…and there we have it, IM version 2 has been trained for… run… and won… by others.
I’ll be honest, I had high expectations for this one; based wholly and solely on my desire to achieve, my heart to train hard and my improved mental capacity to just get stuck in and keep going even when times are tough and I’m tired or hurting. I had trained the house down over countless hours and spent many mornings out violating myself selfishly while leaving the missus at home with the 2 boys… sacrifices were made all over the place and it just didn’t end up how it was supposed to.
The goal: circa 9:45hrs.
The result: 10:20hrs
Ultimately it was still a PB by 5 mins so all is not lost, and I did improve my swim and run legs so the chin remains up ever so slightly. I did lose a heap on the bike, I battled a hip complaint / pinched nerve in my right leg for the majority of the 180km… so all I can do is cross my fingers and hope this is the reason.
The preparation
Lets just say I trained for this one… some of my mates would say incessantly, some would say intensely… bugger it, some would even say sadistically. There were a number of times I left myself completely obliterated in the front yard of the house with nothing left to give… but on I went.
I was a good long prep. Possibly too long as I did get quite tired and run down with about a month or so to go, but I was careful to rest when the program said to and as such I just put that blip down to a very long season of training and not much racing… Training training training training training… and more training… it does get to you.
I peaked once, around early December where I was gagging for a race… and then again just in time for Port, I felt fine and full of energy.
Job done.
Pre race
Arrived in Port Mac on the Thursday and had a good few days to relax and get used to the atmosphere and the feel of the impending race.
No family expectations were put on me, we did a few family things, I carbo loaded well without piling junk in, and I did a small ride, a swim and a couple of easy jogs.
Race eve was spent getting organised. I did this on and off for the entire day so as not to have one panicked session that night.
Bags packed, bike checked in, meet Brett Isaac at the bike check in for some last minute salts… Too easy. Last year I was a nervous wreck I think… this year was quite easy.
Race day bag was packed early, drinks made up, ready to go before TV time.
Pre IM Sleep?
Plenty.
As we had the 2 boys with us (aged 5months and 2yrs), and they had been pretty unsettled in their new environment, I opted for the fold-out bed and slept in the lounge room in peace and quite… and got at least 6 hours. Perfect.
Race morning.
Up and ready, ate what had been planned and got ready to collect Brett and head into town. Done… I was pretty surprised actually with how well the morning was going… actually the whole Port experience thus far.
Yes, admittedly Eli, our 2 year old had been testing the patience with all and sundry at times over the last few days as he was in unfamiliar surroundings but that was to be expected and he was a good boy under the circumstances and he was up and ready to come with mummy on race morning. It was great to have them both there for the start… with #2 Harry staying behind to sleep with nanny and poppy J
The Swim
The swim was a little rushed getting into the water as the queue was quite long to get in… still, Brett and I were in the water with 4mins or so to spare and we both swam up to the front. Brett deservedly so… as a 50min swimmer… and me, punching well above my weight just hoping to grab onto some poor hard working suckers feet and steal a few minutes by being lazy.
Wrong. I was anything but lazy… I have never worked as hard as I did when the gun went off… stuck in a mass of humans trying to get the smallest of advantages, the poorer swimmer that I am got pummelled from pillar to post. Absolutely smashed all over the shop… punched, kicked, pulled, slapped, goggles torn off… holy cr*p I thought… that was by far the most violent swim I have ever been part of by far. Yes, I admit I even gave a gobful of unsanitary language to one over zealous wayne-kerr who literally had hold of my left ankle and was pulling me backwards so he could go over the top. Very close to some chin music my friend… but no one wants to go that far and get disqualified. Yep, I even let a few expletives go purely in frustration of the moment… a swim pile up that I just couldn’t seem to get out of for the entire first length up to the first turnaround. Bugger. Me.
Eventually I did find a few moments where I goy my stride and had a crack... passing plenty in doing so... they were fleeting though and by and large this was a tough little mother of a swim.
Much energy expelled already, I rounded the final turn and made my way back to transition untroubled and in reasonably quick fashion.
