2006 Great Floridian Triathlon

Before my 1st IM I was apprehensive about the distance of the race, I was confident entering my 2nd as I knew I could do the distance, and coming into this my 3rd IM I am cautiously aware about the multitude of potential challenges I may confront during the day. This is not to say I’m scared, however after a tough race in Idaho earlier this year I feel I have more respect for the difficulty of this race. My main goal for the Great Floridian (GFT) is to pop off the run as fast as possible. I do want to swim and bike well, however I’ve done those 2 legs well in the past and this year I’ve worked hard to improve my run so I’ve decided to make this race all about the final leg. Last year at Vineman there several times during the run when I had to slow for extended bouts of walking, and other times where my run was reduced to a pathetic hobble as I was suffering from severe GI issues. A few months ago at CDA the hot conditions, my poor pacing, and my lack of mental focus resulted in a highly dissatisfying IM marathon. Coming into GFT I know I’m going to pop off a PR run no matter what the conditions. I’m brimming on confidence right now coming off a great day at the 5430 where I capped off a ½ IM PR with a 1:30 ½ marathon. My fastest run in a ½ IM to date.

To prepare for the potential Florida heat I added sauna and steam room time to the end of most swim workouts. For several weeks leading up to GFT I also added an extra layer or 2 to my workout clothes to attempt to simulate warm racing conditions. My heat adaptation technique seemed to be working as a few months ago I could only tolerate short bouts in the sauna and a week out from the race I could do 30 minutes without batting an eye and I was also much more comfortable exercising in extra layers.

While my improved running an seemingly effective heat training really helped to boost my confidence, perhaps the most important change for me going into GFT was I was extremely relaxed about the race. In Idaho I was really apprehensive about the race and I think this anxiousness prevented me from starting the race in a calm mental state. Going into GFT I know I can do the distance, I also know what happens when I lose focus and make poor decisions like I did in CDA. IM is a race of attrition, so getting all stressed out before you begin the day is not an good way to start. This time around I’m totally relaxed and I’m not bringing any preconceived times or placing with me to the start line. I figure at the 5430 ½ I went in totally at ease with a single goal of positioning myself to execute a good run and I had a PR day there so repeating this same process for GFT seems like a pretty good way to prepare.

So Aim and I make it down to Florida without any complications and by the morning of the race everything could not have been be going better for me. I was 100% relaxed, I only started to get a mild-case of pre-race nerves at 4:00 am race day as Aim and I drove up to Clermont from Kissimmee. The weather forecast was calling for a hot day, with temps in the high 90’s and about 60% humidity. I tried not to think about how these conditions could negatively affect my race but instead I thought about all the preparation I’d done to get to the start line today. I had dropped my bike off at the transition area the day before so first thing I do when we arrive at the start is to check over everything, especially the tires, to make sure everything is good to go. My bike looks great so I go out for a little jog, stretch out, and lay down on the concrete for a little rest before the race begins. It’s already warm enough for t-shirts and shorts and the sun is not even up so we can safely say that it’s going to be a scorcher today. About 25 minutes prior to the start I pull on my wet suit and slip out into the lake for a short warm up swim. The water is eerily calm, as the first sign of daylight begins to peak over the horizon.

I line up as the last athlete on the outside end of the shore and without any warning the gun goes off. As I start the swim I’m quickly out in the front of the main pack as my outside start position relative to the swim course gives me the shortest tangent to the 1st buoy. On the this lap I focus on swimming only to the next buoy, then to the one after that. Breaking a race down like this helps me to mentally tackle the distances of the day. I quickly heat up inside my wetsuit and I tell myself never to wear a wetsuit again when the water is this warm. I finish off my 1st lap without any issues and as I head out onto the second lap I wave to Aim. After the 1st lap my pain level is at about a 2 so everything seems to be going well. During the 2nd lap I’m in a group of 2 other guys who clearly have no ability to swim a straight line. I decide to get out front of them to avoid their weaving back and forth all over the course. As I round the final corner onto the home stretch one of the boys pulls up next to me and it seems like he’s trying to beat me out of the water. I’m not about to get competitive an hour into today, however I’m not speeding up and he can’t seem to pass me. He’s not sighting forward but instead watching me on his right side as he breathes. When we’re about 200 yards from shore we quickly approach an older man still on his 1st lap. Since turbo-boy next to me isn’t looking forward I come up behind the slow swimmer just slightly to his right, and in doing so I run turbo-boy into the slow man’s feet. Nice way to lose him and as I exit the water Aim yells to me that I’m 2nd out of the water. After the 2nd lap of the swim my pain level is at about a 3 so I’m still feeling good.

