Ironman WI Race Report: The Finish and Post Race

Moments after crashing through the tape, I was swarmed. Heidi and Karen - friends and fellow triathletes - caught me. Everything was happening so fast. It was very weird to go from constant motion to being completely stopped. The adrenaline needed a few moments to slow down and I was disoriented for a moment.

Heidi and Karen were wonderful - they got me a mylar blanket, my medal, my finisher's hat and t-shirt. They ensured that my chip got removed and that I got a finisher's photo. Then they pointed me in the direction of my family. There were people everywhere. It was overwhelming and exciting all at the same time. I was missing one person though - Petra! Petra is a good friend and athlete (she's doing IM WI 2008!!!) who was going to catch me at the finish. I wanted to see her. Heidi and Karen said she was around and suddenly there she was.

I wasn't prepared for the huge bear hug that I got from her. Man, did it feel good though! I was done. I was an Ironman. And I had never felt so lucky in my entire life! Petra showed me to my family. It was great to finally get to hug and talk to my whole family. I had seen them all day, but now I got to spend time with them. It was great! The cameras were going, which was fun at first. After about 10 minutes though, I had met my limit on photos. Darla and Ed both came over as well. It was so great to see them both. They are some of my dearest friends and it really meant everything to me to share this moment with them.



I was disappointed though. I had lost David at the finish. I was hoping I'd see him again, but with these crowds I didn't feel very hopeful. Moments later David and his wife appeared! We exchanged hugs and thank yous and even clicked a few pictures. What a completely wonderful day!

It just keeps getting better - Jim, Dana, Isa and Sisa appeared! They had seen me finish. The finish for me was such a blur that I never saw them!

About an hour later everyone dispersed. I went back to the terrace to pick up my gear and change my clothes. I ran into many friends and congratulated them on their races. It was so hard to believe it was over, but I was going to continue to ride this high as long as I could.

I went down to the finish for a little while with my Mom and John. I wanted to stick around and watch everyone finish, but the day was catching up with me and we headed home around 10pm. I got home and went straight to bed and slept through the night.

Post-Race

The soreness only lasted for a few days and it wasn't as bad as I had expected it to be. Mostly I was just wiped out. I spent a lot of time sleeping for several days after the event. I swam once this week and rode once. Both went well but it has been nice to take a break from things for a week or so.

Rather than ramble on and on, I thought I'd list the things that stuck out the most about Ironman Sunday. Consider it the Top 10 Things I got out of Ironman...

1) Friends and Family - This is by far the number one thing that mattered throughout this day. It is what kept me going and kept me excited about my day. I've always known I was lucky to have such a great group of friends, training partners and family, but IM really reinforced this.

To each of you who were there on Sunday - spectating or racing: Without each of you, I couldn't have done this. And it certainly wouldn't mean as much to me if I wasn't able to share it with each of you. Thank You....



2) It's 90% Mental, 10% Physical - I may want to revise that a bit because Ironman is definitely a very physical event, but it's all about what's inside your head and your heart. If you set your mind to something, you CAN do it. It may not always be easy, but it's never out of reach. I never thought I could swim 2.4 miles in a lake, with 2400 other people...but I did. I never thought I could bike 112 hilly miles and still be walking when I got off my bike...but I did. I never thought I could run a full marathon after swimming and biking...but I did. 3 years ago, I never would have imagined doing Ironman, but here its already a week later and I'm wondering where it all went.

3) Triathlon keeps you young - As I sat at the awards banquet on Monday morning and watched the groups of athletes come up on stage, they had one thing in common. None of them looked their age. Each and every person looked fit, strong and healthy. I hope that 20 years from now I am still fortunate enough to be participating in such an amazing sport...and being fit, strong and healthy.

4) Ironman is a good addiction - When I signed up, I never thought I'd do more than one. I wasn't sure I'd enjoy the distance and really believed it was a one time thing. After completing it though, I can say this with absolute certainty: This will not be my last Ironman. It was an exhilarating experience and I enjoyed the challenge. IM WI 2009....here I come!

5) Life passes you by too quickly - So, I didn't need an Ironman to tell me this, but throughout the day I kept thinking 'Wow! This is going so fast'. Despite it being hard and painful at times, it still amazes me how quickly the day went. Life is the same way - it is flying by. It's easy to get lost in the day to day crap and all the small stuff. Sometimes we need to remind ourselves to enjoy the moment, because before we know it, it's over and life has already moved on to something else. Every time I felt pain or frustration during Ironman, I reminded myself to just live in the moment. I'm glad I did, because I think I got so much more out of the experience.

6) I'm an athlete. Who knew?! - When I was a kid, I was never in sports. I never did well on any of the physical fitness tests they made us take while in school. I was very mediocre in Track and Cross Country. I hated pain, I had no focus and had no idea what it meant to truly endure something. Before 2 years ago, I never swam. I hated the water, hated putting my face in it and wanted nothing to do with a lake. Here I am though - I'm now an Ironman. I am an athlete. I have focus, I know what it takes to endure pain and face a huge challenge.

7) Success is up to you....and the weather gods! - Going into Ironman, I had 3 very successful races. I had fun, reached new levels and felt very solid about my plan going into Ironman. Of course, I still had my doubts - 140.6 miles is a long way to go and anything can happen. At the end of it all though, I knew myself well enough to know when to push, when not to push, what to eat, what not to eat...I knew all the little mind games I needed to play with myself to get me through the day and most importantly I knew to be prepared for anything. And, I knew I would and could adapt to whatever happened that day. I am very thankful to the weather gods for blessing us with a beautiful day. It was nice to have one less thing to think about.

8) Volume isn't the only way to train - I had moments throughout the summer where I thought that I needed to be doing more. Many of my fellow triathletes were training 18+ hours per week. I was only doing between 12 and 14. I have no doubt that this approach was the best approach for me. I was able to attack key workouts with more strength and focus. I have my coach, Jason, to thank for that. Though I didn't always follow his plan to the letter, I have no doubt that my success was due to his guidance and careful planning.

9) Number One Best Moment of my Life (so far..)

10) I can't wait for next year! - I plan to take the next 7 weeks and have a very casual approach to training/exercise. I will do what I want, when I want. But then, it's time to get serious again. I want to work on a few things over the winter and go into the spring season with a solid training and racing plan. I'm not sure what I'm all going to do next year, but I plan to race more than I did this year and focus more on the Half Ironman and Olympic distance races.



Well, that's it. That's all folks. I've enjoyed writing down my experiences over the last year. It's been wonderful to share it with all of you and am always excited to hear such nice feedback on the blog.

I will not be posting anymore in this blog. I will however start a new one. I haven't finalized all the details of it yet, but stay tuned.

Thank you for joining me in my journey! It was quite the ride (and swim...and run...)

Love and Best Wishes,

Andrea
Ironman Wisconsin 2007 Finisher
#2072

Ironman WI Race Report: The Run

As I was heading out of T2, I was not looking forward to the run. I just couldn't wrap my head around the fact that I now had to run a marathon. I crossed the timing mat and it was on - the final segment of my Ironman.

The crowds were thick and every step I took someone was cheering for me. At first I looked every which way thinking that I knew the person cheering. Since our names were on our race numbers, everyone cheered. I did recognize some faces in the crowd as I came around the capitol for the first time. Maggie and Shelley were cheering at the corner of State and Mifflin. It was really great to see them.

As I headed out on my first loop, the first 3 miles were really tough. I originally wanted to try and not walk as much as possible, but I felt as though I needed to. So, that set the tone. Every aid station from here on out was walked through...I saw the male and female leaders on my first loop. They made it look so effortless and easy. I was definitely in awe.

I came towards Camp Randall on Loop 1 and the Fleet Feet crowd was there cheering loudly. Donovan was also there and ran with me for a bit. What a difference that made. It definitely lifted me up. We get to run through Camp Randall, which was a very surreal experience. Usually, Camp Randall is a sea of red and white. But on Ironman Sunday it was empty. Only a small group of runners filled up the enormous space.

The next 3 miles were a blur. I saw friends, stopped at aid stations, took my GU, experimented with Pretzels (for the salt) and kept moving along. I was just trying to make it to State Street - the next spot I'd see my family. State Street was awesome. The people were packing the street and sidewalks. It was loud and everyone was cheering. I could feel my stride picking up a bit as the adrenaline picked up. What a rush! As expected, I saw my whole family there cheering. Darla came out and ran with me for a bit, which was great. I needed the lift and the running partner - even if only for a few steps. State Street was over in what felt like the blink of eye. I started making my way back out to Picnic Point. As I went through the Headhunter's aid station, my friend and swimming buddy Scott was announcing the names of athletes as they went through. It was a good feeling to hear my name as I was heading away from State Street.



On the way out to picnic point, I got to see several of my friends and training partners on the run. Ed, Matt and Jessica were all looking good on the run. They looked relaxed and steady. At this point, I think I too had settled into a stride that was comfortable. Well, maybe the right word is tolerable. My feet still hurt and I occasionally had stomach rumblings. This always made me wonder if my nutrition plan was going to blow up at some point during the run. Afterall, I still had about 16 miles to go.

