Calling all iron-critters

Ok, so this post is mostly wanting to know about your Ironman experience, or more specifically, the post-ironman experience. In this post I mean Ironman the race distance, not any dealings with the corporation you may have had. For the non-Iron readers, you're welcome to read along, you might get some insight into obsessed people.

We're talking about a 3.8 K swim in open water, then ride your bicycle 180 K, then run 42.2 K all within 17 hours. I did mine in 2010, in Penticton. You can read about it here if you like. Some of my readers are new and have never heard of such a thing. They are probably backing away slowly, wide-eyed, wondering how they came to be reading the blog of a madman.  Lots of people I've talked to cannot imagine doing such a thing, and that's the first hurdle.

So you've done an Ironman. Any of them. The Challenge races, and the non-Ironman branded ones count. It's the distance, not the brand that counts. When did you do it/them?

I want to know about your life since then. Some people get in the groove and do several, even many of them. Others, like me, it's one and done. You?

Some get through and do a cartwheel at the finish line (she knows who she is), or they do a happy dance of joy (she also knows who she is). Some fall down in a heap like someone cut the strings. Some collect their medal with a big grin, then go eat their face off and put their feet up (me). Some give it everything they have and just make the deadline, others cruise along but are cranky they didn't break into single digit hours.

The full on glow is still there the next bunch of days, but you're getting used to having a life again. Your spouse and kids are getting used to having you around again. The glow happens when you think about it, or you wear some finisher gear. Or maybe it was a brutal experience you'd rather not recall. Or maybe you've done it so often they run together in your mind.

Life goes on. This is what I really want to know. Are you still active? What are you doing? Same three sports at shorter distances? Injured and given up? Burned out and moved on to other sports? If so, what and why? Are you still proud of doing it? Or would you still be married if you hadn't done Ironman (you think)? Did you get a tattoo or not? What is it? Do you still love it, or regret it? If you've sold your gear, was there a pang of regret, or was it good riddance to clutter you no longer needed? You probably made friends during the training, are you still friends or buddies with them now?

Do you ever wear the finisher gear, or did you wear it out and retire it? Do you still have the medal? Is it framed and hung with pride, or clumped in with all the other medals, or stuffed in a drawer somewhere? Did you want to do another one, but life (kids/job/injuries/money) prevented it, and now you're "too old"? Or maybe you've just started training to do another one now that those issues have been addressed. What difference did it make in your life?

There's a joke most Iron-critters have heard. It goes like this. You walk into a room filled with fit looking people. How do you know which have done an Ironman? Answer. You don't have to, they'll tell you. (bada-bump!) Do you find a way to tell people you've done it? Or only if they bring it up?

Really, I'm curious, tell me whatever you'd like about your post ironman life. Feel free to comment below, or add it to the facebook post. Or email me keith at nucleus dot com and tell me if you want your comment private or I can post it in the blog comments.

I'll even go first. IMC 2010, one of the last in Penticton. One and done, though Linda surprised me by saying it was a better experience than she expected, and a do again was a possible thing. I'm still active swim bike run, though this last summer was a bit of a struggle. I haven't done many races, but then I've never really thought of myself as a racer. They aren't that much fun. I am seriously thinking about doing an Oly distance next summer, but getting consistent training in needs to happen first. I'm done with doing races just to finish, I'd like to be finishing mid pack or so for my age group.

I'm so glad I did it! I remember the glow, and still feel the joy of crossing the finish line. You'll note that photo is still at the top of this blog. The most important part is that it got me active, with all the health benefits that go with it.

I've still got finisher gear, and the light jacket is my go-to cool weather jacket. There was a hoodie that was perfect for yoga savasana and cool summer evenings, but another hoodie I've hardly worn. The actual finisher T shirt is nice cotton but a blah beige, I wear it periodically. The bike shirt I've hardly ever worn even though it fits well. There's a velour sweatshirt thing that scratches my neck so I don't wear it much. It collects cat fur like you would not believe. All the active wear is hung up in the basement and I rotate through it. Some of the finisher shirts are beginning to look a little worse for wear because they've been worn a lot. The one I like the most is from one of my first races, the Chinook Half. It's a lovely light white material, with reflective threads in the weave, and fits loosely. Well, it was white, it's sort of going gray in places.

All the medals are hung in a bunch beside the computer, the IMC one at the front where I can see it. I even kept the wrist band.

Some of the habits carried over into the rest of my life, especially the organization and planning that are needed. Thinking through what's going to be needed in what order. Thinking about what could go wrong, what needs to be done to mitigate the risks, or cope with it in the event of. Probably the most important habit was to just do it. Get up and get it done. Don't obsess about the weather, just prepare for what might happen and deal with getting wet. So many workouts started feeling clunky and ended up being good. Get the most important thing of the day done early, then it doesn't matter what happens. So much paid work has happened because I dived in to get it done, then moved to the next thing.

I thought about the tattoo, and doodled what I'd get, but decided not to. A chat while giving blood with a Red Cross nurse about the risks of it made up my mind.

I'm still buddies to one degree or another with some people I got to know during the training. Some I only met virtually through blogging for social media. Others I know in person even though they might live far away, or have moved away. I see my coach, the famous Katie fairly often at the pool and we'll chat if we're water running. Or if my swim is in the groove I'll try to keep up. That doesn't usually last long. We go for coffee every now and then. I Facetime with Susi and do Facebook chats/comments with some other people that don't live nearby. I see a few regulars at the pool enough to say good morning and ask how they're doing. A few people drifted into my triathlon life because of Michelle's training, and those people likely will drift out of it again, but you never know. But most of the people I knew have moved on and are not likely to ever see this blog.

Even though I'm an adult onset runner, I've come to love going for a run. It relaxes me, I think about stuff in my life. Sometimes the blogs write themselves while I'm running, or I'll figure out a piece of the novels I'm working on, or I think of photo projects. I'm a bit more focused on swim technique just now, but there's lots of times when I let my body swim, and my mind would be busy thinking of something else. Yes, I knew exactly how far I'd swum, and how fast to the second, but keeping track of that is easy with my trademarked method.

What brought this up, you ask? My BRBE Michelle just completed her Ironman and had a fabulous day out there. I hope it was everything she dreamed it would be. She might or might not blog about it. I'm curious about where she goes from here, and that's what got me started thinking about where I went, and wondering where all you went after your race.

Please do comment, even if it's just that you never think about it.

It's about time, it's about pace, it's about

Bammy management. I had feared a bammy rebellion going into this race. A week or two ago I was actively debating, what's worse, a DNS, or a DNF? I was having cranky shoulders, muscle spasms in my back such that sneezing was an ordeal, low back stiffness, and sore everything below the hips.

(For the non runners, the bammy is that muscle between the butt and the hamstrings. Or both.)

It was gradually getting better and I decided to run, especially since I had been assured I'd get the best support EVER! And I did. BRBE is awesome like that. The idea was to take it easy, treat it like a long training run.

