'Tis the Season: Ironman Coeur d'Alene

[colby]

When I went to Florida, I felt bad that I didn't catch people from TE that were probably IN THE SAME TENT I was in during transition. ;) I have been incredibly busy at work over the last year and only been able to pop in here occasionally, but you ladies hold a special place in my triathlon heart. I wore my She Loves Hills bike jersey to the Hill Country Ride for AIDS in Austin (side note: HOT AND WINDY, like standing in front of a giant dryer) and it was admired by many, I wished I could have sent the good vibes back to each of you.

Back on topic...

I know Kacie's husband is also racing Ironman Coeur d'Alene (and he's fast, so he'll put my turtle self to shame!). If anyone else from TE is coming up (down, over), I would love to cheer you on, say hello, or at least know you're around in case you're, say, volunteering in transition and you could help put on my arm warmers/coolers/sunscreen/whatever!

For those of you playing along at home, my # this year is 314. (Yep, pi! Also, that means next year I'll be back in the high #s.)

<insert the final countdown>

[Irulan]

Is that this weekend?

[colby]

Is that this weekend?

Yes! This Sunday, 6/24.

[GLC1968]

My friend's partner is racing and she's playing sherpa. He is trying to qualify for Kona, so I assume that makes him one of the fast ones. Unrelated to TE, though. ;)

Best of luck to you! We'll be cheering you on from Sunriver, OR!

[Blueberry]

Good luck, Colby! I know you'll rock it:) Will be following you!!

[Tri Girl]

Best of luck, Colby!! I'll be tracking you, and cheering you on all the way from OK. Have a fantastic time!!! :D

[salsabike]

Have fun out there, Colby You know we'll be cheering for you all the way.

[colby]

Thanks, all! :D It's getting pretty hard to ignore how close it is. It's like vacation-itis. Hopefully a good dessert at the end of this one, just like all good vacations. ;)

[OakLeaf]

Good luck Colby! I know you'll do great.

[sgf726]

Good Luck Colby! Have a blast.

[katluvr]

Good luck Colby! I'll be checking in for updates and the much anticipated race report!

K

[colby]

My tracking link:

http://tracking.ironmanlive.com/newsearch.php?rid=1143239903&y=2012&race=%2Fevents%2Fironman%2Fcoeurdalene%2F&athlete=314

Race feed:

http://live.ironman.com/?race=coeurdalene&year=2012

My twitter account is @colbinator, sometimes my husband tweets from my account during the day, since the splits are so distant I'll ask him to try to post updates.

SUPER EXCITING!! Off to sleep! (Been in bed for a while, but not truly sleeping.)

[OakLeaf]

I just got home ... Colby's out of the water in 1:59. The site doesn't have bike splits listed, just a total bike time? Can that be right? Go Colby, ride ride ride!

[Tri Girl]

she had a good bike split. still waiting for some run splits to be posted.

[Blueberry]

2 run splits in, and she's gaining speed. Go, Colby!!

6.6 mi 6.6 mi 1:43:09 11:38:29 15:37/mi
13.4 mi 6.8 mi 1:42:43 13:21:12 15:06/mi

[OakLeaf]

Congratulations Colby! You rocked it!

[Tri Girl]

Congrats Iron Colby!! I know that's a tough course, so way to rock it out, girl!!! WOOT!! :D

[salsabike]

Congratulations, Colby! You are the total GRIT girl.

[GLC1968]

Way to go, Colby! I can't even begin to fathom racing for that long and in tough conditions. You have my utmost respect! Congratulations on a huge achievement!!

[salsabike]

I hear the water was REALLY cold and that people were spending lots of T1 time in warming tents.

[kacie tri-ing]

I got to see her goig out for lap two on the bike, and her finish!!

Congrats! It was a tough and windy day out there!

Can't wait to read your thoughts about it!

[colby]

Thanks for the extra cheers, Kacie!! :D George did amazing! I joked to my husband that I must have spent half my brain making sure he had the awesome race he trained so hard for, because he sure did at the same time I did not. So cool to be Kona bound!

Thanks everyone for the congrats and tracking! The bike splits - WTF? There was a timing mat out on the bike turnaround and the day before it looked like there should be splits, but on that day, there were none. Let me tell you, there were a lot of nervous internet trackers out there!

https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/c67.0.403.403/p403x403/306693_2195688588292_393278798_n.jpg

I just had one of those days where stuff doesn't click. It wasn't a day when I had panic on the swim, stomach issues or nutrition issues on the bike/run, excess pain overall, super nasty weather, or anything, really, just... meh! After the swim, I thought "oh, I see. Glad to be on the bike!" Second loop of the bike, I thought, "oh, I see. Glad to be running!" Second loop of the run, I thought, "let's get this done!" and I was able to walk/run pretty consistently (sorry about that 17 minute/mile walking stretch, oops) then run hard to the finish that last quarter-mile, so I had some gas in the tank. Failure was not an option. I never expected to be that close to any cutoffs at this point, but I'll take the Just Finish. Instead of hearing "you are an Ironman" over the loudspeaker, I was personally greeted by Mike Reilly who told me to my face as I walked across the line.