Around mile 10, the thing I needed most was plodding along University Avenue - my friend and fellow triathlete, David. David and I met in the last 2 miles of High Cliff and got each other through that race (see Race Report from June). We were overjoyed to see each other and agreed to stick it out together. The miles started to breeze right on by until we hit the turn around near the finish. David and I caught up on our day and talked about our individual race plan/goals for the day. They were perfectly in sync.

At the turn around near the finish, I again saw tons of family and friends. It was very uplifting and a good feeling to know that we had one loop under our belts. At special needs I pulled out my Sprite, some salt, some pringles and some mini Snickers. I shared all these items with David as he didn't pack a Special Needs bag and his stomach was upset. We took a quick break and kept on moving.

Miles 14-17 were my lowest points of the day. My hip flexors started to tighten up and I needed to walk more than I wanted. At this point, I had surrendered the idea of a time goal. My ultimate goal was always to finish, but I think it's only normal that you set some time goals for yourself based on what you think you are capable of. I set mine pretty realistically, but when everything is hurting and you are walking it all goes out the window. It becomes about survival.

David kept me moving and focused on getting back to State Street. I started experimenting a bit more with food/drink. I was eating more pretzels and even tried some Coke. The Coke must have done the trick, because I felt much better after that. On the trip out to State Street, David and I recruited a few other athletes. We met up with Brian from Canada and Rob. The four of us walked the Observatory Hills together and made our way toward State Street. We agreed that we could pick up the pace for the crowd, but had to slow it down again once we completed the State Street run.


State Street was an adrenaline rush again! This time my family recruited everyone around them to cheer for me as well. It was a great feeling to have everyone cheering for you. As hard as it was to keep running at that point, it was so FUN. I had never had so much fun. As we headed away from State Street, Brian said to me 'Man, it's good to run with you. You have quite the cheering section'. Nothing like Home Field Advantage.

Around Mile 20, Brian took off and David and I kept making our way forward. Less than 6 miles to go. David reminded me of how much time we had to break 13 hours at this point. It was doable, but I didn't want to hear it. I just wanted to finish. I didn't want the pressure of coming in under a certain time to be hanging over my head. The miles ticked away and it was getting dark. They had started handing out glow bands to the athletes who were still out on the course. David and I opted not to take one as we were closing in on the finish.

Mile 23.....Mile 24....only two to go. We walked through the last aid station, but didn't take anything. Even water didn't sound good to me at that point. I was just wanted to get up to the Capitol and see my family. I got a little choked up in the last 2 miles - I was about to be an Ironman. The moment I had been dreaming about for a year was just minutes away from being a reality. Mile 25....we are going to be Ironmen! David and I spent much of this last mile telling each other how much it meant to run together. We got through those last 16 miles together! Without David, I'm not sure how I would have gotten through the last 16 miles of the marathon. The constant support and encouragement was amazing. I felt so lucky to have finished out this journey with a great athlete and person.

We hit State Street for the last time and I was counting the blocks. Two blocks of State Street, Three around the Capitol, and then....the Finish. The crowds were still strong on the upper section of State Street. They pushed as along.

We passed by the aid station on Mifflin, when David's wife Allison came along side us. She said 'You have 4 minutes to break 13 hours, if you pick it up now you can make it. Come on!'. And she took off....David followed and my legs argued, but started picking it up. Allison kept saying 'Come on Andrea! Come on!'. I said 'I'm coming, I'm coming'. At this point David's coach came out and started pushing him to sprint. They started sprinting. I knew I didn't have it in me to sprint, but I just kept turning the legs over. I had to finish. Just before making the final turn, I saw David was stopped. I think the sprinting had caused his upset stomach to catch up with him. I kept going. I had to finish and I couldn't stop my legs from moving.

I saw Darla at the corner and then, there it was....the Finish Line. I saw the clock and it read 12:58:40. I was going to make it under 13 hours! I don't remember much after this. The lights were bright, I heard Mike Reilly say my name, I have no idea what song was playing, I don't remember seeing very many people after the turn even though the finish area was packed with people. I had done it. I was an Ironman...I crashed through the tape and it was over.

It was everything I expected and hoped for...and more!

Up Next: The Finish and Post Race.

Ironman WI Race Report: The Bike and T2

The Bike

I finally managed to clip in and start my way down the helix. I proceeded down with caution and I could tell there were several anxious men behind me waiting to pass. There is no passing on the helix, which I'm sure frustrated the daylights out of the men with fast bikes with scary looking wheels. Once down the helix the bikes went sailing by me. Moments later another woman had fallen on her bike. So we were riding around her. There were also quite a few dropped water bottles to navigate through as well.

The way out to Verona was a blur. I saw several friends out on the course during this stretch - Mary, Analise, Dan....I also made use of the first water station. I stopped to use the port-o-potty. To my surprise and delight a volunteer held my bike while I was in there. WOW! That was cool. I killed two birds with one stone here - a little bathroom stop and my first croissant sandwich. Yum! I breezed on through Verona and began Loop #1.

Before I knew it, I was approaching the last major hill on Cty G. I shifted down into my small ring, since there was no need to crush the hills so early in the bike. As luck would have it, my chain fell off when I made the switch while going uphill. I clipped out, fixed the chain and somehow managed to get going up the hill. I got up the hill and began a nice descent until I hit Hwy 92. I again shifted into my small ring for 92 as it's one constant climb into Mt Horeb. A few friends came by during this stretch - Pete and Ed blew right on by me. It was awesome to see friends out on the course and to see them doing so well.



The bike was going fast. I was already coming into Mt Horeb. This would be the first spot that I would see my family. And sure enough, they were there in full force - cameras ready and cheering loudly. My friend John had even made it out at that point, so it was great to see him waiting there. I also saw Judy at this point - another great moment. The hill was packed with people - so packed that you forget you are climbing a hill. I slowed down at the aid station and took some water. To my total surprise, my friends Jim and Dana had come out to Mt Horeb with their daughter Isa. What an awesome sight! The next several miles were spent thinking how lucky I was to have so many great people in my life!

Loop #1 was just cranking right on by. We finally hit Garfoot and had a nice long descent and some flats before the 3 dreaded hills - Old Sauk, TimberLane and Midtown. I've heard that these hills get pretty crowded. I was a little nervous about people watching me struggle going up a hill, but what can you do other than keep going. These three hills turned out to be the highlight of the course. They were jammed with people. I saw SO many people on these hills - Maggie, Shelly, Cindi, Darla, Karen, Aggie, Donovan, etc...It was such a rush, I honestly forgot I was climbing a hill. In fact I couldn't wait to get back around to these hills to see all those people again. How cool was this?! On Midtown, I saw Danielle and Ed. Ed ran alongside me for a bit, taking pictures and updating me on his son Ben. After cresting Midtown, it was all downhill into Verona. This was the next spot I'd see my family and I couldn't wait.

I was just about to climb the last little hill on Cross Country when my family appeared. Aunt Lisa and Uncle Mike first, then my parents and then my Mom and John further down the road. Going through Verona was awesome. It was like the Tour! There were barricades set up, the streets were blocked off and people were lining the roads to cheer us on. I saw some friends from work out there and also heard the announcer call my name. I started to head around to Old PB to start my 2nd Loop. Holy cow - the bike was half over!

I stopped off at Special Needs where I had a bag packed with some goodies that I'd need for the 2nd half of the ride. My friend and training partner, Howard, was sitting in the grass enjoying his sandwich when I stopped. It was great to catch up for a minute and see how he was doing. I didn't stop long and then continued on. I wanted to get this thing done.

The 2nd Loop was not as much fun. Everything hurt a little bit more, the wind picked up and I slowed down a bit. It didn't matter though. I just had to keep moving forward (thanks Ang!) and using my PowerTap as my guide. Again, this loop flew by. I just tried to focus on getting out to Cross Plains again. Those three hills were so motivating and the next spot that I'd see my family. The course definitely started to clear out a bit at this point - especially in the Mt Horeb area.

I made it to the three monsters again and the crowd was still very energetic and packing the hills. I again saw my friend Darla on 'Bitch' hill. This time she ran alongside me offering words of encouragement. It was really great of her to do that. It definitely made me feel special and very loved (sorry if that's cheesy, but it's true!). My family was also there and again, kinda spread out. How nice to see all of them again.

Verona had cleared out a bit by this time, but there were still plenty of people to make it exciting. I passed the 93 mile sign and wow - I had just gone the farthest I'd ever gone on a bike before in a single ride! My feet finally started to hurt at this point, but I had less than 20 miles to go. I had to just hang on and ride smart. I still had a marathon to run. That's right - the marathon. (Shudder!)

I was in very familiar territory now. I rode on Whalen all the time and could ride this road in my sleep. It was nice to have that sense of familiarity. Actually, it was pretty nice to know this the whole ride. I knew what I was in for, when to push, when not to push, when to enjoy the descents and when to work the hills. I was coming up on the last big hill of the course and the last spot where my family was supposed to be. I was about 1/2 mile away when I could see their cars lined up on the road. I knew they were there. In fact, they were almost the only people there. My friends Doug and Laura were also there cheering. It was a great push before going up that last big hill.



