Ironman Louisville: A lesson in perseverance and perspective

I will fully admit I did not enter this race in the right mindset. Lake Placid was pretty awesome. I always love racing with Brian and friends, I had a great day for myself, and so much of my focus had been on racing well there. This is my first time doing more than two Ironman in a year, and its been a big season so far. I'm extremely grateful to have this big season because I'm definitely growing as an athlete. That being said, I was in a bit of a funk in the weeks leading up to Louisville. I was having trouble getting excited or motivated to do workouts. I was getting frustrated if/when workouts didn't go exactly as I wanted them too. I love the Louisville race and had a great race there last year, so that helped, but I was still being kind of a negative Nancy. In the future, I don't think its a bad idea to do races close together, but I will probably approach it much differently.

While I was gearing up for Louisville, Brian was gearing up for a 24hr time trial, a whole other world of crazy endurance. I really missed him in Louisville, but I was so proud of him and excited to see him crush some serious miles on his bike. It did help that I would be staying with the Adams family again. Brian and I stayed with them last year and have decided that we would like them to adopt us :P I love hanging out with the kiddos and chatting with the adults, it's a very fun and relaxing setting. Little Olivia left me the sweetest little sign on my door on my way to the race and they didn't even seem to mind when I set off the security alarm at 4:30am...  The whole family came down to watch me finish and I was able to get high fives from the boys coming down the chute.

hanging with my homestay pup friend Roxy

my sign from Olivia

Race morning dawned, I was a little nervous about the reports of really hot weather but was confident in my hydration strategy. Brian called me early in the morning while still on his bike. I could tell he was exhausted but had already passed his 400 mile goal and was still going. I jumped in the water with the other pros, splashed around a little and made my way to the line. At the gun I pushed hard and although the first few women got away, I was able to stay with a solid second group the rest of the swim. I was very happy with how I handled the swim both tactically and energetically. I exited the water feeling like I had pushed hard but was not dizzy and disoriented. My Zoot speed suit was comfortable and fast, and very easy to get out of. Running into T1 I was happy to see that I was getting on the bike with some strong ladies. I was even more pleasantly surprised that these ladies didn't completely ride away from me immediately. Molly and Heather did eventually get the jump on me but I am slowly learning how to pace off others and stay with others. I also learned that even small lapses in focus can leave you with a larger gap than you can close, so next race focus, focus, focus! I rode solo the rest of the way, but was reassured that I was not as far back as I thought from some on course splits. I felt as though I gauged my effort well and my legs were not feeling burnt at the end of the bike. I am very happy to report that I mastered peeing on the bike! Three times! Woot Woot! What I was not paying as much attention to, was how hot it was getting. I was hydrating, sucking down my nutrition and getting my salt in, but I wasn't very cognizant about cooling myself. I was also having some issues with stuff coming back up, which should have alerted me that I may be a little too hot.

Coming into T2 I was thinking, ok my legs actually feel pretty good, time to get my running shoes on and do what I know how to do. I love to run, and I love to run hard. However, I felt off from the very start of the run. I started doing a self check to see what the problem was. Dizzy? yes. Stuff still coming up? yes. Head clear? no. Legs ok? yes. Heart rate high? yes. Periodic chills? yes.  I decided I was overheating and needed to really cool myself down or risk some serious heat effects. I decided I would walk every other aid station until I felt better. I slowed my pace a bit and started walking the aid stations, dumping water on myself, ice in the shorts, plenty of salt, coke and sipping as much water as I could. I also took every walking break to take in a little of my Infinit Napalm to stay on top of calories. Walking every other aid station quickly turned into every aid station as the bad feelings weren't going away. Tim Snow was coaching his own athletes on course but was nice enough to encourage me to stick with it and to back off and make sure I was doing everything I could to hydrate and stay cool. A little before the halfway point I started to come around. Thank goodness, because at the halfway mark you run right by the finish line and it is very difficult to then run right by it and head back out for another 13 miles. I kept walking the aid stations, but I was at least starting to run better in between. This is about when the blisters hit me. I've always had problems with blisters, but this race really hammered it home that I need to find a solution. I think my feet get so wet during tris that it becomes easy for the blisters to form. My good friend and ultra marathon heat queen Brenda has given me some really good suggestions to try. She even let me send her gross pictures of my feet to see what the problem was. I could feel the blisters forming along my pinky toes, middle toes, side of my big toe, forefoot and midfoot. I ignored them as best I could...and then they started popping... Every time one would pop, I would whimper along for a few steps and then suck it up and keep running. I got quite a lot of weird looks.

