Ironman Australia Race Report

Yes, this has taken awhile. And its very long...kinda like the race. :)

An athlete I greatly admire said two things about Ironman. Firstly it’s about the journey, not the result and secondly it is tougher mentally than it is physically. Now I know how true they are.

My journey started more than 12 months ago, after my first long course triathlon at Jervis Bay. I started thinking maybe, one day, maybe, I would like to do Ironman. I am not a good runner and I really wanted to improve my running, so I decided to train for a marathon over winter. I also thought it would be a good step towards Ironman.

Completing that marathon really changed me and my attitude. I discovered that I was not the absolute worst and slowest athlete that I had always thought myself to be and I learnt the lesson that a healthy and determined person can do pretty much anything AS LONG AS THEY ARE PREPARED TO TRAIN FOR IT.

After that I started training for the Shepparton Half and carefully suggesting to Tom that I might think about giving IM a go in 2007. He was not keen at first, but once he realised it was something I really wanted, he was 100% supportive. I “qualified” at Shep and thinking that it could not possibly be 40 degrees+ at IM, I took the spot. The fact that it was going to be my best-training-buddy Jen’s first full IM too made it even more exciting.

I absolutely loved the training. I missed my Canberra Bilbys, but I was lucky to find the “small but powerful” Pulse crew in Sydney who gave me so much encouragement and support. Who would have thought that Saturday long rides to Sublime, with the obligatory Bakers Delight and 2-for-1 Gatorade stop at Sutho, followed by a run in the heat at Centennial Park could be so much fun?

I think most triathletes secretly relish doing heaps of training and I loved racking up the big weeks with 10ks in the pool, 350ks on the bike and 60ks running. I miraculously stayed well and un-injured all through the training and I basically had the perfect preparation.

Race week was fun. We had a great house of wise and experienced Irongods, nervous Ironvirgins and solid-gold Ironsherpas. I was nervous and scared but not overly so and amazingly I slept really well every night.

Race morning I ate a big bowl of OJ/oats/yoghurt/honey/grated apple, two pieces of turkish toast with nutella and a bottle of Gatorade. The feeling at the start was weirdly similar to a normal triathlon, but this was Ironman!!! The announcer said: “Yes, it is really April 1. No, you are not dreaming.”

Although I had plenty of time, somehow I didn’t get into the water till late so by the time I swam out to take my place with the orange caps, there was only 1 minute to go. I felt strangely calm, less nervous than I ever have before a race, almost ho hum, and then we were off – the start of a long long day.

The bashing and congestion at the start was worse than any other race I have done. You just had to stay calm and roll with the punches - literally. On the second lap I found quite a lot of open water which was nice. Also for the first time ever I found some nice feet to sit on for perhaps about 500meters, so I enjoyed that while it lasted. My guestimate for the swim was 1 - 1.15, but on the day I took it very easy and was thinking it would be about 1.10, so I was happy to see 1.04 when I got out of the water. I think if I had really pushed it hard the best I could have done would have been 1 hour flat and what is 4 minutes in the scheme of the things?

It was strange in the change tent because I wanted the helpers to chat to me but they were very serious and focused on the job. I took my time, got properly suncreamed and jogged to my bike. I could hear someone screaming my name and turned around and there was my mum going nuts – thanks Mum.

The first 60k lap on the bike felt great. The 30k turn around came so quickly and on the way back into town with a tailwind I felt like I was flying, passing heaps of people, including many guys on fancy bikes. The infamous hill on Matthew Flinders Drive was no problem, almost fun. I was trying to be conscious of not going too fast, but my first lap was 1.55 which I knew was too fast – ie I would not be maintaining that pace for the next 2 laps and doing a 5.45!!!

On the second lap my lower back started hurting. It has never hurt there before and it was really not slowing me down, but it was really uncomfortable and mentally draining as I was worrying about it. I stopped at the aid station just before the turnaround, partly to use the loo but mostly just to stretch my back. I was sticking like clockwork to my nutrition plan and had no problems, apart from losing half a banana at one stage. The smartest thing I did was sticky-tape my plan to my aerobars (what to eat and drink at what time). My concentration was hopeless and I could not have stuck to the plan during the race without having it written down in front of me. After another trip up the hill and heaps of support from my family the second lap ended. My time was about 4.00, so I had slowed considerably, but felt I was right on track.

