Triathlon: Lake Placid Ironman Race Report

Monday, July 30, 2007 - 02:56 PM

Ironman USA 2007
Lake Placid, NY
July 22, 2007






Wendy Lopez, you are an IRONMAN!!!!

What sweet words to hear at the end of a great day!

So here is my race report to my first Ironman in Lake Placid…warning, this is long!

My goals were simple to this race. 1st cross the line, 2nd under 14 hours, and 3rd to have fun! We arrived on the Wednesday and then it rained for the next two days, which was probably a blessing as it allowed us to chill for a bit. We registered, did some training, and I managed to wipe out on my bike and scratch my poor P3C and myself. Luckily for me, my Iron Crew that came down with me consisted of two nurses and a pharmacy tech! During this time, we also had to take a visit to the local bike shop to make some repairs and to replace my brake pads with carbon ones for my new race wheels.

Saturday was a bit of a hectic day as we had to check in our bikes and our bike and run gear bags, put together our special needs bags, and try to sneak in some down time. Also on Saturday, the rest of my support group arrived including my mom and Alan and we all had dinner at the condo.

Race day! Sunday started with an early wake up call, 3:45am!!!! I had a quick shower, ate breakfast, which consisted of 2 Boosts, a peanut butter and jelly bagel, and a banana, packed up and off to the race site. We got there just after 5 a.m., got body marked, visited my bike and got my tires pumped, added my nutrition to my bike, visited the port-a-potty and headed towards the swim start to drop off my special needs bags and get ready for the race. The beach at Mirror Lake was packed with people and the energy was just crazy. I didn’t see anyone that morning, as we didn’t exactly set a meeting point of any sort. Oh well.

I put my wetsuit on and went into the water around 6:30am for the 7am start as the water was actually warmer than the air temperature. But what an incredible site, tons of heads bobbing up and down in the water, people all over the place, mist was coming out of the water, the view of the mountains, the music blaring, the energy, then the helicopter flying overhead! Geez, all this actually got me a bit emotional. I couldn’t believe I was here at the start line. I had to remind myself to keep it together!

Swim: 3.8 km, 1:09:32

I decided to start a bit to the right side and about 4 rows back. I did not want to get clobbered like I did in Peterborough two weeks ago and I didn’t want to have to fight the whole way for the line that sits just underneath the surface that everyone wishes to follow to minimize the swimming distance and to minimize sighting. Others around me were aiming for the same goal time as myself, about 1:10-1:15 so I thought I was positioned in a good spot. Boom! The cannon went off and more than 2200 athletes start swimming. What a site that must have been! I was surprised at how minimal the clobbering and fighting was at the start. I just kept looking for an open area to swim and went for it. I was also surprised at how close to the buoys I got without trying; I was just pulled in. The turnarounds were pretty rough and the swim back to the beach got rough too but not all that bad. I barely sited during the whole swim. I came out of the water in the first loop in just over 33min! That surprised me as I was expecting somewhere in the 36-38min range so I was very pleased.

Out of the water, a short run on the beach, and back into the water for the second loop. Here I tried to catch a draft but I found this loop to be a little rougher. My left calf actually cramped here and I got a little worried. I minimized my kicking and tried to relax and thought about the day ahead. Then I quickly decided not to think ahead at all and just concentrate at the task at hand. Before I knew it, I started hearing the announcer again letting me know I was almost done the swim. I looked at my watch as I was coming out of the water and noticed it was 1:09 and something, so I ran to the timing mats to make sure I came in under 1:10, which was my goal, and I did!

T1: 7:49

I started to try to take off the sleeves of my wetsuit and ran to some wetsuit strippers! I think this was one of the highlights of the day; having my wetsuit taken off for me! The volunteers told me to stop and they grabbed the sleeves then told me to sit down and whoosh, the wetsuit is stripped off! Sweet! That was fun! Then the long trek into T1. The run was long but it was incredible as the barricades were lined full of people cheering you on! So it didn’t actually feel that long to me. I grabbed my bike gear bag, went into the change tent and actually took my time there. I don’t know why I took my time but I did. I put some arm warmers on because the morning air still felt cold to me, I asked a volunteer to put some sunscreen on me, I put on my bike shoes, my helmet, grabbed some cliff blocks and sport beans that I stuffed in my mouth and out I ran to get my bike.

