This is a video I found posted on another blog I follow. It is a little dramatic but it does sum up how I feel. I am already planning my Next Ironman!
Monday, November 23, 2009
Monday, November 9, 2009
2009 Ironman Florida Race Report part 3
THE RUN
Now I am not a runner. I had a knee injury this summer and my body was just no built to run. Throughout the day I had been keeping to my race plan of keeping myself hydrated and fed on the bike, and keeping my hear rate in check while not killing myself on the bike. I had met both of my time goals on the swim and bike and I was feeling pretty good. My neck and shoulders were now feeling much better and my feet were getting some feeling back.
When I was starting my run the ladies 1st place finisher was just crossing the finish line. The crowd was going crazy. I could not believe how many people were at the finish line. It was like a giant street party. I started to run and figured if I could run close to my training pace I would be fine. Except for my feet, I was feeling pretty good. At the first aid station I did have to hit the porta jon. I had been drinking so much I figured it was about time. At about 5 miles Nancy Cooper and I passed each other. Although Nancy wasn't feeling well she was having a great race. Right after I saw Nancy I had to stop and walk for a moment. I was starting to feel some blisters forming on the bottoms of both of my feet. So my plan was to start running for 10 minutes and walking for 5 minutes.
At this point I was walking next to a guy named Todd. He was from Florida and we started talking and we were both doing our first Ironman. I told him my feet were hurting and what my plan was. He said that sounded good so for the next 7 miles (the first loop of the marathon) we ran and walked. I think my pace for that 1st loop was about 13 minutes a mile. I told Todd at the end of that first loop that I had to stop running. I could tell I had blisters on the bottom of both of my feet and I was really hurting.
What I haven't mentioned to this point is the crowd support and the aid stations on the run. It was unbelievable. Especially closer to the finish it was like a big party. Music was playing and everyone is cheering. There was one house that had a bunch of men and women dancing in costumes. Another aid station was set up like an army hospital. They called it the MASH aid station and it was complete with an old army jeep and they were all dressed in green army fatigues. They even had the theme song from MASH playing. There was even a guy with a keg of beer handing out cups of beer. And these people were out there all night.
Right before the first loop turn around I saw Neil Cooper. He was walking with someone and looking pretty good. After I saw him I started to pick up my walking pace a bit. I wanted to catch up to Neil. I caught up to Neil at around mile 14. Neil was walking with a guy named Jason from Dallas, Texas. Jason was hurting and Neil was walking with him. Jason was 26 years old and Neil was helping him get to the finish! For the next 5 miles or so I walked with Neil and Jason. During such a long day it really helps when you have someone to walk with when you are not feeling the best. I could tell Neil was hurting a bit but he just kept plugging along asking Jason every few minutes how he was doing. We eventually saw Nancy again and she was heading for her best finish. Way to Nancy!!
At about mile 19 we had to enter a park for a loop and head back into town. At this point the park was pitch black. I mean it was dark. I was clear and cool and and I could see tons of stars. Neil told me if I wanted to go ahead of him to go. I was able to walk at a little faster pace at this point. So Neil and I shook hands and he congratulated me and I went ahead. I felt a bit guilty about leaving him. I know he didn't need me to finish, but part of me wanted to stay back there with him and Jason.
As you leave the park you have a final 6 mile push to the finish. The run course is pretty empty now. Compared to earlier there are maybe 200-300 people still left out on the course. I was amazed that there were still people sitting in the front yards clapping for every one. It seemed like the last 3 miles took forever. As I walked thru the final neighborhood back to the main finish area I kept having to walk over speed bumps. The speed bumps are what hurt my feet the most as I had to put pressure right on the ball of my foot. After what seemed like 10 speed bumps I could finally start to hear the music and crowd at the finish line. All the spectators left on the course are congratulating you and giving you high fives, as they know you are going to finish.
One of the thing I kept telling myself is that I wanted to have enough energy left to run to the finish line. So with about 200 yds to go I tried to run again. Now after walking for 13 miles I had stiffened up a bit and I still could not put an real pressure on my feet, especially my left foot. I kept trying to run but I just couldn't. As I was getting closer the finish line there was a guy running behind me and the time was approaching 16 hours. I slowed down a bit to let him pass. I wanted to cross the line by myself. Now my original time goal was 14:30. When that time past, I was thinking 15 hours. Now the clock was at 15:57 and I told myself I was going to make it under 16 hours. I picked up my pace for that last 200 yards to make it under the 16 hour mark. I entered the finish chute and tried one last time to run and I took two steps and just had to stop. So I walked across the finish line. I never heard my name called and I don't remember the crowd cheering and I had no idea were the camera was. I had this plan before the race that I would be pumping my fist or jump up and down or something at the finish. But all I could think about at that moment was I hope I didn't look ridiculous. I was thrilled I had finished, but really disappointed I had to walk across the finish line. But I finished and I am now and and forever an official Ironman finisher!
At the finish there are people there to grab you and hold you up. I felt ok physically, except for my feet. They gave me my medal and asked what size shirt I wear and handed me a shirt, hat and one of those silver blanket things. They then walk you over to a place to have your picture taken. Then it was over to the medical tent. I had my feet checked out, the blisters popped and cleaned and relaxed a bit. When I was in the medical tent I heard the announcer call out Neil Copper's name. I wanted to be out there when he finished but they were still working on my feet. Sorry I missed you Neil, but I did cheer for you in the tent. After about 25 minutes getting my feet fixed up I was looking for some food as I could smell the pizza.
I saw Neil and Nancy sitting at a table and we just sat there eating our pizza looking very tired. After all that, we then had to go pick up all of our gear and bikes back at the transition. So we had to walk about 1/2 mile back to transition, get 3 big bags of gear and our bikes and then walk back to the condo. This is not an easy thing to do! Neil ended up riding his bike back to the condo so Nancy and I walked back.
As we were passing the finish line to head back the 17 hour mark was approaching. We could see the last few runners coming towards us. It was now 16:57 into the race and a woman was coming down the road so Nancy said she wanted to wait and cheer her into the finish. After nearly 17 hours of calling out names the announcer came running out into the street with his microphone. He started running with her calling out her name with microphone in hand. She was going to be the final official finisher. The crowd was going crazy. Well that lady, whoever she was, was almost sprinting to the finish. She came around the final turn to the finish chute with about 30 seconds to go. We were all screaming now and she sprinted to the finish in 16:59:43. She had 17 seconds to spare. It was awesome to see!