In the end, it was a PB which surprised me. I thought for sure it would be slower after the turbulence I had been though… but those fleeting moments I had when in the clear and swimming free must have counted for something.
End result… happy for the PB. What might it have been though had I started in a more suitable position? Who knows…
T1 was good. Uneventful and 3 mins faster than last year.
I had a good volunteer helping me this time (as opposed to none last year) and we got the job done.
The Bike
Where do I start? The great unravelling of IM #2 occurred on the scenic roads of Port Macquarie … it wasn’t all bad though.
Prior to the race I had some reservations that I had done enough “hard” work on the bike. I knew I had been on the bike enough… more so than last year. I was riding reasonably well I guess, with just a few motivational blips on some of my solo rides but I had plenty telling me I was riding well and I would go well… so I was confident enough… I don’t know though, I just had it in the back of my mind that last year I worked harder in my prep and I was better positioned going into it…
2 laps of 90km.
1st lap started well enough. I had a quick enough transition and was off in good spirits… up the hills and out of town. Ocean road was reasonably quick even with the small breeze in the face and I made it to the turnaround in a reasonable timeframe. I did drop my chain once which was annoying but apart from that it was a good tempo to head out at.
I was starting to become concerned though. In the big gears, I had a pinching / cramping feeling developing in my adductor / hip area. Every time I tried to really go for it, it flared up and I had to retract the leg and roll for a second or 2 for it to go away. It hurt when it happened and it was annoying. I tried to harden up and ride through it every time it happened… but just like every good cramp, if you ignore it and continue doing what you’re doing; the cramp gets worse doesn’t it.
Still, I was holding a decent enough pace so I wasn’t OVERLY concerned yet and pressed on.
Back toward town though, the discomfort became more frequent and I found myself free rolling quite a lot. I got off once in order to stretch it out as much as possible, but I basically just wasted time doing that as it gave me no reprieve at all.
The trip back to town nevertheless was still reasonably quick… we had the wind at our tails pretty much all the way back and the speed was up. Obviously my speed wasn’t as high as what it could have been… or what I wanted it to be, but I figured I was only a few minutes off my target pace, so there was no huge loss.
Lap 2.
Lap 2 was awful to put it bluntly.
The wind was up by now and heading out of town along Ocean road… for me and my hip… was a nightmare. All I was trying to do was bunker down in the aero position and get to the other end. On a good day I should have still been able to hold 30+km/h as the wind wasn’t as bad as some years… it was still there though and with my leg the way it was, I just couldn’t stay low and go for it. Unfortunately, there was a lot of sitting up done here and many many many minutes lost on my targets.
Losing so much time on your expectations does play on you a lot, and even though many will recognise I have a reasonably strong will (well, I do when it comes to training myself to the point of exhaustion), this ride was beating me down with a huge stick mercilessly.
Honestly, there had to be at least 5 to 6 occasions I really just felt like quitting. Like getting off the bike and just sitting there, waiting for a van to come and pick me up… eating energy bars peacefully while looking out at the ocean while I wait… It was a sunny day after all… it would have been nice! Wouldn’t it?
No. I didn’t… no way was I quitting after all the hours I had been out training and leaving my lovely wife at home in the lurch looking after 2 boys under the age of 2. Yes, they are beautiful little boys, but come on… a toddler and a newborn… that sh*t can get to the best of us when one or both is in a cranky mood! No way was I wasting the last 8 months of training and preparation… no way was I wasting all the money I had spent on getting to the day… a bike, energy gels, running equipment, shoes… the list goes on… and essentially, I am an impatient man, so no way was I going to sit there waiting an hour for a stupid sag wagon to come and pick me up after quitting… so I made the decision to just ride on at a pace that was still ok, but mostly comfortable. I still had pains in the hip, but I recognised to sit up, or ease up as soon as they came instead of trying to fight the problem stubbornly in pain.
