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Outlaw 2012 race reports
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Sorry in advance for the length of my blog:
The Outlaw - 1/5 - The Final Prep So after all the build up, the training(ish), and the planning the weekend of the Outlaw was finally upon us. Lauren and I missed out on our friends surprise party, which we were gutted about, so that we could get packed on Friday night and get an early night ready for a prompt start on Saturday. What we had to pack was extensive! My race stuff looked something like this:Swim:
- Wetsuit
- Trisuit
- Bodyglide
- Goggles
- Cap (Pick up at expo)
- Hayfever tablets
Bike:
- Bike
- Cycle Jersey
- Cycle Shorts
- Socks
- Lube
- Energy Gels
- Mule Bars
- Cycle Shoes
- Helmet
- Gloves
- Suncream
- Towel
- Pump
- Tools
- Inner Tubes
- Joe Blow
- Number belt
- Race Number (Expo)
Run:
- Shorts
- Shirt
- Trainers
- Cap
- Sweatband
- Socks
- Pants
- Fannypack
- Towel
I think that was the lot. Either way I had everything I needed. Lauren dealt with the normal stuff you take for a weekend away and so we went to sleep Friday happy all was ready for the off.
Saturday we set off a little later than hoped but not by much, a quick stop at Sainsburys for some food for the journey and we were heading to Nottingham by 9am, 156 miles to go not far off the distance I would travel the next day of 140.6 miles. The journey up was ok, plenty of traffic on the M1 but no major delays and we arrived at the Watersports centre around 12.
We parked up and got out my bike and kit to get it all prepped and down to the start, as we did so other athletes were doing the same. Way to feel inadequate! There was thousands upon thousands of pounds worth of kit on show, shiny bikes, pointy helmets, and me and Lauren were labouring with my beat up old Specialized Allez trying to get the wheel back on. Lauren had been taking a keen interest in my prep though and had seen that people taped energy gels to their bike and so we had a good laugh getting those attached. Then with kit packed and bike in one piece we headed for the registration area.
Once there it all got a bit crazy, I was intending to swim 1.5km in the Speedo big swim to get me used to my wetsuit at half 3 but time just got away from us. I left Lauren looking after the bike as I went to register, she then came to find me and sent the bike in for a last minute look over from one of the mechanics they had there for the princely sum of £15! I now had my race bags/numbers etc but I had to get to the race briefing by 1 and so ran off leaving Lauren with the kit and the bike.
Lauren made friends whilst I listened to a fairly dull briefing that went on for an hour and essentially spoke about what I had read in the race information pack. I was out of there by two and Lauren and I then moved our kit from the bag we had bought into the various kit bags ready for the changing tents. We rushed down and got the bags stowed away and then the bike into transition.
It was now half 2 as we watched the Big Speedo 3km swim start. There was some poor soul at the back who was almost drowning from the get go and I'm not sure he would have finished. Lauren and I were now heading back to the car to get my wetsuit so I could change and do the swim in under an hours time, but as the wind picked up and the rain came down I decided to call off the planned swim and just go to the hotel and check in. The plan had been to do it to get confident in the open water and have some practise but I was shattered and conditions were far from ideal so I just felt it would have knocked my confidence.
The hotel was the Jury's Inn and it was perfect just two miles from the start and nice and roomy. Back in the room I got my tri-suit and wetsuit on whilst Lauren had a quick nap and we then both
I had to make a few last minute adjustments to my transition bag, adding my cycle shoes, pinning on my race number to my running shirt and a few other little tweaks but I left the tent happy that everything was in place ready for my long day.
Whilst I had been in the tent Lauren had been talking to some other spectators and they all confirmed what Lauren had suspected I am nuts! It's his first tri? He's never done an open water swim? He's crazy. Well we were soon to find out how it was all going to turn out, but first we had to get on that blasted wetsuit!
Lauren and I found a quiet corner and got cracking, I was already in my Trisuit so Lauren got to work with the body glide stick making sure to get my neck, shoulders,wrists hoping to stop the wetsuit rubbing during my two hour swim. I then attempted to get the wet suit on and made a pretty good effort apart from the crotch part of the wet suit being about 4 inches too low and so Lauren told me jump as she pulled it up. It did work, but to any onlookers we must have looked like a right pair of prats.
There was now about 40 minutes to the race and so I decided to make my way through to the start area. Kissed Lauren goodbye, leaving her looking more than a little bit worried and I knew how she felt!
Around 5:40 they started calling us through and into the lake ready for the off. I was keen to get going so went in pretty pronto. I eased myself into the lake, and as promised it was a fairly warm 18 degrees and I was in a wetsuit so felt fine. As feared the minute I got in the water I needed the loo and I didn't fight it and just warmed myself up even more. I tried to paddle away from the hotspot in the hopes of avoiding detection by my fellow swimmers and I think I succeeded.
I treaded water on the right of the lake with the other slower swimmers but had inadvertantly found myself at the front and so I knew I was going to take a few hits. The hooter sounded at 6am and we were off, the hits duely came, but I got going and into some kind of a rhytm, it was nice to have people around as I knew the kind of time I was hoping to swim would mean a lonely last half.
