IronMan Wisconsin 2009 - Finisher

Well, yesterday was IronMan Wisconsin 2009. My main concern going into the race was my inconsistent training and the bike. Overall I had a great day and finished somewhere in the 15:20 range.

Swim - I did not swim that much during the training, but I had put in three 2.4 mile swims - so I felt pretty good with the swimming. I started in the back of the pack and worked the inside of the buoy's in order to stay out of the mix. That worked good and I felt strong the whole way. Finished the swim around 1:31 compared to 1:26 IMWI07 and 1:43 IMKY08.

Bike - The plan on the bike was to go easy but consistent the whole day. On the way to Verona I decided to keep up the speed and cruise out there. Once on the loop I checked it back just a bit and made sure that I did not burn any matches. My goal for the bike was to get to at least 56 miles feeling like I just started. A few of my training rides went great and a few not so great, so I didn't know if this was possible. I ended up getting to around 75 miles before I felt any tiredness or anything else. I was certainly pumped that I made it that far and still felt very strong. I made sure that I kept within myself on the hills and just slowly made my way up. About 90 miles into the bike, I started to feel the bike quite a bit. I still had strong legs, but the tiredness had set into the body. You feel that you are done with the hills after the 3rd Bitch Hill - but not true - Verona to Madison has a few more. Finished the bike in 7:10 compared to 7:10 IMWI07 and 7:40 IMKY08.

Run - Coming off the bike I knew that I didn't have enough in the tank to have a strong run, so I made the decision to enjoy the run/walk. I had some GI issues, fairly minor, but still caused me to stop running and walk. I tried to run between the aid stations, but slowly the GI problems would stop me. At the turn around (13.1 miles), I felt better and was able to run for about 4 miles. I then started walking a bit and was not able to start running again. Around 5 miles to go, I was still walking fast, but I could feel my body giving up. I knew I'd make it, but it wasn't going to be enjoyable as I had hoped. I ended up around 6hrs compared to 5:20 IMWI07 and 5:40 IMKY08.

My only goal was (and always is) to FINISH - goal accomplished. My other goal is to continue to train for IronMan's and spend summers on our boat - goal accomplished (I spent 5 weeks on the boat this summer with little training during that time).

I ended up in the Medical Tent for about an hour with stomach cramps. I've had this issue after every IronMan - so I knew it was coming. The problem was that we walked up to the capital before it became a problem. At that point I had to lie down and soon they had a "gator ambulance" come pick me up. My blood pressure was very low at 70 / 30, but I had only lost 2 pounds during the day (which is awesome - too many lbs and your in trouble). Mrs TB brought the car down and I made a quick dash to lay down in the front seat (stomach would not cramp while laying down). I did not have stomach cramps on the run - just afterwards - but a bit painful.

I have a feeling that as I continue to do IronMan's and train as I do (inconsistent outside of IMWI07), someday I will DNF. I had plenty of room to finish this year, so all was good. But throw in some windy/rainy weather and the bike may take more out of me than I have. I'm willing to take that risk in order to keep doing what I enjoy - IronMan's.

It was also very enjoyable to "do" the IronMan with XT4. We never trained together and he was light years ahead of me in the race, but we kept in touch via twitter/blog/lunch/etc. Made it very fun.

So, 3 attempted - 3 Finished. Next up - IronMan Lake Placid 2010.