Howdy, Stranger!
Categories
Options
IM France Race Reports
The materials in this website are in no way intended to replace the professional medical care, advice, diagnosis or treatment of a doctor, qualified personal trainer, therapist, dietitian or nutritionist Runners's World, Part of the Hearst UK well-being network © Copyright 2017
Comments
Luton Marathon Dec 2005
231
468
3:54:23
SimonOxymoron
Unattached
But when you train youn fellow me lad
What's your IM mara PB in comparison with your stand alone mara PB then Plum?
For the swim I only had about 10 minutes sea swim practice on Friday so I was not sure how I would cope during the race. I started in the left section and a few people back which I found ok until you got near a buoy and then you got a bit kicked and puched as they converged on the turning point. As I was coming in to end the first lap I hit in the googles which moved them slightly, so when I got out to the start the next lapI took them off and adjusted them. However on the second lap I had to stop a couple of times due to them leaking in some sea water. The turn left was harder to see due to the sun reflecting of the surface and started to head back to the same exit point but as I got closer I relaised it was a different swim exit. Only saw 2 jellyfish on the swim perhaps that speeded me up as I did it in 1:26.
T1 I took a few minutes to make sure I did not leave any cycle kit behind in transition. Also got 2 women to strip me, off my wetsuit.
The cycle there was a number of pirates I saw during the day and a number of other competitors were asking me about the pirates. It was good to see all the pirate slogans/markings on the roads like the tour although I think they use less steep roads!! It was a just bit hot and hilly for my liking but I made it up all the hills and made sure I got drinks at each aid station. Although they had ran out of gels for the first few stops so I had to eat a few more of the warm bars than planned. I was not looking forward to the descent so I decided to take it slower and was using my brakes a lot more than other people who were overtaking me. I was glad of this as the road was poor in places and you could see by the amount of bottles and food in places that it affected others who were going faster. One person I spoke to while going round before the descent had a slightly buckled front wheel and then a puncture. On some of the road milestones (not sure wha the french call them) they had the altitude so you could work out how much more decent there was going to be. On the way back down the promonade I nearly hit people at 3 crossings as they did not look both ways. Due to my cycle computer not working until about 2/3 the way round I only knew the distance from the 20km markers and just paced myself on how I felt. I completed it in 8:05 which due to the heat, hills and lack of training I was pleased with.
In T2 I took my time, dried myself and changed tri suits. My shoulders were already sunburnt and a bit of wetsuit friction on the neck. It was a bit sore as one of the female helpers rubbed sun lotion on me.
I started my run off quite well and at a good pace, I was using a hat just bought the previous day and shoes that I had only ran 3 miles in, so the theory of using anything new on race day was going well. However when I got to about 8 km my stomach started to hurt while running, so I started to walk and only occisionaly run and I had to keep reducing the amount of running until I was just walking. After an hour of this I decided to stop at the first aid tent. They gave me some paracetmol which did seem to help reduce the pain. He also took my blood pressure which was in the normal range despite the heat and the 14 hours of exercise at that point. I started to gradually increase the amount of running again. When going through the aid stations I made sure I got enough fluid but avoid the gels/bars but found the TUC biscuits to be quite good for me. Also dipping my hat in the water or getting hosed down felt good in the heat. Due to the amount of stop starting I was doing when running my legs were getting more fatigued. I got to the last turn around when it was getting dark and with just 65 minutes left to the cut off. At that point something kicked in and for the slightly down hill sections I ran and walked the uphill slope sections. I think I managed that last 5.2km in 35 minutes and did the run in 5:34 and a total of 15:30. I was glad I made it as there was a lot people require medical attention at the side of the road that appear to collapse.
I think the pirate support on the run kept me going as there was a couple of times I felt like stopping.
I saw 2 bike crashes at crossings near to where the pirates were supporting - the 2nd one was quite bad and it took a while to clear away and i don't know if the rider was able to continue......when you have a lane for bikes and 2 lanes for runners, you have effectively to look 3 ways for gaps - almost impossible at that stage of the race
the organisers need to look at this in detail 'cos the crossings needn't have been there at all - about a 100m further down to T2 is an underpass.....
Oxy, I know I have been trying to catch up on about 1 weeks worth of messages.
As most people had gone by the time I got to T1 and 2 it gave them something to do.
The night before the race I was feeling pretty calm, for the first time since I had left home. All the preparation had been done, all I needed to do was get myself to the start line. Despite that I only managed to get one hours sleep.
Once in transition I was still fine. I was a bit worried about my wetsuit as two days accidentally left out in the sun had left it a little fragile but luckily it held together for long enough.
It was great to find the other Pirates on the beach, although it was pretty easy, find a gathering of pink hats and they were bound to be pirates!