getting patched up afterwards

Once this race really became all about finishing, I saw a much different side of the race. I've never walked during an Ironman, much less walked every aid station. I was actually able to look around a little and see how many others were gritting their teeth just to finish, and I was able to become inspired and pushed by our mutual struggles. I had so many reasons to drop out: I wasn't in the money, I had just done an Ironman 4 weeks ago, I wasn't feeling well, everyone would understand, my feet were chewed up. I thought about how much I love that finish chute, and how I was sure that many other athletes out there were facing the same or worse struggles. Another athlete, an older male, turned to me at an aid station and asked if I was ok, I nodded that I was hanging in there. He then looked at my very intently and said "you must finish," and I repeated "I must finish." We both started running again after that and I didn't see him again. I hope he finished as well. I read more of the signs and appreciated them. A few college students had a sign that said "wave and we'll drink." I laughed a little as I ran by and heard them say "we're counting that one" as they took drinks. Coming into the finish I slapped high fives, I grinned at the people cheering, I soaked in the finish chute and walked across the finish line happy with my little victory of making it there. Beyond the finish line, volunteers and medical workers had lined both sides and were cheering as if I had just won the thing. It was very surreal and awesome.

soaking in a hard fought finish

After the race, I found a nice young guy that at 20 yrs old had just finished his first Ironman in 10:06. I asked if he wanted company to hobble down to collect our bikes. We chatted about the race and he remarked "for a race that wasn't what you expected, you have a sense of humor about it." I think its important to be able to laugh at yourself, or the situation. I ended up leading us completely the wrong direction and was fairly lost. He laughed that even pro athletes mess stuff up. We asked a nice police officer to point us in the right direction and he ended up giving us a ride to transition in his squad car. I love meeting other athletes and hearing about their stories and experiences of the race. Even before the race, I had asked a few guys if I could borrow their bike pump. They ended up inviting me to breakfast. I figured, sure why not, I love meeting new people, and who doesn't like a big plate of pancakes?

While I had been hoping for a different outcome to this race, I recognize that this is my third Ironman in 4 months, with the other two actually going fairly well. This is also the first year I've had such a big season. I like the challenge of this season and feel as though it has really helped me to grow as an athlete. Sometimes you have to break yourself completely down to realize how strong you are and that you can handle more than you expected. I also love that my coach Tara listens to me and really wants to work with me to make sure I'm enjoying this process. I'm now taking a much needed break before tackling, or even thinking about, the rest of the season. And that brings me to Brian and I's bet...

As many of you know Brian and I had a very long standing bet. This bet was inspired by our friends Meghan and Clint, who wanted to see who could go the longest running at least 2 miles every day. Meghan went over 7 years, up until the due date of her first child, Lexie. Brian and I modified the bet for triathlon. We either had to do an 800yd swim, 10 mi (or 30 min) bike, or 2 mile run. We mostly worked out every day anyway, so this doesn't seem like too big a deal. It became most difficult if we were sick or the few days after a big race. We ended up going 3 years, 5 months and 4 days (the bet started March 20, 2011). I called Brian on the way back from Louisville and asked "so are we going to go swim when I get home at 6:30?" (I drove 10+ hrs home the day after Louisville). Brian responded "I dunno, probably not." Me: "so are you going to go for a ride?!" Brian "heck no! I'm not getting back on my bike today." Me: "soooooo you're not going to do a workout?" Brian: "no I was just going to let you win the bet." Me: "I was actually really hoping you wouldn't want to do a workout...let's just call it a tie." After such a long time, it doesn't seem too bad to just go get a 15 min swim in to keep it going right? I think after so long, we were starting to resent that pressure to do something every day. I spoke with Meghan about it on the way home and she admitted she was feeling similarly. Once she removed that pressure, she seemed to appreciate her runs more. I haven't done a workout in two days, and shockingly, nothing crazy has happened! I didn't gain ten pounds, I didn't lose my love of the sport. I'm not sure if I'll even workout this whole week, I may just take that little bit of extra time to take my pups to the park, or enjoy a long relaxing dinner with my husband. I think this was needed for me to refresh my appreciation of the sport.