There isn't a huge amount to say about the swim, you put your head in the water right, left, breathe, right, left, breathe look up to see where the hell you are going, can't see where the hell you are going and repeat. The field began to spread out but I felt my pace stayed fairly consistent on the way out. I was waiting for the turn around buoys and hoped the return leg would be easier knowing what lay ahead.
But before the turn around there was my first scare of the day as my right calf began to cramp after 40 minutes swimming. I tread water for a second then attempted one stroke of breast stroke and then thought better of it. As my head bobbed in the water I did start to worry this might be my day done. But in the middle of a lake there isn't a whole lot of choice get fished out or try to get yourself home. I began to swim crawl with just my arms and I finally made it to the turn around buoy where I managed to see some other heads in the water so I knew I wasn't dead last I looked at my watch at what I believed was half way and it showed 45 minutes.
I went round the end buoy and began to head back towards the crowds and the swim finish in the distance. By now my legs had begun to wake up and so I could kick a little. The pace slowed as I was now getting some rough waters, the wind had obviously b
I was now coming up to a couple of tight turns to get out of the Water Sports Centre and out onto the open roads. As I slowed for them, I saw Lauren cheering wildly and that was a lovely little lift as I knew it would be a while before I saw her again.
The first quarter of the bike couldn't have gone much better, the weather was good and there was a small group of 5 or 6 riders who I would see from time to time. Each of us leap frogging the other. There was a pirate, a guy in black, a guy in red with a very expensive looking bike and another pirate called Martin who I would continue to see through out the ride, as well as a couple of other riders.
I had read about drafting before the race and so whenever I passed someone I made an effort to get clear. Alternatively there was a period where I would get passed but they would then slow up and not clear the draft zone so instead of slowing myself down and creating the gap I then decided to take them over again. I was very close to the back through out the ride, but I didn't want to get disqualified and miss out on the chance of finishing the race.
My average speed for the first quarter was something like 16.5mph but it may have gone to 16mph. I haven't got great data because I chose to rely on the bike speedo for the ride and use the Garmin for the run as I feared it would run out of batteries. The speedo is good as you are riding along but doesn't track data at different stages.
I had made it up Oxton Bank the one big climb of the day after about 20miles, and I managed to catch a few riders here and at one point I over took the pirate as I sped past him at the steepest point of the climb at a speed of 4.5 mph
I decided I needed the loo at the aid station at around the 33 mile point, I took my time knowing I wanted to be comfortable as I was going to be settling in for my longest ride ever. I turned on my phone in the portaloo hoping to text Lauren telling her all was going well but it was taking too long to get reception so I decided to get out of there and back on my bike.
I had lost a couple of minutes there and as I got back on my bike I could see the last couple of riders from our mini group riding off into the distance. I got back into my rhythm, trying to take it steady and get in plenty of gels, mule bars and drink early in the ride. The wind was now in my face and my average speed was falling fairly steadily but I felt good and the average speed was still above 15mph and I needed an average speed of 14mph to make the cut off.
Lauren had mentioned that the spectator coaches were going to a place called Car Colston to see us ride through, and so when I saw the sign for Car Colston I was welling up for the second time that day. Soon after the sign I saw what looked like my brother Luke on the roadside on the right, and it was! I got such a lift as he ran alongside me seing how I was getting on and wishing me well. Luke and Amber had come up on the day and missed the swim but it was great to see them now around halfway through the bike. As well as those two
I walked for the first time here, I had hopes before hand of running for 5 minutes walking for one or something similar. But from early on in the run I knew I would be needing to walking much more than that. As I was taking my first walk break, a guy started talking to me, saying it was nice to see someone else walking. I knew I was near the back and so he was probably on at least his second lap, so I looked down at my Garmin and said but I'm only 0.3 miles into my race and I'm walking. We then chatting for a minute or two and he explained he was running for his wife who had died 4th July last year and that he had set-up a foundation called the Karen Green foundation. I had seen loads of other athletes riding with the Foundations jerseys during the cycle today and so it was good to meet the guy who had set it up. After a few minutes he told me to go on as his walk breaks became more frequent.
The first landmark that I was keen to get to was the first feed station after about a mile and a half. The only thing that got me through the last 10 miles of my cycles was the thought of the feast awaiting me at the first run feed station, and it didn't disappoint! There were smiley marshalls handing out Oranges, Bananas, Crisps, Jaffa Cakes, Water and Coke. I took my time walking through grabbing everything I could, I almost went back for seconds!
With some renewed energy I got running again, into the wind on the other side of the lake. The wind was so strong that it blew my hat off, and with weary legs I started running after it, another runner told me not to bother and I told him in a minute I might just leave it. I did manage to grab it though before it got blown into the lake and put it back on my head, a spectator told me to put it on backwards, which I did. Although it didn't work as a fashion piece the backwards hat definately saved my head from the brunt of the sun. I didn't want my race to end prematurely due to heatstroke.
The run, shuffle, walk continued on for the rest of the lap round the lake. I then saw my team at the start of the longer loop which headed towards the city. There was a little slope with an aid station at the top, and in an effort to save my legs I walked this everytime much to the disappointment of my legion of fans wanting to see me run. But once at the top of the hill I ran with my wife down the other side and through the carpark ready to start to the loop proper. Lauren was very excited, and pleased to tell me that she could run as fast as me and I wasn't strong enough to argue.
