Now what? That was the first thing I thought this morning when I woke up. Well, maybe that came after thoughts of ice cream and beer.
My day started at 3:45am on Sunday. I didn't get much sleep as my mind was focused on the race before my head even hit the pillow. But that's why Friday night's 9 hours of sleep were so important. Turns out I wasn't the only one who didn't sleep. Ricky managed a solid 6 hours, but all of our housemates slept lightly...stressing over the best spots to cheer us on I guess. As soon as I woke, I visited my favourite pre-race location...the bathroom. Then had a not-too-heavy breakfast. Cinnamon Raisin English muffin with banana and natural peanut butter, a bottle of Powerbar Perform, water, walnuts, almonds, chocolate and a couple of fig newtons.
Dezz and Shannon drove me down to the start about 5:20 (Rick headed down to Smith & Company for breakfast already) for body marking and special needs bag drop-off. Then over to transition where I put my nutrition on the bike, waited in the port-a-potty queue, and slipped into something a little more uncomfortable. Once I had my wetsuit on, it hit me how close the race start was. I found Ricky down at the start, along with my coach, a few teammates and a few other friends. It always eases the mind a little when you see familiar faces.
Rick planned to start near the front along the buoys, I prefer a start closer to the back along the outside. So I bumped into my Talisman teammate James McCreath and we chatted until Oh Canada started. Then the start horn went off, I wished James luck one last time, and suddenly I was engulfed by splashing water and a mass of flailing arms and legs. I don't recall the swim being so chaotic in 2009; it was impossible to find any open water during the first 500m of the swim. But I snuck a look at my watch after 2000m and was pleased to see I was actually ahead of my goal time. And then it got ugly. After making the final turn back to the swim finish, my dodgy sighting and foggy goggles lead to me swimming about an extra 300m. I was way off course to the left and had to correct a few times only to venture back to the left. I finally reached the beach about 99 minutes later and found Dezz and crew as soon as I stood up. Only about a minute faster than 2009, but the new improved stroke definitely had me feeling much better effort-wise when I ran over the transition mat to have my wetsuit stripped off. I also managed to shave about 3 minutes off my transition time.
I changed into bike shorts for the 180km ride and headed out the change tent to be met by Grant handing out gels. A few quick words and then sunscreened up, peed and grabbed my bike. Once again, the last one on my rack. That just gives me more people to pass on the bike. I started off with very low gear, spinning the legs out and taking in some water. The ride along to MacLean Creek road felt great, and a quick peak at my Garmin showed I was cruising along the slight downhill about 50km/hr. Once we hit the MacLean Creek hill, it looked like a traffic jam. People were almost at a standstill on the road, weaving back and forth. I maintained my high cadence and flew past the majority of those people who seemed to be in for a loooong day once the real hills started. At the bottom of the hill, I stomped on the pedal to try get some separation from everyone else, only to have my chain fall off. But it did make me slow down enough to see Mick, Annabelle, and Ava cheering me on. And the quick 5 second stop was luckily the only mechanical I had on the day. I was excited when I saw the Osoyoos Husky...Richter was just around the corner.At the bottom of the climb I saw one of my training partners, Soostie, and we exchanged a few words before beginning the climb (hope all is well Soostie). I felt great going up the 11km climb and still maintained by consistent cadence. All those training days in the hills were really paying off. I made it through the first 75km, including the climb up Richter, in about 2 hours. Following Richter there is a series of rollers and the out-and-back before hitting Yellow Lake, a longer but less steep climb. The decent from Yellow Lake can be very fast, but we had a good headwind that worked to slow me down a bit. I still attacked coming down and had to shake my head at the number of cyclists with no bike handling skills and apparently no experience in riding on a road with other cyclists. But I hate to pass up free speed so my decents were very aggressive back into town. My nutrition on the bike consisted of Powerbar gels from the aid stations, 2 nutella wraps, a couple of fig newtons, some Pringles at special needs, and Powerbar Perform and water. I just kept grabbing fresh cold drinks and added a few Hammer fizz tabs at the aid stations and ditched the old bottles. Official bike time: 5 hours 47 minutes.