As always, thank you to my sponsors for supporting me in this sometimes crazy, but always fun journey. Thank you to our family and friends, I really feel as though if I finished 9 hrs or 17 hrs, you would all be behind me. Thank you to my husband for supporting me and keeping me honest.

To Lake Placid and Beyond

To Lake Placid and Beyond

 

The preparation to this year’s Ironman in Lake Placid has been every evolving since participation in my first triathlon back in 2010. Since finding the running group at Running etc. in 2009 to biking with and racing for the folks over at Fat Frogs and most recently our relationship with Final Kick which started at the first of the year it has been a journey in which I have always had high hopes and dreams. Running and triathlon have had such a positive influence in my life. I met my wife in running community and as of June I have been sober for 4 years now. I developed a love for the endurance community and it is a love that I am not yet ready to let go of.

Some know the struggles I had with running last season and it weighed heavy on me leading into last year’s race at Louisville. For those in the long course community you know the time and effort both physically and mentally it takes to try to be competitive in the sport. I put so much of my heart into training but was limited by an injury which is out of my control. I have been having issues with my lower back particularly at L4-L5 and L5-S1. With the nerve involvement on the right side it has made running a constant struggle. I was somewhere in the mid 20’s overall after the bike last year in Louisville but followed that up with a 3:57ish marathon. Triathlon is a balance of all three disciplines so to be so limited in one it is disheartening. I spent the remainder of 2013 off my feet and focused some extra time into swimming and biking. At the start of 2014 I made the decision to find a temporary fix for my back and make one more push towards 2014 Lake Placid. At the start of the year I went to see a few doctors. Got an MRI, a nerve study, biomechanical checks, and so forth. It came down to getting a steroid epidural and seeing if that would relieve any of the discomfort and allow me to get back to running again. It wasn’t a cure all but it allowed me to get back on my feet and start what I felt was going to be a successful season.

Since about this time last year I have kicked around the idea of parting ways with triathlon. I was already signed up for Lake Placid and had some financial obligation to race but more than that I had something to prove to myself. Starting in January I was back out and running if that’s what you want to call it. My long runs were only about 20 mins or so at this time. It was a step in the right direction though. While working with my coach Jessie we kept in constant contact about the situation and were working through it in the best way we found fit. Speed work seemed to be too much of a stress to the body at the time so we worked on building some endurance back and kept everything in check with some tempo sessions. I had a plan to keep racing to a minimum and put focus on the end goal of Lake Placid. I only had 3 races on the schedule an early season Olympic, Rev 3 Williamsburg Half, then the race at Placid. By the time I was ready for the first race of the year swimming was take form, the bike was solid, and we were able to get the long runs back to around 2 hrs. The running was looking good but it was hit or miss, some days I could crush a workout other days if it was tough at work or life was catching up I could barely run. The hit or miss aspect made it mentally challenging this season. There is just something free I love about running, it is something I am truly going to miss in the future. So the first race of the season was upon us it was time to kick it off at Monticello Man Oly. in Charlottesville Va. Chris Stock roped me into showing up here. All in all at the end of the day the race was a success and put me one step closer to goals I had for Palcid. My swim there was solid and I rode what I had on the bike. It is hard for us flat landers to ride the courses of western Va. I came off the bike in a good place and hit the road running. I closed out the run in 38 and some change nothing super-fast but it was a win in my mind and it allowed me to run myself into 4^th overall while holding off Chris Stock until the finish.

