My first full distance Ironman, 19 months in the making.

I went into the race with the idea to take everything in and really enjoy the day, and I was fortunate that most of my immediate family was there to support me and make it a very enjoyable time. The days before the race I wasn’t exactly nervous, but my anxiety levels were quite high because I’ve been looking forward to this day for so long.

4 AM Sept 8th, and I’m up and ready to go, force feeding myself a bagel with peanut butter, and my stomach is not doing well. I get dropped off at the Terrace by Kelly and my Mom and go about all the last minute details and stand in line for awhile to use the men’s bathroom (only 2 stalls!). Unable to locate any teammates the newbie in me gets in the wrong line of people heading down to the swim. I then need to go against the mass of humanity with a few other first timers to get up the helix to drop off my morning clothes and attempt to get into the corral. Good news though, I ran right into my dad! “Hey old man!” I was so happy and shocked to see him down there before the swim even started.

Once I finally got going into the right area, about 600 of my new friends and I were outside the corral walls… needless to say, we got into the water a bit later than anticipated. Having had a great swim the day before I knew the water temp, but the overwhelming excitement and a bit of the cold didn’t allow me to get my breathing down for about the first 100 yards. After that it was smooth sailing… until the first turn… which I was told to Moo at… and I did… and didn’t hear anybody else do… I’m thinking the joke is on me here.

After that first turn things got difficult, the chop was getting bad, occasionally body surfing bad. Since the waves were getting taller, I couldn’t see where I was going, so I got closer to other racers, surely they know where they’re going right? Apparently they weren’t happy I was there though, as I proceeded to get kicked in the face, then a few minutes later punched in the face, causing my goggles to come off, thankfully I didn’t lose them. Ok, so, not THIS close to the other racers. Next thing I know I’m completely alone… this can’t be good either, which way are we swimming again?

Well, I did eventually make it to shore, 1 hour and 23 minutes after getting into the water, surprisingly only 3 minutes longer than I thought it’d take, and I probably swam a good 150 extra yards in there. So happy to be out of  that water! Up the ramp to the strippers and hustle up the helix. Wearing only my jammers and carrying the wetsuit, this run was cold. I saw quite a few spectators I knew on the run up, which was super awesome, gave some run by high fives, saw Kelly and got to stop for a kiss!

Transition one went fairly well, it’s pretty difficult to get tight fitting lycra on while you’re all wet, I wouldn’t recommend it. I decided to go with separate sleeves instead of a long sleeve tee over the top, great call. I would recommend getting some sleeves, they’re very nice.

Running out to the bike, I lost my visor from my helmet, thank you a million times to the volunteer who noticed! Also, running in bike shoes is much more difficult than I would have imagined, I now know why I saw so many people carrying their shoes out with them.

Got the bike and off we go, the helix down was great fun and saw more family at the bottom, Rick & Holly and Andy & Kirk were all there. Once past the trail it was time to  settle into a rhythm on the road. Felt amazing on the bike, the first 30 miles fell away, started to get into some of the climbs and descents and was having such a blast. Saw a number of friendly faces, waves and cheers, super awesome. 

Biked out to the back side of the loop at Mt. Horeb, see so many friendly faces on the climbs, (can’t say enough how awesome that is to see your family and friends and teammates cheering you on). I grabbed a bottle of water to refill my torpedo and somehow the torpedo cover ended up inside. So water was sloshing everywhere getting me soaked. I rode that way until I found a relatively flat area to stop and get that sorted out (stop 1). 

Loved the next section of the ride, through the countryside, the rolling hills were fantastic. Then I believe Lake Menona got its revenge (at least that what I’m blaming it on). Suddenly I couldn’t find a bathroom soon enough. I swear it had been 300 miles since the last aid station and sure enough, there was spray paint on the road saying “aid ->”… apparently it was for a different race… As I continued to try and put my mind on anything else, the corn fields were really looking inviting, even worth risking a DQ. Each corner I’d come up to, I would pray to see those beautiful blue port-a-poopers. Thankfully, I can say that day did come. (stop 2).

