Aloha from Hawaii (I suppose the “aloha” gave that away!)
Well, the training is done now and the taper has officially begun. Hey, wasn’t I just saying that a few weeks ago before Subaru Ironman Canada?
After Subaru Ironman Canada, I had a bit of a whirlwind of activities. I traveled home from Penticton and got right into helping with the final preparations of my parents’ 50th wedding anniversary party that would be celebrated on September 4th, their actual wedding date. On Sunday, the day after the party, I hopped on a plane to New York City to visit Dave’s mom who was recovering from surgery the Friday before. And then on Monday afternoon, I flew home. And then, my preparation for the Hawaii Ironman began.
Just days after that, I sought out advice from my usual mentors and decided that I would do my final 10 days of Ironman peak preparation in Hawaii. We had a very chilly summer where I live and I was a bit concerned about my heat acclimatization in Kona if I were to arrive on October 5th, as planned. Also, since my two limiting factors in Kona have always been my sodium-loss and my tentativeness in the wind gusts, I figured that by training here for my final block, I would be in my most prepared state.
And so the preparation began. I contacted the Hilton @ Waikoloa Village to see if I could come 2 weeks earlier than planned. Check. Lance Watson, my coach, figured out how to balance the travel with my training block. Check. I contacted the airlines and changed my flight to September 21st. Check. The final piece of the puzzle was finding a training partner who would do my sessions with me so that I could maximize my readiness and yet, someone who would still be great company. Check. Enter Nigel Gray – my favorite friend and training mate! Nigel and I have been friends for years. We have traveled to NZ and Australia ever since 1999 and most recently, we trained this past winter in Clermont, Florida. He was one of the angels who supported me last spring and summer. More importantly, he is a fast triathlete and has evolved into a top coach (www.nrgpt.com). And he has a very supportive wife who agreed to the offer! He would be my “Kona Coach” for my last 10 day training block.
So off we went to Kona. Nigel and I met up in Los Angeles and within 10 minutes of meeting, I had totally embarrassed him by retrieving a can opener and a tin of tuna from my carry-on, opened the tuna, hunted down a spoon (also in my carry-on) and ate the tuna all while answering my ringing cell phone buried deep in my carry-on. In my little world, 10 minutes is a lot of time – time enough for a protein fix, cell phone chat and a hug for my training buddy.
Our first official day was Wednesday. That was a super light day with an easy bike, run and swim. By Thursday, we were right into a training routine doing a fartlek run on the Queen K, swimming intervals in the Kona pool and doing big gear work on the bike on the hill to Hawi.
Our big day came on the Saturday. We were riding long and doing a steady ride for most of it and then a fast run off the bike. This was a bit of an evaluation ride for me in terms of wattage and I felt a bit of pressure to perform well. But once again, my buddy Nigel, made me feel relaxed and at ease. It is pretty hard to feel stressed out with Nigel around. And sure enough, we had a great transition workout.
Sunday’s long run was absolutely beautiful. We ran early and there wasn’t a cloud in the sky. At one point, I looked at the sun peaking over Mauna Kea and I remember saying how happy I was to be there running at that moment. It was also such a joy to have a training partner. I am so used to training alone. I felt a bit spoiled by my good fortune.
Day after day, we successfully completed all of the workouts – the ocean swims, the long rides, the long runs and the speed sessions. Nigel continued to encourage me, to see the good in every workout, to make me laugh and to make me stop training when I wanted to do one more repeat or one more pool length.
And now, our little 10-day training camp is over. Yes, I feel prepared. But more important than my physical preparedness, I know that I have had an exceptional journey. Coming to Hawaii 2 weeks earlier than planned for my mini-camp with Nigel was one of the best decisions I have ever made. I enjoyed my training like never before. I smelled the roses the way that Dave always reminds me to – I smiled at the sun peaking over Mauna Kea during my runs, I looked out at the ocean as I pushed as hard as I could on my bike, I felt the sun on my back as I swam. Win, place or show – yeah, that is all important, but more importantly, I have lived my passion in the beauty of Hawaii and I have felt more passion for my sport in the past 2 weeks than I have felt in a very long time.
A huge thank you to Nigel (www.nrgpt.com) for being part of this journey and to Chantal for supporting it; to the Hilton @ Waikoloa Village (www.hiltonwaikoloavillage.com) for welcoming me back year after year to such luxury; to my dog caregivers – Dave, Teresa D., mom and dad – I wouldn’t have been able to leave my pooches without knowing that they were being loved.
More from Kona and race week in the next few days.
Lisa Bentley
www.lisabentley.com
Pictures can be found of the training camp by clicking on the scrapbook link