My support team had shrunk slightly as my brother dropped his girlfriend off at the station so she could get home, but on that first lap my wife, Mum, Dad and Mother-in-law were all there cheering me on. Whilst I was slogging it out on the run they were enjoying a picnic and a good book, but my wife was too worked up with worry for my well being and so just prowled around until I returned.
My steady/slow progress amounted to something like 13.5 minute miles a speed I could never imagine doing on fresh legs it would just feel pitifully slow, but on my weary legs and low on energy it felt plenty fast enough. I slogged on through and with 8 miles on my Garmin I picked up my second wrist band, I checked that I was doing it right because I felt like I hadn't really earnt the first wristband after only running 500m or so
To those people I would say do it. Maybe not an Ironman, but something physical that pushes you outside of your comfort zone. Way out of your comfort zone! I may not have been the most dedicated trainer, I may not be the strongest mentally or physically, but on that day I found a way to work through problems and to just tough it out.
The Outlaw was a day of firsts for me.
- My first Triathlon
- My first Open Water Swim
- My longest ride ever
- My slowest Marathon ever
Now if I could have the time again I would have got down to Lakeside and down 10 or a dozen swims in Openwater. I would have gone for 5 or so rides of in excess of 100 miles. I would have maybe ran a little more consistently.
But when I was bobbing up and down in the water at 6am I hadn't done those things, and there isn't a thing you can do about it. This is where you are fitness wise, this is where your prep has got you. Now shut-up and do it or get out of the swim, get off the bike or take your running shoes off and put your feet up.
There were lots of times during the course of the day that I considered those things, but I fought the urge and carried on and for that I am very proud. I was talking to Lauren about it after the race and it is just one of those days along with your wedding, birth of your child etc that you just want to stay with you forever in HD crystal clear and not forget one single detail. That is one of the reasons why I have chronicled in such painful detail my experiences in the build up and during the day itself so that I can look back it and remember it.
It wasn't just a personal journey though, and the texts/Facebook messages of support, my cheer squad of Lauren, Mum, Dad, Jan, Luke and Amber, the Marshalls, supporters on the road and my fellow competitors just took it to another level. We all live in very small groups of people we hold dear, and you have the joke about people not meeting each others eyes on the tube, but at the Outlaw I felt part of something much bigger and everyone was so keen for me to do well. It really is all a bit sickly, but it really was how I felt.
So to my supporters:
Amber - Thanks for making a special trip to see me ride. You and Luke were in a car/ on a train pretty much all weekend and it was amazing that you got to see me both when I was riding strong and when I was hanging on.
Jan - For being a great Mum to Lauren when she was in bits worrying about me and for being a fantastic Mother in Law and supporting me in my stupid hobbies.
Mum & Dad - Sorry for scaring you and not being as dedicated to my training as I should of. Next time I'll be in much better shape and it will be a breeze. Thanks for giving up a weekend at the Caravan to see me slog it out for 16 hours.
Luke - Again thanks for running around the country to see the completion of my Outlaw Journey. Your enthusiasm and support were incredible. The kids of Dover are very lucky to have a PE teacher like you heading their way. You kept me on track when my head was all over the shop, you were a megastar. So excited to return the favour at your Olympic Triathlon and again when you go long.
Lauren - My beautiful wife, sorry to worry you. I can't promise I won't do it again. You support me 100% in all of my stupid running, triathlon, challenges. Running me around in the car, getting up crazy early, sorting out my kit and food and never complaining. I couldn't ask for more, you're my number one supporter and I'm your number one fan. No amount of dinners out, flowers or present
Can I have Lauren's number please?
Behave!
Nice one Cheg!
When's your next one?!! 
Are you related to Dustboy? Your gear in transition could match his!! 
DB A very honest report, well done! It's one way of getting a new Garmin, though i'm not sure I would do it that way!
Dustboy - a bloody brave report at a tough time. Remember 99.9% of people would never make it to the start line! You should be proud of what you have achieved!
O nightmare, my reports that I copied and pasted from my blog appear to have cut off at key moments. If you have the desire to read them in their entirety check out my blog at http://www.simonslejogblog.blogspot.co.uk/
Prince, would love to do Iron distance again and it would definately be the Outlaw. 2013 is a bit busy and 2014 is LEJOG in 7 days so it looks like I'll have to wait till 2015 for a proper crack at it.
Cheg, you chose Iron Distance for your first ever tri and 1st ever OW swim? What were you thinking??!!
For future reference, if you're passed by another rider the onus is on you to drop back out of the draft zone and not for them to ride forward out of it.
It does get frustrating sometimes. I had a bloke bust a gut to overtake me then immediately sit up to recover - the second time he did it I made sure when I took him back that it'd be quite hard for him to follow.
If anyone drafted me they would be last! What's overtaking? I am still milking becoming an Outlaw. I don't think I will ever stop. I would do it again in a heartbeat.
Good on you Sid! That's the way it's meant to be isn't it?!!
7 days Cheg? You must *really* like the bike! I attempted it in 10 days in April this year and still only got to see tarmac and the rear wheel of someone elses bike!! It was bloody hard graft!
It's taken a while (nearly as long as my transitions) but here's what I remember from Outlaw 2012:
To put things in perspective I was planning a year off IM racing in 2012 after having completed 3 races in the last 2 years. However when it was obvious that the Pirate outing would be to Outlaw it seemed rude not to join in for my first official Pirate championship and it wouldn’t have felt right just to turn up for the beers on Monday!