Finishing the first loop after the epic port-a-pooper quest put me through the hills. I felt great on them, a new man, just out for a bike ride. Loved the crowds, saw more people I knew and really enjoyed it. Music and costumes and cheerleaders and so much encouragement, you can’t help but enjoy yourself. 

After the first loop is done there is a special needs bag drop. I was fully planning on hitting this station, needed to grab more food, liquid calories (not beer) and lube. And of course I forgot the lube… which I paid for about mile 85+ (stop 3). Had a really nice talk with the volunteer at this stop, who held my bike while I refueled. 

On we go, keep pushing, riding through the second loop, having fun still and since the special needs stop I was feeling amazing. Normally about mile 70 my neck and shoulders are screaming at me, for whatever reason, I felt fantastic. Completely relaxed and ready to just keep going. For a little while at least….

Here comes Mt. Horeb again, another climb and my first teammate I’ve seen on the course. Ashley is stopped on the hill getting some calories in, shouts of encouragement and I keep on climbing, until that damn lake strikes again. This time though, I know there’s an aid station at the top of the hill. I just need to get there. I pull up and jump off in a hurry, there’s a bike rack right next to the port-a-pooper and several volunteers, I ask one to take my bike…. And when I come back I’m surprised to see her standing in exactly the same place holding my bike. Many thank yous and I’m off again, to see Ashely once more just past the aid station. Feeling as I’m running behind I ride the downhills hard passing people through some narrow sections, and fly by some more family & friends at the round-a-bout at the bottom of the hill. Felt bad I couldn’t even wave as I went by, it was a tricky little section of road.

From this part of the loop on back to the stick is a lot of hills, and they’re not nearly as welcoming as the first time through. By the time I got to mile 90, on the final ‘Big’ climb I was ready to be done. Thankfully Chad ran (walked) up the hill with me, and had many encouraging words. I was a bit down at this point, legs were burnt up, just sick of going so slowly through the endless climbing. On the way up, I managed to snag an oreo from a spectator as well, which was pretty great. 

Off this final climb there’s a nice long section that’s a little downhill, cruising pretty easy at 22mph that got my spirits back up. Thinking ahead to the stick, I thought it was pretty flat, so I was looking forward to a quick ride in, and even beating my estimated 6:30 time I set for myself. However, I recalled incorrectly. On tired legs, the ride in was all too hilly. Staring at 11 – 14 mph for 10+ minutes I started to think I wasn’t going to make my target time. At the top of the hill it was time to start pushing.

Now the rain was coming it, it was getting colder, I was getting more uncomfortable, and I used it all as motivation to get back as quickly as possible. I pushed hard until I got back to the highway, another small climb up and over and then the windy bits, around Alliant and under the bridges along the trails. Pushing hard on to John Nolen and trying to keep up with the cars in the next lane. At this point I knew I was burning my legs, but didn’t much care, I was so close I could smell it. I biked around the swim course and up to the helix, being completely surprised to hear more friendly shouting from family on the way in giving me one last adrenaline shot on the bike before the helix climb. Upon reaching the top, I stopped my bike computer and only had a vague idea of where my bike split was. I thought a little over 6:30, and was shocked to find out only after the race I had made it in just under my target at 6 hours 29 minutes and 20 seconds.

Transition two went smoothly, changed what I needed and grabbed some food, hit the pora-a-pooper on the way out and walked through the bike corral. Before leaving I made sure to get some water and started the run on the bottom of the ramp under the arch, where I thought the run course started. Come to find out, the Ironman tracker app gave me a 19 minute first mile… apparently I started the run course before realizing it.

The start of the run was fantastic. I set off at a really good pace, a little to hot actually, first recorded mile showed 8:00, needed to slow that back. The first part of the run is full of a lot of turns, and about 2 miles in I heard a “Rob?” as was passing someone. Turns out it was Jason, great to see another teammate out here. So we chatted about the race a little bit, things were going quite well for him, which was great to hear.

