Hi All,
I am proud to let you know that 3 days shy of my 50th birthday, I completed my first half-Ironman, the Tupper Lake Tinman! I enjoyed a great deal of support on this journey (as well as several people who thought I was nuts), so I would first like to recognize and thank some very special people. First and most important, Sheila, – my cheerleader, valet, driver, sherpa, etc. for her amazing tolerance and love! Triathlon is a team sport in many ways! To my Coach Deb, I appreciate so much your expertise, your encouragement and making sure that I do things right. To Pete, a huge thanks for your inspiration and guidance. To Joan, I am amazed that you have made a swimmer out of me and you did so with a smile. To Megan and Carla, you guys kept this old body of mine feeling young as well as lots of great talks. To Adam, my long-time friend, source of encouragement and now fellow Tinman, it was awesome to have you here. Adam, had a personal best and including placing 3 in the swim and 4 in the bike for our age group. I can’t forget Spargo, thanks for making sure that I had wheels!
The race was great fun! I swam part of the course the day before. The water was warm, but the wind was up and it was rough. Swimming out was like swimming uphill and back was like body surfing. On race day, the water has a warm 71 degrees and calm. We arrived at the race early, so that we had lots of time to prepare. I got my timing chip, and we had been body-marked the day before. Body-marking is a ritual. The marker is usually an outgoing woman who likes to write on fit bodies, and then I came along! They mark your Bib number, in thick black marker, on your left shoulder and right thigh, and then they mark your race and your age on the back of your left calf, in my case “T 50”. I had an awesome swim for me, smooth and relaxed. I attribute that to a calm transition area (where your bike and shoes are “racked”) set-up, a 30- minute warmup run to get the jitters out and driving Sheila crazy by being one of the last to move from the transition area to the swim corral (where everyone waits before the swim starts). Dawning my bright neon green swim cap like the others in my age category, I joined my fellow would be Tinmen in our age group pen about 5 minutes before the horn. With 3 minutes to our wave start, at 8:30, we waded into the water; it was overcast but pleasant. I began the race, for the first time in 27 years sans my wedding ring. The day before, on my practice swim, I found myself fidgeting with it as due to my weight loss it was loose. No worries for Sheila, it wasn’t like this was a place to pick up women. I went out wide to avoid the “washing machine”
of 100 “A” types, trying to get out in front. I just happily stroked and bumped into few others. As I approached the beach to exit the water, it started to rain – ugh for the bike! My swim time was 51:57 for 1.2 miles against my pre-race target of 54 minutes. I was 46 out of 51 in my age group and thrilled not to be last! I was pretty fast to get out on my bike. The rain was falling – not ideal, but I was in a great frame of mind. The fun really began; I was fast on my bike, especially given the weather. I was not passed once on the 56 miles and I made a game of picking off and passing others, one at a time. My maximum speed was only about 65 kmph because of the wet conditions and I averaged 27.2 kmph. I finished the bike leg in 3:18:43, just over my target time of 3:15. I was 36th in my age group and 392 overall out of
509 competitors. I was really happy. I had a pretty good transition to the run. The rain had stopped and it got hot and humid – too bad the bike and run weather were not reversed. I had an okay run, but I will do better as I lose more weight. I did some walking but not too much, mostly through aid stations. I can’t run and drink all that well yet.
The locals along the run were terrific. Until you are out on a long race, you really don’t appreciate just how important those “good job”, and “looking strong” comments and applause mean to you. At no point, did I think that I would not finish. I did visualize the finish, and at one point, I looked around to make sure that no one was in sight of me and I raised my arms and singled “V” for victory like Richard Nixon leaving the White House as he entered Marine One, with a big silly grin on my face. Hey, whatever works! I finished in the hottest part of the day in 3:02 (13.1 miles, a half-marathin). My total time was 7:20:56, I was 43rd out of 51 in my age group and 446 overall out of 509. I had past two 24-year-old guys on the run – that was fun, especially when they called up to me as I lumbered past them, “great job, Sir, really great” not doubt having noticed my age emblazoned on my left calf. Most of the time, I hate being called “Sir”, that was my Dad, but this time it was kinda fun. I crossed the finish line strong.
I almost cried as you get hit with a huge wave of emotion as I received my medal. Sheila was right there, camera in hand to record the triumphant finish. After a big hug and sweaty, grimy kiss, I headed to the lake for a dip. We gathered my stuff, put on some dry clothes including my “Tinman” shirt and headed out. As I sat in the car, I kept shifting position, it was hard to stay still after so many hours of motion. We stopped for my now ritual Turkey sandwich, chocolate milk and root beer – trust me, they all have their medicinal purpose. Back at the house, Adam and I showered and had a hot tub, then it was off to Desperados for Mexican food and Margaritas (lots of
Margaritas) (Sheila volunteered to be the DD). We went bed by 10 and this morning only going down stairs is tough. It will be a quiet day with a very easy 10 to 15-minute, easy and flat, bike ride.
Thanks to many for your good wishes! Next stop – Timberman in late August and then hopefully the big one, the Lake Placid Ironman a year from now. It is a picture perfect Lake Placid day, so we are going to relax as I savour this personal victory and tick one more item off my life’s to do list.
Bill