however, before i begin i wanted to thank my support crew who were out on the course with me for the the entire day moving from place to place. following me with the GPS tracker i had, relaying messages to the rest of the family at home, and always in the right place, at the right time, cheering me on.
my alarm goes off at 3:45 on race morning. i wake up and start to eat breakfast, mix bottles of nutrition, and feverishly log on to the internet to check the weather...can it be true, has the chance of rain really gone away. wow...i feel like the luckiest person in the world, forecast is for the high 60's, no rain until late, but some steady wind from the west building around noon. i can deal with that.
i finish my bagel with peanut butter, cliff bar, and bottle of nutrition, pack up the rest of my stuff, grab a banana, diluted gatorade, and head to the car. i was staying northeast of madison and as i drove into the capitol the illuminate dome of the capitol building appeared and the excitement started to build.
i dropped off my special needs bags, headed for transition to get my numbers, pump my tires, lube the chain, load the bottles, gu etc. i figured at this point i would lose my friend so i said good-bye to evan. little did i know that i would see him again about 15 minutes later.
i wandered through monona terrace making a pit stop, stretching a little, and then putting on my wetsuit. at about 6:25 i started to head down to the water. there was a fantastic sunrise on the opposite shore.
as i approached the lake i started to hear the announcer encouraging everyone to head on in. i reset my watch with the race clock and headed into the lake just before 6:45. as i got closer to the start line i found a bit of open water and floated on my back. i was just staring up at the sky trying to minimize energy spent and think through my race. i realized that the hardest part of the race had already occured. up until that point the hardest thing was sticking with the training plan, preventing injury and balancing work with training. i was ready for the final part of the adventure. i looked back to land and was amazed by the sheer number of people lining the waterfront. i ended up floating about 1/2 way between the ski jump and the big red corner bouy. with ten minutes before our start the pros begin.
the national anthem is sung, the clock ticks down. the water is calm, the air is cool, the sun is rising over the opposite shore. there is a sense of anticipation in the air, an eager anticipation for the journey that was to lie ahead. then the cannon fires and the calm water is turned into a sea of flailing arms, kicking legs, and organized chaos.
i start swimming and feel great. i hardly feel like i am working at all to move forward. in the first lap it remained pretty tight. i got kicked in the jaw, punched in the side, jammed my finger on someone's hip, had someone grab my leg, and got into a total cluster around the bouy. i reached the 1.2 mile mark around 34 minutes. i had no idea that i was moving that fast, but i felt completely relaxed and was breathing every 4th stroke so i figured i would keep on going. somewhere on that first leg heading out from the 1/2 way point the crowds in the water thinned out and i found some nice water where i could swim without constantly bumping into people.
i got out of the water in 1:10:46, got my wetsuit stripped off and then started to run up the helix.
i saw my family there and gave them a big high 5. i was thrilled and somewhat shocked that i was out of the water that fast. i think the picture shows my utter confusion. i cruised on up the helix, which wasn't as hard as i thought it would be, with a huge smile on my face.
i get into t1, get my arm warmers on (by the way, the absolute best purchase of anything that i bought the entire year), socks, shoes, helmet, sunglasses, gloves...time to rock and roll.
i head down the helix, apparently miss my friend taking pictures (sorry) and head out on the bike ride.
i really felt good on the first part of the ride. i was trying to not go full out on the stick leading out to the loop. i figured i would have plenty of time to ride later in the day. i tried to stay as relaxed as possible, stay in the saddle as much as i could while climbing, and stay true to my nutrition plan. everything seemed to be working well. i had a good cadence, a nice pace, and felt really comfortable. i was having a great time on the course. tackling the hills, keeping a really positive attitude, and cruising along.
i reached cross plains and decided that it would be a good time for a quick stop to unload the bladder. i then headed off to my favorite part of the course. the 2 climbs that end with timber ln are just fun. the first, unknown to me was lined with people cheering us on. it really had a fun and festive atmosphere. then i reached timber lane and felt like the most important person in the world. my uncle ran a brief section with me and i was able to give him my thoughts on how i was feeling to relay back to the family.
i head back to verona, feeling good, notice the wind has picked up a little but excited that the first lap is just about done. i stop for special needs and begin the second attempt at conquering the loops.
well the second loop did not go as well as the first. i never felt tired, my muscles never were fatigued or sore...but my knees started to blow-up. it got to the point where every pedal stroke was starting to hurt. i tried standing, moving back in the saddle, sitting upright, basically anything i could to try to feel better. the climbs up the hills by timber lane, and then again later were not as much fun as before.
even cruising through verona was not enjoyable. i reached a dark point between miles 90-112 where i wasn't sure if i was even going to be able to finish the race. i started seeing people i had passed a while back catch up with me. i made a conscious decision to pull back a little on the bike to try to save whatever i could to make it through the marathon.
bike time 6:31:54
i make it up the helix, get off the bike, head to t2, change, make a quick stop in the port-o-potty and start to make my way out of t2.
i am standing at the start of the marathon trying to convince my body that running would be a good thing to do. my body is just not listening. i think mostly because i was scared that my knees would kill and the race would be over. i hear someone either a spectator or a volunteer yell..."hey david...try to find your rhythm." something inside of me obliged and i started to get a cadence and run. and would you believe it, my knees felt great. whatever i was doing on the bike that caused the irritation was gone and i was moving.
i saw my family again in mile one and stopped to give my mom a big hug before continuing on with the rest of marathon.
i had planned to have one cliff block every mile of the marathon...let's just say that plan fell apart at mile 2 when my stomach did not like them anymore. instead every aid station was some water, some gatorade, some grapes....they were really good, a couple pretzels here and there, some oranges, and water soaked sponges in the front of my jersey.
i walked up the big hill both laps...was walking almost as fast as some of the people were walking. i started to get my usual knee discomfort somewhere between mile 16 and 18, at that point i just kept running when i could and walking when i couldn't.
i reached mile 20 to hear a spectator say, "you only have a 10k to go." the miles started to melt away, 6.2 turned into 5.2, and before i knew it i was winding my way back up to state street and around the capitol.
i made the turn to MLK drive and saw the people, the lights, the ironman arches, and could finally see the finish line. as i was moving toward the line i heard the line that exactly one year prior created chills and a sense of awe in all of the competators. my hands were above my head, fists pumping in triumph.
i had covered the 140.6 miles, i had made it to the finish line. i heard mike's voice over the loudspeaker say "David Salzman, a 29 yr old physician from chicago....YOU ARE AN IRONMAN!!!" i crossed the finish line, the happiest person in the world.
my finishing time was 12:50:24. it was 10 minutes faster than my goal time of 13 hours. i ran my first ever marathon in 4:49. i completed my first ironman.
i spent the rest of the night trying to rehydrate (being a doctor with access to IV's does have it's benefits...), get my appetite back, and hang out with my family. sometime around midnight i got my appetite back, wolfed down a cheeseburger and fell back asleep. the day was done, the journey had reached its finish line, but the memories will last for a long time.
thanks for reading, but an even bigger thanks for supporting me along this crazy journey over the past year.