So first things first. These three photos, what do they have in common?

Look more carefully. Think like a runner. They already know. This is evidence that I sometimes get both feet off the ground at the same time! Yay me! I've been doing this run thing almost 10 years now, and this is the first actual evidence of it happening. Yes yes, I know, it's only ever so fractionally. I don't care. It totally counts. This was about a half hour after the start, so probably about the 4.5 K mark. It didn't last much longer.

Some photos, just because.

This is the last good photo during the race. Shortly after this was a gravel road hill that had the bammies and the hip flexors complaining. I slowed down a little, and never managed to speed up again. I was thinking very carefully about my stride.

Here I am, out on the great long flat bit I scoped out during a photo tour a couple weeks ago. I'm just glad it wasn't hot.

The return of T Rex! I am in serious plod mode here, having gone from just over 7 minutes per K, to just over 8 minutes per K. It was all I could do to reel in some walkers. Linda giggled hard when she saw this on.

My buddy Radar! That was a surprise. It's not every half marathon you see a person in armour, on a horse.

The end is in sight.

And there I am, right about where I thought I'd be. Back in January I'd hoped that number would be under 2 hours.

Buddies Susan and Kevin.

And Linda waiting for me. There are gluten free chocolate chip cookies in that bag.

What's missing from all these photos is Sherpa Michelle. She picked me up early, drove me to the race start, got on her bike to leapfrog me throughout the race to capture many photos of me, and talk me through some of the tough bits. Thank you so very much.

Next race? No idea. I'll be doing photos at the Wild Rose Triathlon, and doing Sherpa and photos for Michelle at the 70.3.

YYC70.3, part 3, the famous Michelle

Last year I did the swim, and Michelle did the bike and run. This year the swim was all hers! Take it away, Michelle!

I wasn’t ready to swim, bike and run all by myself yet but was delighted when half a dozen friends answered my call to form a team.  We ended up with two teams.  Yarn Bombers and Triple Threat.  The story continues…

Friday I did my practice swim at Auburn Bay in about 42 minutes and figured I had seriously shorted the course but was able to practice sighting.  My swim cap and goggles slipped off so I made sure to crank everything down for race day.  Friday package pickup went smoothly.  The information on the website wasn’t consistent with information in the promo video, on FB and twitter and the maps at package pickup but it was the same thing last year so I just didn’t sweat it.  Luckily, someone filmed the athlete briefing and posted it there so I was able to get that most reliable information very easily and it answered all  my questions. 

Saturday:  Bike drop-off had some challenges but luckily I had lots of time to deal with them.  As I added air to the tires of Tigerlily for Antje to borrow for her ride, I noticed the back tire was 50% flat and was hissing as I added air.  I discovered a horizontal slash in the valve stem.  The pump had not been put straight on and had pushed the valve against the sharp hole in the aluminum rim.  I took both wheels off, zipped over to MEC for new tubes, hubby ground off the sharp edge on the rims and we re-installed new tubes before I dropped her off.  I made sure to ride her and adjust the brakes and check the quick release before checking her in.  Good thing I had nothing else planned for the day.  We all made sure to stay hydrated and carbo-load.  Pasta for dinner for me (although it was a bit too much in hindsight). 

Sunday race morning:  I woke up around 3 a.m. (an hour earlier than my alarm) so just got up to have breakfast and get ready.  Antje and I drove to the start for 6 a.m., parked at the hospital and got Jennifer to do our body marking.  Jennifer was volunteering to do body marking and wetsuit stripping at T1 before she headed to T2 to rock the run.  We found the bike, checked the air in the tires.  The front was good but the back tire needed a top up.  We had been told not to bring pumps as volunteers would be on hand with pumps but we couldn’t see any.  A nice gal next to us offered her pump to us.  I supervised so the valve wouldn’t go sideways while pulling my wetsuit on.  Unfortunately the pump seal was broken and wouldn’t put air in.  The back tire was about 80 psi and should have been 90 but we just went with the flow. 

The start:  I was a bit frazzled by then with everything going on around me.  Antje recognized my parents who came out to cheer us on.  Tara came over around then and it was great to chat with her to calm my nerves.  I headed out to the beach and recognized Saskia (way to go girl – she is competing in worlds!) who sized me up and asked if I had already been in the water.  Nope, I had not.  Jeez.  I ran in to get some water down the front of my wetsuit and get my face and goggles wet before the start.  Back on the beach, I was looking around for my parents and Keith but couldn’t see them.  I heard the announcer tell us to all go over the mat if we were in the first two waves (pros followed by relay teams).  I heard the first horn go and figured that was the pros.  I was still looking around.  Then I heard the announcer say the relay teams were off but hadn’t heard the second wave horn!  I looked over, and my eyes focussed on a pod of swimmers wearing green caps.  My pupils dilated… OMG, that’s supposed to be me!  I ran into the water and threw myself in and paddled like crazy. 

The swim:  We headed west and then north around the first buoy and by then the male age groupers were coming up behind us and passing us…  I remember thinking “I don’t like this.  I don’t think I want to do another open water swim ever.”  I got bumped but not kicked so I know I got off easy.  I sighted the additional buoys on the route north, then around that big buoy and headed east. 

Somewhere around the north end of the lake, I got off course.  I found it quiet and peaceful… because all the swimmers were off to my right.  Argh!  Time to sight more and head back to the pack.  By now, I was getting in the groove.  I definitely ate too much and felt heavy and burpy but my inner shark came out!  I pulled hard!  I even kicked!  I had now graduated from “Goldfish 101” and was taking the test for “Shark 201!” 

Heading east into the sun, it was hard to see the buoys.  I realized my goggles were completely fogged up as I almost swam into the corner of someone’s dock.  I was able to put my feet down and touch the bottom, pull my goggles forward, dunk them in the water and stick them back on and keep swimming.  Much better.  Much clearer.  Stupid anti-fog treatment I used the night  before. 

Around the next big buoy and it was time to head south.  I just kept swimming and tried to stay clear of the breaststroke kicker beside me.  He was a fast breaststroker and/or I was a slow front-crawler!  There were swimmers doing head-up front crawl.  I agonized over learning to front crawl for two years.  Jeez!  Right then, I caught a tsunami wave off the elbow or foot of another swimmer and gulped in a cup of water, dog paddling, coughing and choking.  Wheezing until my breathing returned to normal.  Face down, arms forward, pull, kick, keep moving.  This thing is ON!  

Swim finish; T1:  I could see the triple yellow triangle buoys and knew I was almost done.  Pedal to the medal.  Go go go!  Around the first triangle buoy and heading east to the finish line.  I kept swimming toward the shore until I could dig my hands into the sand the way Keith had me practice before jumping up to run over the finish line, and heard Amy call my name before heading into the tennis court to hand off the timing chip where Antje was waiting with Tigerlily to head off on her 90K ride to Bragg Creek and North Glenmore Park.  (That was possibly a run-on sentence but that’s how my brain was).