I hit the 105 mile point and knew I had only 7 miles to go. 7 miles - that's nothing! Less than 30 minutes and I would be preparing to run a marathon. These last 7 miles whipped by. It was a complete blur. Before I knew it I was riding up the helix. I dismounted my bike and was more than happy to hand it off to the volunteers.

T2

T2 was very much like T1. I grabbed my gear bag and headed into the change room. Again, I had my own personal attendant and she was wonderful. She put my socks on, packed up my gear bag, listened to whatever babble was coming out of my mouth at that point...She was great! I got dressed and headed outside. Volunteers applied sunscreen and I hit the port-o-potty. I headed for the run course...

26.2 - here we go.

Up Next: The Run (or The Run/Walk)

Ironman WI Race Report: Swim and T1

The Swim

....the cannon went off. It was actually very anti-climatic in the water when we all started. I didn't really hear the cannon from where I was in the water. My only clue that the swim had started was that everyone started moving forward.

I was remarkably calm at the start. The first 20 strokes were without incident - no kicking, bumping, flailing arms, NOTHING! I thought I had positioned myself well and just might have a clean swim. That dream was very short-lived. Within a minute, all the swimmers converged and it was chaos. There were bodies everywhere - arms, feet, legs, it was pure chaos. But, it was manageable chaos. As long as I didn't stop, I was fine. If I stopped, I was certainly going to get trampled. The only thing to do was to move forward and keep on swimming.

The lake was very calm, so despite all the splashing of the athletes I never had a problem breathing or swallowed too much water. The first lap flew by. It took all my energy just to focus on moving forward and trying to find a clean lane to swim in. Every corner was congested and we practically stopped moving. I found I was surrounded by mostly men and they were brutal. Several times I had someone try to pull me backwards and swim over me or I had someone kick violently when I accidentally touched their feet. At the end of the first loop I got punched in the nose. Ouch! I popped my head up with the intent to fire back, but really, I don't know who did and it wasn't intentional. So head down and move on to lap 2.

The second lap flew by. I weaved a bit. Sometimes I was on the buoy line, sometimes outside it, sometimes inside it...the whirlpool effect that I heard about definitely held true. I thought the second loop would be smoother and it sort of was, but there was still quite a bit of contact around the corners and closer to the buoy line. Before I knew it, I was headed towards shore. Just a few more minutes and the swim was done. I got up to the swim exit and looked at my watch. It read 00:00:00. I must not have pressed the start button hard enough. So, I looked up at the clock - 1:11:36. I was ecstatic to see that time! I thought for sure the swim took longer than that and didn't really think I was capable of hitting 1:11 considering all the congestion on the swim.

I ran over to the wet suit peelers, stripped off the top half and let the volunteers rip off my suit. In just moments, it was off and I was headed up the helix. It was exciting! I saw so many friends and family - Darla, Aggie, Jerry, Kate, Ryan, Jim, Ellen, Dad, Mom, Aunt Lisa...I will say though, running up the helix hurt! When I finally got into transition, my calves were so sore. I thought they were going to cramp up!



I ran in to grab my gear bag and headed for the change room. Each athlete has a personal attendant. My attendant was great. She helped me get all my gear out, got me water, put sunscreen on me and packed my swim gear up. The volunteers were fabulous! We could not have survived the day without them!

I ran out to the bike transition area and immediately saw Angie cheering loud and proud! What a rush! I had to run down quite aways to get my bike. When I finally got to my rack, the volunteers didn't have my bike out, but I grabbed it and continued toward the mount line. When I got there, Rachel and Jordan were there cheering loudly! How cool was this?! I was doing Ironman and many of the people that I know and care about were out there cheering loudly!

I tried to get clipped in and my cleats were slipping a bit. I finally got clipped in and started my descent down the helix...

Up Next: The Bike

Ironman WI Race Report: Pre-Race

I decided awhile ago that I would write up my race report in 'Chapters'. I tend to write quite a bit and figured it would be easier for everyone to sift through smaller posts rather than one monster entry. So here goes....

Thursday

The excitement began on Thursday in full force. I kicked off the morning with a short, but fun run with my friend Darla. I then drove down to the first Gatorade swim of the week. Wow - the buoys looked so far apart and suddenly it was very real - Ironman is here and just moments away!

Later that morning my friends Steve and Jesse picked me up so we could go down and register. Registration was exciting and a piece of cake. We cruised through the lines and the reality began to sink in when they put the silver bracelet on our wrists. We were in! We hit the gear shop, purchased a few items (that of course couldn't be worn until after we finished) and headed back to work. It was impossible to concentrate for the rest of the work day.

Friday

Another fun-filled day that only built up the excitement further. I went down to the Gatorade swim again, but this time just to watch friends and hang out. There was something magical about just being around all the athletes. Following the swim, many of us headed up to Marigold Kitchen for breakfast. The whole place was filled with Ironman athletes. Everyone was there - Jessica, Pete, Stacy, Howard, Katie, Becca....

I spent the rest of the afternoon gathering up necessary food supplies and some last minute gear. I worked on putting my bags together - everything laid out on the bedroom floor, trying to make sure I didn't forget anything and that I had my bases covered.

Before the athlete banquet, we met atop the Monona Terrace for some photos. It was a beautiful evening with blue skies, comfortable temperatures and calm water. It was amazing to look out over the water and see what we were going to do on Sunday. The thing that was the best though was the cameraderie. Everyone was in great spirits and having a great time. I knew that no matter what happened on Sunday the most important thing was all the great people I had to share this with.



The banquet was awesome. The energy was definitely in the room. It was absolutely electric and crazy to think about what it was I was about to participate in. Over 1100 of the athletes there were doing their first Ironman. The oldest female was 64 and the oldest male (A LEGEND - Frank Ferrar!) was 77. Last year there was only 1 Mexican athlete and this year there was over 350 athletes from Mexico. Wisconsin still took the top spot for the state with the most athletes with over 500 athletes! A grand total of 2472 athletes were registered. Two of the athletes there were about to do their 50th Ironman! That's inconceivable to me! 50!!!! What a terrific night!

Saturday

Saturday morning I headed down to the Gatorade swim for a short workout. I met up with Wes and his sister Marci. We swam for about 20 minutes and I then took my bike out for a test ride. There was so much excitement in the air. The athletes were everywhere and I saw many of my friends working the Gatorade swim tent. It was awesome to see so many friendly, supportive faces!

While taking my bike out for a spin, I noticed that my PowerTap was having a hard time finding a signal. I immediately checked in with Angie at the swim area and she thought it was the hub batteries. After a bit of a wild goose chase, I got the necessary batteries and took my bike and batteries over to Machinery Row. To my surprise and delight, David Kohli was there and available to change my hub batteries! David built my bike and my wheels, so it gave me great comfort that he handled my bike. After the mini-crisis was over, I dropped off my bike in transition and headed out to lunch with Peter, Kathryn and my mom.

Later that afternoon, my parents and grandparents showed up in Madison. I took them downtown and showed them the activity around the Terrace. We then went out to a few of the spots on the bike course so they knew where they were going on Sunday.

In the evening, the whole family came together for dinner. It was wonderful. My grandparents, parents, Aunt Lisa, Uncle Mike, Cousin Amelia, Uncle Karl, Carrie and Elizabeth were all there to share in the celebration. It was really excellent to have the whole family together!

I headed home and was in bed by 930pm. I think I fell asleep pretty quickly and woke up only a few times. Just a little while before waking up, I dreamt that I missed my alarm and woke up at 6am. Fortunately, my alarm went off a few moments later...and it was 4am, Race Day.

Ironman Sunday

The alarm went off at 4am and I hopped out of bed. I immediately began my morning routine. I brushed my teeth and made my bed. I changed into my tri shorts and sports tank. I filled up my special needs bags and checked everything twice. I put a bagel in the toaster and finished filling up my Morning Gear Bag. I did a final check of everything ensuring that I didn't forget my wetsuit or anything else that I would need that day. Everything was a go...I headed out the door around 445am.

I arrived downtown around 5am and the streets were already buzzing with tired, anxious and excited athletes. I scored a sweet parking spot on the street just blocks from the finish line. After parking the car, I headed for the special needs drop area and dropped off my bags.

Next, it was off to bodymarking. Bodymarking took just moments and I was off to my bike. I needed to fill up my tires, put my food into my bento box, load up my water bottles and attach my bike computer. It was very exciting, but I still wasn't as nervous as I thought I would be that day. I was surprisingly calm and simply excited about the day!

I then went inside to place a few items into my gear bags. I ran into my parents, Uncle Mike, Aunt Lisa and Amelia in the hallway. We snapped a few photos. I then headed for the port o pottys and walked my family out. They went off to grab a spot on the helix while I went inside to relax and wait to get ready.