The next couple miles until Camp Randall were in check, but that stadium run was amazing. It helped that the Badgers had a home game win of 61 – 0 the day before! Out of the stadium and over toward campus, little hills in here, but mostly downhill, kept up a great pace. Once near the park, there was a Base salt tent and people giving away tubes of salt, while I already had one, I figured a second can’t hurt. I credit this decision for saving the second half of my race, but more on that later. 

While running down a path, I was surprised to see Scott. He joined me for a bit, check on how I was doing and was a really nice little break. From the path then we had the Observatory climb. I fully planned on walking this hill. Having hit it on the Madison marathon, I knew exactly what I was in for. Apparently everyone else did too as they were all walking it. Next up a fun downhill twisty out to State Street. As I approached I saw Ryan and Chad running by ahead of me. While I was pumped to see another teammate, I didn’t think I’d come across Ryan just yet. At this point I was about a mile behind him. I yelled something encouraging then told a nearby volunteer I was going to “catch his ass”. I’m such a nice guy…

Heading down into state street was exhilarating! I volunteered at this spot last year and imagined myself racing it countless times. What a thrill to now actually be doing it. The crowd support was phenomenal and I felt my adrenaline and speed spike. From this point we head back on the trail along the lake for an out and back. I knew this was going to be the hardest section as there isn’t nearly as much support out there. However, the first time through seemed to go by really quickly. I saw Chris for the first time then Ryan and Steena on this out and back, and at the turnaround was a co-worker cheering me on who I had no idea would be on the course. Oddly enough, when I caught up to Ryan, we happened to be about 200 yards behind Chris, and it was quite nice to be able to all 3 us run together for a short time.

The run back to the turnaround point went well, but felt mostly uphill, something I made sure to remember. At the 13 mile marker I checked my watch and for the first time thought I might just be able to break my ultimate goal of 12 hours. If I could do the second ½ marathon in under 2 hours I should have it. From this point my mindset changed, slipping into ‘race’ mode, my vision narrowed a bit and I focused on just continuing to hold my pace. Still all smiles, but certainly much more focused.

Off the turn around we head back to State St. Such a thrill every time through that stretch, the crowd gives you such a huge boost. Out through Camp Randall and over to the path, and I’m still feeling great. Taking in water and Gatorade at every aid station. Taking bananas or grapes or once a Base bar (ew) about every other aid station as I had run out of gummies and Gu packs on the first ½. During this section I started to increase my use of Base salt as well, and at about mile 17 I went to put the tube back in my jersey and the cap came open, salt spilled everywhere! That bottle was gone, so very thankful that I grabbed the backup on earlier from the Base people on the course!

Around mile 19 was the last time I saw family and friends before the finish. It was great to have that last boost to help propel me forward. A couple miles beyond that was the stretch out by the lake again. This is the hardest part of the run, there isn’t much for spectators and you’re essentially just doing an out and back to add some distance. It was during this stretch my hamstrings first started to give me some concern. The fatigue was really building up and every foot fall started to feel like my legs may really start cramping up. I put that thought aside and tried my best to think of much happier things. I also increased my drinking, switching to more Gatorade, as well as eating a couple more bananas. I’ve had bad leg cramps in marathons before and certainly didn’t want to stop myself for several minutes to attempt to stretch it out before continuing.

Getting closer to the finish, 2 miles out now, and I checked my watch. I had 22 minutes to make the final 2 miles! I was feeling pretty well still, my pace slowed a bit, down to 8:45 and my legs were tired, but I knew I could make it now. I hit the final pass through State Street, pushing hard with a 1000 yard stare on my face. Passing a couple people on the road I heard a ‘look at that guy’ can only assume they were talking of the strained look on my face. Up to the capitol square, and a road block. A woman racing was walking in front of me, with 2 spectators walking with her, taking up the entire running path. I felt a little bad, but had to yell “coming through!” and I hope the frustration I felt wasn’t present in my voice.