(Ed note, I think this picture says everything there is to say about how the swim went!)

The bike:  This story belongs to Antje. (Her blog, but at publication time her race story wasn't up.)

I tracked Antje on Find Friends and knew she was fine when I saw she was in Bragg Creek.  I had time to have coffee with Keith and my parents before heading home for a shower and to meet Jennifer at T2.  My parents really enjoyed hanging out with Keith during the swim as he broke everything down for them and gave them the play-by-play. 

Tigerlily is so proud to wear her shiny new sticker on her stem.  She spent many years collecting dust listening to the odysseys and journeys and feats and accomplishments of another road bike named Estela.  Tigerlily is my favourite bike.  She is so enthusiastic all the time like “Pick me! Pick me!” while Luna is a little more reserved and deigns to let me ride her if I treat her like royalty. 

At T2, I found parking (yay!) and met up with Jennifer to chat while we tracked Antje and waited for her to arrive at T2.  Transfer done and Jennifer was off like a flash!  I got video of that. 

The run:  This story belongs to Jennifer.  

While Jennifer ran, Antje and I sat on the grass between the two paths to watch for her and cheer her on but sadly, we completely missed her.  Eventually we headed to the finish line.  Everyone thought our Cookie Monster “Ride bike, Eat cookie!” jerseys were hysterical and many people asked where we got them.  We waited for Jennifer to run and both started getting suddenly very hot, thirsty and hungry. 

The finish:  Yay!  Jenn was there and we ran in with her but the video I took didn’t work.  Grrr.  We each got awesome medals and finisher shirts.  Time for some refuelling and visiting.  Thank goodness the sausage was gluten free and there were yummy little potatoes.  My favourite gluten-free Cliff bars were on hand as well. 

Reflections:  Two years ago I couldn’t swim.  Last year I biked and ran while Keith swam. This year I worked really hard on my swim and was so happy that Antje biked for our team and Jennifer ran.  I have been biking with Antje on her long rides and commuting to work as well as running with Keith on his long runs and running at lunch but my focus has been on the swim 3-5 times a week before work.  Keith has been a great coach, mentor and training buddy!

I was really worried up until about two weeks before the race that I might not make the cut-off in 70 minutes but was pleasantly surprised by a fast swim and then a second and third fast swim to reassure me it wasn’t a fluke.  I’m now a MID-PACK AGE GROUP SWIMMER!  How did THAT happen?  I’m no longer a dork-a-saurus goldfish.  I’m a SHARK too now!  I can’t wait to swim, bike and run solo in IMYYC 70.3 2017! 

MEC half marathon

It struck me I hadn't done a race report in a while, which I suppose is the inevitable result of not racing in some time. In some senses today was a very cerebral race for me, so I thought I'd talk about the whole experience.

I'm what you call an adult onset runner. I ran in high school, then nothing to speak of till about 9 years ago. It's been a long slog, trying to build milage. I'd get to about 10 K, then it seems I'd push too hard and have to rest.

I was a swimmer, but as the triathlon saying goes, you can't win a triathlon in the swim, but you can lose it. You can win it with a strong run, which I don't have. Again and again I'd get out of the water in a reasonable time, and then everyone would pass me on the bike. The only reason people didn't pass me on the run is they had already finished.

For whatever reason I've wanted to do a stand alone marathon for a while. This year I got serious about running consistently. As I got to a long run of 10 K, I stayed there for a while, till it felt comfortable, then started adding distance again. It really helps to have a run buddy who is amiable about distance, doesn't care about route, and naturally runs about the same pace I do. (Hi MC!)

Gradually the distance grew, and the times got a little faster. One of them she snuck in a faster pace on me because I hadn't been paying attention, which sort of got me off the plateau I'd been on. All good. Then the 10 K earlier this year was essentially an hour, which was a surprise to me. My weight had been slowly creeping up a bit since Ironman, but this year it's been sliding back down. That helps the running too.

This race was a big step for me, to see what my time was, see how I felt. I've no need for another medal or shirt, so the MEC race was the right venue and the perfect time. This is the first one of their's I've done, and I'm impressed. The race experience was flawless! It started on time, there appeared to be enough volunteers, the aid stations were where expected, and a good time appeared to be had by all. There was the faintest rain shower during the race, and shortly after I finished it started coming down cats and dogs.

I didn't have specific goals, though my recent training had me thinking I wasn't likely to be faster than 2:15 (a 6:24 per K pace or so) and I wanted to be faster than 2:30 (just over a 7 per K pace). I pretty well nailed it, so I'm quite pleased. I deliberately hadn't looked up previous half marathon times, and it turns out this is only a few minutes slower than my fastest one. Yay me again!

The pace right from the start was surprisingly fast. Within the first K I was running nearly alone, a few behind me, most out in front. It took a few K to settle into the groove, and I chugged along averaging about a 6:10 pace. I was happy and comfortable, and would have been able to chat, if there was anyone to chat too. For most the race I was leapfrogging a woman doing a walk run, but we didn't talk.

About 9 K I was getting some chatter from my legs and I slowed down a little, then about 12 K my pace fell again to about 6:30. K's 14 to 18 were tough sledding, with my pace falling to 7 per K. I was focussed on keeping my legs moving, thinking about my posture, trying to keep my hands and arms relaxed. I was determined to run the whole thing, no walk breaks. The cadence stayed about where it was, but I could feel my stride shortening and becoming stiffer. I got passed by a couple people that had been staying behind till then. I still wasn't breathing any harder, but my legs were starting to protest. I kept moving. There was a funny niggle up the outside of my left thigh to behind the hip bone. Never had that before, but kept my feet going. It got a bit easier as I got closer.

I tried staying with the people that passed me, but they ever so slowly pulled away. Sometime during the last mile I got another wind and my legs picked up, so the last K was a 6:20 pace.  Photos and buddies and bananas at the finish line!

Overall, my phone thinks I ran 21.56 K in 2:19:56.  The big surprise of the race is that the 5 K best pace was 30:36 and the 10K best pace was 1:02 which is essentially the pace I ran the 10 K in. Maybe that means I started too hard, but it didn't feel that way. My legs liked the pace and my lungs were happy.

The phone thinks the half marathon pace was 2:16:57, which is nearly exactly what I ran the 2010 Hypothermic half in.

I think it's clear I need to work on leg endurance, to be able to keep running at a desired pace. Core. Hill work. Hope it doesn't snow for Oct 22, MEC race 7.

Here I am finishing, photo credit Patricia.

And a couple more, credit Ken. This qualifies as a focussed look, I think.

My buddy Patricia, happy after a great race.

Follow that car!

Race day.

I haven't done a running race since this time in 2014, when I struggled through a half marathon. Today I only signed up for a 10K. I didn't have any goals for it other than to negative split it, and finish within sight of 1 hour.

