ALOHA!!
(Photos courtesy of Laurie Glasser)
As we drove down the Queen K on our way to the airport to head back to the East Coast, the song Good Life came on. Oh yeah, this has gotta be the good life, this could really be the good life. So appropriate for how I felt...as I fought back a couple tears, it was amazing to think that IMWC had come and gone so quickly. And I was a part of it!
We arrived in Kona on Sunday, October 2nd. As our plane came screeching down the runway in the middle of black lava, I had a little tiny tearful moment. I couldn't believe I was here. I MADE IT!!! I thanked the Universe for giving me this opportunity and we deboarded into the glorious warm salty air. And then I realized, SHIT IT IS HOT OUT!!! We struggled to get all of the luggage and the bike box into the rental- Jeeps are not as big as you would think they are! Our condo was a little over a mile from the race start, which turned out to be a great area- not too far away, but far enough to get away from the nervous energy. Monday morning we (Foof and I) headed over to the outdoor Kona Community Aquatic Center-- for my Monday morning workout. I couldn't find my earplugs, but figured it would be no big deal. I felt a little sluggish at first, but found my stroke a bit snappier when Craig Alexander and Belinda Granger hopped into the lane next to us :) The rest of the day was spent getting my bike built up, grocery and farmers' market shopping and chilling out by the condo pool. I made sure to get right into the Normatec boots and try to get rid of the cankles from the long flight over.
Tuesday morning I woke up and went to get out of bed, BAM- smacked the crap out of my R heel on the dresser- incurring a big gash and blood everywhere. And boy did that hurt! I grabbed the only bandage I had, my skin suit and headed to the pier to meet Linda, Renata and a couple other swimmers at Dig Me Beach at 7:00 a.m. A south swell from New Zealand had made its way into Kona and had gifted us with nice 8'-10' swells- you could not see from one buoy to the next. Linda gave me some important tips about staying to the right at the swim start, avoiding swallowing too much ocean water and fighting the current on the way back to avoid drifting to Maui. We managed to get a good 45 min swim in and my first taste of the swim course. The swells certainly kept it interesting- still couldn't find where I had packed my earplugs and was hoping that I could avoid getting swimmers' ear despite that. After our swim, I went right over to the King Kamehameha's Hotel to get checked in and surprisingly, my nerves were not rattled one bit while surrounded by all the other Irongeeks. We had a nice brunch at the famous Lava Java and I even got a cup of Kona coffee- hoping I wouldn't regret it that evening. It was so wonderful to sit outside and watch the surf roll in and out. I still could not believe I was there and I was doing THIS!!! Throughout the day I sipped on water with a Nuun tablet in it.
I had been battling some tightness in my big toe flexor (which plagued me throughout the ENTIRE IMLP run) and so I went into Wednesday's run with apprehension. I headed south on Ali'i drive for a nice 45 min run complete with some pick-ups at race pace and my legs felt like two pieces of chewed up meat. Man was it HOT!! How on Earth was I going to withstand this heat for 10+ hours?!?!
We had another pool swim and I still felt very sluggish, which was really starting to worry me. I had been sleeping really well (even without any sleeping agents) so I didn't understand what the hell was going on! Had I pushed too much too close to the race? I had a nice discussion with Coach Cliff- who assured me that this is EXACTLY what I should be feeling right at that moment. It would all come together.
That evening I had a really nice reiki session with Sherry at The Lotus Center. She told me that she wanted me to not get anxious during the swim, that my body will actually take energy from the lava and use it on the bike course and she saw me flying during the run :) Nutritionally speaking, I sipped on water with Nuun tablets and Wednesday was the last day before the race that I ate anything with fiber in it. From then on it was all low-fiber food- which was quite a challenge for this healthy eater.
Thursday was a 90 min ride- a good opportunity to see what those famous cross winds feel like- and the heat...ha- what I experienced on that ride was nothing like that of the race. We hit the swim course again and encountered even bigger (but manageable) swells and took a couple slaps in the face and ear by some waves-- still couldn't find my earplugs and was thinking I should probably go out to the drug store and get some for the race. We got back to the condo, I went to download my power files from my bike computer and I got a nice error message. Crap! I had 15 minutes before the Cycleops customer service desk closed (due to the time difference)! I quickly called Cycleops and while they were working with me, Foof happened to notice a spike in my tire!!! That made me panic- thinking- what if it punctured my tube, what if it ripped the tire??? All of these awful thoughts running through my head, Eric at Cycleops put me on hold and what song is playing on the hold music??? "Three Little Birds" by Bob Marley-- the first thing I hear is "everything little thing's gonna be alright". Nerves instantly calmed.