I rip off my wetsuit, throw on my bike shoes and I’m off onto the course for the 1st lap of the bike. At about the 30 minute mark I approach the 1st bike aid station and as the temperature is already starting to heat up I think back to an article I read about Landis’ big stage in the TDF this year where he broke away from the pack and was able to keep cool be constantly dumping bottles of water over his head. Floyd’s use of water suddenly registers with me and I pick up 2 extra water bottles from the aid station. I immediately dump one bottle over my head, back, arms, and legs. I put the extra bottle in my empty bottle cage and ration it into about 3 to 4 head dumps over the next 10 miles. I repeat this at each aid station by picking up 2 extra bottles, using 1 immediately and rationing the other for the next 30 minutes or so until I hit the next aid station. This system works perfectly to keep me cool, that is until the 30 mile mark where I blow through an aid station without any volunteers working it. Bummer. I complete the 1st lap of the bike without any significant issues and I’m not overheated at all, just warm and feeling good. Right now my pain level is at about a 4 so all systems still seem to be functioning well and my race appears to be on track.

I stop at the transition, pick up my spare fuel bottles and grab an extra bottle of water then head out onto the course for my 2nd lap. On this lap I continue my water cooling system and while it’s super hot out, I’m staying relatively cool. The tough thing about this lap is the traffic. We’re riding on mostly 2-lane highways with traffic cruising along between 45 and 60 mph. There are a few hairy sections without any sort of a shoulder and this is a bit unnerving as semi trucks blast by within a few inches of you. Adding to the chaos a majority of the state and local law enforcement who are supposed to be controlling the intersections have opted to instead sit inside their patrol cars, I assume to escape the heat. I know it’s hot, but my race registration fees are paying these guys to be out here to keep things safe. I’m starting to get a bit tired and hot but I do my best not to let my frustration with a few lazy officers deter from a potentially great day. My legs continue to feel relatively strong until about the 100 mile mark. By this time I’ve been riding for over 5 hours, I’m generally bored of being on my bike, and I’m ready for a change. As I cruise back towards the transition area I dump a last few bottles of water over my head and begin to envision the killer run I’m about to execute. My pain level is at about a 6 right now, but that should drop as soon as I start running so everything is still in order. While I was 2nd after the swim a good number of people passed me during the bike and I end up coming to T2 in 28th place. That’s fine by me because the biggest test of the day is yet to come and I know most of those people who passed me several hours ago on the won’t be able to match the marathon I’m about to rock through.

I finish the bike, change my shoes, and head out onto the run course. I spot Aim along the 1st few meters of the run course so I cruise up and plant a big kiss on her. I figure it’s about all I can do right now to try to make a 10 hour stint hanging out in Florida’s humid heat somewhat enjoyable for her. She’s definitely caught off guard by this but I sense that she realizes how great I feel right now as my pain level has dropped to about a 3 and there is not a doubt in my mind about the quality of run that I’m about to execute. As I leave Aim and head off into the course, the race announcer, who witnessed my kiss, says that “oh that’s a shame racer 212 (me) just incurred a 5 minute time penalty for public display of affection.” Aim hears this and her blood pressure immediately raises to an unhealthy level. The announcer then rescinds his comments as a mere joke and wishes me good luck on the run.