My phone thinks the course was 10.3 K, and that my actual 10 K time was 1 hr 3 seconds, and my best 10 K was 59:48. I think that qualifies as within sight of 1 hr. The negative split is pretty good, with all the first 5 K's being 6 and a bit of change, and all the last 5 K's being 5 and lots of change.  Since this is the first 10 K I've done, I'd say that's a PB.

I was on top of my breathing and felt pretty good the entire way. Unlike two other people who regretted their breakfast. It was a perfect day for a run, warm and sunny to start, and not yet hot when I finished. I'm really pleased about the whole thing, though now I think I need to recalculate what I should be running tempo runs and long slow runs at. I could go out right now and do another easy run, but there is wine and snacks to be had.

My buddy Janice was a bit slower than she had hoped, but she trains at sea level. Plus the hills sneak up on you and it was getting hot by the time she finished. Once she blogs about it, I'll update with a link to it. She got a joint selfie with one of Calgary's biggest celebrities!

Janice's sister and brother-in-law were there to see her finish, and they generously offered me a ride home. Along the way we got talking about the Honda Fit, and I pointed out the window, "There's one there! Same colour as ours. In fact, that IS ours, follow that car!"

Plus I got one of Amy and Steve, hard at work calling the race. Plus there were a zillion other volunteers helping to make the race go well.

They cheered so hard, they

Best cheer squad ever! Linda, Michelle, and Sophia danced, rang cowbells, and shook pom-poms. The Talisman photographer even took pictures of them cheering. Ken was has usual strong and mostly silent self. Katie was as enthusiastic as ever. Saskia and Heather  were also cheering on their team mate Terry, who smoked by me on the run a bunch of times. There are photos. She is a green blur.

First things first. I didn't injure myself. That would be Linda, shaking the cow bell so hard she got a blister.

This is my first triathlon in almost 4 years. Where does the time go? The training has gone fairly well lately, but somehow putting all together is the hard part. I wasn't feeling totally on top of my game today, but overall was almost exactly where I thought I'd be, so I'm pretty pleased. Swim 500 m 9:20 or so. Bike 12.5 Km in 29 minutes. Run 3 K in 19 minutes or so. Overall time was 58:20, that I remember, but they haven't posted the results on line yet, and the times I was going past the results monitor, it wasn't showing me.

The swim was the usual. I can and have done it faster, but this is typical time for me lately, and I wanted to be able to haul myself out of the pool. The bike felt surprisingly strong. The first couple laps of the run were tough. My calves were cramping up a little, but settled down. I never really felt in the groove on the run. I didn't pass anyone, and I got passed a lot. I really must run more, and more consistently.

The Talisman staff and volunteers did an excellent job! They worked really hard to get people set up on their bikes in preparation for their wave, and were right there if you had any questions, or were almost done the bike. They had to verify the distance before you could get off. The swag was good.

What's that you say? Photos? Of me? Go on. Really? Oh well, if you insist. These are Michelle using Terry's camera and one from Ken. Sophia has video.

Michelle was trying to capture the beads of sweat.

I think that's Terry in the background, about to blaze past me. Looking at the time, I'd just got on the track and would still be feeling a little wobbly here.

And finishing with both feet (ever so fractionally) off the ground.

Afterward we all went to Calgary Farmer's Market and chowed down on Big T goodies. So yummy, but I wasn't as hungry as I thought I'd be. No photos of that, and just as well.

YYC70.3, part 2, the famous Michelle

And here's what you've all been waiting for! Michelle's last guest blog was enormously popular, and I'm expecting lots from this one too. Take it away Michelle!


Keith has been a run buddy for a few years now and more recently a swim buddy planting thoughts of triathlon in my head.  I’m grateful for Keith’s patience and encouragement as I evolve from hot tub soaker to front crawl swimmer.

This was a three-day gig!

FRIDAY

I got off work early to attend a team briefing session which ended up being cancelled via Twitter/Facebook.  I had found the information online to be conflicting and had my doubts anyway.  Keith picked me up after work and we drove to the Grey Eagle Resort for the solo athlete briefing, to pick up our packages, hand in our signed waivers, pay our $20 ATA insurance fee, and check out the Ironman gear for sale at the expo.  The volunteers were lovely and helpful.  We reviewed how to bag our gear in the appropriately colour coded bags.  Next we viewed the course maps and asked some questions.  The printed swim course map at the briefing differed from the map online but we thought we understood the route.

Keith got the Delft blue swim cap with our team number on it and I was banded like a chicken with a little red plastic hospital band used for claiming my bike after the race.

We all piled into the crowded briefing room for the athlete briefing. There were lots of questions, many of which were covered in the information online but since there was some inconsistency in the information, I was grateful for another opportunity to clarify the directions.  The best part was learning I could keep my iPhone with me so Keith and my family could track me as long as I didn’t use it for music, or as a phone or camera.

SATURDAY

One last gear check against my OCD lists on Saturday morning, then we dropped off my bike at Auburn Bay and ogled the pro bikes.  We noticed ribbons and flowers on the metal fence surrounding the community in memory of Caleb, a boy who drowned the day before.


SUNDAY - Race morning

PRE-RACE

I was up at 4:30 a.m. Keith picked me up at 5:10 and and finished eating my breakfast in the car.  At body marking, our team numbers and age were written on our arms and legs with a felt pen and we wore blue bands in memory of Caleb.  We headed over to the bike racks to fill my bento box with food, put water bottles and bike computer on my bike, and drop off my bike shoes and helmet.  Next we ran into Leana and checked out her gorgeous bike setup, chatting briefly.  Keith pulled on his wetsuit and headed down for a warmup swim. I chatted with Saskia about pre-race jitters in the porta lineup.

I remember quaking in my boots at my first few races but I was surprisingly not nervous this morning.  I was just grateful to be there, excited because this was another first for me, happy to be part of a team and looking forward to the events unfolding as they may.  I had told Keith the day before that it would be all good, no matter what.  I knew we would both do our best.  We were prepared, trained, organized, focussed and there is no point in worrying about things out of our control.  Anything can happen on race day.  Accepting this helps calm my nerves. Butterflies in your stomach are just your body’s way of anticipating that you are about to do something awesome!

Three was a minute of silence followed by the release of 100 blue balloons for Caleb, then I found Keith.  Good thing he is tall and has that distinctive moustache.

SWIM

Keith launched into the water with the teams at 6:49 a.m. just after the pros.  I stayed just long enough to see the first age groupers head off.  The swim story belongs to Keith. (Here, if you missed it.)

T1

Back at the bike racks in T1, I pulled off my running shoes to get my bike shoes and helmet on and wait for Keith.  I did NOT want to be lollygagging.  Keith is a good, strong swimmer and has been working scientifically with the precision of an engineer on his speed and technique all winter.  The pool clock is a borg-like extension of him and he is as regular as the tick tock of a clock.  He knew he could do this swim in 35-40 minutes for sure.

