So this is definitely going to be a long read, but I have found that sitting down to write out all of this information is actually quite relaxing and helps to bring closure to the day while creating targets and objectives for the next year. There is definitely some detailed power numbers along the way, feel free to just skip over that part when it doesn't make any sense. On the upside: there are pictures!
The short version: I had a absolutely fantastic time racing in Madison this year. I PR’d by about 8 minutes and had fun for about 136 of the 140.6 miles.
Intro
I had really focused on training and trying to rebuild myself and my ability to race in triathlons after last summer's misadventure during the Racine 70.3 when I was hit by a car and separated my shoulder. While there were many major victories along the way, Ironman Wisconsin was the ultimate goal - get back to the starting line and finish the race, hopefully faster than before. I trained, finally bought the new bike that I had wanted to get for some time, outfitted it with new wheels and then trained some more. I got to meet some awesome people at a training camp in August, at other races during the year, and then training locally as well. Most importantly during the final month leading up to the taper I truly had a wonderful time training and getting ready for this race.
I had really focused on training and trying to rebuild myself and my ability to race in triathlons after last summer's misadventure during the Racine 70.3 when I was hit by a car and separated my shoulder. While there were many major victories along the way, Ironman Wisconsin was the ultimate goal - get back to the starting line and finish the race, hopefully faster than before. I trained, finally bought the new bike that I had wanted to get for some time, outfitted it with new wheels and then trained some more. I got to meet some awesome people at a training camp in August, at other races during the year, and then training locally as well. Most importantly during the final month leading up to the taper I truly had a wonderful time training and getting ready for this race.
In the week prior to the race I was seriously suffering from
some awful ironmanitis. This is the
disease process that only occurs during the final stages of the taper and
manifests as everything in the body that has not hurt at all during the hours
and miles of intense training in the months prior all of sudden starts to
hurt. It can be joints, bones, muscles,
anything and everything really. The key
element of this diagnosis is that there is nothing actually wrong, it just
feels that way. The only other similar physical ailment is a “mancold”.
I arrived in Madison on Thursday afternoon, walked through a
nearly empty registration process (the easiest and swiftest I can ever remember
this being), checked into the hotel and made my way to the team EN dinner and
caught up with friends from the EN camp and other races this summer.
Friday morning was a relaxing swim. Followed by the 4 keys talk and then lunch
with a group of my non triathlon friends who live in Madison. Friday afternoon was one final check ride of
the bike, brakes, and body. At the end
of the ride, things felt good, I was confident, I went back to the hotel,
relaxed in bed for a little before my parents arrived.
Saturday was purely admin and relaxation. Bags packed, bike ready, off to transition,
lunch, nap, dinner. I was in bed by 8,
asleep by 9.
Race Morning
I slept ok the night before the race, actually fell asleep
and then woke up at 2:45, drank 275 calories of Infinit, went back to sleep,
woke up again at 4am. Another 275
calories of Infinit, bagel, cliff bar, got dressed, made sure I had all of the
bottles and computers etc, special needs bags and headed down to the
Terrace. Pumped up tires, got computers
all set up, made stop in bathroom and then headed down to the swim start to
meet the team.
I met up with my parents for the first time that day, took a quick picture before I headed down to the water to start the day. While I was out on the course for the entire day they too had a game plan of different places to meet me and cheer me along and take pictures of my journey (many of which are included here).
Swim
After hanging out with the team, I finished up my bottle of
Gatorade, got wetsuit on, and headed down to the swim start. I got in the water around 6:40 and warmed up
a little, treaded water, drifted down towards the ski jump, and just chilled
out. My original intention was to start
just on the shore side of the ski jump based on previous races there. As I was floating it seemed as if the buoy
line was still quite a way out from shore and I wanted to swim the straightest
line possible…while not getting totally clobbered on the buoy line, so I
migrated even further from shore. At
6:55 I was about halfway between ski jump and about 3-4 rows back from the
start positioned around people who planned to swim around a 1:10.
Mentally, I was ready, totally calm and yet incredibly
excited. I couldn’t believe that it had
been 4 years since I had last done an Ironman, it honestly felt like it was
yesterday. The emotions and the
excitement of treading water surrounded by 2500 other people was absolutely
amazing. My thoughts quickly narrowed
and as I saw the time ticking down on my watch was getting ready to fire the
engine and start the journey. The
minutes prior to the mass start of an Ironman are incredibly surreal. The joking
and chatting slows and the only noises heard in the minute prior the race is
the sound of water moving around the bodies of the competitors.
