Cheering and volunteering at the inaugural 2015 Ironman Muskoka

If you read my Wasaga Beach Olympic Tri race report, you know in what shape I left for Huntsville. In two words: not pretty. Tired, stinky, hungry, thirsty, and eager to take a shower and relax a little. The drive to Muskoka was quiet and introspective and I reached the destination shortly before 5pm, just as the skies opened up and cleared the muggy air. I joined my friend Wendy at the Super 8 Hotel in Huntsville where we shared a room for the weekend. She was going to race in the Ironman, along with 12 other of my friends and members of the FMCT club, and I was going to be her sherpa and volunteer at the event.

After I settled into our room and took a well needed shower, Wendy and I went to Boston Pizza for dinner and indulged in a healthy meal (salmon, steamed vegetables), and finished with a not so healthy chocolate explosion cake that we shared. Given that I had skipped lunch, I didn't even flinch. Down in ma' belly, decadent calories! We called it a night pretty early afterwards, as the alarm clock was set for 4am.

I slept pretty well myself - but of course, I was completely exhausted and I had no race anxiety to keep me up all night. When the alarm clock went off, I was almost anticipating it. I had no issues waking up and I was ready to go go go, and so excited to see my friends taking on The Beast.

I ate a peanut butter and jelly bagel, while Wendy ate her honey nut cheerios, then we were on our way. I wasn't very hungry, but I made sure to take a lot of snacks with me to have enough to eat until midnight. On site, I waited for Wendy to get her bike ready, then we went inside for a potty break and that's when I noticed that she didn't have her chip on her ankle. I rang the panic bell and together we started running around, asking the volunteers where the Sportstats tent was. To our surprise, there was no Sportstats tent near transition, but I knew from Ironman Mt. Tremblant that they should have chips at the swim start. However, we could not afford to waste too much time going back and forth from the beach to transition with just under 30 minutes to start. After asking half a dozen people, eventually we found a volunteer captain who had the idea of calling Nick Stoehr, the race director (or maybe it was Rich Trenholm), and he confirmed that they had spare timing chips at the swim start. Phew! All we had to do was to run there and hope for the best.

We said our goodbyes on the parking lot near the beach, I took Wendy's flip flops, then I joined the spectators' side with the plan of going as close as possible to the mass of athletes and check on Wendy to make sure that she found a chip. There were lots of athletes and finding friends in the sea of green and pink caps wasn't easy. I managed to see Amanda (from our club) and Kim (from Two Years to Kona), but the music was loud and all my screaming didn't help. I was desperately trying to find my bestie Carol, but to no avail. Big sad face, as I had promised her that I'd give her a big hug before the start.

While I was looking for both of them, Wendy found herself a chip. You can see her picking it up at 20:30 in the live stream video from the swim start (Won with One red top).

I didn't know this until later when I finally saw her walking towards the start. As for Carol, I missed her when she walked just in front of me. But she was in the middle of a group of very tall guys, so I'm not surprised. There she is at the bottom of the screen beside the guy with TEAM on his wetsuit, and I am against the railing near the speaker with my Ironman backpack (30:05).

I saw Wendy just a minute later and I was super stoked to see that the chip situation was under control. You can see me again with my hands in the air calling her at 30:54 (I had no idea that I was on camera). After all athletes entered the water I was somewhat relieved and went to ask whether Wendy's chip remained the same and if I could track her online. I was reassured that her chip has been paired with her bib and that after the swim it will appear in the results. Okay then, that sounded rather promising. And on that note, I walked over to the swim finish.

It was a cool and overcast morning and the temperatures were forecasted in the mid 20s C. Just perfect for racing! I thought about the IMMT athletes and how much they suffered in the heat and told myself that people at IM Muskoka were much luckier, especially while dealing with this grueling course. The flatter part of the race though, the swim in Peninsula Lake, was looking like it was going to be fast. The water was like glass and not even The Beast, that was hiding at the swim exit was going to disturb it. (Who put that thing there?? So fitting.)

Just as I thought, the first athletes started coming out the water around the 54min mark. I saw many of the people I knew finishing the swim and I was so happy to finally see Carol, that I started screaming like an idiot. I ran up after her to give her a hug, which I managed to do just before she hopped on her bike. Then I came back to wait for Wendy and once she came out of the water, I followed her back up. Who said spectating wasn't a sport? It wasn't even 9am and I was spent. She went in transition to her bike, but not before having a swarm of volunteers coming to cover her in sunscreen. I found the scene absolutely hilarious and I could not resist but taking a snapshot.

The Sunscreen team in action

I chose to stay around Deerhurst for the remainder of the day. I waited until everyone else I knew got on the bike, then I went to check out the Ironman store. So much M-Dot swag, my eyes started to bleed. I did buy my husband an IM Muskoka 70.3 backpack because I lost his string bag from a few years ago when we did our first 70.3 there, then I went to sit down and rest for a bit before deciding what to do with my free time. While I was hooked to a plug, charging my phone, I chatted with Paolina Allan from Ignition Fitness about Kim and her spectacular swim, then Paul from my tri club joined me after arriving at the resort for his bike handler volunteer job.