My training had been non-specific, endurance likely to be ok with 3 spring marathons and then LeJog finishing 3 weeks beforehand, but I genuinely had no idea how I’d go at Outlaw at race pace, but had pitched it between 12.30 (if everything went unbelievably well) to 14hrs (if I had less in my body than I hoped). A target of 13.30 was a realistic middle ground I thought.
Arrived at HPP Saturday lunchtime and in between bumping into loads of pirates headed straight to race briefing at 1pm , sat in a stifling hot room for 50 mins before ducking out to beat the queue at registration, got stuff, pitched tent, racked bike and bags and then it was just after 5pm, realised at this stage that I was thirsty, not a great feeling 12 hrs before race start so tried to hydrate that evening whilst grabbing some food and getting an early night.
Up at 4am, porridge, bagel and ricepudding, head over to check tyres and get drinks on the bike before getting wetsuited up. A few more chats on the way to the water and positioned myself in Pen 3 as there didn’t seem to be a Pen 4! Swim was the busiest start I’ve been in for an IM, took a couple of blows to the head but soon enough things thinned out and I just swam in my own brick like manner until it seemed to get a bit choppy as the wind blowing down the lake was taking effect, rounded the turn and just kept going as steadily as possible, soon arrived towards the end of the lake, surprised and delighted to be out of the water in about 1:31:24, there’s a lot to be said for starting swim training 2 weeks before the event!
Faffed about getting out of wetsuit, made myself comfy in T1 9:19, and headed out to the bike.
It all seemed fairly easy heading round the lake despite the headwind and HR was at a reasonable level, having done Outlaw previously I was familiar with the first loop and was happy just to take it easy knowing that the longish drag the other side of Southwell could be affected by the gusting wind. The really crap swimmers soon started coming past me, quick chats with Cornish Digger, Cougie and then Toucs who was so delighted to have made it out of the swim it put a massive smile on my face. First loop was fine , drinking and eating ok and soon was heading onto the 1st lap of the southern loop, finally caught up with Meldy to have a frank discussion about my swimming ability, carried on and was much looking forward to the pirate feedstation which never fails to pick my spirits up , despite the relocation to the new loop it didn’t disappoint this time either, adrenalin was pumping through my body as I narrowly avoided Min’s head with my half empty water bottle (I didn’t get much closer to the trolley on the 2nd loop either, sorry Min). Onwards to have SE & GB come flying past me in quick succession and then the turn onto the top section and crikey, who turned the wind on! I found this tough and it was where my speed just started to drop gradually, had been trading places and a bit of banter with a couple of guys and a lovely young blonde thing but from the turn into the 2nd lap I was struggling to stay in contact and after stopping for a quick pee didn’t see them again. The rest of the bike back to HPP was tough, my legs felt empty and the start of the heavy rain shower didn’t help lift my mood. Eventually made it back to T2 with average speed for the bike having dropped significantly. Bike time 7:08:56
Quick stop in the loo and then into the changing tent, decided that as my shorts were a bit wet from the rain and had started to rub a bit I’d take the time to change into dry run kit, an old back injury had been bothering me recently and I’d taken the precaution of putting a heat pad into my T2 bag, I’d stiffened up following the bike so stuck this on my back to try and ease the pain, all sorted and was just about to head onto the run when I realised I didn’t have my racebelt on, never mind it must be in my bag with my damp cycle top, quick look & couldn’t find it, minor panic so went to check the portaloo, no numberbelt & panic levels increasing, back into the change tent and tipped bag upside down, still no number, panic getting to major levels now, bend down to stuff kit into change bag and feel my HR strap rubbing so a quick straighten of this only to realise my number belt has ridden right up inside my tritop, panic over but how bloody stupid did I feel as I head out onto the run with a mammoth T2 time (not that I realised until I saw the results as I thought it was nearer to 9 mins!) of 14:42.
The adrenalin must have helped as found my run legs quickly and was heading round the lake at a steady 9m30s min miling, first loop was ok, took on a bit of fluid and was managing to keep HR well within range at 140-145. As I was coming back to the 2nd loop of the lake things became a bit more difficult and by the time I passed the finish chute again there was more walking taking place, turned past transition and up the tiny incline to transition and was hit with a spell of dizziness that stopped me in my tracks. I’d had to slow down significantly now and was struggling to keep going as all I wanted to do was lie down and sleep, miles 11-12 took me over 35 mins as I was battling with the negative thoughts filling my head that I didn’t need to finish and stopping would be better for me. I just managed to keep putting one foot in front of the other, I’ve never quit a race in 25 years of running and didn’t want to start now, in particular I wasn’t sure if I could face myself the next day if I’d stopped and didn’t want to have the conversation with many people the following day as to why I had a DNF against my name. Luckily at this stage m.eface powerwalked along and helped save my race, after a little chat he ‘scored’ me a salt tablet from his bag of tricks which helped. I tried to stay with him but that guy walks quicker than I could run on a good day! Nevertheless I was with it enough to work out that I had about 6 hrs at this stage to cover 14 miles so as long as I stayed on my feet and kept moving I’d have a 3rd Outlaw medal to add to my haul. It took a while but the next 2 laps were completed in a combination of feedstation plundering, toilet stops and most excitingly encouraging / chatting to fellow pirates. On the final stretch along the river I had the incentive of trying to keep my run time under 6 hrs, so the run elements (however short) of my walk / run were becoming more frequent. Round the lake for the final time, spooky moment as I saw SA & Madlot at the top end of the lake and then they’d somehow magic’d themselves about 1km further down nearer the finish (alright they jumped in a car and I was going really slowly but it did my head in at the the time!). Down the finish chute and over the line for a run time of 5:44:25 and a massive PW of 14:48:49
Post race, felt huge amounts of relief at having finished, grabbed a chat with Horse & a massage, some warm clothes (thanks to HH for words of wisdom in reminding me I needed to do this), tried to eat but struggled and dizzily picked up my bike and bags before grabbing a quick shower and making it back to the finish line just in time to join the most fantastic Pirate finish chute support for the final few finishers. I’m definitely going to take a break from IM in 2013 to focus on getting some lost running speed back but I will be back in 2014 to try and put a better planned race together and take advantage of being at the lower end of a new Age Category.
