Chafed... Blistered... Sunburned... Happy

Wow, what a day. Like any Ironman, it was a day filled with highs and lows, excitement and anxiety, and, as Dan likes to say, "some amount of discomfort." Oh yeah, and it was over 98 degrees out there.

I did it. Ironman number five is in the books. I crossed the line at Ironman Coeur d’Alene. It was tough… Not that these races are ever easy, and it’s hard to make comparisons, especially in the immediate aftermath… but this is probably the hardest race I’ve ever done.

Ironman is always a challenge. It's really the challenge that makes it so much fun. Not just the day of the race, but all the training leading up to it. I have an amazing group of friends and teammates. As always, it was wonderful to see the flames out in full force on the course.

There are lots of details and lots of stories. I’ll post some of them later. I’m sure it will be too long for most. For those who want the “Cliffs Notes” version… Here it is. You can watch my finish by clicking on the link below and watching a short deoderant commercial.. and then about 2 minutes of video.

NAME	MIKE WASSERMAN
BIB NUMBER	575
AGE	34
PROFESSION	ENGINEER
STATE/COUNTRY	REDWOOD CITY CA USA

SWIM	BIKE	RUN	OVERALL	POSITION
1:31:42	8:02:31	6:28:04	16:22:44	1835

RACE LEG	DISTANCE	PACE	POSITION
TOTAL SWIM	2.4 mi. (1:31:42)	2:24/100m	1920
FIRST BIKE SEGMENT	56 mi. (3:33:10)	15.76 mph
FINAL BIKE SEGMENT	56 mi. (4:29:21)	12.47 mph
TOTAL BIKE	112 mi. (8:02:31)	13.93 mph	1978
TOTAL RUN	26.2 mi. (6:28:04)	14:48/mile	1835
TRANSITION			TIME
T1: SWIM-TO-BIKE			9:28
T2: BIKE-TO-RUN			10:59
PENALTY			TIME
TOTAL PENALTIES			--:--

T-minus 16 hours!

Almost time to go. Bikes racked... transiton bags checked... off for a 4 pm pasta dinner!

Nothing new on race day... unless you have to.

I was in the lake yesterday for a quick swim, somebody asked "Is that a 510 on your wrist?" After a second, I realized he was asking about my heartrate monitor. Yes, I said, looking at my watch... my suddenly blank watch. I pushed a button or two and the screen came back, but really dim. By the time we got out of the lake, my battery was completely dead. Ok. I walked around the expo looking for a Polar tent to get a new battery. No luck. There's a Timex tent. I thought about getting a new battery at a drugstore and changing it myself, but then it might not be waterproof and that would be worse than a dead battery.

I am now the proud owner of a new Timex Ironman (TM) Heartrate Monitor (and a sporty new Timex hat). Yes, it's new, but it's less of a change than racing without a heartrate monitor.

Tonight should be an early one - we'll be back from dinner by 6, drinks mixed by 8, and probably in bed by 9.

My alarm is set for 3:50 AM. Gulp... Ready or not... here I come!

Race Plan

With Ironman now less than 48 hours away, time to dust off the 'ol race plan, and make sure I've got the day figured out...

This is a plan I've used for my previous Ironmans and it seems to work pretty well for me... I had to make some modifications (more fluid, more salt, less food) for the weather, which is now predicted to have a high of 92 degrees.

Race Plan - IM Coeur d’Alene 2006


Pre Race

• Wake up 4AM
• Eat bagel w/ peanut butter and 1 clif bar
• Leave for transition area by 5 AM
• Drink 12 oz Gatorade 1 hour before

Swim

• Line up about 2/3 of the way back, behind the fast people, but not all the way in the back.
• Start to the right in about half way along the beach: Behind the fast folks, but not all the way on the beach.
• Concentrate on front-quadrant swimming – stretch out the stroke and glide.
• Draft – take advantage of the huge draft from 2000 swimmers.
• Sight every 10 stroke cycles
• Pick up the pace on final leg
• Target time 1:30-1:40

