Ironman Lake Placid Race Report.

I had no expectations or time goals going into this Ironman because of my lack of training due to my foot and leg injury's over the last 18-24months I just wanted to finish. When I entered the race on line as you may know, I was side lined with a torn Planter fascia, which still affects my walking and running and always will but is manageable with my orthotics. Well, at the time I was thinking I have a full year to recover and train for this event, so I entered IMLP.

Then on Jan 30 I had another accident while springboard diving and tore my right calf muscle and ligaments in my ankle. I know, I know stupid, stupid! but I was a springboard diver long before doing Triathlons, and when my city finally built a new rec center with a diving well after living here for 17 years with no board? I had to get back into my sport. Maybe I should have waited until after IMLP?

Anyway that hampered my training for 2 more months except for some swimming, But the end result was I had to stay off my feet, thus giving my bad left foot time to heal after my shock wave treatments for my torn PF. I was finally given the ok to go back to work at the end of March. I still couldn't run and didn't even attempt to run but I started back at riding. I was back to work for a week and a half before I was told I had vacation time I had to take. So I took 3 weeks vacation and rode every day for an hour and swam every other day to get ready for my Disney 70.3 race. still no running because I couldn't.

Disney 70.3 came and went and I did ok on the swim and bike and was happy walking the half to come in at 7 1/2 hour total time I think? Now I had to look at IMLP only 2 months away and I'm still 240lb and I need to do some running. Well time flew by and my weight wasn't coming down and I didn't do much running.

I had my first race of the tri season up here at Muskoka, it's a long course tri, just short of a half iron distance on the second week of June. I did the race only to dnf, I couldn't run the run as I developed back spasms on the bike which was a grueling hilly course. So now here it is 1 month out from Lake Placid and now I have a bad sciatica with back spasms!

All I did for training for the next 2 weeks was some light swimming and one long 60mile bike on the following weekend. The next week I decide to do my next tri up in Midland, a little sprint tri, My back was still hurting on the bike but I did run the 5 k and did it in 33 min with no ill affects. I was ready now for IMLP!!

As I said at the beginning I had no expectation or time goals! I just wanted to finish.

That said.....

My wife and I traveled to Lake Placid Thurs morning leaving at 4am driving from Barrie. We got into Lake Placid at 11:30 am after a 7 1/2 hour drive. We went straight to registration as I was eager to get that out of the way so we could drive out of town to Plattsburg to check into the Days Inn where I had reserved a room for the weekend. After registering for the race we looked around the expo a bit as they were still in the process of setting up. then we went back to the car to go to the hotel. All the while my wife kept asking isn't there a hotel in town close that we can stay in instead of driving so far each day? I said sure there are, if you want to pay $250 per night! So my wife insisted we try anyway. on the way out of Lake Placid I pull into one hotel to check, nope nothing. I try the next one down the road, nope nothing. I drive by the Summit hotel and said to my wife, they should have one there, because I canceled my reservation I had there because it was to expensive. hee hee. then on the left up the hill from the Summit I pull into the Pine Inn and would you believe it? they had one walk in available and for only $160 per night!! WhooT!! We quickly checked in there and canceled my reservations at the Days inn. Boy what luck! Well my wife was happy now, we could walk down to the expo only being a mile away, no worries of driving an hour each way to come and go to the venue! Ok, we settled in now.

Friday, We go to Mirror Lake for the morning swim. I did a short swim halfway up and back for maybe 1000m good enough! the water was warm and clear, not crystal clear? a little foggy/murky, enough to see maybe 5 feet or so, not as clear as my lake here in Barrie but a lot warmer! I couldn't believe all the people swimming the full course! are they nut's!! Save your energy for race day, you only need to swim enough to loosen up, all the training you have done is done!! your not going to get any more fitter by swimming the full course. DUH!!!..... Then after the swim we went to drive the bike course. Hmmmm the course has a nice down hill, wow! As we drive along i notice a lot of false flats, and there is a lot of climbing, not steep, but long steady 5-6% climbs, it's going to be tough. but i'll manage. We drove up to Plattsburg to do some shopping and to look for a pair of running shoes for me, we didn't find any shoes but bought a bunch of other stuff I'm sure we didn't need? then we drove back and followed the second half of the bike route back checking out he course. When we got back to Lake Placid we walked into town again to look again for shoes for me. We went into a running store and finally found a pair of shoes that fit my orthotics and my feet well, a pair of saucony's for only $100. After that we went back to the hotel to freshen up and rest until it was time for the welcome dinner.

