Thursday
Travel day to Lake Placid. It is raining. We all worry for Sunday but Weather forecast is good. A loop in Mirror Lake feels so good after a few hours in the car.
Friday
My hotel is a few meters from the Out and Back. It’s a little bit far from Downtown Lake Placid but I like it because it is quieter. Less stress that way even if I am not stressed yet. I think it will happen the day before the race or on race day.
I ride the Out and Back with Hélène. She is faster than I am. I am careful to not push too hard. I must keep my energy for the race. The bike ride is followed by a 30 minutes run. I feel good.
I go to the dinner banquet. I am sitting with Sylvie, J-P, Ghislain and Béatrice. It is nice to have two veterans with me. They give me last minutes advices. The banquet is long. I just want to leave. I feel motivated enough that I do not need this show. Nevertheless, I appreciate the videos.
Saturday
The Out and back once more. Then, a 15 minutes run. All my gear is ready for the race. I don’t like the transition bags. I am used to set my own layout on the ground right by my bike. Now, everything is in the bag. I think it will slow me down because things are not disposed as I want them.
Sunday
Wake up at 4am. I go to the toilets a few times. I hope I will not have to go during the day.
25 minutes before the start, I go in the water. I stay close to the deck to avoid wasting energy in treading water. I am close to the start line. I will be in the heart of the action. Water is 68 Fahrenheit. It is warm enough. I chat with the swimmers around me.
Swimming
Then, it is the start. I don’t know why but I do like the mass start. Someone advised me to swim on the left of the buoys. It is quieter and I swim well. Suddenly, I swim into a kayak. I keep going and another kayak tells me to go back with the other swimmers. There, I don’t like it. Not the fact that it is rough but the fact that even if I try, it is impossible to be fast and pass people. I am stranded in a huge pack. It is as if everybody decided to swim above the cable.
At least, the draft is good and I complete the first loop in 33 minutes. Good enough for me who’s not a good swimmer. I though I would have had more space in the second loop but I think it’s worst. Swimmers around seem to also getting tired of that. It’s getting rougher. I manage to get out of the water in 1h07:43. A little bit slower than my 1h06 objective but it is not that bad. I am only getting started.
Transition 1
I know we must run for a few hundred meters to get to transition area. Everybody seems to run so slow. I slalom between runners until I slip on the wet carpet. Small burns on the knees but I quickly get up and I am more careful after.
Small surprise. I was expecting a volunteer to give me my transition bag but I realize I must take it myself. I am glad I had pick-up my prescription sunglasses at the table right after I came out of the water.
Long transition to pick my gear in the bag. I should have thrown everything on the ground. I would have been much faster and a volunteer is taking care of my gear so that I leave without picking-up the leftovers like warm clothes. I run to the bike rack. A volunteer said my name but nobody heard or had time to give me my bike. I had to take it myself. 7:18 is slow for a transition. I am mentally taking notes for my next Ironman.
Bike
I start slow. I know that there is a climb before we go down to Keene. This climb tricked me a few times when I was training. I wait until passed Keene to open the gas. There are many people and I pass them instead of staying 7 meters behind.
Then, I see Paul Shapira, a friend I used to train with in Montréal. With talking about it, we kind of develop a strategy of leap-frogging. One of use takes the lead while the other is 7 meters behind so that we don’t draft. When the leader slow down or the other is getting to close, he passes the leader. It’s a great way to motivate each other and keep the cadence. However, gradually, we increase the pace. I know it’s dangerous for the second loop or for the Marathon but it is stronger than me. I cannot and I do not want to slow down. I know I will slow down later anyway and I want to save time right now.
Here I am, the final climb of the first loop. I smille. It’s so great. All these people cheering and making noise. I am about to cry because of the emotion. My parents and Hélène are there! First loop is done in 2h34:21 Wow, I remember having a hard time in training trying to go under 3h00. Those Hed Stinger 50 wheels are really doing a good job along with the Blue T14 bike. I feel competitive with them.
Paul is behind. The cadence drained him. Me too. Is it the fatigue or is the wind rising? I am now alone. There is almost no cyclist so I don’t have to work hard to pass cyclists. Paul is coming back now. We keep the same strategy but we are less enthusiastic now. We know we commit a stupid mistake and we are paying the price. It’s hot. I feel the salt on my face. I drink as often as possible. I manage to eat according to my nutrition plan excepted for the half bagel that somehow fell from my back pocket.
The friends for the triathlon club and Red Bull Racing Team seem to be everywhere on the course. I really appreciate the cheering. 2h59:36, not bad for someone tired. It’s my second fastest split ever for a loop. An impressive 5h33:57.
Run
I never really got into race mode. Is it the Caffeine Cola Blockshots that is giving me this horrible stomach ach? I think so. I change my strategy and I alternate between Gatorade and Gel plus water at the aid station. I feel a little bit better now but it’s too late. I even almost vomited.
I lose 7 minutes in a porta-potty. Advise of the day: Always have sponges to wipe the seat and yourself when there is no paper. I am glad I was always carrying at least one to refresh myself.
It’s so hard. I know I will finish but I am scared I will not reach my 11 hours objective. The cheering really helps me. That’s where I run the fastest. I am overwhelmed by emotion when I see my friends that I almost cry.
The run is almost done. I see Isabelle who tells me to not walk in the Hill. I don’t plan to walk anyway. I even push harder and finish strong. People are cheering louder because they like people who seem to give it all. They make me going even faster.
Here comes the finish line. I made it. I am an Ironman! Even with two bad splits of 1h56:19 and 2h04:46, I manage to come in a total time of 10h53:18.
Isabelle Mallete is there to take care of me. Hélène too. I am in good hands. A massage and salty pizza will make me feel better in no time.
163 overall, 18/113 in my age group. I am already looking forward to beat my time at the incoming Ironman Louisville in 5 weeks.
Late on, I feel better with some benchmarking analysis. The run was hard for everybody because I finished 160 overall on the bike and 163 on the run. I am also quite happy with my 539 overall for the swim. Me, barely swimming less than 3 years ago. What a progress!
If you are looking for a sympathetic hotel in the region, I recommend you the Mountain Brook Lodge in Wilmington. Al and his wife are so nice. We felt like home… maybe like at the cottage with this rustic cachet. The hotel was decorated for the Ironman. A Canadian flag was added for us. There was even a nametag with the bib number on the door of every athlete lodging there. In addition, the morning after the race, every athlete received a copy of the newspaper for the results. Wilmington is so quiet and there is no traffic.