On June 23rd I exchanged a day of my life for something extraordinary at
Ironman Coeur d'Alene. The trip started with a flight to Spokane
Washington. I was regretting the 4:15 am wake up for the 6:00 am flight
for the whole rest of the day. It turns out, in the end I was happy to
be on a 4:00 am wake up schedule.We rented our car and drove about 45 minutes to the race village at the city park on Lake Coeur d'Alene. It was GORGEOUS. Everything was gorgeous, the endless trees, the endless lake view and the hills. The village as a soppy muddy mess. It had rained the few days previously. We picked up our packets, and I thanked the heavens I booked a flight arriving on Friday in time for mandatory pickup. My iron-supporter Caleb and iron-friend Tiffany and I worked our way through the village and left in search of food. We found a neat place called Capone's Pub & Grill after asking an Ironman employee on site.
Caleb and I talked to pro TJ Tollakson for a few minutes about his Zipp Bike since Caleb has the same retro tri-bike before leaving the village.
We definitely felt like tourists! We stopped to take a photo at the Idaho line, where we were greeted by a Idaho police officer who just wanted to chat. Then we asked our waitress if they served chips and salsa, as well as margaritas. It turns out they have both of those in Idaho. Our Captain Beech MJ joined us at the restaurant along with her husband, Jim, and son, Quinn.
We grabbed some groceries and stopped by Tri Team Transport to pick up our tri-bags before we headed to our condo on the other side of the lake. The Worldmark Arrow Point Resort condo was great and it had just what I needed, a bed to sleep in at 4:30 pm. I called it a night and slept like a baby til about 5:00 am! The next day we we went for a short run around the condo before heading to the village. It was about a 30-40 minute drive to the race site. We picked up our bikes and took them for a test ride, then took them to drop off in Transition. We stopped off for a presentation called "Secrets of the Course." It was informative and started to get me excited about the big day coming up the next morning. MJ, Tiffany and I took a swim in the lake. It really wasn't too bad. Tiffany and I actually swam without wetsuits. This gave of us come confidence and for me it kept my suit dry for the cool morning that was to come. Caleb, Jim and Quinn had been out for a rafting trip on the Spokane River and joined us for food at Capone's again. It seemed like two days full of prepping, but we were finally ready for the last sleep before race day. We relaxed around the condo and went to bed pretty early. I think about 6:30.
3:30 am came around and we were up for the last prepping and breakfast before the race. Caleb droves us to transition and we jumped out of the car. It was a busy hour or so dropping off bags, filling water bottles and getting suited up. The crowd made getting around very difficult. Spectators and athletes were EVERYWHERE. Caleb and I dropped off my bike and run special needs bags, which I ended up not stopping for. A tip I took from Tiffany and the pros at the "Secrets of the Course" presentation. In the bike bag I had a candy bar, cookies and a spare tube. In the run bag I had a headlamp and arm warmers. The morning temperature was cold. In the 40s I think. The lake had fog rising from it, since the water temp was in the 60s. Caleb and I walked a few blocks to find a portapotty without a line. I did some business and got my wetsuit on. I was feeling calm and ready. I said my final goodbye to Caleb and mentioned I planned to see him in about 14 and a half hours.
The start was rolling this year. That meant we were allowed a warm up swim and then seeded ourselves based on projected swim time. I planned to swim in one hour and twenty minutes. The music playing on the beach was enjoyable and all the energy around me was peaceful and excited. It was a perfect surrounding of strangers. We started moving forward as a group and then we heard the cannon go off. It was about seven minutes later that I entered the water with about 30 other people in arms reach. We dove in and took off. The lake was pleasant with a wetsuit! I aborted my bilateral breathing to cope with crowds and later decided to stick with unilateral breathing so that I could push my pace and feel like I had enough air. I focused on just making it to the first buoy. Then I focused on the next one and the next one. Before I knew it, it was time to turn, go about 150 meters then turn back towards the beach. I arrived at the beach with only one major hit to the face. I had a chance to breath and jog back to start the second loop. Again the energy and music on the beach were awesome. I enjoyed feeling the earth under my feet and saw that I was right on track for my goal, with the first loop in 37 minutes. The second loop more of the same strategy. I felt a little slower, but didn't worry. I finished the 2.4 miles in 1:19:50 and saw my husband as I ran up to transitions. I was excited to yell my swim time to him!
I was feeling major leg cramping. Pretty much my whole left leg, so my jog/walk to the changing tent was more of a speed walk. I looked for the first seat I could find, plopped down and started adding gear to my body! I had a small belt with a flask in it, arm warmers, bike shorts and a helmet to put on. I loved having a helmet with a visor so I didn't have to worry about sunglasses. It also turned out to be way more comfortable than having glasses on. I saw my husband outside of transition as I was searching for my bike. I took a second to smile and stick my tongue out at him and I was off. The first part of the bike went through town and then along the lake for 6.5 mile out and and then back. It was absolutely gorgeous. A few miles after the turn around I spotted some friends Jennifer and MJ. I was excited to see them looking good. Then we headed out of town on a highway. It was great to do 22 miles without a single turn. Along the largest climb, two miles at a 6% grade, I was passed by a friend, Jimmy. I was feeling pretty good for the whole first loop. After the turnaround it was 22 more miles without a turn. After the turn I saw Jennifer and then MJ again. On the way back we had a three mile climb at 4% grade, during which TJ Tollakson passed me on his second bike loop. Both climbs went smooth for the first loop.
