On to T1. Got stripped of my wetsuit, picked up my bag, and headed into the tent. I took my time, changed all my gear to my IH bibs and a cycling jersey. Walked out to claim my bike, walked to the bike mount area, got on, and away I went.
T1, 11:45, slower than IMF but it didnt bother me
It was great fun seeing all the Ironheads that werent competing cheering for me as I made the first turn from transition. Little did they know, I wasnt even clipped in yet but I got aero in a hurry so I could show off my awesome position on the bike :) I headed out of town averaging 20+mph. At the turn onto Lakeshore, I saw Stacey and the entourage from the house for the first of many times. Smiling for the camera, a couple of people took bad lines through 90 degree turn and almost clipped me and a few others.
I passed tons of people, most of whom would fly by me by the time I got half way up the first climb at McLean Creek Road. There was a little bit of wind picking up but after we got on the climb, I didnt feel much til we crested the hill. This first hill, is about 1km long, maybe 6-7% grade (maybe more?). At the top, I couldnt find my legs, they felt like lead. I was hoping it was temporary but I couldnt get going. There was a bit of a false flat but it wasnt bad. The downhill into OK falls was wicked. I hit 44mph, passed heaps of people that dont have my weight and momentum. The rest of the trip to Osoyoos had a bit of headwind but not too much.
I drove the road to Richter Pass last year so I know what to expect. I could see it looming as I approached the turn. I fueled up with a gel and loads of water about 5 minutes before I hit the base of the climb. I didnt think I would be able to drink while I was climbing.
I was still shaking the cobwebs off my legs and the first pitch of the climb, being the longest, really took its toll. Thank GOD I put that compact crankset on my bike. If I didnt have the 34 on there, I wouldnt have been able to make it up the remaining hills over the next 120km or so.
There were SO MANY people on the climb, you would have thought we were doing at grand tour in Europe. People in silly costumes with silly signs, it was AWESOME!!! Very motivating to people lacking enthusiasm for climbing.
Oh, did I mention the large caliber rifle shots I heard about half way up the first pitch? I thought maybe there was a range nearby but the shots were too close and at one time, I thought I was being shot AT! On with the climbing, it wasnt fun, seated climb for 30-40 minutes really sucked. My back was screaming at me, my ass hurt, and my neck hurt from being aero for too long.
Got through that section, crested the top, and descended fast. I hit 48mph on that one. I soft pedaled all the way down hill so my legs didnt seize up further. Then came the rollers. Although I didnt know it until after the next aid station when I asked someone if these were in fact the infamous rollers. Dont get me wrong, they arent easy, but I was expecting something a lot more difficult from what people were telling me. Stacey, Laura, and the rest of the house were there to cheer me on which was cool because I only expected to see them at Yellow Lake.
Next came the out/back section of the course. By this time, my butt was getting so sore. The back pain was average and my neck hurt but I was still 2 hours from being done the bike and could hardly sit. My special needs bag had some more chamois lube in it but truthfully, it was just the pressure from the saddle in the nether regions that was the painful part.
This is a real ugly part of the bike course. The road has lines across it, thump, thump, thump. Water bottles, tires, tubes, are everywhere as they got knocked off bikes. I saw Leanne and another friend from Camas, Pete Adams, and we shouted encouraging words to each other and went on our merry ways.
I got to the turn around and there were Stacey, Laura, Kelly, and Jacob. I smiled for the camera and picked up the pace. I didnt want them to see how much pain I was in. I grabbed my special needs bag and did the roadie thing, grabbed everything, stuffed it in my pockets, and threw the bag out, all without stopping the bike. I hit the 80 mile marker towards the end of the out/back section. 32 more miles of hell and I was NOT looking forward to it.
Stacey and I drove to Yellow Lake on Saturday so I was prepared but in hindsight, all it did was stress me out. I began to do calculations in my head. Lets see, 20km of downhill from the top of Yellow to Penticton, thats 12 miles, its a 10km climb to the top, the pitch should be rising up.......... NOW!
Crap, it started. Before you can say slug, I was slithering along at 5-6 mph. My legs had nothing left. It wasnt my fueling, that was dialed in. I was just plain worn out. I feel like I had enough training for this event but maybe not enough hills. With all the bike problems I had this season, I attributed it to a poor fit, not poor prep. After all, I have a great coach, thanks Scott.
Not far from the top, there was Stacey, Laura, Kelly, and the rest of the house cheering me on. Laura actually walked next to me, thats how SLOW I was going. I asked where Clint was and they said he was behind me. Thats strange, I thought, he should be way ahead of me. Oh well, I had 500m of climbing to go, cant stop to chat. Turned out, poor Clint had some massive GI problems and was puking his guts out somewhere behind me. At the bike dismount area, they took him the the med tent, his day was done after 8.5 hrs on the bike with a stomach issue. Not fun.
200m from the top, people screaming, cheering, yelling encouragement, it was phenomenal. I stood up on the pedals and danced my way to the top. OK, so it wasnt like dancing but I was shaking my butt, doesnt that count?
I knew this wasnt the last climb of the day but the hard part was definitely over. I knew I was going to finish this sillyness and cross the line before midnight. Now my goal was going to be beating my IMF time. A short downhill and uphill later, I was going 50 mph towards Penticton. The wind shook me a few times but i was on a mission. I had one hand on the horns, one hand was in the aero bars, and I was squeezing the frame with my thighs.
I maintained a good clip all the way back. The wind hit me as I was eastbound in front of Skaha Lake. I was leaning hard to the right to keep from being knocked over. Those Zipp 808's sure can go fast but they sure pick up crosswinds. I got to the bike dismount and had to ask one of the volunteers to hold me up as I had no strength to twist out of my pedals. I was surprised when I was able to walk after I got off, hey, I thought, I might be able to run some of the marathon after all.
Bike, 7:04:24, lots slower than IMF but duh, the course is flat in FL. Average speed, 15.8 mph. Pretty poor.
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