BEACH TO BATTLESHIP IRONMAN RACE REPORT
The Beach to Battleship Iron Distance Triathlon on October 26th would be my final triathlon of the 2013 season. It was a long season, where the “shortest” race I completed was the Union Hospital Run for Home half marathon back in April. Even then, the half marathon was preceded by a 70 mile road ride with my training partners. Following that epic-Sunday, I raced in the Lake Erie 100 mile Duathlon, Ironman Muncie and Steelhead 70.3 and then Ironman Louisville.
My plan was to end the season with another 70.3, the USAT Long Course Natl Championships held in conjunction with Rev 3 Anderson S.C. However, a week or so after Ironman Louisville I got that itch to give it one more go at the Ironman distance. Something about the day in Louisville did not sit well with me. Even though I set a new PR in Louisville [10:31], I felt like I could do much better. The bike course just doesn’t fit my riding style, I felt like I never got in a groove. The marathon is brutal, you begin the run in a major downtown city during the hottest portion of the day and there isn’t a postage stamp worth of shade the entire 26.2 miles. I fell apart at mile 18 and limped in with a 3:43 marathon.
With the blessing of Lisa, I entered Beach to Battleship in early September. I had eight weeks to get prepared and I vowed to make this my best IM training block ever. With that being the goal, I took a serious look at my training leading up to Louisville. While there were a lot of good things in my Louisville build, there were also some significant inadequacies. For example
-too much training on my road bike and not enough on the time trial bike. I changed this and all but one of my rides leading up to B2B was done on the TT bike.
–focus too heavy on long bricks vs run frequency. I had a number of epic training days leading up to IMLOU including a 95 mile road ride followed by a 14 mile brick run at a sub 7:40 pace. This left me physically and mentally drained and the recovery time was significant. My run frequency suffered. Leading up to B2B I eliminated all but a few short brick runs [4 miles or less] and ramped up my weekly mileage up in the mid 30’s with a weekly long run and a few middle distance runs.
–non race specific bike training. This was probably the area I worked on most/best. Leading up to B2B I performed 3-4 bike sessions per week, with all of them being quality rides with NO junk miles/rides. One was a dedicated Ironman focus ride, the longest at 105 miles at or above Ironman goal wattage. On this ride I built my wattage from 182ap to 192ap on successive loops on my training route. I also practiced even pacing, as my NP ranged from 187-194 watts and a VI of just over 1. The goal was to ride at goal pace or slightly faster AND avoid huge spikes. The low VI assured me I was not burning any matches! My second ride was 2.5 – 3 hours, with 90’-2hrs at or above 70.3 wattage. Some weeks I would do this ride twice. Finally, my weekly threshold ride. Whilst only 1:45:00 long, this one seared the lungs and burned the quads. Within the ride I would perform two 20’ intervals separated by 10’ of light spinning. I would aim for 90% of FTP [260 watts] or higher during the intervals. My final threshold ride saw me hit a NP of 252 and 275 watts on successive intervals. In a nutshell, I definitely did the work on the bike leading up to B2B
The 8 week block was my finest training block to date. I felt more than prepared and ready to tackle my second Ironman in nine weeks with the goal being to go sub-10. I figured I would need a sub 1:10 swim, a sub 5:20 bike split and a low 3:20 run, with 10’ for transitions. All of these were very realistic goals in that I had just gone 1:05 in my swim at IMLOU and it was a non-wetsuit swim. My bike at IMLOU was just over 5:30, but the course at B2B was going to be easier as long as the wind was not blowing too strong. Finally, the run – Most triathletes would kill for a sub 4 hour run split. An Ironman marathon is nothing like a stand alone race. For one thing, you start the run on tired legs with your fuel stores half tapped at best. I have run a 3:30 marathon in an Ironman back in 2006 in conditions/course similar to what I was facing at B2B. Though 7 years older, I am actually a better run now then I was back then. Not to mention a much stronger cyclist, this plays a huge role in how well one can run in an Ironman. I would also be racing with a power meter, thus behaving myself AND by the way; I am 15lbs lighter today then I was back in 2006. Last, the conditions on race day were sure to be better than the last two years in Louisville where temps and humidity levels reached blast furnace like proportions.
