Ironman Texas
The 2014 season had gotten off to a rocky start with 2 bad
races in a row. I managed to figure out my asthma issues and changed my diet in
hopes of making it to the start line healthy for once, but the bigger challenge
was working on my mental game. After
Oceanside 70.3 I had a few weeks to prep physically and mentally for Ironman
Texas. I felt like I was in the best shape I had ever been in but my head
hadn’t been in the game and that’s the difference between a great race and a
bad one. So Joanna and I spent more time working on my mental toughness than my
watts and I hoped I could finally pull my head out of my ass in time for IM
Texas!
The days leading up to the race were great as the venue was
beautiful and the locals were really friendly. Thankfully I had fellow LA’er
Jeff Ku with me who was such a big help in prepping for the race and making
sure I didn’t have to eat dinner alone every night!
Race morning went as planned and Cheryll Ku was an amazing
Sherpa, helping to make everything easier. We found out that morning that the
swim was going to be wetsuit legal and I did a little happy dance. YAY!
SWIM: 1:09:25
Just like any Ironman, the swim start is a pretty amazing
event. As I sat there bobbing in the water with 2800 of my new friends I
couldn’t help but get excited. This is why I race-it’s freaking fun!
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| Photo courtesy of Cheryll Ku |
The swim was rather uneventful-just the typical kicking and
punching. I got hit in the face so hard once that my goggles came off so that
wasn’t fun. It’s been almost 2 years since I have raced an IM and I forgot how
long that swim is. I felt like it would never end! I came out of the water
about a minute slower than my usual time but I was just happy to be done! I
have been swimming slower and slower lately so definitely need to make some
changes.
T1: The
volunteers were amazing and before I knew it I was on my new bike
BIKE: 5:32:34
I recently became the proud owner of a new Cervelo P3
(thanks to http://www.triathlonlab.com)
and I was so excited to race on this bike. I had an amazing fit dialed in by
Jim Manton (http://www.ero-sports.com) and
I knew I was in for a fast and comfortable ride, or so I thought. About 20
minutes into the bike course I hit a lip in the road and my seat slipped. WTF? (I
had this problem twice already in the weeks leading up to the race). I tried
not to panic (mental focus is the name of the game, right?). I figured I would stop at the first aid
station and fix it and not lose much time. Around that time I came up on a girl in my AG (bib
# 520) and we jockeyed back and forth until the aid station at which point I
had to pull over. IT WAS SO HARD to do this and watch her ride away but I knew
I had to be smart. Unfortunately when I looked at my seat it hadn’t slipped
down like I thought. Nobody had an allen wrench (seriously) so I thought as
long as the height of the seat hadn’t changed I would be fine. I jumped back on
my bike and tried not to kill myself to catch up. Within a few minutes I
realized the seat had tipped back (with the nose pointing up higher) and I was
REALLY uncomfortable. I got pissed realizing I was going to have to stop again.
I rolled into aid station #2 yelling for an allen wrench and again nobody had
one. Typically at this point I would
have pulled a Norman Stadler and thrown my bike across the road feeling like I
was losing too much time and my day was ruined. Instead I used my new mantra
that I had been practicing for the race… KEEP YOUR SHIT TOGETHER (found this
gem in an interview with Shalane Flanagan after Boston). I got back on my bike and tried to just
control what I could and not stress about the rest.
I had found a sweet spot on the seat that made the position
tolerable and I thought I was going to be fine, until the nausea set in around
mile 30. Not to worry, I had packed some Tums so I thought things would be
fine. However, I couldn’t shake the nausea and soon I couldn’t take in any
calories and just being in the aero position made my stomach worse. This wasn’t
good. Around mile 45 I threw up a little but then I felt better. I thought that
the worst was over and I was ready to get in some calories and pick up the
pace. That lasted about 10 miles and then things started feeling bad again.
Around mile 60 I was totally caught off guard by a massive projectile vomit!
Thankfully nobody was around me to experience it, although I do wish the race
photographers had captured this! I felt much better though so I started to slowly add some calories. By mile 80 I caught up to #520 and I literally
said out loud “I’m back in this!” But of course that feeling didn’t last long
and soon I was feeling sick again. This lasted the rest of the ride. I started
to panic knowing I was going into the run in a massive calorie deficit, so at
mile 90 I grabbed 3 gels from the aid station. Before I could take any of them
they all blew out of my bento box. Did I mention how freaking windy it was? Needless
to say the last 30 miles were just a suffer fest and a few more girls
started gaining on me, including #520. I rolled into T2 much later than I had
hoped but I was happy to be off the bike and upright!
