As I promised you yesterday, no sexy kit or other bits and pieces to spend your money on.
This time a quick look around the world famous (at least in Ironworld) Lava Java
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OasiJu1e2Ao[/youtube]
and a quick look at the athletes lining up to rack their bikes on Friday afternoon
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nwx-84PcwxM[/youtube]
Tomorrow, its race day. Should be plenty of cool footage to shoot. Stay tuned.
Mahalo for watching
After the quick look around the main expo yesterday here are another couple of videos which show you some real nice kit. Too bad you’ve spent all of your money.
The Bike Expo
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rlVfUVWuWPs[/youtube]
The Run Shoe Expo
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J-jIY2riwZQ[/youtube]
Tomorrow I promise you; No more nice kit. But we will be taking a quick look at Lava Java and the line up for bike racking.
Mahalo for reading & watching
Show me a triathlete who doesn’t like to spend money and I’ll show you someone who’s not a proper triathlete. Actually that’s probably not fair but you get the picture. Triathletes love to spend their money and the expo here in Kona is by far and away the biggest one I’ve seen at a triathlon anywhere.
At one time only official product sponsors could exhibit and the whole show was in the lobby of the King Kamehameha hotel. Not any more. As you can see from the video, the expo now covers the entire site of the community centre and this year K-Swiss & Newton shoes have taken space over the road in the front garden of the church (video of that to come later).
The Expo traditionally opens for business on the Tuesday evening of race week. The athlete parade starts at the King Kam hotel and ends at the Community centre at approximately 5.30pm funneling athletes straight into the Expo.
Obviosuly taking a booth at the Ironman World championships is not cheap and I’d guess that all of the exhibitors would be hoping to either sell plenty of product or generate enough interest to make the whole trip worthwhile. If you could see some of the booths in more detail it’s clear that some spend a small fortune on setting up and that would add to the expense:
The video gives the impression of how busy things get right after the parade but we will get a better idea of whether the economic situation really is having an effect during the rest of the week. You might recall from the last posting that Kona seems quiet in comparison to previous years
Our booth is indoors, right next to the retail section, and shoppers have to walk past us to get to the merchandise. This is the good news. The downside is that there’s no air conditioning and it gets very hot, real hot… damn hot!!!. Of course I don’t expect you to feel sorry for me, but I’m just trying to give you an idea of how tough it really is! (lol)
The video also shows just how much schwagg people are buying. You can see one lady with an armful of kit and that is the norm. It’s just a shame that they dont take armfuls of CompuTrainers away with them!
Thats all for now. As I write it’s 8am on Wednesday morning and we have to be at work for 9am, ready to sell… a handful of CompuTrainers.
Mahalo for reading.
Traditionally most athletes seem to arrive in Kona on Sunday 6 days before the race, although the European athletes tend to arrive a bit earlier.
This means that Monday morning at the beach is usually heaving. Exit the water around 8am and you can’t move on the dockside. This year it seemd much quieter. As you can see from my video there were still plenty of people there but not as many as I would have expected to see or have seen in previous years.
Now maybe this shouldn’t be too much of a surprise. After all we have been through the worst recession for quite some time and although triathlon on the whole seems to be bucking the trend, there is a limit.
Even from mainland US, it is still quite expensive to get to Hawaii and once on the Island living expenses are high. Given that most athletes would probably stop for 7 days and that this is one of the peak weeks of the year for Kona (and therefore you’d expect hotel & condo rates to be higher), it makes for a pretty expensive trip all round. Now multiply that figure by 4, if you have a partner and 2 children to bring with you.
There’s no doubt that many of the competitors qualify on a regular basis and to repeat that level of spending year after year can take a toll on the finances. So you can imagine the train of thought for these athletes.
“Do I need to take 3 other people with me?”
“Maybe I can share a condo with those 3 other guys I know”.
All of a sudden 16 guests (4 x 4) on the island becomes 4.
All that said, there’s still a buzz in the town and as in previous year’s the excitement will continue to build until Saturday. Maybe those athletes will arrive on Monday or Tuesday. Obviously we are hoping so because it’s important for CompuTrainer that the expo is busy and that business is brisk.
The Expo starts on Tuesday right after the athlete parade. We’ll be setting on Tuesday morning and I hope to bring you another video blog from the parade and the start of the expo.
Stay tuned for further updates!
Mahalo
…if you had a body image problem.