With the training in the books, Lisa and I headed for Wrightsville Beach on Weds October 23. We stayed overnight in Greensboro, and then arrived in Wrightsville Beach early Thursday morning. We checked into the Holiday Inn SunSpree Resort. As was the case last year when I raced the B2B half, Lisa did an awesome job of hooking us up with our accommodations. Staying at the SunSpree meant I would have a relaxing morning on race day. The swim start was less than 3 miles from our hotel AND we were already on the island thus avoiding any shuttles, long waits and traffic. Since our room was not ready, I used the time to get in some training while Lisa did some island exploring on her feet. I did a quick 45’ ride with some race pace efforts then ran a spirited 2 miles. By the time I finished our room was ready and it was time to unpack, with most of the luggage being race related items.
We spent the rest of Thursday at the expo in Wilmington, 10 miles away. The expo is also where T2 is held, so we would be there more than once over the next few days. We picked up some free schwag, got a free beer and acted like tourists. Back at our hotel, I prepped all my bottles and gear for race day. I did not want to be rushed on Friday, so I figured I would play it safe and get the gear ready two days prior. It was here that I made quite possibly the biggest mistake of the race and one that would come back to haunt me and cost me the sub 10 hour mark!
Friday morning began with cool, borderline cold, conditions. The same was to be for race morning so I figured I would get outside and get used to it. Lisa was out on her walk and I headed down to the Blockade Runner to meet up with the Slowtwitch pre-race practice swim gathering. There must have been 40 people there, and we all learned some valuable tips from one of the local pros. He informed us that there would be no help from the tide this year as it was going to be going out/slack. That meant the super fast times from last year’s swim would not be replicated. He also showed us the best line to take through the channel once we hit the turn buoy. This would prove to be invaluable the following morning, when it counted! After the swim we headed to the local bike shop for more course pointers and hot coffee and some good old fashioned carb loading with donuts donuts and more donuts! We headed back to the expo in Wilmington to check in my T2 gear bag, and then back to Wrightsville Beach to T1 to check in my bike and T1 gear bag. Because of the cold forecast for race morning, I planned on only wearing Jammers under my wetsuit and then doing a complete change in the tent at T1. Everything was set, all the prep was done, the training was complete, now it was time to go out and execute. It was going to be a long day tomorrow, so I headed off to bed early with dreams of a sub 10 race dancing in my head!
Though I did not sleep well Friday night, I never do the night before a big race. I awoke Saturday morning and started getting in my pre race nutrition. I walked out to my car to pack my tire pump and first round of nutrition for the bike as well as my computer and special needs bag. It was chilly and a bit windy, the 70 degree water was going to feel warm compared to the 38 degree air temps. Lisa and I drove over to T1 less than a mile away. She dropped me off, I loaded my nutrition on to my bike, synced the computer, pumped the tires then headed over to the special needs truck and body marking. All of this took me less than 10 minutes. Unlike any other Ironman or long course triathlon, I was able to go back to our hotel instead of sitting around stewing and letting the nerves take over. This has to be one of my favorite aspects of B2B, the thought of going back to your hotel for an hour or more vs standing around with 1000- 3000 other triathletes! At 700am it was time to head out, Lisa was able to drop me off about 500 yards from the swim start. I wore a number of “throw away” clothes over my wet suit. The clothes could not be returned and would be given to a homeless shelter. I had on a pair of wind pants, gloves, a hat from the Columbus marathon, a pair of older Saucony Kinvara’s, socks my daughter painted all over, a wind breaker from the Ohio Challenge Series that was never worn in 5 years and most importantly, I parted with my 14 year old Cleveland Browns sweatshirt. It had not given me any luck over the past years so perhaps by donating to the homeless, good karma would come my way! Then again, even a homeless person might turn down a Browns sweatshirt?