There was no one there to grab my bike for me so I had to run all the way down the aisle to get my bike, and then ran out of transition to start the bike. (T1)

Bike: 180km, 7:19:36

I was very happy that I had ridden this course before so I had a game plan. Take it very easy in the first loop and do not hammer the flattish sections no matter how good I felt. I also decided to spin up all the hills to save my legs for the run. Coming out of transition was a steep downhill and here I tested my brakes and they worked! My other brake pads did not stop by race wheels so I panicked earlier in the week and this is why I got them changed at the bike shop. So I relaxed and headed out of town. The first climb out of town was one of the sections that I disliked the most. It is a long slow climb but for some reason it didn’t feel that bad. It was probably all the adrenaline pumping through my body.

I took it easy and spun up the hill letting people pass me, but I knew I had to let this happen if I wanted to survive the day. I also started my watch that I set to beep every 30min to start my buffet reminding me to take in at least one gel. So that was my nutrition plan, at least one gel every half hour, 2 salt pills an hour, and whatever else I can get on top of that while drinking whatever Gatorade and water I can. I was pretty good with sticking to my nutrition plan, I ate a gel each time my watch beeped, I had 1-2 salt pills an hour, and I ate bits of Clif bars I pre-cut and bananas that were handed out on the course. That’s right; I peeled and ate bananas while on the bike, a first for me!!! I also added 3 Nuun tablets to my water throughout the ride because I realized that I was barely drinking the sweet pre-mixed bottled Gatorade. The first loop went great.

I took it extra careful on the decent into Keene as I saw an ambulance coming in the opposite direction and I did not want my day to end early by being careless. The out and back in Hasselton was interesting as I felt like I was on an obstacle course avoiding all the cracks and potholes and avoiding all the stuff that ejected off people’s bikes. The final climbs into town, Little and Big Cherry, Mama, Baby, and Papa Bear didn’t go too bad either. Another highlight of the day was going up Papa Bear on the first loop. I felt like I was in the Tour de France. People were lined on both sides of the rode cheering you on like you were a star, cow bells and drums and all! And here I come flying by all these men on their bikes who were grinding up the hill in big gears and I was in my lowest possible gears spinning up the hill and passing about 5-6 people! That was awesome! I had wondered if I took that hill too hard because I had passed so many people.

Then back into town with a quick stop at special needs where a kind volunteer held my bag open and I replenished my gel supply as I was using Gu and they were only giving out PowerGel, which I didn’t like. I also grabbed my Snickers bar that I froze the night before and the Redbull that I also froze in a waterbottle the night before. I continued on to crazy Main St. where I surprised and saw for the first time my Iron Crew support team! Another highlight of the day! To see their faces when they realized it was me that was passing by them, priceless! The first loop took me just under 3:30, which I was expecting and I felt great starting the second loop. I started the slow climb out of town and took out my Snickers bar. Boy was that the best tasting Snickers bar ever! I think I even had a smile on my face while I was enjoying it! I wished I had a second one on me for later on the bike! I once again was cautious on the decent into Keene as I once again saw another ambulance coming up the opposite way.

I also felt a strong head-cross wind during the decent, which did not allow me to go down as fast. I then realized how strong the wind picked up riding the easier sections into Jay and Upper Jay where I couldn’t pick up any speed. I decided not to fight the wind and just try to spin it out if I could. The out and back section in Hasselton was tough. The head wind was strong and it was quite hot by this time. I decided to drink my Redbull here in preparation for the climb back into town. I also have to hand it to the spectators and volunteers at the turn around in this section, as they were awesome blasting music and cheering everyone on! There was even someone dressed in a gorilla costume! This put a smile on my face. The climbs into town were a bit tougher the second time around and I was tired of sitting on my saddle (I really have to learn to stand up on the bike!). I just kept spinning away, again passed some people going up Papa Bear and then back into town!

I was happy to be getting off the bike soon but was also a bit sore. I almost made a wrong turn heading towards Main St. as the cyclist in front of me made an error of going straight and I was a bit confused but people yelled at me not to follow her so I made a sharp right turn and looked behind me to see if someone followed me and someone did so I figured I was going the right way. I saw my Iron Crew again and I was heading to the end of the bike course! Yeah! The second loop was 20 minutes slower than the first, which surprised me a bit but I figured the wind did play a significant role on that. And off to T2!

