stayed toward the outside, and weathered it pretty well. I never really got tired during the swim, and I avoided the nausea problems I'd had in the pool. This confirms for me that the constant flip turns were probably to blame. In the future, I probably need to swim in a long course pool, rather than short course, in order to avoid so many turns.
Things settled down after the first loop, and I hitched a ride off of somebody for most of the second loop, although I lost him/her with about 400 meters to go. My back started bothering me about halfway through the second lap, and I started to get worried it might affect my bike and run legs. I caught myself getting "negative" with 300 meters to go, thinking I was about to be miserable by starting a 112 mile bike ride and then doing a marathon. I quickly tossed that thought out, and replaced with the more positive thought that I was almost 1/3 done with my first Ironman!
Before I knew it, I was at the exit, where I was surprisingly steady on my feet. I got my wetsuit off my shoulders, ran to the strippers and let them do their thing! You guys were awesome! I was on my way to the changing rooms in about 30 seconds!
T1 (a.k.a. "The Trek" )
Goal time: 6:00 - 8:00
Actual time: 10:16 (what'd I do, stop for a nap?)
It was a long run to the bike bags. The crowd on the helix was way, way cool. I don't know how some of you managed to get out of there in less than 10 minutes. The hardest part was finding a place to sit down and get my bike stuff together. Nothing major here. I should have been able to do this much faster, but you just get limited when you're in the MOP out of the water. I found a place to sit, and tried to get my stuff organized as quickly as possible. I strapped the Garmin GPS on my wrist, grabbed my Carb-boom gel flasks, tire levers and bike tool, and shoved 'em in my pockets. I strapped on the helmet and took off.
Stopped briefly to get sunscreen (I have sensitive skin ) and then was on my way. Sure felt like I was faster than 10:00, but I guess not.
The Bike (a.k.a. "The Comedy of Errors" )
Goal time: 5:45 - 6:15
Actual: 6:01:21
AG - 142/390
OA - 610/2188
Avg. 18.6 mph
I was feeling great out of T1, although I had noticed that my allegedly water-resistant Polar HRM was apparently not too water resistant. It had gone blank, and I couldn't tell if it was working at all. I had no idea what my HR was, but I felt absolutely incredible. I decided to push the pace a little to see how I responded. My trip out to the Verona loop was done at an average of 21 mph. This was when reality struck.
Not long after I got to Verona, my HRM cam back on. I realized I was at way too high a HR, so I backed off a little. I had hoped to be able to average 20 mph for the bike, but realized I wouldn't be able to do that and still put together any kind of marathon. So, I backed off to save myself for loop 2 and the run. I drank nothing but water until I got to the loop, in order to let my stomach settle from the swim. After I'd turned the corner to start the first loop, I took a swig of Spiz... Uh-oh... It made me a little nauseous. I thought I might need a little more time to settle the stomach, so I waited 15 minutes and took another swig. Gag!!!! It wasn't sitting well. I had 1000 calories of Spiz in each bottle, and was relying on this for the bulk of my nutrition! I had trained for four months with Spiz, and had no problems. It was great! But now, for some reason, it wasn't going to work.
Fortunately, I had 1800 calories in Carb-boom as a "back-up" and the aid stations had Gatorade and some food, too. At the first station, I chucked one of the Spiz bottles and grabbed some Gatorade and water. I alternated water and Gatorade for the rest of the ride, although I tried Spiz one more time. No go. At special needs, I stopped very briefly to drop off my other Spiz bottle, and then that was it. Water, Gatorade, Carb-boom and a few orange and banana slices got me through to the run.
At about the 35 mile mark, my GPS suddenly went blank, and not long after that, my bike speedometer and cadence counter decided to work only intermittently. More electronics failures! This was getting ridiculous! The coup de grace was at mile 90, when I hit what I thought was a minor bump, and suddenly, my saddle tilted back slightly. What the...? I tried like heck to get it back into position, but it wasn't going to budge. It was not comfortable, but not so uncomfortable that I felt I needed to stop and adjust it. After all, I only had 22 more miles to go.
The last 18 miles were not a lot of fun. I was REALLY ready to get off the bike, and it seemed like it took forever to get back to the Terrace. Riding up the helix was not bad at all, and was actually very inspiring, as there were lots of people there cheering. I was up the helix and at the dismount line pretty quickly, where a wonderful volunteer took my bike and wished me luck. I quickly pulled off my shoes, so I wouldn't have to run like a duck, and I dashed into T2.
T2 (a.k.a., "Now THAT's more like it" )
Goal: 6:00 - 8:00
Actual: 4:34
T2 was fairly uneventful. Had a volunteer help me all the way through it. He was great. I wish I remembered his name. I quickly changed socks, pulled on my shoes, and ran out to get some more sunscreen. Once I was slathered with some good SPF protection, I was out of T2 and on the run.