Inside the Terrace, I ran into many of my friends - Ed, Matt, Peter, Wes, Jesse....We found a spot in the main hallway and hung around. Some listened to music, stretched, chatted, went off to the bathrooms until it was time to go!



At 615am, I got into my wetsuit, applied the body glide, grabbed my cap and goggles and we headed down the helix. What a cool feeling going down the helix. The crowds of spectators were large and people were already getting in the water. I gave my mom a quick hug on the way down. I saw plenty of friends on the helix - Darla, Aggie, Kate, Ryan, Jim...it was so exciting. So exciting that I ended up tripping over a big orange cone. The rest of the way down Peter made a point of announcing every cone. This ensured I didn't face plant before the swim.

We got down to ground level and dropped our dry gear bags. In just minutes we were crossing under the arch and moving into the water. I swam out towards the inside buoy line about halfway back. Wes and Peter were behind me, but I never saw them again.

I had about 20 minutes to just float around before the start. I swam a little, floated a bit, and just took it all in - the sun rise, the calm waters, the packed Terrace, all the athletes still pouring into the water. At first I felt like I had a ton of free space where I positioned myself, but the water got more and more crowded. The pros went off at 650am and the excitement began. Mike Reilly was riling up the athletes and the crowd on this beautiful Madison morning.



We totally scored on the weather. It was calm, partly sunny and going to be in the low 70s. Absolute perfection. I felt a few butterflies just before the cannon went off, but mostly I felt a rush of excitement. I was doing Ironman. In just a few short moments my day would begin. I could hardly believe the moment had arrived. But, I was ready for it. I was ready to become an Ironman. Moments later, the cannon went off and the sea of athletes took off!

Up Next: The Swim and T1

Thank You, Good Luck and See You Sunday!!

Ironman Wisconsin 2007 is now less than 2 days away and my excitement continues to grow! I am truthfully at a loss for words when trying to express how I feel about this journey. I think I'll do a better job of summing it all up once I have crossed the finish line (so stay tuned). For now though, I'm going to thank all the people who got me where I am today.

Thank you to all the coaches who have directed, encouraged and pushed me throughout the last two years.

To Dave, Adam, Dan, Cindi and Kevin: you all turned me into a swimmer. When I signed up for Ironman, the swim was my biggest fear and concern. Thanks to all your encouragement and effort, I am confident that I will complete the swim with flying colors. I'm already looking forward to getting back in the pool!

To Cindi: thank you for the great endurance sessions this winter/spring. Without a doubt, you pushed me to get through workouts when I felt like not working very hard or calling it a day.

To Jason: You have really gone the extra mile to ensure that I had a successful season and was well prepared for Ironman. The balanced approach you took to my training, the support and the friendship have meant the world to me. I know that when I cross that finish line, I owe a lot of it to you.

Thank you to all my training partners - whether or not you are doing Ironman, you pushed me, endured tough workouts, shared in my successes and along the way developed some great friendships.

To Ed: You are truly an inspiration and a great friend. Your fighting spirit, caring words and friendship have pushed me every step of the way this summer. I'm so fortunate to have you on the sidelines.

To the Ironman Video Posse (Donovan, Katie, Jesse, Jessica, Pete, Matt, Ed, Becca): It's great to be at the starting line of this event with all of you and to be part of the video. These past months and coming days/months will leave me with many great memories like stopping off at Wollersheim Winery on a training ride after losing the map or looking out for the giant snapping turtle in the quarry. I can't wait to see you all out on the course and cheer you on.

To Darla: You have been my rock. No matter what has happened in my life - training related or otherwise - you've been there to support me. I couldn't have gotten where I am without that support. And of course, it's always been fun swimming, biking and running together. I look forward to more of it come.

To Petra, Amanda, Dotty, Charlie, Karen and Mary: I'll not forget my Madison Multisport days and all our Masters Swim classes together. Each of you has added to this experience in ways that I can't even begin to explain.

To Peter: You are probably one of the big reasons I'm doing this event. Last year you planted it in my head that I was capable of completing this journey. Somehow, I ended up registered and you were always there to endure the training, the girl talk and my many demands. I look forward to celebrating this journey and wish you all the luck in the world on Sunday.

Thank you to all my friends and family who have supported me throughout this journey, even when they didn't necessarily understand why I'm so crazy to do this!

To my parents, my grandpa Dick and grandma Sue, Aunt Lisa, Uncle Mike and cousin Amelia: Thank you for taking time out of your busy lives to be there to support me. You don't know how much it means to have you there on Sunday. Just seeing your faces during the race will mean so much. You have no idea! All your support throughout the year has also meant the world to me. Thank you! I love you all!

To my brothers - Allan and Mike: I wish you guys could be here! I promise to call you when I'm done. I can't wait to see you guys in November. Thanks for always supporting me!

To Jim, Dana, Sean, Jess, John, James, Cory, Sonia, Nanda: Each of you has listened to me for countless hours talk about this day and all my training even though you yourselves aren't involved in this sport. I can't wait to see you out on the course and to share the experience with you once it's over. For those of you who can't be here - Sean, Jess, Sonia and Nanda - I'll miss seeing you out there, but I'll know you are cheering me on from afar!

Sunday is a big day and I couldn't get there without everyone I've mentioned and many that I didn't. They say it takes a village to raise a child, well it takes a village to make an Ironman :) Thank You from the bottom of my heart!

My Dad (Dale) is going to be the point man on Sunday. So feel free to call him for updates. His cell phone number is (262) 893-6933. I think someone will have my cell also, so feel free to call it or leave a message. I'll return the call after the race. My mom (Ellen) will also have her cell - (414) 915-9511. See you out on the course - I have a journey to complete.

Love,
Andrea
Bib #2072
www.ironmanlive.com

The Big Red '100' and the Big Orange Buoys

Despite a tight, cramped up quad, I ventured out on my hour long ride yesterday in the hopes that it would loosen things up. Sure enough, the ride did loosen things up (HUGE sigh of relief!)and it also put me face to face with the 'Big Red 100'. Mile 100 of the bike is approximately 1/2 mile from the corner of Fitchrona and Whalen. It is spray painted in BIG RED numbers right on the road. As I rode over it, I thought 'So this is it. This is where I'll hit the 100 mile mark on the bike'. At that point, I'm sure my feet will hurt, my legs will be sore and I'll just be looking forward to giving my bike away at the point. It really hit home when I saw that - Ironman is here. There's no escaping it now...it's gonna happen. The writing is 'on the road'.

This morning my nerves really jump started. I drove along John Nolen drive towards the start of the swim course. Gatorade hosts morning swim practices of the course where athletes can take a test drive of the swim course. The big orange buoys were out and MAN - are they far apart! In reality, it's no further than any of the half IM's I've done. I was just surprised by how far apart the buoys looked. This is it...holy cow, I'm doing Ironman!

I headed for the swim start and a bunch of athletes had already gathered. I was fortunate to have many friends and training partners down there to ease the nerves and fuel the excitement. The water was choppy this morning as we are expecting some storms, but this is good practice! The first half of the loop flew by and as I turned the corner for the 2nd half of the loop everything slowed down. The water got choppier and it seemed like forever to that last buoy. I got there though and headed into shore feeling more excited and comfortable than when I started.

So, now I am headed for registration in just under an hour. Once I have that under my belt, it's really official. Ready or not Ironman, here I come! I will be joined in the registration experience by my friends Jesse and Steve - all first timers!

Even the weather seems like it's going to cooperate on Sunday....(I hope I'm not eating those words come Sunday)!

I'll be posting final race thoughts and thank yous tonight. The countdown to IM Wisconsin 2007 continues....2 days 20 hours and counting!

The week of Ironman is HERE!

I'm so ready to get this week rolling! I'm excited about everything from registration, the gatorade swim, dinner with my family on Saturday, the RACE (duh!), the FINISH of the RACE, the athlete breakfast afterwards...everything! What a great time in my life. I'm tackling something I never thought I could. AND I'm doing it in the company of so many good friends, training partners, family and my home community. That's some pretty spectacular stuff.

Despite being excited and ready to 'get it on' so to speak, I am nervous as well. I'm not really sure what about, but the nerves are there. I truly felt them for the first time tonight. I got a chance to hang out with a group of friends that's doing an Ironman video together.

My friend Steve Donovan has been recording the training, racing and thoughts of 8 of us friends doing Ironman this year. The video is going to be amazing and the group is GREAT! Steve has put a ton of hard work into this video and it is going to be something that we will each treasure for a very long time.

The stars of this video include:

Becca - 2 time Ironman and the Life of the Party
Jessica - 3 time Ironman (is that right Jessica?)and owner of SBR Coaching
Katie - 1st time and the Collegiate Athlete
Steve - 1st time and Video Extraordinare
Ed - 1st time and SuperDad
Matt - 1st time Gluten-Free Ironman
Jesse - 1st time and our token black guy
Pete - IM WI 2006 finisher with the coolest nickname (the Rocket!)
Andrea - 1st time and author of this blog

It should also be noted that Jim will be recording on Ironman Sunday via motor scooter. Look out for a crazy cameraman on the course. Thanks Jim in advance for doing this. I look forward to seeing you out there!

