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myneighborhood-thelake · 3 years

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IronMan Canada 1998

IMC '98 meant a lot to me because it paved the way for some major changes in my life which I really needed to make. There are probably to many tri-related details and too many extraneous issues in this and the subsequent post that I will send out. I apologise in advance if you dislike rambling stories, but the IMC experience was much more than 14 hours 10 minutes and 48 seconds of swimming, biking and running (walking). It was over a year of contemplation and training, and it was 10 years of racing narrowed down into one event.

That said, please enjoy.

I think that my story starts out about 5 years ago. I was putting myself through my final years of college and money was just a little tight. I made a conscious choice to stop racing triathlons for a while to reduce my expenses. I graduated and landed a great job with excellent potential for advancement. Since I was pushing hard in my career tri's were still regulated to the backseat. 2 1/2 years passed in that job and I was experiencing severe burnout. I had focused all of my intensity on my work, and work was not as exciting as it had been when I was fresh out of college.

Labor Day (U.S.) 1997. One of my best friends got married in Philadelphia - which is an incredible town. At an after party I was talking with a couple of people - an associate editor of Triathlete magazine and a guy who occasionally does a few tri's. The tri-geek was trying to get the Triathlete editor to give him a slot for Kona. He would have been better off trying to score a date with her - there was no way that she was going to conjure up a Kona slot. She suggested IMC as a place to qualify.

The wheels in my head started to turn - "I need a challenge" "I have wanted to get back into tri's for several years" "I need a really big challenge to get me out of my workaholic rut" "Maybe I should try IMC"

Back at work I downloaded the IMC '98 application and contemplated the commitment to training for an IM. My wife was 100% behind me signing up for IMC. When we started dating I was racing tri's in Southern California, and she knows how much I enjoyed the scene. I bit the bullet and mailed in my application. I even started training - somewhat. Four plus years of inactivity had taken their toll. I had purchased a new Kestrel KM40 in the fall of 1996, but I only had ridden it for about 100 miles in the year since I bought it. It was pretty embarrassing to be out riding my shiny, new Kestrel as I was getting passed by everyone on the road.

I soon subscribed to Tri-DRS and saw all the traffic about IMC filling up in record time. I wondered, I worried, I fretted, and then the confirmation letter came. It was true - I was going to Canada in 9 months.

To say the least - I was really scared. I was out of shape. I had never done an Ironman. I used to train for Oly distance races using a "feeling" plan - "How do I feel today and what do I want to do?" I knew that I could not train for an Ironman on such an ad hoc training plan.

I wrote down my goals for IMC '98. A

1. Finish my first Ironman. 2. Have fun.

After the race I would: 1. Smile. 2. Hug my wife. 3. Be happy that I went from couch potato to Ironman in 10 months!!!!

I needed some help in training, so I talked with my college teammate and now QR pro Greg Thompson. Greg suggested that I contact Lauren Alexander for coaching advice. The best thing that I did in the months prior to IMC was hire Lauren as my coach. She is a major asset.

The months flew by, I had a hideous race at Wildflower, I DNF'd at San Jose due to a mechanical, I finally had a great race at a local sprint tri and I did pretty well at the 1/2 Vineman. The 1/2 Vineman taught me that I could overcome problems during a race and still continue on to a good finish. I sent out numerous emails to both the Tri-DRS and the IMC lists asking all kinds of stupid questions. Luckily there are a lot of great people on the list who answered my questions and gave me some great guidance. Unbelievably - Taper Time for IMC arrived - my first IM was only 3 weeks away.

During all of this IM training, life continued to march forward. My wife continued her studies and supported my training endeavors. My job structure changed again, and again, and again, and finally I found a new job that started two weeks before IMC - of course I negotiated a one week break for IMC into my offer. As always there was a multitude of issues to deal with that really got in the way with training. As time marched on I forgot about my initial race goals - I started thinking about racing IMC as opposed to surviving it, and that was a big mistake. My initial goals were what I should have focused on, but I wasted a lot time worrying about split times, average speed and run paces.

Tuesday Afternoon,

Flew from San Francisco to Vancouver. A hometown friend drove to Penticton, so I stashed my bike in his mini-van for the trip. I did not have to worry about packing a bike box, or whether my bike would arrive in Penticton on my flight.

While waiting for the puddle jumper from Vancouver to Penticton, some guy sat next to me and asked me if I was doing the race. I am not sure why he would look at me and assume that I was racing IMC - Okay, maybe the shaved legs and Specialized transition bag were pretty good indicators. He introduces himself as Scott Adams (it sounds familiar). I introduce myself as Ron Renwick. Sometimes it is very useful to have your name and email address coincide. Scott recognized my name, and further introduced himself as an infrequent poster to Jason's IMC list - this is a really small world! Another friend of mine, Bill - from my Wildflower debacle, showed up and we waited for the plane to Penticton.

We arrived in Penticton. Scott had a seat next to me on the plane where he tried to avoid listening to me whine about how hungry I was for the duration of the flight. Thanks for the pretzels Scott. In the Penticton airport, Scott started talking to this big guy with bright 'blonde' hair and a smaller guy with very little hair. Jason Mayfield and Bruce Grant had come to pick up Scott. I think that Bruce's wife and Eric Austin may have been there too, but it was a few days ago and my memory is not what it used to be. Scott's bike actually made it into Penticton on our flight. My buddy Bill was not so lucky. His bike did not show (as expected), and Canadian Airlines had lost his suitcase too. His carry-on consisted solely of his race wheels, so he was not a happy camper.

Bill and I made our way to the Rochester Resort - 2 doors from the Sicamous, and "The Best Value On The Beach." It was late so we walked the 10 steps to Salty's restaurant for a bite to eat. FYI, avoid Salty's if possible. Bill was able to buy a toothbrush at the local convenience store - he now had race wheels, the clothes on his back and a toothbrush - Bill was not a happy camper.

Wednesday,

0700 - I made my way to the Sicamous for my first pre-IMC swim. I met so many people that I had emailed with over the last 10 months. I only swam for 20 minutes, but meeting everyone was incredible. My goggles broke during the swim - add one more thing to my "Must Buy" list.