Look who I found in transition! The fantastic Captain Tracy.

Paul and I went to look for the volunteers' tent and we were lucky to find breakfast being served. I had a muffin and a juice, then went back to transition to find the bike handler team captain. It took me about 30 seconds to decide to take on a second volunteer shift that day. I had done bike handling at IMMT and this team looked like they could use some help. We spent the next 1.5h talking about catching bikes, running with bikes, putting bikes on the rack, what to ask the athletes, what to do with the numbers on the rack, with the bike computers, their nutrition, their shoes, where to line up to hand over the bikes, which side athletes were dismounting most on, etc. I quickly realized that this team had very different instructions/opinions than the team at IMMT, so it took me a moment to re-adjust my thinking. It's hard not to judge, knowing that this was a first Ironman for this team, while IMMT had it going on for a few years and it was a well oiled machine. But I gave up on my (strong) opinions and let the captain run the show as he thought was best. Sometimes you just have to trust the people and the process, even if they are different. And guess what? It all worked out very well in the end. Given that this race had 1200 less athletes than IMMT, the stream of bikes was spaced enough that we weren't rushed and we didn't even have to use the spare rack.

Paul showing everyone how it's done

I spent most of the day running with the bikes, leaving the catching to the most eager folks in the team. In the end, while it was a hard job because I had to walk/run a lot, it was also a lot of fun. It allowed me to see all my friends coming in with their bikes, and give them hugs, encouragements, high fives, or just play the paparazzi by taking photos and videos for their friends and family.

Around 5pm I asked to be excused since I was getting tired and I really wanted a little break before starting the next shift. I went inside Deerhurst and noticed that they had dinner food for the athletes and volunteers, but I didn't have a wristband that would give me access to it. Since I joined the bike handlers team impromptu, I was only given a tshirt, but no wristband - so I went over to the finish line where I checked in with Kari and got my wristband. Now I was legit and I could eat. Not even 5 minutes later the same wristband was being cut and I could put some food into my plate. I took a sub, pasta salad, an apple and another banana. I ate the pasta and the fruits and decided to keep the sub for later. I charged my phone again for a bit and spent about 30 minutes catching up on social media, lounging on one of the fancy chairs inside the building.

However the clock was ticking and I was missing all the action at the finish line. I put my backpack away, I said Hi to all my volunteer friends and joined in the fun. It took me a few minutes to understand how this finish line was working and oops, I must have jumped the line before the other volunteers a few times until Dorothy kindly reminded me that I should line up like everybody else. I looked around me and that's when I realized how many of us were there. Whoa, quite the blue and red army!

I was quickly made aware of the rest of the rules (no swearing! - cameras were on us), the Tough Toonie bibs and medal, and the chip strap that people could keep if they wanted to. The rest was just about the same as I knew it. Catch people, make sure they don't collapse, and if they do, use the wheelchair and call a medic. Offer as much support as needed, be it physical or emotional. Don't shy away from sweaty hugs and people crying in your arms. After all, I had done that just the day before and it wasn't even an Ironman. Slaying The Beast must have been a huge challenge and it's totally understandable that the relief of crossing the finish line makes all the bottled emotions spill over.

Personally I had promised a few friends to catch them and/or give them their medals. The first one to cross the finish line was Kim who is on her journey to qualify for Kona. She had a tough run, but she persevered and finished 3rd in her AG (read her blog report here). I could not have been more proud to catch her. I gave her the medal too, then together we took the slow walk towards the massage tent where she had her legs looked after. I don't know who took the picture above, but it's special to me and I know that I'll cherish that moment forever. I am happy to have it immortalized.

As the night fell on Deerhurst, the athletes kept coming in, tired but elated, finishing a journey that may have started months or years before. I was absolutely astounded to see so many first time Ironman finishers that came in under 12h. My mind could not comprehend how come so many of them liked the course. Out of all North American races, Muskoka is in the top 5 for toughness. Yet, people must be gluttons for punishment. Or they trained for it really well, or they were so freaking high on endorphins that they had no clue what they were talking about. Most likely a mix of all.

Our volunteers team kept everyone entertained and welcomed every finisher with a high five and a few words of congratulations. Those two above were a hoot, dancing and singing and pumping up the audience. Even the photographer played along. Nice photobomb, lol! Some friends finished the race before the night fell, others came in after dark. Carol started her run without her chip, so it was hard to track her, but eventually she made it and I felt so relieved (what's it with my friends and their timing chip)!! I gave her a long, teary hug. She is one of the crazies who chose Muskoka as their first Ironman and because of health issues I was nervous that something may have gone wrong. But she is also one of the strongest people that I know and I had no doubts that she'll want to finish no matter what. I was assisting another athlete when she crossed the line because without a chip they could not announce her arrival in advance, but I found her right after she got her medal and the moment we had at the finish line won't be going away from my memory any time soon.