My final official time was 15:58:17.
FINAL THOUGHTS
When I called my wife after the race I told her I was going to be retiring from Ironman distance races and I no longer had a desire to run a marathon. Somehow I probably knew that wasn't true. I am already planning for my next Ironman!! If it wasn't for my feet I think I would have had the perfect first Ironman. I never even considered that something like blisters could slow me down so much. Before the race I was most concerned about how my altered internal anatomy would affect my nutrition and hydration during the race. Well, that turned out not to be a problem at all. I was right on target for my HR, cadence on the bike and pace on the swim. I had no stomach issue at all and felt pretty good the entire race. I do need to work to improve my performance on the bike. I think I will be spending more time cycling and less time running for my next race. I want to again thank everyone for your support especially Neil and Nancy Cooper. This has been a great triathlon year for me. I finished all 6 of my races this year and met some great people. The ATC has been great and the open water swims helped my confidence tremendously. So the 2009 race year is over for me. I am going to take some time off of training for now and start planning for 2010. I have (7) races planned including two 1/2 Ironman events. And who knows I may even be crazy enough to go for another Ironman.
Now I am not a runner. I had a knee injury this summer and my body was just no built to run. Throughout the day I had been keeping to my race plan of keeping myself hydrated and fed on the bike, and keeping my hear rate in check while not killing myself on the bike. I had met both of my time goals on the swim and bike and I was feeling pretty good. My neck and shoulders were now feeling much better and my feet were getting some feeling back.
When I was starting my run the ladies 1st place finisher was just crossing the finish line. The crowd was going crazy. I could not believe how many people were at the finish line. It was like a giant street party. I started to run and figured if I could run close to my training pace I would be fine. Except for my feet, I was feeling pretty good. At the first aid station I did have to hit the porta jon. I had been drinking so much I figured it was about time. At about 5 miles Nancy Cooper and I passed each other. Although Nancy wasn't feeling well she was having a great race. Right after I saw Nancy I had to stop and walk for a moment. I was starting to feel some blisters forming on the bottoms of both of my feet. So my plan was to start running for 10 minutes and walking for 5 minutes.
At this point I was walking next to a guy named Todd. He was from Florida and we started talking and we were both doing our first Ironman. I told him my feet were hurting and what my plan was. He said that sounded good so for the next 7 miles (the first loop of the marathon) we ran and walked. I think my pace for that 1st loop was about 13 minutes a mile. I told Todd at the end of that first loop that I had to stop running. I could tell I had blisters on the bottom of both of my feet and I was really hurting.
What I haven't mentioned to this point is the crowd support and the aid stations on the run. It was unbelievable. Especially closer to the finish it was like a big party. Music was playing and everyone is cheering. There was one house that had a bunch of men and women dancing in costumes. Another aid station was set up like an army hospital. They called it the MASH aid station and it was complete with an old army jeep and they were all dressed in green army fatigues. They even had the theme song from MASH playing. There was even a guy with a keg of beer handing out cups of beer. And these people were out there all night.
Right before the first loop turn around I saw Neil Cooper. He was walking with someone and looking pretty good. After I saw him I started to pick up my walking pace a bit. I wanted to catch up to Neil. I caught up to Neil at around mile 14. Neil was walking with a guy named Jason from Dallas, Texas. Jason was hurting and Neil was walking with him. Jason was 26 years old and Neil was helping him get to the finish! For the next 5 miles or so I walked with Neil and Jason. During such a long day it really helps when you have someone to walk with when you are not feeling the best. I could tell Neil was hurting a bit but he just kept plugging along asking Jason every few minutes how he was doing. We eventually saw Nancy again and she was heading for her best finish. Way to Nancy!!
At about mile 19 we had to enter a park for a loop and head back into town. At this point the park was pitch black. I mean it was dark. I was clear and cool and and I could see tons of stars. Neil told me if I wanted to go ahead of him to go. I was able to walk at a little faster pace at this point. So Neil and I shook hands and he congratulated me and I went ahead. I felt a bit guilty about leaving him. I know he didn't need me to finish, but part of me wanted to stay back there with him and Jason.
As you leave the park you have a final 6 mile push to the finish. The run course is pretty empty now. Compared to earlier there are maybe 200-300 people still left out on the course. I was amazed that there were still people sitting in the front yards clapping for every one. It seemed like the last 3 miles took forever. As I walked thru the final neighborhood back to the main finish area I kept having to walk over speed bumps. The speed bumps are what hurt my feet the most as I had to put pressure right on the ball of my foot. After what seemed like 10 speed bumps I could finally start to hear the music and crowd at the finish line. All the spectators left on the course are congratulating you and giving you high fives, as they know you are going to finish.
One of the thing I kept telling myself is that I wanted to have enough energy left to run to the finish line. So with about 200 yds to go I tried to run again. Now after walking for 13 miles I had stiffened up a bit and I still could not put an real pressure on my feet, especially my left foot. I kept trying to run but I just couldn't. As I was getting closer the finish line there was a guy running behind me and the time was approaching 16 hours. I slowed down a bit to let him pass. I wanted to cross the line by myself. Now my original time goal was 14:30. When that time past, I was thinking 15 hours. Now the clock was at 15:57 and I told myself I was going to make it under 16 hours. I picked up my pace for that last 200 yards to make it under the 16 hour mark. I entered the finish chute and tried one last time to run and I took two steps and just had to stop. So I walked across the finish line. I never heard my name called and I don't remember the crowd cheering and I had no idea were the camera was. I had this plan before the race that I would be pumping my fist or jump up and down or something at the finish. But all I could think about at that moment was I hope I didn't look ridiculous. I was thrilled I had finished, but really disappointed I had to walk across the finish line. But I finished and I am now and and forever an official Ironman finisher!
At the finish there are people there to grab you and hold you up. I felt ok physically, except for my feet. They gave me my medal and asked what size shirt I wear and handed me a shirt, hat and one of those silver blanket things. They then walk you over to a place to have your picture taken. Then it was over to the medical tent. I had my feet checked out, the blisters popped and cleaned and relaxed a bit. When I was in the medical tent I heard the announcer call out Neil Copper's name. I wanted to be out there when he finished but they were still working on my feet. Sorry I missed you Neil, but I did cheer for you in the tent. After about 25 minutes getting my feet fixed up I was looking for some food as I could smell the pizza.
