In the Ironman/Triathlon world, when you utter the words, "Ironman Wisconsin" there are a variety of things that can pop into a fellow triathletes mind. For instance, many may think of this site:
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| The Capitol building amidst the darkness of the late night finishers |
Others who who are a little scared from race day might think of something like this:
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| Legit. This guy hasn't missed a race in years. |
Either way, it never ceases to amaze. And this weekend was no different. Mark and I rolled into town around 3pm, dropped our things at the AirBnB and then headed straight back to Monona Terrace to check-in. We went through the motions. Show your photo ID: check. Sign your life away in case anything happens: check. Make sure your emergency contact is listed correctly: check. Step on the scale for pre-race weigh in: check. Make sure you are branded with your Ironman wristband that serves as your only identification as an athlete throughout the weekend: check. Alas, we were officially checked in and promptly spit out into the Ironman Merchandise store and expo. Let the games begin.
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That Capitol 💖
Right after this pic, Mark goes "Ok, now take a picture without touching me" 🙄 |
I was absolutely exhausted. Madison isn't far away from home. But when you try to cram a 5 day work week into 3 and a half (because Monday was Labor Day) it left me feeling like I was missing out on a few ZZZ's going into race day. Mark and I had dinner with Jacqui and Ryan at the Athlete Welcome Banquet. We sat and listened to Mike Reilly welcome us to town while the Mayor insisted we take home some of the overflow water from Lake Monona. In the weeks leading up to Ironman Wisconsin, Madison had received a record amount of rain causing Lake Monona to overflow and push the swim start/exit back about 100 yards from it's normal location, making transition a tad longer.
Honestly, I was just AMAZED at Madison's efforts to make sure the swim portion of this race COULD go on. We said goodnight and parted ways. Tomorrow brought a long list of To Do's.
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| #rockstarseating |
SATURDAY
Mark and I woke up on Saturday morning and I felt extremely refreshed. I needed a solid night of sleep and that's exactly what I got. Mark and I got in the car to meet the group for an open water swim and I got word from Rob that he didn't have to work Saturday night. YES! HE DOESN'T HAVE TO MISS THE RACE! Caveat: He had to work Monday morning at 3am. Loophole: Finish the race as fast as possible so Rob can get home and get some sleep before work. Challenge accepted.
We pulled up to the water and were quite surprised to see some giant white caps throughout the lake. Lake Monona is famous for it's chop the farther out you go, but this was a different story. The air was cold, the wind was strong, and the waves were fierce. Needless to say, BFG wasn't happy about the situation considering his swim training history in the past 365 days.
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| Rethinking his training plan 🤔 |
We all survived a short little practice swim. It wasn't ideal, but we knew we could pull it off in the chop if we had too. But, some calmer waters on race morning would definitely be preferable.
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No, Speedy did not swim with his bike.
He's not that good. |
Mark and I took off to finish up the rest of the low key workouts of the day, a spin around the neighborhood followed by a 1 mile shakeout run. We finished up going through the motions, stickering bikes and helmets and packing up our gear bags. It never takes to long, but the process can be stressful.
Did I pack everything I need? Are these 5 extra gels necessary? How about an extra pair of socks? Normally, this is something I can do in my sleep. But it had been a full YEAR since I had done any sort of triathlon, let alone an Ironman. I was trying to remember what the motions felt like.
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| I went pretty "bare minimum" for this race |
We packed up the car and headed back into town for bike and gear check in. This was the easy part. Once it's all packed, all you have to do is drop it off.
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| Only half of the bikes! |
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| Bikes are in! |
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| Gear bags too! |
We relaxed for a while and finally it was time to eat. EATING ALSO MEANT ROB WAS IN TOWN! We all thoroughly enjoyed our pre-race meal with some great company and laughs. Race day was only 1 sleep away. Hell,
my 31st birthday was only 1 sleep away but honestly that was the last thing on my mind. Waking up to some calm water and minimal winds was what I wanted most.