Wendy came in about 1h later. Another fighter who battled injuries and a hectic training schedule the entire season. Wendy and I have known each other for a couple of years now and Ironman is what brought us together. We became training buddies and friends when we realized that we were neighbours, and I could not fathom not being there for her, just like she was for me last year at IMMT. Muskoka was her third Ironman and because of circumstances, her goal was to finish. There she is, looking awesome as usual, a big smile on her face, despite running on huge blood blisters. After giving her too a very sweaty and squeeshy hug, she left to get some food and I continued my shift. There were still 40 min left and about 50 more athletes on the course. Last athlete finished with about 3 minutes to spare and it was rather anticlimactic, since we were told that there were two more to follow, but actually none were left (because of some error).

And just like that, it was over. We watched the fireworks, said our goodbyes, Kari, Dorothy - the most amazing finish line team captains. Got a hug from Rich Thenholm, doc extraordinaire and the life of this event. I'll most likely be back next year, as both athlete (IM Muskoka 70.3 "Redemption") and IM volunteer and I know that no matter what, this place will remain a special one. One day, I may choose to measure myself against The Beast as well, but I am in no hurry - this body of mine is still on the mend.

After leaving the finish line I managed to find Wendy who was chatting with friends made on the course. I checked her bike out, then I left her with her belongings to wait for me to come back with the car from the air strip parking lot. It took me a little while to find the shuttle bus (it has been changing locations every year) and I almost got in a panic, thinking that I may have missed the last one. Thankfully I saw a bus silhouette in the distance and I ran to it just before it closed its doors. Fifteen minutes later I was back with the car and to the hotel shortly thereafter where I collapsed in my bed, happy to be able to rest and appreciate everything that happened.

I will leave you with 2 videos from the event, so you can appreciate as well the way this day unfolded for athletes, volunteers and everyone else who came to witness history being made, right here in Muskoka.

Team "Beets and Pickles" IM Muskoka 70.3 Race Report

Last year when I signed up for IM Muskoka 70.3 I was CRAVING another endurance event. I was in the middle of my depression flareup and I needed a goal. Something to get me going, to make me feel that I can. Despite the fact that my body could not, but I didn't know that. A month after I signed up, I attempted to run again, and that was a beautiful disaster. Since then I've had many highs and lows, but after starting working with a physiotherapist to address the weaknesses in my body, I had to abandon the idea of putting any mileage on my legs that would create additional damage. This was the hardest decision of all and it required very painful mental workouts to LET GO.

IM Muskoka 70.3 was the one race that I was hanging on, despite knowing that I would have killed my legs if I chose to race it unprepared. But once May came and went, I had to make the decision to either ask for a partial refund or change it to a relay. At just one week from the deadline, I asked my friends on Facebook if someone was open to be in a relay with me, and to my surprise, Ken and Robin jumped in right away. None of them had an experience with the half Ironman distance, but I knew without doubt that they could do it, and do it brilliantly. And so Team "Beets and Pickle(s)" was born.

The excitement grew as the weeks went on, but for once my race anxiety remained low. A 2km swim? Bring it on! I started swimming in open water more regularly and noticed my times improve significantly. I was secretly hoping that I maybe, just maybe, I would be able to PR this leg. Either way, it was going to be fun because I love, love, love open water swims. Insert all exclamation marks here.

We went to Muskoka on Friday because Zin and I chose to make it a mini vacation. We also needed some time away to relax before the race and thankfully, Canada Day cooperated with our plans and gave us the opportunity of taking 2 vacation days to make it a 5 days break. Hello Muskoka!!

On Saturday we met with Phaedra, her husband, her friends Heather and Dave, and Louis from our FMCT club to go on a short bike ride. I ended riding 1.5h on the Muskoka hills, pretty much at race pace. At first, out of necessity because all these folks were a lot faster than me, then solo because I could not keep up with them and they turned around earlier anyway. I was the only one not racing, so it made sense that I pushed a few extra mile(s).
I found them again at the end of my ride, as they were watching the parade in downtown Huntsville.

For lunch we met with Robin and unfortunately had one of the most disappointing restaurant experiences ever. The food was mediocre, it took forever to get served and it was definitely not appropriate for our appetites. But we had front seats to the city's celebrations, so that explained the inflated prices.

Around 1:30pm we went to Deerhurst to meet with Ken and check our team in for the race. The registration process was rather painless, as this event is a very well oiled machine after a few years in the running. We were in and out in a jiffy. We discussed the time to meet the next morning, paid a visit to Ken's bike in transition, then waited for the athletes' meeting. After saying our goodbyes, I decided to go on a run, since that was in the plan and I had 30 min to spare. Alas I didn't think of taking water with me, and by the first 1/2 km, I was already thirsty as hell. The temperature was at its peak and I was overheating big time. I ran 4km before calling it quits. Knee was a little upset after the morning ride and I ended walking the last km back. It was a perfect reminder that I had made the right decision to leave the bike and run to stronger and better trained people.

I joined the athletes meeting where I finally understood how the relay business was going to work. One thing for sure, it was going to be a long day. What to do, what to do?? I walked over to the volunteers' booth and asked if they needed people still. I was told that places to volunteer on site were limited, but that I could call the transition captain in the morning and check if she needed someone. I took a volunteer t-shirt and hoped for the best.

