FLASH-POINT BLOG ARCHIVE: Sep 2009

I just finished my second Ironman Triathlon - a 2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike, then a 26.2 mile marathon run. The race was in Madison Wisconsin, and this course has a reputation for having a difficult bike course.

For the past year I have been warned about the hills of Wisconsin by everyone who did the race or even heard about the race. The odd thing is that if you look at the course elevation, it doesn't seem that tough; there are only 3 "big" hills during each of the two loops, and those climbs are under 500 feet. Still, I knew that a map doesn't tell the whole story so I did a lot of hill training leading up to the race.

Ironman Wisconsin may not have long steep climbs, but it does have rolling hills. Relentless rolling hills. You are always climbing or falling and it's very difficult to get into any sort of rhythm. That being said, the rolling hills are gorgeous. Everything looked like a postcard of America's Heartland. We rode by farmhouses and huge wheat fields and passed by our fair share of the famous Wisconsin cows.

Of course, to get to the beautiful scenery you have to leave downtown Madison first. And that's a bit tricky. After picking up your bike in the transition area, you ride down a 4-story tightly-spiraling parking garage ramp. Keep in mind that we were all still a bit woozy after swimming 2.4 miles, so spinning around on the bike didn't help.

We had to ride along a narrow jogging path for a while, which means we had to stay single file and navigate some hairpin turns. We also had to cross through some poorly-paved parking lots. But once we got out on to the main road things started looking much prettier.

Several coaches had advised/warned me to take it easy on the first loop, and then hit it harder the second time around. I was a little worried if I was taking it too easy or not easy enough, but I felt very comfortable for the first 56 miles. I didn't hammer the hills, just took my time, and on the rare flat sections I tried to hold back. But those constant rolling hills were quietly taking their toll on me. By mile 70 or so I could feel myself tiring, and this was when I was really supposed to be going at it full force. I quickly abandoned the plan to do a negative split: this was a triathlon after all, and I didn't want to ruin my marathon by spending all my energy on the bike.

I also had some problems with cramping. At the time of the race I thought we had great weather, but afterwards people were complaining about the heat so maybe I was sweating more than I realized. Fortunately I packed salt tablets with me so I was able to compensate a little a bit. In hindsight I should have been popping the tablets BEFORE the cramping started. Lesson learned.

Ironman is a difficult sport for spectators because the main action is centered around the finish line, but the athletes spend most of their time miles away along the course. Wisconsin is kind of nice because they have shuttle busses that drop people 40 miles away, out in the middle of the bike course. So when we hit the steeper sections of the ride, the road was lined with people holding signs and cheering and dancing and making tons of noise in support. It really does help your mental game to have the crowds egging you on, and those are the sections we needed it most.

I finished the bike ride about 20 minutes faster than I did in Ironman Coeur d'Alene last year, and Wisconsin is considered a more difficult course. And my overall finish time we 15 minutes faster so I had a pretty good race. (I did bonk a bit during the marathon and had to walk a lot more than I wanted to, but my strong swim and bike compensated for it.) Immediately after the race I vowed that this would be the last one, but now that my legs have recovered I'm starting to feel the pull again. For now however, I am just going to take it easy for a while and enjoy being off of my diet.

They say that nutrition is the fourth discipline of triathlon. Many races have been ruined by poor fueling: either not taking in enough calories or getting cramps or an upset stomach.

During long bike rides, my secret weapon has been to pack a ham sandwich. This isn't a giant Dagwood Bumpstead meal, just a small dinner roll with some ham and butter. Nothing else. The bread provides carbs, the ham gives me some protein, fat, and much-needed salt, and the butter makes it taste delicious. I'll also have a Powerbar and even a Snickers along the way.

All of this works fine for a bike ride. I don't have any issues with digestion and I'm getting my calories. The problem is that during an Ironman, I have to run a marathon afterwards. All of that solid food which works fine on the bike feels very heavy during the run. It was a problem for me during my last Ironman, where I started feeling sick about 6 miles into the marathon.

Hopefully I've found the answer: I’m switching over to all-liquid calories. I've started using Carbo-Pro as my primary source of calories and it really seems to do the trick. I have a strong sweet tooth so I mix some Kool-Aid in with it just to give it some flavor. I take a Gu about once an hour for an added boost, and then halfway through the race I’ll treat myself to a few gulps of Mountain Dew. The caffeine is great, and it is comfort food for me.

During training, this plan seems to be working. Race day is just a few days away and that will be the true test.

Today, I rode my bike for transportation.

Or rather, I rode A bike for transportation.

It was one of those bikes that you have to pedal backwards to brake, and it was way too big for me, and (on the way back, at least), I had one huge bag of groceries on my back while another was in my lap; I was panting from the thinner than usual air, and I generally felt weak.

I loved every second of it.

When I get on a bike, I just start grinning, no matter what, really. So much of last summer's cross country trip comes flooding back, and I feel an instant sense of complete and total freedom.

I'm still not the best biker on the block (especially right now, considering I'm in biker-steeped Boulder, CO), but regardless, biking is just such an awesome feeling.

I'm here for a music convention and not to bike, but I'm still going to find some time to do at least one serious bike ride. I've heard there are some mountains that are fun to climb...