Wednesday, 9/5/07 - Denver, CO

Oh, crap. I'm leaving tomorrow and my dog-sitter has bailed! Everything seemed to be going wrong today.

I spent the morning picking up my race wheels and getting the travel case for my bike. The wheels were supposed to be waiting for me at the expo, but the were accidentally shipped to where I was living when I reserved them. But I had moved! I stopped by the old place and discovered $2000 of Zipp carbon fiber sitting, unattended on the front porch. Nice job, Fedex.

The travel case wasn't such a hassle. I brought the wheels to the shop so I could borrow tools to swap the cassette. I picked up the loor pump fit in nicely. Everything is set out and ready to go for my flight to Chicago.

Thursday, 9/6/07 - Denver, CO to Chicago, IL

I got up around 8 to get the boys to overnight camp. We show up and check the place out. It's absolutely great. They have a pool, huge exercise yards, and great separate rooms for the dogs at night. I say goodbye and head back home to pack the car for the trip to the airport.

Bike case, duffel, and carry-on all slide right in and off we go. I get to the remote, $5/day lot, park right next to the bus stop (so I don't have far to walk when I get home), and hop on the bus to the terminal. $85 later, my bike and duffel are checked in and I'm on my way to the gate.

The flight was uneventful until we were flying over Wisconsin and O'hare pushed every flight back 30 minutes. The pilot mentioned that we might get diverted, but we ended up landing in Chicago a bit late and no worse for wear. My dad picked my up and my mom was waiting at the house with home-made, deep-dish Chicago-style pizza.

My buddy, Aaron, running a bit late. We were going to drive up to the KOA kampground, set up tents and sleep, but he was delayed by a very important event. It was his roommate's birthday, and they had to give him his present. Unfortunately, the roommate had pissed everyone off the week before, so in order to get his present, he had to recite a monologue from Hamlet....

in Klingon. (the video will be up soon.)

We finally left Chicago well after 10pm and rolled up to Madison. Right at the 94-894 interchange, we got stuck behind a truck carrying an oversized load. Turned out it was carrying two of the prop blades for a windmill generator. They were freakin HUGE! The rest of the trip was uneventful. We pulled in to the campground, set up tents, and passed out.

Friday, 9/7/07 - Madison, WI

We woke up to get to the swim course at a decently early hour. As we were getting in the water, I noticed a 1" hole along one of the arm seams on my wetsuit. Then I looked out onto the lake.

Whitecaps!

Someone described swimming into the wind on Friday morning as being like a boxing match. It was very hard to get a rhythm. It took me 48 minutes to do a single lap of the course. This was not boding well for Sunday!

After the swim, I picked up registration packets. I ran into a few other people from Colorado, one of whom I'd raced with last summer. Registration done, official Clyde weight: 221. I'm huge!

Aaron and I wandered around State St. for a while and grabbed some food and a few essentials.

Then, it was out to the car to mess with bikes. We had a perfect spot in a corner of the Terrace parking lot. I put my bike back together and we got Aaron set up with his aero bars. Then we set out for a short ride around the lake. The bike was feeling good.

Time for the banquet! I must have put down 2 lbs of pasta. We sat next to a few of the 350 Mexicans who came up for the race this year. They explained that there was a sort of IM club down there that picks one race every year to attend. Everyone pays their own way, but they get those nifty kits with the tri-suits, jackets for free.

After the banquet, we headed back to the campground to go to sleep.

Saturday, 9/8/07 - Madison, WI

Saturday was a good day. Aaron's dad booked us a hotel room at the Terrace Hilton, right behind the Terrace. We checked in around 10am. Oh, hotel! How I love thee!

We took it easy, watched some TV, and took showers for the first time in two days. After laying things out and tweaking the bikes a bit, we rolled over to the Terrace to check in bikes and drop of transition bags. Next, we headed back out into town to pick up some last-minute essentials: Tic-tac containers for salt pills, Q-tips, Triscuits, and a new battery for my HRM.

At around 6pm, we all met up back at the campground for a pre-IM BBQ with our families and some friends. After that, we stopped by Woodmen's for some breakfast food and went back to the hotel. I laid out everything for the next morning and we talked through the race from wake up to finish line. I called down for a 4:30 wake up call and passed out.

Sunday, 9/9/07 - Madison, WI

Race Day!