Another relay team swimmer recognized me from Twitter and told me the course was long.  She said Keith was a faster swimmer than her so he must have been directed on a longer route as had happened to many other swimmers.  Just then, around the corner he came! He got a big relieved hug. Keith presented me his ankle and I ripped the velcro chip strap off, stuck it on my leg, un-racked my bike, dinged my little bell and was off running alongside my bike through the bike racks in T2, across the grass to the mount line in the intersection.

BIKE

I was off on the bike with the sun low in the horizon, feeling strong.  Out of the corner of my eye, I thought I saw my parents but wasn’t expecting them.  Later I learned they had actually been there and I was so disappointed to have not waved. They got the gist of the event from the part they saw and watched my progress using the Find My Friends app on our iPhones, texting and calling me later.

Quite a few people (men and women) complimented my jersey.  (Teehee!  It’s a Primal Wear jersey from Value Village).  I climbed a few hills standing up and a few gals complimented me on my climbing skills.  It’s always nicer to be complimented on what you can do rather than how you look.  My taper had been good and my stored up energy came in handy.  The best compliment came later on the run.

Along the way, many people passed me but that was OK.  Everyone was courteous calling out “on the left” when they were passing me so I could move a bit to the right to let them safely pass.  Only once did a guy pass and immediately cut in front of me so I had to brake.  Drafting wasn’t an issue in the race although I’m happy we practiced it in training so I knew what it was.  It’s when you ride in line behind another rider… um what do you call it?  “breaking wind for you?”  Ha!  That doesn’t sound right.  Anyway, when you ride in the slipstream of another rider it takes less effort for you to pedal.  You get good at watching for small cues of where the rider in front of you is going to steer.  

In the race, you can’t draft.  To ensure this, racers must leave 5 bike lengths between bikes.  If someone passes you, you have to slow down to create that gap or risk getting a 5 minute penalty if an official sees you.  A couple of times I saw an official with a camera making a gap sign to someone drafting behind me, warning them to pass quickly or back off.  I only passed a couple of people going up the hills and and ended up coasting past a guy on the big downhill, where I learned my top speed was 75 km/hr.  (I remember how scared and thrilled I was the first time I hit 60 km/hr.  I’d like to hit 80 km/hr some day to keep up with Keith.)

The bike route was familiar up to Bragg Creek as I had ridden that route with Keith before.  I knew the ups and downs as we had ridden it a few times and it was like he was right there with me.  After Bragg Creek, it was all new to me on the bike although Keith and I had driven it before the race.  I wouldn’t feel safe riding there normally because of high volumes of traffic and narrow shoulders on the road.  I was sure glad for the police, RCMP, and marshals in the intersections.  There weren’t as many hills to climb so the second half of the race was faster - a negative split.  I finished 20 minutes faster than I anticipated.

My strategy was to eat before I was hungry, working my way from solids to gels at 30K & 60K.  In the first 20K I wanted to be strong and not burn out from the adrenaline rush, using my granny gear on the hills and plodding along  constantly.  For the 20-50K range, I wanted to keep a constant cadence and continuous effort shifting gears often to accomplish this.  In the 50-90K range I wanted to pedal hard and never waste a good downhill.  In the last 10K I wanted to GIVE ‘ER and spin up to a higher cadence / lower gear in the last 200m.  I accomplished these goals (mostly).

I stayed well hydrated with my Gatorade Ultima electrolyte mix.  I started with solid nutrition but quickly my usual gluten-free bars became too heavy at race pace so I switched to sesame snaps, then Honey Stinger chews.  I took a gel at 30K and 60K without stopping at all on the 90 km bike course.  (For Amy:  No pyro. ;)

T2

At T2, I dismounted my bike as directed before the stop line and ran alongside it into the bike cage in T2, where I racked it, removed my helmet, bike gloves and bike shoes.  Next I pulled on my running shoes and grabbed my empty water bottle to fill at the water stations.  Keith was there taking pics!

RUN

I started running (hobbling really) on legs that felt like rubber for the first kilometre.  The first two port-o-lets were occupied but I found a thirsty grove of spruce trees.  By 5K my legs had recovered enough that I didn’t feel like I was doing the chicken dance anymore.  A nice guy from Saskatchewan ran with me for a bit chatting.  It turns out my SIL’s mom was his school teacher in Fort Qu’Appelle.

Out to the canoe club and back, then down the Weaselhead hill we ran.  I walked up the big hill, grabbed a Gu, then ran toward Glenmore Landing where some friends from the Running Room were cheering on a friend.  I high-fived them then saw hubby who got a great big hug for coming out.  What a nice surprise!  Just before the turnaround I saw Sue and Kev cheering.  Sue issued the nicest compliment I heard all day.  She said I looked EFFING AMAZING!  Somehow her Scottish accent made the actual expletitive cuss word sound even more amazing and credible than usual.  :)  Maybe it was just to get my rear in gear.  Then I saw Ron, then Leana, and Saskia.

I found my running cruise control pace by then, ran back down the Weaselhead hill, walking back up again, where there was a huge crowd cheering at the top.  I high-fived Keith again and headed to the canoe club and back.  There were some fantastic motivational signs, especially the one with the rainbow unicorn on it.  I wish I remember what it said.

The support for this race was phenomenal.  There were lots of spectators all along the bike course and vehicles driving by with cowbells jangling!  I have never seen such well-stocked water stations with eager volunteers reaching out identifying the beverage as water, Gatorade or Coke.  It was so easy.  I just kept filling my water bottle so I could sip at my own pace along the way.  I don’t trust those sponges but there was lots of cold water to dump on my head to keep cool.

My plan was to seek shade, dump water on my head and tuck sponges or ice in my clothes to keep cool.  I wanted to try to keep my cadence up and constant while running by effort and monitoring my breathing.  Music was not allowed.  I wanted to give it everything I had in the last 3K.  I actually found my cadence and pace drop significantly in the second half of the run but I still gave it all I had in the last 3K.  The crowd support really helped.

I finished within the timeframe I anticipated.  Keith met me incoming to the finish line and we ran across it together while Amy called us in. (Keep reading to see photo.) She sounded so excited for us.  I’m sure I was grinning and I think I did a jump across the line through the banner while holding Keith’s hand up high in team celebration.  I can’t wait to see THAT finisher’s photo. (Keep reading.) Jenn was there too and hugged us and snapped some photos.  She trained so hard but sadly broke her shoulder before the race so I brought her along like a little birdie on my shoulder during my bike ride.   (Photo courtesy of Jenn.)

Keith asked me how I felt and I yelled “Freaking AMAZING” or something like that, perhaps using less sanitized terminology I shouldn’t post and publish.  I was so relieved to learn I could stitch a half marathon on top of a 90K bike ride and not bonk!  It was such fun to be part of this triathlon with Keith’s help as I’m not ready to do it all myself yet.  Keith has done a FULL Ironman. THAT takes a lot of training, fuelling and fitness and merits a lot of respect.  Granted.  :)

There was just enough time for a quick hello with Amy as she was busy at work…

We sat with Jenn, Gord, Ron etc, and I devoured many (most?) of Linda’s legendary gluten-free chocolate chip cookies that Keith willingly supplied to me at a constant rate.  We stayed afterward for all the awards and the bike giveaway from the photo contest we entered.  Apparently you didn’t have to be present to win the bike.  (photo courtesy of Jenn.)

