2018 Ironman Arizona - Race Day

I have just finished the race, cleaned up, and finished dinner. I wanted to give a recap of the race.

The pre-race activities were routine: putting on wetsuit, loading the bike with supplies, etc.

Swim

The lineup to get in the water was really crowded this year. I had to start with the two-hour people due to the sea of humanity. This does not really matter, as we are chip timed. However, I had to swim the first mile with really slow people. I veered off to the left and swam a little further to avoid the traffic jam.

I was swimming fine, but I started to get cold at about mile two. This is unusual for me. I grew up open water swimming in Canada; I have seen cold. I think the hypothermia was a combination of my being too skinny and using an inadequate wetsuit. I had made a mistake with my wetsuit. I chose to wear my vintage Quintana Roo sleeveless. I have had this wetsuit for about thirty years. I like it because it is sleeveless. I feel my arms move better, and it is faster. Unfortunately, the wetsuit has disintegrated somewhat from sitting in my attic. The seams are separated, and it is peppered with rat holes.

I realized I was freezing cold, and getting out of the water was challenging. Some kind soul chaperoned me to the warm changing tent. I plopped down butt naked in front of a giant heater. After about fifteen minutes I regained composure and put my duds on and took off.

Swim time 1:20:40

Bike

When I started riding I was still hypothermic. I was afraid to use the aerobars, and the whole system felt rickety. I could not even figure out how to turn my Garmin head unit on. (Look at my Strava data).

My first lap of the bike course was quite pathetic; I think I averaged about 14 mph. After the first lap I was warmed up and felt like racing again. I put my head down and tried to salvage the ride. I ended up finishing at six hours, much slower than I was expecting. But I was alive, and without road rash or a broken collarbone.

The ride itself was actually easier than last year. The wind was quite gentle. The other athletes seemed well behaved. I only saw one accident. It looked minor; the guy was in the ditch but seemed OK.

I had to stop a few times. I was not planning to stop at all. In my delirious state, I had forgotten to apply sunblock, so I stopped for that. I also stopped to take a wizz twice. My hypothermic state had rendered my junk invisible. I could not manage to coax it out while riding. After the second lap, all my food was gone. I was hungry. I felt like a homeless person asking for handouts from volunteers.

To summarize, my swim and bike ride were only OK. I had expected faster times, but I made it through and still healthy.

Bike time 6:02:52

Run

After changing outfits, I took off onto the fairly easy course. I felt fine by that point. After looking at the clock, I knew there was no hope of a good Age Group placing. I spent the first 5 miles just lollygagging. I ate several of the energy gels and drank Redbull. I was running about 9:15-9:30 miles. My lighter weight was really helping with the running. Compare my appearance in 2018 to 2017. I was a real porker in 2017.

After ten miles I looked at my watch. I was in good spirits. There was no discomfort; I felt like I could be watching a movie. The tachometer was favorable, heart rate around 125. I did some math and figured I could potentially run a sub 4-hour marathon. This would require an injection of pace. I would need to run several miles in the 8 or 7 range. I really wanted to attempt this. A sub 4-hour Ironman marathon is quite prestigious. I pulled my hat down over my eyes, and went into bulldozer mode.

At mile 24 my watch reported 3:44.  I needed to run 7 min miles to break four hours. This would require something special. There was a lot of work to do.  I was slightly fatigued, hungry, and my legs were hurting,  but I went for it.  I took my last gel, grit my teeth, and accelerated down to 7 min/mile pace. In the last half mile, I had more incentive, as there was a group of 4 runners just ahead of me. I wanted to pass and be clear of them so I could be alone on the finish line television feed. My watch said 3:57 when I hit the red carpet. I knew I had sub 4 in the bag, so I held up slightly.

I managed to do it! My time was 3:58. I was delighted. I had managed to salvage something from this race.

Run time 3:58:55




Total race time 11:49:24

Aftermath

I didn’t feel too bad at the finish. They gave me the usual space blanket. I got my bike and went home.

I am quite glad to be finished today. I am happy overall but did not really enjoy the hypothermia part. My Age Group placing was not in the top ten percent, so I didn’t qualify for the 2019 event. Maybe this is good. I need some time off.

I’m calling it a season. Next up, the Belgian Waffle Ride in May 2019.