The point of that whole chunk of information is two fold. One - to address a very important part of my Ironman journey. And Two - to tell you all that my nerves didn't really kick in until we were all together tonight. 6 days out from the big event and asking each other how we are feeling, etc...I also realized though that this is going to be cool. And I mean, REALLY COOL! Not only am I going to be out there working towards something just for me, but I'm also going to be thinking of and supporting all those that I've come to know well over the last few years. I'll be hoping that they are having their best possible days and enjoying the experience as well.

In the coming days, I'll post:
-Final Race Thoughts
-Thank You Message
-Predicted Times/People to Cheer For

Finally, the latest in weather variance:

On 9/1/2007: Temperature: 73 degrees, Precipitation: Partly Sunny
On 9/3/2007: Temperature: 68 degrees, Precipitation: Partly Cloudy

Temperature Variance: -5 degrees
Precipitation Variance: No Rain - thank god!

Calculated Risks: Haircuts and Triathlon

First things first - the results of the haircut poll. It was quite close, but ultimately the majority said 'Yes, cut it shorter!'. And today, I did just that...well, only 1/2 - 1 inch shorter. I chickened out. There was no way I could chop the hair I have been trying to grow out for well over a year. Each time I have gone in the past year, the thought of hacking it all off was VERY tempting. But I displayed restraint and stuck with the painful growing out process (ladies - you know what I'm talking about!).

When I started the poll 3 weeks ago, the whole idea was to have something more manageable for my athletic pursuits. In the end though, a ponytail will just have to do the trick. It's worked this long...no need to hack it off on a whim.

I do very little on a whim. I'm not very impulsive and usually take well calculated risks. Triathlon is no exception. It seems that many people just fall into being a triathlete. It usually goes something like this: Friend encourages/dares non-triathlete friend into doing a tri. The non-triathlete friend agrees thinking 'No Problem!'. The day of the event comes and the non-triathlete shows up with a Huffy from Walmart, a swimsuit (but no wetsuit), old Nike running shoes that will be used for biking and running and a sense of adventure.

For me though, well I just don't function like that. I knew full well what I was getting myself into before my first tri. I had all the gear, the swim classes, the bike classes, the nutrition. If I was going to do this, I was going to do it right the first time.

Ironman was no different. About this time last year, I still hadn't decided if I was going to do Ironman in 2007 or 2008. I knew I could do the bike and the run, but I had no confidence in my ability to do the swim. After our final Open Water swim class last year - just 4 days before Ironman - I discovered that I could indeed swim the distance. With some hard work over the next year, I too could be an Ironman. So the journey began.

One year later, it's here. Ok, so it's not today, but it's only 8 days away and it's definitely here. Between now and Monday September 10th, all of us doing IM WI 2007 will think of not much else.

- What will I put in all my special needs bags?
- When will I go to registration - Thursday or Friday?
- What will the weather be like?
- How much is it really gonna hurt?
- Will I have fun?
- How great is it going to be to see my friends and family out on the course?!
- What is it going to be like to finish?
- What time do I need to start getting in the water so I can get to my desired position?
- Will it be hard to bike up the helix after 112 grueling miles in the WI countryside?
- Will my nutrition and hydration plan hold up?
- Gee, I wish they could play my favorite songs while I'm out on the course!

These are just a random assortment of questions and thoughts that are flying through my head at any given moment.

This has been an interesting journey so far. Signing up, the training, the racing - all for one goal. To arrive at the WI IM starting line healthy and ready to complete the journey. I'm ready. I'm excited to see what I'm truly made of. Through the past year, I've learned that I'm tougher than I thought. On IM Sunday, there will be no doubt - there's a lot more where that came from.

Forecast Variance Report for IM Sunday:
8/31/2007 Temp: 73 degrees, Partly Cloudy
9/1/2007 Temp: 73 degrees, Partly Cloudy

Congrats to those forecasters. Let's keep this forecast for the next 8 days.

Like throwing darts....

I thought it might be fun to track on a daily basis how much the weather forecast changes from day to day leading up to the event.

8/30/2007 - Temp: 62 degrees Precipitation: 50% chance of Rain
8/31/2007 - Temp: 73 degrees Precipitation: 10% chance/Partly Sunny

Temp Change: +11 degrees
Precipitation: Rain to Partly Sunny

I honestly think that when it comes to the 10 day forecast, (Well, heck, any forecast for that matter)the weather folks just sit around and throw darts. It is probably the best way of predicting weather.

The posts are going to become more and more frequent as the day gets closer. I am so darn excited and have so much to write about, but I'll save that for later tonight.

You know you are a tri-geek when: You are absolutely ga-ga over your bike getting brand new bar tape and a much needed bath! Stay Tuned for a picture of the current love of my life - the Diva!

Pray to the IM Weather Gods....

After checking the 11 day forecast on AccuWeather.com, the forecast for Sunday September 9th is Rain, 62 degrees! I'm asking all of you to start praying to the weather gods. I don't care what the temperature is....but please, please, NO RAIN!

1 week, 3 days and counting....

Seriously folks, it can't come soon enough! I feel like a kid waiting for Christmas morning. The days seem to drag by, when in reality they are flying by. I know it will be here before I know it. I'm just so anxious to get this show on the road!

I had my last 'long' run tonight. Peter and I set out to run about 10-11 miles or so. It pretty much sucked. My legs felt awful. I could never really shake the soreness out of them the whole run. We made it though.

My friend Steve asked me the other day what scares me about Ironman. At the time I said, I'm scared that it won't be fun and that I'll hate the whole event. Today's run reinforces this idea. If my legs feel that sore during the IM marathon, it's going to be a long run. Now, I know they won't feel great but I'm hoping that adrenaline masks some of the pain.

The next few days bring a bit of a break for my legs. I get to swim in the lake tomorrow and the pool on Friday. Then it's back to some running and biking over the weekend. Sunday will come and go and soon enough the countdown to the big day won't include the word 'week' in it. It will just be days. It can't come soon enough....I'm ready for it. (to be over with!!!)

It's Taper Time!!

It's official...my Ironman taper has begun! A 'taper' is when you reduce the amount of training prior to a race or event. The traditional Ironman taper is 3 weeks, but since my coach isn't a high volume coach, we felt that a shorter taper would be ok leading up to the big day (2 weeks to go - but who's counting?!).

My last 'big' workout of the season was on Saturday. I was scheduled to ride for 6 hours - wearing my race gear, eating race food and pacing as though it were race day. Oh and I had to do all this - ALONE! That's a pretty good chunk of time to be alone on your bike. I admit, I didn't want to ride for 6 hours when I got up on Saturday morning. I especially didn't want to ride 2 loops of the IM course. The morning started out cloudy and gloomy. Great, I thought, another icky day in Madison. The last week has brought nothing but rain, storms, clouds and humidity. I was ready for that to be over.

The first half of the first loop sucked. Mentally, I wasn't in it and my legs weren't really cooperating either. I kept going though. After all, I was already 25 miles away from home. I would at least need to ride another 25 miles to get home. I definitely thought about cutting the ride short for most of the first loop. The sun did finally come out, which was GREAT! It definitely lifted my spirits and my legs even started to feel pretty darn good. So, I decided to suck it up and start on that 2nd loop. Once I was into it, there was nothing I could do but finish it.

The wind had picked up by the time I started the 2nd loop. This really put a damper on the first half of the loop, but once I got Mount Horeb I was relieved. I stopped in at the Kwik Trip where I ran into my friend Tim Kranz. Tim watched my bike while I grabbed a coke, a gatorade and a water. We refilled bottles and set out. Tim and one of his friends stayed pretty much ahead of me for most of the loop. I did manage to catch them at one point and pass them for a bit, but I just tried to keep steady and hang in there. Surprisingly, the remainder of the ride wasn't all that bad. My feet started to bother me with about 40 minutes to go (good to know for the big day), but the best surprise was that my legs weren't all that sore when I got off the bike. In total, I rode 91 miles in 5 hours and 40 minutes. (I rode more miles on my bike yesterday than I drove in my car!) Even as I sit here the next day, I don't feel the soreness and fatigue that I expected.

So here it is - TAPER TIME! I'm so relieved and excited to have shorter and fewer workouts. And to have Ironman Sunday on the very near horizon. It was nearly one year ago that I registered. I'm definitely ready to tackle this challenge. I know it's going to hurt. I know I'll have moments of impatience and frustration. But, what I won't have is doubt. I have done what it takes to participate in this race and I can complete it.

The next 2 weeks bring lots of excitement...

1) My 29th Birthday!
2) My mom arrives in Madison....and we haven't seen each other in 3 years!
3) My friend Peter is having a house warming party.
4) Registering for Ironman.
5) Attending the Athlete Meeting/Banquet.
6) Participating in the Gatorade Swim (a practice lap of the course!)
7) Checking in all my Gear for the Race.
8) Pre-IM dinner with Family and Friends

IRONMAN WI - September 9th, 2007

Stay tuned for important race details! Thank you all for following my journey so far. It's been wonderful to share it in this way with all of you. Also, results of the haircut poll later this week!