Thursday night brought the welcome banquet and shortly after we finished eating, the skies opened up. Since it was outside with no shelter, I stood in the pouring rain for 30 minutes freezing my bum off waiting for them to get to the athlete briefing- the only reason I even went to the dinner. By the time Foof and Liz came to pick me up, I dreadfully realized that I was sensing that all too familiar feeling of itchy, hot, throbbing and painful swimmers' ear. Damn!! Panic began to set in as I realized it was 2:00 a.m. on the East Coast and I needed to get something to nip this in the bud. Fortunately, everything worked out and I had some antibiotics prescribed by a local doc that evening.
I woke up Friday morning after my third night of really good sleep with painful and itchy ears, and although it wasn't worse pain-wise, I was very off-balance and I couldn't hear at all out of my L ear. I planned on doing a quick "systems check" ride, but opted to just do the swim (with ear plugs) and run as planned to avoid falling off my bike. I had a nice lunch of plain white flour pasta with marinara and a white flour garlic bread roll. I also had a tiny bit of coconut milk ice cream :) It was looking like the heat might not be quite as intense as it had been the fast few days, but I still salted up all of my foods regardless. It was still going to hit at least 90 degrees F on the asphalt.
After lunch, I took a little nap and then with the help of Foof (since I had pre-race brain fog), I packed up all of my transition bags and my bike and we headed down to transition to turn it all in. The transition prep process was great- each athlete got their own volunteer-- My volunteer was a petite older woman named Cari. She was a calming and engaging and helped me keep my cool. I had assumed that I was going to get anxious/nervous being in this environment, but I remained totally calm, not being affected by the crazy nervous energy before me. Was it possible that I might actually show up to the start line tomorrow NOT feeling like I was going to barf??? Cari carefully traced through the steps I would be taking from the swim all the way through to how I would be exiting to start the run. I took one last look at my bike and headed back to the condo for a dinner of sauteed Hawaiian fish (Monchong, ono, opah- I have no idea what it was), roasted fingerling potatoes and tomatoes...and no veggies :( I put together my special needs bags-- which contain my nutrition for the second half of the bike and the run, making sure I had plenty of minty sweet twist gum taped to my bike bottles:), chatted with Liz and Foof about my racing strategy and target power/heart rate zones that I needed to keep and then headed to bed around 8:30 p.m. I fell asleep around 10...wide awake by 12:35. I tried doing the counting backwards by 3s, I tried begging for my angels to help me sleep...nothing. Oh well- 2.5 hours is better than no hours.
Race morning: I decided to get in the shower at 3:30a-- out of the shower, white flour bagel with almond butter on one side and earth balance/Kona honey on the other as well as some green tea (read: caffeine). I did some quick stretching, got ready and Liz, Foof and I left to head down to transition at 5:00 a.m. I checked into body marking and while waiting in line, met a woman that had unfortunately crashed two weeks prior and suffered a large, devastating laceration to her forearm which required 20+ stitches and could not get it wet (eek- wonder how that turned out)...and I met a 55 year old woman named Sue who also qualified for the first time at Lake Placid. I was ushered through body marking, went to my bike, dropped off my nutrition and my special needs bags and went back out to the meeting spot to collect some last minute hugs and support from Laurie, Liz, Foof and Sam. I got a quick ART tune up on the feet by Dr. Liz and lots of hugs and love from Laurie and Sam. It was so good to see them and I was still able to keep my cool. It was kind of eery how relaxed I was! I ate my pre-race banana and took a couple sips of Foof's coffee. As I made my way towards Dig Me Beach, I tried to take it all in-- standing in front of the finish line listening to Mike Reilly call the pros into the water, it was so amazing to be in that moment. I felt like I was floating. The national anthem was sung and the cannon went off for the pros...time for us to get in!! We waded through the water and I found the perfect spot all the way to the right-- I felt confident in the aggressive position I had put myself in...or not!! Within moments I was crowded by men twice my size. I totally wussed out and went to the outside on the left. Dang it- I know that I was costing myself a minute or two (or more as it turns out), but I am such a wussy!!