The swim start was less manic that I feared, I even thought that if this was the worst bit then the swim should be quite fun. It was a strange experience. I'd be pretty sure that I was heading the right way only to find that the swimmers
around me thought differently, I got caught in some pretty efficient pincer movements. I tried everything from telepathy to a small fist in the ribs to get them to go in the right direction but eventually resorted to swimming around the outside. Jellyfish count 0.
It was great to see the support again coming out of the swim. I spoke to as many people as I could in T1, just putting off the inevitable really. There was a comedy moment involving a handful of Sudocreme and an over-enthusiastic helper but I fended her off.
The bike is my favourite bit, although you wouldn't know it to look at my splits. Nearly fell off at the beginning waving at my mum and dad who were proudly sporting their Pirate tops. I loved the first quarter of the bike but I probably could have spent less time loving it and more time eating and saving myself for later. It was fantastic to see all our names on the "10%" hill. I started shouting "ces't moi!" and I think all the other people on the course thought I was a complete nutter. The main hill was hard. It all seems a bit of a blur now but at the time it went on forever. I had a searing pain in my feet that felt like someone was holding a blowtorch against them. This stayed all the way until the end of the bike. Between every food station I was considering getting off for a bit while I took on food but as I turned out I only stopped at a couple of stations and stayed on my bike the whole time. I felt like I was drinking loads but only peed once. I was really looking forward to the Pirate support but boy did it take a long time to come. My parents were half way up the second hill which really helped as I was feeling like the whole field had overtaken me by that point. When I got to the turnaround I was just willing the whole thing to be over but tried to put a brave face on it. Soon enough it was over and I was bombing along the promenade, trying to avoid the pedestrians as I went.
I did wonder how on earth I could run when my feet were in so much pain. I spent a while in T2 sharing sunblock and talking and then set off on the run. My feet seemed to be working well so I even managed to run before the first aid station. Support on the run was 100%. The Pirates of course were fabulous but there were other supporters out there who really made the effort to look like they were rooting for you personally, shouting your name and encouragement. I tried to run as much as I could which was between each aid station, it was just that sometimes I imagined that the aid stations were a bit longer than others! My stomach felt absolutely fine the whole way through which I'm very thankful for, I took a tube of nuun on the run which meant I rattled along as the tube got emptier but it seemed to work.
My parents turned up and asked how much longer I had left to go, "Only Two laps, I'll be done in three hours!" I said cheerfully. Three hours! can't believe how Ironman training changes your perspective on time. Before I knew it I had my black band on and onto the last lap. I took the first half easy and walked while talking to a couple of people. The last 5k I ran all the way. I was getting worried about finishing under 15 hours, so much so that I didn't stop to enjoy the finish as much as I should. But there it was. All done and dusted. Thank you very much. Total time 14:58:43.
Thanks to everyone who was so supportive, this weekend and throughout the training. Flyaway gets my special mention for Pirate of the weekend, for being a great fellow competitor and keeping going when the going got really tough.
I took a tube of nuun on the run
For some reason, I just read that as taking a bottle of Blue Nun on the run!!
{Kicks Cat}
Hmmm,
I've just had a flash back...
Calf - i may owe you an apology...
I didn't realise about the pre-race accident - or if I did I didn't make the connection that it was you. Then at at least one point on the run, (we too'd and fro'd for a wee while) I think I came past and patted you squarely on the back.
It was meant in an encouraging, fortifying way. Having just read about the extent, type, and location of your injuries, it might not have been the best thing to have done...
er...sorry!
I had a good time!
The Buildup......
Got to Nice OK, and pretended I knew what I was doing when poor old Doozer had a broken bike. Waffled a bit then went to register. There I bumped into Crashie who also had a knackered treader, and was letting some random muppet with a screwdriver repair it. After 20 mins of pain watching I decided it was probably time to tell the bloke what was wrong with it, and lo and behold it was suddenly fixed. Crash then gave the bloke 5 Euros! Kinell! Anyhow I went up the road to test crashies bike whilst him and Squish registered. Spent Thursday night arguing with Kanga until 3 AM by which point Kanga and I were too pissed to talk and Oxy was asleep in the bar... TOP PIRATING!
After a disaster swim on Friday I re evaluated my swim time to 1.45, it was well choppy! Wibbled about a bit and went for a gentle ride with a few of the guys. Holly had an issue and so blew a gasket like only she can, but every time weve ever biked together she has sworn at me, so nothing new there really. We bodged her bike together and the others rode on, but poor Calf broke a chain a couple of miles up the road and hurt himself which was a bummer. Saturday was chill day and I had to rack at 3 so I helped Doozer with his bike as his new bit had turned up before going to rack. I must have been looking very nervous by this point as virtually every pirate and supporter wandered over and had a quiet word of encouragement which really helped. Racked then went to eat. Suddenly became more piratey than ever, I fell over on the escalator cos it wasnt moving and I thought it was, then got my sunglasses so tied up in my hair I nearly had to cut them out. Decided bed was the safe place to go....