After a shower Bill and I walked downtown to the Hog's Breath. We grabbed a cup of coffee and some breakfast. Bill was impressed that we kept bumping into Tri-DRS'ers. I finally told him that "Everything I know about Penticton I learned on from the List." Which meant that anywhere we went we were sure to bump into some Deads. We walked around town, checked out the construction zone of the Athlete's village and hit the Bike Barn - a really cool bike store. Most bike shops in the SF Bay area are pretty streamlined. They look more like a Blockbuster Video store than a neighborhood bike shop - everything is in its proper spot. The Bike Barn rocks - racks of stuff and a good assortment of bikes. Bins were overflowing with stuff. It was a great place to dig around for bike goodies. The place was humming with tri-bikes. There must have been at least 8 workstands going continuously.

We went to lunch at Front Street Pasta (Jason's choice) a great meal for a very low price. I finally met Dave 'the starving student" Barclay. Jason was quite the entertainment director - as the week progressed he started looking more and more like Julie Tewes, the Cruise Director from the Love Boat ;-).

My bike arrived in the afternoon - reassembly consisted of putting the front wheel back on (no allen wrenches for me). For dinner it was Front Street Pasta again this time with my bike hauling friend Ray, Bill, Dead Chris Nugent and lurking Dead Bob Castaldi. A post-dinner beer with Ray and Greg Pressler was quite relaxing. Greg truly is a poet at heart.

Thursday

Thursday was my glycogen depletion/carbo load day so I did a solo swim and run and 4 of us rode the first 15 miles of the bike course out and back. We meant to ride the run course, but we turned left on McClean by mistake. We then picked up our registration packets and got our wrist bands. It was official - I was signed up for an Ironman.

Friday

I missed the 0700 swim by 10 minutes, so I did not get to meet anyone new from the list. However, after the swim I finally met the person that I have tried to meet for months now. We train in the same locations, we race the same races and we live only a few miles apart, but I had never met this person. Finally, after a 2000 mile trek to Canada, I finally met Tri-Baby, the one the only Tricia Richter. Now I wonder how the hell I missed seeing her in other races! And I thought that Jason had some noticable hair.

My buddy Ray and I went to the Hog's Breath after the swim for a dose of caffeine, and we bumped into some deads (imagine that). Gerry Kuse was talking to Tricia and Skippy. He was wearing a 1993 Mike and Rob's shirt, a race that I had my 1/2 IM PR in way back when (it's a small world). It turns out the Gerry and I have raced at several of the same races over the years.

At the carbo load dinner we learned that there would be 675 IronVirgins racing on Sunday. 40% of the racers were attempting there first IM. Wow!

Saturday

My wife flew into town on Saturday morning. I was really glad to see her. She had been so supportive of my training, and she deserves the title of IronMate. She had originally been scheduled to fly up with me on Tuesday, but her school schedule mandated that she stay at home during the pre-race week and attend classes. I often say that you should always have at least one smart person in the family, and I was lucky enough to marry well.

The day pretty much flew by with the pre-race meeting, the parade, packing Special Needs Bags and bike check-in. My nutrition plan was pretty simple - Gu and Cytomax and salt tabs. I had trained with Gu, Cyto and salt tabs over the past 10 months with great results. At the last minute I decided to toss an Okanagan pear into my Bike Special Needs Bag.

A post parade dinner at the Gunbarrel and a walk home were all that I needed for the evening. It was time to get some sleep. Before I drifted off I thought back to my original goals. Oh yeah, I was here to have fun. I was not here to break 14 or 12 or 10 hours, but I still held out for a good race even though I knew that I just wanted to finish. I wish that I would have looked back on my goals more often.

The actual Race Report follows.

Sunday - RACE DAY

I started the day with a 3:00 am breakfast run to Denny's. Ray and I figured that an early breakfast would be useful for us. I had actually slept for about 5 or 6 hours the night before, and I felt pretty good.

At about 5:00 am I gathered my Special Needs Bags and swim gear bag and marched 3/4 of a mile to the transition. I got body marked, Championchipped and went straight to my bike. Even at 0500 the volunteers were friendly and incredibly helpful. I chose to leave my floor pump at the hotel [good choice] - with my floor pump absent from the transition area there were only 1,699 floor pumps in the TA waiting to be used. In addition there was a crew from the Bike Barn with a compressed air cylinder for filling tires. I pumped up my Conti's to about 160psi, loaded my aerobag, filled my jetstream and walked around the corner to the Swim and Run transition bag racks.

The 2 hours from 0500 to 0700 flew by. I chatted with a few friends, revelled in the fact that I was about to start my first Ironman and donned my wetsuit. I did a warm up swim for about 10 minutes in the clear Lake Okanagan. I chatted with Chris Nugent. I high-fived and chatted with Greg Pressler. In Greg's race report he mentioned that he saw "fire in Ron's eyes." With all due respect, I think that Greg is confusing the "Happy Face" holograms on my goggles with fire.

Meeting the people on this list has been a special thrill, both Greg and I have both been doing tri's for over 10 years, but we had waited until now for our first IM. We both had that "This is finally it" feeling, he went on to an incredible race that he really deserved.

The day before the race, Greg had a great observation about the IMC swim course. "It's an International Distance swim on the way out, a few hundred meters to the right and a 1/2 IM swim on the way home - we have done this before."

Oh Canada was played. I think that I heard some bagpipes somewhere, and the race STARTED!

I was here to have fun so I held back for a few seconds to let the mass of humanity clear out from the start line. I started swimming. I kept thinking to myself "This is so COOL! I am finally doing an IronMan." I passed the first set of marker bouys and thought to myself "WOW, I just passed my first set of IronMan marker bouys. This is AWESOME!"

The swim went very well. It was much less brutal than Wildflower, and the course is very well marked. I was so happy to be racing. I was bumped a few times, I swam over a few folks, I drafted a little and hit some toes and I was drafted off of. I hit the first houseboat (leg 1) in 25 minutes - I was ecstatic. I stopped for a second to adjust the neck of my wetsuit as I was experiencing a little chafe. I made it to the second right turn at 35 minutes - one more leg to go. The swim course is so well marked that I had to do very little sighting - maybe one look every 10 strokes. Basically, the swim was all mine. I focussed completely on how I was doing. If I bumped someone or got kicked it just did not matter. I really enjoyed being out there. I hit the beach and attempted to walk over the annoying rocks.