As we waded in the deep water waiting, waiting, waiting..BAMMMM-- there goes the cannon!!! Go fast!! Find feet!! It was amazing how little clobbering, kicking and punching there was at the start of this race. I tried to find feet to draft off of, but it quickly became a shit show. Without making too many excuses, I was completely inexperienced with racing in any kind of water with waves and kind of found myself out on my own drifting off course a couple of times. All in all, though, the first half of the swim went well. I hit the turn around boat and glanced at my watch as it entered the water- 31 minutes-- sweet- I could at least get in around 65-67 minutes-- what I was hoping for....or so I thought. As soon as we rounded the turnaround and headed back to the pier, the game changed. The water got choppy, people got aggressive and I was very close to throwing my hands up and asking to be pulled from the water, thereby ending my race for the day. I was punched, kicked, swam over and pulled on. Just at the point I thought I was going to throw in the towel, I saw and heard a pod of squealing, clicking dolphins swim right underneath me...ahhhhh!! Ok, I think I can finish this- thank you Universe for helping me out! I got back to the beach-- 1 hour 11 minutes. Son of a beesting- 5 minutes off from what I wanted. Shake it off. I headed into transition, grabbed my bag and sprinted for the tent.
Swim time: 1:12:13
I exited transition and hopped on my bike. The plan was to go out easy the first 15-20 minutes to allow the arms to shut down and get the blood flow to my legs. I could definitely see where it was easy to go out hard during those first few miles on Kuakini. I tried to shake off my disappointment in the swim and saw my cheering squad shortly after. I saw the crew one more time as I climbed up Palani and then we were off on the Queen Ka'ahumanu Highway. I let my mind and body settle into things and at about 20 minutes in, sucked down a Hammer Espresso gel. Throughout the race, I tried to stick to 300 calories of Carbopro, 1.5 Salt Stick electrolyte tabs and 1 nuun tablet/hour with at least one (or more) extra bottle of water from the course per hour. Within the first 20 miles I was passed by two packs of about 5-10 women each. Nice. This is the Ironman World Championships and this kind of drafting is occurring??? In the second pack of ladies (should they even be called that?), a woman very nearly took me out as she slid right in front of me and clipped my front tire with her back tire. One thing I realized- the athletes out on this course were very aggressive especially the men- and had no respect for the rule that you must drop back when being passed or that once passed you drop out of the draft zone before trying to re-pass. The head and crosswinds picked up shortly after I passed the Waikoloa area and it was when I made the right turn up to Hawi that I started praying to God that I would make it off this bike course without crashing. I thought I knew what crosswinds were. I thought that I had put plenty of time in on Sandy Hook being hit from the side by wind. But that was Sandy Hook and this was Kona. I was the lightest I have been since about 11th grade and I was riding on carbon. And it was Kona. I have never been so terrified in my life. Those crosswinds were so strong, and from what I've been told, this day wasn't the worst it's been!! It was at that point (from about mile 45 until mile 60ish) that I had to dig deep. I was so scared and was begging for it to stop. I was annoyed with myself, because my watts were 5-10 watts lower than what I was suppose to be hitting. My heart rate was low- I clearly was not pushing as hard as I should be. I hit the turn around and was relieved to see the special needs station- it would give me a short :20-:30 rest and shake the anxiety out of my brain. As soon as I hit the turnaround, it was evident that the worst of the wind was over-- I was heading back to Kona and most of the wind was now on my back, WHAT A RELIEF!! It heated up quite a bit at that point, but I didn't care- the color was starting to return in my fingers and I felt so much more relaxed in my shoulders. I made sure to take three bottles of water at every aide station- emptying one on my legs and torso, one poured into my aero helmet and one to drink. I cruised with the tailwind for a while and when I hit about 20-30 miles left, I started to dial it up. And then I was soaring!! I passed so many athletes that had blown past me in the beginning. You could tell these men and women were cooked. I then saw a car flying past me and someone screamed out the window "Go Kate". What?!?! Who the hell was THAT?!? Shortly after that, I see that same car pulled over and there is Sam furiously jumping up and down and screaming my name!!! What an energy boost!!!! The ladies pulled out and passed me one more time, which gave me the opportunity to relay the message that I feel pretty good, but had hoped to see Dr. Liz in the T2 tent (I knew she had signed up to work it). It felt great flying by competitors and ticking off the miles. 15 miles left...10 miles left...5 miles left!!! And soon enough I was about 1 mile out and getting all geeked up to run! I pulled into transition, handed off my bike and started hauling ass to the transition tent where I was greeted by Dr. Liz.