After a 7 minute transition, I headed out on the run with my legs feeling good, my tummy not feeling so good. I had a bit of cramping on the bike while in aero position, so I could tell the run may pose a few problems. But I told myself to run through the pain should the need arise. I didn't want another +5hour marathon like 2009. The heat continued to be a factor along the run course, probably reaching about 32C. Once you get through town and reach Skaha Lake, it's a beautiful run, but offers very little shade. So every aid station was a must too keep cool and prevent dehydration. Based on my tummy and the heat, I decided to skip the gels and got most of my calories from Powerbar Perform. I also took in a few orange slices, grapes and watermelon. I also grabbed three ice cold sponges, a cup of ice and a cup of cold water to cool my skin. My stride felt great ("Drive those knees forward") and I felt I could have pushed harder. However, I could also feel my gut cramping a little when I did pick up the pace. With the heat, I decided to play it a bit more conservative and held something back. I walked the aid stations but ran the rest of the race, including all the hills. My final 5km were run at 5:05/km; by that point I figured lets just get this thing finished with and deal with the issues later. I caught up with fellow Talismaner James, whom I started the swim with, and offered him a few words of encouragement as he headed towards the home stretch. I also saw another teammate, Faizel, who finished about 4 seconds behind. 3 Talisman members within 5 minutes of each other!
In the end my run was slow and therefore my overall time was slower than my goal time, but on the course I had a decision to make. I debated about pushing myself faster and ignoring the signs by body was giving off, or just slow down a bit and pace myself to an enjoyable run. I opted for the latter and ended up feeling great crossing the line. Had you guaranteed that if I pushed myself all the way my body wouldn't shut down 7 or 8km from the finish, I probably would have raced for that sub-12. But you never know how your body will react, especially in extreme heat over 12 hours. And with that, I'm a bit disappointed in my final time of 12h 24 minutes, but at the same time I reached the chute feeling strong and my body is feeling great today. Over the next few days I'm going to deal with those little what-if scenarios playing out in my head, but at the end of the day it is what it is. No regrets as I did what I felt was right at the time. And improving my personal best by 58 minutes can't be looked at as failure.
As for the finish itself, I was lucky to be met by friends Erin, Michael, and Marc as volunteers. Then I saw Ricky (great race bro...very proud of you). After choking down a timbit, half a cookie and orange crush, I had a quick chat with coach Grant. After a bit of recovery, I finally made it over to an anxiously awaiting Dezz and the rest of the support crew with big smiles on their faces. And then I finally felt ready to tackle a slice of pizza. We headed home for a shower, some much needed food and a short rest. Then back over the the finish line for the last hour of finishers. Congratulations to everyone who raced today...those were some tough conditions.
Once again, thank you for all the messages from friends and family. It seems strange to me that so many people are coming along on this journey with me, but I am honoured and humbled by your support.
Now, on to the next one. A few days of R&R and then back to the drawing board (or doctor) with these silly cramping issues, a chat with Grant, and an evaluation of my goals for next year (No, they don't include IMC 2012).
Cheers!
In the end my run was slow and therefore my overall time was slower than my goal time, but on the course I had a decision to make. I debated about pushing myself faster and ignoring the signs by body was giving off, or just slow down a bit and pace myself to an enjoyable run. I opted for the latter and ended up feeling great crossing the line. Had you guaranteed that if I pushed myself all the way my body wouldn't shut down 7 or 8km from the finish, I probably would have raced for that sub-12. But you never know how your body will react, especially in extreme heat over 12 hours. And with that, I'm a bit disappointed in my final time of 12h 24 minutes, but at the same time I reached the chute feeling strong and my body is feeling great today. Over the next few days I'm going to deal with those little what-if scenarios playing out in my head, but at the end of the day it is what it is. No regrets as I did what I felt was right at the time. And improving my personal best by 58 minutes can't be looked at as failure.
As for the finish itself, I was lucky to be met by friends Erin, Michael, and Marc as volunteers. Then I saw Ricky (great race bro...very proud of you). After choking down a timbit, half a cookie and orange crush, I had a quick chat with coach Grant. After a bit of recovery, I finally made it over to an anxiously awaiting Dezz and the rest of the support crew with big smiles on their faces. And then I finally felt ready to tackle a slice of pizza. We headed home for a shower, some much needed food and a short rest. Then back over the the finish line for the last hour of finishers. Congratulations to everyone who raced today...those were some tough conditions.
Once again, thank you for all the messages from friends and family. It seems strange to me that so many people are coming along on this journey with me, but I am honoured and humbled by your support.
Now, on to the next one. A few days of R&R and then back to the drawing board (or doctor) with these silly cramping issues, a chat with Grant, and an evaluation of my goals for next year (No, they don't include IMC 2012).
Cheers!
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