I looked at my watch - I had completed the swim in 1:06!!!!!!!!

I was expecting to have a 1:20 swim as I have only been in the water 5 or 6 times since Wildflower in May, and two of those times were tri swims. A 1:06 was incredible.

I thought "It cannot get any better than this!"

It did not get any better.

In fact, things got far, far worse.

SWIM TO BIKE TRANSITION

I wore my Speedo and singlet under my wetsuit during the swim, so I only had to don my cycling shoes and helmet. I also stopped to urinate - little did I know that I would not have to worry about that for the next 12 hours. . .

I rolled out of town feeling really good. I had just finished an incredible swim, and I was finally starting on the bike leg of my first Ironman! I took it easy for the first 5 miles - I figured that I had 107 more miles to make up time. I hit the drops as we hit South Main Street. My first priority was to hydrate and the cytomax was not tasting very good. I spun my way up McClean Road and picked off many people on the downhill - when you weigh 195 pounds downhills are a real rush. My stomach was a little tight, but I attributed that to being so early in the race.

At the bottom of McClean someone was nice enough to tell me that I had lost my pump during the rapid descent. The bracket holding my pump on my bike broken off. "Nothing I can do about it now - I hope that I don't flat."

At about mile 10 my JetStream went dry. I had a bottle of highly concentrated Cytomax on my downtube with markings on the bottle to delineate portions. I shot some Cyto concentrate into my JetStream and filled the rest with water to make a 7% solution. I immediately took a drink from my JetStream. The concentrate and the water had not mixed together, so I got about an 80% solution of Cyto in that mouthful.

I should have pulled off the side of the road and tossed my cookies.

I chose to keep the cytomax concentrate down and chase it with water - it's hard to say, but this may have been a big mistake.

My stomach started cramping big time! I could no longer drink. I tried to take a Gu, but I could not get it down. 10 miles into the bike and I could neither hydrate nor feed - OH NO!

I tried some different positions on the bike to alleviate my stomach cramps. The aero position put direct pressure on my abdomen which was not feeling too good. I alternated between sitting upright and going aero.

I was still doing pretty good with respect to speed. At mile 41 I took the right turn to head up Richter.

Can someone please tell me why both Wildflower and IMC have a hill at Mile 41???

At the base of Richter I was still holding a 22.5mph average. Then I started climbing Richter. In the grand scheme of things Richter is not a terrible climb. I ride much worse on my regular training rides. However, Richter is at mile 41 of an IM and I had not eaten much for 3 hours (swim and bike time)

I bonked.

I hurt.

I struggled to the top of Richter,

I cursed the wind.

I quit looking at my heart rate monitor - it just did not matter.

I got passed by most of the people racing at IMC.

I got passed by pedestrians who were walking up Richter.

The downhill after Richter should have been a lot of fun, but I could not hold a good tuck. I only hit 47 mph. The uphill after Richter and the rollers through the Osoyoos were intolerable. I just kept pedaling forward. I stopped at about mile 60 to eat a banana - finally I was able to consume something. I was very happy that it stayed down. I continued to slog forward. The head wind was really causing problems. Even the flat spots were hard to ride. I promised myself that I would take a break when I got my special needs bag. I passed a med tent on the way out the second out and back section. I was very tempted to stop and take a nap.

When I got my special needs bag, I rode to the closest clear spot, dropped my bike and sat down. I opened my bag. The Gu's were completely unappetizing, but the pear looked great. I started eating my Okanagan pear - man that tasted good. Unfortunately that was the only good item in my SNB. [Note to Self: diversify nutrition plans in future long races]. Some saint in one of Jason's IMC-RST jerseys stopped next to me. It was John Welch. He had an extra turkey sandwich that tasted incredible. I could eat! This tall guy with a mustache and a blue Softride stopped next to me. He was not having a good day. My personal saint, Jeff, said "George are you OK." It was George Ball. Since I was sitting on the ground in close proximity I have to say - George has some big, skinny feet. George was not feeling too good, and he crossed the road to sit down in a chair.

I shouted to a teammate, Gerry Morton, but he looked around at eye level and missed me sitting down. I saw Tri-Baby, and pretty soon Steve "Gibbo" Gibson rolled up. Gibbo looked incredibly fresh. He looked more like he had just started his ride than that he had already ridden 75 miles. Gibbo's special needs bag was missing and he was pretty irate about not getting to his vegemite sandwiches. To be honest, I have tried the stuff and I think that he was better off not having access to his vegemite, but then again I am not an Aussie ;-).

I gave myself 20 minutes of rest at the special needs stop. The first couple of miles felt OK, but soon thereafter my quads wanted to quit (again).

The course turned back onto Highway 3A and started the gradual climb to Yellow Lake Hill. It was really hot and really windy. Then we hit Yellow Lake Hill. I kept telling myself to live only in the moment - forget about the rest of the race - things will get better, but I was really hurting. It became a battle of feet. Instead of pushing to get to the next mile marker, I goaled for the next traffic sign or the next rock on the shoulder of the road. Bit by bit, pedal turn by pedal turn.

Finally, I stopped on the climb and sat on my top tube for a while (I chose not to time myself). Most people were really great. Almost all of the athletes asked if I was OK, and the race marshalls stopped to check on me. I seriously thought about dropping out. I looked at my watch just as it hit the 7 hour mark. I was at mile 90. I did a quick calculation - I had 10 hours to ride 22 miles and run a marathon. 22 mile rides are easy spins during training. I could do this.

I chose not to DNF. I started riding again. I passed some guy who was walking his bike and I decided to do the same. Two teammates passed me as I was walking, my buddy Ray and Tana, who always looks like she is just out doing an easy training ride even though she is hammering along. They made sure that I was OK as the cruised on by. I made it to the aid station at the top of the hill. A volunteer offered me cold, de-fizzed Pepsi. Pepsi was not in my pre-race plan, but then again, walking up Yellow Lake was not in my plan - I took the Pepsi.