Despite the tough conditions it was another great experience that I wouldn’t want to have missed, it wouldn’t have been the same without the support and encouragement from my fellow Pirates out on course, at the feedstation & supporting on course, it truly is a privilege to be associated with such a motley crew
Nice report Jaffa. 15 minutes in transition looking for something that's tied round your waist - sheer class!
They mentioned at the awards ceremony that there weren't many who'd completed all three Outlaws. Are you sure you won't be tempted back next year, and the next, and the next?
Resistance is futile Jaffa...
Nice one Jaffa. Madlot helped me train for this my 1st tri (have I mentioned that bedfore?) and to see him there was great he was like an excited kid at Christmas! I have to say that the Pirate crew gave it loads at the finish for the last female (a pirate) who finished a few mins before me and then for me and the last guy a few mins later. The packed finishing chute was awesome!
Fabulous reports!
Loved Holly's & Flyaways, gutted for DB, amazed at Cheg doing it as his first tri, in sympathy with Joddly as I know that "I'm having a terrible day, do I keep going" feeling. Apologies if I left anyone out from the last few pages.
About to read all those other reports that I've "opened in new tab" so I'm looking forward to those. Like many others, I've suffered from CBA when it comes to writing my Austria report, kind of been par for the course when it comes to this race. I'll get around to it at some point I'm sure.
We had a good laugh as we knew that it would mess with your head
So, apologies for the delay, but as I didn’t finish my 2012 A race I was struggling to also finish a report! (Getting the jokes in before anyone else can!)
How not to train, prepare and race an Ironman!!
Build Up
After finishing my debut IM at Wales in September, I told myself I would not do it again this year. The reason being not the hard work required to complete the distance but because I didn’t want to make the same sacrifices again… the missed social events and guilty hangovers. So I didn’t enter the Outlaw, and watched it sell out.
Then, a week later… the annoying folk at OSB decided to make 50 more entries available. In an out-of-body experience I watched as my hand reached for the credit card, entered the details online, and clicked submit. Oh shit… I’m doing another Ironman next year!!
With the London marathon looming, run training was in full swing. An expensive trip to the ballbuster duathlon, expensive as I had to get a £70 taxi as I overlaid and missed the train, and expensive as I crashed on the 1st lap of the bike, showed that my running was going well, but also that 2012 may not be my luckiest year! I was however able to go all out in the Saucony 10k the day afterwards to set a new PB of 35:09. I time I was very happy with… particularly as I had ran the same race exactly a year before in 39:04… just goes to show what a year of Ironman training can do.
3 weeks before the marathon and I competed in one of these muddy obstacle races that profit-driven event organisers are now pushing in an attempt to part uninspiring office folk with their cash. I built up a lead quickly with just 1 guy (who would go to win) but unfortunately sprained my ankle as I jumped into a watery grave. Gutted. I completed the event, which definitely wouldn’t have helped… but then was disqualified as I unknowingly took a rather large shortcut and was the first to cross the line. (yes, this was met with many a joke on my behalf!)
I never expected a sprained ankle to have such an effect. I spent a week in a plastic boot, and then soon after started with a physio pretty intensively. From then on, I continued a pretty impressive streak of races that ended (or rather, started) with letters by my name instead of a finishing time. Several DNS and DNFs later and I was stuck with the task of deciding whether or not to race the Outlaw, with just one month before the race before and when I could still gain back some of my entry fee.
I decided to press on and go for it.
So training wise… my swimming had improved massively, and felt that I wouldn’t be so far back in the pack (though 1:13 at IMW was definitely not BOP). I had only swam OW 3 times though, and had only been swimming intervals… doing only 1 x 2km as a endurance main set in the water, just once. Other than that I spent my water time doing stuff like 15 x 100m… not IM specific training really. I learnt to love the turbo trainer, and was often getting in at least 2 hard sessions mid-week. Unfortunately though, training on the bike with a sprained ankle led to quite painful ITB problems in my knee as I overcompensated my technique. This was very painful, and was another reason why it felt like my physio’s studio was becoming a second home to me, often being the first appointment in the morning at 6:30am and then being the final appointment at 8:00pm. In the end I only had about 3 or 4 rides greater than 60 miles, all at a very steady pace with cake/coffee stops. I did NOTHING other than the turbo sessions at a pace comparable to race pace.