Epic Run with Peter Nelson

Well, I've had a few epic bikes and swims this season. It was only fitting that I have an epic run as well!

Prior to this run, my longest run had been about 2 hours. This breaks down to about 14 miles for me. In fact, my longest run past 15 miles last occurred in October 2004 when I ran the Chicago Marathon. I definitely was curious as to how this run was going to feel.

Lately, the weather hasn't been very cooperative around here. We have gotten lots of rain accompanied by some pretty wicked lightening and thunder. Wednesday was no different. Several storms had already rolled through during the afternoon and you could hear the rumbles in the distance. More than likely, we were going to get rained on. But, rain or shine, I needed to get this run in. It was the last critical run before the big day.

My friend Peter, an Ironman veteran and fellow trainee, met me at my office on Madison's near west side. We were scheduled to run for about 2.5 hours, which could come out to 16.5-18 miles. We set out around 515pm with some pretty wicked humidity and some rumbling thunder and massive grey clouds.

We started out on the Capital City Bike Trail until it connected with Seminole Hwy. At this point we headed down Seminole Hwy towards the Arboretum and Downtown Madison. The first half of the run was great! We had 'girl talk' and were cruising right along. In fact, we were probably running about 30 seconds/mile faster than we should have been. But, it felt good, so we went with it. We turned into the Arboretum where we ran into an old college roomate of mine, a deer and a few wild turkeys.

As we headed out of the Arb, it started to drizzle just a bit and there was an occasional flash of lightening but it still hadn't started to storm on us. We continued to chat about Ironman Sunday - food, the finish, cheering, the bike, etc...We both definitely were starting to feel how close the event really was. Just as we hit the halfway point in the run, it started to rain - HARD! And, the lightening really picked up. It just figures that this type of weather starts when we are the absolute furthest point away from where we started. Not much we could do except push on.

We ended up connecting with the John Nolen Bike Path and followed that around the lake until we connected back up with the Wingra Bike Path. We headed back for the arb. This is about the point in the run where things started hurting - feet, glutes, quads. We kept pushing though and maintained our steady pace. Once we hit the arb, the rain was really coming down. The streets were flooded and we were often zigzagging between each side of the road to avoid going through areas of standing water. It didn't matter much anymore though - we were soaked. The lightening was also becoming more frequent and more vivid. Yes, it was stupid to be out in it, but all we could do was keep moving and run back. Luckily we were in a heavily wooded area, which at least provided some feeling of safety.

About 2 hours into the run, we were suffering. Our legs hurt, everything was soaked and our pace was slowing. This is about the time I started thinking 'I'm crazy! Why am I doing Ironman again? Someone please remind me.' If nothing else this run gave me a window into the pain I'm going to experience on September 9th. And, it is manageable, but definitely not very fun.

The last 20-30 minutes of the run was painful and we were counting the minutes until we got back. It was still storming like hell and we must have seen every frog (or toad?) in Madison. Many of them were pretty tiny, but we saw one HUGE one! Even Peter was like 'Whoa!'.

We made it back - exhausted and sore, but feeling like we accomplished something. As much as race day is going to be a huge victory for each of us, it's the small victories that we have every week that make us what we are - crazy, determined, focused, future Ironmen and Ironwomen.

I'm pleased to report that I am far less sore today than I anticipated being. Last night I thought I was going to be hobbling around for days. Hooray for being more fit than I thought!

I have one more Epic ride before the training slows down. Saturday I will ride for 6 hours and run for 30 minutes following. It will be a great test of my pacing strategies and food/drink consumption. Hopefully, it all works out well and pays off on Ironman Sunday.

IM Sunday: 2 weeks, 3 days....and the clock is ticking!

Slacker....

What should have been one of my biggest training weeks this summer turned into one of my busiest weeks with the least amount of training.

I missed workouts on 3 separate days - Monday, Friday and Saturday...and thanks to the lovely weather this weekend my Sunday workout was cut in half. I'm pretty disappointed in myself for not keeping up with things this week. Between training, the Trek Sales Show and my friends' wedding every moment was booked solid from the time I woke up until I went to sleep.

I just need to regroup and make sure to nail all of my workouts this week. Then, for two more weeks I can cut back and prepare for the big day. The big day is now 3 weeks away and I have to admit, I'm looking forward to life after Ironman.

Congratulations to Ed for completing his half Ironman this weekend! I'm so excited for him - I knew he could do it!

Why we do this

After only 4.5 hours of sleep last night, I managed to drag myself out of bed and to the Lake for my Open Water Swim Class. A whole group of triathletes were gathered and ready to get in a 6am swim.

The lake was dead calm and very peaceful. As we got into the water, the sun was just cresting the horizon. It was a giant red ball lightly covered by some clouds. What a perfect morning and what a great opportunity to escape the world and enjoy how beautiful this summer morning was!

We started out swimming east and it was spectacular. Every time I took a breath or sighted ahead I could see the sun. I felt like I was floating across the top of the water. It was a very relaxing feeling.

For the next hour, we alternated swimming towards and away from the sun. Some of the efforts were tough and some were easy. This is a workout afterall. The one constant is that I could always see the sun getting higher in the sky. As it rose this morning, the color went from red to gold which sent beautiful colors across the water.

I approached shore and there was another group of swimmers finishing up. They were all commenting on how distracted they were by the rising sun. No one was complaining of being tired or having sore muscles or worrying about their next race. It was the perfect morning to simply enjoy what we are able to do on a regular basis. I feel very lucky to be healthy, athletic, and able to enjoy all that the outdoors has to offer!

The perfect end to the morning: Rocking out to a little Bon Jovi on the way home! And now, on with my day!

The best things in life...

Some of the best things in life are the ones you can't put a price on. My life is full of some pretty terrific things right now. Here's my Top Ten List of the best things in my life over the last few weeks and coming up (in no particular order):

10) In just one week, my Mom turns 50 years young!
9) Our family welcomed a new member - Kassidy Joye Paradowski - my beautiful little niece! Congrats to my brother Allan and sister-in-law Stacie!!
8) Close friends - Sean and Jess - will be tying the knot this Saturday, August 18th!
7) Ironman Sunday is only 3 weeks and 6 days away - it's soooo close!
6) Closure!
5) My good friend and training partner, Ed Peirick, is about to compete in his first half Ironman this Sunday. I have the utmost confidence in Ed and know he's going to do fabulous!



4) Trek World 2007 - Bikes, Bikes and more Bikes....
3) Seeing my best friend Sonia and her husband last week in Milwaukee...
2) Winning 4 out of 5 games of Shuffleboard against Jon Francis Lewis - new friend and favorite person to beat in Shuffleboard!
1) Realizing that life is full of endless possibilities....priceless!

(Did that just sound like a Mastercard commercial or cheesy Hallmark card?)


Back to training...

Training is going well overall. I have about 2 more weeks of building my training volume and then we will cut back for the final 2 weeks leading into Ironman. Last week, I had 2 significant workouts. On Saturday, I set out to ride the Ironman loop with my friend Jon. It was blazing hot and pretty windy, which definitely took it's toll on us. Overall, it was a good ride. We had 2 interesting incidents.

As we were riding along Cty G, there were several other triathletes riding along with us. The guy in front of me must have stopped paying attention for a split second because he started to go off the road, hit some gravel and almost wiped out. I was right behind him and was lucky to be able to swerve to the left and avoid going down with him. Not too long after that we were riding on Hwy 92 and I think we both agreed that we saw the weirdest thing ever lying in the road - a large butcher knife wrapped in a towel with some stains on it. Definitely made us both wonder!

After 3 long hot hours on the bike, we called it a day. We enjoyed some food and I promptly beat Jon in Shuffleboard. If this whole triathlon thing doesn't work out, I can always take up shuffleboard!

On Sunday, the Madison Multisport crew went back to Devil's Lake to swim across the lake and back. It was an awesome swim for the most part. The waves picked up on the way back and pushed me out into the lake and again I had to make a hard left to get back to shore. Nothing too interesting on this swim - I did run into a giant stick and pile of weeds in the middle of the lake. After the swim, we set out to run. The run was hot and humid. Ed and I ran together for 45 minutes and then I ran an extra 15 minutes to hit the hour mark. After the run, I jumped right into the lake - running shorts and all! It felt so refreshing. I am really ready for a break from this heat and humidity.

The week ahead is going to be insane - lots of training, Trek World, Sean and Jess' wedding...every minute I have is pretty much booked through next Sunday. Phew!

Check out my photos for some of the latest happenings!

Steelhead 70.3 Race Report - The 2nd time is sweeter!

I've been thinking about what the theme of this entry was going to be all weekend. I don't think that there is one theme that I can zero in on. I can summarize the weekend and tell you that it was truly amazing from start to finish. I learned that no matter what happens in a race - you have to adjust, make smart choices and keep putting one foot in front of the other. So here goes...my weekend in the Hamptons of the Midwest and the Steelhead 70.3 Race Report!