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| Looks who's hereeeee!!!! 💗 |
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| Mark trying to steal some training through conduction from Coach Speedy |
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| Mark found Lauren on the street and stole her for the evening! |
SUNDAY (RACE DAY AND MY BIRTHDAY! 🎈)
The night before a race is always restless sleep, especially a big race like this. And this particular night was no different. Just as I started to feel like I was finally asleep, my alarm went off.
Alright it's time to get this show on the road. The morning routine started. Coffee. Banana. Peanut butter english muffin toasted. Let Mother Nature take it's course.
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I'm pretty sure 10 years ago I was still awake at 3:48am celebrating my 21st birthday
My how times have changed |
I gave Rob a kiss goodbye and told him I'd see him on course at some point. Mark and I made it to transition just as they were opening the doors at 5am. If there's one thing I've learned over the years, it's that giving yourself a few extra minutes to make sure everything is set to go isn't the end of the world. We don't need anymore
Ironman Texas repeats as far as I'm concerned. Because within a few minutes of dropping off last minute items to our gear bags, Mark realized he didn't have any socks in in his bike bag.
It's currently 5:07am and transition closes at 6:30. What's one to do? ROB TO THE RESCUE. Rob was planning on making it to the swim exit and not seeing us before the start of the race. But when I called him at 5:08am and asked him ever so nicely if he could leave a *tad* earlier than expected to bring Mark his socks, that was the end of that plan.
Jacqui and Ryan were staying at the Hilton (literally attached to Monona Terrace) so we made our way back up to their room to get away from the commotion until we had to head back down to the starting line. Soon enough, Rob had arrived, wetsuits were being shimmied, and it was damn near go time. I dropped my morning clothes bag, kissed Rob goodbye, and scaled a fence with Mark and Trina to finally weave our way as close to the front as possible.
It didn't take long before Mark, Trina, and I found Nate and the 4 of us wiggled through the crowd to the 1:11-1:20 swim start area. Ryan was long gone already but at one point Jacqui squeezed past us and made it a little farther ahead. The closer it got to firing the gun, the more my nerves intensified. Four years ago I was wading in Lake Monona with all 2500 athletes waiting for the gun to go off. This time around, the mass swim start had been eliminated and we were standing like sardines in the grass waiting to be freed into the water for the newly self seeded swim start. The National Anthem played and within seconds the gun went off to start the pro women's race and I nearly pooped myself. Like I said, I was all sorts of high strung. Before I knew it the amatuer gun was fired and my toes hit the water. IMWI round 2, here goes nothing.
SWIM
The first couple minutes of any Ironman are always about getting your bearings. Today was no different. We had to swim on a slight angle in order to officially hit the rectangular swim course. I tried to find a buoy, but following the masses ended up being my only option. I don't remember seeing my first buoy until I reached the 2nd one (and I only know that because it said "2" on the side). Usually, the first 5 minutes of THIS particular race are compared to a washing machine, considering the ever so unpopular mass swim start of years past. But this rolling start? Man, I could get used to this. The water was wide open. Sure, there was a foot here, a body there to maneuver around. But NOTHING like it was in the past. I made it to the first turn buoy in what seemed like no time. This was the part I was dreading though. Direct sunlight and a little intenser chop.
Compared to the practice swim on Saturday, the chop was nothing at all. But don't be fooled, it was still present. And that loooooong backstretch hasn't changed in 4 years. It's long and brutal. The sun is KILLER in your eyes the entire time. Sighting is a b*tch. Occasionally a chop takes you by surprise and your arm doesn't even make it out of the water for the next stroke. This time around I kept swimming up on small packs of swimmers, maybe 5-6 at a time. Nothing drastic. But enough for me to have to make a decision. Swim THROUGH or around? When I could, I swam around. But there was a a few times I remember I found my hole and made my move.