T1

• Keep moving!
• Take cup of Gatorade on way into tent.
• Put on sunscreen – arms, legs, face.
• Change into bike shorts
• Put on cycle jersey, socks, shoes, helmet, sunglasses, and gloves.
• Get sunscreen on back from volunteer.
• Jog to bike
• Target time 10 mins
• Bike
• Enjoy the crowd!!
• Spin, spin, spin – cadence over 90 rpm.
• Watch heartrate – should be no higher than 155. May be a bit high on first few miles due to adrenaline. If HR is still high after 5 miles, SLOW DOWN!
• Concentrate on spinning legs in full circles… Lead with the heel.
• Maintain HR in range of 140-155
• NEGATIVE SPLIT - Hold back on first loop.
• EAT EAT EAT! – something every 10 minutes:
• 10,20,40,50 – sip sustained energy
• 00, 15, 30, 45 – 1 bites of clif bar (about 1/8 bar - precut), 1 endurolyte, (2 on 2nd loop)
• DRINK! – constantly sip on Gatorade Endurance from Aero Bottle. Should be drinking at least 28 oz per hour. Above 28oz per hour, drink water + 1 endurolyte for every 8 oz.
• Stay aero as much as possible.
• Try to maintain HR of 140 flats.
• Spin up the hills, pedal on the downhills
• Keep moving in Special Needs: Stretch, Pee, Eat, Go.
• Pack some of everything (because who knows what will taste good):
• 2 spare tubes
• 2 spare CO2
• Turkey Sandwich
• Pringles
• Target time 7:15 – 7:45

T2

• Trade bike jersey for run singlet
• Trade bike shorts for tri shorts
• Change shoes.
• Fuel belt/gu flask
• Keep moving!
• Get sunscreen on back from volunteers.
• Target time 10 mins

Run

• Start with run interval: run 5, walk 1
• Keep HR under 155
• Drink continuously – half flask gatorade per mile (4oz/mile - ~20 oz/hr)
• Eat gu – one hit (about 1/3 packet) per mile (about 2 pkt/hr; ~200 cal/hr)
• One endurolyte per mile (5-6 per hour)
• First half goal ~12.5 min/mile
• Special Needs:
• Long sleeve shirt
• Full gel flask
• Second half goal ~13.5 min/mile
• At some point – less Gatorade, more water, possibly soup.
• If feeling bonky, go for flat coke, but only as last resort
• Target time (average 13-14 min/mile) = 5:45-6:15

Totals:
Time: 14:35 - 15:45
Fluids:
Bike: 24-32 oz/hr
Run: 20-24 oz/hr
Calories:
Bike
Sustained Energy – 5 scoops + 100 cal hammer gel
~650 cal/7.5 hrs = ~85 cal/hr
Gatorade 50 cal/8oz 150 cal/hr
Clif Bar: 240 cal/bar, 1/2 bar per hour = 120 cal
About 350 cal/hr
Run
Gu: 200 cal/hr
Gatorade 120 cal/hr
Total ~320 cal/hr

Electrolytes
Gatorade Endurance: ~900 mg/hr
Endurolytes: 4/hr (200 mg) = 800 mg/hr
Total 1700 mg/hr

The Gang's All Here!

Well, we made it. Whether by car, or plane, through Bend, Seattle, Reno, Boise, wherever. We're all here ready to go... Dan, Lori, Mike, Dana, Karen, Glenn, and me. Plus, IT 2005-ers Steve, Melina, Scott, and Doug. The flames will be showing in full-force on Sunday.


In the shuttle on the way from the airport, the driver was telling me that Ironman day was the hottest day of the year last year... Wow, I remember it being hot, but I had no idea it was that hot. So far, the weather here is beautiful. Temps have been in the 70s all week. But... true to form, the weather will get HOT this weekend. Good thing we're not racing on Monday!







We've got a busy day ahead of us. Short swim, bike, and run to work out all the kinks. Registration, schwag shopping, and general getting ready! Fun Fun Fun!

575!