Bike split: 5:42
I grabbed my flask of Carbopro, a piece of gum, my hat and slipped my shoes on-- after Dr. Liz gave my foot a little love and my mind a little pep talk and I was out the door. The first couple miles I was trying to keep a lower heart rate, and high cadence. It is way too easy to go out hard and have nothing left in the end. Coach Cliff was very insistent that the "energy lab" is where the race changes. The first ten miles are laid out as an out-and-back on Ali'i drive. It is hot and humid, but provides nice breezes as you are running right along the coast, and in many parts there is shade from the trees. I was taking in about 75 Carbopro calories every half hour and 1-3 glasses of water and 1-3 glasses of Ironman Perform at every aide station. I noticed that the first few miles felt really easy and I was running at a pace slightly higher than I thought I should be. I have come to realize that my most favorite part of the Ironman distance (or any triathlon, really) is the run and in all honesty, ticking off the run, mile by mile I get a little sad towards the end because I don't want it to end :) Before I knew it, I was passing women in my age group left and right and I hit mile 10, where I saw Foof, our friend Pat and his beautiful girlfriend, Jen. I tried to communicate that I had a little tightness in my right foot and then I realized I had passed them. And they were all in coconut bras and grass skirts!! What?!?! I headed up Palani (a nice steep hill) and made a left turn where I found myself back on the Queen K to begin the other out-and-back of the run. It is at this point that people begin to crash and burn... it is hot, on the highway- no shade to be found and the runners are surrounded by the same baking lava fields that made up the early miles of the bike. While cycling, my bike computer registered 90 degrees F and I can only imagine it was at least that, if not hotter. The Queen K serves up long slow assents which can easily wear down a crumbling competitor. I continued to diligently take cold wet sponges at every station to wipe down arms, chest and squeeze on my head as well as taking in plenty of water and Ironman Perform. Despite the heat, I was plucking them off as I ran strong (and felt pretty damn good) and stayed within my heart range. I hit mile 13 and according to plan, I brought the pace up just a little faster. My body wanted so badly to go even faster, but as we approached the energy lab, I knew the real test was about to come. Despite it's name, The Natural Energy Lab is anything but-- it actually takes energy from you...it is an approximate 3 mile stretch of the run in which you travel right through a paved road in a lava field. It is by far the hottest stretch of the run (~miles 15-18.5)-- it's like this furnace heat that just sticks to you and you want to run away from it and you can't. Since this course was an out-and-back, I was keeping track of how many were ahead of me in my age group. I went into the Natural Energy Lab in 15th place and I came out of it in 12th. Coach Cliff was right. As I thought of Megan and her courageous battle, and I thought of JB and his fight to the end, and the other folks this past year whose lives were cut short I carefully slipped through those three miles and got back onto the Queen K to finish up the last approximate six miles of the race, and just watched the competitors drop to a death march pace. I passed 11th place in my AG and shortly after an Australian man came riding against us on his beach cruiser. I said "hey, buddy-- that girl I just passed, is she gaining on me at all", He chuckled and said "honey, no one is gaining on you, you are running away from all of them". Awesome!! I hit the 20 mile mark and there it was-- the point in the race that I got the green light from Coach to pull the trigger and give it hell! I was so excited- I felt great and I just started hauling ass for the finish line. My Garmin was buzzing and chirping wildly trying to tell me that my heart rate was too high. "shut up" I told it "I have work to do". I checked my pace occasionally-- seeing that I was hovering around 7:15/mile (depending on whether I was going up or down). I had hoped for top five in my AG, but at this point, I knew it wasn't going to happen and was just hoping that I could catch 10th place before finish line. I turned the corner onto Palani-- at about mile 25 and just let loose. Everything ounce of energy that I had left-- the long hours in the saddle, miles on my feet, the nine