As I reached the end of the road I came across a fellow racer shivering from the cold as he failed to prepare for the morning conditions. I took off my windbreaker and gave it to him. He was most thankful, another good deed might equate to some good karma during the race. The beach start was about 100 yards from the end of the road over a dune. As I walked onto the sand I could hear the music blasting and the announcer yelling, “ten minutes until race start!” Talk about a stress free swim start! I walked up through the mass of racers and over the timing mat to the water’s edge. I dipped my goggles in the ocean and took a position in the front of the pack. Our National Anthem played and I closed my eyes and envisioned long smooth strokes and calm relaxed body movements, all key to a good swim.
This was it; we were almost ready to go. The timer yelled 30”, the next noise we would hear would be the horn. Tick tock, tick tock, tick tock – the seconds seemed like minutes as we all waited to storm into the water. Then, the blast of the horn, and we were off. It was still dawn out, so the lighting was dim. Everything seemed grey, the sky, the water, the shoreline, and the swimmers in their wetsuits. Within seconds the first contact, then another bump, then another. Swim starts are always chaotic, this one was no different. Just relax, go with it, stay calm – all words I repeated over and over. About 250 meters in I caught some faster feet. The bonus was this guy had on a grey and red wettie so he was easy to spot. He was zigzagging though the throngs of swimmers, and I was following right behind, albeit a little faster than I had planned on. After about 500 meters I lost him and resumed my relaxed fluid pace. I seemed to finally clear of the masses, which all seemed to be closer to the east shoreline/right of me. The swim did not have marker buoys, only a single turn buoy that I could not yet sight. No worries, I used the 5 story Blockade Runner as my beacon. After another 250 meters I finally saw what I thought was the turn buoy, but my concern was I was off course because many of the swimmers were to my right. So I stopped and squinted off in the distance. A swimmer behind me stopped and we looked at one another, “was THAT the turn buoy?” Sure enough, it was, we were in perfect position! Back to swimming, when I hit the buoy I looked at my watch, 42 minutes, not too bad.
Now I followed the advice of the local pro from the practice swim the day before and headed directly for the red channel marker, just to the right. It’s funny, because if you look at the marker from shore, you would think that you have to swim to the left of it. Not so, it was an optical illusion created by the blending of the saw grass and water. As I passed the channel marker a little while later, I was once again in perfect position to make the final push. While many swimmers were heading more to the right, I angled for the small island sighting off the big white building behind it. Another optical illusion, it appears there is nothing behind the island. Well all be darn, as I skirted the island [got so close my arm almost hit bottom on my pulls] I thought of Scotty from Star Trek 4. “Admiral, there be whales here,” or in this case, WATER! Right behind the island, and now a straight shot to the finish. As I hit the dock, I realized that even though the water appeared warm compared to the air temperature, my feet were numb. I took a few seconds to get my bearings before being hoisted up the ladder by the volunteers. I looked at my watch, 1:02:10 YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS, my fastest IM swim to date that ended up being 78/800. I got down on a deck box and let the wetsuit strippers do their job, love having them at the races. Now the fun part was the 200 meter run around the marina and across a road to T1. This was brutal on the feet, but at least they had a HOT shower halfway down the run out. I could have stayed there all day, but I needed to get moving. I hit the timing mat in 1:03 and change for my official swim split then grabbed my T1 bag and hit the change tent.
T1 was a disaster. I had to completely strip down, towel off, then try to put on dry clothes with shivering hands and cold clammy skin. Not a fun time. I put on two layers of UnderArmour and my tri shorts. In my haste, I put on my bike shoes but forgot my leg warmers so I had to start all over. Gloves and a hat, too, I was not going to get cold on the upcoming 112 miles. The fiasco cost me over 10 minutes, so now I was off on the bike in a slower net time then I was at IMLOU even though I swam over 3 minutes faster. No time to fret, I had 112 miles to ride, and ride smart. Hopefully, with all the hard training, I would be able to make up some time.
The bike at B2B is point to point with a big loop attached to a H.
The course if flat but because of the point to point and nature of the wind direction, you spend more time riding into the wind vs riding with it. That is the only downside to having two awesome transition areas. My goal was to ride between 185-190 watts, keeping my NP as close to my AP and thus a low VI. I went out around 175 watts and slowly build my average power. 10 miles in to the bike the course merges with a freeway that has one lane completely closed to traffic. During these 10 plus miles I was able to get my average power up to 188 watts and I sat on that number for most of the day.