As the great and the good of Long distance triathlon descend on Kona, anyone in town and not connected with the race might think that they had landed on a different planet. For 2 weeks this place is “Ironworld”.
In “Ironworld” fat people don’t exist – I’m not being fattest here, just stating a common fact. If you have a body image problem then you definitely don’t want to be here. Just about everyone has a single digit bodyfat and looks great into the bargain.
It’s been a few weeks now since I did the Norseman and I have put on a few pounds since the race. This I keep telling myself, is part of the recovery process. However it’s difficult to walk down Alii Drive without feeling a little on the fat side (and I’m definitely not fat… at least not in “RealWorld”).
However if you did have a body image problem then Kona in race week is definitely not the place for you.
Every year the cruise ships are in town for the first couple of days of race week but by Wednesday they have usually disappeared. I now believe that it’s because the hundreds of fat passengers on board have overwhelmed the ship psychiatrist, and the Captain has to move on before the poor guy has his own breakdown.
Anyway this is the World Championships and as you’d expect from the top 5% (thats approximately) of the world Ironmen athletes, they have all arrived in great shape. I’m consoling myself with the fact that they dont look like this 52 weeks of the year and in fact once the race is over and they get back to “RealWorld” they’ll pile on the lard just like the rest of us.
So that’s it for my first Kona blog. I’m off out to get my green salad (hold the dressing) to keep up with the in crowd.
Stay tuned for more Kona ramblings tomorrow.
Mahalo
Last week I heard my swim coach say “Perfect practice makes perfect”.
I agree! Technique work, in any sport is a waste of time if you are practicing the wrong technique. You have to start with the right technique and continuously work until you can repeat it perfectly, under pressure, not just in the training pool or the training track. Look at the best athletes and they are able to maintain good form even at the limit.
All well and good, but how do you know what the perfect technique is and how can you tell how close you are to achieving it?
http://www.thetriathloncoach.com/training-camps-2009.php
Well, regular input from a coach is a good start but even then that’s not enough. Recently, I asked a swimmer to do a straight arm drill. After a few lengths she was convinced that she’d “got it”. Trouble was she hadn’t “got it” at all. In fact it looked just the same as before my intervention. I even tried showing a video clip of her swimming and she still wasn’t convinced claiming that the person in the video wasn’t her. Eventually, when I pointed out that she was the only one in the lane, she relented and then we started to make some progress.
http://www.thetriathloncoach.com/training-camps-2009.php
You see even when you think you are doing something right you may not be. Alterations to habitual practice require constant attention and regular feedback, otherwise you’ll never move forward.
You need to see the model of good technique, see your own technique and then understand which drills will help you to move from where you are now to where you want to be.
Video feedback and coach intervention are two of the best ways to do this which is why the world best athletes have coaches and make regular use of video analysis.
Some of our best athletes go through this exact process every year….and that’s why they constantly post the best results and see the biggest improvements.
http://www.thetriathloncoach.com/training-camps-2009.php
If you want to be at the front of the pack in 2010 instead of in the middle then your first step is to work on your technique and now is the perfect time to get started.
Oh, and one other things about champions. They take action.. IMMEDIATE ACTION.
I’m just coming to the end of my post Norseman recovery period. It’s been just over 4 weeks since the race and I feel like I am ready to get back into training.
In one respect the Norseman is no different from any other Ironman. Its a big event that takes a lot of preparation and then a lot of effort on the day, both mentally and physically. On finishing it therefore takes a lot of recovery.
The start of Post race recovery
One definitions of recovery is “a return to a healthy or normal condition. That means getting back to where you were before the event.
However, the stress induced by a hard race, and which you need to recover from, includes muscle soreness/damage, energy depletion, dehydration, stress to the endocrine system, central and peripheral nervous system, not to mention mental fatigue. Each of these systems will repair at a different rate.
It’s easy to gauge when muscles are repaired as the soreness disappears but how can you tell if the CNS is recovered?
So how long does recovery take? I’m not sure you can put a time limit on these things. A lot will depend upon the individual. Not only on how long they have been in the sport, the depth of their initial fitness etc but also on their lifestyle, diet, age, gender, body size and a whole lot of other factors.
Personally I like to take at least 4 weeks of what I call “active recovery” training. Finding the right balance is important. Do too little and there isn’t enough circulation to remove waste products from the muscles. Do too much and you slow down the process of healing the muscles and joints. Low stress activity such as swimming and biking are fine at low levels of intensity and I like to add in other activities that I don’t get time to do when training such as kayaking or hiking. More importantly I don’t have much of a structure. I just do what I feel like doing and if I don’t feel like it then I don’t do it. A typical 4 week recovery programme might look something like this….