months of sacrifice and struggle all came bubbling up and unleashed like an F-ing dragon. And as I came thundering down Palani at about a 5:30/mile pace hearing my cheering squad screaming my name, I saw her-- 10th place in my AG. I could either shadow her and try to pass her at the very end, or just go for it and hope I don't run out of steam and she gets me in the end. With a half mile to go, it was risky either way. So I just said to hell with it and turned my feet over as fast as I could and went flying past her!!! Two more quick right turns and there I was on Ali'i Drive, the Sacred Ground. I have watched many an Ironman in my lifetime and seeing the competitors running down this last stretch always gets me. And the years and years of visualizing in my mind how it would feel to fly down this last portion of the race, with the deafening screaming of the crowd and Mike Reilly calling you home was finally here! And there I was...and my feet weren't touching the ground--I was flying. And then it was MY TURN. Those last 100 yards were the best 100 yards of running in my ENTIRE LIFE. Slowing down...taking it all in...and I heard Mike Reilly loud and clear: "Kate Bruck, from Barnegat, NJ, YOU ARE AN IRONMAN" Yup, I sure am, Mike. Welcome to the club, Katie.
Run split: 3:23:34
I managed to get one good final log roll in (I promised that I wouldn't do it at anymore races, as it clogs up the finish line)-- in honor of Chris Beckman and his courageous fight against ALS, may he rest in peace.
We headed back to the condo with Liz, Jen, Pat and Foof, cracked a bottle of champers and I inhaled: a veggie burger, a pint of coconut milk ice cream, a dark chocolate candy bar, a chocolate cookie, etc...I grabbed a quick shower and we headed back down to the finish line, had a couple beers, saw my friend Sue (the 55 year old that I met that morning)-- who was drinking a celebratory beer too :) and met up with some other friends, Cliff and Melissa to cheer in the last finishers before the midnight cut off. I danced to the finish line music and tried to absorb as much as I could!
Oh...the thank yous...Firstly, and most importantly: I would not be the person I am, have had the amazing season I had or even had the courage to start this whole thing without the most wonderful husband in the world. Foof worked EXTREMELY hard to make sure that everything was perfect and I love him so much for that. My gratitude and love for his support is far greater than what I could put into words. I also have to give a huge thank you to Christian, Mike and Brian at Cycles 54. They work very hard at making sure everything is just right prior to race time. My body, mind and soul would not be as strong as it is without the healing from Dr. Liz Perez, Dr. Laurie Glasser, Sam Keown, Esq., Leanne Arcuri (Bodies 21 massage) and Karen Foote (Reiki master and healer). To all of my dear friends, supportive family and even complete strangers who are pulling for me-- God bless you for all that you have given me-- my body is merely a vehicle of your love and support and no amount of training could ever carry me as far as your positive energy did :) Big big HUGE thank you and gratitude for the most amazing coach at Tristar Athletes I have the pleasure of working with...Cliff Scherb-- without your phenomenal direction and coaching, I would not be the athlete I am today. A heartfelt thanks to the tireless, enthusiastic and encouraging volunteers on the course and behind the scenes! And thanks/gratitude to the Universe... you put out there what you want to happen and the Universe will answer :)
And finally, to Megan Alden...you are one brave, beautiful, inspiring individual. I am so happy that I had the pleasure of getting to know you through this summer of my training and raising awareness FOR YOU!!! You have been on my mind daily and never left my thoughts while I was racing out there in Kona. I hope you feel the love that hundreds of my friends so graciously showed you and keep that in your heart as you continue to stand tall against your tough battle. xoxo
And so- this will be my last request-- for those of you who may not have had the opportunity to help me help Megan-- if you have $2 or $200 to spare, please consider helping the Alden family take on the insurmountable debt that has accumulated as a result of medical care and extras expenses that insurance does not cover. Megan is going through a really rough time right now, so please take a moment to pray for her...
Mahalo...until next season :):):)
KB