With the wind out of the N/NW the first 70 plus miles were into the wind or with a cross wind. I would be lying if I didn’t say it was demoralizing to be spot on with my power but the corresponding speed was missing. I was averaging around 20.3mph, and at every 10 mile marker the needle would not budge. Around mile 50 or 60 I started to go to a really dark place. I was ready to cash it in, finish this bike and call it a day. My avg speed for the power I was putting out was nowhere near where it was in training. And this was comparing a training ride without race wheels and a full taper to race day. I talked to myself a lot in those middle miles. Ironman has been described as one long conversation with yourself and I had my fair share of talking going on! Finally around 70 the tail wind kicked in and my current speed climbed into the mid 20’s at the same power that was barely producing 20mph into the wind. The tail wind was short lived, as we had one other section that headed due west. However, once out past mile 80, I really started to dial in my power and time trial position. I started noticing the words YOU WILL DO THIS painted in red along the bike course and I repeated those words in my mind. The half course merged with the full around 90 and I was catching up to and passing many of the slower riders from the half distance. When I hit 100 I knew I was almost home, but I kept the watts in check and would sit up and stretch every few miles. At mile 110 the traffic log jam started to manifest itself. Cars and trucks were backed up for at least a mile on Hwy 421 as triathletes who were riding on the right berm were directed across the freeway and onto the giant drawbridge over the Cape Fear River. I know this did not sit well with many of the motorists, in fact, on semi pulled over into the berm lane that the cyclists were on leaving only enough space for a single cyclist to pass by. I avoided any collisions and was up on the draw bridge and heading for T2, which was clearly visible from the top of the draw bridge. As I came into the convention center area, there was my A#1 Lisa cheering me on. The final 100 yards into T2 were lined with spectators. I slipped out of my shoes, came off to one side of the bike, and dismounted and ran with the bike all in one motion. I handed my bike to one of the fine volunteers and headed into the convention center. My final bike split, 5:18:52, good for a 21.03 average. I rode at an average power of 187 watts and a NP of 190 watts for a VI of 1.01. You can’t get much better than that! My bike split was the 17th fastest of the field of 800 and a new IM bike split PR. Now it was time to run!
Inside the convention center, I ran along the walls towards the bag racks. Another awesome volunteer was there to assist, and I grabbed my bag and headed to the change room. Now I had to do the opposite of what I had done in T1. Get out of my warm clothes so that I would not overheat on the run. I stripped out of my leg warmers and both UA long sleeve shirts, took off gloves and hat, and replaced with a tri singlet and visor. I changed out of my heavy cotton socks and into my Swiftwick running socks. Unfortunately, my feet were not well covered in lubricant. I normally bike sockless, and squeeze a significant amount of A and D ointment in my shoes. This lubricates my feet and keeps them from becoming prone to blisters. I also failed to lube the inside of my Swiftwicks, more on that later. I exited T2 in over 5’, so between T1 and T2 I spend 15.5 minutes….OUCH!
As I hit the run course and crossed the timing mat, I hit the lap button on my watch. It read 6:37 and change. In order to break 10 hours I needed to pull off a 3:22 marathon. A tall order, but certainly doable. At the turnaround I saw Lisa again, cheering her heart out. The run is a two loop affair, with a quick out and back, then a run along the boardwalk with more than a few 90 degree turns. After the boardwalk, you run along the Cape Fear River in downtown Wilmington, past the finish line [you go by it three times during the run, talk about torture] and then onto the one way cobblestone road lined with bars and restaurants. Lots of cheering during this section, with some spectators who imbibed with a few! The course then makes a left turn up a very steep hill, then a straight section out to another turn where you find yourself nearing Greenville Lake. The run at this point takes place on a bike trail, and with 1800 athletes, you find yourself moving laterally a lot to pass. Once around the lake you hit the turnaround cone.