The Run (a.k.a. "Coming back from the brink of the Ego Death March")
Goal time: 4:30 - 5:00
Actual: 5:00:29
AG - 170/390
OA - 872/2188
Avg. 11:29/mi
After the bike, my legs were pretty tired, but I really wanted to run the first half of the marathon, walking only the aid stations. I ran the first mile or so out of transition, but had to stop and walk a bit after that. For the next 7 miles it was run a little, walk a lot, and I think I must have walked about 5 of those 7 miles. I was wondering how I would ever be able to do another loop. It was funny. I was always running when my wife and my mom and my brother saw me... at the State street turn-around (twice) and also at the start of the State street portion heading to and from the capitol. But on the first loop, I did walk a lot in between those times.
I kept taking in nutrition at every aid station, including water, cola and oranges. Miraculously, at about the 8.5 mile mark, my legs came back to me, and I was able to run. I ran the entire way back from the 8.5 mile mark (except for the overpass, which I walked up) and then did the turn around at the 13 mile mark. I kept running until I got back to the overpass, and again walked up it. From there, it was mostly running, although I walked Observatory Hill again, and took a few short breaks to walk throughout the remainder of the marathon. It was amazing how good I felt, and everyone on the course was so supportive! On my second trip around the State street turnaround, I saw my wife, my mom and my brother, as well as my friend, Mason. As I passed mile 19, Mason yelled that he'd see me at the finish. I told him he'd better hurry if he wanted to get there by the time I finished, 'cause I was feeling good! Don't know where the humor came from, but he laughed and told me he'd run straight there.
I finally saw Matt as I was passing the 22 mile mark. He was walking the other way, and not looking very good. I knew he'd be out there for a while, but I told him he could do it, and we slapped "fives" as we passed each other. He told me to get going so I could meet my goals. From there, it was all running. I knew I would make 12:30 at the 24 mile mark. I had nearly half an hour to run 2.2 miles, and I knew it would happen. I started feeling really strong, and picked up the pace a little (I felt like I was doing 8 min miles, but I was probably somewhere near 10.5 ). I passed a lot of people in the last 5 miles, many of whom I'd seen pass me early in the run. I knew I had negative split my marathon in a big way, and I was ecstatic as I passed the special needs area and went down the area marked "To Finish."
As I ran down the chute, I was high-fiving people left and right. There was no one immediately behind me, but I was running very close behind another guy. I backed off a little to give him his finish alone, and then trotted past the finish line to hear those words I've been dreaming about for the past year: "Steve Perkins from Denver, Colorado. You are an Ironman!" I was so happy to be done, and so excited about what I'd accomplished.
Final time: 12:27:11
Goal: 12:30
AG: 149/390
OA: 644/2188
After I finished, we waited around for Matt to come in. Things didn't improve much for him, but he did manage to finish at a run in 14:46:51. It was inspiring to see him overcome a difficult day to accomplish his goal of finishing, even if it happened to be much later than he wanted. Way to go, Matt. No matter what, you're an Ironman now.
A few final thoughts
Thanks for reading, if you've made it this far. I just want to say that this race is a phenomenal experience. IMNA does a top notch job, and this was a superbly organized race. I'd like to thank the people of Madison and the surrounding areas for not only putting up with us, but supporting us beyond my wildest expectations. You guys in that area are absolutely wonderful! More props have to go out to the volunteers. The volunteers are what make the race, and they were everywhere they needed to be, and handled things as perfectly as possible. Without you guys, we couldn't accomplish this race.
Finally, I'd like to thank my wife, my family and my training partner, Matt. It was a long and difficult journey; but I think it's more satisfying to know I did this in spite of the difficulties along the way. To those who think you can't do something like this. I know you're wrong. If you want it, and you believe in yourself, you can do it.
I'm looking forward to a good long rest, but I'll be back next year to tackle mainly Half IMs. I want to do another IM distance, but I'm currently thinking about UltraMax, instead of another M-dot, just because I want to compare the two experiences. Good luck to all of you training for Florida. You can do it. I know it. God bless.
I arrived in Madison two days ago for the 2004 Ironman Wisconsin triathlon. The production here is amazing. The Ironman village is one of the coolest things I've ever seen, and I have to find out how to buy one of the those Endless Pools... I think it's only about $20,000... maybe I'll get two of them. shyeah... right.
I need to go to sleep soon. I'll be up REALLY early tomorrow. Geez, I hope I don't forget anything.
I'm going to bed. Wish me luck.