The caffeine and sugar boost was amazing. I started riding once again. My stomach wanted to get rid of the Pepsi, but I made it stay down. I passed Ray and I caught Tana. Tana and I chatted for a minute until my specialty arrived - the Yellow Lake Downhill. I expected to cruise with the downhill bias back into town, but after the big downhill the headwind took over again. I slogged back to the transition area.

As I crossed paths with the people already on the run course I tried to assess their condition. Some people looked pretty good, but most were looking pretty tired. I got to the transition area, but I forgot to slip out of my shoes before I handed off my bike. My brain was not working too well.

BIKE TO RUN TRANSITION

Since I was going to wear my speedo and singlet for the run I did not need to change. I went into the changing tent just to sit down for a while. I applied some vaseline and stuck some reflective tape on my speedo. Ray had slipped the reflective tape in my Bike-Run bag (thanks Ray). I ate a little watermelon and drank some water. The watermelon tasted great, but I was worried about it staying down during the run. I left the changing tent to start my first ever marathon.

An Amazing IMC tidbit - I fully expected to have to carry my gear bags to a rack and hang them up. For both transitions you simply leave the gear bag on the ground. A volunteer comes along and gathers up the gear bag and hangs it on a rack - so simple - so easy for the athlete.

THE RUN

My original plan had been to start running slowly and see how things turned out. Running slowly was not a problem - everything was going to be slow. Running fast was unthinkable. I walked the aid stations, drank, ate a little bit and drenched myself with sponges. It was really hot!!

My first mile was an 11:30 and I was really happy. I hit mile 2 in 22:30 - amazingly I was actually picking up the pace (if only slightly). I walked mile 4. At mile 6, I was caught by some guy who wanted ibuprofen. After Vineman I made sure that I had Ibu with me, so I handed him a tablet. We chatted for a while until it became obvious that we knew each other. It was Dennis from RST and Greg Pressler's friend. Dennis pulled me to the run turnaround by alternating running and walking. Dennis kept talking about his Run special needs bag that contained a pair of dry socks. I remembered that my SNB only had Gu.

[see Note to Self from Bike Special Needs bag section - vary the contents of the Special Needs Bag]]

My split time for the 13.1 miles to the turnaround was 3 hours even. My friend Bill ran into and out of the turnaround looking great. He had a mechanical on the bike that cost him almost an hour.

Then I remembered that I had also put a pair of dry socks in my special needs bag. In fact I had brought a pair to Canada just for this purpose. The socks were pretty old, so if I chose not to wear them it was no big deal if I lost them. I was so happy that I had remembered to put fresh socks into my Needs Bag. The socks would only provide a momentary relief, but that moment would be enough. I needed something to brighten my day.

Dennis and I sat down to open our special needs bags. We ripped off our shoes and wet socks. We opened our special needs bags. Dennis pulled out a pair of dry socks.

OOPS! I had forgotten to pack the socks. I put my sweaty socks and shoes back on. Putting wet, icky socks back on was not the most pleasant feeling. The delivery truck with the chicken soup stopped at the turnaround.

I originally had hoped to be off the course by the time the chicken soup hit the aid stations. I had never envisioned myself only being halfway through the run when the chicken soup came out. Oh well, here I was and the soup smelled good. I sipped a cup and almost hurled. What is manna from heaven for many triathletes just did not sit well with me - I gagged at the first sip.

We started back down the road toward Penticton. The sun was starting to set which meant that it would finally cool off. Ray was just climbing the hill to the turnaround. He was surprised that the turnaround had come so soon - he looked smooth in his running form - nice and steady.

For Dennis and I it was:

Run some.

Walk more.

I ate what little I could at the aid stations.

Ray caught up to us just as we caught up to Bill. Bill had looked great leaving the turnaround, but he was struggling through a low point now. The four of us marched slowly along - it was good to know that every step was bringing us back into town. After a while Bill perked up again, and he and Ray started jogging back to town. Dennis and I kept shuffling along. A mile or two later, Dennis ducked into a porta-potty and I just stopped by the side of the road - the first time that I had urinated in 12+ hours! Believe it or not it was a major mental boost. I had really been starting to worry about my kidneys.

It became apparent that Dennis had a lot more left in his legs than I did. I wished him luck as he disappeared around a corner. My feet were really starting to hurt. I did not have any blisters or abrasions, but it felt like someone had taken a meat tenderizer to the soles of my feet and my toes. I was almost hoping that a couple of my toes would just fall off so that they would not hurt anymore. I came around a corner and hit another aid station. On the other side of the aid station Ray and Bill were walking slowly. They had dropped their pace in order to wait for me - THANKS GUYS!!!!

At that point we were about 20 miles into the marathon. Two women came running by us like it was a 10K - I wondered where they got the energy from. A few seconds later about 4 guys caught us and they laid out their very detailed plan for breaking 14 hours. It is great to be at a race with sooooo many engineers - almost everyone is incredibly analytical. The plan was pretty simple - hold 11 minute miles and we would break 14 hours, but these guys had even calculated walking zones and rest stops..... To everyone we passed - two of the guys kept on saying - "hop on the 9:00 o'clock express. You can do it."

It turns out that the guys had also shared their plan with the two women who had run by like gazelles. The women had found something inside themselves and they chose to push it hard into town. Unfortunately we passed them about 1/2 mile later as they could not hold that pace that they had charged ahead with.. We left the water line of Skaha Lake and started climbing the rollers. I passed another guy and this time I looked back and saw a Tri-DRS singlet. I introduced myself and finally met Jay Capers.

The group of us was still shuffling along trying to hold 11 minute miles. The detail oriented engineer guys were still calculating our odds of breaking 14. I dropped off as we went through the Skaha rollers, but I was able to catch the group again on the downhills. Ray and Bill were feeling pretty good, so they pulled ahead. This left me with the two human calculators/cheerleaders. The guy on the right introduced himself. I was not hearing or concentrating very well so I thought that he said his name was "Ralph." He corrected me that his name was not "Ralph" but "Rolf" - even my feeble brain was able to decipher that I was running next the "Keeper of the IMC Lodging and Goal Times List" I introduced myself to Rolf Arands.