Next up was Rev 3 Williamsburg, a few weeks before this race I was able to run an open half at the Marine Corps historic half in Fredericksburg Va. and I just broke 1:20 for the day. Not a PR but with how running has been I was happy. I ran well ran relatively pain free and broke the top 10 for the race. It was my 7^th year in a row up there and is I race I plan to be at every year until I no longer can. This run brought me confidence leading into Willimasburg, the James River is a place we visit for swims and after some weekend rides on the bike course the prep for this race was coming together. On race day the conditions were looking good, I had a good swim split given the conditions and it left me in a good spot to ride sometime into the field, I rode most of the 56 miles back and forth between second and third with another fella. Little did we know we would come into t2 7mins back of first. I was left hoping this first place fella couldn’t run well. Coming out of t2 with 3^rd the race was on, we passed 1^st at mile 9 which meant if things continued like this one of the two of us would win. We ran the better half of 11.5 miles together before I made the decision to see what I had left. In the last 1.5 miles I was able to put around 20secs on 2^nd to hang on for the win. I ran a 1:25 that day which truly wasn’t what I wanted to see but given the situation I was ecstatic with it and it was right where I needed to be for the last push to Placid. Williamsburg was a half PR for me at 4:18 and it is always nice to take the overall win somewhere. We had so much support going into the race and it was great to share the course with some many friends. I also want to mention I was able to hold of Chris Stock again at this race. Good work taking 3^rd though buddy.

I had all my eggs in one basket for Placid this included a 4 day training weekend in Placid over the 4^th of July. I can’t thank JV and Amy Cole enough for having us and being such great training partners. The weekend was 4 days of solid training, getting into town Friday we had a little swim then hit the road for a ride out to and climb up Whiteface Mtn. Little did I know how this ride would put me in the pain cave for tomorrows double loop of the course. Saturday morning we did a double loop of the swim course then hit the road for 112 miles of biking. The great company I had for the day made the ride go by in a hurry. It was Rachel, JV, me and another fella Ryan joined for one loop. We rode the course in 6 hrs that day thinking about riding it an hr. faster on race day was a little discouraging. Sunday led way to a one loop swim and a good long run. Hitting the road on foot today led by the awesome Amy Cole made for a great group run. I ended the day at 18 miles on the course just around race pace and it was one of the better runs I have had in a couple weeks. For the last big push things were looking up. I want to rag on Rachel for a minute this girl rides well now and it is hard to drop her but after riding with the boys and taking advantage of us she decided to attack at mile 109 and I had no answer for her. I can’t wait to see what she can do in this sport the girl is getting strong. One more moderate weekend at the farm for hills then the taper to race day was on. I was in a good place for this race, training has been spot on I was swimming well, riding better than ever and I was back on my feet running over the last 6 months.