Week 1 – Just stay active. A bit of swimming cycling as commuting to work and definitely no running but lots of walking
Week 2- More swimming, still commuting to work by bike and maybe some running towards the end of the week (actually this time I was roped into racing at the National Relays – 14 days after Norseman – and boy did that hurt my legs for days afterwards!) I don’t know how OR why AG athletes want to race that soon after an Ironman and I certainly won’t be doing it again
Week 3 & 4- Back into my normal swimming programme still cycling as commuting and running regularly but only for 30 minutes per time and never on back-back days.
Also during this time I relax my eating & drinking habits, but never so much that I completely let go, and try to get as much sleep as my body tells me it needs.
What happens at the end of the four week period is still pretty fluid. I try not to put pressure on myself by entering a race in advance as I know that this will just force me to set a schedule for my body rather than letting my body set its own schedule. So I just play it by ear. This year we have a week in France and then 7 days later I go to Kona to work at the Ironman expo for CompuTrainer. This means that a full-on training programme will be interrupted anyway. Its more than likely that I’ll just be ticking over until the beginning of November and trying not to get to fat or unfit in the process. One thing is for sure, I’ll be chomping at the bit to get back into training, which is just how it should be.
Stay healthy & have fun.
Until next time
S
Only the run to go! ONLY!! First I had to stand up straight and change from cycle to run kit. Andy had dropped Fiona off to support one of the guys behind me so he helped me in T2. As I said before there were no change tents so 4 ladies standing close by got a full frontal as I got rid of the bike shorts and donned the runners. I apologised anyway even though I knew that they were sponsoring the free viewing. Maybe they had VIP access being that close.
I set off out of T2 with a sort of limping shuffle as I tried to free up a tight hamstring/glute combo. The first 25k is pretty flat and circles around the lake. My goal was to run @ 10kmh pace – OK racing snakes, I know this sounds slow, SO, if you haven’t already, please read the Black T shirt Strategy posting to find out more about the race plan – At this pace I’d easily make the cut off times. At this stage I still had 5 1/2 hours to get to the 32k check point. Fortunately I’d taken enough “PowerBar Ride Shots” and water to last 8k because that’s how long it took Fi & Andy to catch me up. Fi had been waiting to support one of the other riders at the top of the final climb, then had to wait for a lift to T2 to hook up with Andy.
In the meantime I focussed on running. After being passed by a couple of “racing snakes” I actually started to catch someone. My running is usually so crap this is a novelty so I was revved up. ‘Orange T shirt’ was about 400m ahead but I could tell I was closing in on him. The increase in speed must have caused so much friction that my foot started to burn. I had to stop to put out the flames – actually the laces were too tight – and ‘Orange T’ slipped away. Then guess what. ‘Popi’ passed me while I was just getting started. Time to teach him a lesson! “I’ll draft him for a while and see how he likes it” Trouble is we had a bit of a tail wind so actually I was sheltering him…again. Doh! Never mind. he stopped for a pee and I passed him. Then ‘Orange T’ came into view – game on! I inched my way back up to him until I could read the writing on the back of his shirt. OK it was large lettering & he was a big guy, but it was a start. Then my support arrived so I eased up again to change water bottles get more Ride Shots. ‘Orange T’ lived to fight on. He didn’t know how lucky he was. I never saw him again!
Now I was 8k into the run and hitting the 6min per km markers and feeling OK. Fiona joined me to run the next 5k and then Andy came back in the car picked her up to take her further along the road so she could prepare my next lot of fuel. I started to catch ‘Orange T’ again and then ‘Popi’ passed me – must have been all the energy he saved earlier!! -”Kort & Kont!”
15k and I was still on target when I caught up with Fi again. This time I just chucked the water bottle in the car, took the next one and we started to run together. By now my adductors were tightening up and it was becoming painful to run. I tried the 8 mins run/2 mins walk strategy for a bit and this was OK, while I was running. It was the getting started again that was more painful. The I passed another guy. He looked worse than me and so I gave him a pat on the back and said”Come on mate,this is Norseman, not effing TinMan! Keep moving”. It must have worked because he passed me 5 mins later. Bastard! Should have kept my mouth shut!
