TOMahawk is definitely readyPRERACE: Race morning could not have been much better. Not to warm not to cold but you could tell it was going to get Hot later in the day. Leslie and I left home earlier this year to get to the race in plenty of time. We ended up parking about 1 mile from the transition area. I put my helmet on and rode my bike. Leslie walked it in. I had a good setup spot right on the end and it was the last row before the fence. I saw TOMb, TOMmomma and the TOM-A-Lots, before the race. I made sure I put on some sunscreen after last years tanning misadventures. I saw Leslie and Becky on the beach. I think Becky was asking Leslie what kind of cake I would like for our next Team party. I saw Britta and Joe and Leslie took this picture of us.
HappinessSWIM: The swim was good. I was in the last wave of 7. After years of being anxious before the swim starts I was very relaxed this year. I think Ironman will do that for you. I positioned myself in the middle and when we got the go ahead I started to swim at an even pace with no contact from any of my wave mates. I finished in 35 minutes which is a good time for me. I can’t complain.
Where in the T1 is TOMahawk?BIKE: The bike was uneventful. The road conditions were not the best but there was still plenty of a good road. I saw the Devil lady on the hill and I made sure I stayed hydrated and took my endurolytes. I put my front wheel on backwards so my bike computer never worked. Nothing I could do about that at the time. I still had my heart rate monitor. I could tell the second loop was a lot slower than the first and could feel the heat working on me. I finished in 3:07 and avg 17.9 mph.
RUN: For me the run was what I like to call a “character builder” It started off hot and just got hotter. I thought I was doing OK on the first loop, time wise, but the heat really took its toll on me on the second loop. It was really weird my body felt OK, my legs were strong but my heart and mind said take it slow. So I listened. I didn’t want Leslie to have to bring me home in a body bag. It just wouldn’t be fair to her because she was so supportive on that day. I did see and hear Carla cheering as I was heading out on the run.
I thank the guy with the hose and the kids with the squirt guns for helping to keep me cool as possible. I spent at least 5 minutes of the run getting hosed down. I finished the run in 2:11
POST RACE: Overall I finished in 6:00 53 seconds (I knew I shouldn’t have made that pit stop and I would have been under 6 hours. Oh well)
My time was 29 minutes over last year’s effort which was raced under more favorable weather conditions. But in the end I made it to the Finish line which is really what was important to me on that day. I saw the TOMTOMs (Chuck had another great race) and my other Teammates and supporters and we discussed upcoming events planned for the summer. After we left the race site Leslie and I made the long walk back to the car. It felt like a kick in the pants after racing on that hot day!!! PS> I practically ate a whole pizza later on when I got home.
Timberman 70.3 is next up in August 08 and I am thinking of an Ironman for 2009. I would like to take a crack at Ironman France someday but so far Leslie is not being supportive. I am going to continue to try and convince her that it would be like a vacation for her. Wish me luck