The guy on my left said "didn't I give you a sandwich at the bike Special Needs Bag?" It was John Welch of RST. He had saved me on the bike and he was trying to pull me in for a sub 14 hour finish.

As before - we were shuffling along - only we had picked up the pace to give ourselves a margin of error. We debated about how fast we were running

"do you think this is a 9 minute mile?" "I think it's more like an 8:30" "Yeah right, like we could run 8:30's right now?" "It sure feels like an 8:30"

We turned onto Main Street and hit the aid station. I had to walk and asked Rolf and John to run on. Rolf tried to talk me into running with them, but I was not up for it. The finish line was getting closer, but I was hurting too much - my feet were lodging a formal protest.

I kept trudging along on Main Street. The fans were incredibly helpful. An ironvet on a bike talked to me for over a block - he was very motivating. I promised him that I wouild run again when there were three stoplights to go. Hurricane Bob Mina passed me and I congratulated him. I started jogging again.

Two blocks from the Hog's Breath I picked up my pace. I ran (actually ran - not jogged) the last few yards of Main Street - high fiving the kids and cheering with the crowd. I could not believe that I was running. The left turn onto Lakeshore Drive was incredible. I ran hard to the finish line and crossed in 14:10:48.

I completed my goal. I had gone from couch to Canada in 10 months. I am an IRONMAN.

POST-RACE:

Two incredible volunteers escorted me from the finish line. Somehow I received my IMC towel, finisher's medal and T-shirt (the correct size - how do they do it?). The ladies escorted my to the line for the massage tent per my request - they stayed with me for several minutes until they were sure that I was OK - they brought me water and some chicken soup. The chicken soup actually tasted great. I had a great massage, and I walked back to the finish line to find my wife who was standing right next to the results tent. It was sooooo good to see her. I got my congratulatory hug (over the snow fence) and I heard how proud she was of my accomplishment. After a very long day that was filled with ups and downs it was very uplifting to hear her words.

I picked up my gear bags, changed into some dry clothes, had my finishers photo taken (remember to wear your finisher's shirt and medal - they look great in the photo), I soaked my legs in a hot tub, and I waited to no avail for some pizza. I then picked up my bike and Winter and I walked back to the Rochester. My eyes felt like they had a salt shaker dumped in them - I had to squint to see anything. Winter was hungry after waiting for me for several hours so we went to the Iguana for a bite - nothing else was open at 11:00pm. Fajitas in Canada are not what I am used to - what is a tomato tortilla anyhow???? My stomach was still in an act of rebellion so I took my meal home to eat the next day. We turned on Channel 11 to watch the 17 hour finishers - there was no way that I was going to make it back to the finish line. The fireworks (like the start cannon) went off a little early. I then realized why my eyes were barely open - I was EXHAUSTED. I passed out almost immediately.

THE DAYS AFTER

I awoke on Monday feeling hungry (finally). My stomach was still a little tender, but I managed to eat.

I was happy to have completed my first IM in such difficult conditions, but I was frustrated that I had fallen apart during the race. 14 hours was much longer than what I had hoped to do.

I contemplated IMC '99. My legs hurt, my stomach still ached and I had not totalled the bills for the cost of IMC '98. I did not want to come back to Penticton again in '99. Then I thought twice - this race has the best organization and volunteers of any race that I have ever done. I want to do better than a 14 hour IM. In a month I would be ready to contemplate IMC '99, but I would not have a month to decide. I chose to submit my application for '99.

The rest of the day was a blur - finisher's merchandise, results book (Vineman and Wildflower's took about 3 months to arrive - IMC's was complete with pictures in about 10 hours), awards ceremony, shopping, packing, meeting friends, handing my bike off to Ray for the drive home. soon it was Tuesday morning and time to fly home.

Back home I evaluated the race. In Penticton, surrounded by IronVets, my finish did not look to stellar. As I reread my goals for the race and talked to non-triathletes I started thinking clearly again:

I have completed every one of my IMC '98 goals.

I am an Ironman.

I am not the same person that I was 10 months ago and I am very, very happy that I did what had to be done in order to finish.

To every IronVirgin out there - good luck training for your goals, and be sure to remember what your goals are!!!!

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spellyjane · 6 years

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Ironman Cozumel - a day of “nearlies”

It is always good to wait for a few days after an Ironman to write up a race report. I never quite trust my sanity until I have processed the race day caffeine, eaten solid food, had a good sleep and dealt with my post race laundry.

I had originally signed up for Ironman Cozumel as redemption for my frustrating 1st Ironman in Arizona last year. But it just felt too far away and I decided to squeeze in 2 more Ironman and 3 more 70.3 races as well. Yeah, nuts. So I arrived in Cozumel feeling a little wary. I was carrying great fitness but I was feeling mentally DONE with all the intensity. The pain of that Kona course was still fresh enough in my mind to make me even wonder if I really wanted to do it again. I wondered how much I could make myself hurt for a Kona slot or a PR or a podium.

I fell in with a fun bunch of Colorado based athletes at my hotel and was really thankful for their company, it was great to share the race weekend with them. I will be keen to catch up when our family relocates to Denver in January.

Did you read my Kona race report? Remember that nasty Aunt Flo who decided to turn up the day before the race? Well can you believe she did it again? Seriously, this needs some investigating, this has happened (unscheduled) the day before 3 races this year. It is not a disaster but it does add a little more anxiety and more time consuming pit stops. Anyway, moving on.

The course layout at Cozumel makes for a busy race morning. Swim start, T1 and T2 are all in different locations. I got myself to the swim start with enough time to squeeze my way up to the fast kids corral, take a few deep breaths, throw down the 1st of 11 Gu packets and go!

I loved that swim. I got onto the pier and dived, yay, I can't remember the last time I was allowed to dive into a swim start. I took off hard. I was wary of being complacent in the current assisted conditions. I settled in, I did get tangled up with other swimmers a couple of times but for the most part just put my head down and worked hard. I was a little bummed that the course was short. I measured it to be 3463m, 350m short! That combined with the current and my more than usual aggressive intensity gave me a ridiculous 13 min PR at 53:21.