Running was as expected with a painful ankle… I did no running on the road in the 4 months before Outlaw. I had about 10 sessions on an anti-gravity treadmill, gradually increasing the body weight to nearly 100%, but only ever running 1 x km intervals (running anything longer on a treadmill is incredibly boring). The week before the Outlaw I decided to run the local parkrun to try and see what pain I could expect the following week… a 17:34 pb and a win meant I realised I possibly hadn’t lost the speed. More importantly, though my ankle felt weak and uncomfortable, it was not painful. I did realise that 5km fresh though is an entirely different animal than 42km on tired legs!
Roll on the Pirate Championships 2012 at the Outlaw!!
Pre-Race
Headed up on the Friday night but stayed with my mother in Chesterfield. I went the commoners way and took the train from London after a last minute nervous physio appointment and a massage that told me that not doing a single training session other than the parkrun for the last two weeks, had done as desired, and left me fairly fresh (Though not an ideal taper!). Cycled to my sisters about 4 miles away and was panting at the first sign of an upflat… a sign that my south-west London based training may have been quite specific to the flat Outlaw course coming up. Not a good sign of peak physical fitness though.
Over to HPP on the Saturday morning but with just my bike, a cool bag full of beer, and two separate notifications from my dad and (the not-so)Slow Engineer that they would be along with my race and camping equipment a few hours later, I looked more like a runaway from a children’s novel than a carefully prepared Ironman athlete. I was here a few weeks ago for a recce, and just had to check… so went down to the lake and realised… yes… the lake still is THAT long. Great! Down for lunch with a few of the other pirate crew that I knew, and met so many new faces. The pirate ship really had its masts high and it was an amazing experience to see so much yella’ and black on show. Lots of rushing about/ panicking / meeting smiley pirate folk (possibly the best mismatched group of weirdo’s that exists!). Went to the 3pm briefing but walked out halfway through as I was worried I wouldn’t get the bike and transition bags in on time.
Finally at 5:30pm…after running around like a headless chicken, depending on so many others as I didn’t yet have a tent to keep my few belongings in (thanks Guys!), I had everything sorted out and I could relax. Take on board some dinner, and then eat every sugary snack in sight, then I know… I will have a beer to help relax. Decided it would be a good idea to go to the pub with a few of the other pirate bunch, but soon realised it wouldn’t be a good idea to get into rounds with Doner ‘Drinks-like-a-fish’ Kebab (who consumes at 1 pint per 15 minutes) and my little brother (a definite wanna-be pirate). 3 drinks later and we have each bought a beer so I make the sensible idea to only drink shandies. DK brings my ‘shandy' a few minutes later with a giggle and grin only seen on young school girls who have just viewed their first picture of male genitalia! I decide not to give him the delight of me making a fuss when he presents my ‘not-so-shandy’ shandy. Oh well… I’m having fun which is the most important. After 7 pints however, we make a shock discovery and realise that us and Meface are the only ones left in the pub who are supposed to be racing in 7 hours’ time!! Oops, how did that happen (I definitely blame DK for leading me astray!)
A strict telling off from mother Seren and it’s time for the walk home, time to contemplate that getting a bit drunk may not have been the best idea… well when DK can get his words out amongst his adolescent giggles.
Into bed and asleep for midnight, though’ sleep’ is probably an exaggeration, as I lie there, texting friends to tell them I drank a bit more than planned whilst starting to feel the anxiety that can only be felt when there is such a big day ahead. My alarm goes off at 4am and it’s time to throw some cold porridge down my neck. Last preparations and a couple of pre-race toilet trips before immodiuming up for the day, and before I know it we’re heading to the lake.
Swim
I got settled in the back of pack 1 with Slow Engineer and Pain Is Temporary, and see Siggy who won’t mind me saying he looked a little lost. It is then that I spot my brother on the shore so make a few stupid arm gestures that make me look less Michael Phelps and more Mickey Mouse rather than checking my suit and goggles. 3 minutes to go and I realise I then that my goggles aren’t working and are leaking quite badly in the left eye. Not to worry, readjust... still not working. Readjust again… still letting in half of HPP into my right eye. Oh well… too late to do anything now. This is going to be an uncomfortable 3.8km.
The feeling before cannot actually be explained, and can only be felt by those in the same position on an Iron distance mass start swim. 5,4,3,2,1…. Here we go again!!!
Not too much biff, even though I am technically too slow for the starting pen I selected. The plan was to hold on to any feet, enjoy the boxing match that is a mass swim start, and drift mentally until the distance disappears. This is pretty much what happens. I was delighted to reach the turnaround after an uneventful 32 minutes, and then it’s time to head back in the now biff-free swim as it has opened up a lot now. Tried to avoid the duck crap and pretend it isn’t there, though managed to swallow water as per usual on a couple of occasions. Tried to pee on the go… it wasn’t happening, though I did manage to vomit slightly which has never happened before when swimming. I pushed the pace at the end a bit and was delighted when I looked at my watch.
One thing I can say is that I have practiced quite a bit (usually not on purpose) swimming with leaking goggles, and I am glad I did, as what others may have found a very uncomfortable situation I found to be not such a problem and just cracked on.