The welcome dinner was nice, food was good with mac and cheese, ravioli, and sliced roast beef, and bread. As we sat down to enjoy the food we met and talked with other triathletes at the table, at one point I open my big mouth to say how unfair that the vip tables have wine at their tables and we have to buy our wine!, I was kidding of course. Well, this very friendly lady next to me that I was socializing with, said that she indeed was a vip and had a seat over there, but was sitting here at out table to be with her friends. Then she got up and went somewhere. About 5 mins later she comes back with 2 glassed of wine in hand and gives it to my wife and I, Boy was I embarrassed. The rest of the night was the typical pep talk stuff about how we are all going to be Ironman! It was fun and my wife enjoyed it. After the dinner we headed out to the swim start to meet up with the blue page peeps for the IBSEX MEETING. It was great to put faces with posting names. You all rocked and it was great to meet up with you all.

Sat, We went for the morning swim and met up with a bunch of friend who were doing the race including Louise who is the oldest female competitor and was gunning for a kona slot at this race, which by the way she got, not by only winning her 65-69 age group, being the only competitor? but by winning it in world record time for her age group at 13:38

I again swam very easy and only half way up and back to loosen up. After the morning swim my wife and I went back to our hotel for a nice breakfast buffet at our hotel, then I got my T1 and T2 bags ready to take down to the transition area with my bike. I dropped them off and was all set now! We wandered around again at the expo and downtown for a few hours. Later we went for dinner at subway for subs. The rest of the night we lounged around watching tv until bed time. I was very relaxed and not nervous at all about the race. I guess I knew in my head what i'm able to do and what I had to do in this race to finish, so no anxiety or nerves. I went to sleep at 10pm and slept well.

Sunday, Race day! The alarm went off at 4 am I got up and took a shower had my pre thought out breakfast of a banana a vanilla breakfast drink my daily vitamins and Ibuprofen, coffee and some of my world famous cookies that I forgot to take to the IBSEX meeting, a bottle of gator-aid and then packed my run special needs bag with a double shot starbucks coffee some gummy thingys, cookies, pepperoni and cheese sticks, and a pair of dry socks in case I needed to change my run socks if they got wet? Oi. I didn't use a bike special needs bag as I carried my energy drinks in my bottle cages which i took with me race morning, ( we were aloud to place drinks on our bikes race morning) and one bottle of water in my bike shirt which was in my swim to bike T1 bag already along with some oatmeal bars and energy chews and stuff packed in my bike shirt. I put on my swim suit and had my shorts on over top and wore a t-shirt, Then we walked down with bags in hand and my wetsuit down to the transition area. I placed my energy drinks on my bike, checked my tires, they were fine. check my T1 and T2 bags , everything is a go!

We headed up/down to the water start, but first we had to drop off my run special needs bag. On the way I see and meet up with PNF we chatted a bit and I asked to have a picture taken with her. She is so nice!

Now after dropping off the bag we get to the water start. I sit down and do some stretching at the beach behind the start line, After my stretch I go to the start where the timing mat is under the starting arch to activate my chip along with hundreds of others. I get into the water and swim back over to where my wife is watching from on the other beach behind the start line. I pose for some pictures then come out of the water and take some shots myself. Oh now it's time for the pros to start! The pros are off, now it's time for me to get in the water and position my self at the start. I kiss my wife and she tells me good luck, I wave her off and say no luck involved, just my pure stubbornness will get me though this. At this time I take a deep breath and wait,?? no still no nerves or anxiety!! oh well?!?...

I position myself in the middle about 20yrds back, just sitting there bobbing about waiting, people are moving in and around trying to figure where they want to be? heads turning back and forth, some asking what time you expect? One lady asked me what time I'm planing on? I said I don't know maybe between 1:10-1:15 as my last 2 IM's where 1:12, she said good I'll be on your feet, I said go for it!!

The cannon goes off! and away I go, I didn't go hard out I just wanted to ease into my stroke and keep a good rhythm up, Well, try to tell the others out there!! All of a sudden I'm being beaten flogged and hit with arms and legs!! WTF!! why am I hear? I say to myself. I wanted to go easy and everyone is rushing!?!? so i try to keep up the pace which wasn't that fast but I couldn't get a stroke in because everyone was on top of me or over me. I myself didn't want to be so aggressive as to trample or swim over anyone which I could have but didn't because after my encounter with the drowning victim at IMFL 06/ as a voly I have been very cautious while swimming always thinking what can happen! and I never want to see something like that happen again, which btw did the next year at Florida, which made me very sad. Ok back to the swim.

The crowding never let loose the whole way up the line, then I start hearing some BOOMS! oh oh! thunder, and now its starting to rain! that's ok it will pass, I'm in the water wet already.