7:00 BOOM!!! the cannon fires. I start my watch, lock the buttons, and begin
the journey. There was some contact,
about the amount I was expecting. Got
kicked in just about every part of my body, including some places that I just
didn’t know it would be physically possible to be kicked in while
swimming. I stayed in a nice and relaxed
rhythm, counted strokes, maintaining my breathing pattern and trying to stay
close enough to the buoy line, but far enough away to avoid the majority of the
scrum. The entire first leg of the race
was downwind and I hit mile #1 (according to watch) in 27 minutes, not working
hard at all.
After the obligatory MOO at the 1st
turn buoy I made the left turn and then back up the other side after the second
turn. The long length of the rectangle
on the far side of the course was entirely into the wind, with probably around
1 foot waves. The waves made sighting a
little more challenging and breathing more interesting. I just tried to envision this as any other
training swim in Lake Michigan where I have to contend with all sorts of water
conditions. I knew that I had swam in
far worse conditions and mentally this was very helpful. I was ok with swimming a little slower to
maintain some element of form, keep my breathing under control, and stay
relaxed. I made the turn home which I
found to be the hardest leg of the entire course. Even though I had some buildings and a big
giant helix to sight off of, I just couldn’t get my bearings on the final leg
of the swim.
Regardless, I hit the shore at 1:12:39 which was right on target. I am extremely happy with my time, about a minute slower than 4 years previously. HOWEVER, 14 months ago I couldn’t move my left shoulder due to a Grade III AC separation, the water conditions 4 years ago were perfect, and based on the data at runtri.com – it seems as if the overall swim time average was about 4 minutes slower than previous years (likely due to the wind and water conditions).
Total Swim 1:12:39 and 66th for age group.
T1 – 9:07
Honestly, the run up the helix is probably one of the
coolest things I have experienced in any triathlon I have ever done. Running out of the water up the circular
structure surrounded by hundreds of cheering competitors is incredible.
I grabbed my gear bag, shoes, socks, helmet, sunglasses and
I was off. Nothing really all that
exciting here. Off to the bike, grabbed
bike saw teammate and training buddy, mounted bike and started the 112 mile ride.
Bike
I had what I thought was a pretty well defined and refined
game plan for the bike based on riding the course innumerable times in
training, during previous races, and during the EN camp. The goal was to have an IF of around .71 for
the ride (FTP of 218 / Race weight 140, wt/kg of 3.4). I was going to drink around 9 bottles of
perform (180 oz of fluid, 1575 Calories,) 1 cliff bar 270 cal, and then sips of
water if needed. I figured based on
training rides, and previous IM times at MOO I should ride around a 6:10-6:20
and keep the watts in the right place.
This year I completely changed my nutrition strategy. In the past I had been an Infinit user (still
am in certain situations) but found that during the last race my stomach
basically shut down and I stopped digesting around mile 70 on the bike…it made
for a long and uncomfortable marathon.
The ride started out great, I was cruising along, focusing
on getting my nutrition in and just trying to ride steady. I didn’t really feel as if I was working at
all. The wind at my back was clearly
helping with that feeling too. I laughed
a little at the first hill on Whalen when people were already getting out of
their seats, standing, and climbing in the big ring up front. I was spinning up and biding my time.
I kept looking at my numbers, watching the power on the laps
that I had set based on training (Terrace to Whalen/PB, Whalen PB/Cave of the
mound sign just before climb into Mt Horeb, sign to right turn on S, right turn
on S to top of 2nd Garfoot, 2nd Garfoot to cross plains,
cross plains to top of midtown climb, top of midtown to Whalen/PB) This division has helped me with the climbs
and descents to keep power steady. The spot
checks suggested that things were going ok.
The climbs up the 3 hills were steady, relaxed, spinning the best I
could. Overhead a couple positive
comments from people on Old Sauk that I was riding nice and steady and looked
relax. Even heard one person (not sure
if EN) say, "nothing matters until mile 18".