We went for dinner to Boston Pizza, where the boys carb loaded in style with pizzas bigger than their faces. I chose to eat a salad and dry ribs, but skipped the booze and the dessert (who am I??).  Then we went to bed early and woke up even earlier, so we could check out and make sure that we didn't forget anything. We drove to Tim Hortons for breakfast, but we had to wait a few minutes for it to open. Now that was a first. Then we made our way to the airstrip where we left the car, followed by a ride in the shuttle to Deerhurst.

We were right on time, it was 6am I believe. I went over to Ken's bike and it's like every guy I knew in the race was within a 20 sq feet radius. Of course, I noticed Virgil right away and I went over to say Hi. Photo op!! (and good luck!)

Shortly thereafter, we learned that relays had a special rack in a completely different location in transition. Okay then... let's move our stuff. The relay logistics were clear as mud after all. At the new location I started wrestling with my wetsuit, which is always a painful experience since I put on 10lb and all of a sudden it became two sizes too small. Eventually I managed to squeeze my butt in, took my swim cap and goggles and began the walk towards the swim start. Zin had already left transition since his start was 25 min before mine. I was hoping to get there just in time to see him start and I did just as the gun went off. (I bet he doesn't know this).

The water was warm and it took me by surprise. The lake was quiet and the conditions were just perfect for a swim PR. If only I was not going to fall apart by rushing too much. Not sure if it helped or not, but being in the last wave put my mind even more at ease that no other wave was going to swim over us. After a short warm up, I lined up with everyone else and I just treaded water for a little while...Then the gun went off and I settled into the groove that I'd been practicing for a few weeks already. Fast turnover, complete strokes, thumbs brushing by my hips. It was rather uneventful until the first turn buoy where I ran into a lot of people breast stroking. The next 200m were spent mostly navigating between people, then once I turned another buoy, I found a pair of matching feet and I started following them. The effort seemed adequate, but I could only hope he was going fast enough. Of course I had no idea, it's not like I was going to check my Garmin mid stroke (it was under my cap anyway, so tough luck with it).

I stayed on this guy's feet until the last 100m, where I passed him. I was feeling really bad for touching his feet over and over again, but it's not like I could put on the brakes every time he slowed down. I took a good look at him when I passed him, hoping I could find who he is so I can say thanks. To the gentleman in a ROKA Maverick Pro with colorful goggles, thank you!! Perfect sighting too! (Update: I found him thanks to the race photos and thanked him via Facebook. Such a gentleman, it was a pleasure to exchange a few words with him).

I came out of the water with a 3 minute PR and I was ecstatic!! My fastest time in Muskoka was over 41 minutes and I was only hoping for a 40-something. When I saw 38 and change my eyes popped out of my head. How is this possible?? Apparently like this:

You can tell by the race photos, I could not be happier. Last time I felt like this was when I finished the IM swim in Mt. Tremblant.

Robin saw me right away and she ran up with me towards transition. Since it was a 400m uphill, it was not difficult to follow me. My heart was beating out of my chest, but my mission was complete. I did my best and made my team mates proud. Back in transition, I put the chip on Ken's ankle and off he went!! It felt weird to not have to remove the wetsuit and to stay behind, but now a different kind of mission was starting: Keep calm and cheer on.

I stayed with Robin for another hour and we watched the first pro men coming into T2 and going on their run. For some reason, Ken's splits were not showing in the tracker, when everyone else had no issues with theirs. Of course, we were freaking out big time. Robin went to ask the Sportstats people if they knew of any riders DNFing, and she was reassured that everyone was still in the race. With a bit of relief and a lot of hope that he was going to make it through, I went to the finish line where I joined my catchers family. Earlier in the day I had ran into Kari and Dorothy, the volunteer captains at the finish line and asked them if I could join them like I did in the years prior. They welcomed me with open arms and unknowingly, they made my day.

And while I was unboxing medals and arranging them on the rack, Ken was kicking butt on the hills and was looking sharp doing it!

I kept messaging back and forth with Robin, both of us waiting with baited breath for Ken to finish his ride. Eventually I heard the announcer say his name and I jumped up and down with immense joy. Only one leg remaining. Go Robin, go!!!

Meanwhile, my shift started to get interesting. We saw Lionel Sanders coming through the finish line then getting bored waiting for his competition to show up.  I had the honor of giving him his medal. With a 15 min lead, he completely killed the field. The girls came in much later as well, so the first hour of pros finishing was rather anti climactic. Are they here yet, was the question that we kept asking ourselves. Jeez, what takes them so long? Haha. Well, the heat and the hills are a match made in Hell, so .. respect. At least none of them collapsed like some did in the past.

