I was a little worried about the weather when I signed up for this race, but the forecast improved before I left this morning. It did rain briefly on my way up (and the way back, actually), but it was clear and sunny the rest of the day!
It was still dark when I arrived at Hueston Woods, and I could barely find my way to the transition area or check-in tent. It seemed a little disorganized, as they were still "training" the volunteers what to do 30 minutes after check-in was supposed to have begun, but I got my "packet" quickly. I was surprised to find that I only received a wristband for me and my bike, no number for my helmet or race belt or anything, and there were no assigned racks in transition. Ah, well. I found a good place near the bike exit/entrance and set up my stuff.
Rumor had it that the water was pretty warm, and some people had decided not to wear their wetsuits. As long as they were legal, though, I was going to wear mine, since that was one of the main reasons I signed up for this "race." I met a nice girl named Mary while we waited for the race to begin and talked a few other athletes about their Ironman experiences. I was glad to not be rushed, but ready to get started.
They had a minute of silence to remember 9/11, and a girl sang the National Anthem. Then we headed to the duathlon start for a quick prayer. They were off, and all the triathletes made their way to the water.
The sprint waves started first, and the Olympic women began at 8:31. I was breathing hard as soon as we ran out into the water, but I made myself slow down and relax. By the time I rounded the first buoy, everyone had spread out and I could kind of do my own thing. I think I sighted well, and I really liked the feel of my new sleeveless wetsuit, but I wasn't feeling particularly fast, especially when I found myself alone out there. I'll be curious to see my time when the results are posted... Though the swim split will also include the "run" up the beach and through the grass to transition, so that won't help anything.
Anyway, the bike course started with a nice steep climb out of the park, and I was crawling. My legs felt heavy and sore from my ride yesterday, and my knee was still hurting. A lot of the sprint-distance racers were also finishing their bike as I was heading out, which was a little depressing. The 24 miles were pretty hilly, and I was just slow. I just kept thinking "HOW did I average 21+ mph at my half when I can't even get to 15 today?!?" I never actually looked at my average speed, but I know I was NOT passing people like I did in Michigan. Again, pretty lonely out there, and I was seriously considering skipping the run and just heading home. But I've never DNFed, and I didn't really feel like starting today.
So, back in transition, I got ready for my run. We had to start running through the grass, which is NOT my favorite. I was worried the whole run would be off-road like that, and I was still thinking that I might quit. But I got to the pavement soon, and just decided to see what I could do. I was surprised that my foot wasn't hurting too bad, not like in Steelhead, and my knee even seemed o.k. So I kept going. I did my normal three-and-one run/walk, and kept that up the whole way. The course was weird, back and forth through the parking lot of the park's marina, but it was easy enough. There were still quite a few people out there on my first lap, but I was almost alone again on the second! There were at least four people behind, one of whom was speed-walking the whole thing, but that was about it! Still, I pushed through the pain, stuck to my plan, and finished the race. Whew!
I was thinking the 1500-meter swim would take 30 minutes, then an hour 15 each for the bike and run. But... Yeah. I'm not sure how everything actually took, but I'm pretty sure the swim and bike were slower than I expected, even though the run was close. Overall, I'm NOT feeling very confident about the Ironman now, and I'm not sure whether I should try Deer Creek in a few weeks, Olympic or half. We'll see.
Fortunately, my foot doesn't seem too bad, and I'm assuming my knee will go back to normal with a little rest. Fingers crossed anyway! This is supposed to be an intense training week...
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