Final 2 blocks around the capitol square, all uphill. A crazy mixture of feelings and thoughts in my head. The finish is so close, I can hear the crowd, can hear Mike calling people in. Hold on legs! Every step feels like they’re going to give up on me. Round the second to last corner, at the run special needs section, and can see the finish line crowd stretched out all the way back to the final turn. I tell myself to just keep going, ignore the legs, they get a break soon. 

Making the final turn towards the carpet and I lose my battle. My right leg seizes up. The hamstring has a monkey fist in the middle of it. I’m forced to lock my knee, grab the fence and double over. There’s a vague recognition of the crowds ‘awe’ noise. As I looked up, I see Chad standing on the other side of the fence, “just go man!”. I try to take another step, and the cramp fires again, back down I go, doubled over trying to stretch it out. “You’ve got this, the finish is right there!” My vision is completely tunneled now, I righted myself and manage a few more steps, then it hits me again. I hear the crowds reaction, they seem to be riding the ups and downs with me. Chad is still by me, following behind the crowd. “Go man! Hurt later” ( this is probably not what he said, but that was my take on it 😉 ). Taking a deep breath, I started walking again, forced it into a trot then a very slow jog. Instead of bending my right knee, I was trying to use my hip to swing my leg around for the next step. This seemed to be working, 50 yards to go to the arches. I couldn’t make out faces in the crowd, I couldn’t hear Mike on the PA. All that existed was that finish line. Crossing it at 7:14 gave me a 3 hour 42 minute marathon resulting in an 11 hour 53 minute first Ironman!

I’ve never needed catchers at the end of a race before, but this day, I feel into their arms. Two fantastic volunteers took care of me, got me a few steps out of the way, held me up when I was forced to stretch to get this cramp to finally subside. Someone put a medal over my head and gave me a bundle, “Congratulations, here’s your finishers hat.” Another lady came over and put a  second medal over my neck, I had completely forgotten about the Diaryland Challenge medal, so glad Ironman remembered. After a few minutes I was able to stand on my own again. I hobbled over to an Ironman branded background for a final finisher picture.

Then it was family and friend time. Oh my god, this was the best part of the day, seeing everyone at the finish line was incredible. My excitement of the days journey and accomplishment bubbled up. Talking a million miles an hour I recounted the days greatest hits, some of which Keith managed to get a Facebook Livestream of…

Thank you so much to everyone who was there for me. Kelly was able to take off of school to be there for me, and it made me so happy every time I saw her during the race. She wasn’t feeling well at all for that day, and made sure that I didn’t know about it during the race, as I would have then been worrying about her. My only regret was that I wasn’t able to stop in the finish line to give her a hug and kiss. Deb Vance and Zach were all down at the finish line, which was super awesome. Great to see my littlest brother there. My mom has been such an inspiration for hard work and has encouraged my endurance journey every step of the way. Rick and Holly made it down for the whole day and their excitement on the course for me and all of the athletes was just incredible. They embodied the spirit of this race and I’m so thankful that I was able to share this day with them. Andy and Krik made it for the whole day as well. Andy has seen me through each of my crazy race adventures at this point, always worried I’ll go to far, but yet he’s always right there to help with the training. I’m happy to call him a very good friend. Kregg and Mark came down for the morning and I’m glad my Dad was able to get a chance to see what Ironman and endurance racing was all about. Chad and the WATTs crew. I’ve learned a lot about training, racing and life from these wonderfully caring people. Chad has been an inspiration as well as a terrific coach, whose support in learning and training for this sport has been invaluable. Those from WATTs spectating and racing with me, training with me and push each other to go further everyday. I was so happy to see all of the WATTs crew have fantastic races, with 3 first time finishes and PR’s being set.

It has been a long road with many sacrifices and without the support of everyone there is no way I would have been able to complete this journey. This is however not the end, but the beginning of the next journey. Looking forward to a couple of great challenges in 2020 at Ironman Tulsa and the Washington Island Ultra!