But the day was only getting worse for those still out there. Temperatures were raising fast and I was wondering how Robin was coping with the heat and the lack of shade on the course. Soon enough, athletes started pouring through the finish line and I was getting sweatier and stinkier by the minute. Being a catcher will do that to you, but I don't mind it at all; helping these athletes find their legs again after leaving it all on the course is a wonderful feeling. I spent my time at the finish line switching between giving out medals, catching people, welcoming all my friends with whatever voice I had left, holding the banner and eventually, handing out finisher t-shirts and caps. I was at the banner post when Robin crossed the finish line and I remember yelling something silly like "Here comes my medal!!".  I was so proud of my team mates and the fact that together we came in under 6h (5h56 more precisely), for a 28th/73 place in relays.

At the end of the day, it was a tough race, especially for Ken and Robin, but they pushed themselves hard and gave it all. I am super happy that both of them had the opportunity to race in an Ironman event and for Robin, to participate in a triathlon (just like her daughter, who loves them). I could not have asked for better team mates. Many thanks to both of them!! You can read Robin's race report here.

My hubby finished the race with a huge PR, and an outstanding time of 5:21, despite a flat. All our racers from the FMCT club made it as well, and for some it was their first ever triathlon. I am so proud!!

Spending the day racing, cheering, volunteering is the best experience one can ask for. I can't wait to go back on August 30 at the full IM Muskoka for a bigger and louder finish line. I love my catcher friends and it's such a treat to spend a few hours with them. They are the most positive, enthusiastic and fun team, you better believe it. Thank you Kari and Dorothy!!

And that's a wrap folks!! Thank you for reading and cheering along. Sometimes, things turn out for the better, despite the obstacles in the way. Now more than ever, it's best to seize the day!

2013 Ironman Muskoka 70.3 Race Report

Our A race, our first 70.3 distance and first big endurance test, the one that could have had us in tears, but instead it brought us only smiles: Ironman Musoka 70.3. If you doubt it, there is enough photographic evidence in this post. We had the best day ever and we could not have asked for more perfect racing conditions. For the short version, see below. Otherwise, get ready for another (very) detailed race report, because that's how I like them.

The plan was to leave for Muskoka early on Saturday morning, go to Deerhurst Resort to register and pick up our race kit, wander through the expo for a bit, have lunch in Huntsville, go back to Deerhurst to leave the bike in transition and attend the athletes meeting, then back to Huntsville for dinner. And with a few little detours, that's exactly what we did. The drive to Huntsville was uneventful despite the pouring rain, and 2.5h later we hit our destination. We had to park our car outside the resort on an airfield about 2.5km away and take the shuttle bus back and forth. No biggie, the shuttles were running all day long and we never had to wait more than 5 minutes for them.

Everyone takes this picture, but this one is mine

My second ever school bus ride. Much better than the first one... a tale for another day.

I'd never seen one of these signs before

The registration went smoothly, it was easy like 1-2-3, just follow the signs. Got the swim cap, wristband, chip and goodies bag, then we went to the race expo where we goofed around trying on a few things, eventually buying the necessary attire to successfully establish our street cred.

We're blue, da ba dee da ba di... (cookie points for those old enough to recognize the song).
If you did, congrats, you're over 14, you can continue reading. 

We met our friend Carol at the expo and the three of us went in town for lunch. We made two stops, one in a small restaurant where I had a scrumptious spanakopita with greek salad, then two doors down in a bakery where we "sampled" a few desserts. Maple syrup pecan tart - to die for!! I only had a half, but I should have bought a dozen. No picture alas, but I hope you can smell the hot fresh pastry and the spinach in the one below.

Culinary break over. Back to triathlon.

At this point, the weather was still a bit gloomy, with a little drizzle to keep us fresh like vegetables in a supermarket. After returning to Deerhurst, we left our bikes in transition, then we attended both the athletes and pro panel meetings where I scored a huge Merrell transition bag prize filled with goodies (tshirts, socks, sunglasses, towel, wetsuit mesh bag, pens, coffee mug, shaker and a gift certificate for a pair of shoes). WIN!! They just picked one number out of all registered athletes and it was mine. Un-freaking-believable!! I never won anything like it in my entire life, so that was a huge surprise.

After the meetings ended, we went on a little walk around the resort as we wanted to look at the swim start and exit. We discovered that a 400m (1/4 of a mile) hill was waiting for us to run on up after the swim. I wondered whether I should leave some shoes there, but I had no other pair than my bike and running shoes, so I quickly abandoned the idea. Barefoot running was going to be. HTFU.

You run all this...

And this (and some more)!

After you exit here. Watch your step!

At the swim start beach, some dudes were in the lake for a last dip. I asked them how the water was and they said COLD. Oh well. I've done Lake Ontario before, this was just a puddle compared to it. How worse could it be?

Triathletes on the beach

And enough Muskoka chairs to watch them swim

I took a few minutes to enjoy the scenery, then walked back to transition for a last check on my bike. Air, lube, bags on saddle and handlebars, bento box removed, check! Neo was racked beside an younger cousin, a Cervelo P4 with Zipp wheels. The contrast was rather striking.

Neo must be the hippie grandpa in this Cervelo family

Neo's yellow spokes are funkier than your Zipps

I was just a few places away from Carol and her bike. I dig her bike's red tires (and her Conan tshirt).

Hey girl! Doing a triathlon today?