I get to the turn around and everyone is crowding even more, more kicking grabbing and crawling over each other. As i passed the turn around I swam right to the outside where I stayed the whole way back, just cruising at my pace with nice even steady strokes with some clear water.

The rain kept coming down hard and steady I could feel it hitting my head as i swam and splashing the top of the water as I took my breaths. I get to shore and look at my watch to see the time, DAMN! I pushed the wrong button at the start and my watch didn't start!! I started my watch up for the rest of the race day from after the first loop of my swim. I ask around as we went back into the water for the second loop, anyone have the time? some guy says 33min. I say cool, thanks, and start swimming.

This time on the second loop I had a little breathing room and stayed on the outside right, but one guy who was swimming on my right kept cutting into me pushing me left and I was getting furious, I didn't know what to do because it was annoying me as I'm trying to go strait, so I'm saying to myself should I speed up to get in front or cross over to his right so he can swim left? Well finally he started to swim right and I guess I swam a bit in front and got ahead of him, we met up again at the turn around and I just went right and wide. I had nice clear water the rest of the way back. I finally reach the shore and cross the mat and check my time. 37 min !! 37 +33 = 1:10 great right on what I expected getting out of the water! fresh and strong.

I run/hopped up the path to T1 which seems to be about a mile away from the water, it's 2 blocks up and down the street to T1, I would say maybe 1500yrds 1/2km . I get to my bag, run/hop to the change tent and change into my bike gear, I took about 13min in T1 with all the rain coming down I I had to make sure I had everything on. But I couldn't decide if I needed my sunglasses? Well I did the right thing and took them, thank god! I went out to get my bike and a voly calls my number out for another voly to grab it for me. Well while she was looking for my bike 2 racks over i grabbed my own bike right where I left it. Thanks anyway, the voly's were realy good and I couldn't blame her for not finding my bike, there were so many out there, hee hee.

I'm on my bike now, rain coming down hard and steady. Now I'm thinking how I should ride? I said to myself stick to your plan! My plan was to keep the heart rate down the whole day. This btw is my first race I ever used a heart rate monitor and was determined to stick with it. I kept my heart rate at 110-120 most of the way on flats and the small inclines to the max of 150-160 on one of the bigger uphills for the whole race. I never pushed my pace.

On the Keene hill not ever riding this course before, I didn't know what to expect, I didn't even get a practice ride in, so with the rain coming down hard i was very cautious and had my brakes at the ready and had to use them to slow me down on the first loop. I checked my speed as I was coming down on the first loop, i was a cautious with the rain and all the other bikers as I passed them doing 72 km/hr on the first loop, the second loop 76km/hr or around 47-49mph without a peddle stroke!! On a dry day and knowing the course I'm sure I could have gone at least 90km/hr or 55miles/hr easy.

All in all the bike was uneventful except for some mechanical I had with my bike, the chain kept skipping gears and I couldn't see a thing through my water spotted fogged up sunglasses with all the hard steady rain the whole time.

My second loop was slower then my first because after the first loop I stopped to fix my gears finally, I didn't want to go though another loop with my chain jumping gears the rest of the way and I had a little longer then normal potty break, maybe 10 -15 min. I had to go? but it wouldn't come out! boy did hurt once I got the flow going, but after I felt soooo relieved.

I made it! in 7:07 I think? with no physical problem and strong, nutrition was right on, I wasn't tired or drained. I was pleased and ready for my planned marathon walk.


The marathon walk/run. I had planned all along to walk the marathon if I got through the bike?

The rain had been going on for a steady 8 hours now with no stopping in sight! The funny thing and the joke of the day was? the weather report was calling for a 30% chance of rain in the afternoon, not this monsoon rains all day! Anyway I drop my bike off to a voly when I came in and ran to my T2 bag and went to the change tent. I'm thinking now? do I really want to walk in this rain to finish this race? I'm soaked to the bone, not really cold, but wet! I know my feet will hurt with my shoes and socks getting wet like they did at Disney 70.3. Do I want the pain?

I open my bag and grab my sleeveless shirt and looked at it. This is going to hurt! I ask the voly for a towel I saw 4 chairs over, he gets it for me, I thanked him as he helped me get off my soaking wet stick to my skin new Lake Placid 10th anniversary bike shirt, then I wiped myself dry. I put on my sleeveless running shirt then take off my bike shoes to dry my feet. I put on one dry sock and my new running shoe then I dried off my other foot, putting on the other dry sock and shoe. I kept my soaking tri shorts on to run in. I stuffed all my bike gear, helmet shoes gloves shirt into the T2 bag and gave it to the voly and thanked him again and started off on my marathon journey.