Friday

We had to leave Madison on a Friday since the race was on Saturday. It's unusual that a race is on Saturday, but it was a really nice change of pace for all of us. It meant having a full day to recover before going back to work.

Caitlin, Amanda and Seth picked me up at home around 9am on Friday morning. We headed out of town and made it down to Chicago in good time. Due to heavy traffic, we ended up missing the ramp for the Indiana tollway. I had the brilliant idea to take a 'shortcut' through the south side of Chicago. We drove through a pretty interesting and sad part of Chicago. It definitely made us appreciate our own lives all that much more. Once we made it back onto the highway, we made great time getting into Michigan. Of course, we didn't account for the time change and arrived at Caitlin's family's beach house in Benton Harbor around 4:30pm.

It was amazing! The house was right on Lake Michigan, but you felt as though you were in the Hamptons. The water was a beautiful blue with small waves crashing into the shore. There was tall beach grass everywhere and white powdery sand. If you looked up and down the beach it was gorgeous! How lucky were we! And how awesome was this going to be after the race?!



After admiring our new surroundings, we set out to the race expo to get registered and rack our bikes. The race expo was about 1/2 mile down the beach from where we were staying. It was perfect! We got our race packets and headed off to transition to rack our bikes. To ease congestion race morning, they have everyone rack their bikes the evening before the race. This is a bit nerve-wracking, but they do have guards watching the transition over night.

This was by far the biggest race I had ever done. There was approximately 2000 athletes registered for the race. It was pretty intimidating and very obvious that this event would be more competitive than what I was used to. This race was also an official qualifier for the ClearWater 70.3 Ironman Championships. Basically, it's the equivalent to the Hawaii Ironman, except half the distance.

In the evening, Catilin needed to head to Grand Rapids to pick her husband up at the airport. Seth, Amanda and I set out for the grocery store to pick up some essentials for the race....and after the race. We went out for pizza with Caitlin's cousins - Richard and Tracy - after our shopping excursion. They were fantastic hosts over the weekend and we genuinely enjoyed their company!

Saturday

The alarm went off at 5am. I had laid out my race gear the evening before, so I was ready to go. I did the usual - brushed my teeth, got dressed, prepared a bagel with peanut butter, ate and double-checked my gear. Our goal was to leave the house by 5:30am to head to transition to set-up our gear. We managed to get out of there by about 5:45am. Seth, Amanda and I headed down the beach in the pitch black of the morning. The sand was cold on our feet and the water was pretty calm. We could see the buoys and figured that we would be swimming from the south end of the beach to Jean Klock Park. The start of the swim changes based on the current. That morning the current was headed north...and so we would too.

Transition was filled with people. It was a little tough to see initially, but as the sun started to come up we were able to see things more clearly. Amanda and I got things all set-up and decided to head towards the swim start. We would make a pit stop at the beach house to make a final bathroom trip and get into our wetsuits. It was a beautiful morning!


Amanda and I made it back to the house. We got our final bathroom stop out of the way, took a few photos, got in our wetsuits and headed for the start, which was only 1/2 mile down shore. As we headed to the start, I thought the water looked really calm and that the swim was going to be amazing. It looked peaceful. Little did I know, what looked calm was actually a bit wavy.

Amanda, Caitlin and I started together in Wave 5. Each wave had approximately 200 people in it. This was the largest wave I'd ever been in...and it was a true beach start. At 7:10am, the horn sounded and we were off!!

The Swim (1.2 miles)
Given the number of people in my wave, the swim started out amazingly calm. There wasn't a ton of contact and that comforted me initially. I got ready to start swimming when I saw how high the swells in the lake actually were. I had a really difficult time calming down. My heart rate was way up and I just couldn't put my face in the water. I expected some of this for a few minutes, but this went on for nearly 10 minutes! I was extremely discouraged. To top it off, my goggles were fogging up, the sun was bright and I couldn't see the next buoy. I knew I was a better swimmer than how I was doing, so I finally put my face in and relaxed.

Once I was going, I was moving. I could feel the current pushing me along and before I knew it we were making the final turn towards shore. I was relieved to have the swim turn around for me, but disappointed that I struggled for as long as I did.

After exiting the water, you had to run uphill through the sand and then about another 400 yards until you hit transition. This was a long transition!

T1: What can I say about transition, other than it was long. The distance you had to run was so much greater than what I was used to. I paced myself, but got in and out as quickly as possible.

Swim: 37:13
T1: 3:21

The Bike (56 miles)

I had no idea what to expect for this bike course. I knew it was rolling with some hills, but I didn't know to what degree. I definitely wanted to creep under the 3 hour mark, but wasn't sure what challenges I'd face on the bike.

I started easier that I wanted to go, but knew if I went out too hard that I would pay for it later. Like at High Cliff, I needed a bathroom stop about 10 miles into the ride. Fortunately, there was a porta potty open and I was able to make a quick stop. I just kept thinking, well there goes 2 minutes.

I was amazingly focused for the remainder of the bike. I felt great, focused on maintaining a certain wattage, minimizing the time spent coasting and sticking hard and fast to my nutrition and hydration plan. Starting at 15 minutes into the bike, I ate every 30 minutes. For the first 1.5 hours, I had croissant sandwiches (Thanks Allen!!!). For the remainder of the bike I stuck to a balance bar and Gu. I drank 2 bottles of gatorade and half a bottle of water on the bike. I know that I need to try and drink more on the bike, but every 15 minutes I drank like clockwork. I didn't have any stomach issues and felt great about my plan leading into the run.

The one thing that was different about this bike was the competitiveness. The men were flat out jerks. Many of them wouldn't even warn you when they were passing and would come very close. This can be incredibly dangerous when you are riding 20+ mph and may have to dodge a dropped water bottle, pothole or another biker at the last second.

Also, due to the sheer numbers of people, drafting or avoiding drafting became an issue. The rule is that if you are passed by a cyclist, you must drop back 3m and wait 20 seconds before attempting to pass back. Many times, I would be passed by someone going just a hair faster than me. I would then be forced to slow down and wait to pass them back. This became annoying very quickly. I had been going back and forth with this one woman for most of the ride. She wasn't very good at handling her bike and quite often rode right down the middle, which made it hard to pass. I finally made a hard pass at around mile 40 and never saw her again.

The last 10-15 miles of the bike were into a head wind. It was kind of annoying at that point, but I knew that I was going to break the 3 hour mark as I hoped. In fact, I was going to break it by more than I thought I could. With the bathroom stop and all, I cruised on in!. It was an awesome bike - the course was beautiful and easy to ride. It flew by!



T2: The transition to the run wasn't quite as long as the one from the swim, but there was still some distance to cover. I spent a little extra time digging through my Transition bag, as I forgot to put out my socks. I could have tried to run without those, but I have a feeling I would have had blisters. I decided that spending the extra seconds was worth the payoff.

Bike: 2:52:36
T2: 3:08

The Run (13.1 miles)
The run....this was something I really wanted to improve on over High Cliff. I completed High Cliff in 2 hours and change and walked all of the aid stations. I was hoping to shave 5 minutes off my run time at Steelhead and to do this, I would need to walk a bit less.

I started out of transition and looked at my watch - 3:35. I started doing the math...if I ran the same as last time, I'd set a personal best at this distance. I had hoped to sneak under 5:30 and the goal was definitely attainable, but you never know what is going to happen on the run and I didn't want to put the pressure on too early.

I forced myself to take the first few miles slow. I didn't want to blow-up mid run and starting out blazing was a sure way to do it. I wasn't sure how I felt the run was going to go for the first few miles. I cruised through the first few aid stations, grabbing water and gatorade without walking. I started chatting with a gentleman around mile 3. He (and about 20 other runners) asked me how I liked my Newton's. They are a new running shoe that is supposed to force you to run more anatomically correct. The jury is still out....

Around Mile 4, I realized I was cruising and it felt fantastic. I kept up the pace, passing people left and right. I also stuck hard to my plan of keeping cool and drinking at the aid stations. I only walked when I took my gu.

The course itself was a 2 loop stem course. We ran out about 2 miles and then did two loops before running back. Still cruising along I was nearing the turn around for the 1st loop. As I hit Mile 6, I checked my watch. I was 50 minutes into the run already! I was flying! At this pace, I could definitely break 5:30. It was still too early though to get too excited.

I maintained a steady pace mile by mile and was very focused. Any time I started to get tense or feel exhausted, I backed off the pace until I was comfortable again. I continued to stop at all the aid stations and take in fluids. If I waited or skipped an aid station, I would certainly pay for it later. I got to see Amanda twice during the run, which was awesome! She looked great and was running very strong.

I was closing in on Mile 11. If I was going to break 5:30, I would need to hit Mile 11 by 5:12 AND maintain a 9 minute/mile pace. At Mile 11, my watch said 5:09! I had a 3 minute cushion and knew that no matter how tired I was I needed to push. What I thought was impossible during the early moments of my swim was very possible.