I saw Neil and Nancy sitting at a table and we just sat there eating our pizza looking very tired. After all that, we then had to go pick up all of our gear and bikes back at the transition. So we had to walk about 1/2 mile back to transition, get 3 big bags of gear and our bikes and then walk back to the condo. This is not an easy thing to do! Neil ended up riding his bike back to the condo so Nancy and I walked back.
As we were passing the finish line to head back the 17 hour mark was approaching. We could see the last few runners coming towards us. It was now 16:57 into the race and a woman was coming down the road so Nancy said she wanted to wait and cheer her into the finish. After nearly 17 hours of calling out names the announcer came running out into the street with his microphone. He started running with her calling out her name with microphone in hand. She was going to be the final official finisher. The crowd was going crazy. Well that lady, whoever she was, was almost sprinting to the finish. She came around the final turn to the finish chute with about 30 seconds to go. We were all screaming now and she sprinted to the finish in 16:59:43. She had 17 seconds to spare. It was awesome to see!
My final official time was 15:58:17.
FINAL THOUGHTS
When I called my wife after the race I told her I was going to be retiring from Ironman distance races and I no longer had a desire to run a marathon. Somehow I probably knew that wasn't true. I am already planning for my next Ironman!! If it wasn't for my feet I think I would have had the perfect first Ironman. I never even considered that something like blisters could slow me down so much. Before the race I was most concerned about how my altered internal anatomy would affect my nutrition and hydration during the race. Well, that turned out not to be a problem at all. I was right on target for my HR, cadence on the bike and pace on the swim. I had no stomach issue at all and felt pretty good the entire race. I do need to work to improve my performance on the bike. I think I will be spending more time cycling and less time running for my next race. I want to again thank everyone for your support especially Neil and Nancy Cooper. This has been a great triathlon year for me. I finished all 6 of my races this year and met some great people. The ATC has been great and the open water swims helped my confidence tremendously. So the 2009 race year is over for me. I am going to take some time off of training for now and start planning for 2010. I have (7) races planned including two 1/2 Ironman events. And who knows I may even be crazy enough to go for another Ironman.
2009 Ironman Florida Race report Part 2
112 Mile Bike
As you leave the transition area we had to ride thru about 50 yard of barricades to get to the road. Ashley has told me to run past the bike mount line to avoid a crowd of people getting on their bikes. So I walked my bike about 20 yds past the other racers and got on my bike. My plan for the day was to take things calm and steady and not rush anything. So I didn't see the need to be running everywhere during transition. With a 112 miles, my strategy was to pace myself for the 1st half of the bike and see how I felt for the 2nd half of the bike. I have talked with several Ironman finishers and they all said to not blow up on the bike. So I was going to keep my heart rate between 130-140 bpm (zone 2) and make sure I could finish the bike. Let face it, I am 6'3" and weigh 240lbs and it takes a lot of energy to keep moving.
The first ten miles or so we were riding along the beach. As soon as I got out onto the road I noticed that my bike computer was not working properly. My cadence was working but my speed and mileage were not registering (cadence is the measure of how fast you are peddling the bike. I was targeting a cadence of 80-85). I decided to stop and try to see if I could fix the computer. I figured my sensor had moved and I could fix it. So I stopped and within 2 minutes had it working again. I had planned most of my nutrition and hydration plan based on time and mileage and I needed to know how far I had traveled. So I was glad to get everything working.
As I started the ride the wind was not that bad. After about ten miles we changed direction and the wind was now coming from the right. This first part of the bike was in total sun with no shade at all. There were also miles of rolling hills. They were really what you would call false flats. The road looks flat but it is really going slightly up hill. One of the things about flat road courses is that you really never get a chance to rest. If you have some hills on a course you get a chance every once in a while to coast and rest your legs. There was very little opportunity to rest especially on the first half of the course.
At about 20 miles we made a right turn. At the turn there was a race official yelling "get ready for the headwind". Did I mention that the bike ride was windy. Now this is just my observation, and other racers may have a different opinion, but I thought the wind was tough. My average speed was dropping and the wind would not let up. Because everyone was slowing down there were big packs of riders riding together. Drafting on the bike is not allowed in most triathlons, but I will tell you there were many people drafting. Whether this was intentional or not, I don't know, but people were riding 5-10 in a row. I did not want to draft. I am not racing against anyone but myself and whatever time advantage I may get is just not worth it to me. There were race official giving out time penalties for drafting and there were plenty of people serving penalties.
There were aid stations about every 10 miles on the bike course. At about 50 miles the bike special needs area was set up. This is the area where we could get our special needs bag that we had dropped of earlier in the morning. There are special needs bags on the bike and run. This is a bag you could fill with whatever you might think you will need for the rest of the bike or run. I had put 2 PB&J sandwiches, 3 bottles of Gatorade G2 and an extra tube and CO2 cartridge (in case I had a flat tire. I also had 2 tubes on the bike with me). I ate one of the sandwiches replaced the bottles and was off.
Once we left the special needs area we made a right turn and the wind died down a bit. To be honest with you the next twenty or so miles are just a blur. I was just down on the aerobars grinding away on the pedals. There is really nothing to look at and the bikes had spread out so I was by myself for most of this leg.
When I hit mile 70 I was pretty happy. Then I did the math in my head and realized I still had 42 miles to go. It was also at this point that we hit some really rough roads. There were large cracks in the road every 10 yards or so and there were water bottles and bike parts all over the road. I had to keep standing up on the large cracks because I was worried I might get a flat tire. This was also this point when my shoulders, neck and the bottom of my feet began to hurt. I had experienced the neck pain before on my longer rides. I knew it was from staying in the aero position straining my neck to look forward. But I had not experienced the foot pain before. It was like the bottoms of both of my feet were going numb. I made the decision that I would have to stop at the next aid station, unclip from the bike and take off my bike shoes.
At this point we had to make a right turn for a 4.5 mile ride out to a turn around. This section was tough. The road again turned really rough and my feet were hurting more. We also turned right into a head wind again. My speed dropped to 12-13 mph for the next 4 miles. This is when the mental part of the race really started. Ashley had told my there would come a point were I would have to mentally tough it out. This was it for me. I still had almost 40 miles to go and I was starting to hurt. I made the turn around and the aid station was right there. I stopped and got off the bike and just took a few minutes to collect myself and move my feet around with my shoes off. Stopping really helped so I decided I would do the same thing at all the remaining aid stations. I was watching my elapsed race time and I knew I was on pace to finish the bike in 6 to 7 hours, so a few lost minutes at each rest area would be OK.
