All that has gone into completing a 140.6 mile triathlon is still sinking in, but I will try my best to desribe the events and the effect they have had on me.

I arrived in Cambridge on Friday afternoon with my Mom and Dad. My wife, son, daughter, and in-laws were arriving a little later. It was very cool to have so many people sharing this journey with me. Before I left school (8th grade teacher), there was tons of support from the students and staff and with that a lot of pressure to not let anybody down.

Getting organized and registering was no problem. The only difficulty was trying to stay calm. I had not slept well in a few days and was still filled with nervous energy. I got to meet Scott (Beads) and his fiancee Melissa. We sat together at the pre race meeting. We didn't get to talk all that much but it was good to meet someone from the forum and feel like I would have a friend out there the next day.

Didn't sleep much at all the night before. Got out of bed at 4:45 and tried to eat. Not much luck. My stomach was seriously doing flip flops. I was able to get down a bottle of Perpetuam. Got body marked and put my wetsuit on 20 minutes before the start. Hugged my family, tried not to cry (I can't believe how close to the surface my emotions became), and headed to the water. I finally found Scott and was able to wish him luck. And yes it did feel like we were standing in poo, as Scott pointed out.

The swim was in the Choptank River, which is salt water and leads to the Chesapeake Bay. The wind was basically a sustained 10-17 MPH in our faces. I planned on swimming a nice relaxed, efficient 1h 30 mins. Instead I fought the waves for an exhausting 1h 40mins. It took me 10 minutes to figure out how to adapt my stroke to deal with the height of the waves. My right side stroke had to basically occur with me on my back to avoid drinking the Bay water. I still must have ingested 24oz of salt water. This was going to be a major problem for the next 8 hours. I got out of the water and entered the changing tent and looked at a bunch of faces that seemed to be in shock. The mood was dark until a short kind of round guy ran into the tent yelling "Yeah! I was zigging and zagging all over the place out there. That will be something to talk about forever." That changed the mood and helped me. I saw my family and told them that the swim was a "character builder".

The bike went well for the first 20 miles. Stomach pain then took over. I was unable to eat anything after my first PBJ sandwich. Gels wouldn't go down and the perpetuam was making me ill. I had to blow my nose every 2 minutes to expell the constant flow of salt water that wanted to leave my body. I started to give in to doubts and to the discomfort. When I hit the 14 mile stretch into the teeth of the wind it became almost maddening. I was pushing hard and doing 14MPH. I started to doubt wether I belonged here. At the 64 mile mark we were at the High School and had access to our special needs bags. I got of the bike for 5 minutes, used the bathroom, reapplied chamy butt'r, and talked to the very nice volunteer. Anton so me at this point and yelled out that he would talk to me later. I got my second wind. I kicked but for the next 15 miles. Stayed aero got back up to 20MPH and started gaining confidence. I still couldn't eat and had to throw out my 2nd PBJ sandwich after 3 bites. I was existing on Gatorade Endurance and E-caps.

I got to a point and had to turn due to a fire. There were police and fire engines screaming all over the road. The 2nd loop seemed easier mentally than the 1st. I adapted my riding style to ease the pain in my left foot, stomach and back. Every 5 minutes I would crank the gears up 3 or 4 notches and stand for 100 revolutions. then I would sit for 1 minute, then back to aero. I did this for the last 1.5 hours on the bike. It seemed to work wonders for me. I got back to the High School and saw my family. What a rush of emotions that was. My bike computer says I went 116 miles but I don't no if that is positively correct or not. My time was 6h 9m.

The run was a pancake flat, 4.5 mile out and back. At the 1 mile mark I thought my day might be over. I needed to vomit and use the bathroom. Neither would work. I stopped in a few port-o-lets and tried to make myself puke. Nothing worked. I trudged through the first 6 miles and thought that I need to make a friend to get my mind off of this discomfort. I met a Lt. Comm. in the Navy who was also hurting and a full loop ahead of me. We ran the next 10 miles together. It was exactly what I needed. I lost him on the end of my second lap but was able to see him right before he entered the staduim to shake his hand and congratulate him on becoming an Ironman. I also got to meet Anton after the first lap. Thanks for the encouragement. It really helped to hear the things you said. My family was extremely supportive each time I finished a loop. My dad was holding a Fosters in his hand to try and motivate me to finish.

On the third lap I was finally able to go to the bathroom. Wow. What a difference. There was no stopping me now. I was able to make a few more friends on the last lap. I felt so good on the last 4.5 miles. The people in one of the aid stations were really helpful and having a great time. I tried to share their energy. I put on a glow stick for the last 3 miles. I saw Beads again and we wished each other luck. I swear I did the last mile in under a 7 minute pace. I was cruising to the High School Stadium.

I entered the track and saw my dad. He was crying as I yelled "I love you". That was one of the most powerful moments in my life. I felt like I was sprinting the last 200M on the track. I picked up my 3 year old son, who screamed and cried out of anger, and grabbed my 6 year old daughters hand and we crossed as my wife filmed it and the rest of my family watched. I still can't find the words to describe how this felt. I had played how I would perceive this moment over and over in my mind for months. It was better than anything I imagined.

As I sat on the bench at the finish line eating cookies with my daughter I felt such a wave of joy, satisfaction, love, pride, and contentment. 5 minutes later I started shaking. We went into the gym to get something to eat. I sat on the floor and had a bite of pizza. 30 seconds later I was doubled over in the bathroom in pain. I got back to the hotel and took the best shower ever. I really wanted to go back to the stadium and watch the finishers. I started shaking uncontrollably again. I had on a sweatshirt was under the covers and still couldn't stop. A donut was all I was able to get down. I was done. Sleep did not come for extended periods because every time I moved it hurt. The next morning I walked to the dock where the swim started and watched the sunrise over glass like water with no wind. Everything seemed a little brighter than and better than normal.

Final time 12 hours 47 minutes. I am an Ironman, oops, I mean Ultra Distance Triathlete.

Thank you to all of Trifuel. I couldn't have attempted this without the knowledge I have gathered from this site. I felt like I was really a part of something wearing my shirt and may have even recruited a few new members on the run.

Scott, great meeting you and great job on Saturday. I wished we could have talked more. Anton, it was also great meeting you.