Race day, like I mentioned earlier things were in place and all the eggs were in one basket. I knew coming into the day if all things were to work out I was going to have a kick ass race. Little did I know what was in store for me, I seeded myself at the back of the 60min and under group. Hoping to swim 60 flat I felt like this was the group I needed to be with. Little did I know how other would misjudge their abilities, by the second buoy I was swimming over the mass of people and folks were already breast stroking and stopping by this point. It made for a tough swim course the second loop was even harder to work through. At the end on the second lap I exited the water in 1:03 given everything I was happy to see this. By the start of the bike the rain and thunder storms rolled in. I knew what I needed to ride but in the conditions it wasn’t worth pushing too hard and risk crashing out. I rode moderate out of town its way to early in the day to hammer the climb, then onto the descent into Keene I took it conservative but I was still racing the rain was really coming down now and made things pretty sketchy, I knew at the bottom I would turn and had some nice fast rollers to make up time. I pushed the ride into jay pretty good had a couple other strong riders around and I was surprised to see some age groupers really pushing the pace by this point they were riding out of my league. I made the turn to upper jay and now it was a steady solid effort back to town. Coming into 56 miles I was at 2:33 right on where I needed to be I would have loved to see 2:30 even but given the conditions what’s 3mins. Onto the second lap this is where the bike race really starts to go bad for me it was on its way to being over. I flatted on the short descent behind transition, getting to the bottom I made a hasty change of tubes and was on my way I lost time but not so much that I couldn’t ride some of it back. The rain was gone and the roads were drying up by lap two and things were looking good. Well on the climb out of town the tire was feeling low so I hopped off real quick and topped it off with another co2 back on my way or at least I thought so. Going down the first descent boom the tire is flat again. It ended up being a cut tire with a shard of glass in it. I got the course support to call for tech support. I was a sitting duck and at their mercy now. It took them around 20mins to get to me. I truly don’t know how much time I lost on lap two but I do know the total lap time was 3:11. I won’t lie after tech support taking so long I was kind of defeated. I got rolling again and did what I could I still rode the shit out of my bike to finish out the last lap. The day was catching up to me though. The run started with negative thoughts, after the shitty bike ride I didn’t want to continue, to top it off after the turn onto river road my running was shit, after such a strong training block this was the worst day possibly to not be able to get functioning on the run. I thought about calling it quits at this point but there was something in me, I wasn’t going to let my last Tri be a DNF and I was going to do what I could and I was going to finish. I am strong, I love what I do, I love the faith I have in myself, I love the others I share the course with, I love those who have been lost, I am thankful for what I can physically do, for these reasons and many others I continued. I ended the run with a 3:44ish marathon not anywhere close to what I wanted but when I crossed that finish line I heard the words “You Are An Ironman” for this I am grateful. It was an awesome end to an even better journey.

I made the decision earlier this year to walk away from triathlon after racing Placid. I haven’t been extremely vocal about this decision because I wanted my energy focused on the goals at Placid. It is time to close a chapter in life and turn the pages to write another. I’m not gone forever friends I will be back there is just a ? of when. Leaving long course racing will leave a void in my life. I have been kicking around many ideas. I love the endurance community and I am not ready to leave it. I have set my goals on pursuing endurance cycling while trying to refine my swimming with hopes of returning to triathlon on day. In the mean time I am going to start this cycling journey at the Mid-Atlantic 12/24 in the end of August. I have to sign up still but this is the plan. Cycling has no ill physical effects on me so it seems like I can do it. The training volume I am at now is fine so I go into this with the hopes that as I build into longer and longer rides I will hold on physically, only time will tell. I have had year goals of completing Ironman races for the last couple of seasons, so after this year I was looking for what’s next, what is a year away I can set my sights on. This year’s goal is looking like it could be a 4 man team for RAAM I have put some feelers out for riders but there is still a lot to look at before making it a definite. The logistics, the financial obligations, and more are definitely larger than anything I have thought about doing before. So when I get settled back in after getting home from Placid it will be onto the planning stages and seeing if it will be feasible to make happen.

The time up until now could not have been possibly if it weren’t for my lovely wife Rachel Jastresbky and the others in our life. Thanks Jesse Vondracek for the last two years and some change of coaching, I love the friendship we developed and thanks to Amy Cole for being your support and both of y’all for having us over the 4^th of July weekend and for the race. Fat Frogs is where I got my start and I thank y’all for this, Ghent chiropractic for doing what you do to keep us going, Final Kick has been our local support for the 2014 season and it has been great, The support from y’all is awesome thanks for having me, Zoot sports has been the greatest tri team I could ask to be part of, an awesome company and we built great relationships through them, Tara Norton had a large influence on my racing in the first year and I thank you for your support through Lack Placid and Kona in 2011, I also thanks you for your continued support of Rachel. Matt Long you had a larger impact on my decisions probably more than you know, you are an influence for many, I wish you the best in life, “ I Will…….” The triathlon community has been amazing there have been so many new relationships built and many more to come. I’m stepping away but I will be around to support y’all now. I am looking forward to what the future has in store. Congrats to everyone on their performance this past weekend at Placid it was a joy to share the day with y’all, Danny Royce you went against our plan buddy but rest up recover and get back at it, I will be looking for big things at Chattanooga.