Couer d’Alene was my second Ironman but not my last. Although there were so many differences between this year versus last, the journey nonetheless was again so memorable. 
The first few days in Couer d’Alene were spent with teammates Rich and Faye (and her husband Michael), my daughter, Sydney and her friend, Brittney. Apparently they were on “my training plan” for the week which included a few swims, runs and rides as well as great food, fun conversations, much laughter and a lot of walking! In looking back, maybe I should have followed theirs?!
By Friday I was joined by my husband, Tim, and son, Sam and friends, Lisa and Kathryn. Teammates Robin and Christy also rolled into CDA. Our house became the “Team FASTT” hangout and I enjoyed the constant flurry of activity.
In so many ways this trip to Ironman was so different than in the past. Last year my goal was to finish. This year I had more defined goals. My coach suggested I set and write down 10 goals for Ironman but that they could not be time specific. He told me that regardless of my finish, if I met most or all of these goals, I would be able to say that I had a great race. I met 9 of the 10 so I can easily say, I had a great race! (More about this later.) The time goals…well, yes, I had those listed on a separate piece of paper!
Three AM comes early but who can really sleep before an Ironman? Kathryn and Lisa were up with me as they made me breakfast and ensured I had everything that I needed. I felt so spoiled and yet so fortunate. Rich and Faye soon joined us and we headed to the beach.
One of the biggest differences for me this year was that I was never nervous. NEVER! As I stood there on the beach with Rich, Faye, Christy and Robin, I felt so fortunate to be sharing this with such wonderful teammates. The sound of the gun caught me by surprise. With the swim not being my strength, I waited a few seconds before heading to the water. Somehow I found myself in the thick of it all and I was repeatedly kicked and hit. At some point early on I came to realize it was going to be a brutal swim. On the first lap as I was headed back to the beach I decided to swim to the inside of the buoys in search of some open water. Somehow I ended up going a bit off course but pulled it back together and as I exited the water I looked at my watch and saw that I had a :40 minute swim. I was just a bit slower than I had hoped since I was aiming for a 1:15 finish but thought I could improve my time on the second lap as I was feeling strong and the masses seemed to have cleared a bit. As it was, I had a 1:24 swim but I was okay with that as I wasn’t supposed to have time goals anyhow, remember?
Out of the water I was feeling good – even warm (as the water temperature was 59.5 degrees). I love the wetsuit strippers. One yank and they had my suit off and I was running to the tent. The changing tent was busy with athletes and volunteers. All of the volunteers were busy with other athletes so I was on my own but it went well and I was out of there fairly quickly. I was anxious to get on my bike. As many know, that is my favorite leg of the race. (Well, that and chocolate chip cookies on the run!) At the end of the first loop I was 5 minutes slower than I had planned. Was this going to be the norm today as everything was about 5 minutes off? A few times the winds picked up on lap two and caught me by surprise but I was still feeling strong. I love coming thro
ugh town and hearing and seeing my friends and family. They give me something to look forward to and they are such an inspiration.
The first few days in Couer d’Alene were spent with teammates Rich and Faye (and her husband Michael), my daughter, Sydney and her friend, Brittney. Apparently they were on “my training plan” for the week which included a few swims, runs and rides as well as great food, fun conversations, much laughter and a lot of walking! In looking back, maybe I should have followed theirs?!
By Friday I was joined by my husband, Tim, and son, Sam and friends, Lisa and Kathryn. Teammates Robin and Christy also rolled into CDA. Our house became the “Team FASTT” hangout and I enjoyed the constant flurry of activity.
In so many ways this trip to Ironman was so different than in the past. Last year my goal was to finish. This year I had more defined goals. My coach suggested I set and write down 10 goals for Ironman but that they could not be time specific. He told me that regardless of my finish, if I met most or all of these goals, I would be able to say that I had a great race. I met 9 of the 10 so I can easily say, I had a great race! (More about this later.) The time goals…well, yes, I had those listed on a separate piece of paper!
Three AM comes early but who can really sleep before an Ironman? Kathryn and Lisa were up with me as they made me breakfast and ensured I had everything that I needed. I felt so spoiled and yet so fortunate. Rich and Faye soon joined us and we headed to the beach.