I will post a more complete race report soon - just wanted to pop in and say that I am alive and doing pretty well. And yes, I signed up for next year, within seconds. I will have my revenge, unless something comes up that prevents it (in which case I'll have my revenge at another race because I'm not NOT having my revenge - I WANT that race where everything DOES click ;))!

[katluvr]

Awesome Colby....as usual, I am in awe!

K

[GLC1968]

I was personally greeted by Mike Reilly who told me to my face as I walked across the line.


How cool is that? Congratulations again, Colby!!

[Tri Girl]

+1
That is awesome that he was right there with you! :D

[colby]

What is this... a weekend? I don't even know what to do! So confused. I get to... sit around... and do nothing? For TWO WHOLE DAYS? ;)

The recap.

Training:
I split my time 3-2ish between Austin and my home in the PNW since my company got acquired (if you followed my previous 2 IM reports, it happened last July). It's hot in Austin, it was a cool and wet spring in the PNW. It was interesting to figure out how to bike commute, train, and get weekend rides/runs in in the two varying sets of conditions. When you train for an Ironman as a real human, you have to find the balance between training and life. I decided this year to balance to life a little more, I was in a job that was still pretty new and trying to give some extra love to my spouse who was going through this for the 6th time. ;) I skimped on strength training and swimming for sure and some percentage of my high intensity intervals, but I got in long rides and runs, and I biked 12 hilly miles round trip to/from work daily in Austin (and we bike almost everywhere except errands).

At the end of April, I did a century ride in Austin, holy hell. Humid, then sunny and hot, and windy all day (imagine standing in front of a hair dryer for 6 hours). At the end they said "there's a temperature and wind factor, you actually rode twice the miles you think you did". I knew then at least that I could go the distance, and I had 2 months to go. After that, I battened down the hatches and continued focusing on the long runs and rides, and making sure to get quality workouts in.

Race Time:
I came home from Austin a week before Ironman. Through the week, my brain had become increasingly more occupied by Ironman (imagine a pie chart that slowly gets filled by one color/slice). The weather up here was great, though the water was still cold (low 50s F). I've been through cold and windy IMCdAs before, my only hope was for no rain on the bike. The weather forecast went from nice (70, partly cloudy) to warm (80, sunny) to iffy (75, chance of t-storms/rain). I checked in to the race on Thursday during my lunch hour and that's the point where things start to get really real. Holy crap, we're going to do this again. Am I ready? Am I kidding myself? Is this the race I DNF? Or will it be awesome? You have to fight to push out the uncertainty and have confidence in your endurance, your training, your mental strength.

During the athlete meeting/dinner (Friday night for a Sunday race), they showed last year's race recap, which was awesome (haven't found the video). And then, the skies opened up. It was raining SO. HARD. Thunder, lightning, rain. Ominous, or just getting it out of its system? Only time would tell, but there are approximately 2,000 pictures of that rainstorm that athletes took with the same simultaneous expression of incredulity that it was happening. ;) They announced the water was approaching 60 degrees at the beach and 57 at the far buoy - but no guarantees it would stay there. Not much chat about the new bike course, other than the way the highway would be split, with a few no passing zones - one of them on a fast downhill. All in all, the athlete meeting was pretty quick. Afterward, I drove the section of the bike course that I hadn't rode before - I debated training on it but decided not to, it's a highway and I'd rather not risk it. There are a couple of 1-2 mile climbs, but it's all in all less rolling hills than before.