The crowds up Old Sauk, Timber Lane, and Midtown are
awesome. Between the devils at the
start of the Old Sauk Climb, the clown in the corn field, the guy with the sign that said "follow me I know a short cut", the Prom Queen, and everyone
else in all sorts of fun costumes on Midtown, there is definitely a lot of fun
and amazing crowd support.
Peed twice on the bike during the first loop, nailed the
nutrition goals, stomach felt fine, legs felt fine, on the second loop. Got all of the bottles at aid station, didn’t
miss any. The athlete guide and the
pre-race briefing all said that each aid station would be fully stocked with
everything. My experience in the past
was that the aid station on sugar river rd was water only. So, at the aid station on Whalen I racked 2
bottles just in case. Sure enough, no
perform at the non-advertised water only stop.
Again, planning and experience are helpful.
As I was making the turn back onto Whalen I did a quick spot
check of the ride data file to that point.
I cycled through the screens to see how I had been doing: 56 miles 3:05, avg power 147, avg HR 143,
seemed to be right on target. Then I saw
an IF of 0.8, uh, oh. Really, I mean
really? So it was at this point during
the race that I probably made the most intelligent and important decision of
the day. I chilled out. I rode up hills even slower, stopped at aid
stations for nature breaks, stopped pedaling at 28 instead of 33 mph on the downhill and
figured that I would add about 15 minutes to my 2nd loop but that it
could save me 30 minutes or an hour on the run (maybe more) I figured that part of the high IF was
probably due to me not riding steady and probably (despite riding in small
front and 28 cassette) still needing too much power to get up steeper hills despite
riding slow. Turns out, the IF wasn’t
that high, probably closer to 0.75 according to WKO+, but still too high for my
race plan – Avg power 147, HR 143, Cadence 81).
The second half of the ride highlight was heading up Old
Sauk the second time with EN spectators cheering me along the way your energy was awesome, but really
challenged me to “stay in my box” at that part of the climb. Seeing my parents on the Timber Lane Climb was also fantastic! It was great seeing you out there.
I rode the second half of the ride in 3:14, IF was 0.68
(looking at WKO+ now) Avg power was 132,
HR 129, Cadence 80. The reality is that
my VI sucked for both the 1st and second half of the ride, just over
1.14 for both. I knew it would be bad for
the second half because I chilled out on my riding, somewhat annoyed that it
was awful for the whole time. Honestly,
I think the one thing that I really need to do that will help to smooth this
out is to get a compact crank. It is on
the list for additions for next year.
The final section of the ride was fine, I
actually felt strong, relaxed, hydrated, topped up on nutrition and ready to go
for the marathon. As strange as this
sounds, I was actually looking forward to the run. I really tried to ride the last 16 miles as steady
as I could. I let everyone go by me on
the last climb on Whalen and then caught each and everyone on the downhill.
I finished the ride in 6:19:22 in 117th for
AG. Right on target.
AVG watts 140, AVG HR 136, IF of .718
T2 4:19
After cruising on up the helix I ran into transition,
grabbed my bag, put on socks, shoes, grabbed hat, race belt, quick stop in
bathroom and I was off. Volunteers as
usual were great, nothing exciting.
Run
My goal for the marathon was to run as much as possible,
walking at the end of each aid station and to just go out for another long
run. In 2008 my marathon time was 4:49,
in 2009 it was 5:07, there was opportunity for improvement.
I started out running, kept my pace in check, told myself
several times to slow down. The goal:
9:30-9:45 for the 1st 6 miles, then if feeling good closer to 9:30,
if not feeling awesome then just try to minimize slowing down. I carried a Nathan hand held bottle, filled
it up with ½ cup of perform + some ice at every aid station, drank as I was
running in between aid stations. Added 1
packet of gu chomps and then some coke and chicken broth after about mile 20.
I saw my family at the start of the run and said hello.
It was awesome seeing the EN support crew at the tent at the
start of state street.
Unfortunately for whatever reason my Garmin did not download
my run splits (sad panda) so I am going entirely off of the splits from the
ironman site for the post race discussion.
My splits put me at 10:25 min/mile to mile 5.9, 9:37 to mile 9.9 and 9:51
at the half marathon. I will be believe
the half marathon average, the others I am not sure about.
I saw my parents ever several miles on the run at our
designated meeting spots and each and every time I gave two thumbs up with a
smile and said that I was feeling great, which really was true.