I tore through T1 with no complications, glad I chose to clip my shoes on my bike so I could put some speed into my run.

I was out on the bike course in under and hour and I was excited! I thought, right, let's not waste that massive swim PR, let's turn this into a race PR. The swim had not left me feeling as fatigued as usual and I was right on top of my target watts right from the start. (I had struggled with this in my last 2 IMs.) I had ridden 1 loop of the 3 loop course on a rental scooter before the race so knew what to expect. The smooth, flat, straight roads were a TT queen’s dream! (Yeah, I am calling myself a TT queen.) The wind was not as dramatic as I was expecting and even when it was, I just reminded myself that everyone was feeling the same and I just stayed tucked in aero and held my watts. I must say, it was all going quite well, I was right on target for a 5:15 bike, I had made the left hand turn and was about 15km from the bike finish and was crunching numbers in my head and thinking come on girl, you could totally go sub 10 hours when I heard that dreaded “pop - phshhhhh!” Oh dang, back wheel puncture, I shifted into my small ring, jumped off and started getting the puncture sorted. I had pulled out my old tube and was reaching for my new tube when the Ironman bike mechanic arrived, we worked together to get the job done quicker. When we discovered the 3-4mm tear in the tyre we both groaned. Oh crikey, I did not have anything to seal the hole! The mechanic grabbed my old tube, hacked a piece off and shoved it between the new tube and the tear and began inflating the tyre. I wonder if I would have thought of that? Even if I did, I would have struggled to cut a piece with no scissors. He pumped it up to 80psi and I could see the old tube starting to show through the tear and I nearly died, eek! “Stop!” I panicked, but he said, “no, a little more.” He got to 90psi and seemed satisfied. We got my wheel back on and I grabbed his hand and with a squeeze, gushed my most heart felt “Gracias!”

I took off, feeling relieved and terrified. My race was not over and even with a 5 min stop, I was still on target for a very reasonable bike split. However, with just 2 thin pieces of latex between the road and my inner tube, I was terrified that I would not make it to the finish without another puncture.

Well, it worked, I made it to the bike catcher and passed my bike (and a shit ton of anxiety,) right over to him at a time of 5:18:47, with my watts and IF right on point.

T2 was uncomplicated and I was on my way. I had set myself up for a sub 10hr if I could pull off a good run. Even at that stage I still was not sure what my body was going to let me do. I have struggled with dodgy guts in a couple of Ironman runs and I was not sure if this was going to hit me again, I was feeling as good as I have ever felt as I took off so I just focused on keeping tidy, holding good form and pace.

The 3 loop, out and back course was pretty flat, had some shade and a noticeable tail wind coming back into town each time. So, 7km out and 7km back 3 times. Easy peasy. (Haha, the silly things I say to myself in races.) Sebastian Keinle passed me on his last loop as I was hitting the 4km point, he looked like he was doing it easy and so was I at that point, he must have passed me thinking “Whoa, that age grouper is looking so tidy, I hope I can run like that when I am her her age!” So you can imagine he was super keen to pose for a selfie when he saw me at the award ceremony!

There were only a few other girls out on the course at that point and I began to wonder who they were and what my position was. I had stalked my age group competition prior to the race and will be honest, I was not expecting anyone to be ahead of me given the race I had had so far. So when a spectator friend told me,I was in 3rd place as I hit the 2nd loop I was really bummed. I wondered who they could be, every one I saw on the out and back looked either younger or pro and no one seemed to be looking particularly uncomfortable. I worked really hard to push those thoughts out and told myself that I was having a killer race. I reminded myself that I could only control my own performance and that I was doing a good job of it right now. That being said, I began to slow down a little, I was getting tired. I stopped for the loo just before the 21k turn around. I made that turn and could see the 10hr race slipping away, it was a tough loop that one. I was looking at every girl on the other side of the road and thinking that they looked amazing and that I did not look like I was holding it together etc, my mind was being really mean to me. My new Colorado friends cheered me on as I made the turn for the last loop. I remembered all the races where I have picked up places in the closing stages. I kept that front and centre and just kept trying to look the part. As I made my last turn at the 35km point I started to see girls who I had thought were ahead of me still on the out leg and I realised that I had been really hard on myself. I did not over take anyone in in my AG but I was on target for a respectable run and a big IM PR so I pushed on refusing to slow down and made that final turn onto the carpet. I lept over the finish line with a not terrible 3:46:25 marathon and an awesome 10:04:32 a 10 min PR.

I found the gal who came 2nd in the post race area, I recognised her from the course, I thought she was a pro! Neither her nor the smoking fast gal who won were on the pre race athlete list I had stalked, I guess they signed up late - serves me right! Anyway we exchanged a few words about the race before she apologised, turned away and puked. Oh and here those doubts flood back to me even now, why wasn't I puking? Did I not try hard enough? I was gaining on her and as it turns out I ran a faster run split than her. I also beat her on the swim too. She went under 10 hours and I did not. Yes I have lamented that flat big time and more and more so since she was able to claim the 2nd of the 2 Kona slots up for grabs. Ok, enough of that, it is what it is. I did the best I could all dang day, I know I did.

I am planning my 2018 race season, still hoping for the perfect race and I hope I can snag another Kona slot in the process.

I look forward to working with my most excellent coach Rick Schopp at INTENT, training at a mile high and starting a new chapter in Colorado with my family in 2018.

Huge thank you to Simon and my kiddos, your support and love through all of the training and racing is wonderful!

See you out on the course next year, I will be the one grinning like an idiot because I am doing something I love!