It's official.. We're really doing this. CDA race numbers were posted today.

You can track our progress on http://www.ironmanlive.com

575 Mike Wasserman
590 Mike Booth
1268 Glenn Rock
1699 Dan Russell
2005 Lori Pignati
2010 Karen (Jensen) Rock
2064 Dana Booth

Taper Blues

One week into taper, I'm remembering how it feels.

I'm always tired. Some nights I can't fall alseep, others I wake up hours before sunrise, and have trouble getting back to sleep. This always happens to me whenever I quickly increase or decrease my training volume. While I haven't had any meltdowns this year, I have found myself a little moody... Like I wake up every morning on the wrong side of the bed. Finally, these days I'm hyper-aware of how my body feels.

So, this morning, I woke up after a night of restless sleep to head over to FIT for my weekly massage appointment with "Chainsaw Dave." After working on my legs and lower back, Dave said it seemed like my muscles were where in good shape - not too tight. Then he pushed his knuckle into my groin muscle. YEEOOOWWW! "Except that one," he said after he peeled me off the ceiling.

After work I headed over to Chain Reaction for the 90 minute ride. As we rode up Altamont, I started to notice a pain in the back of my right knee. Actually, it wasn't really a pain, more of an "awareness." At the top, Dan and Mike decided we'd be doing two loops of Taaffe road. So we dropped down Black Mountain and back up Taaffe. At this point, my left knee started to twitch. I forgot about the right knee, and climbed to the top. At the top I decided to skip the second loop. "We'll catch up to you on Foothill," Dan says.

Cruising down Foothill, I'm thinking, "There's no way they can catch me... What was he thinking." So I make it to the parking lot and put my bike on the car. Then I see Mike over by his car. What?? I knew he was fast, but?? I can see he's hurrying... something's wrong. Turns out that Matt crashed coming down Altamont. Mike got a ride and is going back to pick him up.

The gang finally made it back, and Mike and Ann took Matt to the hospital to get cleaned up. Hopefully it's just roadrash, and nothing deeper. Keep your fingers crossed.

The Funniest Thing I've Heard In a While

In the break room at work, I was chatting with a co-worker who recently moved to the bay area from India.

"Mike, I noticed a lot of bicycle riders this weekend. Are they all training for the Ironman as well?"

"No, maybe some of them, but there are a lot of bike riders in the bay area, and when the weather's nice they all come out. Wait until the Tour de France starts. Then you'll really see a lot of riders."

"Oh? Do people around here ride in that?"

PR?

At the gym today, my friend Thom (who was training an Ironeam Alum) kept saying "Mike Wasserman... you are a FIVE TIME Ironman." Not yet! "Visualize the finish," he says. Then, between sets of 40kg kettle-bell high-pulls, my trainer, Jimmy, says to me, "You're getting strong... You're going to PR this year!"

Uh.. PR? Ok, thanks for the confidence but... Well, it is possible.... And while I would never plan to PR, I shouldn't dismiss the idea. Plan to have a good day. And on a good day, it is possible. So, in an effort to delay the next set of high-pulls, Jimmy, Thom, and I talked numbers.

My Ironman PR was set at Ironman Canada in 2003.
Swim: 01:19:07
T1: 00:06:38
Bike: 07:00:44
T2: 00:04:33
Run: 05:57:21
-----------------------
Total: 14:28:21

So, to compare 2003 to now:

On the minus side:
Coaching means I get less training for myself
I am 12-15 lbs heavier than I was in 2003

On the plus side:
I'm much stronger - some of that weight is muscle
I have alot more experience
In 2003, I held back on the run because I was doing Kona in 8 weeks

A better comparison would be to compare last year's Coeur d'Alene. From a training perspective, I'm a lot closer to that than 2003, plus it will be the same course. I had a tough race last year - I bonked on the bike and had foot problems on the run.

Swim: 1:31:22
T1: 0:07:51
Bike: 7:48:32
T2: 0:08:08
Run: 6:32:49
-----------------------
Total: 16:08:41

Wow, where can I shave 100 minutes off this time??? That's a lot of time!