The shortest distance from point A to B is a straight line. You can't blame me for this one. I'm sure I pissed off a few people. I took in some water in the process (because even though this is my 7th time I'm still somewhat a newb and can't not swallow lake water during a race). Everytime I found my mind drifting off to any sort of negativity (i.e. "well that mouthful of water certainly set you back another minute!") I fell deeper into this nasty mind game of "just how bad will this swim actually be?" I knew I wasn't in the BEST swim shape. The chop certainly wasn't helping. And I could definitely do without this sun in my eyes. I made the final turn towards home and could hear Mike Reilly over the speakers. I was getting close. I finally popped up out of the water and glanced at my watch 1:16:53. By the time I crossed the timing matt I finished that swim in a shocking 1:17:06.
Man, maybe I do remember how to triathlon!
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| Peace out wata ✌ |
{Sidenote: the last time I swam 2.4 miles in a wetsuit was for Ironman Lake Placid in 2016. (IMTX 2017 was non-wetsuit. IMCHATTY 2017 was also non wetsuit downstream.) I had my all time best swim at IMLP in the calmest of waters with a 1:15:02 and I'd like to say I was in really good swim shape at the time. My 1:17:06 in Lake Monona literally tickled me pretty as I took off for what I thought would be the biggest test of my day.}
T1 7:19
Coming out of the water the wetsuit strippers were busier than I'd hoped for. But I had my wetsuit to my hips on my own and was able to snag one of the last strippers to help me with the lower half. The swim start being pushed back added about 100 yards to T1, not the end of the world. Until you start running on that concrete and realize how FRICKEN COLD THE CEMENT IS. I had barely made it to the base of the helix and I could already tell my feet were numb. The helix crowd was THICK with fans. The energy electric. I know for a fact that my heart rate is never higher than when I'm in transition. I made my passes to those dawdlers. I even passed a few who were running. Finally I was off the concrete ground and inside the Monona Terrace to grab my bike bag, change, and hit the road.
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| Rob found himself a nice little seat on the concrete wall of the Terrace and stalked us as we found our bikes! |
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| Now the scary part: Ride your bike DOWN the helix 😅 |
BIKE
In years past, I have watched athletes start their IMWI bike as the exit Monona Terrace coming down from the parking garage helix. Hell, I did it myself 4 years ago. And I swear every time it gives me a set of nerves like nails on a chalkboard. It's a tight turn. And it's 3 full 360 degree turns to the bottom. And at the bottom, you have to make sure you don't run into one of the vestibules where you would normally pay as you exit a parking garage.
Legit this is the coolest and scariest transition setups you've ever seen.
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| Yea, I wasn't lying. |
Over the years, I've become VERY familiar with this bike course. I don't need pavement markings at this point. I've been riding the 40 mile loop on repeat for training for the past 5 summers. But the stick leading out to the loop? That is something I barely remember. I knew it wasn't flat, but I honestly had forgotten anything about it. The stick is 16 miles, then you ride the 40 mile loop twice, and then you ride the stick back to Monona Terrace, hence giving you your 112 mile bike course.
The wind seemed to be in our favor on the way out. I never had to much trouble and even saw a 14:XX 5 mile split at one point. I knew that wouldn't last forever so I graciously accepted the speed at this point of the bike. We finally entered Verona and as far as I was concerned, this is where the games really began. I felt like I was on my home turf, these are my roads damnit! I knew exactly when to flip into the smaller gears so I wouldn't trash my legs. I knew exactly what hills seemed to tax my body over others. I knew exactly what to flip it into high gear and let loose because if you're smart, you can ride Witte Road like a roller coaster and use practically 0 energy. Some might call this an advantage while others would call it slightly "unfair." Call what you want, I've beaten my body to shreds over the years on this bike course so I think I deserved a little bit of fun today.
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| One of the millions descends of the day |
It didn't take long before I noticed that the wind wasn't what it normally is. Having ridden this course plenty of times over the years, the wind direction is pretty easy to predict, give or take. Today? It pulled a 180 on us. The sections of the course where you can normally pick up some speed, you were fighting the wind. And aggressively. There are few flat sections of this course, but the few that are generally offer minimal wind and a chance for you to relax and gather yourself before you have to start doing some serious work again. This day? We worked allllll day.