I was doing ok until right before the 2nd trip up observatory hill. I started to get a side stitch, felt a little
nauseated and knees started to bother me.
Well mile 18, here you are, didn’t really surprise me too much. So I walked up the hill, tried to just chill
out a little and then started moving again.
Saw my parents again on state street and for the first time during the
race was in a really dark place and didn’t wasn’t all that happy about racing
anymore. But I figured I had made it
that far, I could just keep on running/walking/refueling and make it
eventually. Hit the 20 mile marker,
knees were screaming at me, every cycle of turning over legs just felt awful,
tried to stretch out a little, very difficult to do for joints… The run became a run/walk, but I was still
moving forward. I switched over to cola
and chicken broth hoping they would both help to settle my stomach. It seemed like it worked. Or the extra sugar/caffeine in the cola
worked, one of the two, the cramp in my side and the upset stomach seemed to go
away.
One of the best parts of the race was seeing someone in an
EN jersey about every 5 minutes on the run, really kept me motivated, especially on the back part of the course.
I finally hit mile 24 and just decided that I needed to be
done with the race and even at the pace that I was going at could probably get
done in just over 20 minutes. I also
knew that all I really had to do was run just a little more and I would hit
Dayton street. Once I hit Dayton I could
see the building where the road dead ends and then there a turn to the left and
then state street. I knew that once I
got to that turn the thousands of spectators would be there to bring me
home. I had done the math in my head and
figured that if I could just keep moving I could get a PR and break 12:30.
I made the left turn and then the quick right turn onto
state street and could see the capitol.
I had envisioned this part of the run so many times on every single long
training run I had gone on in the past 6 weeks.
I had a huge smile and even though I knew I was running uphill (and
probably still only 10 minute miles, maybe a little faster but I will never
know) I felt like I was flying. The pain
in my knees was irrelevant and I was loving every single second. Despite the extra speed in my run, I was
savoring every moment because I knew that just as quickly as I got to that
point, the day would be over. I made my
way around the capitol, still grinning, still with a little blue in the sky and
turned for home. Passing a couple of people around the capitol as I went. Arms up in the air the entire way down
towards the finish line, no one in front of or behind me. Saw my parents in the chute, waved to them,
and just pushed it on home.
And then I heard those words which I had been waiting to
hear for several years especially after my shoulder injury and the ups and
downs that life is constantly throwing at all of us:
“David Salzman, You are an IRONMAN!”
Overall run: 4:41:54 10:45 min/mile pace – Run PR 106/292
Finishers M 35-39
Overall time 12:27:21- Good enough for an 8 minute PR
Post Race
Immediately after the race I found my family, saw and
congratulated several of the EN teammates and saw coaches hanging out at the finish
line. I gathered my bags/bike/etc and
wandered back to the hotel, continued to rehydrate and then made it down to the
square to get some food and hang out with the team while watching some of the
last finishers make the journey up the final mile of the race. At 11:30 a group of us wandered over to the
finish line to watch the last finishers of they raced. It really was an amazing experience to be
right back in the same place where this whole journey started in 2007 with my
first ever visit to the finish line of a race and subsequently signing up for
my first Ironman the next morning.
In the days after the race I drove back home, did some
laundry, went back to work, and have been trying to let my legs loosen up. 4 days after the race I was able to
successfully walk up and down the stairs in a relatively normal fashion. I’m still waking up early, but I figure that
is simply due to having a body that has been trained to wake up around 5am for
the past several months of training.
I am very happy with my race. I adapted to some difficult conditions – the
wind, some interesting numbers on the bike, and my body just hurting during the
run. But this race is not just about
getting from the start to the finish, it is about figuring out and adjusting to
all of the curveballs along the way.
I am so happy to have met some great people on this team at
the training camps, over the race weekend, and on the internets. I have new training partners and I am looking
forward to the next season of training and racing. Seeing all of the EN kits on the run was
amazing, incredibly motivating, and just outright fun.
So what is next?
Well, I had a great race, but it can get better and this Ironman fever
has not yet been quelled. Next year will
be a little different, it will be a family affair with my Uncle
and multiple Kona qualifier as we both head up to Tremblant to race in
Canada.
After some well deserved rest,
recovery, and relaxation, at some point I will get back on the bike and begin
the quest to another finish line.