Saturday was gear drop-off, but I also had to pick up my husband from the airport. I laid out all my stuff, hopeful that I didn't forget anything in Austin. I always lay out my gear bags and place everything on top of them, careful not to overpack because I know I do not have a brain. Should I wear these socks or those? Decide now. Should I wear my recently purchased FiveFingers or my old favorites? Nothing unknown or risky. The weather was still a little unknown for tomorrow, but that day was beautiful. The water temp was holding around 60. After picking my husband up, I came home to do my final bike check. This has become ritual, I ALWAYS ride my bike the day before and I do NOT touch it the next morning other than to make sure there's no flats. We headed down to drop off my stuff and do my second ALWAYS, which is to swim at least the day before. My in laws turned out for this race, their first Ironman viewing! We met up before my swim, then walked downtown Coeur d'Alene and ate an early dinner. Mac and cheese for the colby, nothing complicated. I had nixed all spicy and high fiber foods for about 3 days leading up to the race. Food was boring at this point. ;)

And then, home to sleep. Prepped my bike bottles (refrigerated bottles and ingredients), made a list of anything I needed to remember knowing I would be stupid tomorrow (put sunglasses in bike bag, water for aero bottle). Bedtime around 8pm, though I can't sleep until later. Rest, rest, rest. Snuggle with my kitties. Rest, rest, rest. 2:00am: pouring rain. Thunder. Lightning. Convince myself to go back to sleep. It will pass, it will pass.

Race Morning:
Up (and it's not raining!) for some toasted peanut butter bagels, bananas, and nuun, prepped to head out by 5:15am (I'm not the type to get there super early and dawdle in transition, it does not help my nerves). Slap on insane amounts of sunscreen knowing I'll probably still get burned. My in laws have a VW camper van that they have parked in such a way that we can sneak in and park behind them a few blocks from the race. Walked down to transition, got my free body marking (one day only!), had to remember my age (they offered to put a question mark on). Last year we really wanted to book a room at the host hotel for that day/night, but we waited too long. I can see the benefit of being that close after doing it in Florida. Checked off all the items on my list (sunglasses, swap of bike jersey, aero bottle, bike bottles, check tires for flats, tell Lucy - my bike - we're going to have a great day together).

Ceremonial wetsuit assembly and bodyglide adornment. Adjust more than you think, put on more than you think you need. Head to the beach. No turning back. The water is 57 degrees, 54 at the turnaround. It will be cold. Mentally prepare. "You're going to be an Ironman today" says Mike Reilly. Yes, I am. The cannon fires, and we're off.

Swim:
I walk into the water, letting the washing machine go ahead of me, and adjusting to the cold, cold, water. It's hard to breathe. At 50m, you want to turn around. Fight it. Keep going. Pee in the wetsuit, everyone else is. ;) On the first loop, the water was fairly calm, I sighted the buoys well but stayed off to the side. Not much abuse to be spoken of, but it doesn't really bother me. I remember thinking to myself several times about how poorly some people swim in a straight line. There was one guy that zig-zagged me the entire swim.

When I got out for my second loop, they said "plenty of time." My heart sunk a little, but I didn't look at the clock so I wouldn't be disheartened. I just wanted to finish the swim. The second loop was rough. The wind picked up, you felt like you were swimming and going nowhere. The waves were rolling, rolling. Combine cold water, rolling waves (tall enough that you can't see the buoys even when they were close), and poor sighting swimmers, and it was very disorienting. I always have this problem on the second loop when the swim thins out, I think I'm alone, I second guess my sighting, everything. This is like mile 16-19 of the marathon. The dark zone of the swim. As you near the beach, you can hear people, you can see people. I'm going to make it. I will finish this. The clock said 1:59. My heart sunk again, I thought, "I see how this is going to go. On to the bike, it'll be better."

T1:
I was still pretty disoriented, this is why I don't pack more than I need. The grass was wet so I had grass ALL OVER ME, scooby doo towel to the rescue, and some willing volunteers. I had to sit for a second to let everything right itself. On went the arm warmers, the bike jersey, the socks, the gloves, the shoes, the sunglasses, the helmet. I had them put more sunblock on my legs. And I was off for my bike! Since I was so slow, they were able to bring me my bike as I walked through transition. Getting my money's worth!

Bike:
It was still kind of windy on the bike. The first section often has wind one direction or the other, and I bike it frequently enough to know it well. The second section is the new out-and-back that I hadn't ridden but had driven, so I wasn't sure what to expect on the legs. Camera guy on first section caught me reaching for my bottle, doh. My eating strategy starts at 15 minutes (small sip), then for real at 30 minutes after I've righted myself; I eat every 15 minutes from then on, alternating bottles and gels, sometimes with bananas. During Florida, my tummy felt a little upset, but I think my nemesis is sun and heat, and I need to figure out how to deal with that. Here, the weather was still chilly and cloudy, which was very nice, and I hoped it'd hold out all day.