Heading into Mount Horeb was the worst. There is a bit of a flat section followed by a false flat followed by a pretty large climb. But, it's normally very manageable. I did everything I could to stay as low as possible and NOT come out of aero even when I was climbing. I needed to conserve as much as possible. Just after Mount Horeb there was a nice little section of wind as well, just before turning onto Witte Road. I barely lifted my head up. I looked up enough that I knew there were no bikes directly in front of me. I didn't want my eyes any higher than they needed to be. Just before turning onto Witte Road I looked up to take the turn and there stood the first person I recognized while on the bike, Jodi Menke. A local triathlon acquaintance, I knew she'd pop up on course at some point. We made eye contact and literally we both screamed. We were both so excited to see each other that no words came out, simply excitement.
After I enjoyed Witte Road, I started to wonder where Mark was. I knew he should have passed me by now. What if he had an issue in the water? What if he cramped and can't ride? What if something happened and they had to call Rob to go get him? Speaking of, where's ROB!? You have no idea where my mind will take me during a day like this.
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| I'm sure I was fighting some sort of wind at this point |
Soon it came time to climb the Three Sisters/Bitches (whatever you prefer to call them). I was really starting to worry that I hadn't seen Mark at all. I knew I'd see familiar faces on one of the Sisters so I'd have a chance to ask. Sure enough, I made it to Sister #2 at the base of the hill stood John Lorenz ready to run me up the hill.
You're looking great! Jacqui is in the top 7, Nate and Trina are literally just ahead of you! I was feeling great and used that energy to power up the massive hill, but managed to ask John if he had seen my brother at all.
He's doing good, just a little ways behind you! THANK GOD! Then, he passed me off to Mr. Giuliano, Ryan's Dad. Mr. Always Excited. Mr. Intensity. His energy was electric and seriously made me feel on top of the world.
Holy hell would you look at this girl, she knows how to power up a hill! GO GET EM MEG!" And just like that, I made it to the top and the crowds thinned.
I started loop 2 and was anticipating the breakdown of my body. Generally, if it's gonna go it'll be on the 2nd half of the bike course. For me, I usually start to get off pattern with my nutrition. My watch is set to beep every 20 minutes to remind me to take in some sort of nutrition. But after 4 hours or so, I just don't wanna sometimes. But today, I was on point. Gel, banana at aide stations, water, nutrition bottle, cliff bar. You name it, I did it. And nothing cramped. Nothing hurt. My stomach survived.
Just before mile 85ish, I had my first Rob sighting. He was sitting off to the side, solo, no crowds around him, wearing his flashing neon construction work vest so I could find him easily. He pulled the camera down so I could make eye contact. It wasn't until that moment that it clicked. Mark is ok and Rob is just now showing up on course. I bet he took a nap after the swim. Sure enough, this girl knows her fiance best.
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I told ya, head down. Only look as far up as necessary.
#wind |
Finally I was on the last section of the loop and knew the stick was quickly approaching. I've never been more excited in my life, until the moment I realized that the wind would be in our face the ENTIRE 16 MILES BACK. And immediately after turning off of the loop, I remembered. I remembered an awful memory. The first 3-4 miles heading back is a nice, steady, mean, dirty, nasty, climb... in a headwind. If ever there are moments in your life that you feel like you're truly being tested for survival mode, this might be one of them. It takes away ANY positivity you had left. It eats at your mental status. It destroys your legs. And I'll be damned, you still have 10 miles to go once you get to the top.
Finally we hit the bike path. Three miles to go. And then it was John Nolan Drive. The capitol building in sight. Let's get this shit over with. But. There's always a but.
Remember the helix that you so cautiously have to ride down at the beginning? You get to climb that to finish off your ride.