Swim - 01:08:51 = 172th out of 782 solo competitors
T1
Out of the water and start running straight away as I find it helps me settle on the bike quicker and get the blood to the legs. Wetsuit off by myself relatively easy and it is into the changing tent. Now, I thought that the side sections of the changing tent were meant for nudity, but after grabbing my bag I couldn’t find any entrance into there. Oh well… swim trunks off and I realise how much I love this sport… in a tent with a couple of hundred headless chickens and nobody batters an eye lid that I am standing in just a triathlon vest with my bits swinging freely! Bike shorts on, a handful of chamois cream all over everything below, spot a couple of Ealing club mates and then am gutted to see Dan (Slow Engineer) who I realise has had a better swim than me. What I didn’t realise was that he had a much better swim than me, but sat down for a cup of tea and biscuits in transition.
T1- 04:59 = 148th
Elapsed - 1:13:50 = 153rd / 19 places made in T1
Bike
Now one of my many mistakes this weekend was making a bet with Dan over finishing times. We are both very similar in many ways… young, athletic, abvious attraction to the ladies, and have both been suffering with ankle injuries. We were both quietly aiming for sub11, and we bet the day before the race a bottle of whisky on the quickest time.
So it was that I set off around the lake at about 26mph to catch him shortly, before turning at the far end and realising what kind of a day it was going to be! Windy! From that point it was just overtake, overtake, overtake, often swapping places with Dan though always sticking far enough behind him that there was no drafting. After an hour or so I realised our average speed had been about 23mph and as I overtook him once more I let him know, definitely way too fast for the both of us! A slight uphill at Oxton but had ridden this in the pirate recce and realised I would prefer to grind up it standing up in a higher gear than sit and relax. I don’t do relaxing, something that would haunt me as the day went on. At about 32 miles he made the right decision and decided to hold back as our 23mph average was not sustainable. I quietly decided the same, but headed on a bit further as I realised there would be no point trying to slow down together as we would probably just keep pushing each other. It was soon after that I decided to live up to my name Golden Boots, and made sure that any drafters behind me would be put off following me too closely. About 3 minutes of urination after only 1 x bottle of water or so, quite a lot but as I said I didn’t get the name Golden Boots for anything.
35 miles of riding, something doesn’t feel right. Has the road suddenly got very bumpy? Oh no… puncture time. My recce was ruined a few weeks ago by punctures after I failed to fix one properly and it went again before I ran out of extended valve tubes. Now… 4 weeks later, about a mile away from where I had one last time, I am on my knees looking to the sky and swearing loudly as I fix up, taking it steady so that it is done right the first time. Suddenly I need another wee… do I go and stand in a bush outside the driveway I am stood on… of course not, that would be disgusting. It is then that I first question the sport I love, as I am kneeling down fixing a puncture in a puddle of my own urine. Attractive! Annoying Dan passes me as well as dozens of others I have been sailing past for the last 90 minutes. 12 minutes go by and I am soon back on my bike… though I set off like a bat out of hell, secretly wanting to catch not only Dan but also Funkin who had passed me and a couple of Ealing club mates. Roll on the next hour of continued riding at 23 mph again.
I kept the spare tube, my co2 inflator, tyre levers and multitool in a sealed bottle in a drinks cage on the rear of my saddle. Unfortunately without the tube in there to pack it out, everything else is rattling around quite heavily, but after only a small space of time I realise that the rattling has stopped. The lid has come off and I have lost my tyre levers and co2 inflator. I realise there and then that for the next 70 miles or so I will be riding blind!!!
I’m still flying, desperate to make up time, after my puncture incident I am only overtaken by 2 guys, who seemed to be drafting as they came past. Oh well… I like to think I am running my own race but that wouldn’t explain my higher than sustainable average pace. I had so much fun on the bike (for most of it), especially as I fly through the small town where the supporters have got the coach to. It is now when I have another of my realisations that this is the best hobby in the world – I am here with a massive grin on my face doing what I love… and people are out at the edge of their driveways cheering me on. Something is not quite right with this situation, and I feel so much love for everyone giving support. One of the people I remember on the bike course is the steward at the roundabout we went past several times, I was going that hard that I was sure her loud ‘ARRGGHH’ was more of a sexy purr and so I just about managed to give her a ‘sexy’ purr back each time, constantly thinking how good I probably look!