Now the best thing about that turn around point is that I now had the wind at my back. We were now entering a stretch of road I had read about. From about mile 75 to mile 90 the wind was at my back and the road was finally smooth and going a bit downhill. I was able to use my weight to my advantage and post some much faster speeds. I think my top speed during this stretch was about 34 mph.
At the 90 mile mark we hit our last aid station. It was at this point I had my "pay it forward" moment of the race. When I stopped at this station there was a fellow racer on the side of the road standing next to his bike. His wheel was off and he had a flat tire. He had a set of Zipp 808 deep dish wheels (I have the same wheels and they require a tire tube with an extra long stem) and his spare tube had a tear at the valve stem. He said he had been waiting for about an hour for race support to come and help him. He asked me if I had tube with a long valve stem that he could have. I had two extra tubes on the bike with me and I thought that my chances of getting two flats in the next 22 miles were pretty small so I gave him the tube, told him to have a good finish and I was off. We were both out there trying to finish and I would hope someone would help me if I needed it.
For the next 10 miles the road was the smoothest of the race as it had just been repaved a couple of days before. Again the mental toughness had to kick in. My feet were really hurting me now, my cycling computer was going crazy and I was getting tired. As crazy as it sounds I actually yawned a couple times during that stretch. At about 100 miles we made a left turn back onto the main road heading back to the beach. We had a straight ride up and over a bridge back into Panama City Beach. When I crossed over the bridge a guy riding next to me said "we are at the home stretch now". So we only had about 10 miles to go.
I had no idea how hard those last ten miles would be. We turned left to head back to transition and again turned right into the wind. This time though the wind was coming right off the water. For me, grinding out the last 10 miles was brutal. My neck, shoulders and feet were hurting me and I just wanted to get off the bike and start running. My speed was dropping again down to 12-13 mph. It was this point I just put my head down, got into the aero position and did not get up until I had made it to transition. I just kept pedaling and I finally made it. It was a tough ride but I had made it. I checked my time and I knew I had made it in under 7 hours. I had kept my heart rate in check and came off the bike with an average heart rate of 134.
T2
Another difference between a regular triathlon and an Ironman race is coming into T2. As soon as you are off your bike there is someone there to take your bike from you and then another person hands you your bike to run bag. So I grabbed my bag and went into the changing area. My feet were still sore and I wanted to change my socks. I also had some water, took some salt pills and put on my running shoes. I took a few minutes just to rest and collect myself again. I knew at this point unless something bad happened I would finish. I had almost 8 hours to finish the race and figured if I just ran my regular training pace for the marathon I might even break 14 1/2 hours. What I did not know was that something I had not even thought about would almost ruin the day.
So my total time on the bike was 6:57:32 and my total race time at this point was about 9 hours.
As you leave the transition area we had to ride thru about 50 yard of barricades to get to the road. Ashley has told me to run past the bike mount line to avoid a crowd of people getting on their bikes. So I walked my bike about 20 yds past the other racers and got on my bike. My plan for the day was to take things calm and steady and not rush anything. So I didn't see the need to be running everywhere during transition. With a 112 miles, my strategy was to pace myself for the 1st half of the bike and see how I felt for the 2nd half of the bike. I have talked with several Ironman finishers and they all said to not blow up on the bike. So I was going to keep my heart rate between 130-140 bpm (zone 2) and make sure I could finish the bike. Let face it, I am 6'3" and weigh 240lbs and it takes a lot of energy to keep moving.
The first ten miles or so we were riding along the beach. As soon as I got out onto the road I noticed that my bike computer was not working properly. My cadence was working but my speed and mileage were not registering (cadence is the measure of how fast you are peddling the bike. I was targeting a cadence of 80-85). I decided to stop and try to see if I could fix the computer. I figured my sensor had moved and I could fix it. So I stopped and within 2 minutes had it working again. I had planned most of my nutrition and hydration plan based on time and mileage and I needed to know how far I had traveled. So I was glad to get everything working.
As I started the ride the wind was not that bad. After about ten miles we changed direction and the wind was now coming from the right. This first part of the bike was in total sun with no shade at all. There were also miles of rolling hills. They were really what you would call false flats. The road looks flat but it is really going slightly up hill. One of the things about flat road courses is that you really never get a chance to rest. If you have some hills on a course you get a chance every once in a while to coast and rest your legs. There was very little opportunity to rest especially on the first half of the course.
At about 20 miles we made a right turn. At the turn there was a race official yelling "get ready for the headwind". Did I mention that the bike ride was windy. Now this is just my observation, and other racers may have a different opinion, but I thought the wind was tough. My average speed was dropping and the wind would not let up. Because everyone was slowing down there were big packs of riders riding together. Drafting on the bike is not allowed in most triathlons, but I will tell you there were many people drafting. Whether this was intentional or not, I don't know, but people were riding 5-10 in a row. I did not want to draft. I am not racing against anyone but myself and whatever time advantage I may get is just not worth it to me. There were race official giving out time penalties for drafting and there were plenty of people serving penalties.
There were aid stations about every 10 miles on the bike course. At about 50 miles the bike special needs area was set up. This is the area where we could get our special needs bag that we had dropped of earlier in the morning. There are special needs bags on the bike and run. This is a bag you could fill with whatever you might think you will need for the rest of the bike or run. I had put 2 PB&J sandwiches, 3 bottles of Gatorade G2 and an extra tube and CO2 cartridge (in case I had a flat tire. I also had 2 tubes on the bike with me). I ate one of the sandwiches replaced the bottles and was off.
Once we left the special needs area we made a right turn and the wind died down a bit. To be honest with you the next twenty or so miles are just a blur. I was just down on the aerobars grinding away on the pedals. There is really nothing to look at and the bikes had spread out so I was by myself for most of this leg.
When I hit mile 70 I was pretty happy. Then I did the math in my head and realized I still had 42 miles to go. It was also at this point that we hit some really rough roads. There were large cracks in the road every 10 yards or so and there were water bottles and bike parts all over the road. I had to keep standing up on the large cracks because I was worried I might get a flat tire. This was also this point when my shoulders, neck and the bottom of my feet began to hurt. I had experienced the neck pain before on my longer rides. I knew it was from staying in the aero position straining my neck to look forward. But I had not experienced the foot pain before. It was like the bottoms of both of my feet were going numb. I made the decision that I would have to stop at the next aid station, unclip from the bike and take off my bike shoes.