A fantastic way to wrap up the day and properly celebrate, hubby and I enjoyed some fine hospitality and Keith’s legendary BBQ of rack of lamb encrusted with Herbes de Provence, Linda’s homemade guacamole with my little contribution (signature piece utilizing my only culinary skills “mise en place”) garden salad.  All of this was followed by fresh raspberries with cardamom raspberry ice cream and Linda’s gluten-free date squares, then tea in the garden lodge.  Then the 4:30 a.m. wakeup caught up with us and it was time to call it a night.

So, here’s what I wore to the post-race celebration BBQ.  Over the top?  Every Michelle should have a shirt and belt buckle with her initial on it, don’t you think?

What an amazing day.  I am so happy and grateful to have been able to do this and cognizant that it would not have been possible without Keith rocking the swim for our team.  This event and the days and weeks leading up to it were much more fun as a team.

Keith, thanks for the gift of your time and for being a such a great team partner leading up to and on race day!

A year ago, I didn’t know if the bike, swim or run was first in a triathlon, didn’t know the terms T1, T2, or which was further: an Oly, sprint, standard or half.  I couldn’t swim.  A year later, I can actually say I LIKE swimming (although I have a LONG way to go to improve my technique, speed and endurance).  I’m hooked now and am already looking forward to taking more swim lessons this fall and winter and am contemplating a solo Olympic tri next summer.

And really, this finisher photo says it all!

Just for fun… here’s a timeline for you.

ONE YEAR FROM ZERO TO TRI
July 12 - Bought a chlorine resistant swimsuit & goggles.  Went to a pool, got in, looked around, felt intimidated, got out right away, ran to the hot tub.  #fail.
July 27 - Volunteered to hold the banner for finishers at the finish line of IMYYC 70.3.  Met fun people. Saw very fit and regular Joe male and female athletes. #Ironstruck.
Aug 8 - Bought a road bike (second hand).  Love her.
August 15 - Swam my first swim with Keith.  Shy, embarrassed but determined to learn to swim
Aug 17 - My friend Deb asked me to bike and run for her while she swam so my first team relay was the Strathmore Women’s Triathlon.  Keith cheered us on!
Sept 3 - Bought bike shoes (Kijiji) & clip-in pedals
Sept 20 - Rode MEC Fall Century Ride 100K
October 14 - Took my first adult learn to swim lesson at a city pool
Nov 23 - Bought a bike trainer to keep riding in the winter (Amazon)
Nov 30 - registered for IMYYC 70.3 relay with Keith
Jan 12 - Tried on a friend’s wetsuit (too short)
Jan 14 - Jumped in the Polar dip - Jump in an icy lake
Feb 1 - Took a bike maintenance course at MEC
Feb 21 - Bought new swimsuits
Mar 5 - Bought tri shorts
Mar 12 - Last swim lesson at a city pool (5 months)
Mar 15 - Completed my first indoor triathlon (10 mile super sprint at Talisman Center)
Mar 17 - Started alternating commuting to work on my bike and running home
Apr 19 - Rode to Canmore with Saskia & Keith
May 23 - Rode MEC Spring Century Ride 100K
May 31 - Ran Calgary Half marathon
June 4 - Got my first professional bike fit
June 11 - Hubby gave me a bike maintenance book
June 14 - Ran and Biked Footstock Duathlon
July 2 - Rode 90K in 3:44, top speed 70 km/hr
July 8 - Rented a wetsuit for a week
July 9 - Swam my first open water swim in Lake Boavista
July 10 - Swam another Open water swim in a wetsuit in Quarry Lake, followed by a bike ride to Lake Minnewanka and a run in Canmore with Keith & Antje
July 26 - Team relay IMYYC 70.3 with Keith
July 27 - Planning swim lessons and next triathlon

YYC70.3 part 1, the famous swim

Or infamous. I've heard a lot of swearing about it.

So first the day from my perspective, with some contextual preparatory remarks. My last triathlon was the Chinook half iron in 2012. Let's just say there's been some difficulties. I'd sort of mused about doing the swim leg of a relay, and Michelle jumped all over that. She is already a strong runner, and has been working on bike, but she just learned to swim last winter, so it seemed like a good combination. Even late last year I knew I wouldn't be able to do a half this year.

Over the winter I tried to get really regular with swimming, and mostly succeeded. Going into this race, to do 1.9 K, I was thinking no more than 40 minutes, and that 35 to 37 minutes was what I expected. I had faint but plausible hopes of going under 35 minutes.

We were not out to set any records, or even aim for the podium. This was to give Michelle a taste of a big race and to see how it feels to race pace 90K, then race pace a half marathon.

We got there and through body marking in good time. Michelle got stuff set up in our transition area, but that was much easier than usual because she could wear all her bike stuff as she waited for me.

In T1 we saw our buddy Leana with her usual big smile. She had an awesome day!

Waiting on the beach. It's a nice beach.

The lake is sort of heart shaped.

We were to swim from the south to the lobe in the top left, around the little headland, into the right hand lob, back along the right side of the lake. The map at the athlete briefing had a bit of dog leg out to the middle of the lake, then back to the beach at the bottom right of the lake. I don't know how many people saw it.

I got a very good start with the wave just after the female pros. Straight down the lake was fine, getting settled in, but not really finding my groove. There were two distinct cycles of washing machine along the way as people converged on me, and I got kicked in the side pretty good once. I went through a mental checklist, thinking about the various things that make for a fast swim. It didn't seem to make any difference.

Around the big orange buoy, around the headland. Into the sun and I couldn't see squat. I followed the splashes and they got me to another orange buoy. Around that and I could start to hear people talking, wondering where they were going. I followed splashes that led towards a big white pyramidal buoy.

And then we floundered. Supposedly there was some blue buoys, but I never saw any of them. Straight ahead and off to the right was a yellow buoy.  I knew that was the dogleg so I headed for it. Along the say, I heard a paddle boarder telling people to go to the far yellow buoy. I could barely see it. I looked to be almost down at the other end of the lake. I turned right and headed towards it, with hardly anyone around me. A few of us went around that buoy and headed back. Now I was feeling the swim groove.

Here's what Strava thinks happened. Picture a lot of people in the middle of the mess yelling at each, and you'll have a good idea of what was happening. Some of the people looped around the north most buoy. Some stopped and turned around figuring that couldn't possibly be the course.

When we got back to the middle yellow buoy, we were suddenly in lots of traffic again. Lots. I suspect that many people unintentionally cut the course in a major way, since that's what it was last year. I'd heard people collided with each other, which really ought not to happen.

