OK…I admit it…I underestimated the Ironman. I can say (without a doubt) that I am in the best shape of my life. I weigh less now that I can ever remember in high school. My waist hasn’t been this small since the 7th grade. Because of this physical transformation (along with other positive changes in the last year) I figured Ironman would be tough but manageable. I was wrong. Physically I was prepared…mentally I was totally surprised.
Over the past few weeks, my biggest concern was injuring myself before Ironman. I was nagged by aches and pains up until the day of the race. I was disappointed that a hip/lower lumbar injury was affecting the mechanics of my running. When I started tapering, I was depressed for a week while my body adjusted to the change (my wife deserves credit for putting up with me during this time). Two days before the race, because of my hip concern, my coach said we should pull back on the run and save the hip as long as possible to reach my goal of finishing strong.
The day before the race, I was concerned that the race might not happen for me. I was exhausted and felt like I had the flu. Thankfully, everyone’s emotional support pulled me through. When I woke up race morning, the emotional baggage was behind me and I was ready to start the race.
You can’t imagine how awesome the volunteers and spectators are in Madison. After you exit the dressing room, you walk down a “helix” ramp to the swim start. The entire walk is lined with spectators and volunteers yelling and screaming for you. This alone would be impressive, however when you finally get to the bottom of the ramp your field of view opens up and you can see the thousands of people who came out for the swim start. Honestly, the spectators lined the shore of the lake from end to end (5 rows deep at 7am) and every lookout point of the convention center was massed with people. 
The water was warm and calm prior to the start. Once the cannon went off, I felt like I was playing rugby inside a washing machine during the spin cycle. The swim never opened up but I was able to keep a good pace. Once I got out of the water, I had to run back up the helix for my bike. Again the spectators and volunteers continued to cheer us on. I got through transition efficiently and took a couple extra minutes for extra sunscreen and breaks to save myself time later on the bike.
Up until August, I assumed the Wisconsin bike course was relatively flat and easy (it’s the Midwest, right?). Frankly, I was looking forward to riding without the usual distractions of lights and minivans. A week before the race, I was warned the Wisconsin bike course was in fact difficult. The bike ride started out great and the weather cooperated. It was never hotter than 85 degrees and wind was not a factor. I had some minor stomach issues at the beginning of the bike but they calmed down once I relaxed and pulled back per the plan. By mile 40, I was convinced it was going to be a great day. At this point, I was hitting GU every 20 minutes with water with Cytomax in between. I had to take a pit stop at mile 40 from too much hydration which I figured was better than the alternative as it was getting hotter. I kept the nutrition plan through the entire bike.
Wisconsin is great because spectators are everywhere. On the bike course which travels out to nowhere and back, there were thousands of people out cheering. On every hill, the spectators were 2-3 rows deep . Some crazy fans dressed up like super heroes and chased us up the hill. No matter where you turned there were people cheering you on. 
The problems started small. Each bathroom stop had a person who would hold your bike. By mile 60, it was time for another bathroom break. I pulled into the rest stop and a young kid ran up to grab my bike. As I dismounted, my left glut cramped up and I went straight down. The kid said sympathetically – “Are you ok?”. I told her it was all part of the plan. I stretched it out, took my break, and got back on the bike.
I held back a little for the rest of the bike to prevent another cramp. By mile 80, I started to feel the pain, had no trouble keeping my heart rate up, but really wanted OFF the bike. The last 32 miles were miserable. I just didn’t want to bike anymore. I kept reminding myself that the best was yet to come and I just had to push on. I thought a lot about my family and friends and knew I would get through it.
Once the bike was over, it was back up the helix to the transition area. Once I dismounted…WHAM…the left glut cramped up again and I went down. Thankfully it subsided quickly and I moved into transition.
The Wisconsin countryside had been uplifting. Every mile of the bike looked like the picture in a post card. All the competitors seemed to be in good spirits. Up until this point, I was enjoying the day. After 7.5 hours of pushing my heart, I was ready to be done. Before the run started, I was concerned about the hip and didn’t want another Gu. I had taken down 20 “Chocolate Outrage” Gus. I took extra time in T2 to stretch out the hip to prepare for the run. Little did I know that the hip would be the least of my problems for the next 5 hours.
Once the run started, I felt a bit nauseous. I pushed on knowing I was well hydrated and had no major pain. I thought marathon would be painful physically, however I never anticipated the mental suffering from stomach issues. I powered down a Gu/Water every odd mile and Gatorade every even mile. Around mile 6, my stomach started to break down. My legs were ok, my hydration was fine, but my heart rate was in Z4 while I was running very slow. I didn’t want another Gu but mentally was not ready to eat anything else. I felt a miserable combination of nausea, exhaustion, and general sickness. I wasn’t bloated, but knew something was wrong. I would walk for a few hundred meters till the heart rate lowered, then I would run again for a few hundred. By Mile 10, I had my first emergency “break”. I continued the walk/run pattern keep the heart rate down and let my stomach settle. As if in defiance of the pain it was causing, I forced down more Gu and water to keep going. At some point in the lows of mile 10-16, I knew I would be an Ironman. It was 6pm and I was half done with the marathon. I kept up the Gu-Water/Gatorade pattern through mile 16 and had my second emergency. I finally decided that something had to change if I was going to run another step. At this point, I knew there was enough sugar in me to last a week and hydration was not a problem. I opted to stop all Gu and try some solid food. The good news is that it worked.
Once I started eating pretzels, oranges, chips and bananas at 16, I slowly started feeling better. I didn’t want to eat but forced the food down with water. By mile 18, I was walking less and able to fall forward more easily. I waited until Mile 19 before I finally took the Cola. By mile 20, I was actually feeling pretty good. I had a solid jog going at Mile 22 and broke into a real run at mile 24. I can’t explain why, but there was no pain the last 2 miles.
It took 12 hours and 49 minutes to officially call myself an “Ironman” but the journey started over a year before. Now that it is over, I truly understand what it took: an amazing wife, two beautiful kids, amazing friends (who some weeks I saw more than my family), my family who endured my training through holidays & vacations, a great coach, and a miracle worker. Every one of you has my sincere thanks and gratitude.
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- Still Standing at End of Ironman
all doctor who was in our room in 45 minutes.