At this point we had to make a right turn for a 4.5 mile ride out to a turn around. This section was tough. The road again turned really rough and my feet were hurting more. We also turned right into a head wind again. My speed dropped to 12-13 mph for the next 4 miles. This is when the mental part of the race really started. Ashley had told my there would come a point were I would have to mentally tough it out. This was it for me. I still had almost 40 miles to go and I was starting to hurt. I made the turn around and the aid station was right there. I stopped and got off the bike and just took a few minutes to collect myself and move my feet around with my shoes off. Stopping really helped so I decided I would do the same thing at all the remaining aid stations. I was watching my elapsed race time and I knew I was on pace to finish the bike in 6 to 7 hours, so a few lost minutes at each rest area would be OK.
Now the best thing about that turn around point is that I now had the wind at my back. We were now entering a stretch of road I had read about. From about mile 75 to mile 90 the wind was at my back and the road was finally smooth and going a bit downhill. I was able to use my weight to my advantage and post some much faster speeds. I think my top speed during this stretch was about 34 mph.
At the 90 mile mark we hit our last aid station. It was at this point I had my "pay it forward" moment of the race. When I stopped at this station there was a fellow racer on the side of the road standing next to his bike. His wheel was off and he had a flat tire. He had a set of Zipp 808 deep dish wheels (I have the same wheels and they require a tire tube with an extra long stem) and his spare tube had a tear at the valve stem. He said he had been waiting for about an hour for race support to come and help him. He asked me if I had tube with a long valve stem that he could have. I had two extra tubes on the bike with me and I thought that my chances of getting two flats in the next 22 miles were pretty small so I gave him the tube, told him to have a good finish and I was off. We were both out there trying to finish and I would hope someone would help me if I needed it.
For the next 10 miles the road was the smoothest of the race as it had just been repaved a couple of days before. Again the mental toughness had to kick in. My feet were really hurting me now, my cycling computer was going crazy and I was getting tired. As crazy as it sounds I actually yawned a couple times during that stretch. At about 100 miles we made a left turn back onto the main road heading back to the beach. We had a straight ride up and over a bridge back into Panama City Beach. When I crossed over the bridge a guy riding next to me said "we are at the home stretch now". So we only had about 10 miles to go.
I had no idea how hard those last ten miles would be. We turned left to head back to transition and again turned right into the wind. This time though the wind was coming right off the water. For me, grinding out the last 10 miles was brutal. My neck, shoulders and feet were hurting me and I just wanted to get off the bike and start running. My speed was dropping again down to 12-13 mph. It was this point I just put my head down, got into the aero position and did not get up until I had made it to transition. I just kept pedaling and I finally made it. It was a tough ride but I had made it. I checked my time and I knew I had made it in under 7 hours. I had kept my heart rate in check and came off the bike with an average heart rate of 134.
T2
Another difference between a regular triathlon and an Ironman race is coming into T2. As soon as you are off your bike there is someone there to take your bike from you and then another person hands you your bike to run bag. So I grabbed my bag and went into the changing area. My feet were still sore and I wanted to change my socks. I also had some water, took some salt pills and put on my running shoes. I took a few minutes just to rest and collect myself again. I knew at this point unless something bad happened I would finish. I had almost 8 hours to finish the race and figured if I just ran my regular training pace for the marathon I might even break 14 1/2 hours. What I did not know was that something I had not even thought about would almost ruin the day.
So my total time on the bike was 6:57:32 and my total race time at this point was about 9 hours.
2009 Ironman Florida Race report Part 1
Well I finished and now it is time for the race report. I like doing these reports because they allow me to think about the race and really helps me keep a record of what I have done. I am going to break this down into three separate posts (swim, bike and run). But I wanted to start first with some quick facts and observations from my experience.
Quick Facts
RACE MORNING
I woke up about 4am race morning, got dressed, ate a poptart and protein shake and was out the door by 4:30am. I only slept about 4 hours but this is pretty normal for me the night before a race. I got to the Cooper's condo and waited until 5am for Neil and Nancy. We walked the 1/4 mile or so to the transition and it was then that I noticed the wind. It was pretty cool outside and I could hear the wind blowing and the surf coming in. The forecast for the day was sunny with winds 5-15 mph. Neil had brought his tire pump so we added a little air to our tires and then we just talked for a bit going over the day ahead. At 6:30am the transition area closed so we got on our wetsuits, put our clothes in the morning transition bags and headed over to the swim start.
SWIM
It was at this point when the nerves being to settle in. I had read a race report (thanks Ashley) that had said the sand can be cold in the morning and wear some kind of shoe or even a pair of socks onto the beach. So I decided to wear my socks onto the beach and I am glad I did. When you enter the beach all the athletes have to go into a swim holding area. The race didn't start until 7am so we were in that area on the beach for a good 20 minutes before the race started. The sock idea worked like a charm because several people around me had cold feet (not about racing, they really had cold feet) and I was fine. It was at this point that big change was noticed.
We had done the practice swims on Thursday and Friday and for the most part the water was pretty calm with a little bit of wind, but really no waves breaking on rolling in. Well, race morning was totally different. The wind had really picked up and the waves, especially further out were rolling in. Looking out from the beach the wind was blowing in straight into my face a bit to my left. So going out we would be swimming right into the wind and chop. It was at this point that I remembered the news reports about a hurricane brewing in the Gulf of Mexico. I don't know if it was the hurricane or what, but the conditions were the worst they had been all week. Now I am not talking 10 foot seas or anything, and I was never afraid for my life, but I knew we would be swimming in 2-3 rolling waves and it could be difficult. The funny part though, was I was not nervous at all. I had a maximum goal of 1:45 for the swim with a stretch goal of 1:30. So I just told myself that I had done plenty of swims in open water (thanks ATC) and this was no different and I would be fine. I had spent hours swimming in the pool and I just needed to stay calm, breathe and relax.
At 6:50am the gun went off for the pro's and then at 7am the gun went off for everyone else. When the gun went off 2450 people headed for the water all at once. We had decided before the start that we would enter the water to the far right and swim a straight line for the first turn buoy. We wished each other good luck and we were off. I actually did not enter the water until 1 minute and 30 seconds had passed and it was 2 minutes before I had walked past the sandbar so that I could swim. It takes a long time for 2450 people to get into the water.
The way the swim loop was set up there were yellow buoys to our left every 200 yds or so and then there was a red buoy where we had to make a left turn and swim parallel to the shore for a couple hundred yards. The there was another red buoy and another left turn to head back to shore. On the way back we had orange buoys to our left until we got back to shore were we had to run up onto the beach and around a fence to start the 2nd loop.