We ran alongside the lake which featured in the aforementioned film – The scene where they sink the ferry - and slowly shuffled towards the 25k mark, which is where Zombie Hill starts. I had slowed a bit below my target time but we were still only 12hours into the race so plenty of time.
It was about this time that the EIT kicked in – Exercise Induced Tourettes! At the check point, one of the organisers, who I had been speaking to the day before, was taking photos. “How are you enjoying the race?” “Its f*****g brilliant! I’m f*****g loving it. Got any Coke on this aid station” “No, only water” “Bollocks! OK see you at the top then” and off we went.
I’d told Craig during our pre race conversation that I’d practised running up the Chevin (10% grade) and so that was in my race plan. No wonder he fell around laughing. “No one runs up there Simon. That’s why they call it Zombie Hill, because everyone walks like a Zombie!” Oh well,if you can’t beat them join them so I walked too. It was 10% all the way to 32k. It seemed to take forever. The hairpin bends and the 2km markers provided light relief as did conversation with passing athletes – “Hi How are you? Are you enjoying the race?” “Yes, are you?” “Yes” – as you can see it wasn’t a stimulating conversation. Onwards and upwards, upwards and onwards etc, etc. I had a blister developing on the ball of each foot from the walking action. I did so want to stop but at the same time it wasn’t that painful so I kept moving. We got passed by a “speed zombie” – show off. “There’s no prizes for coming 99th” I wanted to shout but I just cursed under my breath “Kort & Kont” “F**k, why did I have to see that sign. I knew it would be bad news. EIT is very dangerous”
I felt like I was in a bit of a twilight zone. I wasn’t in any pain (apart from the blisters and I’ve had worse – MDS 2001 – 6 on each foot. Hard as nails, me!!) but I couldn’t go any faster. Maybe I had turned into a zombie and I couldn’t feel anything! The all of a sudden there it was, the 32k checkpoint. Well inside the cut off we sauntered up as if out for an afternoon stroll. Actually I lie. But that’s what I was imagining in my head – like a scene in a TV comedy where the main character wants to tell his boss where to go and actually imagines himself doing it but in reality he meekly agrees to his bosses demands.
I have to say I was expecting something a bit more grand but they just marked me off on the chart and I was free to go. By now we were on the road which passes directly under the summit. I mean that in the loosest possible way as we still had about 1000m to ascend and another 10km and it still looked an awfully long way. At this point 2 things happened. Firstly it started to rain. Normally I prefer sunshine but on this occasion i was happy because the change made it seem like a different run – a 10k run in the rain. Secondly I realised that when Henry (another member of our party) had done this race the year before he was delirious. He clearly stated that the next 5k were flat and it was possible to run it. Technically, if you’re Jos Naylor carrying a small lamb back to its mother then running maybe possible. But, I’m not and it wasn’t! And neither was anyone else.
Checkpoint cut off time at 37km was 15hrs 45mins and I had about 2hrs to make it. Plenty of time. Even walking like a zombie. So we walked and so did everyone else. It was a bit like walking in a procession to a football match. Imagine a few stragglers heading to Elland Road. No one was passing or even trying to pass. Now it was all about just getting to the top of the mountain, which still didn’t look any closer. Then the road did go down hill. I tried running…for 50 steps, then went back to the zombie walk. Fi got a lift with Andy up to 37k and I was on my own. Actually, I wasn’t but no one else was talking so it felt like it. I started on the last resort, counting footsteps. 100 left, 100 right then have a quick drink then repeat. The past the 34k marker. Only 3k left of the 10k rain race. 100 left, 100 right and so on. Still the mountain loomed over us. Everyone is in the same boat, Si, just keep moving. 100 left, 100 right then the 36k marker. OK 1.5k to go. Then something new; a sign for the tourist information centre in 500m. Great a new game. Lets see if it really is 500m. My steps must be about 1m long so it’ll take me 500 to get there. Start counting 50, 100, 150 round the corner and some car come into view, then a car park then the tourist info place, then I see people heading up the mountain. This is it. I’ve made it! 350, 400, focus on the tourist centre. Walk straight past the checkpoint table and Andy. Then a voice shouts “Simon, STOP” Its Andy. I’ve been so focussed that I never even saw him. Wow, I wish I could get into that zone more often.
Again nothing grand. A quick tick on the list and not even the once over by the doctor. “Are you sure you don’t want me to see him? I have EIT” “No I just need to check your mountain bag and you are good to go” Andy had already done it so that was it. A quick change into some warmer clothes and we were ready for the last leg.