First loop of the new section... was uphill into the wind for about 20 miles. There's a 2 mile grade, then 1 mile downhill, then another 1 mile climb, and the rest is pretty much false flat to uphill. The return trip was pretty awesome. :P I missed seeing some of the spectators of the old course, but they did a good job segmenting it so that you'd get to come back through town often enough. Better than Florida which was so lonely. I always have to pee on the first loop, no matter what. I remember shaking my head. ;)

I admit to not keeping track of time. I knew I could make it, I was trying not to go out hard on the bike, staying within my comfort zone the entire time. All I watched was my heart monitor on the climbs and flats. It was awesome in that way, I never pushed too hard, which probably means I could have pushed harder. Too many unknowns for me on the bike course means I end up being way too conservative. This happened to me during my first Ironman and Florida, too.

Second loop, sun coming out, had to peel off arm warmers. Stopped at the first aid station and had them put on sunblock. If I get burned, I get zapped fast and pay for it for days. The wind died down, too, which made the out segment on the new part less of a grind, but it made the return section (last 20 miles!) so much more of a grind without that tailwind. I was uncomfortable, I hadn't done enough long rides in aero since my triathlon bike was here in the PNW and not in Austin. I'll have to think about that one.

As I headed back into town, I rode with a lady that needed me as much as I needed her. She asked if we'd make it. I cried a little inside thinking again that I didn't want to be out this long just like the swim, but said out loud "absolutely, plenty of time." Not long after, THIS BIKE RIDE IS OVER!! But then I did the math, and again, my heart sunk a bit. I wasn't supposed to be chasing cutoffs. I knew I could make it, but I want it to be different, or I want a good reason. Tummy felt great. Legs felt good. I just... don't know.

T2:
Staying positive, they tossed me my run bag and I headed in to change. Disassemble, reassemble. Bodyglide ALL OVER the feet, new socks (I live for this moment), shoes, arm coolers (if anything they protect me from the sun). More sunscreen on my legs and face. Saw my family and other people who knew me, so awesome.

Run:
My strategy was to run as much as possible, but know that I was going to walk most uphills and essentially all aid stations. Since it was sunny and warming, I walked sunny sections until I could get water and ice on/in myself. Every aid station was out of sponges. This makes me sad. Sponges are amazing. Nutrition strategy was to use the perform (gatorade) and gu on the run, never taking them both in at once. Use bananas/oranges and pretzels when needed, if tummy started to rebel stop taking in gels and drink some coke. Turns out I didn't really want more gel, so I switched over to fruit, pretzels, perform, coke, and water, trying to calculate at least 150-200 cals/hr.

First loop, blah. Run when you can. Look on the bright side, since we were so slow to this point, the sun is going to go down sooner on the run, and it will start cooling off. Run every flat/downhill. Run to the aid stations. The run course is also very well divided, two out and back loops make it mentally easy to strategize and divide up the course. I walked more than I'd like. I started doing the math. What was up with this day? It just wasn't my day. At this point I was committed to one thing: failure is not an option.

Second loop, saw more of my family, handed off my sunglasses. Thanked a friend from work who was volunteering. Kept going. I will finish this. You can see on my splits where the "dark spot" of the run is. ;) I just couldn't find the drive to run, even though when I run nothing really hurt and I wasn't really feeling sick. Things just didn't click. I wasn't even really upset, I was just disappointed. You really have to dig deep to get yourself out of that. You know you can walk, what convinces you not to is your own drive, your own motivation. I forced myself into a walk-run pattern, which actually felt good, and I was passing people all over the place. I saw the SAG wagon going out to the cutoff at the turnaround when I was on my way back. If I had given up, that would be me.

The last 3 miles I was committed. I must finish. The more I run, the faster I get there. The spectators were good and drunk by now. ;) I thanked them all, I love the Coeur d'Alene spectators. They cheer for everyone. In Florida, it really felt like people were there for their athletes and kind of cheering on others. In CdA, everyone cheers for everyone, they just cheer harder for their athletes. Again people were saying plenty of time, but I had to fight through the disappointment. Thinking of the positive, I actually felt really good on the run itself. My running endurance has come a long way.

The Finish:
As I rounded the corner to the finish, I was so happy to be at the end of a long, testing day. I sprinted to the finish, I riled up the crowd (who was pretty amped). Mike Reilly was in the finish chute, where he said my name, and he came with me as I approached the finish. I knew that meant I was one of them, the lucky finishers that made the cutoff, but my journey wasn't about chasing cutoffs intentionally, it was just a consequence. I was so glad to be done. I saw my family and friends at the finish, nothing better than that moment (well, other than "YOU ARE AN IRONMAN" which is pretty amazing ;)). The hugs you get after an Ironman are like no other hugs.