The last 2 miles felt so long. I kept pushing and kept passing people. I felt pretty good overall, but was definitely ready to stop. The final turn towards the finish was awesome. We ran between 2 giant sand dunes that were lined with people. I could see the finish and I started sprinting and smiling. I was done and I had kicked ass! I couldn't believe that I met my goal. It felt awesome. I heard the announcer say my name.

Afterwards, I realized they were playing music during the finish. Only, I had completely tuned it out. I had no idea what was playing when I finished. I immediately went to the post-race tent and began refueling - root beer and plum. Yum!

Run: 1:51:15
Overall Time: 5:27:32

Age Group Place: 19/92
Gender Place: 89/517

I knocked 12+ minutes off my time from High Cliff. I had a kick ass run and an awesome bike. I struggled early in the swim, but recovered and pushed forward. This race definitely taught me that it's not over, until it's over. You can always push yourself farther than you thought. Quite often, I think we can amaze ourselves when we least expect it.

I stuck around and watched Amanda finish. She was awesome! I am so proud of her efforts. She looked strong and I have no doubts that she will rock the Ironman on September 9th.

We missed Caitlin finishing while we were gathering our gear from transition. This was a first for both Caitlin and Amanda. Both became Half-Ironwomen! And both were truly amazing!


Post-Race
We hung around post-race, grabbed some food and started to head back. For grins, we all decided to check the results. I checked the Clearwater 70.3 Championship slots and was surprised to find MY NAME on that list. I couldn't believe it.

The way it works for qualifying slots is that each Age Group is awarded a certain number of slots. In my case, it was 4 slots. The slots are automatically awarded to the top 4 finishers in each age group. If any of these athletes chooses not to accept the spot, it rolls down to the next participant. This continues for a certain number of individuals. I was 19th in my age group, so it was unlikely that it would have rolled down to me, but I was honored and overjoyed to be on that list.

We went back to the house that evening. We enjoyed a trip to the beach, a great lasagna dinner, ice cream and beer in the city and a good night's sleep!

What an awesome experience all around - a fantastic race, great new friends, beautiful surroundings!

IM WI is now 5 weeks away and it is my next race. I'm more excited than ever for this event. I know I'm going to have my ups and downs that day. I know I'm going to have moments of panic and pain...and moments of joy and amazement. It's currently 6:45pm in Madison, WI. 5 weeks from this moment, I should be in the final 10 miles of my Ironman Marathon. I can't wait!

Next Race: Ironman Wisconsin 2007 - September 9th

Congratulations and Best Wishes!

I just wanted to give a quick shout out to Sarah and Andy! Their adoption adventure is picking up steam as they head to Khazakstan in about a week to meet and pick up their child or children! Check out their blog for all the details. I'm very happy to see them embark on such an amazing journey! We all look forward to meeting the newest addition(s) to the Snyder family!

Also, Congratulations to all those who participated in the Racine and Chisago Lakes Tri's recently: Becca, Ed, Matt, Katie, Jesse, Pete, Jessica, Petra, Steph....and many, many more! I know I'm missing someone!

Oh, it's gonna hurt...

This week was a roller coaster - at work, in my personal life and in training. I definitely had some major peaks and valleys in each of these areas. Ultimately though, it's just another week. We all seem to manage to get through it one way or another. The road to success and achievement is not always paved in gold. Quite often it's filled with tears, tough lessons and moments of extreme doubt. And, when you are training for an Ironman, the road is sometimes covered in gravel.

I'm not sure if it's the humidity or the stress, but I couldn't manage to drag myself out of bed this week. Each time the alarm went off, I found some reason to skip or postpone my workout. Usually, I'm pretty good about crawling out of bed to get in a swim or a run knowing the reward may be an evening free to do as I please. This week was different.

Monday
Somehow I motivated myself to get in the pool and swim in the evening. There was no class and no scheduled workout. Swimming can sometimes be a total drag without these motivating factors. Luckily for me, my good friend and training buddy, Ed, was also swimming. Even though you can't talk while swimming, the company is always nice.

Tuesday
I was all set to get out of bed and do my long run before work. The alarm went off and I stayed put. I did do my long run that evening. I ran about 11.5 miles around Lake Monona. Given my recent decrease in running volume, I was surprised to have a strong run. I didn't hate it, my legs felt good and it really released the stress of the day. I followed up my run with an ice cold beer and some chocolate...oh and watching my friends Sean and Jess play Ultimate Frisbee.

Wednesday
I was again lucky enough to be able to train with Ed. We went out for the standard SW Madison bike ride - the Paoli Loop. We had a great ride. We chatted the whole way, smashed the hills and really relished the flats. It was a beautiful evening in Madison. After the ride, I was lucky to spend a few hours with some of my co-workers enjoying food and beverages at the Great Dane in Fitchburg.

Thursday
This was a BAD day. I skipped my morning swim...and fully intended to run in the evening with the Fleet Feet running group. I ended up staying a bit later at work than intended...and just felt like relaxing and not running. So, I didn't run. Wow - I skipped two workouts in one day. This was a tough day all around. Nothing seemed to be going right. Luckily, there's always a new day.

Friday
I went to Masters Swim and had a really strong workout. Afterwards, I met my friend Petra for breakfast. We had some great girl talk and enjoyed some tea and coffee. Petra just completed her first half Ironman. She did a phenomonal job - I'm very proud of her. She's a strong athlete and good friend. After breakfast, I was very fortunate to spend several hours with my Mom and Brother Mike in Milwaukee. We enjoyed lunch and Margaritas at Tumbleweed and followed it up with some good conversation. I headed back to Madison and ended up redecorating my entire room with my friend Dana.

Saturday
I got up at a reasonable hour and set out for another long run. The morning started out cool, but as soon as the sun came out the humidity skyrocketed! Again though, I was pleasantly surprised by my run. I was clocking some fast miles and feeling fairly comfortable doing so. I ended up running just over 11 miles in about 1:30. Following the run, I had a marathon day of attending a baby shower for my friend Jessica and then heading back to Milwaukee for my grandparents 25th anniversary party.

Sunday
The alarm went off at 5:05am...that's right...5:05am on a Sunday. (Yes, I'm crazy!)
I was meeting up with my friends Matt and Steve to ride 2 loops of the Ironman course at 6am in Verona. This was going to be an epic ride - 80 hilly miles and a test of our fitness. The first loop was great - we didn't really stop at all, rode fairly comfortably and enjoyed the cool morning air.

Before beginning the 2nd loop, we stopped back at the cars to refuel and attend to some other necessities. This included a reapplication of Chamois Butter by Steve and Matt. For those of you who don't know, Chamois (pronounced Shammy) Butter is a cream that eases the rubbing of some private parts with the saddle. No one ever said triathlon was glamorous. We set out for the 2nd loop as the humidity and the heat was really starting to bear down on us. This go around definitely felt tougher. We managed to make it into Mt Horeb to refuel. Matt's dad even met us with Lemonade and Cookies.

After refueling, we set out to complete the loop. It wasn't easy. I definitely had moments where I realized how much Ironman Sunday was going to hurt...and how difficult this course really was. How am I going to do this, I thought. I'm not sure how, but you just keep going no matter how tough it gets. The same is true with life. I had a tough week, but somehow you just keep moving forward hoping for the best.

We cruised back into Verona where Matt crashed. Well, crash is a strong word. Matt forgot to unclip his feet from his pedals and experienced the slow motion, oh-so-embarrassing fall in a major intersection in Verona. That was really the most entertaining part of the entire 5 hours we spent riding.

Sunday (Part 2)
The second part of my Sunday was great. I came home, took a quick shower and went to pick-up our new NE Sales Rep - Jon. Jon is training at Saris in Madison for about a month. I thought I would be a good hostess and show him a little of Madison. We grabbed brunch at the infamous Pancake Cafe. This was followed by a trip to Staples (very exciting). Like any good hostess, I put Jon to work and had him carry a case of wine for me. We capped off the afternoon with an icy cold drink from Starbucks. It was a really enjoyable afternoon.

After dropping Jon off, I headed straight over to Ed's for an Ironman BBQ. The whole gang was there - Becca, Jessica, Pete, Steve, Ed, Matt, Katie...plus the families, Jim and Breanne. The BBQ was great - tasty food and fun stories! We watched the Ironman video that Steve is preparing for all of us and it was great! He really has outdone himself! I feel so lucky to be part of such a great group of people.

Watching the video really reminded me of the journey that I am on right now. No matter what is going on in my life, Ironman was a commitment I made nearly 1 year ago and it's something that I have to see through! Afterall, it's now only 6 weeks away.

This week's lesson
This week's lesson didn't come out of training, but out of life. No matter how tough things get, you keep pushing forward because that's all you can really do. Who wants to go backwards?

Next Saturday I head to Michigan for my final race before Ironman. I am racing the Steelhead 70.3 Triathlon. For those of you unfamiliar with triathlon distances, this is a 1.2 mile swim, 56 mile bike and 13.1 mile run (a Half Ironman). I am travelling and participating with my friend Amanda. It should be a great race and further help me dial in my nutrition for Ironman.

Stay Tuned for next week's race report..and check out my pictures! I've added some new ones from this weekend!