I coasted into the really shallow water till it was about knee deep, then thrashed around standing up. Across the timing mat, 43 minutes and change. I didn't know that till quite a bit later. The little bit of trot and lots of brisk walk into T1 was an exercise in focus. There were lots of curbs to trip over and I didn't want to.  Michelle stripped off the chip and headed out.

As I walked into the relay area, I thought there were 5 to 10 bikes gone out of the 50 on the rack and Michelle said not many relay swimmers had come in, so I was pleased. The results later said I was the 18th relay swimmer out of the water, but not that many bikes were gone, and there was nobody else exchanging chip with us. Maybe they all went for a coffee to recover, I don't know. I sure don't pass anyone between the swim exit and the bike. 18 out of 50 is about one third, which is about the slowest I've been in a triathlon swim. I'll be the first to say I wasn't feeling fast in the water, but there is no way I swam only 1.9 K. On Facebook I saw some comments that indicated the course was 2.1 to 2.4 K. I can believe that latter number.

It was nice to take my time taking off my wetsuit. Both my calves were feeling very pre-crampy. I'm sure glad I didn't have to get on a bike and ride anywhere. I zoomed up to T2, and strolled around, chatting with a few people I knew.

The rest of the day belongs to Michelle, and she's promised to send some text for a guest blog. As another teaser, here's how she felt about finishing.

The finisher medal is actually a belt buckle, and it's huge. Here, left to right is my belt buckle medal from the very first Calgary 70.3, Ironman Canada, the half marathon medal which had been the biggest one till this weekend. And now this. I can't wait to get some leather on it and wear it to the office. I feel surprisingly honest about wearing it, the same as the many other people that did the whole race. We ran down the finish line together feeling great! Can't wait to see those photos.

So that race today, this is not that report, not yet

Hold your horses.

Yes, we finished! Yes we got our honking big belt buckle medals.
No, I didn't have the swim I wanted, and will talk more about that later. There are a lot of upset people about the swim.
Yes, Michelle was awesome out there turning in her fastest 90 K bike by far, ever! Followed up by a respectable half marathon. For those that care about such things, I think our time was 6:23.

We hung out a while, hoping to win a super sexy Argon 18 tri bike (rats), and watched the award presentation. Then home and had BBQ rack of lamb, salad, and two kinds of dessert. And wine, of course as we chatted about lots of stuff.

Now I'm tired, and iPhoto is pissing me off by not transferring the bazillion photos I took to the laptop so I can share them with you. OK, you get one photo. Come back tomorrow for more.

A guest blog post by Michelle!

As many of you know, Sunday was Michelle's very first triathlon all by herself! Your first is always special, and I'm so pleased I was a small part of it. I didn't want to write much about it because it's her experience not mine, but mentioned she could be a guest blogger if she wanted. Next morning, this text was in my email. Take it away Michelle!


There aren’t many people on earth who can tell me “where to go” and “how to get there” and have me keep coming back for more directions.  Keith is one of those people.

Keith, thank you very much for the generous gift of your time throughout the winter as my swim coach!  Only months ago I couldn’t swim but I took adult learn to swim lessons and stuck with them because of a long weekend swim with your analysis, drills and encouragement. The Talisman 10-mile Triathlon was perfectly timed the weekend after my last swim lesson and I just swam, biked and ran in my first triathlon.  You were a fabulous personal cheerleader on race day too!  :)

So… how did it go?

The day before > I pumped up my tires and did a short ride and a run in my gear, making sure everything fit and nothing chafed, switching out a piece or two that felt restrictive.  Richelle from Tri It helped me find this outfit that fit. On my test run, I turned my ankle but it seemed fine… until 11 p.m. when the throbbing woke me up.  I searched everywhere but couldn’t find a tensor bandage so pulled on a CEP compression sleeve, tied an ice block to my ankle with a scarf, took an ibuprofen and elevated it on a pillow until the morning.  I often have a restless sleep before a race but I don’t sweat the small stuff, immerse myself in the exciting race day ambiance of the event and carry on.  By morning, the ankle was fine.

Race day setup > I woke up to a sweet good luck email from Amy and had toast & PB.  Keith and I arrived early at Talisman Centre and dropped off my bike.  I got my body markings done and we headed to the pool for a warmup swim.  I only swam for about 20 minutes, then hit the hot tub and changed into my tri outfit (Louis Garneau shorts a 2XU top and a Moving Comfort bra).  Next I headed to walk the route and familiarize myself with the transitions through the swim, bike, and run areas.  For extra peace of mind, I wrote how many swim laps, bike kms, and run laps were needed for the race on my hand with a sharpie.  I was in the last group of racers (heat four) so once heat two had cleared out of the bike area, volunteers helped set up my bike on the Tacx trainer.

It took a bit to get it set for a “2” incline, then I had about 10 minutes to get back to the pool before the race started.  Keith reminded me to leave my bike in a lower gear so I could get spinning faster right off the bat.

Swim > Lucky for me, there was only one other racer (Isabella) in my lane so we wished each other good luck agreed to split the lane so we could each stick to our own side and just swim at our own pace.

I did a quick" re-warmup almost lap" and then it was time to get back to the wall to start.  After the first 25m, I stopped to check my timing chip that was velcroed around my wee ankles.  The strap wrapped twice around my ankles and had slipped but wasn’t coming off so I kept going.  Somewhere on lap two, I sucked back a mouthful of water and had to stop to cough about ten times so I could breathe and carry on.  Isabella called out “you got this!”

I just tried to keep moving and do push turns when I could, stopping for a few breaths from time to time or switching to backstroke a couple of times for extra air.  I kept my cool, felt good and steady, and didn’t feel like I was going anerobic.  It felt like I had a good balance between cardio and strength and couldn’t go any faster without getting out of breath.  I could see Keith standing along the edge of the pool with the other spectators.  The water in this pool is a bit cooler than in the training pool but that’s perfect for race day. With one lap to go, the volunteer called out to me to let me know and I glanced down to the lap counter on my finger to confirm I was on track at 9 laps.  One more to go.  Before I knew it the race was over and it was time to climb out.  I can spring out of the training pool on my own but this one was deeper and a kind volunteer gave me a hand up.

T1 > I ran down the roped-off carpeted transition path through the training room and down the hallway to Gym 1 and quickly spotted my bike thanks to the fluorescent ribbon I tied to the brake cables.  Sitting down felt awkward so I stood up again to pull on my super-cool heat mouldable carbon-fibre Bont bike shoes (from Kijiji). I tried to do a quick blot of the most soaking wet parts but it made no difference.  It would have been good to have one towel under the bike to catch drips and another to step on to dry my feet off before putting my bike shoes on.

Bike > I clipped in my left foot easily, swung my right foot over the saddle and clipped in on the second try to my Trek Madone women-specific bike (bought second-hand).  A few sips of Ultima electolyte drink from my water bottle and two small squeezes of some salted caramel gu in the box on my crossbar were all I needed. I was happy I stashed a lip balm and something to wipe the sweat from my face in there too.