The bonk should be worth at least 30 mins on the bike, and the foot problems another 30 minutes on the run. I can probably save about 5 more in transition. That takes us to about 15 hours.

Planning for a good day... If I stay motivated, I should be able to shave a few minutes of the swim - call it 1:25. On a good day, I should be able to do a 7-hour bike - last year, before the bonk, I did the first loop in about 3:30. That leaves the run... Can I shave off another 15 minutes on the run? My wildflower run this year was a PR by about 8 minutes... so... mabye.

Here's how it rolls up:

Realistic Best-Case
--------------------------------------
Swim: 1:30:00 1:25:00
T1: 0:07:00 0:07:00
Bike: 7:20:00 7:00:00
T2: 0:05:00 0:05:00
Run: 6:00:00 5:45:00
-------------------------------------
Total: 15:02:00 14:22:00

Wow - kinda scary to see it listed out like that. As always, weather is the biggest factor. If it's hot, realistic goes out the window. Gotta follow that nutrition plan and watch the heartrate zones... then see what happens.

Gulp... 17 days

2nd Annual Ironteam Alumni Triathlon

The main event of the clearlake weekend, was the 2nd annual Ironteam Alumni triathlon. This event is put on by Jeff Shaw at his home in Clearlake. It's a full-service event and comes with t-shirts, medals, awards, lodging, and food. Entry fees are donated to the LLS. It's a great event.

The event itself is roughly olympic distance. The swim's about 1 mile, the bike is 23 miles, and the run is 6 miles. But the wildcard is the seeded start. The first wave goes off at 9:00 AM, the last wave at 10:30. In between, athletes start at their assigned time. First across the finish line wins. Seedings are determined by negotiation, whining, and sandbagging at a pre-race meeting the night before. Jeff (the race director) reserves the right to change the seedings at his discretion.

I started right in the middle - 9:45 AM. My wave of three (myself, Tim Bleigh, and Kenny Herbas) headed into the lake right on time. The swim course is basically, go out past the dock and turn right. When you get to the second buoy, turn around and go back. We had water support and I chatted with the kayakers asking for directions... not much to sight on out there.

While in the water, I pondered my race strategy. I bonked pretty hard the day before, and I didn't know how my body would hold up. I decided to push hard on the bike, then see what happened. If I blew up on the bike, so be it... I'd improve my seeding for next year!

So, when I saw the giant water-trampoline, I made the left turn and headed for the beach. Out on the beach and straight to the wetsuit stripper (yes, this is a full-service race). Then through the passageway onto the lawn for the transition area.
A quick transition and I was on the bike, in the aerobars, spinning my legs and circles and trying to maintain 20+ mph on the flats. Well, that stopped when I hit the first hills. But overall, I felt great. I was able to keep a good pace and keep my heartrate in the right zone. For the full 23 miles, I never saw anybody else. None of my wave-mates passed me, and I didn't catch anybody from the previous wave.
As I approached the transition area, I could see people heading out onto the run. I tried to figure out how much time I'd need to make up to catch them. My main target was Iron Joe. Last year I caught him early on the bike, but this year he had an extra 15 minute head start. He was at least 1.5 miles ahead of me. It was going to be tough... and I had no idea how my legs would work. I was in and out of T2 in about 1:30, most of which was navigating the obstacle course of the homemade transition area.
So far, so good, the legs felt fine. I caught up to the walkers pretty quickly and slowed to chat with them for a minute or so. Then decided it was time to "go til you blow." I picked up the pace to just below my LT. I'm not sure how fast I was going, but it felt like I was moving. I saw the incoming riders. When I saw Kenny, I knew he had a good chance of winning.

A mile or so into the run, I saw Dana coming back on the bike. She'd be the one to beat in overall time, the only question was whehter she could catch up with those who started so far in front of her.