I looked out the tent to see the pouring rain, there is mud everywhere, I just follow everyone else out into the heavy rain with a smile on my face and say; "Well i guess I better get going".

I walked the whole first loop, no? wait! I did do a little jog at the beginning on the marathon, down main street in front of the crowds. And what crowds they were!! totally amazing!!

I made it down the steep hill running then stopped running to start my walking. I walked and walked and walked, steady as the rain was pouring. I grabbed food and drinks at all the aid station on the way, never stopping, just walking and checking my heart rate every so often.

My heart rate never went higher then 107, steady as she goes!! I finally made it to the turn around to head back. I wasn't really checking my time and I didn't keep a split time from when I started, so not knowing how long I was out there on the first loop? I just looked at the time saying to myself If I finish the first loop at this time I can do the second and finish at that time and said I have lots of time!?!

When i finally finished the first loop with soaking wet feet in my shoes I came up to my special needs bag, my feet, ankles and knees were hurting. I sat down on a chair under a tent and chowed down on my snacks and guzzled my starbucks double shot coffee, Mmmm that was good. I looked at my extra pair of dry socks and said; " what for" they will only get wet anyway" so I didn't change them as my feet as wet as they were? they were comfy.

Now I look at my watch and see what time it is, around 7pm. I didn't realize how long I was out there walking on the first loop? I didn't have a split time because the timing chips when out, and they weren't giving out splits times for us back packers. SO I did some math and figured that with my swim and bike time? I left for my run at around 2-3 pm and now it was 7pm. HOLY SHEET!! I did the first loop in 4-4 1/2 hours !! I can't do the second loop walking at this speed? I'll miss the cut off!

SO I devised a plan of attack.

But the plan called for some running?? and at this time my left ankle, and both knees were hurting bad. Under stand, since Jan 30 I have only run a max of 5km and that was two weeks before this race.

I said to myself; " I have to do this and finish, no ifs ands or but!!"

So my plan called for me to run the distance between one light post and walk to the next, then run to the next, and walk to the next. I did this the whole way, for the full half may distance of the second loop in the heavy steady rain.

Off I went..... By the time i got to the turn around the rain was finally tapering but kept coming off and on a little lighter. My shoes and socks where soaking wet but I was totally amazed at how well my shoes fit! My toes didn't start hurting from a blister until about the last 5-6miles, but it didn't hurt as much as my knees and left ankle, such a pain! very sharp like a needle was jabbing in. The funny thing is? they hurt less while I was running and hurt more when I walked?!?! but I stuck to my plan to run from one pole and walked the next the whole way without stopping, my heart rate never went above 130bpm while I ran, so lets say it was more a shuffle.

Coming into town was very cruel on this course, the hills are steep, but I managed to walk up them unless I was between poles and had to run? finally I get to the last part of the run, again very cruel, instead of turning left to go into the oval you have to go right and run up the street a mile to a turn around before coming back in to the oval. I kept on going though. Run one pole walk the next.

Coming back just before getting to the ovel my good friend Betsy from Austin see's me and runs to me with a big hug and kiss. I was happy to see her, and it lifted my spirits up. I told her my knees and ankle are toast and kept going.

I cross the main street and i'm in the ovel now. I take a deep breath and say to myself; PAIN IS ONLY TEMPORARY, IRONMAN IS FOREVER!

I put a smile on my face, I hear Mike Riely off in the distance calling in peeps, I dig down deep and START TO SPRINT OUT THE LAST 200+ meters to the finish, passing everyone ahead of me.

I see the crowds in the stands and they start cheering really loud when they saw me running down. The cheers of the crowd was defining. I see the line now and I look behind me to see how far the next person was behind me because I had a plan for my finish. Good he was far enough behind I can do my finish.

I was running as hard as I could in a full sprint to the line, then I came to a dead stop in front of the line and finish ribbin that the volys were holding. They looked puzzled with me stopping in front so suddenly? I bend down brushing off my legs, then I brushed off my shoulders and do a wave in front of my face like you can't see me, Just like John Cena does in the WWE before he gives the four knuckle shuffle to his opponantes head, then I crossed the line with arms up in the air to finish in 15:45:53.

What a great day!

BTW my second run loop split was around 2:35 for the half. not bad running for someone who hasn't run in training and doing it in the second half of a marathon after a 7 hr bike and 1:10 swim warm up, with ankles and knees hurting after the first walk loop? hee hee hee.



A special note.....

The Crowds and Vollunteers where really something special here! Thank you to all for a great race. It couldn't have happened without you all out there! Thank You.


And a special thankyou to my wife who put up with me and supported me though this thing we call IRONMAN.