#racewithINTENT #Ironman #IMCozumel #triathlon

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writing-in-riverdale · 7 years

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twin andrews part 4 | jughead x reader

part one:https://writing-in-riverdale.tumblr.com/post/158708863703/twin-andrews-juggie-x-reader-an-im-hoping

part two:https://writing-in-riverdale.tumblr.com/post/158896154168/twin-andrews-part-2-jughead-x-reader

part three:https://writing-in-riverdale.tumblr.com/post/158929430293/twin-andrews-part-three-jughead-x-reader

part five: https://writing-in-riverdale.tumblr.com/post/159487616565/twin-andrews-part-5-jughead-x-reader

a/n: wowie lil nuggets we’ve reached part 4 im having a lil happy dance over here! im so overwhelmed about how much you guys are liking this series so im more than happy to get busy making parts as long as you’ll are loving it so let me know!!🥂👱🏻‍♀️💛🤓💐🌈💚🌻ps: if you’ve missed a part click on the masterlist in my blog ✨

♕

“ugh i hate calculus with my whole heart” i mutter flicking through my text book pooping a few gummy bears in my mouth. it was free period so Betty, Kevin and I decided to try and study for a calculus text tomorrow.

my brother and he’s team mates were also here with veronica and jughead sitting off to the side taking in everyone’s conversation. i catch him glances at me which cause me to smile and fiddle with the ends of his jacket

reggie was going on about his theories on who killed jason and everyone was getting pretty fed up with his antics

“it couldn’t have been a jock-” i groan closing my book “reggie can you just stop! jesus christ” he turns in his seat smirking at me.

“well well well my little vixen what’s gotten into you-” i roll my eyes “im trying to study and i can hear is your idiotic voice so it’d be wonderful if you just shut the hell up!” i smile sweetly the room snickering at my response.

“terribly sorry my lady- please continue working” i curse under my breathe turning my attention away from reggie and toward the brunette leaning against the far table, a smirk drawn on his face, i give him a wink causing his chest to shake as he laughs

my attention is brought back when reggie bellows jugheads name, i move out of the chair and over to reggie, “seriously?” he ignores me and continues to interrogate jughead

“what was it like suicide squad? when you shot jason?” “you didn’t do stuff to the body right? like after?”

i turn to jughead awaiting his response “its call necrophilia reggie, can you spell it?” he replies emotionless. he’s arms folded across his chest

“come here you little punk” reggie launches himself over the couch and rushes up the jughead not before archie jumps in front of him pushing reggie in the chest away from the two

i sigh relived that my brother was protecting him even though they weren’t the best of friends right now

everyone stands “boys” veronica warns touching chuck on the arm, i look at her puzzled at how snug she was being with yet another jock

i push past moose and grab reggie by the shoulder “would you just stop for a minute-?” i spit annoyed at the air head “leave him alone” i warn. he pushes up his selves glancing from me to jughead to my brother and then back to me.

“wait is that jugheads jacket your wearing princess?-” my brother shoves him once more “god just shut up reggie”

“what do you care Andrews?”

he glances quickly to me before back to reggie “nothing just leave him alone”

i smile small at my brother but it’s short lived as reggie speaks “holy crap”

“did you and donny darko kill him together? was it some sort of pervy blood brother thing?”

my brother shoves the raven headed boy, jugheads eyes going wide stepping away from the table and outstretching his arms shielding me from the two. i push past his arms and place a hand on Reggies chest “walk away”

anger flashes in his eyes “no can do princess” and with that he grabs my brother and throws him into the vending machine the glasses smashing, arms around me waist tug me back and i try and fight it until i realise it was jug.

Chuck and Jughead are up trying to pry the two apart as they wrestle on the ground Reggie getting one solid punch to my brothers eye before giving up the fight and letting Chuck drag him up holding him against the wall to stop him from causing further harm.

i move toward him anger moving through me like a tidal wave, “don’t you ever speak to my friends like that ever again- and i swear if you lay another hand on my brother i will make sure you cannot reproduce got it?” i sneer and he wink at me “god i love it when your mad” a flick switches and i punch him right in the eye.

he tries to break free from chuck as i continue to hit him annoyance taking away “you little jerk” i yell being lifted off the ground and dragged out of the room by the beanie wearing brunette

he walks me over to my locker as we see the principle enter the room walking away with the two jocks “i can’t believe him” i mumble slamming my hands against the locker

“hey don’t let him get to you” he places his hand on my shoulder and i exhale loudly “yeah i know- i don’t get how you can deal with it jug- what he said was totally out of hand and im sorry-” he shakes his head “don’t worry about it i seemed to have both andrews in my corner anyway”

i smile down at my feet “did you and archie make up last night?” he shifts on his feet “uh- no no we didn’t we just talked and yeah” i sigh “will you ever?” he shrugs again “i don’t know- i want to tell you it’s just” he clears his throat “it’s fine jug, ive got practice ill see you tonight at the rally?” he nods “yeah”

“(y/n) wait-” i turn and face him “will i be getting my jacket back anytime soon?” he chuckles, my eyes widen i had totally forgotten that i hadn’t returned it to him since he gave it to me last night “my bad” i shrug off the jacket and he shakes his head

“no no- keep it for now- it’ll give me an excuse to see you again-” i blush but continue to remove the jacket “i have practice so ill be in my uniform so it’ll just be in my locker so please take it, the game can be your excuse”

he reluctantly takes it from me and places it in his locker “i don’t think ill ever be able to wear it again, you wore it too well so now it doesn’t look as good on me anymore” he gives me a smug smile “yeah yeah whatever jones, i love that jacket on you-”

“see you tonight” i yell to him as i walk myself toward the girls locker room, great a whole period of my two favourite people; Cheryl Blossom and Veronica Lodge.

♕

after what seemed like the longest hour of my life the bell finally rings ending the period and i give a silent prayer as i now have an excuse to put as much distance as i possible can before i launch myself at veronica for breaking a thousand girl codes.

my head was aching from listen to her trying to tell Betty how she realised she did was wrong but she wasn’t the only one involved and that apparently she was being a ‘good’ friend and ‘protecting’ betty because cheryl would’ve gone in if veronica didn’t.

im almost in the clear until i hear the all to familiar voice calling out my name, i bring my hands to my mouth and scream into them before slapping a smile on my face and turning to face the raven haired girl.

“okay so i understand your mad at me for what happened between me and your brother and I just want to apologise” i pause before i answer trying to think of ways to place it nicely.