Zin's bike was in a very different area of the transition, so we had to go opposite ways, so to speak. He came back a bit later with his pump and lube and gave Neo a last pep talk. I bet it went something like this: "If you don't take care of Riri tomorrow, I'm going to pull out all your funky yellow spokes one by one and poke your slim aero engineered ass with them". Yeah, he must have.

All done at Deerhurst, we headed to Huntsville again, this time to check in to our hotel and go look for a proper place to carb load. We spotted a little restaurant with a sign outside that said Pasta - Pizza - Gelato. Exactly what we needed, so without thinking twice, we asked for three seats and noticed that we fit right in. Everyone around had a triathlete wristband, was eating shitloads of carbs and drinking water. Yep, welcome to the club.

YUM. That is all.

Looks good? It tasted even better. I had a pizza with speck (smoked prosciutto) and arugula, while Zin settled on a pizza with red peppers, artichokes, black olives and whatever else made it a "Primavera". I managed to eat almost all of it, leaving only one slice and enough space to fit a two scoop gelato (mint and chocolate) to end the feast. 

We then went to the hotel where we prepared our transition bags, bottles and everything else needed for the race the next day. Like good triathletes, we switched off the lights at 9:30pm. I managed to get a pretty decent sleep until 3am when my brain decided that it had enough rest and started listening to every sound in our surroundings. Not sure how enlightened it got in this exercise, but it let me fall asleep eventually, only to get awaken by the alarm clock an hour later.

You guessed it, I did not shower (what a waste of water, the lake was gonna do just fine), but I put on my tri suit, two sweaters, capris and warm socks, then hauled back to the car the too many bags and boxes that we had brought with us. Outside it was so COLD!! Raynaud's kicked in for good measure and I had a little moment of panic. Am I going to be able to shift gears later on, or my fingers are going to freeze in place? The idea of a warm tea made its way into my head and lit up a bulb hotter than the Sun: Tim Hortons!! I'm coming for you!

So we went to meet Carol at Timmies and have breakfast there, which technically was something new for me (on race day! oh noes...) Anyway, I eat their food often enough to know what to expect. I had an egg whites and ham breakfast sandwich on a biscuit and half a bagel with peanut butter and an orange juice. No coffee for me. I knew that was not a good idea since I was trying to minimize the bathroom breaks, but I was hoping that the adrenaline would give me the perfect kick start instead. And what about the tea, you say? I totally forgot about it by then. Pea brain.

With a full belleh, we drove to the airfield again (I did #2 in the portapotty there), then took the bus to Deerhurst.

Back in transition, I prepared my little slice of real estate and then started a mental ping-pong about what to wear on the bike. To wear a jersey and bike shorts or not? Mirinda Carfrae's words at the pro panel came back to me, she said she was going to wear one. Ok, trust the pros, they know what they're talking about.

Bare necessities

When I was done, it looked just like this. Am I not a neat freak? Notice the homemade energy bar and puffer inside my bike shoes - the two most important items to take on the bike. As for the banana, I was planning to eat it just before the swim.

I took a last bathroom break inside the resort since there was no lineup there and walked by Carol who was waiting for her turn to the portapotty.

Hey, girl, is that Kermit the frog? ;-)

Look at her, such a smart cookie for wearing socks. The long walk to the swim start was seriously preoccupying my mind as I remembered the huge blisters I got once for walking barefoot on the hot ashphalt. I could imagine getting those again before even starting the run. Yikes!

Anyway, soon enough I made peace with the idea that "it is what it is" and stopped worrying about random bullshit. Put on my wetsuit, grabbed my goggles, swim cap and banana and went to look for hubbs so we can walk together the long walk. I stayed away from pavement as much as possible, walking on the wet and cold grass (that was actually nice) and eventually we made it to a parking lot where all swim waves were waiting to get access to the beach. Gave my hubbs a kiss and asked him kindly not to die that day. Then I had my banana and put my watch inside my swim cap and goggles on top.

Our wave (W35-39) was the fifth after the pros, at 8:30am. We had about 12 min to warm up in the water, and that was plenty of time in my opinion. We were told that the water was 65 degrees F, but had a nice surprise when we got in (what do I know about Farenheit anyway?). Pretty warm for a chilly day! This was going to be an "in water" start, so we kind of lined up across half of the lake and waited for the gun (horn?) to go off. And just like that, our half Ironman journey started.

There was not much contact in the first half of the swim, aside from a few gals who were zig-zagging and bumped into me, accidentally? I tried to stay with the pack and not sight too much, I couldn't see the buoys anyway since I was swimming into the sun. I took the first turn like a boss, then tried to keep as close to the buoys as possible not to get lost. Turned again, and found myself staying on another woman's feet for a while, that is until I got too close and got a kick in my right goggle. Ouch, that hurt. It was about the same time that a few human torpedoes from the following wave passed me and man, these people were fast! I was glad that people remained civil and nobody got aggressive without reason, so I could stay focused pretty much the entire time, repeating the mantra in my head "perfect stroke, turn the hips, split vision, complete the pull, palm facing back, not down". Oh, and don't drown.