One of the biggest differences for me this year was that I was never nervous. NEVER! As I stood there on the beach with Rich, Faye, Christy and Robin, I felt so fortunate to be sharing this with such wonderful teammates. The sound of the gun caught me by surprise. With the swim not being my strength, I waited a few seconds before heading to the water. Somehow I found myself in the thick of it all and I was repeatedly kicked and hit. At some point early on I came to realize it was going to be a brutal swim. On the first lap as I was headed back to the beach I decided to swim to the inside of the buoys in search of some open water. Somehow I ended up going a bit off course but pulled it back together and as I exited the water I looked at my watch and saw that I had a :40 minute swim. I was just a bit slower than I had hoped since I was aiming for a 1:15 finish but thought I could improve my time on the second lap as I was feeling strong and the masses seemed to have cleared a bit. As it was, I had a 1:24 swim but I was okay with that as I wasn’t supposed to have time goals anyhow, remember?
Out of the water I was feeling good – even warm (as the water temperature was 59.5 degrees). I love the wetsuit strippers. One yank and they had my suit off and I was running to the tent. The changing tent was busy with athletes and volunteers. All of the volunteers were busy with other athletes so I was on my own but it went well and I was out of there fairly quickly. I was anxious to get on my bike. As many know, that is my favorite leg of the race. (Well, that and chocolate chip cookies on the run!) At the end of the first loop I was 5 minutes slower than I had planned. Was this going to be the norm today as everything was about 5 minutes off? A few times the winds picked up on lap two and caught me by surprise but I was still feeling strong. I love coming thro
ugh town and hearing and seeing my friends and family. They give me something to look forward to and they are such an inspiration. Just towards the end of my ride I caught a friend, Patty, who is a fun, talented, local competitor. I figured the race was going to come down to the run between us. I left T2 feeling really good. My stomach was bothering me a bit - apparently I thought a few Gummy Bears would help as I grabbed a package as I ran through T2. I don't even like Gummy Bears!
The first few miles went well but then I started to hurt, physically that is. The mental would be later. I had put a lot of training time into my run this past year hoping to put it all together for this race. But I also have been plagued with injuries and about 3 miles into the run I was beginning to hurt. I stopped to stretch and this was soon to be the beginning of a run/walk run portion of my race. As some point I caught up with George McKinnon. We kept one another company as we stuck together for a portion of the race supporting one another and moving forward. There were times when I really felt like I could continue running and run well but each time I tried I limped back to a walk. I was feeling discouraged but not disappointed as I had a good race thus far.
The first few miles went well but then I started to hurt, physically that is. The mental would be later. I had put a lot of training time into my run this past year hoping to put it all together for this race. But I also have been plagued with injuries and about 3 miles into the run I was beginning to hurt. I stopped to stretch and this was soon to be the beginning of a run/walk run portion of my race. As some point I caught up with George McKinnon. We kept one another company as we stuck together for a portion of the race supporting one another and moving forward. There were times when I really felt like I could continue running and run well but each time I tried I limped back to a walk. I was feeling discouraged but not disappointed as I had a good race thus far.
Late in the run I saw a ‘friendly’ wave just 75 feet or so in front of me. It was my friend Patty who had caught and passed me early in the run. I took a few long and ever so painful strides to catch up to her. A friendly face…good company…run time goals way off…my choice was clear; I would finish the last portion of the race with Patty.
As we rounded the corner to the final stretch home my coach, Scott, stepped out from the crowd to remind me that I was not meeting one of my goals. Oh’ yes, now I remember….that list of ten goals that I had written and sent to him prior to race day. It was the one goal that I knew was going to be the hardest to meet…to not walk any portion of the run except the aid stations….and here I was, walking! As he checked in with me I realized that I was having a fantastic day; out there doing what I enjoy, with people I enjoy and absorbing every moment.
That moment lingered for a few hours as I stayed at the finish line until the last T
F athlete crossed. Of course I ate my Gummy Bears then too. After that I returned home just long enough to shower (I am certain a few were pleased about that), eat and celebrate with a nice glass of wine before returning back to cheer for those Ironman athletes that would cross just before midnight.
As we rounded the corner to the final stretch home my coach, Scott, stepped out from the crowd to remind me that I was not meeting one of my goals. Oh’ yes, now I remember….that list of ten goals that I had written and sent to him prior to race day. It was the one goal that I knew was going to be the hardest to meet…to not walk any portion of the run except the aid stations….and here I was, walking! As he checked in with me I realized that I was having a fantastic day; out there doing what I enjoy, with people I enjoy and absorbing every moment.
That moment lingered for a few hours as I stayed at the finish line until the last T
F athlete crossed. Of course I ate my Gummy Bears then too. After that I returned home just long enough to shower (I am certain a few were pleased about that), eat and celebrate with a nice glass of wine before returning back to cheer for those Ironman athletes that would cross just before midnight.
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