“look ronnie i wouldn’t have given a crap if you hooked up with my brother okay he can date and kiss whoever the hell he wants but when you add my girl to the mix that’s where i draw the line, you knew how betty felt- you both did yet not one of you thought to yourself maybe i shouldn’t smash b’s heart to smithereens” i smile sarcastically

“if your goal was to piss me off to the point where i actually can’t stand to be near you then congrats you’ve done that. im annoyed and hungry so quite frankly don’t approach me until ive calmed down because i swear i will take you down and i really don’t want to make an enemy out of you”

i move past her and make my way to my locker to grab a few things before heading home to change and prepare for the rally tonight it’s supposedly forecast to flash flood but for some wack reason they’re making us cheer in the pouring rain. yay school spirit

“hey andrews”

“oh for fuck sakes can’t a girl just be left alone!” i complain turning to see the smug look of Reggie Mantle, black eye and all. “not in the mood Mantle shove along go find another cheerleader to torment.

i begin to walk out of the school reggie still hot on my heels “but your my own and only vixen i swear” i furrow my brows at the boy and ignore him as i begin my journey home

im almost at my house when I realise reggie still trailing behind me “jeez reg what are you walking me home?” i complain trying to pick up my pace “we aren’t in school anymore you can leave me alone and stop acting like an asshole”

“oh c'mon (y/n/n) i thought we were past this” he complains stopping at the gate to my house “guess we aren’t” i say enthusiastically giving a thumbs up for encouragement before slamming the front door and flopping onto the couch.

the front door opens and closes but im too tired and grumpy to move so i stay out sprawled out onto the couch “why is reggie outside our house?” archie asks moving my legs so he could sit down.

i sit up and take the apple from his hand “reggie who?”

♕

“you ready for tonight?” i ask the blonde girl fiddling with my hair as we start the walk toward school

she nods her head and to swinging her blonde pony tail “im actually really excited- my first pep rally as a river vixen” she giggle spinning around in her uniform

“well miss betty cooper you were made to be a cheerleader, us vixens are lucky to have you” i encourage her attempting to calm the nerves i know she has.

“thanks (y/n/n), im so glad your back” i wink at the blonde “so am i- i did really miss you a lot, seems like everyone’s life just sort went on with me” i smile sadly.

we enter the locker room and my good mood seems to have diminished completely “ronnie!” Betty calls to the raven haired girl gesturing her over so we could walk out onto the field together

“looking good ladies” veronica compliments offering me a small smile, i decide to return it “we good?” she questions and i take a second to respond “yeah lodge we’re good”

she smiles placing both hands on our shoulders “now should be go and show some school spirit” her grin wide and preppy cheerleader tone on point “lets go!” i return the enthusiasm throwing up some spirit fingers.

we rush onto the field bouncing on the balls of the feet and get the crowd up and alive, it was pouring down and we were soaked as soon as we stepped foot onto the field. the bleachers filled with umbrellas to shield themselves.

the mayor steps up to the podium and gives a small speech dedicating the rally to the late jason blossom before introducing josie and the pussycats and the river vixens to start their performance

the music starts and we launch into the routine all eyes on us as we swish around our skirts doing a few flips but mostly choreography from one miss blossom. i grab my poms and start catching jughead staring right at me, it throws me off but i mange to get back into the groove a blush covering my face

we finish our routine and coach runs across the stage and introduce the almighty riverdale bulldogs. they break through the banner my brother at the front of the group wearing jasons jersey. i freeze sickness washing over me, i turn instantly to see cheryl turning white before catching my gaze and bolting off the field.

betty & veronica rush off the field following her but i decide against following them and walk toward my brother whom was amongst the crowd talking to one jughead jones

puzzled i jog over smiling brightly as i approach the two “whatcha talking bout” i ask smiling shyly at the brunette, i bump hips with my brother “nice way to spook everyone arch” i tease and he just shakes his head

“so?” i raise my eyes brows glancing between the two awfully chummy “uh arch just apologised and well im going to give him a second chance” jug speaks playing with the back of his neck

i smile to myself jumping up and down before launching myself into jughead, he stumbles but wraps his arms around my waist holding me up before setting me down “thank you” i mumble into his ear before turning and punching my brother playfully in the arm

“about time you big idiot”

“ow!” he exaggerates rubbing his arm “oh stop being a baby” i roll my eyes at him the boy laughing at the sibling banter

“Pop’s?” i ask the two and they nod i start walking and the lag behind “c'mon what are we waiting for!” they laugh and share a glance before jogging to catch up to my long strides

“can i ask yous something” archie asks me as we start our short journey to pop’s “shoot” i tell him adjusting my gym bag on my shoulder before jughead removes it from my slinging it on his own shoulder

“what’s with you two, why have you been wearing jughead’s jackets are yous like a thing or-?” i giggle glancing at the brunette next to me who decides to stay quite

“it was pouring down on the way over from the dance, i was cold so he leant it to me and i wore it to school the next day to return it. is it really that big of a deal?”

he shakes his head “not that it’s really any of your business anyway right jug?” he looks at me wide eyes glancing between his best friend and his little sister “i mean yeah”

i laugh at his nervousness and push open the door to Pop’s spotting B & V already sitting in a both toward the back, i don’t wait for the boys i just continue down and slip in next to veronica

“ladies” i smile at them and betty turns in her seat looking at my brother and he’s best friend, i realise instantly and cuss under my breathe “they don’t have to seat sorry my bad” she shakes her head and speaks out to the boys as they wait for permission to join us”

“you wanna join us?” they both share a smile “only if your treating” jughead comments walking over and sliding in next to me placing his arm along the back of the booth

i watch as my brother does the same sharing a glance of respect with betty then laughing at something veronica said as we all sit cozily in our booth waiting for our food to arrive engrossed in our own little world.

i feel jugheads arm drop slowly resting on my shoulder causing me to wriggle closer to him sharing a smile with the brunette before returning back to the conversation

last nights drama had fizzled away, friendships mended and on their way to being so for now we sit happy and content wonder what tomorrow brings and in this moment i smile this, this was home.

-🌹

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#archie comics #riverdale #riverdale imagines #riverdale fanfiction #jughead jones #jughead x reader #jughead jones x reader #jughead jones imagine #jughead #archie andrews imagines #archie andrews x reader #archie andrews #betty cooper #veronica lodge

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