Ironman Louisville 2011 was a great experience both as an athlete and a coach. My client and close friend Alvah Aldrich would make this his first Ironman attempt. Alvah has run several marathons and numerous 70.3 events, but has never swam 2.4 miles, biked 112 and run a marathon all in one day.
If you don't know Alvah, his motto or catch phrase is "Is that all you got?". We could have done 2 hours worth of Bopple hill repeats and no matter how badly Alvah is hurting, he would still utter this phrase at the end of the session. I like that attitude - "Bring it on". "Make it hurt". "I can take anything you throw at me".
That attitude is a great way to approach life and a great way to approach Ironman.
This year the temperatures at Louisville were at least ten degrees cooler throughout the day with a fairly strong wind out of the north. We even had some cloud cover to make the run a bit more bearable.
Our plan for the start of the swim was to hop in the back of the line and start the race dead last. This actually set a great tone for the day and allowed us to just sit back and let the race come to us. Unfortunately, the swim line stopped for about five minutes when one of the athletes dove in the water and experience cardiac arrest and died. Our hearts go out to the family and friends that came to cheer him on today, and really makes us reflect on how fragile and precious life is. Rest in peace, Ironman.
My swim started with leaky goggles, but once I got that fixed we were under way. I settled into a strong pace and was really enjoying myself until about 1 mile into the swim. My left arch started cramping up something fierce, and I had to stop every five minutes or so to try to rub it out. I found that if I stopped kicking I could keep the cramp at bay, so it was good to get out of the water and onto the bike. I occasionally get those cramps in my feet at night too, and will disturb my saintly wife by jumping out of bed and putting weight on the arch (which is the quickest way to cure it).
Alvah and I hit T2 together, but took a bit longer than we had hoped after his fuel belt broke as soon as he pulled it out of his bag. Alvah would now be getting his nutrition on the course! We ran the first several miles together, but I lost touch with him after mile 2 since I had trouble getting my heart rate down. We met again at mile 6 after Alvah made a porta-potty stop and ran together again for a bit. We both seemed to hit a bit of a wall at mile 12, but after walking for 1/2 mile we both got our wind back and started chugging away. Alvah looked great as I saw him go by on the out and back, and my mission at that point was to stay running as long as possible.
Truly the best part of Ironman is the family and friends that support your effort. I have had the pleasure of developing some of the greatest friendships through triathlon, and wouldn't trade it for the world. My business "Nice Tri" has also opened up the doors to meet new people and get to train and race with them and I'm very thankful for what a great year we've had in 2011. I want to thank every friend, family member or curious onlooker that tracked our progress through the day.
Lastly (but most importantly), I wanted to publicly thank my wonderful wife for all she has done. The support and encouragement, the travel to races and providing wisdom and advice are a just a few ways that she truly stands by me and defines the phrase "better half". Training and racing would not be nearly as fun or rewarding without your support.
In conclusion: Ironman Louisville 2011 was a terrific success and a wonderful experience we'll treasure for a lifetime!