Heading on to Gausta
The Black T shirt strategy had worked. I was inside the cut off by a long way and now all I had to do was wander up the remaining 5k (5-600m of ascent) and it would be over. The race rules are that you either have to ascend with your support crew (Fi) or another athlete. Fi was dead keen to go as she planned to do the race in 2010. We set off. She the shepherd striding away and choosing the route and me the faithful, knackered, sheepdog trying to keep to heel. Actually the mountain path, although very rock, was a welcome change from the tarmac. I felt much better than i thought and we made good time – meaning that no one overtook us – apart from 1 cheery Norwegian girl who was running with her support team struggling to keep up. The weather had closed in quite a bit so the top was now no longer visible. I’m not sure whether this was good or bad. All of a sudden I felt a bit light-headed. Time for some food. Then I realised that I hadn’t eaten for sometime. I munched on a PowerBar as we continued to climb and then I felt sick. I resisted the urge to chuck up although it would have been something different to do. Lost of support crew were descending, having got their athlete to the top, and there were even some with race numbers
“Duurrrr, why didn’t you just get the lift down? Have I missed something? Is there a Gold T shirt for walking back down again. I don’t like gold anyway, so I’ll take the lift”
The we reached the false flat. Still not there but the top was back in view…and still some way. “Keep going. You’ve got the T black shirt but it’s not over til you reach the top” A few more steps. “Athletes to the front, athletes to the rear, but I’m stuck in the middle with you” No one racing now, all just engaged in their own personal battle with the mountain. The some descending comedians approach. “Hey, doing well. Its only 15 minutes to the top now! Nearly There”. So I think “Does that mean it’s taken you 15 mins to get down to here or it’s going to take us 15 mins to get up there” In my tired state I could still smell a rat! We pressed on. Then more comedians “Only 10 mins now. Keep going”. Same question! Then another comedian but on with a different clock “15 minutes to go now” “Oh fffff….. Stop he’s only trying to help. The EIT seems worse at altitude! Right, getting bored and tired now, so back to counting steps. 100 then look up, no nearer, 100more then look up, a bit nearer. 100 more, I can see the sign, 100 more I can hear clapping, 100 oops no didn’t quite get there. I’ve made it. NO we’ve made it. I couldn’t have done it without Fi or Andy or the rest of the support crew that helped me during training (I’ll write a special article about the value of a support crew later)
The end. A fantastic journey of 10 months. I’ve enjoyed every bit of it and now I’m standing on top of the world (metaphorically) with a great sunset and my best friend. Life doesn’t get much better than this. And then we had tomato soup.
It was remarkably still as I left T1, with no sign of the wind that had been so apparent in the fjord. Maybe the forecast was wrong. After 5km the first climb started and went on, and on and on. You climb from sea level to the top of the Hardanger plateau which is approximately 1200m. But you don’t stop there. The real top is Dyranut. It would take me about 2hrs of hard slog to reach the first mental check point. Before that I had top contend with 30k of uphill with the first 20k at approximately 7-9% grade. A long chat with my friend and Norseman finisher Craig Maude persuaded me to make a late change to a 27-12 cassette to go with my compact chain-set. Thanks Craig, you are a lifesaver! I’m sure I could have struggled up on the 25 I had before but having the option of a 27 now seems like a “no-brainer”.
One problem with having a great swim and being an average cyclist is that average swimmers who bike well are always going to catch you at some stage. I didn’t expect it so soon but after about 10k they started to pass me. I did have to do a double take and check my position against the rocks to see if I was rolling backwards. No I wasn’t, so I guess they were just a lot stronger than me. Now in this situation you can do 1 of 3 things – 1) stick to your plan and ignore them, 2) start thinking your rubbish and go home, 3) give thanks for being a good swimmer and start a campaign for the IM swim to be 10k long. #3 isn’t going to happen anytime soon, or ever, so initially I went for option 2. Well the first part anyway. I couldn’t really go home. After a few minutes of thinking I was rubbish and making a check list of things to do better next time, I came to my senses and remembered the “Black T shirt strategy”. Finish the bike in around 8 hours! It was a little childish to throw the toys out of the cot this early on so I just got comfortable with 34 x 27 and got spinning (no, make that grinding).