I had been kicked in the face during a race earlier in the summer, so I made a decision to swim to the outside of the buoys and try to avoid contact as much as possible. For the most part it worked. I had to start and stop several times (especially on the first loop) to avoid other swimmers. An interesting thing about the water is that is gets warmer the further out you go. So after 200 yds or so the water warmed up and it was pretty comfortable. This also was the point that the waves were rolling in bigger. I was still very calm and was managing to time my breathing with the up and down motion of the waves and felt pretty good. As I was heading to the first red turn buoy the chop in the water got much worse. When we made that turn the sun and wind where now directly into our face. You could really feel the up and down rolling motion of the water now. I heard several people coughing as I am sure they were sucking in some water at this point. I had read an article in one of my triathlon magazines that talked about swimming in choppy water. What I remembered was that the author had said to "look to the sky" when the water is rough. So that is what I did. I just turned my body more and kept looking up and I was able to keep my breathing under control and water out of my mouth. As I made the turn for the shore on that first loop the waves were coming from my right and behind me. I again swam a wide loop to avoid the congestion. It was very hard to sight off the bouys (sighting is when you look up to make sure you are not swimming off course) because of the rolling of the waves. So whenever I felt I was at the top of a rolling wave I would look. I decided to not worry so much about looking for the bouys and just swam in the same direction as everyone else. I figured we were all trying to get to the same place. I completed my first loop in about 42 minutes. I was pretty pleased. I was under a 1:30 pace.
As you leave the water and head for the second loop you can see and hear the crowd. There were several thousand people cheering and ringing those cow bells. We had to turn left around the fence that was set up and head back into the water. I grabbed a drink of water to rinse off my face and rinse out my mouth of the salt water. Even though I didn't swallow any water it will still get in your mouth when you are breathing.
The second loop was very much like the first loop. It was less crowded as the swimmers were more spread out and water conditions were about the same. I think the wind may have helped me on the second loop coming back to shore because I felt like I was passing people in the water. It could have been me hallucinating, but I felt like I was moving along pretty good. It was at this point that I swam into I guy I thought was dead. I was swimming along and I kept hitting my right arm into someone. I stopped swimming to look and there was guy in front of me just floating with his head in the water. I pushed him away from me and he did not move and I thought I was going to have to start CPR or something for this guy. I pushed him again and he slowly rolled over and started to move his arms. I guess he must have been resting but it kind of freak me out for a moment. So after the guy swam off I put my head back down and headed to shore. When I stood up to get out of the water I looked at my watch and it showed 1:27. I was thrilled. I had done the swim in less than 1:30.
One of the unique things about an Ironman race are the wetsuit "strippers" These are people that will help you out of your wetsuit after the swim. These people were crazy. As we ran up the beach the wetsuit strippers were screaming at me to lay down. I looked and all I saw was sand and I was not about to lay down in the sand so some guy could rip off my wetsuit. I figured the 30 seconds I would save was not worth having sand in some unmentionable place for the next 7 hours on a bike. No way, not for me. So I ran right past the screaming wet suit strippers and headed into the first transition area or T1.
T1
As we left the beach we had to run thru a tunnel to the parking lot where transition was set up. As you leave the tunnel you shout out your race number and a volunteer will grab you T1 bag and hand it to you. We then had to run about 50 yards to a building where they had seperate mens and womens changing areas. Now all week long the race officials had stressed no public nudity. Well that did not apply to the changing rooms. It was a zoo inside the changing areas. Naked people were everywhere putting creams and gels in all kinds of places. I know we are all adults but that was just something I was not prepared to see.
I wear a once peice tri suit and I just put on a pair of cycling shorts over top of that and put on a shirt with sleeves. I knew it was going to be sunny so I tried to put on some sun screen. I had purchased some compression sleeves to wear on my arms and I put them one (They worked great). Then it was socks, riding shoes, helmet, sunglasses and race belt with my number attached and I was off.
I had to run (ok I actually walked) back out the 50 yards or so to the bike racks and again you call out your number and someone gets your bike and meets you with it. When I got to my rack my bike was the last one left so it was easy to find. I knew when I was racking my bike the day before there were some serious guys around me. There are some hard core atheletes that compete in these races. I am just not one of them.
So I walked my bike out to the bike mount area and I was off for 112 miles off riding into the wind.
My official time for the swim was 1:28:10 and T1 was 12:36. I was feeling great and I was right on target. And then the winds came...
Quick Facts
- During the race I consumed 7 GU packets (nutritional gel), 5 bananas, 2 peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, 6 bottles of Gatorade G2, (7) 24oz bottles of water (and a countless number of cups of water at aid stations), 2 peanut butter Cliff bars, 7 cups of chicken broth (good for sodium intake), 6 salt pills, several handfuls of pretzels, 4 cookies and 3 grapes.
- I lost approximately 18 pounds during the race.
- No matter what anyone tells you Florida is not completely flat.
- Germans are really big, and I don't mean fat.
- 112 miles on a bike is a long distance to ride.
- Everyone should go to at least one Ironman event in their lifetime (either as a spectator or racer) to see average everyday people push themselves to the limit.
RACE MORNING
I woke up about 4am race morning, got dressed, ate a poptart and protein shake and was out the door by 4:30am. I only slept about 4 hours but this is pretty normal for me the night before a race. I got to the Cooper's condo and waited until 5am for Neil and Nancy. We walked the 1/4 mile or so to the transition and it was then that I noticed the wind. It was pretty cool outside and I could hear the wind blowing and the surf coming in. The forecast for the day was sunny with winds 5-15 mph. Neil had brought his tire pump so we added a little air to our tires and then we just talked for a bit going over the day ahead. At 6:30am the transition area closed so we got on our wetsuits, put our clothes in the morning transition bags and headed over to the swim start.
SWIM
It was at this point when the nerves being to settle in. I had read a race report (thanks Ashley) that had said the sand can be cold in the morning and wear some kind of shoe or even a pair of socks onto the beach. So I decided to wear my socks onto the beach and I am glad I did. When you enter the beach all the athletes have to go into a swim holding area. The race didn't start until 7am so we were in that area on the beach for a good 20 minutes before the race started. The sock idea worked like a charm because several people around me had cold feet (not about racing, they really had cold feet) and I was fine. It was at this point that big change was noticed.