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| Legit, throw it in the smallest gear and say your prayers. |
And finally, 6 hours and 27 minutes later, it was time to run. {A casual 48 minutes faster than it took me to bike the course 4 years prior, for the first time. Take away some of this odd wind and I bet it could have been closer to an hour.}
T2 3:18
Rob found me coming off the bike, but I didn't see him. I handed my bike over and took my first steps to get my bearings. (The term "brick legs" is never more appropriate than after riding this course.) It didn't take long before I had my sea legs back and was flying down the aisle of bags to grab mine. Run shoes on. Belt on. Quick pee. And we're off.
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The run out was also different this year because of flooding.
But it worked out because Rob was able to find me! |
RUN
I have a lot of mixed emotions about this part of the race.
IMCHATTY2017 left me with a bad taste in my mouth after my run went south from the very second I stepped foot off my bike. But I raced A LOT last year and those last 26 miles of the year might have been what put me over the edge.
This year, I knew my run may or may not suffer. I had just spent 9 of the last 12 months focused on run training. This is what you do now! You're a runner! You should be good at this! In the same breath, my body was pretty beat up. My left hamstring suffered a major beating from the months of March-June. Tension and tightness and pains never TRULY went away, only subsided a lot. If I was going to have a bad run, this would be why. And surely enough, that's what happened.
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| I mean, I didn't feel great but check out that dude behind me. Yikes. |
I hit the run and didn't even look at my watch. Run easy and run don't focus on time. That was my motto. I saw Jacqui and Ryan's parents on State Street right away and was feeling on top of the world! It was starting to get hot, quite a bit actually. It was only 70 degrees, but with no clouds and 112 bikes miles under your belt, you tend to heat up quickly.
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Running on Astro Turf didn't help either
Camp Randall Stadium
ILL - INI! |
I saw Ryan on his way home to win the race around mile 2.5, just about the time my run started to go South. My foot tightened up to the point I had to stop and try and stretch it out. It cramped like you would expect in the middle of the night. Soon, that tightness shot up in my calf and hamstring. And before you knew it, my left leg was completely useless. There was more walking than I'm proud of during miles 3-6. It wasn't pretty. But I NEEDED to get my body to a point that I could move comfortably. I finally caught a second wind and saw Rob on State Street. He sat in the middle of the road. construction vest on, camera in the air. Normally this kind of behavior would elicit an Ironman official to ask a spectator to move off course. But, we're pretty sure they thought Rob WAS an Ironman official in that fancy vest of his.
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| "Hi Honey kinda having a rough day, hope you enjoyed your nap on my BIRTHDAY!" |
This run course really throws me off, every time. There are so many twists and turns and small out and backs that I seriously can't keep it straight. I remember I saw Jon Crane and his wife. Jon damn near clubbed me on the bike course during the last 4 miles with his beer in hand. So he hopped on the run to apologize and wish me a happy birthday. I could tell he had been drinking for a while, and to be honest, I was a little jealous.
I remember seeing Lauren Matricardi on the bike path along the lake at one point. She was with her CES friends and stood on the ready to snap my photo in all my birthday glory. When I approached her she asked, "So how do you feel!?" Instead of telling her the honest truth about wanting to sell my left leg to a homeless person, I told her, "You know, I've had better birthdays!"
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| Hiiiiiii L-Mat! |
The 2nd half of the first loop my body seemed to relax enough to let me actually run. 9-10 minute miles. I wasn't complaining. I knew this had potential to go South quickly so I accepted it with open arms. I made it to the turn around point, literal feet from the finish line (brutal I tell ya) and prayed that I'd be able to pull off 13 more miles on a bum leg.
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| Being able to see the finish line and know you have 13 miles to go is the WORST. |
Mile 15 or so is the first time I saw Mark all day. He was finishing up his 1st lap while I was well into my second. We stopped and talked for a minute. He was feeling surprising well, considering he
actually didn't train for this race. Me on the other hand? Shoot me. The 2nd half of this run is a big blur. I spent a lot of time trying not to focus on the shooting pain up and down my left leg. I was slow moving for sure. Jacqui had passed me long ago and taken home her first Ironman title ever. I spotted Nate and Trina many times throughout the run.