Finally I got to Dyranut and met up with my support crew Andy & Fiona who handed me a gilet and leg warmers and top ups of food & fluid. The I set off for the first descent to Geilo… except that it wasn’t much of a descent. Remember the wind that I thought had disappeared. Well it hadn’t. It was just hiding up high on the plateau. I stayed nice & relaxed, enjoyed the view and tried not to get lulled into “Tommy tourist” mode. Eventually I reached Geilo by which time the temperature had started to rise so it was off with the arm & leg warmers, gilet and on with more fluid.
Next we were faced with 3 hills all of about 20minutes climbing at 7% and each with an equivalent descent. There weren’t so many passing me now and I did start to feel a little better. I’d been “chicked” several times now so I didn’t worry when a GB girl called Claire passed me but I did get excited when I caught and passed her back. “Yes I’m moving back up the field”.. then she passed me again on the next descent. “Stick to your own game Si” I kept reminding myself and so i went back to spinning. I kept seeing signs for elk and then I passed the sign we had noticed on the drive to Eidfjord – Kort & Kont – a gas station of some sort. I had a few chuckles as I twisted the name around (I’m sure you can guess!). Finally a long descent and not into the wind. The drop down to the start of the final climb is fantastic and I got my head down and just turned the pedals over ready for the final push.
Imingfjell is a 7k climb at an average of 10%. I picked up more food & fluid and set off for the top. Some kind soul had marked the km’s and I kept up a good rhythm passing a few more riders until we reached the summit. There was quite a bit of headwind and as I wen round one of the corners I noticed someone sat on my wheel. At the Norseman you are allowed to ride up the hill together but NOT drafting. I was a bit pissed off that he was sitting on my wheel (He was called Popi – I remember that bit – either that or he’s lost some letters from his kit!) but I was too knackered to do anything about it “Kort & Kont!” ”That was quick. So now we must have that 30k descent” then I saw the 140k marker. I didn’t want to believe that they had marked the route correctly but then a kindly Norwegian said we still had the Telemark Plateau to get over – “Kort & Kont!!!!”.
You’ll recognise this plateau if you’ve seen the film “The Heroes of Telemark”. There’s a scene where the British agents ski across the bleak snow covered terrain to meet with the Norwegian resistance at a safe house. Let me tell you that even in the summer, into a 30kmh gale it’s just as bleak. This was the missing 10km and it certainly kicked me for forgetting me about it. At this point I got totally demoralised. I wasn’t making and headway (at least that’s how it seemed). I was in the 34 x 27 again on a 1% incline. To the mind games – make it to the next crest then you can have a rest (I didn’t), make it to the next crest and the downhill must start and so on through a never ending series of false hopes. 100 pedal stroke on the drops, then 100 on the tri-bars, 100 on the hoods, take a drink and repeat.
Eventually I caught up with Andy who was waiting at the side of the road. I was quite cold so along with the fluids and gels I took my gilet. “Andy – I think this is the top, Simon. The descent starts just after that crest; 20k downhill all the way to T2″ “Me – Ha,ha – yeah. Nice one (Kort & Kont)”. I set off with my hopes high and…… “blimey, he was right!” “Here we go, but don’t forget the warning about the new tarmac on the hairpin” Here it is, so nice and slow and whoosh on my inside a blur of white. Popi had obviously forgotten the pre-race warning about the greasy tarmac. It didn’t seem to matter affect him as he sped off down the hill. Right then! Andy Schleck descending position; sit on the cross bar, extreme tuck and go, go, go! Another white blur and Popi was history – What goes up must come down! ”ha that’ll teach you to be skinny!” Anyway they weren’t kidding. It was a great descent, but as with all things enjoyable it came to an end far too soon. I rolled into T2 just before 2pm – 8hrs45minutes into the race and 15 minutes inside my target. Now I felt better about my pacing! Only 1 thing left..42km of running
Pre Race
After setting out my pre race goals a few posts ago I managed to achieve all of them, even the managing of stress level (here they are again just in case you didnt see them the first time)
Having our kit transported to Norway in advance was a definite bonus. The trip to Stansted and flight on Thursday to Norway all went without a hitch (with Ryanair – maybe they’re not as bad as people make out!) . Even the arrival of the hire car – VW Polo BlueTooth….. for 5 adults!! didnt phase me (actually that was quite good too). All was going well until we arrived in Eidfjord. Then came the bombshell…our accomodation for the 2 nights before the race – THE HARDEST IRONMAN IN THE WORLD - was to be a gymnasium floor, with just a sleeping bag & NO mattress. I dont think so! Fortunately in a town with less bed spaces than our local prison, Brian, our trip organiser, managed to find 2 rooms in a nearby hotel. OK, so 4 people in a double room was a squash but better than the rock hard floor.