We had done the practice swims on Thursday and Friday and for the most part the water was pretty calm with a little bit of wind, but really no waves breaking on rolling in. Well, race morning was totally different. The wind had really picked up and the waves, especially further out were rolling in. Looking out from the beach the wind was blowing in straight into my face a bit to my left. So going out we would be swimming right into the wind and chop. It was at this point that I remembered the news reports about a hurricane brewing in the Gulf of Mexico. I don't know if it was the hurricane or what, but the conditions were the worst they had been all week. Now I am not talking 10 foot seas or anything, and I was never afraid for my life, but I knew we would be swimming in 2-3 rolling waves and it could be difficult. The funny part though, was I was not nervous at all. I had a maximum goal of 1:45 for the swim with a stretch goal of 1:30. So I just told myself that I had done plenty of swims in open water (thanks ATC) and this was no different and I would be fine. I had spent hours swimming in the pool and I just needed to stay calm, breathe and relax.
At 6:50am the gun went off for the pro's and then at 7am the gun went off for everyone else. When the gun went off 2450 people headed for the water all at once. We had decided before the start that we would enter the water to the far right and swim a straight line for the first turn buoy. We wished each other good luck and we were off. I actually did not enter the water until 1 minute and 30 seconds had passed and it was 2 minutes before I had walked past the sandbar so that I could swim. It takes a long time for 2450 people to get into the water.
The way the swim loop was set up there were yellow buoys to our left every 200 yds or so and then there was a red buoy where we had to make a left turn and swim parallel to the shore for a couple hundred yards. The there was another red buoy and another left turn to head back to shore. On the way back we had orange buoys to our left until we got back to shore were we had to run up onto the beach and around a fence to start the 2nd loop.
I had been kicked in the face during a race earlier in the summer, so I made a decision to swim to the outside of the buoys and try to avoid contact as much as possible. For the most part it worked. I had to start and stop several times (especially on the first loop) to avoid other swimmers. An interesting thing about the water is that is gets warmer the further out you go. So after 200 yds or so the water warmed up and it was pretty comfortable. This also was the point that the waves were rolling in bigger. I was still very calm and was managing to time my breathing with the up and down motion of the waves and felt pretty good. As I was heading to the first red turn buoy the chop in the water got much worse. When we made that turn the sun and wind where now directly into our face. You could really feel the up and down rolling motion of the water now. I heard several people coughing as I am sure they were sucking in some water at this point. I had read an article in one of my triathlon magazines that talked about swimming in choppy water. What I remembered was that the author had said to "look to the sky" when the water is rough. So that is what I did. I just turned my body more and kept looking up and I was able to keep my breathing under control and water out of my mouth. As I made the turn for the shore on that first loop the waves were coming from my right and behind me. I again swam a wide loop to avoid the congestion. It was very hard to sight off the bouys (sighting is when you look up to make sure you are not swimming off course) because of the rolling of the waves. So whenever I felt I was at the top of a rolling wave I would look. I decided to not worry so much about looking for the bouys and just swam in the same direction as everyone else. I figured we were all trying to get to the same place. I completed my first loop in about 42 minutes. I was pretty pleased. I was under a 1:30 pace.
As you leave the water and head for the second loop you can see and hear the crowd. There were several thousand people cheering and ringing those cow bells. We had to turn left around the fence that was set up and head back into the water. I grabbed a drink of water to rinse off my face and rinse out my mouth of the salt water. Even though I didn't swallow any water it will still get in your mouth when you are breathing.
The second loop was very much like the first loop. It was less crowded as the swimmers were more spread out and water conditions were about the same. I think the wind may have helped me on the second loop coming back to shore because I felt like I was passing people in the water. It could have been me hallucinating, but I felt like I was moving along pretty good. It was at this point that I swam into I guy I thought was dead. I was swimming along and I kept hitting my right arm into someone. I stopped swimming to look and there was guy in front of me just floating with his head in the water. I pushed him away from me and he did not move and I thought I was going to have to start CPR or something for this guy. I pushed him again and he slowly rolled over and started to move his arms. I guess he must have been resting but it kind of freak me out for a moment. So after the guy swam off I put my head back down and headed to shore. When I stood up to get out of the water I looked at my watch and it showed 1:27. I was thrilled. I had done the swim in less than 1:30.
One of the unique things about an Ironman race are the wetsuit "strippers" These are people that will help you out of your wetsuit after the swim. These people were crazy. As we ran up the beach the wetsuit strippers were screaming at me to lay down. I looked and all I saw was sand and I was not about to lay down in the sand so some guy could rip off my wetsuit. I figured the 30 seconds I would save was not worth having sand in some unmentionable place for the next 7 hours on a bike. No way, not for me. So I ran right past the screaming wet suit strippers and headed into the first transition area or T1.
T1
As we left the beach we had to run thru a tunnel to the parking lot where transition was set up. As you leave the tunnel you shout out your race number and a volunteer will grab you T1 bag and hand it to you. We then had to run about 50 yards to a building where they had seperate mens and womens changing areas. Now all week long the race officials had stressed no public nudity. Well that did not apply to the changing rooms. It was a zoo inside the changing areas. Naked people were everywhere putting creams and gels in all kinds of places. I know we are all adults but that was just something I was not prepared to see.
I wear a once peice tri suit and I just put on a pair of cycling shorts over top of that and put on a shirt with sleeves. I knew it was going to be sunny so I tried to put on some sun screen. I had purchased some compression sleeves to wear on my arms and I put them one (They worked great). Then it was socks, riding shoes, helmet, sunglasses and race belt with my number attached and I was off.
I had to run (ok I actually walked) back out the 50 yards or so to the bike racks and again you call out your number and someone gets your bike and meets you with it. When I got to my rack my bike was the last one left so it was easy to find. I knew when I was racking my bike the day before there were some serious guys around me. There are some hard core atheletes that compete in these races. I am just not one of them.
So I walked my bike out to the bike mount area and I was off for 112 miles off riding into the wind.
My official time for the swim was 1:28:10 and T1 was 12:36. I was feeling great and I was right on target. And then the winds came...
I am not dead!
Well I did finish the race, and Mary I am not dead and did not leave my wife and kids fatherless. I am going to post a race report later today when I get some time. My race was going as planned and I felt really good until about 5 miles into the run. I will go over all the details in the race report, but blisters can really hurt. My overall time was 15:58:17. I am thrilled to finish, but I did not hit my goal of under 15 hours. But I did finish alive and for the most part uninjured.