Ironman CdA Full Circle video here (race recap, pretty good): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JgzM5wVErb0

My pictures: http://www.finisherpix.com/search.html?bib=314&pcevent=0191

You can see me finish in video #3 (I finish at 16:46): http://live.ironman.com/?race=coeurdalene&year=2012#axzz1zIPfC0lL

Recovery & Next Up:
I feel pretty good, actually. After the race, I was able to eat. My neck/shoulders hurt the most, which makes sense after the swim. Of course on day +2, my big muscles were really sore. After that, I was (and am) just tired. TIRED. Yesterday, I rode my bike for 45 minutes and ran for 15 minutes, today I'm a little sore again. I have a sprint race next weekend. ;)

I signed up for next year within minutes. I want that race where everything clicks. I want to finish in 13, 12 hours. I want to rock. I will be back! I need to figure out a few things and am thinking about committing to a good coach, and getting some solid run focus in to increase confidence and speed. I am also racing Austin 70.3 at the end of October.

If you made it this far, even if you skimmed, thanks for reading! :) You ladies have been with me through all of my Ironmans, and I love this community.

[Tri Girl]

Amazing race report, Colby! You are very inspirational- trudging through and finishing. So proud of you, girl!! :) You'll be back next year, and it will be a totally different race.

[salsabike]

Colby, I repeat. Total grit. And as I've said before, I love your race reports. Thank you.

[Blueberry]

Thank you for continuing to share your races with us! You are amazing and inspiring - keep at it:)

[salsabike]

Colby, was this number 5?

[colby]

Colby, was this number 5?

This was my 6th Ironman, 5th in Coeur d'Alene. :)

[salsabike]

Are you ever going to do Canada? I hear that is also a really wonderful, crowd-supportive place.

[colby]

Are you ever going to do Canada? I hear that is also a really wonderful, crowd-supportive place.

I've thought about it. Last year it overlapped with something else, sometimes it's overlapped with the Danskin Triathlon. This year..... it doesn't!! I'm super tempted to drive up and either volunteer (if they still need volunteers) or cheer people on.

Coeur d'Alene is my home race so it's easy to do. Maybe I will sign up for both and drop one... if I can handle the Canada bike course. ;)

[sgf726]

Colby - Great Race Report, thanks for sharing and congrats for finishing. I hope that I can say the same in 3 weeks.

I had a question about transition, in all the races I have done all your stuff is by your bike for transition. For IM there is the changing tents and I know you bag your stuff for T1, 2 etc. but what do you do with the stuff you are leaving behind - i.e. goggles/wetsuit after the swim.

Sharon

[colby]

Colby - Great Race Report, thanks for sharing and congrats for finishing. I hope that I can say the same in 3 weeks.

I had a question about transition, in all the races I have done all your stuff is by your bike for transition. For IM there is the changing tents and I know you bag your stuff for T1, 2 etc. but what do you do with the stuff you are leaving behind - i.e. goggles/wetsuit after the swim.

Sharon

Ah - they go into the bag your stuff just came out of. It makes for some wet/stinky stuff at the end of the day, let me tell you.

So if I'm in T1, I take all my stuff out of my bag for the bike, and in that bag goes my wetsuit, goggles, and anything I didn't take on the bike.

In T2, I take all my stuff out for the run, and in that bag goes my bike helmet, shoes, and anything I didn't take on the run.

If you use the special needs bags, you get them at different parts during the race, and can put stuff back in them. You can then pick them back up the day after the race.

[sgf726]

That makes sense - thanks for the info.

[colby]

After reading a bunch of race reports and recovering a little, I'm feeling a little better about myself. I know I shouldn't be hard on myself but it's difficult to overcome. Maybe writing it down will help. Thanks for listening. ;)

27% of the race entrants in the first place were female. That means, out of 2,700 people who entered, less than 750 were women. I am not one of 2700, I am one of 750. (And if you start adding in other factors, I become more and more like a snowflake coming into focus.)

7% of people who started DNF. That's 189 people. It's not as high as St George (which was pure torture this year and is now a 70.3), but it's significant. People literally got in the water, turned around, and got back out. People were pulled from the water. People had to spend time in a warming yurt. People missed the swim, bike, and run cutoffs. I did not.

I read a pro race report that referred to the Coeur d'Alene swim as "one of the toughest in Ironman." The water is cold, the wind often kicks up on the second loop, it's very physical. Even finishers in the 1:05-1:20 range had to stop and backstroke to regain composure. While I was slow and occasionally frustrated, I had a panic-free swim. There is no feeling like panicking in the water.

The bike course was theoretically faster, but race report on race report has people going 20-60 minutes slower than the previous course. People who were well prepared still did well, but year over year the same athletes were slower.

