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Ironman Coeur d’Alene |
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We were back at
Coeur d’Alene, Idaho for another ironman. In 2006 we had ventured to this
beautiful venue quite a bit under trained buoyed only by the fitness from
Ironman New Zealand which had been changed to a half-distance duathlon due to
weather conditions. This year we were more prepared under the guidance of our
coach, the great Mark Allen, but this would be our first
ironman race since starting with Mark’s plan which emphasized aerobic
conditioning. Our primary concern leading up to this race was how cold the
water would be race morning. When we arrived five days prior, the temp was
only 54°F. It was so cold that Ironman North America made an exception to
their rules by allowing booties. Mark had suggested that we don O’Neill
neoprene thermal shirts in addition to our Blue Seventy booties and neoprene
caps. The thermal shirts actually added to our buoyancy while the booties would
help with the run into transition. On the other hand, the booties tended to
fill with water - bad! So many decisions…but we stuck with our plan for
better or for worse. On the bright side, the ambient temperatures and calm
conditions were predicting a great day. Here is
Sherwick’s recap: “By race morning
the water temps had warmed up to 59°F and the swim was actually quite
pleasant. It took about a mile to get out of traffic and gain control of my
breathing and my swim was uncharacteristically slow which I could partially
blame on the booties - note taken. The bike started
off very smooth except for one bump in the road at mile 9 – literally. While
passing another athlete, I lost one of my bottles of Fluid Energizer holding
800 calories when I hit a seam in the road which launched my bottle. It
wasn’t until mile 63 that I was able to get my second bottle of Fluid
Energizer at special needs. I kept my heart rate in the mid-140s as
prescribed and at times the ride even felt easy! On lap two, my heart rate
was 5 beats lower although the effort was slightly higher. A strong headwind
for the final 5 miles of each lap greeted me but my splits showed a
relatively steady pace for the 112 miles: BIKE SPLIT 1: 34 mi (1:47:07), 19.04 mph BIKE SPLIT 2: 90 mi (3:01:54),
18.47 mph BIKE SPLIT 3: 112 mi
(1:12:10), 18.29 mph TOTAL BIKE: 112 mi (6:01:11),
18.61 mph I felt the
beginning twinges of cramping in the first mile of the run but by the time I
turned around to head into town, I was running around 7:50s which I was able
to maintain halfway into the first lap. My pace then slowed to 8:15s and
8:30s with mile 10 showing 9:00! I found that I had to really focus on my
form to run 8:45s but my concentration would not get me through 13 more miles.
I knew I had to try something else and decided to take in coke earlier than
planned. 8:30s then came rather easily for lap two. With ten miles to go, I
started my build and having a target also helped - my friend Dale Jackson had
a 30 minute lead off the bike but now was within striking distance! When he
saw me, he started running harder but I managed to catch him with 3 miles to
go! My pace was in the low 8:00s but three age-group males passed me in the
last mile. I really had nothing to offer them.” Here is what
Jami had to say about her race: “My aim was to
minimize the inevitable contact inherent to any mass swim start with over
4000 moving arms and legs. So I started the swim where the fewest swimmers were
situated. Nevertheless one big foot found its way to my goggles immediately
filling them with water! But the momentary blindness didn’t slow me down as
much as the drag from my water-filled socks. I posted my slowest Ironman swim
ever, but exited the water in anticipation for how the next 138.2 miles would
turn out. The course was
hilly so I let my heart rate drift higher than my maximum aerobic rate of 147
bpm. Holding back while others passed me was mentally challenging, but I knew
I’d reap the benefits on the second 56-mile loop. I was able to abide by my
tactics throughout the race: using the downhill sections for free speed, braking deeper into and
accelerating out of each turn, all the while maintaining my aero position for
the majority of the ride. Consequently, I conserved energy and felt better
than ever on the second loop when I was able to push harder while others were
failing. I lost only a fraction of time (the speed difference between the two
laps was less than 1 mph), but my overall bike time was almost one hour
slower than my best. Perhaps I took it too easy. I failed to meet
my goals to PR on the swim and bike, but the run was still to come and I felt
great! Aside from a slight stumble upon dismounting my bike, I got my
"running legs" sooner than I ever have. I was holding back every
step on the run, anxious to “let it rip”, which I was prepared to do with 10
miles to go. At mile 16, I released the pent up energy and upped my effort.
My heart rate began to drop indicating I was low on calories so I opted for
my denser Fluid Energizer over coke although the caffeine would’ve surely
given me a boost. I actually felt like my feet could run faster than my body
could keep pace until the last two miles which proved to be the most
challenging. Every step took a lot of effort and my form was faltering.
Mentally, I was suddenly weary and images of Chupps running next to me came to
mind- an inspiration I often seek since he would keep running even when he
was most tired! Heading down the final chute with the crowd roaring and
cheering was for me the most exciting part of this race. In addition, I had
my parents there on race day and was racing with my newly-wed husband and
several long-time friends so I had the most enjoyable race ever!” We wish to send
David Ridder, our friend who couldn’t make the start due to his serious
injury from Auburn’s World’s Toughest, a speedy recovery - we can’t
wait to have you back out there with us! We’d also like to thank our parents,
Marva and Al Andrews, for trekking 15 hours with their dogs to watch us race.
We were most appreciative of their presence and the awesome handmade poster
they made for us! We both had pleasurable races but our slowest Ironman times
(unrelated to nutrition issues) and it was evident that our aerobic engines
would take a little longer to fully develop. Our optimal performances from
our newly-adopted low-heart-rate training will have to wait for Ironman Austria 2009! |
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Sherwick’s Garmin download from the marathon |
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Jami 12:23:49, 38th
age-group, 129th female |
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Sherwick 11:02:46, 53rd
age-group, 223rd male |
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Tri for Real |
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After the
ironman, we needed a “transition” race for the second half of our season so
we chose the Tri for Real olympic-distance triathlon. Although we weren’t
100% recovered from Coeur dA’lene, we both had “ok” races. Sherwick’s swim
was fairly competitive but the bike and run were off, placing him 6th
among the 40-44 men and 18th overall. Jami had a great start to
her race clocking one of her best 1.5K swims. She passed several other
athletes as she redlined her effort all the way to through the run finishing
in 3rd for her age group and 5th overall. Once again,
Jami’s parents came out for the race and we’d like to thank them for their
continued support! |
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Jami 2:26:56, 3rd
age-group, 5th female |
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Sherwick 2:17:10, 6th
age-group, 18th male |
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Vineman Aquabike |
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The Vineman
Aquabike was next on our list and we had originally thought that skipping the
hardest part of an ironman would make the race easier. Well it didn’t. In
fact, both of us had forgettable races including dreadful bike rides.
Sherwick cramped severely at mile 85 with the second 56-mile loop almost 2 mph
slower! Although Jami put out her second fastest ironman swim, she too
cramped on the bike (for the first time ever) and was uncomfortable during the
entire bike ride. A professional bike fit was in order so we went to Front of the Pack in Palo Alto. Darrell Eng had a different approach to
bike fitting emphasizing comfort over pure aerodynamics or power. The logic
was that if we weren’t comfortable on our bicycles, everything else goes out
the window. So we made some rather subtle changes which actually resulted in
a dramatic difference to our comfort level while in the aerodynamic position -
but as any triathlete will tell you, comfort is a relative term! We are looking forward to our latter races
in the season! |
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Jami 7:57:39, 3rd
age-group, 9th female |
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Sherwick 7:00:17, 8th
age-group, 23rd male |
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Enjoy the ride! --Team JaS
Special thanks to our sponsors: Drive
Systems USA / AFAM Parts |