Nice sighting job there!

The last third of the swim felt the longest. For the life of me, I could not see the exit, and there were people everywhere I looked. I tried staying close to the buoys again, the water was getting more and more murky, and the blue caps behind us were now joining in the fun. My personal space started to feel cramped. Eventually I saw the steps and started kicking to keep the people behind me from grabbing my feet. 

Hello Mr. Photographer, sorry that I'm having a bad hair day.

Before I knew it, I was done and volunteers were helping me out of the water. I saw a photographer as I was crossing the mat - wait, can I take my goggles off first? - nope. Keep going, dummy. For most of the run up the hill I was fiddling with my watch, so I don't remember much. Maybe a few people cheering, but no feet issues or anything else that marked my fuzzy memory negatively.

One thing I do remember though is that I chose to keep my wetsuit on and remove it by myself in transition. I wanted to stay warm for as long as possible. I had no issues taking it off, for once I wasn't dizzy. I put on my bike jersey and shorts, but skipped the arm warmers. I also put on a warm pair of Merrell socks that I had won the day before, again remembering what the pros were saying about booties and whatnot to keep your toes happy. I didn't have booties, but the socks were just perfect. I also put on biking gloves, another first in a triathlon, but knowing how technical the course was, I thought it'd make sense to save my hands if I were to hit the pavement.

The fun is just starting!

One of the many aero dudes and I. You can pass me now.

As soon as I got on the bike, people started passing me - all those men in their 50s and 60s were sure faster than me and many of them had fancy bikes with race wheels and interesting clicking sounds. As a matter of fact, for almost as long as this ride was, people still managed to pass me. I did my own share of passing as well, but all these compact cranks were sure catching up with me on the uphills, while I was zooming past them in the downhills for a sweet, sweet revenge (albeit temporary).

I took my first gel, like I did in my training rides on this course, as soon as I arrived on Hwy 35. I had no water with me, but I had plenty of Endura, so I was wondering how my stomach was going to handle all these carbs during the race. Just before Dorset (km 35) I ate one of my energy bars as well, even though I wasn't feeling very hungry. I did my first ever bottle exchange without incident and chose the PowerBar Perform over the water. First mistake of the day, but not catastrophic. I also stopped to pour it inside my aero bottle. No way I was going to do this while riding, I still need to visit the circus to learn this skill. I remembered last year that I drank a bottle of this stuff and it wasn't bad, but this time, it tasted what I imagined salty piss would. 2-3 km later, I started burping and that wasn't a good sign.

All teeth!!

I tried drinking again after 10km and the burping was still there. That's when I decided to stop the Perform and go back to the Endura which I had in my bottle on the seat post. Not sure you see where this is going... but at km 50, I finally managed to pee and then of course, about 10 minutes later I thought it'd be a good idea to rehydrate and did so successfully for most of the time I was on Hwy 117. I drank out of my bottle maybe 2-3 times, then it occurred to me that I had peed on this bottle. Ooops. Mmmkay.... I guess I'm gonna stop now and get rid of it at the next bottle exchange, even if it was a nice insulated bottle that I liked dearly. In Baysville I scored a goal with a perfect throw in the net, then grabbed a water bottle which I had to put in the same cage because my aero bottle still had the yucky Perform in it, d'uh. Talk about first world problems.

Back to biking now. The course was as beautiful as I could remember it, despite its challenging and relentless hills. I tried taking in the beauty of the surroundings as much as I could, even though some pain in my back was creeping in. My goal was to keep a steady pace and the rpms above 90 whenever possible. Change gears, stay aero, breathe, enjoy the day, save the legs for the last 10k and for the run, of course. After we turned on South Portage road, I noticed that the road was recently paved, but it was not as smooth as it looked. There were bottles, cages and CO2 cartridges everywhere, which kept the ride interesting as we had to pay attention and avoid them.

Speaking of the road conditions, at km 75 just as I had finished tackling a steep hill, I saw the guy in front of me falling and I had to put on my emergency braking reflexes and veer around him. I almost ended in the ditch and, sorry Mr. Official, but I crossed the median lane as a fallen athlete was lying in pain right on top of it. I put my bike down and went to see how badly he was injured. I told people that a cyclist was down and that they needed to pay attention. I took the bike from under him and put it beside mine... Two other folks stopped as well and they gave me water to pour on his wounds. He had a very bruised and sore shoulder and bleeding elbow and knee, but thankfully nothing was broken or dislocated. After a few minutes I helped him get up and asked if he was ok to continue biking... but I was really nervous for him, this was not going to be a leisurely ride as we were back on the very technical hills. Someone went ahead and said they would call race support for him. He nodded that he was going to be ok, then I went on... Shortly after I saw the support vans driving by, so I was relieved that someone was going to look after his injuries. 