On the way out on the third lap I went through a pretty low point. My back was really hurting, I was so tired, everyone else seemed to be drafting to avoid the headwind and I felt like I was at the back of the race. And I couldn’t stop thinking about the fact that I still had to run a marathon. I wondered if I had been stupid to think that I was going to be able to do this. I stopped again at the same aid station just before the turnaround to stretch my back and I also drank the can of Redbull I picked up at the special needs station. It worked its sugary magic and along with the tailwind, the final 30k was much easier and more enjoyable. My bike computer time for the 180k ride was 6.11, average speed 29.3kph. My guesstimate had been 6 - 6.30 so again I was pleased with my time and even more pleased to be off the bike.

Back in the tent I did a complete change of clothes and the ladies commented on how calm I was. I told them I was just terrified and it was true. It is difficult to describe the run. It felt hard from the start and it just got harder and harder and then harder some more. But at the same time it was never really really terrible. Does that give you an idea? I did the first 10k which is flat in about 53 minutes comfortably and thought if I can maintain this pace I will be very happy. I had been feeling strong running hills in my training and hoped I would be able to work the hills well, but that was not to be. The hills were really tough, especially the second time around. My first 21k lap was completed in about 1.55 but my second lap was a lot slower, about 2.15.

Nevertheless I was determined not to walk. I can understand why so many people do walk. Running really hurts. Your body tells your mind that if you stop running the pain will stop and after 2,3,4 hours that message is soooo hard to ignore. But I told myself that if I had trained to walk this thing, my training would have been a whole lot easier and so I owed it to myself for all those training runs I did to keep running.

People say that if you are running in the later stages of the marathon, no matter how slow, you will be passing lots of people and that was how it was. I had heaps of support on the course from my family and the big ZOE sign my sister made, which was wonderful. I tried to smile and be positive for them. I also had the benefit of Brownie out there on his bike during the second lap. His calm and meaningful comments were so helpful and welcome.

The best thing about the run was that I got to see all my friends. For me triathlon is very much about the people I have been lucky enough to meet and train with, and it meant so much to me to share the experience with some of them out there. My friend Simone was not far behind me for most of the run and I told her to hurry up and catch me so we could have a chat. Even though you are surrounded by people it’s still lonely somehow.

As I headed out into the hills for the last 12k I passed Jen coming back approaching the finish line. It was so nice to see her and to know the next time I saw her we would be together at the finish.

As I approached the finish line I expected to feel euphoria coming on and that the last few kilometres would be easy. Wrong! Maybe my body had simply run out of endorphins. When I finally got to the chute I found my family and Tom. I was so happy to be able to give Tom a kiss and thankyou before I finished. As I jogged towards the line I could see Simone on the big screen finishing just in front of me and a close-up of her smiling face. That was cool. I don’t remember hearing my name or the famous four words. Despite everyone giving me advice to make sure I enjoyed the finish, it’s a blur for me. I know I was very relieved and happy but it was so overwhelming. I hope the video will bring some of it back.

My final time was 11.34.00. I believe this was a result of consistent training, good planning and a well-paced day in which nothing went wrong. I think it is close to the best I could have done and I am very proud of it. But on reflection I have realised that Ironman is not about your finish time. The time does not tell anything near the whole story. It is about being brave enough to commit to something very scary, the months of working hard for it and dreaming about it and just the fact of achieving something that seems impossible to most people.

I finished in the top half of the race, top third of my category and top quarter of women. This is proof that anyone (healthy) can do Ironman and do it well. To be blunt I have no natural ability or talent. Before I started a triathlon novice program 4 and a half years ago I had done no sport at all my whole life. In my first Olympic distance race I finished about 21^st out of 23 in my category. My good mate Garry confessed to me afterwards that he had never thought I had an Ironman in me. But I really love triathlon and I work hard. If you are reading this and this sounds like you and you have a dream to do Ironman, you can. You can!

After initially thinking “Never EVER again” I am now sure that I will do another IM in the future, but probably not for a while. There are lots of others things I want to do, some multi-sport related, and some not.

I have only two regrets. The first was that I did not go back to the Finish line afterwards and watch other people finish. I had planned all along that I would do that and I really cheated myself by not doing it. Next time! The other was that I didn't meet any CoolRunners. The days before the race were so busy and on the day I only saw the caps while on the bike. Again, this will definitely have to be rectified next time.