Monday, December 6, 2010

Ironman Western Australia 5 Dec 2010

Well the race has come and gone - I've not been in a position to post for a long time due to work and other stuff, but could not go without posting my race report for what has been a long year.

Swim 1.07.29
Bike 6.23.41
Run 4.05.17
Overall 11.48.32
AG 45-49 8th overall / 5th swim / 20th bike (needs work) / 3rd run
Female 226 starters  62nd swim / 142nd bike (needs work) / 39th run

We arrived in Busselton on Thursday 2 Dec and I registered and received all my bags, id, timing chip etc and then went to our accommodation to unpack our stuff and then repack for the race!

Friday morning I went for a swim in the training area as I hadn't put my wetsuit on since May - I got adopted by a couple from Canberra which was nice as otherwise I would have swam on my own, water was nice, bit bumpy on the way back in to shore but otherwise pretty good.

We then went out sightseeing for the day with our friends to Dunsborough, Eagle Bay, Meelup, Bunker Bay and toured a cave (I didn't I had an hour's sleep in the car) then home for a lovely BBQ dinner with our other friends who arrived Friday evening.

Saturday I did a short swim/bike/run session with another guy I know who was doing the event followed by a BBQ breakfast which was yummy - my friends & family went out sightseeing for the day which left me on my own (which is what I wanted) - I unpacked and repacked my stuff just to be sure I had everything then racked my bike and my bags, wandered into town to get my hair braided for the race.  Back to the house and an afternoon snooze followed by another lovely dinner cooked by my supporters (& I haven't had to wash up, clean up or anything - they have been fantastic!)

Got quite nervous late Saturday afternoon and a bit teary started questioning whether this was something that I would be able to do - I felt (before the race) that in ideal conditions I could aim for 11hrs 30mins but after speaking with Max on Monday I tried to not concentrate on the time instead working to a heart rate!

Slept ok'ish and took my smoothie breakfast at 3am and we left at 4am to get to transistion my fabulous hubby and my friend came with me, my daughter and other friends got there a bit later (but in time to see me exit the swim)
Put my food & water onto the bike, struggled into my wetsuit and headed over to the start, felt surprisingly calm considering how I felt the night before.

I decided to move towards the front of the pack nearest to the jetty which definitely paid off, although I have to say I struggled for a while to find someone to draft off, eventually found someone and stayed on their toes until the turn point which turned into a bit of a bun fight and I lost my drafter and had to find another one. Finished the swim, happy with the time and really surprised to see so many bikes still in transistion!

Off onto the bike, I didn't think it was too windy (compared to how it was the day before, but the wind was still up and made a huge difference to my speed at various times)  having had my pre-race chat with Max I was very conscious of sticking to my heart rate and I was hoping for a 6hr bike, this turned into a bit longer but I didn't focus on it, although I know I was on target initially but as the day went on the wind got stronger (as it always does in WA) - had a toilet stop after the 2nd lap which was a good sign given my experience earlier this year at the half IM when I didn't drink enough!

I got passed by so many bikes (which is what Max said would happen) and by lap 3 (last lap) I was "billy no mates" there was hardly anyone left :( tough mentally on this last lap on the longest stretch of road as there was not a lot to break it up and very few bikes around.

Finally off the bike and into T2 fairly slowing as my legs still thought that they were cycling, I decided to change my shorts (this proved to be very comfortable) and I also had another toilet stop before heading out onto the run.

Again I had a heart rate to work towards and I kept to this although I was running fairly fast initially - I sailed through the first 2 laps of the 4 lap course and felt fantastic, I picked off athletes as soon as I started running, which is what Max said would happen, by the 3rd lap my thighs were starting to sieze up only minor but I knew that it would only get worse and lap 4 was quite painful but I still managed to run ok and was very happy with my run time

I smiled from the start to the finish of the whole race, I had an absolute ball and did everything that Max said.  I stuck to the heart rate for the whole of the run, nervous that I might blow up and not be able to finish without walking, very happy with my race result and performance (that's a first for me) and had a fantastic swim and run - bike still needs work to make me more competitive!
Had my paleo recovery drink - really did not want this but knew I needed to have something followed by a post race rub down and then picked up kit and went home where I had an ice bath followed by a hot epsom salt bath, a shower and dinner (again cooked by my fabulous family and friends).

Thighs are a bit delicate today (the day after) but have done my CF recovery WOD and have a massage booked tomorrow am feeling really good and so enjoyed this race, which as everyone tells me the first one is the one to enjoy - I'm not sure yet whether I will do anymore I don't know that I be able to enjoy another on as I did this one - but only have until Dec 15 to decide which is when registrations open for 2011

4 comments:

  1. sounds like you had a fantastic time. congrats!

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  2. Wow! Outstanding Jane! You are super fast! All of your numbers are very impressive. So glad you posted as I've been wondering about your progress and even if you were still doing the IM. Very nice job :)

    Oh, and I enjoyed your write up very much too!

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  3. Way to go Jane! You are a Superstar! You and Pam make me regret a little that I didn't register in time for Ironman Arizona. Thanks for posting and congratulations on a truly remarkable result!

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  4. Amazing race Jane!! Good for you - enjoy the time off! Happy Holidays to you!

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