I started off running the first two miles in just under a 7:50 pace, and then proceeded to run the next 11.1 miles in 1:24:30 or a 7:36-37 pace. My first 13.1 miles took me just over 1:40:00 to complete, so I was on track for a 3:22 if I could keep it together. I really felt good; the only problem was a developing hot spot on my right big toe. It became rather pronounced around mile 7, which is where I had the first runner pass me. On the second loop as I ran past the finish line for the 3rd time, I began to question if I was going to make it. My right toe was now throbbing and every step felt like a dagger. My quads were beginning to seize up, as well. At this point, the guy who passed me at mile 7 went by me again. “Hey, where did he come from?” At the aid station at the top of the hill just outside downtown, I caught him. I asked him how he got behind me. Turns out he was having GI issues and was in a porta-john throwing up. We introduced ourselves and decided to push one another and finish this thing strong.
I was able to hold on through 18, and then I told Tim to go on without me. I saw Lisa at this point and told her I was dying. I made it one more mile and finally had to stop, the pain was too much to take. I got to the 19 mile aid station and took off my shoe and sock. The blister was huge! I asked anyone and everyone for a pin but to no avail. After sitting around feeling sorry for myself I decided to cash it in. My sub 10 hour dream was over, time to call it a day.
What is it about a child that can cause such a visceral reaction? As I stood up to walk it in, I thought of my daughter Elizabeth. Just over one year ago I wanted to cash it in at the halfway point of the run in Louisville as I was dying in the heat. At mile 14 I was overcome with the effects of the race and bent over, looked back at the city, and thought about calling it a day. It would be so much easier to walk one mile back to town then run another 12 plus miles. It was at that point that I looked down at my shoe and noticed a heart charm she had given me as good luck. I forged on that day and ended up missing a Kona Q slot by 36 seconds. That little girl saved my race back in 2012. Today, her words, “Don’t give up, Daddy” echoed in my mind.
Don’t give up Daddy, four words that changed my entire attitude. I thought about coming home from the race and having to face Luke and Elizabeth knowing I had quit without a really good reason to do so. I thought about our motto in the Gorris family, ‘We never quit and we never give up.’ I have said this to my children many a time when they wanted to skip a practice or a game and now the shoe was on the other foot. Talk about an attitude adjustment!
I turned around and headed back to mile 20. When I got there I asked if anyone had a pin. Nothing, but one gentleman had a band aid and some Vaseline. He patched me up, and I vowed to run this damn thing in the final 10k. It had taken me TWENTY FIVE minutes to complete mile 20.
Mile 21 wasn’t pretty; a stop at the porta-john and concrete quads left me with a 10:10 split. But I was running! By mile 22 I figured out a way to run ever so softly to take the edge off the pain and my split was just over 9’. At mile 23 I was back into the mid 8’s and really digging in. Miles 24 and 25 clicked off in low 8’s and I had just 1.2 to go. I knew the downhill into downtown would be tough on the legs but I replaced that though with the thought of what was on the other side. As I barreled down the hill, staying light as possible on my feet, I made the right hand turn onto the cobblestones. The crowd was really getting into it, especially when they asked me if I was on loop 1 or finishing. When I replied ‘FINISHING’ the cheers erupted. People were hanging out of windows, high fiving, and generally enjoying some adult beverages and the mood they put them in. It is quite a finish, not as crazy as Louisville, but definitely one of the better ones.
As I neared the finish line I spotted Lisa. She was so excited for me, especially after seeing a dead man walking just over an hour ago. She also yelled out I had a new PR in the books! The final ¼ mile is always one to be savored. I high fived all the spectators lining the finish chute and crossed the line with a smile on my face. Hearing my name and knowing I had become an Ironman for the 5th time made all the doubt, all the pain, all the hours spent preparing worth every minute. I ran the final 1.2 at a 6:40 pace. While not a sub 10 race, I did PR, finishing in 10:25:04, with a 3:48 marathon. Not my fastest run, actually my second slowest IM run but overall it was the 40th fastest of the day. My overall finish placed me 26/800, second in my age group and another lesson learned in perseverance and NEVER EVER giving up.