The way back into town was a slog, but not a terrible slog as essentially the wind (which had picked up more) was at my back most of the way. My 40+km/h back into town on the first lap was a distance memory and I think I was struggling to get to mid-high 30’s this time even with the stronger wind.
My issues made the last 10km not much fun at all… what with the sharp snap that is Matthew Flinders drive to contend with and the rollers near the golf course… I was so close, yet so far away.
I made it though, jumped off the bike 15mins slower than 2012 and got ready for the run.
T2
The pressure was off now.
My targets were long gone; my race plan was well and truly out the window… so strangely, but understandably this was a very calm Transition as I no longer had any expectations. I just took it methodically and joked with the helper and in the end; I believe it may have even been quicker than last years T2.
The Run.
4 laps of circa 10.55km.
I had expectations for the run, as everyone does before the race whether they be for a fast run or an agonisingly slow painful dawdle into the wee glow stick hours... I had a plan on how to achieve those expectations as well… would it all come to fruition now considering my hip though? The plan was a run / walk method (walk 30-60secs every 25mins) that I had road tested plenty in the lead up. I had it down pat to the minute and wanted to run a 4:40min – 4:45min paced marathon.
The run started well… perfect. The plan was to hold my pace back… forcefully if need be by walking… and just try and hold 4:50 – 4:59 pace, and then come on strong at the end.
As far as I can recall, I did a reasonable job. I may have gone a touch quicker, it would have been marginal though and I did hold myself back from running the 4:22’s I headed out at last year!
I had 3:38 to beat in order to go under last years overall time of 10:25.
Based on last years run (3:50hrs), I wouldn’t make it… on my new run plan, I should do it easy.
I honestly don’t have too much to report on the run except while it didn’t go 100% to plan as I ended up walking a couple more times than planned, it did go a lot better than last year and my form and nutrition were in tact at the end of the race. In actual fact, I finished off exactly how I wanted to finish off… full of beans and adrenalin… and a fair amount of ZipVit induced caffeine… I catered home, running sub 4:15min pace for some kms J
I firmly believe my plan will work next time. I believe it was sound and worth another crack. 100% the bike took a fair bit of sting out of my run and as such, my legs just didn’t have it in them anymore to do the run I wanted. Surprisingly I am happy with the 3:33hr Marathon even though the goal was to go around the 3:20hr mark and despite it also being the slowest run of any run I did in my entire training block (including recovery days). I am proud of hanging in there on the bike and even more so, for holding my head high, keeping calm and ultimately; enjoying my time out there on the run course despite how much it still hurts to do the marathon in an IM distance race!
Post race
Post race I didn’t actually feel like any of the food on offer… not even the ice cream! I just had my massage then grabbed a cuppa tea and sat down my 2 close mates Brett and Andrew Mildren who had completed great races themselves and were still sitting in the recovery area.
“Happy with the performance, but not the result”… I’ve heard Crowie say that about his 2010 race in Kona… although I didn’t finish anything near as high as his 4th at the World Championships, this is how I felt as my immediate reaction.
I was happy I hung in there and finished despite wanting to quit… I was not best pleased with the end result, even though it was technically a 5min pb.
To be completely honest, I was filthy with the result after so much training.
Disappointed would best describe my feelings the next day. I went and collected my bike and lined up for the Expo for finishers gear… to be honest though, I wasn’t overly keen to buy anything “finishery” as I just wasn’t a happy chappy.
In the end though, I am a sucker for buying stuff, so I got the mandatory headsweat that had 2013 Finisher on it… even bought one of my mates’ one as well… plus a few trinkets for the team at work and a cycling kit that was on sale.
On we march.
3 weeks later and I’m on the horse already. Light training, nothing too intense in the pool and some easy running.
I’ve been to the Chiro and will get my hip alignment sorted out and loosen up some leg muscles that had become very tight during my training program… and I am all signed up for Ironman Melbourne in March 2014 J
The bike… we aren’t on speaking terms yet. Sent home early from Port Mac in disgrace, it remains incarcerated in my parent’s garage to this day.
I’m not ready yet… but soon.