It was the first time ever that I saw someone wiping out in slo-mo just in front of me and that must have given me another adrenaline push because after this stop, my legs got a new wind, and I was feeling stronger than ever. I started passing people again, this time on the uphills where some of them even chose to walk their bikes. I knew every single one of the hills remaining and I was counting them down. In the last 5k a girl passed me and she said "Oh wow!! A Cervelo One!!" I asked her how she knew about it and she replied that her first tri bike was one just like mine and that there aren't many left out there. It put a huge smile on my face and I passed her back, never to see her again. She should have kept the old Cervelo instead of going with her new Specialized ;-)

Never a dull moment on this ride!

A few minutes later I was rolling my bike back into transition and I could not be happier. I was alive! I did not lose my chain once! I did not crash, puke or pass out! I was upright and running and nothing was hurting, this day was too good to be true!

I removed my bike jersey and shorts and took another leap of faith by keeping the same socks on. Put on my cap, shoes and bib on, Clif blocks in my pockets and off I went. I could hear people being announced as finishers, but it did not bring me down, I really was looking forward to this run. So many people cheering around, I was feeling like a winner already.

Damn I am making this SOAS kit look good!

The hills showed up right off the bat, but overall the first 10k had more downhills than uphills, as you can see on the elevation map. I saw Zin at km 5 and he looked stronger than ever. We gave each other a high five and I went back to my happy la-la land. My "dream" pace was 5:45min/km, which I could maintain all the way to the turn around. I ate 4 Clif blocks at km 4, then 4 others at km 10. I was pouring water on me at each water station and drinking at every other one. As usual, my side stitch showed after 4km, but I chose to ignore it and it went away on its own.

Look at THOSE HILLS!

I had this little voice inside my brain that was telling me that I shall not walk this half marathon. Silly, I know, but why walk if I wasn't hurting? I pushed on. At km 12 I saw Carol and asked her how she was doing. She looked strong, but she told me 2 words : GI issues. I knew exactly what she meant, so I hoped she'd find a way to get over them soon. I was thankful that nothing was bothering me, other than the sight of yet another hill. So the second half was slower than the first and my pace went down every time I had to go up. However my next goal pace was 6min/km, but I was more interested in keeping my smile and enjoying the day. This was going to be a PR anyway. I had given up looking at my watch a while ago since the pace was changing all the time and I didn't have auto lap on.

By the time I hit km 20, everything was still A-Ok!

Boy, I'm happy as a cucumber!

Shortly after this, I was on the last stretch before the finish line. The crowds were getting louder and I could barely contain my smile. I gave a few high fives and a few low fives to the tiny ones, then entered the corridor around the transition and eventually heard my name being announced. As I was getting closer to the lady ahead of me I backed up a little to let her savour her finish and give the photographer a chance to refocus. ;-)

Look at me, I'm a STAR! And I didn't even rehearse before.

I didn't need a catcher to hold me after the finish, but the guy who accompanied me to the next volunteer to have my chip removed recognized me when I told him that I knew him from last year when we volunteered together in the same spot, and he asked me which side of the race I liked better. Hard question, but so far, nothing can replace the rush you get when you cross that finish line. The beautiful, colourful medal around my neck and the feeling of accomplishment were second to none.

Best looking medal ever!!

Best feeling ever!!

Hubbs also had a blast and worked hard not to get chicked. He should have had no worries, he's so much stronger than me and truly amazing for competing in such a hard race barely a year after losing 100lb and getting in the best shape of his life. His second triathlon ever, and he beat my time by one hour, with a sub 3h bike split and a great run and swim. Here are his best moments of the day:

Aquaman!

No tri bike or race wheels. It's all in the willpower and the legs.

Zin's signature hands. It must be the sign for "badass".

Pro finish!

There you have it. The end of this adventure. The beginning of a new one. The full Ironman better be hurting more, because I'm having too much fun! I remember Chrissie Wellington's words written on my tshirt "You can do it!". Not only I know that I can now, but I'm also staying true to her second autograph: "All smiles!".

Zin is not impressed. This race did not hurt enough. I think it's hilarious.

We trained for a year for this race and for me, it was the first stepping stone in conquering the full Ironman, hopefully next August in Mt. Tremblant. If you've known me for a while, you probably are wondering why I haven't done a full Ironman already because I am NOT a patient person. I fell in love with this sport in 2011, after reading Matt Long's book The Long Run and seeing Chrissie Wellington taking the win in Kona with wounds on her legs as big as my face. At the time it seemed like the perfect challenge for a mid-life crisis. And I believe it still is, but as I have been fast approaching the 40's, I had to learn to be patient, to train and race smart, to teach my body to become an efficient fat burning machine instead of big ball of fire (and raging hormones). So, even though I allow myself to take some risks with my racing season (see my upcoming marathon in November - say what? coach does not approve), the last 2 years have all been about building endurance and making sure that I finish this race with a smile on my face.

I could not have gotten here without coach David Jenkin and my biggest supporter, my hubbs Zin, who had to endure all my mood swings and pushed me to get out of the house even when I wanted to curl in a ball and cry (I was most likely hungry). Also my partner in crime, Carol, who should know how much I owe her for being my inspiration to get off the couch 4 years ago. Last but not least, my friends and training buddies from the FMCT tri club, with whom I shared so many great memories this year, you all made this season the best ever!