The run starts out with an out-and-back, then proceeds to do three 7-mile loops around the lake. At about the 2 mile mark during the out-and-back I sense a very intense side stitch begging to set in. This is the same scenario I’ve encountered during my last 2 IM and each time the pain of the stitch has reduced me to walking. I’m not giving up this early in the day so I exhale and push every last puff of air out of my lungs, I hold this for a few seconds then inhale. I suddenly feel better. I repeat this a few more times and the pain is gone. Whooyeeah! This give me a huge wave of positive energy as I’ve seemingly beat one of the demons from my racing past.

As I come to the out-and-back turn around point I notice that there’s no volunteers directing the runners as the race director promised there would be. Between this and the vacant bike aid station, it seems like the organizers didn’t receive their anticipated amount of volunteer support. Oh well. As I cruise back towards the lake and begin my 1st lap I’m totally locked into a speed and cadence I know are completely sustainable for the next 3 hours. I’m already passing people and within these first few miles I’m sure I moved up from 28thy place to somewhere around the top 10. My plan for the run is to walk through only the aid stations while I take on whatever fluids I need. For nutrition I’ll also eat a Shot Block every mile, providing my with about 33 calories every 8 minutes or so. I don’t know what my HR or pace is as I have no watch or HRM to gauge my effort level by. I’m running totally by feel and this frees my mind from thinking about what BPM I’m at or what I did the last mile in. None of that matters right now. The only thing I need to do is run, run, run, and keep on running as fast as I can until I cross the finish line.

I keep passing people, but because there’s a ½ IM race going on simultaneously it’s tough to see if these are full or half GFT competitors. I keep myself going by picking a spot about 1/10 to 2/10 of a mile up the road and thinking of only making it there. I use this technique to leap frog myself from aid station to aid station. I start out walking for only about 5-10 seconds through each aid station, just long enough to take in some Gatorade and throw a cup of water over my head. Man it’s hot today. Despite the heat I’ve been able to stay relatively cool as I’ve taken water at every opportunity and dumped it over my head. The run course is nice because it seems to be about 33% shaded and this really helps to control my body heat. The far side of the lake seems to take longer than the 1st side, but I’m still locked into my pace and as I approach a few aid stations I hear volunteers say how smooth my running looks. When I pass one of the other racers he says to me “dude, you look great - you might win this thing.” I remind him that “it’s a long run, we’ll see.” I really don’t think I have a shot at winning, however I do think I might be able to do well against my age group.

I finally approach the end of the 1st lap and I see Aim. I’m at about a pain level of 6 right now and I can tell these next 2 laps aren’t going to be easy. I keep on cruising through the 2nd lap and I start to pick people up on the course in front of me and focusing on passing them. At this point I don’t see anyone running at anything close to my pace and I’m passing person after person. This really makes me appreciate all the preparation I’ve done over the past few years. I finish the 2nd lap and now my pain level is about up to a 7. My legs are tired, but I know I only have about an hour of running to go and I’ve done a perfect race up to this point. There is absolutely nothing that’s going to stop me from finishing off an epic day.

Now I start to get a competitive burn inside my soul. I’ve pushed it this far, lets see if I can pick off anyone who’s still in front of me. About 2 miles into this lap I spot a guy about a 1/3 of a mile in front of me and he’s running at a similar pace to mine. Unfortunately for him he’s taking longer walking breaks through the aid stations than I am and this motivates me to push a bit harder as he might be a full athlete and there’s no way I’m going to let him beat me to the finish. Absolutely no way. I notch up my effort and catch up to him after 2 aid stations. In doing so I spent most of my minimal energy reserves so as I approach him I pull in behind him to draft and give my mind a rest for a few minutes. He eases back his pace to run next to me and asks me why my shoes sound so water-logged and squishy. Now I admit my shoes are loud right now due to all the water I’ve dumped over my head throughout the past 20 miles, but my response to him is a bit more clever, ”my shoes sound like I’m on the last lap of an IM.” I ask him what lap he’s on and he says his 2nd. I don’t know if I can trust him. Is he trying to play a head game with me and then put on a sprint at the end to beat me to the finish? He does look very fresh and I decide he’s probably a relay athlete, however I decide I still need to put a little insurance distance between myself and him.

