2009 Eagleman Ironman 70.3

It’s hard to believe a full year has passed since I officially drank the triathlon "Gatorade”.  At last year’s Eagleman I caught the Ironman bug and later signed up for Lake Placid.  The race this year was no less exciting as I raced with my dad in his second ever triathlon.  I’ve been inspired by his quest to learn to swim and train over the past six months and was pumped to race along side, or in front of , him. The buildup for the race was great as we compared our strategies for the race and did some training together.

                                                             

The day before the race was nice and relaxing.  I got to catch up with my family and lounge around the monstrous Hyatt and its many pools.  After a leisurely dinner complete with dirt pie for dessert (which I hadn’t seen since 3rd grade) we retired to bed anxious for the day ahead.  I was relatively relaxed this year but was nervous for my dad and hopeful that his experience was every bit as fulfilling as mine.

The temperatures on race morning were refreshingly cool.  I lost the swim wave lottery and started about an hour after my dad.  I hoped to spend the extra time making a few last minute adjustments on my bike, strapping on gels, etc.  Unfortunately the transition area closed after the first wave started and I ended up shivering on the beach waiting for my start.  Finally my time came and I started the swim.  The water was warmer than the air and felt really good however it was choppy this year.  I was able to stay with a core group of swimmers the whole way and take advantage of some drafting.  It was great to be in the mix and jockeying for position (I like to imagine we were battling for first).  43 minutes later I emerged and prepared for the bike.

Looking at the splits I realize that I obviously get distracted and give up way too much time in the transition area!  Eventually I made it onto my bike and was really excited after the first 40 miles - I felt good and despite having conservative power goals was averaging over 25mph.  My mind was racing: If I can keep this up I may handily beat my time last year…Hmmm.  Well, all of my visions of a speedy bike split quickly vanished once the wind picked up.  The final16 miles were much slower.  I resisted the temptation to hammer and trusted my faithful power meter to reign in the horses.  It was tough to see my speed drop below 20mph but I reminded myself to stay calm and think about this race in the context of Lake Placid.  This strategy didn’t work as my knees started shaking thinking about all of those hills.  I settled on visions of a tropical beach…

                                         

After wrapping up the bike, and apparently losing my way in the transition area again, I started my run.  My strategy was to drink a cup of Gatorade and water at each station (along with a few Endurolyte tablets every 40 minutes).  In the week leading up to the race I had two terrible brick workouts resulting in shin splints so I wasn’t sure what to expect.  Fortunately my legs cooperated today.  I felt strong the whole run and was able to really enjoy the race, look around, and even smile.  I ran into my dad on the course and offered him some salt.  I felt like Santa.  I ended up giving out more salt to struggling athletes on my way back towards the finish.  I was having such a good time taking it all in, giving out salt, etc that the race was over before I knew it.  Turns out I posted a 1:37 run split which brought my total time to 5:12.  Not too shabby.  My dad put up a great race as well and had so much fun that he’ll be back next year.  Eagleman yet again exceeded all expectations and further stoked my enthusiasm for Lake Placid in a few weeks!