I knew that was I was on the clock though. Remember how I mentioned Rob needed to get back home so he could sleep for work in the middle of the night? Yea, that was still happening. I had set Rob back longer than I was hoping for. I knew I'd see him again around mile 20 and thought about telling him he didn't have to stay if he didn't want to. But then I saw him. And he was all smiles. And he knew I was hurting. And he gave me a little love tap and sent me on my way.
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| Photo Cred: My #1 Spectathlete |
The sun officially set and I was only a few miles away from the finish line. The last miles might have hurt the worst. I remember thinking, "Forward motion, keep the forward motion." I got closer and closer and started to get a little emotional. I finished this race 4 years ago and I had a slew of people at the finish line. My mother, who doesn't travel well. My father, who had recently had a heart attack and open heart surgery. My brother, who truly had no idea what it felt like to do something like this. Rob, who had literally spent his ENTIRE day chasing me all over the course. Jacqui and Ryan, who were both hanging from a street lamp as I rounded the final turn to the finish line screaming their heads off. Friends from high school and college who had made the journey to watch me find the finish line after 140.6 miles.
And today, I had mom and dad glued to their live feed at home. Mark on course with me. Jacqui and Ryan on course with me. And Rob at the finish line, ready to greet me with my birthday kiss. And ALL of my support at home.
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| #7 |
People always ask why I keep coming back to do this time and time again. There are plenty of reasons. But honestly. That feeling of crossing the finish line. There's nothing like it. It releases so many raw emotions that you just can't put into words. We repeatedly do what brings us joy. These moments are ingrained in our brains in such a permanent way. Why would you NOT to repeat something like that?
I've said it before, the more you race the distance, the easier it gets. And it's true. Recovery tends to be quicker. The body doesn't hurt as much after each race. But this one? This one for sure took it's toll on me. I limped and waddled and dragged my foot the rest of the night while waiting for Mark to finish. (Which was only and hour and a half after me) For someone who completely had their focus set elsewhere all summer long, his finish was simply amazing to me.
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| He apparently forgot he wasn't exactly ready for take off during the run |
As we were saying our goodbyes to Rob, Mark was officially asked to join the wedding party. It was a moment I didn't see coming, nor did I expect to be apart of. Of course it was filled with Rob's smartass comments and we all laughed. But I wouldn't have it any other way I can definitely say it was the perfect end to my birthday.
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| I literally had a hard time keeping my eyes open at this point |
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BFG! BFG! BFG!
Training? What's that? #nailedit |
We sent Rob on his way, grabbed our bikes and hit the road. We had to make it home before pizza delivery wasn't an option anymore for a Sunday night. We ate as much as we could (which wasn't much at all) before we both felt sick to our stomachs.
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| Standing with 2 Ironman Champs. Best Friends. NBD. |
The last thing I am is upset with my race. My biggest goal this year was to qualify for Boston. And that happened earlier than I anticipated. So since I was able to spend the 2nd half of my year actually having FUN before I go head down planning this wedding was absolutely amazing. Speaking of Boston, registration for the 2019 race officially closed a short while ago. My application is in. I'm sitting over here, fingers and toes crossed, anxiously awaiting my acceptance.
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| Jacqui said it best... #squad |
The next morning the 6 of us went to the athlete breakfast and sat through the awards ceremony. It's always fun to see the victors on stage the next morning. Jacqui and Ryan were able to stand side by side, champions. It was such an awesome moment to witness. We finally went our separate ways, saying goodbye to the land of nostalgia.
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| RyBread Racing |
{And for those worry warts out there, please know that I have already started seeking treatment for my leg. I'm not about to run Boston on this bum leg of mine. I'm starting at the bottom and checking off all the items on my list if necessary. I've had one intense session of Active Release Therapy done and I'm about to embark on my 2nd as we speak. I already feel relief and I'm certain with some proper relaxation of the muscles and longer recovery, this too shall pass.}
On that note, RyBread OUT! Cheers.