At the 2nd-to-last aid station I slow to grab a Gatorade, but instead of walking while I drink it I accelerate back onto the course, and in doing so I put about 15-20 seconds on the guy. Wow, so it’s finally hitting me that I am going to finish this thing. Even though there’s a lot of emotion simmering below the surface of my body right now all I can think of is that I need to finish this race so Aim and I can get back to Kissimmee and meet her friend from Tampa for dinner. Right now my pain level is at about a 8-9, but after what I’ve put my body through today I can easily endure that discomfort for another mile and a half. As I try to take in the end of this day, I gaze over to my right and look at the sunset. I think how fitting it is that I was starting this race just before sunrise, and now I’m about to finish it just before sunset.

As I approach the final aid station and have just over a mile to go so there’s no need for Gatorade but some water would still be nice. I call out to the volunteers for a cup of water but I can’t slow to a walk this time, I need to speed up and make my final push to the finish. No volunteers are ready with a water cup as I pass through the station, however a lady who’s my honorary Floridian of the Year runs me down and hand me a final cup of water to dump over my head. I love people like that. Suddenly I feel no pain as I’m numbed with emotion and I now have the finish in sight. Over the course of this last lap I’ve been hoping that Aim would be positioned just before the finish line so I could grab her and we could cross together. As I run the final ½ mile all I’m doing is searching for her and as I make a right to enter the finishing chute I spot her exactly where I wanted her to be. She’s ecstatic and she screams to me to hurry up as she’s worried someone might come up from behind to pass me, although there’s absolutely no one within sight. I run up to her, grab her hand and we run across the finish line together. As we cross the line I turn to her and give her a huge hug as we pause and enjoy this moment culminating all the work of the past 2 years of our lives.

I couldn’t be happier and this race couldn’t have gone better. The temperature today officially topped off at 95 with 60% humidity, but cyclists out on the road with thermometers on their computers reported temperatures upwards of 100. Regardless of the temp or conditions what I’m proud of is I executed the exact race I wanted to and I did it all without any watch or HRM. I knew what my body could do, I listened to my body, in the end everything turned out about as well as I could have hoped for.

I ended up placing 3rd overall, and was the 1st in my age group to finish. I had no nutritional problems and I ran the entire run. While I didn’t beat my finish time from Vineman, I did set an IM run PR for the marathon with a 3:27:04. A respectable time in not just an IM but for a stand-alone marathon as well. More important than any result, I was able to share this experience with Aim. The intense moment of hugging her at the finish line made every moment of the past 2 years of training and last 10 hours of racing worthwhile. This result is as much hers as it is mine. We’re a team and whenever I begin to doubt myself of feel weak during a race I think of her and I feel her strength with me. We had a great day today.

Now like I said before we had a dinner to go to so we quickly left Clermont to drive back to Kissimmee to meet her friend. Unfortunately we picked a super busy restaurant and had to wait until about 10 pm to get seated. Despite a healthy dose of Advil, my knee caps felt like they had exploded and my toe nails all felt as if they were being perpetually ripped off. About halfway through dinner I hit the wall and it took all I had in me to stay awake, but I persevered and we finally made it back to the hotel for a much needed night’s rest.

The primary lesson I’ll take from this experience is to relax and try not to get to worked up about things in life. Today was great and I believe most of my success in the race can be attributed to my calm state of mind. I’ve learned that training is what gets you to the start line, but it’s what’s in your head and your heart that gets you to the finish. It’s been a great year, see you in Oceanside in 2007.

-Maxwell

Results
Overall : 3rd (267)
Age Group : 1st (12)

Time : 10:36:54 (1:00:22, 6:03:52, 3:27:04)