I also wanted to thank everyone for their support. I had no idea people would be so interested in my progress. Tricia said people were calling to see how I was doing and how to track me during the race. So I appreciate all your thoughts. Once I knew so many people were following me I knew I was going to finish. There was no way I was going to have a DNF. Thanks again and check back later for all the details.
I also wanted to thank everyone for their support. I had no idea people would be so interested in my progress. Tricia said people were calling to see how I was doing and how to track me during the race. So I appreciate all your thoughts. Once I knew so many people were following me I knew I was going to finish. There was no way I was going to have a DNF. Thanks again and check back later for all the details.
Friday, November 6, 2009
Bike Check In
We have a mandatory bike check in today. We have to rack our bikes and have our transitions #1 (swim to bike) and transition #2 (bike to run) bags pack and checked in as well. So I have all my gear stowed in the correct bag and headed down to the race sight with my bike. This was a very well organized process. I parked and walked my bike dow to the transitions area and was met by several volunteers who immediately took my T2 bag and showed me where my rack was. The bikes are definitely crammed onto each rack. There would absolutely be no room to put on bikes shoes or change in the transition area. After 
I racked my bike I dropped off my T1 bag.
We actually have to take our transition bags and go into a building to change. One unique feature of an Ironman race is that you usually don't have to get your bike off the rack. There are volunteers that are supposed to get your bike and meet you near the changing area near the bike exit. When you come back in after the bike they will take your bike again and rack it. I hope this works out because I am racked pretty far from the changing area.They have the swim course all set up with the swim exit in place. I am meeting with the Coopers for dinner tonight. I am actually looking forward
to getting the race underway. I am posting the pictures I took earlier showing the transition area 
and the swim course.
Friday Morning Swim
The weather here has been great. the beach and water are just spectacular. The sand is a bright wight and the water is crystal clear. I am used to swimming in dark murky water so it is a bit strange to see the fish you are swimming with. I met up with the Coopers again and we walked over to the swim on the beach. The water was a bit less choppy today as the wind has shifted. We are supposed to have perfect weather tomorrow, 75 degrees and partly sunny. Nancy and I only swam for about 15 minutes. Neil went out for a longer swim. There are some pretty large sand bars about 100 yds from shore. We are going to have to run that 100 yds into and out of the water. I hope tomorrows conditions are like today, it was perfect.
Pre Race Meeting
We had a mandatory pre-race dinner and meeting last night. The food was ok but company was good. Nancy and Neil are staying very close to the host hotel. They had an extra parking pass they gave me to use and it has been great. I have a secure place to park on race day and that is a big stress reliever for me. So I met up with them and we walked to dinner and sat with some other friends they knew.
After eating, the Race Director and the announcer got up to speak and go over the race day rules. There are about 2800 registered participants, with 1300 first time Ironman participants. The oldest man racing is 75 and the oldest woman is 65. She did her first triathlon at age 59. The youngest racer was a kid from Georgia who is 18. We are meeting again in on Friday morning for another swim.
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Race Check In
Now I am trying to stay positive and not complain as much. My wife has a great idea to only surround herself with positive people, so I have really been trying hard to be positive and not complain so please forgive me on this post. Check in was a long, long wait.I got to check in and could not believe the line. So I decided to go buy some race memorabilia figuring the line would go down. Race check in is usually in the same place as the race expo so I didn't have to walk more than 20 yards to the expo area. I met back up with the Coopers again and the line was still over an hour wait. So we walked over to a couple of tents set up selling race gear across the street. I was able to find some arm warmers and a 1/2 price tri suit to replace the one I left at home. When we finished there, Neil and Nancy went back to their condo and I again headed to race check in.
Well it was about 11am and now the line was even longer. So I just waited, and waited and waited some more. I finally made it to check in at 12:20pm. Check is much different than most races. Once you check in you had to be weighed and then you actually had to sit down while a volunteer described how to get your bags set up. There are actually (5) different bags that are going to be used. There is one bag for to put our morning cloths in, one bag each for the swim to bike transition and the bike to run transition and one each for the bike and run special needsbags.
One of the interesting things I saw while waiting in line was the area set up for family and friends to make signs. They will be putting up over 1000 signs on the race course made by the family and friends. So there were all these kids coloring and making signs for their mom or dad. We have the mandatory dinner and race briefing tonight.
Morning swim
I was schedlued to meet up with Nancy and Neil Cooper for an 8:30am swim. I got to the race hotel and realized I had forgotten my wetsuit. So I had to drive back to the condo for the wetsuit. When I got back tot he race hotel I couldn't find Nancy or Neil. There must have been 200 people out there swimming. SO I just gout my wetsuit on and swam by myself. I did about one loop of the 2 loops I will swim on Saturday. The water was not as salty as I thought it would be. I is weird though that the water is actually much colder at the shore line than further out.
There was a slight chop in the water and the wind was blowing out from the shore. I felt pretty good on the swim. The practice swims in the Severn River and the races I have done in open water have really made me a much better swimmer. By some miracle when I was leaving the beach I found Neil and Nancy. I still had to check in so I went to check in and Neil and Nancy went back to their condo.
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Florida or bust!!
Well you can see my car in the picture. I had it all packed and ready to go the night before...or so I thought. I woke up about 2:30am on Wednesday ready to go. I got in the car got gas and headed on my way. About two hours later I had a "doh" moment. I looked behind me in the car and realized I did not have my suitcase I had packed the night before. Luckily I had put all of my triathlon racing gear in another bag and I had that. I just did not have any cloths to wear....nothing at all except what i had on. Worst of all my running and riding socks were in that suitcase. So I spent the next 12 hours planning and hoping they would have somewhere or someplace that will have the socks I need for the race. Not the best way to start off!
Well it took me 13 hours and 27 minutes of actual driving to get here. I was expecting to feel worse than I did after driving for so long. But I felt pretty good. Panama City is actually on central time so everything is 1 hour behind eastern time. So I gained an hour on the way down, but will lose that hour on the way back. The ride was actually pretty good. Not alot of traffic and almost all highway. I drove in 7 states, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama and Florida. I did take a picture while driving thru Atlanta. I know it may be stupid to snap a picture at 60 mph but I thought the city skyline looked pretty cool.
When I got here I had to go to the store for some clothes to wear. I went to a Sports Authority (looking for socks). Next to the Sports Authority was this store. The picture didn't come out the best. If my daughter were here she would be all over that store as she loves her shoes.Well I am here. Tomorrow morning I am meeting up with Neil and Nancy Cooper for a swim at the race sight. I will post more tomorrow.
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