Race Reports: IRONMAN BOULDER

Colorado has been on my must-see list for a long time. It didn't take much convincing from Jeff to get me to sign up. The conversation went along the lines of :"Come on, you'll be fit from SA. It'll be easy." During the run at IMSA, I regretted signing up for Boulder and wondered how much of a refund I would get if I pulled out.

"Damn you Jakubiak!" I cried.

Doing Eagleman in June was a good test but I got sick afterwards and it took about 3 weeks off my training. I only managed two 100 mile rides and very little running. This didn't do much for my confidence going in.

So, the game plan was : spend a few days in Breckenridge with Jeff to acclimate and get in some last minute training sessions. Jeff's sisters and their families were there too, along with Mike "The Power" Haus, who was also doing the race.

Dealing with the altitude was a challenge. By the 3rd day I was struggling, completely bonking on a 20 mile bike ride and hanging on to the side of the pool for dear life after Jeff conned Mike and I into doing swim intervals. The ride training was great as we had an endless bike path to train on. In between gulps of thin air, I took in some of the amazing scenery.

Video:Mike and Jeff finishing their run https://youtu.be/Fuuw9c1qwIg

Pic: I bonked on the ride so went and got a coffee while M&J ran. Jeff is crying because I didn't buy him a tea. Boo hoo

Pic: Chillin in the hot tub after a ride

Pic: Goofing with the kids

On Thursday I drove to Boulder, registered, picked up my bike rental (sweet ride), then picked up Jen from the airport. I did a short ride with the boys to check out some of the course and had a dip in the lake behind where we stayed. Getting access to open water was not easy and access to Boulder Reservoir was limited to obscure time slots and a tiny swim area. Luckily for us Mary, our gracious host where Jen and I were staying, had access to Baseline Reservoir ; a resident only private lake.

Pic: our own private pool. Thank you Mary!

RACE DAY

The Swim

The water temp was 78 F so it was not a wetsuit legal swim. This meant you could wear a wetsuit, but you had to start at the back and were not in contention for age group awards. We opted to swim without the suit incase Jeff did well enough to earn a Kona spot. We had a strategy to take turns pulling in the water. It was a great strategy when we practiced it in the lake, but needless to say it failed miserably when 2500 other swimmers were added to the mix.

We lost each other instantly.

Video: Swim start;
https://instagram.com/p/54bMmMQEIf/

By some luck I spotted Jeff half way through the swim when we were both floundering in some clear space. We helped each other along until a swarm of wetsuiters crashed into us. Jeff caught the slip and I fell off. I guess the extra kicking took its toll on my legs. My calves and feet took turns cramping up ( In hindsight I should have suited up) so I cruised the last half a mile, taking in some of the scenery and chillin before the long ride ahead.

The Bike:

The bike course had a northern loop X 2 and a western loop X 1. The first 90 miles went relatively well, a lot of long slow climbs and long fast descents. There were no serious climbs but very little flat riding.

The last 20 miles was a suffer-fest. The wind picked up and so did the gradient. It felt like it would never end.

But the view sure was pretty:

By the time I began the descent into town I started feeling very nauseous. The same as I did while training in Breckenridge, but worse. Headache, stomach cramps and dizziness. My feet were on fire and my ass hurt.

It sucked.

But no cramps! A big silver lining. I parked the bike and made the trek to the transition tent.

I wasn't thinking clearly and couldn't quite figure out how to dress myself. I started packing my bike clothes into my bag BEFORE I took my run gear out. I was a mess. So I sat there and contemplated life before getting my sh*t together and heading out for a little delirious jog.

The Run: (If you can call it that)

The first 5k was misery. My heart was beating out of my chest and just finishing seemed like mission impossible. The first 10k took 90 minutes, and it took a lot of willpower not to go nap under a tree with some of my fellow struggling athletes.

Seeing Jeff powering in the other direction was encouraging and I latched on to a group of guys dressed in green Trisuits running in honor of one of the members brothers who was killed in Afghanistan. I would pass them at the aid stations and they'd catch me back up. The crowd loved these guys and it was uplifting running with them.

Pic: Team Carpe Diem

At about mile 10 I met up with Bob, a home town hero who had cheated death on his road to becoming an Ironman.

Pic: Bob Stromberg

Bob suffered a heart attack during a training run. After open heart surgery and 3 days in a coma Bob came back to life and continued his quest of becoming an Ironman. Truly inspiring. Read about his story here:
http://chomp.uberflip.com/i/115410-spring-2013/0?

We pulled each other along, picking up the pace and skipping the last few aid stations on the way to the finish line.

Finishing was a huge relief and I was so happy. The crowd support the whole day was incredible, like nothing I have ever experienced. Often on the run the cheering numbed the pain in my legs and pushed me along. In some places I felt like a rider in the Tour de France on the Alp d'Huez. (Crawling along with people shouting in your face :)

I would recommend this race to anyone looking for their next challenge.

13 hours and 13 minutes. An IM PB for me and a daytime finish (dusky but still light:)

Thanks go out to:

Jen-my number one fan
Jeff-for your generosity. I don't know why no one likes you, you're not such a bad guy :) and not a bad triathlete either. 10:41. Insane. Check this guy.........

Thank you too to Denise, you're a star.

My swim coach: MF Bill McFarland

My run coach a fat checker: Marius
My cycling coach: Patrick Loughnananananae
My training buddies and tri geeks:

Mike,

Conrad,

Shane,

Ken and the ever growing Flashy Crew,

Trevor and the tri association

and anyone who followed the race and those I've forgotten - Don't hate me.
And Cazz-for those Sunday morning pancakes that keep me going. (And Mikes coffee of course)

PS. If you ask me now if I will ever do another one the answer is no. But hey, I said I'd never do an Ironman, so who knows.

Cheers,
Dale.

Some more pics.....

Just like dad. Colby and Dylan with cousin Ben at the Ironkids race.