Still running well, I started to see folks coming back for the 2nd half of the run. Joan was in the lead and said "If you push hard, you can hold off Dana!" She picked it up a bit. Later, I told Dana that if she picked it up, she could catch Joan. (No, this isn't a competetive group!) Somehow Raf was ahead of me, though he started after me and didn't pass me on the bike. I think he may have been "creative" with the directions. Finally, I saw Joe. Still about a mile ahead of me. I felt good, but could I catch him? Probably not, but I'd give it a shot.

Got to the turn around for a refreshing Gatorade and water stop hosted by Coach Wayne and Sheila. Give a quick YEEEAAAAHHHH to the video camera, and headed back. Legs still feeling good. I picked it up even more - up above LT.

Again, I have no idea how fast I was running, but I caught a few people, then got caught by Dana and Dan. With my lungs and legs burning I saw Dana turn off the road into the driveway. Phew, the finish line was just ahead. I turned the corner towards the cheering masses and decided to have fun with my finish. I raised my arms and jumped over the finish line. Total time about 3:15. 5th place among male finishers.

Triple Double Brick - and Dogs Dogs Dogs!

Note to self: Follow your nutrition plan!

Saturday morning began like any other morning. My alarm went off and I tried to open my eyes. It was then that I realized that this was no ordinary day. I was sleeping on the ground... on a mostly-flat air mattress... in a tipi. Ah yes... Clearlake! Saturday morning at Clearlake means triple-brick for those doing Coeur d'Alene.

So I gathered up my stuff and got ready for a long day. I mixed my drinks, pumped my tires, and talked with Jeff about where exactly we were going to go on these three loops. The group gathered for a quick picture and we were off on loop 1.
It was cold out there - not very clearlake-like. The loop is pretty fast, not very hilly and we were all fresh, so we took off at a decent pace. Before I knew it, it was over - we'd ridden about 23 miles and it was time to run... handn't eaten too much. I'd pay for that later.

The first run was good - my legs felt good, we ran through the lakeshore trailer park, out for 25 minutes, then turned around and back. Drank some gatorade, but ate nothing.

Back on the bike for loop 2. I took off with Iron Joe and Raf. We made the turn off of highway 20 in a loose paceline. I was in the back when I heard a loud barking. I looked back and saw this dog in a full sprint looking to take a bite out of my right calf. I took a quick picture (ok, not really), called "Dog Back!!" and sprinted past Joe and Raf. You don't have to outrun the dog...


We all sped up and the dog was left in the dust, though he chased Christy and Karen a bit later. I left Raf and Joe and took the longer route through Scott's Valley. It was beautiful and I took the chance to get into aero and really push the pace. It felt good, I kept eating, but probably not enough. I caught up to the rest of the gang. They went the other way around the loop and were telling their own dog story. They had been chased by this dog (doesn't seem too scary):


I rode back with them, getting some good anaerobic training as I drafted off Dr Steve to catch up to the pack. As we rode back through the trailer park, a dog jumped out in front of Steve and me. We slammed on the brakes and barely missed hitting the dog. Remembering the near-fatal-rooster-incident, I didn't have time to take a photo - so we only have this artist's interpretation.
As I went out on run number 2, I felt pretty tired. I realized that the fact that I wasn't eating much on the runs, and had shorted my nutrition on the first bike had basically left me in a hole - two and a half hours of under-nurishment. So I shortened the run to about 30 mins and went back and made a sandwich. That hit the spot.

Back on the bike for round number three. Now it was really windy. I was dropped by the pack after approximately 57 feet. The sandwich was too little, too late. I rode out to the first turn (about 3 miles) and decided to call it a day. I turned around and limped back into camp, totally bonked.

So I soaked my legs in the lake, got some lunch and kicked back while the rest of them finished loop 3. I felt bad, but knew that this workout wouldn't make or break me... besides we had an olympic-distance tri the next day.

A couple hours later, the rest of the gang came back from their third loop. Turns out there was yet another dog incident. This time, Dana was bitten. By this dog.


Note.. Dana insists it looked more like this:


On second thought, maybe using that bacon-flavored sunscreen was a bad idea.