I am recovering well. When I ride my bike, I can feel some discomfort in my hip flexors and quads, which is to be expected. When I run, my feet cry a little. Shoulders are still a little stiff (probably also due to my tight hip flexors, though).

I signed up to volunteer for Ironman Canada. I told my husband I couldn't promise that I wouldn't sign up for 2013, but that I didn't think I would. I would be faced with the choice of dropping one or doing a very difficult thing (both). I know that making the call to drop one would be hard for me to make, so I hesitate to put myself in that position. ;) I volunteered for the finish line and transition areas.

[salsabike]

That's great. I was half tempted to volunteer myself but I think we will be away. Maybe in 2013, though. I've heard so much good stuff about Canada and the atmosphere there, and it's not that far from here. And Colby, I think your review of CDA and how you did makes very good sense. It always sounds to me like a difficult race with cold water and wind. That grit thing I mentioned--the panic-free swim---those are real assets under such conditions.

My coach has done Canada multiple times and LOVES it.

[Susan Otcenas]

I signed up to volunteer for Ironman Canada.--- I volunteered for the finish line and transition areas.

Yay!! I'm doing Canada, and would love to see a friendly face. I'm coming up alone (Jeff has some mountain climbing thing that weekend ;) ) and so I have no one there to cheer for me. Wanna be my cheering squad? :D

I looked at your photos. You look amazing in every one. You *are* amazing! I have to say though, that simply looking at the photo of all those thousands of people lined up on the beach makes me a little sick to my stomach. The mass start scares the hell out of me, still. I know I can swim 4000 meters. But doing it in the midst of all those people makes me feel panicky just sitting here at my desk! What's you mental strategy for dealing with the melee??

[colby]

Yay!! I'm doing Canada, and would love to see a friendly face. I'm coming up alone (Jeff has some mountain climbing thing that weekend ;) ) and so I have no one there to cheer for me. Wanna be my cheering squad? :D

I looked at your photos. You look amazing in every one. You *are* amazing! I have to say though, that simply looking at the photo of all those thousands of people lined up on the beach makes me a little sick to my stomach. The mass start scares the hell out of me, still. I know I can swim 4000 meters. But doing it in the midst of all those people makes me feel panicky just sitting here at my desk! What's you mental strategy for dealing with the melee??

I will totally be your cheering squad. I'm hoping I get finish line so I can cheer all day and right to the end!!

For the mass start, two big things:
1. On the one hand, it's like any other race. If you're a slower swimmer (not going to finish under 1:10 or even 1:20), move to the outside or hang back. If you don't want to get swam over, do not swim directly in the buoy line, where most people are going to be. Usual triathlon stuff, at a larger scale.

2. On the other hand, it's 2,700 people!! Some thrashing, swimming very closely, and running into people, even if you hang back or to the outside, is nearly inevitable. Remember, DO NOT PANIC. The more confident you are in the swim and in your open water swimming, the more tolerant you will be of the other factors. (If you aren't worried about making the distance or the cutoff times, you are less likely to be in a straw that broke the camel's nerves position.)

Things that can happen:
1. You cannot breathe for multiple normal breaths because you are surrounded. Be prepared to stay calm, try breathing on the other side, switch to breaststroke/backstroke. It is scary, but breaths will come. Panic will make it worse.

2. You cannot take a stroke on one side for multiple strokes because someone is on top of your arm. Keep kicking, take strokes with the other arm, navigate away. Stay calm.

3. You are surrounded by people that are going randomly different speeds and directions - getting passed and passing people simultaneously. Try to stay calm. If you feel yourself starting to panic, swim out of the crowd. Stopping is a worse idea, more people will swim over you. Often you can swim out of the crowd, regain composure, and swim back in.

4. You have no clue where the buoys are because you can't see anything but swim caps for what feels like miles. You probably do not want to stop because people will swim over you, but people will be stopping around you. Keep swimming, keep sighting. Not all that different from any other race, but the # of people is sometimes staggering. If your head is aiming toward heads, you are probably going the right way ;)

5. It will be crowded at the turn buoys. Sometimes there are so many people you can't even move. Keep swimming, consider going a little wide, it's faster than stopping.

6. I am not sure how the sun is in IMCA, but in CdA, you make your turn right into the sun, and swim into the rising sun until the next turn. If it's sunny, be prepared to not be able to see the buoys as often as you think. It helps to see the swim course ahead of time to mentally think through what the conditions are going to be like. Use your usual "I can't see the buoys, swim a few more strokes and I will be able to" technique.