Friday – registering, packing kit then a bit of training. A short bike & run to check the legs were still working after 5 hours in the BlueTooth the day before was followed by a dip in the fjord to check on the rumours of the ice cold water. After a few minutes, the ice cream headache wore off and actually it was quite pleasant….if you were a whale. After that it was into the race briefing to have our worst fears comfirmed – the race would go ahead. So that was it. No going back now. The only thing left was 10 hours of panicking. After an early tea everyone went to bed at 8pm. Not me. Well I did but I lay there and listened to my iPod. I can never get to sleep easily the night before a big race, so I dont see the point of going to bed earlier than normal to lie awake for even longer. First I listened to “Pirates of the Carribean” sound track and went through my race plan. Sometimes I can drop off before the end of the swim. Not this night. I made it to the end of the album having finished the race. Onto REM. Started the race plan again, got to “Losing My Religion” then started to think of my first Ironman Canada where they played this song before the race start. Got to the end of IM Canada and then decided that I’d have completed my life goal of 50 Ironman races before sleep so ditched the iPod and spent the next hour lsitening to the everyone snoring. Eventually I dropped off and then all of a sudden it was time to get up.
Race Day
2am – get up & have breakfast.
3am – walk down to the jetty to rack the bike & sort out my kit.
3.45am board the ferry – much bigger than the one I had expected.
4.10am – ferry sets sail. It only takes 20 minutes to get out to the swim start but then the captain spends an extra 30 minutes circling like a plane on a holding pattern above Heathrow. Eventually, the ramp was lowered and it was time to get on with it. I wander up to the edge of the ramp, look over and think ”F**k me thats much higher than I prepared for”. Now, they did have a chicken door but there was no way I was going out of that, especially with the big jelly fish waiting just below. The first 4 guys jump in and then I’m on the front line, with plenty waiting behind me. “Oh well if I dont jump now someone will push me anyway”. 1, 2, 3 weyhayyyyyyyyyy, splash – “cor its dark and cold in here”. I wait for a few seconds as the bouyancy of the wetsuit takes me back up and “phew, hello world”. Then it’s on with the goggles, find my bearings and then start swimming over to the edge of the fjord where the kayaks were waiting.
Swim – Lets get ready to rumble. I position myself to the front of the bobbing swimmers trying to find someone I can draft off. I find a guy who says he’ll be swimming 55 minutes. Sounds promising so I stick next to him. Then I think we’re swimming INTO the tide so 55 mins could be the fastest swim. Mmmm. is that such a good idea. Anyway too late now. the horn goes and we’re off. I get into my rhythm quickly and soon I’m on my own. I’ve passed the buffoons who can swim fast…for 100m (tip – position yourself behind the faster swimmers, otherwise they will swim over you!!) and I’m only just behind the lead kayak. I can see the splash of the swimmers ahead but they are slowly pulling away. Then I’m really on my own. There’s a strong head wind and it’s quite choppy but it doesnt feel as though we are into the tide. I’m feeling very comfortable and decide to just cruise at this speed. I soon catch and pass a lone swimmer who seems to have dropped off the back of the front group. He latches onto my feet and every now and then I can feel him tap my toes. I head into the corner of the fjord towards a flashing light. I’m sure this is where they said the big boat would be but I can’t see it. Anyway the kayak to my left doesn’t correct me so I continue. As we round the boat with about 500m to go I roll to the left and can’t see another sole or herring ( but I do spot lots of jellyfish). Anyway I’m going to be a Norseman so they dont scare me and I head towards the beach. I still feel brilliant as I stagger and slide over the seaweed and onto the sand. A large crowd of 10-15 people cheer me up the slope and into T1 and as I look out to the water there’s only the guy whos been tapping my toes for company. Then I look at my watch – 55mins – Not quite Jan Sibbersen but good enough for me. I mistakenly turn down the opportunity of having Fiona undress me in public and do it myself. Apparently the lack of change tents has been sponsored by the citizens of Eidfjord – sadly for them the water was quite cold and so their sponsorship was largely wasted. I didnt wear cycle kit under my wetsuit this time as I figured that the climb up the valley would be quite cold in wet kit. So that’s why I had a slow T1 time if you were wondering!! Onto the bike………