The pirate station, just how can I describe it! I can’t if I am honest; it went in such a blur but left me with such a grin and love for everybody who was there, but I cannot really put into words just how an amazing experience it was! As I slowly went through I shouted to my brother to try and acquire tyre levers and a mini-pump, worried that my race could potentially be over if I punctured again. This was unsuccessful ass he concentrated getting a picture of me instead. I can’t complain, but it was constantly playing on the back of my mind. I had a great giggle at the pirate signs, but then was actually confused when I saw the ‘Bike Sale, Sunday 3pm’ sign as it was past the station. I think it took me about a minute to realise and I was then chuckling to myself down the following fast section
It then became very difficult. We turned, into the wind, and suddenly my average speed dropped quite rapidly. Not to worry, everyone was in the same situation and being a bit smaller and on a triathlon bike I realised I should be grateful that I was a little more aerodynamic than others. It is around this time that I entered a very lonely, dark place. I had kept to my nutrition plan of a gel on every half hour and a small piece of solid food… powerbars, cliff flapjacks, and a small chocolate bar on each hour. Suddenly I realised I had been pushing a lot harder than I should probably have been and a slight was amount of watery vomit was added to the urine stains on my shorts. I’m so smooth. I pushed through the wind tunnel that was the second half of the southern loop and was relieved when I got to start it again. I was unsurprised when I got to the feed station and my brother obviously hadn’t heard my cries for puncture supplies, oh well, only 20ish miles to go. I then finally caught Dan which was a major relief as I was about to turn into the wind tunnel again and it was good to see a friendly face who if I stuck 10 metres behind might help me slow down a bit. Except I didn’t slow down, I flew past with a mighty arrogant roar and did not see him again for the bike. I was suddenly very aware that if I kept up my average speed I could make it into T2 in under 5.5 hours, well under target even with a 12 minute puncture. This wasn’t made any easier due to the strong headwind and the building site road surface that bought us home but I just about managed it. I undid my shoes and took my feet out, yes, I am that professional, and then it was time to swing my leg over my saddle and rear-mounted bottles. This very nearly ended in disaster as I could not get my leg high enough to get over my stupidly high saddle. Stop just before the dismount line and feel very sorry for Petal who takes my urine soaked bike from me, noting the time on my speedometer. At IM Wales I had to urinate about 20 times on the marathon, this time I went about 8 times but on the bike. This is something I need to work out why, I didn’t drink excessively I don’t think, normally exchanging 1 bottle at each water station, but at least I lived up to the name Golden Boots.
Bike - 05:29:35 = 36th (Would have been 19th without a 12 minute puncture)
Elapsed - 06:43:25= 45th / 108 places made on the bike
T2
Another chance to get semi naked as I change from cycling shorts to running shorts, I quickly see Funkin who is out a minute or so before me, and then it is time to get out on to the run course to see how the legs are feeling. Not quite sure how I spent so much time changing my shorts and socks but it’s still one of the quickest T2 times of the day.
T2- 02:46 = 46th
Elapsed - 06:46:11= 45th / 0 places made/lost in T2
Run
Now my total lack of run training was not exactly ideal for a 42km run on tired legs. My plan therefore was to play it by ear and just see how it goes. After just a couple of minutes I caught Funkin and realised I was the first pirate. Definitely a sandbagger! I managed to take in a gel at the first station and it went down ok(ish, gels are never nice after having so many through the day) and so that was a good sign. At the out and back I realised I was pretty hungry, and so took in some jaffa cakes as well. I went through the first 5 miles in just under 40 minutes, then the second 5 miles in another 40 minutes, so 8 minute miles. This pace is equivalent to a 3:30 marathon. I was well aware that a 4:14 marathon would see me finish in my target time of 11 hours, but at that time I thought that a 3:45 was perhaps possible and therefore a 10:30 Ironman. Definitely a sandbagger! What was great was that although my ankle was uncomfortable, it was not causing me any pain or slowing me down.
At about mile 12 though it all started to go wrong. The next few miles are a bit of a blur, I cannot really remember much of the second out and back, and the experience can only be compared to being drunk. By now there were a lot of pirates on the course and all were passing me on their first lap as I struggled around my second. I was still taking on lots of food, mostly jaffa cakes but a few gels as well, but it felt like they were not being absorbed by my body and were just sitting in my stomach. Every few minutes I was retching, but without being sick, and I knew the next half marathon was going to be the longest 13 miles I would ever run. After a while I could barely keep my eyes open, almost falling asleep whilst running / walking. I then put my sunglasses on, scared that I would get pulled from the course if I was seen to be running with my eyes barely open, not realising that my zig-zag movements was enough for anyone to realise just how much of a state I was in. Going past the football club for the second time and I knelt down to re-tie my shoe lace, before pretty much lying down and very nearly falling asleep. I was in a very bad way now. Shouts from another competitor asking if I was OK got me back on to my feet, and I then tried running with this person, before realising it was the infamous TC (The denim shorts gave it away). He asked me something and I couldn’t understand what was being said, in the end asking him to repeat it four times, realising he was asking me if I needed some salt. It was then that I knew just how bad my state was as I could not talk nor understand others. I happily took the 2 x Nuun tablets he gave me and sucked on one straight away, keeping the other for the next drinks station when I split it in half and put each in a cup of water. I was desperate now, but really did not know how this would pan out. I saw my Dad for the first time at the turn around point, and told him to make his way back to HPP as I didn’t know if I would be making it on to the 3rd lap. If I am honest, I knew my day was over, and all I could think about was making it back to HPP so that a medical team could see to me – forgetting the obvious fact that the medical team are fully mobile and could attend to me anywhere. The 3rd 5 miles took me about an hour and 20 minutes – 16 minutes per mile! The 2 miles or so heading back along the riverside were incredibly tough. I could not run as I would feel sick if I did, I was dizzy and light headed, could not talk or concentrate when others spoke to me, and was zig-zagging across the path. I still felt like I was falling asleep and couldn’t keep my eyes open, and when I saw my brother at about mile 16 I knew it was time to call it a day. I dropped to the floor and was very nearly asleep, but for some reason then realised again that I need