I had the best cheering crew!  Richelle,  Rose, Maddy, Keith, the volunteers chatted nearby and reminded me to keep up my cadence.  Jordan was there with an enormous lens on his camera. (Making us do this. Making us!) Photo credit Jordan Brydon.

 I was feeling my legs but wasn’t breathing very hard and I knew I had to save energy for the run. As soon as my bike computer displayed 12.5 km I dismounted on the left side of my bike and got myself over to the right side where my running shoes were.  (Note to self: next time organize stuff behind the bike or under the bike and gear down to spin faster so I use more cardio and less leg power.  Figure out how to work harder on the trainer to build leg power.)

T2 > Thanks to the velcro on my bike shoes, they came off quickly but I got a cramp in my left calf pulling on my Altra 3sum running shoes.  I willed myself to relax and it went away.  (Note to self, next time loosen the elastic Yankz laces a bit more.)  Next was a quick run across the Gym to the stairs… (STAIRS!!!) up to the running track above.  Keith had warned me that my legs might feel rubbery coming off the bike and to hang on to the handrail in the stairwell.  I had observed some very stiff, rubbery legs going up those stairs but thankfully my legs felt good enough to run up the stairs.

Run > At the top of the stairs, a volunteer pointed me in the counter-clockwise direction and I stuck to the inside “fast” track passing lots of people.  I held back a bit as I wasn’t really sure about the pacing for all three sports.  A volunteer handed out elastic bands every 5 laps to help us keep track.  My lap counter on my finger came in handy for the run too.

I was feeling good, waved at Keith and picked up the pace in lap 14 and sprinted the final lap.   I heard Richelle yell out “Go Michelle! from below.”  (Note to self.  The run is my strongest area, let it all out here!).  I ended up with a little blood on my left heel, which is weird because I have run sockless in these shoes on my 12 km RUNcommute home with no issues.  The only thing I changed was tightening the laces so next time I will leave the laces loose and wear socks in both my bike and run shoes.

Post race >  We looked at the times and I was very excited to have done my swim ten minutes faster than a month ago!  I was shocked by how fast my run was as I didn’t feel like I was actually running that fast.  Sometimes, ditching the technology and pushing myself by feel gets the best results.  Awards were given for oldest and youngest athletes (11-years old!) as well as for the rubber-band volunteer and best bike and run "pain faces” (LOL).  The staff and volunteers at this event were amazing, organized, encouraging, friendly, helpful and reassuring.

Post-shower In the locker room I chatted with Isabella about her race and told her the story of how I had just learned to swim over the winter.  She was going to tell her sister and try to get her to learn to swim.  She asked if I was feeling proud and I thought about it.  I wasn’t feeling that beat-your-chest-like-a gorilla-pride and I think I was feeling more grateful for all the support I received and to have been able to do this event at all.

I found Keith in the bike area and we brought everything up stairs, enjoyed coffee and a snack, chatted about the race and future plans and chatted with the super rubber-band volunteer about his races too.  I gave Keith a card and a DIY sewing project microfibre towel with sharks (it sort of matches his swim trunks) on it to thank him for being my coach.  He really didn’t have to do that but I’m so grateful he did.  Keith took swim video and when I watch it, it seems like I’m swimming in slow motion.  I can see my head popping up and a funny reach with bent hand.  I will study it more and try to make adjustments… and just swim more.

Inspiration > It’s all around me.  Running with Keith through the winter last year while training for two ultras planted the seed that some day there might be a new and different challenge waiting for me.  Keith’s Ironman finisher’s smile greets us at the top of this blog with every visit.  Obviously some of the triathlon awesomeness around me inspired me.  My friend Maria did her first full Ironman last summer and I stayed up until midnight to watch her cross the finish line on the live video feed.  Another friend Jenn (breast-cancer survivor) finished the 2013 IMYYC 70.3 in spite of having her bib taken from her when she didn’t make the cutoff time.  That’s determination.  She’s back for more this year and she’s going to rock it.  Amy and Leana make triathlon training sound humanly possible.  Sophia (kidney transplant recipient) did a duathlon a couple of years ago and planted that seed.  Last summer I trained for the duathlon part of the 2014 Strathmore Women’s Triathlon.  Instead of the duathlon, I ended up joining my friend Deb in the team triathlon relay where she did the swim and I filled in with the bike & run.  Our team placed first.  I was inspired by the ladies of all abilities in that race and started to dream of learning to swim.  Last summer I volunteered at IMYYC 2014 as a banner girl and learned what it means to be Ironstruck.  Wowza.  I held the banner for the elites as they crossed the finish line, then biked home after my volunteer shift through the age-groupers sweating it out in the hot sun on the run and I started to think that there might be a place for me at the back of the pack if only I could swim.

Determination > In July bought myself a chlorine-resistant suit, swim cap, goggles, nose plug and earplugs.  I took them with me on a summer trip and thought I would try them out at the hotel pool but, sadly in spite of watching YouTube videos on how to put on a swim cap, I felt so dorky, and so intimidated.  I remembered how awkward I felt showing up for my learn to run clinic three years ago and figured I would work past the fear but the water in the outdoor pool felt SO cold and there were too many people around watching for me to attempt flailing around.  I stayed in the pool for less than a minute and then ran into the hot tub to warm up as per my usual performance. Fail.

I knew what I wanted but didn’t know how to approach the fear or get into any kind of a routine. A few weeks later Keith offered to have me tag along on one of his regular Friday morning swims. I think he said we would leave at 4 a.m. and at that point I was willing to go at any time just to get started and get over my fears of feeling awkward.  Keith gently, encouraged me (without laughing… how is that possible?) from being afraid to put my face in the water to working on drills with a flutter board and pull buoy until I had enough confidence to sign up for swim lessons which started in October.  I took Adult Learn To Swim Level 2 lessons and repeated then twice.  Then Level 3, repeated twice.  There were a couple of times I was tempted to throw in the towel when I hit a plateau, or was sore all over and exhausted, or felt like hubby was annoyed with my training schedule, or like it was all too much effort and nobody cared anyway.  Then Keith would text me asking if I was still coming swimming (how could I say no?) and that kept me on track.  (So it's MY fault??? :-) ed)

Rewards > Over the winter, I got stronger and started to see mini lat muscles in my back.  (No not latte muscles!).  Just this week, there was the hint of a bicep on my stringy muppet arms.  Progress.  Arm muscles should definitely help with swimming, oui?  ;)  I have been called short, petite, small, thin, skinny and weak but I prefer the term  “concentrated!"  I can definitely say that this spring, I was thrilled to discover that winter swimming has improved my core strength, cardio and breathing for fast running, and helped keep up my leg strength for biking.

Looking forward > This year Keith and I are doing IMYYC 70.3 as a team relay.  There’s no way I’m ready for a swim like that… but Keith is!  I’ll do the bike and run.  I look forward to continuing to swim, bike and run!  I blame Keith.  Thanks eh. ;) (You are very welcome! KC)