Up at 4:30. Geniuses that we are, no one thought about the difficulties in preparing bagels with cream cheese and jelly without a knife. We ended up using the hotel room key to spread the cream cheese. (Please don't tell them!) I have a spectacular video of me dancing around the room at 5am in my tri shorts and a beanie, bagel in one hand and pomegranate juice in the other.

We dropped off special needs bags and got marked. By the time I was fully Body-Glided and had the bottom half of my wetsuit on, it was time to head down the helix to the water. I ran into Darth Vader as well, got through the timing gate and waded into the water. No wind, no waves...absolutely perfect. The sun was barely rising over the other shore and casting a pink glow over everything. It was gorgeous.

Then there was this cannon blast and all hell broke lose. I've never done a mass start like that before, but it was crazy! I had a few people grab me, trying to get ahead. At some point, a foot flew by within an inch of my face, but missed. I also accidentally kicked someone, HARD. It must have been a shoulder or a head or something, because it was solid. The second lap was a bit more calm. There was one fellow who kept appearing in front of me. I'd go right to get around him and he'd be there. I'd go left...same thing. Pulled out of the water, swim time - 1:20:12

I had no idea what to expect in the transitions. Running up the helix was cool. I almost slipped in the parking lot. I picked up my bag and ran into the changing area, slipped on my helmet, dropped my tubes and tools into my pocket, and ran out with shoes in hand. T1 time - 9:24

The bike leg was great. I rolled out of the helix and got my shoes strapped and a gel in my belly before the first no-pass zone and drank some water. Rolling out to Verona was pretty uneventful. I was just happy to be on the bike and out of the water. Once the loops started, things got fun. I had a few people who I stuck with for most of the loops, trading leads. They'd kill me on the hills and I'd reel them back in on the flats and descents. I absolutely loved the climbs on the second half of the loop! Riding up through all those people, all of them yelling and shouting encouragement, was an amazing experience. The chute through Verona was sweet as well. I had a few cramps in my right quad that I could really only feel if I stood up on the climbs. Riding back in from the loops was a bit of torture. There were a few tiny hills that felt like mountains, but I made it in! Bike time - 6:05:16

T2 was quick and painless. I had my bike shoes unstrapped between the top of the helix and the dismount line. Someone handed me my bag and I hit the changing room on the run. Rolled the socks on, tied the shoes, stuffed the salt pill in the pocket and off we go! T2 time - 4:49

I was surprised at how well my run went. I ended up negative splitting the marathon, mostly due to some digestive issues on the first lap that put me in the john twice. No walls, no pain, no problems. I had a few gels on the first lap, but switched to Gatorade and diluted Coke on the second (I poured water into it). My dad jogged a bit of the course with me a few times and I ran into Aaron twice, once as I was heading down toward the stadium on the first lap and again on second as I was heading toward the underpass. The second time he had his roommates running with him wearing blaze orange hunting caps and carrying a boombox with "Under Pressure" on repeat.

As I was heading in to the turnaround to start the second lap, a pair of girls flashed me! They found me again on my way back out for the second lap. I love Madison. Run Time - 5:08:29

Rolling down the chute at the end....wow....I mean...wow. I was giving people high fives, hooting and hollering. I crossed the line and the volunteers immediately grabbed me even though I swear I was feeling fine! I did have to be reminded to stop my watch, though. The space blanket was definitely necessary.

Overall time - 12:48:07

Sub-13!!! Go me!

I went back to the hotel room and stepped straight into the shower with my tri-suit still on. We ended up at the Irish pub half a block down from the chute for beer...Smithwicks tasted SO good.

Back to the hotel room after dinner, legs up against the wall. Oh yeah...

Monday, 9/10/07 - Madison, WI to Chicago, IL, to Denver, CO

Woke up to get breakfast and check on the roll-down. I didn't think there was a chance, but it was worth a shot! We busted out of the hotel by around 1pm and drove back to Chicago so I could pack the bike back up and get to the airport. 3 hours an an Eagle Talon with 2 bikes and 2 sets of gear inside the car does not do post-ironman legs good! And then I had to sit on a plane!

The flight went well and I luckily didn't have to walk too far to get to the parking lot bus. I was SO glad that I parked right by the bus stop in the lot. This really cute girl who happened to be from Madison was on the bus with me and offered to help me with my bags. I was so braindead from the IM that I told her I didn't need help and didn't even ask her name! Missed opportunity...

Got home and had a warm and friendly greeting from the dogs. We went on a walk for a bit and then I passed out on my couch.

Is it Tuesday?