T2: Again the
volunteers were great. I think this is the worst shape I have ever been in
coming off the bike. I was a sweaty, salty, puke stained mess. The volunteers
basically washed me down with water as another helped me with my gear. Soon I was on my way to start a marathon with
nothing in the tank!
Run: 3:42:34
My run training the last 6 months has been amazing and I had
lofty goals for this race. I have never run well off the bike in an IM and I
really thought Texas was going to be my breakthrough race. As I started the run
I had to readjust my goals from trying to break 3:30 to just getting in
calories so that I could finish. The first few miles weren’t so bad as the
nausea had subsided and I was taking coke and water at every aid station. Around mile 4 I heard someone coming up
behind me and sure enough it was #520! UGH. I was pissed but I told myself that
we still had over 20 miles to go and anything could happen, I just needed to
keep my shit together! And that’s pretty much what I did over the course of the
next 20 miles. By mile 8, I realized I needed electrolytes and I couldn’t get a
gel down so I started adding PowerAde to my aid station stops. I definitely
spent more time in the aid stations than any other race but I knew I needed the
nutrition. Aside from the coke, the
other thing that got me through the race was the amazing support on the course.
I have never experienced such energy on a run course. It was truly amazing and
really helped me push through. By the third loop of the run it seemed like I
was never going to catch #520 and I didn’t see anyone close to me at the out
and backs so I figured if I could just hold on I could keep my position. I
should mention that I assumed #520 was in the lead and that I was in 2nd
(not so much).
At mile 24 as I was coming out of the wooded part of the run
into the electrifying downtown area I saw her… #520 was in my sight! Holy shit
I could pull this off (remember I am thinking she’s in first). Anyone who knows me knows I am notorious for
being a bad “closer” and losing within the last few minutes of a race. I have a
tendency to get negative if I am losing and just think about quitting. This time
my mental game was on and I took off! The crowd support was awesome and I
passed her at a 6:45 pace. I tried to make it look effortless but it hurt more
than anything I have ever done in a race. The next 2 miles my lungs and legs
were on fire but I was determined not to let her pass me. I was using my mantra
and talking out loud to myself (yes I was THAT crazy girl). But it worked, and
at the turn around at mile 25.5 I saw that I had a big enough gap that I could
enjoy the last half- mile. I ended up putting 5 minutes between us in those
last 2 miles! Now if I can just learn how to push myself that hard for an
entire race.
The finish line in TX is a long stretch right through the
center of town. It is so pretty and I was the only finisher around so I took it
all in as I crossed that line.
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| Enjoying the finish line all by myself! |
I should mention that I still thought I had won my AG for
about 30 mins until I finally made it to the results area and saw I was 2nd.
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| Fist pump thinking I had won! Oops |
There weren’t very many people hanging around the finish so
I grabbed my stuff, chatted with some teammates from TBT and headed to my car.
It seemed a little uneventful to be driving myself back to the hotel and
sitting in traffic just a few minutes after a hard fought race. That night was
pretty rough as my stomach was in bad shape. I couldn’t enjoy my typical post-race
margaritas or any fun food (why even race if you can’t be glutinous right
after?)
The awards ceremony the next day was incredibly nerve-wracking,
as I didn’t know how many Kona slot were in my AG. There tend to be fewer slots
now, and especially for the women. I was also nervous for Jeff who was hoping
for a roll down slot after a really impressive race. The 2 of us sat there like
nervous little kids, praying we would both get the outcome we were hoping for.
When I went on stage to get my award I was told there were 2 slots in my AG!
Those last 2 miles made all of the difference! Phew! I should also mention that
I met the infamous #520 and she was really nice! Always great to race with cool
chicks!
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| #520 and the rest of the girls! |
Jeff had to wait about another hour for the slot allocation
process and he ended up getting his slot in dramatic fashion! It was awesome
that we both came away with Kona slots and could celebrate together!
Shout Outs:
I have so many people to thank who helped get me to the
start line. Of course my coach, Joanna Zeiger, who always figures out my
problems and calms me down when I am a big ball of stress. Check out her new
coaching company (http://racereadycoaching.com)
My amazing sponsors: TriBike Transport, Triathlon Lab and
Athlete Octane.
To my friends who support me in so many ways, but especially
Keevin Blue who did emergency surgery on my bike shoes the day before I left
for TX, Jeff and Cheryll who let me be a third wheel during our trip, and to
high school friends Randy McCall and Joe Feaga who saw I was racing in their
area and came out to cheer me on. It was awesome having some familiar faces out
on the course!
Up next is Vineman 70.3 where I will try to defend my AG win and Keep My Shit Together!
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