7. Again, not sure about the swim in IMCA, but in CdA you have changing conditions to factor in. The second loop often has way more wind, current, and chop, which leads to a slower second loop and feeling like you're going nowhere on a swim treadmill. Nothing like being at mile 1.8 and thinking you're never going to get there (totally like mile 18 of the marathon). Stay positive, whether it's on the out, the back, or the turn.

8. People will probably thin out, which is good and bad. Good, now you have room to swim. Bad, you're not quite there yet, so you need to stay focused and get it done. Once you get to the point where you can hear the beach again, you're home free!

If you are sensing a theme, you're right. Stay calm, don't panic. Trust in your training and adapt to the conditions. Get out of the crowd if you start to feel panicked and can't calm down. I have read that the Coeur d'Alene mass start/swim is one of the roughest because the beach is so short. That could mean you also need to contend with being TOO FAR down the beach and having to swim extra distance, so the trick is figuring out where to plant your feet and still have a great swim. I find that if I'm in the crowd, I swim faster, but I also am more likely to feel those things that make me panic, so I need to be confident in my training.

It's going to be awesome!!! I will dream up some good sign ideas.

[Susan Otcenas]

I will totally be your cheering squad. I'm hoping I get finish line so I can cheer all day and right to the end!!



Woot!

These are great tips, Colby. THANKS!!! I'm doing a 70.3 this weekend and will try to put them to good use. :)

How's your recovery going??

[sgf726]

+1 Great Tips on the swim.

I am a slower swimmer (hope to be about 1:50 for IMLP) and am really nervous about the mass start. The good news is by halfway throught the second lap is shouldn't be too crowded :-)

Sharon

[colby]

Woot!

These are great tips, Colby. THANKS!!! I'm doing a 70.3 this weekend and will try to put them to good use. :)

How's your recovery going??

Not bad! The first week, just tired, exhausted. The second week, I feel better, but when I ride or run I can feel every muscle that's still tired, often really deep, deep down there. I raced a sprint triathlon over the weekend and felt pretty solid, but I know I wasn't at 100%, part of it is just the sheer amount of mental recovery. Ironman is a huge commitment, so sometimes it's really hard to convince myself that I NEED to commit to anything after doing that for so long ;)

[colby]

+1 Great Tips on the swim.

I am a slower swimmer (hope to be about 1:50 for IMLP) and am really nervous about the mass start. The good news is by halfway throught the second lap is shouldn't be too crowded :-)

Sharon

All of my finish times are between 1:40 and 1:55, so I know where you're coming from. The first lap will be fairly crowded but not too bad, the second lap will be pretty thin. Sometimes I struggle with feeling like I'm the ONLY person out there on the second half of the second lap when it's really thinned out. My advice in that position is to just keep swimming, sighting, and moving forward, and try not to get frustrated.

If you know you're going to be slower, hang back and choose a less aggressive angle. When I know I'm going to be slow or haven't focused on my swimming, I just ease up and would rather have a really consistent, even, quality, low stress swim than fight it out. ;)

[Susan Otcenas]

I just ease up and would rather have a really consistent, even, quality, low stress swim than fight it out. ;)

Precisely! ;)

[Wahine]

Ironman is a huge commitment, so sometimes it's really hard to convince myself that I NEED to commit to anything after doing that for so long ;)

You don't need to commit to anything else and in fact the rule of thumb is to not keep any kind of a schedule after a big event like that for at least 1 month, 2 is best. Just go out and play when you want to. It should all be fun and no stress. Your brain/spirit truly need to rest. If you don't give yourself that mental recovery time you are flirting with burnout. Trust me.

[Tri Girl]

If you don't give yourself that mental recovery time you are flirting with burnout. Trust me.

Agreed!! I've suffered from major burnout after my last two IM. I don't want to even race for a year or so afterward- just want to paint and read and walk and ride my bike for fun.
I call my post IM seasons my "artsy periods"

[colby]

You don't need to commit to anything else and in fact the rule of thumb is to not keep any kind of a schedule after a big event like that for at least 1 month, 2 is best. Just go out and play when you want to. It should all be fun and no stress. Your brain/spirit truly need to rest. If you don't give yourself that mental recovery time you are flirting with burnout. Trust me.


Agreed!! I've suffered from major burnout after my last two IM. I don't want to even race for a year or so afterward- just want to paint and read and walk and ride my bike for fun.
I call my post IM seasons my "artsy periods"

Thank you ladies for the reminder, I am sure my brain appreciates it. :) I'm avoiding digging up any training plans or anything other than looking forward to a few sprint races (and volunteering in Canada). I am racing a 70.3 at the END of October, which gives me enough breathing room that I don't need to stress about training.

It feels a little aimless and strange, but I think you're right, and I need it.

