Ironman Arizona - TriathlonFull Ironman

I was hoping around 1hr to 1:05 for the swim. My biggest mistake is where i seeded myself. I was to the far left and about 20 meters back. I have never been in a mass start so i just didn't know about all the bodies. The first half of the race i was basically catching a draft, realized they were too slow then zipped past them, found more feet, too slow again. I just wanted some clean water. I would say the first15-20 minutes i could not breathe correctly as i was trying to dodge bodies. Just about the 1/2 way point i found some clean water to the far inside and swam just to the left of some guy that was going the speed i wanted. Reached halfway point in 37 minutes. Once on the backside, i had clean water all the way till the last turn in to the stairs. Basically drafted of the same guy the whole way. 31 minutes and some change... now that was more like it. I got out the water and feeling really good, not tired at all.

Next IM or Mass start, I will move to the front of the line and battle from there vs farther back.

Overall good transition. Helmet and glassed on without a hitch, put on socks to be on the safe side as this was going to be a long day. Spray on sunscreen again and off for the bike

nothing - freakin tons of help

From the start you had a wind to your face of some kind on the way out. My hr monitor was acting up the first 20 minutes or so, i couldnt get a new read (new batteries in both). Finally it started to work consistently and my hr was too high. From my training my bike always is a little high but will come down so i was just cruising along. On the beeline it is a gradual uphill all the way and the wind was blowing fairly good but i was avg over 16 mph at the turn around. Never felt like i was pushing so this was good. On a bad note my stomach was hurting, I could blame it on the water i was swallowing but in reality this is normally a sign of pushing it a little too hard. On the way down the beeline.... now this was fun, i was barely pedalling and going over 30mph, i peaked out at 41.2 mph. As i came into town i checked my watch and first lap was 1:51, instant calculations and i was on track for 5:35-5:40 bike split. 2nd mistake, with the heat and wind I should have backed off the pace and save some for the run. On my 2nd loop i started to slow down some as i knew i was going too fast for conditions. As i approached the Beeline, there were too bikers ride side by side and talking. I attempted to pass the inside corner and at the last 2nd i saw the glass pile and ran over it. 2 flats, just like that. The volunteer then proceeded to clean up the large area of glass, after my flats. 24 minutes to change both, rear disc was 7 minutes, front 8 minutes. I aired up my disc, went to put air in front and my valve extender was cracked... what the hell. In a time of panic, i pulled the wheel off the bike again, ripped off the tire, and put old valve extender on aired it up and moved on. What i should have done was just screw it off and inserted new one while still attached. Oh well. In the meantime my stomach settled, another indicator of going to fast. My other concern was i had no desire to pee, I felt like i was drinking enough water but i knew i wasnt since i had no desire. After getting back on the bike i should have just cruised the rest of the way, instead i picked up my cadence and flew up the beeline, by the time i got to go down my legs were tired. I cruised down the beeline and got my Hr back under control. 3rd loop i did in 2hrs, nothing fancy just trying to drink more fluids. I stopped once to see if i could pee, a dribble of deep yellow, not good.

I should have gone slower first loop with the conditions and not pushed so hard after my flats. Of course more water. Nutrition felt ok

3 glasses of water, new socks, sunscreen again, hat, shoes and i was off

nothing

When I first left the changing tent my legs actually felt ok. I hit mile 1 at 8:32, mile 2 at 17:01. Then i had the first signs of a long day, My core temp began to sore and i started to see some spots. I stopped and walked, collected my self for a few moments and then began to run again. At mile 4 i took in some gatorade and instantly i felt like i had to throw up, i saw a tree by the bridge and walked too it and sat down. At this point my hr was sailing in the 170's, i was seeing a sea of spots. A lady brought me a large 24oz bottle of cold water and gave it to me, asked me if i was ok and of course i said yes, just needed to cool down. 10 minutes or so went by, I had thoughts of DNF as i knew the signs of heat stroke/exhaustion. I decided to ride it out, once i felt better, my hr down I decided if needed i would walk the remaining 22 miles. I walked about 100 meters, then both quads cramped up, another 5 minutes of massage and walking thru the pain and i was good to go. I walked mile 4-7, then I felt like i could finally run again. I slowed my pace dramatically and i would run 4 - 6 minutes, then walk 1 minute. I could bore you with all the other details but this was basically my race the rest of the way. I met quite a few people along the way. During this time I found a true respect for the distance all the abilities of what the pro's can do and top AG'rs. Also the everyday folks like myself and the willingness to just chug along and determined to finish. At mile 22 my feet were aching, mile 23 i was getting excited and i ran the last 3 miles of the race. Crossing the line, i was so excited, My wife Nicole was there yelling my name, I heard my name from Mike, Jamie Bachman from Austin Texas 37, first time ironman...you are an Ironman. I couldn't believe it. I did it.

I could blame it on alot of things. It was my fault, my run is so much stronger, but you have to have respect to the bike to have a good run. Stomach hurts, your going to fast on the bike, settle down. One good thing about the run, i pushed thru alot of pain and it will help me down the road.

Nicole paid for a massage, stretch vs the 1hr wait for a free one. Sat on the grass with Nicole and thanked her for all the support. I could not have done this without her or any of my friends


poor bike pacing, lack of water
on a side note. race morning i weighed 155, when i got back to hotel 142. That was after a bottle of water and 3 pieces of pizza


My first attempt at IM distance, there will be another but not until 2010 per the MRS, I have a 1 year old son and 3 year old daughter that lost some time with daddy. Now if i get a lottery spot next year, the wife said ok. :)