The second loop started out great. I saw Tiffany after her turn around
along the lake. It was awesome to yell our love across the street. Once I
was out on the highway I started feeling a little sluggish. The hills
started to feel much harder. I chatted with fellow riders a couple of
times and then chatted with a friend from San Antonio, Lisa. Seeing Lisa
lifted my spirits greatly. It was so nice to leap frog with her a few
times. I hit the turn around and knew I was in the home stretch. Only 22
miles left to go. I finished the bike a few minutes ahead of my goal in
7:18:47. 15.32 mph average speed. My goal for this race was to execute
my run. For that reason, I was conservative on the bike. I told myself
several times to, "Just get through it."The short answer is that it worked! I executed my run in 4:44. I started out with the goal of 11:30 min/mile and after a few miles I was feeling good. My plan was also to watch my heart rate. I did so for about 1.5 miles before I started dumping ice in my bra to cool me off. It turns out my HR monitor doesn't work when it's covered in ice. Lets just say that with the ice, the weather was glorious! The high was 79 degrees. I ran with runners high for 26.2 miles! The spectators were amazing. I had people yell out my name at least 100 times, since it was printed on my bib.
The course was 6.5 miles out and back, times two. We went through town then along the lake (same as the first part of the bike) along a paved running trail. Aid stations were packed with volunteers about one mile apart. The lake was lined with boats and cheering spectators. I really pushed the pace heading to the half way point because I knew I would see my husband. I gave him my permission to enjoy his day away from the race. He was able to see a movie, catch a plane tour of the lake and make it back to cheer for me on the run. It was smooth sailing until the last 2.5 miles. I slowed down a bit, but still felt like I was running the best run of my life. I had a huge smile the whole time. I thanked all 100 people who called out my name to cheer. I chatted as I walked portions of the hills and cheered for other runners and friends. I almost cried with joy with 5 miles to go. I managed to hold it back until the finisher chute. Just before the arch I lost it! I cried like a baby! I came in at 13:36:55!! My heart was full of joy. It was quite the PR from my last 140.6 in 16:20.
I would absolutely recommend this race! Just be ready for hills and be ready to sign up soon after registrations opens. Also, book your room at least a year in advance if you can. The Couer d'Alene resort is right at the finish line. So that would be a great option if you plan far enough ahead.
I also recommend taking a day trip to visit the Hiawatha Trail in Montana. It was a great ride! We went 11 miles down and 11 miles back up the start. There were many tunnels with one being two miles long. Also, if you have an interest in Down Hill Biking, make sure you stay for the following weekend. A near by ski resort offers it, but are not open on weekdays in June. We wished we had been able to do it!
Photos from the Hiawatha Trail.Nutrition Report: For this race, I hired Jennifer Lentzky, pro-triathlete and nutritionist. I used her help with everyday nutrition as well as race nutrition. I sent her a detailed report of Tall Texan 70.3 and discovered I was under-fueled. Her help really paid off in CDA.
Breakfast: Toast with jelly, coffee, scrambled eggs & lots of water
Pre-race: 12 oz water in hour before start
Bike: Carbopro concentrate in water / EFS gel in a flask -- I alternated with the two, eating every 15 minutes; Carbopro supplements with 2 MetaSalts every hour; Reisen chocolate carmel candy x 5 (this helped me get through the tough miles).
Run: One Gu gel every 30 minutes; Carbopro supplements with 2 MetaSalts every hour; water in a small 8 oz handheld that I refilled while running from aid station cups.
I elected not to use any caffeine after breakfast. I felt good without it and had not been testing it in recent training.
Tri Team Transport was incredible. Natasha and her husband were awesome to work with! They quickly located a valve extender for me when mine was missing, offered detailed instructions before the event, and were very accessible while in CDA. In addition, they picked up my bike from transition after the race and hand washed it for me. I could not believe they did that! They also let me drop off my tri-bag for transport back to San Antonio so that I wouldn't have to fly with it.
Random Info:
* I mastered peeing on my bike for the first time. And peed on it about five times! I know it's gross, but it sure beats stopping and waiting in a porta potty line.
* Lodging is also available in near by towns like Spokane
* Rental cars are expensive so book early to save money
* Tri Team Transport offers group rates so contact them for more info
* Britton's Bikes frequently delivers bikes to CDA as well
* Ironman is a basically a four day event. Packet Pickup Day; Bike Drop Off Day; Race Day; and Finisher Gear Day. We woke up early for a third day in a row to drive to the village and buy a finisher jacket! This isn't required obviously but is only available the day after the race.
* People say CDA is a great place for kids with playgrounds, food etc at the race area
* I was fortunate to not have to tend to children during the prepping and recovery
* I slept for an entire day after the race!
* Caleb and I stayed at the Coeur d'Alene resort for two nights after the race. It was a beautiful resort. And even though we had a weekday rate, it was still pricey.