[kacie tri-ing]

Colby! I am so very proud of your finish! I wish I could have seen you at the end!

Follow your heart on the sign up for the next one. If it feels like something you HAVE to do, don't. If you know you love this part of your life, and you are not ready to give it a rest, keep going!

Check out George's race report: http://mostpleasantexhaustion.blogspot.com/2012/07/ironman-coeur-dalene-race-report.html

He qualified for Kona, and he is STILL talking about that swim. He was telling me that he tried to stay positive, but man, it was tough. He certainly appreciated any positivity you sent his way!

I can't wait to hear how your decompression period goes. Maybe you will decide something else is fun! Maybe half iron, maybe just running, maybe cooking and painting, maybe writing, maybe riding a lot!

Keep us informed as you move ahead! We are all on your side!

[colby]

Colby! I am so very proud of your finish! I wish I could have seen you at the end!

Follow your heart on the sign up for the next one. If it feels like something you HAVE to do, don't. If you know you love this part of your life, and you are not ready to give it a rest, keep going!

Check out George's race report: http://mostpleasantexhaustion.blogspot.com/2012/07/ironman-coeur-dalene-race-report.html

He qualified for Kona, and he is STILL talking about that swim. He was telling me that he tried to stay positive, but man, it was tough. He certainly appreciated any positivity you sent his way!

I can't wait to hear how your decompression period goes. Maybe you will decide something else is fun! Maybe half iron, maybe just running, maybe cooking and painting, maybe writing, maybe riding a lot!

Keep us informed as you move ahead! We are all on your side!

Thanks, Kacie! If I were in my right mind, I'd have suggested breakfast (one of them) or something the day after Ironman so we could actually connect. ;)

George's race report is great. He totally came to run, and he owned that run. What a machine! He was SO ready.

I signed up for CdA next year, I really do love the day, the experience, and it's close to home. I can still change my mind - it's just money, my sanity is worth more, and I really may find something else I want to focus on or love in the next 9-12 months (and volunteering in Canada might teach me that I don't in fact have to race to love it). At this point, I'd like to learn to love running like I love to ride my bike, and lose some body fat. Lofty goals, but I'm not in the mood for much more ;)

[colby]

I'm digging a little into my own thread, but since we left this off at figuring out what the next thing is, I thought I'd add to my post-Ironman recovery.

I have pretty much done spotty "workouts" (once or twice a week running and once or twice a week non-commute riding) and daily commutes (12 miles/day) for the last month. I did a 40-50 mile bike ride a few weeks ago on a whim, occasional longer runs (no more than 6-8 miles). After about 5 weeks, I started to feel full again when consuming normal human amounts of food, which is when I knew my body was finally relatively recovered.

Anyway, I raced a sprint this weekend (with my MIL ;)) and had a pretty good time. I know I need to brush up on my swimming and running because I am not gaining any ground there (identical times to previous years). I managed 34/1544 overall on the bike split and finished 27/135 AG - 117/1544 OA (holding on to my top 10% finish from last year). If I actually did spend more time swimming and running, I could crack top 15-20 AG but not sure about top 10. I guess I can get a few minutes back on the swim and a few minutes back on the run, but neither of those add up to the 10-15 minutes that I'd need without significant effort (possibly past the "fun" zone).

All of that boring stuff aside, after I finished the race I backtracked to find my mother-in-law and walk to the finish with her (plantar fasciitis acting up meant a hobble/walk). I figured she'd be somewhere between mile 1 and 2, so I chose to go backward rather than repeat the run - turns out she was basically at exactly halfway when I would have caught her so it didn't matter. When I got to a section where I wouldn't be running upstream, I started running with people still racing, and I had an O M G moment where running felt good and I WANTED to do it. I was ENJOYING running. It FELT good (and this was after running 5k at a reasonably hard-but-sustainable pace). This seems really trivial, but this is the first time I have felt that way since Ironman.

At the end of the race, I really felt like I WANTED to do it again, like I had recaptured what I enjoyed. The swim felt low stress, the bike felt fast, the run felt doable. What a difference 6 weeks makes!

I am going to begin a short training cycle for Ironman 70.3 Austin (last weekend of October) to rebuild some of my endurance fitness and finish the triathlon year. After that, I think I actually do want to spend some time with running through about February, when I'll pick back up for next year on all 3 disciplines. I still bike commute 12 miles daily, so it's not like I'll be giving much up (sorry, swimming, you are my first love but we understand each other so well, and unfortunately I cannot swim to work).

I love you again, swimming, biking, and running. I missed you, but I am so glad we took a break from being all business all the time to have some fun and get some rest.