Ironman Austria: 4 July 2010

Ironman Austria 2009 was perhaps our best ironman experience in more than 25 finishes and we desperately wanted to return in 2010. However the race had been filled within days of the 2009 event and it didn’t look like we would be going back. Five months later we received an early Christmas gift: the sold out race would be offering 50 charity spots! Unfortunately, the odds were slim that we would be able to secure not one but two entries as they were going on sale over the internet to the entire world at one instant – 2:00am on December 11^th! As luck would have it, we were able to snatch two spots and so our 2010 triathlon preparations would begin before the new year. Here’s how our races unfolded seven months later…

Jami’s race: As I stood at the water’s edge with the fog hovering over Lake Wörthersee and shielding my view of the mountains, my confidence for the swim was high. This winter, we had focused intently on our swim program by attending not only a three-day Walnut Creek Masters Intensive Training Camp which focused on technique with video analysis but also a USMS Open Water Clinic with tips from the best open water swimmers in the country. For the race, we strategized on the best position for the in-water mass start (new this year) which would afford the least congested water with the straightest line to the first buoy.

When the cannon fired, our strategy was validated. I was able to take full strokes and gained a lot of ground in the opening meters. The rectangular course ran counter-clockwise starting with 1400 meters to the first turn, then left for 500 meters and finally 1900 meters back towards the shore. The final 900 meters leading to the finish would funnel thousands of swimmers into a narrow 25-meter wide canal where everyone would be competing for limited space. As I aimed towards the canal, the sun shone directly in my eyes so I could only use the arms in front of me and the shore beside me as a rough guide. In the canal I felt as if I was in a clogged drain being entangled by tree roots, weeds and other swimmers. But my time was four minutes faster than last year!

Ironman transitions can be long since the distance from the swim finish to the beginning of the bike can be quite lengthy. My transition took about four minutes, but was one of the fastest in my age category. I ran so hard that I registered my highest heart rate of the day in T1! By this time (around 8:15am) the fog had lifted with perfect temperatures for racing. I stuck to my heart rate and power plans for the first loop of the bike and felt great starting the 2^nd loop, except for some low back pain which I was able to stretch out by standing out of the saddle. By this time the temps and humidity had risen and it was starting to feel like an oven. Because of the heat, I had been drinking more water than usual and consequently ran out between two aid stations leaving my nutrition sitting in my stomach. But relief would soon come in the form of dark clouds which cooled things down a bit. However my relief was short-lived as my ears rung with the clap of thunder and my face blasted by the increasing winds. Soon the sky opened up, the rain came pouring down and steam arose from the tarmac. Slick roads and technical descents called for caution. I soon noticed my heart rate dropping- a sign that nutrients weren’t being absorbed so I resolved to drink more fluid to get my stomach lining to expand to aid in absorption. I also slowed down to coax some blood from my cycling muscles to aid with digestion.

Before entering T2, I knew I was not on pace to beat my best Ironman finish, but thought that if I could pull off a personal best run, I might still be within 10 minutes. I set off on the 26.2 mile journey and due to the conservative efforts on the bike, was able to run without stomach pain for the first nine miles. Then the pain returned like a bout of the stomach flu. Walking would help, but I didn’t want to give in. Instead, I tried to slow down just enough to help my stomach settle while taking in fluids. However, the additional 4 minutes/mile amounted to 45 minutes lost! While I’m very disappointed with my overall performance, I take solace in the fact that I was able to minimize the damage to still cross the finish line before it got dark!

We both experienced nutritional challenges with Jami’s starting on the bike

The marathon was a test of wills for both of us

Sherwick’s race: Das Beste oder Nichts…The Best or Nothing! I had seen this on a television ad days prior to the race so this would become my motto for the day...

Swim times among age-groupers were not terribly fast for this course – in 2009, only 23 out of 483 men in my age-group had broken one hour! We figured the canal had something to do with that. The new in-water start helped with minimizing the chaos and I was only kicked in the goggles once! The silicon cap which they provided, although warm, worked its way off my head and I had to stop twice to pull it back down. Nevertheless, I came out of the water in 1:00:30 registering 24^th out of 480 in my age category!

I put socks on in T1 to prevent chafing but would not realize this was not the best decision until T2. The bike, similar to last year, started off in a frenzy with a big group coming out of the water together jockeying for position along the winding lake road for the first 10km, trying to avoid each other as well as the draft marshals. My P4 felt fast and stable so I was a little shocked to discover that my first lap was over a minute slower than last year even though I recorded an average of 234 watts! I put the dour news aside and was confident that I could improve the second half to better my bike time from last year… but thunderstorms and downpours (starting at the highest point on the course - the Rupertiberg - nonetheless!) would put a damper on that idea. I ended up another 2 minutes down on the second lap. Thankfully, I had no idea of this fact as my bike computer had stopped working as soon as it began to rain.

My run has been improving steadily over the past few years and I felt strong going into T2. But my socks were sopping wet from the rain as I squashed on my run shoes! I started the run at a moderate pace but unlike last year, was unable to improve upon the opening kilometers. Instead of seeing my splits getting faster, they were going the wrong way! A trip to the port-o-john at mile 3 gave me the first clue that something was not right. I was two minutes down at the halfway point and just after I left the 21.1km aid station all the life seemed to be sucked out of me. Immediately my pace shot up by 1 minute per mile. I was now in a world of hurt! A dropping heart rate meant that my energy reserves were too low and I struggled to get to the next aid station. When I finally arrived, I took in Infinit, water and cola while walking the entire station. Once I started running again, my pace steadily improved. But I had lost 10 more minutes on the second half of the run. On a different day under different conditions, the outcome may have been better. But my best effort on this day resulted in 4^th American overall and 2^nd American in my age-group (with 1^st a mere 8 seconds ahead). I even managed to pass the final age-grouper in the finish line chute while stumbling over the ramp…Das Beste oder Nichts!