T2: 6:07

I was so happy to finally get off the bike! I handed my bike to a volunteer, which I thought was super cool! I didn’t have to rack my own bike, boy were we being catered here. As I was running to get my run gear bag, I decided to take off my bike shoes when I reached a grassy section and made my bare feet happy to touch some soft grass! A volunteer asked me how it felt to have my bike shoes off, and I said ‘beautiful!’ Another volunteer had grabbed my run bag for me and I ran to the change tent. I started going through my bag and yet again, another volunteer came to my aid! She first put sunscreen on me and then told me to sit down as she was going to help me. She handed me my socks and shoes, made sure I got the nutrition I wanted and told me in which direction to head. She also told me how much she admired us for what we were doing!

I made a point of thanking every volunteer I could along the way and she was no exception. I then had to backtrack a bit to go to the port-a-potty for my first pee break of the day (well I peed once during the swim but I didn’t have to stop for that) and to put on some more body glide. I ran back through the change tent and out to the run start to start my run/shuffle.

Run: 42.2km, 5:11:32

The start of the run was just crazy with spectators which helped as I was embarking on my first ever marathon. I actually felt great off the bike and was able to settle into a rhythm. Main St again was just full of spectators cheering us on and this really helped me off to a good start. We were wearing bib numbers with our names on it and people were calling our names off which made me feel like a star and that everyone knew me! That was really special and it really helped me along the run course. When the spectators dwindled off and I was on the out and back section on River Rd I realized that I was a bit nauseous and a bit dizzy and I got a bit scared. I wasn’t planning on taking in any salt tablets during the run but I did in fear that I was becoming more dehydrated. I also stopped at a couple of port-a-potties in hopes it would help me feel better but nothing happened except for relieving some gas which did help. So I made a deal with myself, I was to run/shuffle this whole marathon and walk all the aid stations to make sure I replenish myself and to walk the two steep hills going back into town.

So at all the aid stations I drank water and Gatorade, had some Clif blocks, Sport Beans, and bananas. I had my back pocket of my jersey stuffed with the blocks, jelly beans, gels, and salt tablets but was getting annoyed at how heavy it felt. I also didn’t want to eat another gel so I emptied my back pockets of all the gels I had and ‘donated’ them at an aid station. The volunteers got a good laugh out of that one. I was giving them food instead of taking it! I still had four gels on my race belt though so I didn’t give it all away. I then began feeling nauseous again and I decided to try some Tums that I brought with me. I think it did help, as I didn’t feel as nauseous after taking a couple. Going up the second steep hill, a guy with a megaphone was sitting at the midway point encouraging everyone by name making me feel bad for walking so I ran up the rest of the hill, both times. Back into the craziness of Main St where I felt like a star, got to my special needs bag where I took my long sleeve shirt out, drank my second Redbull, and at the last second decided to change my socks.

I think I decided to change my socks because it meant a little longer break and I could sit down! This out and back section was just cruel and it seemed like forever before I reached the turnaround. However, with the energy of the crowd that I was feeding off of and the Redbull, I felt much stronger starting the second loop. I had a little more kick in me! On the second loop I decided to start drinking coke, Gatorade, and water. I forced some gels into me, and I ate some bananas and grapes along the way. They had brought out chicken broth but I was hesitant to try it as I never drank it and opted to skip out on it. I had to take another Tums again as I was starting to feel nauseous again, and I put on my long sleeve as I started feeling cool after the turn around on River Rd. It was after the turnaround that I knew that I was definitely going to finish this journey.

I made sure that I didn’t walk for too long after the aid stations in fear that I would just keep walking. Back into town, I saw my Iron Crew, heading towards the second out and back along the lake which felt like an eternity. I was almost done! Since the course was marked in miles I really wasn’t paying attention to where I was on the course. Initially I started calculating my pace but I quickly threw that out the window as it required more concentration than I was capable of during the run. I then realized that I had less than 2km to go and I had about 20min to reach my goal of under 14 hours! I could do it! I didn’t want to pick it up too much in fear of blowing up but I did try to go a bit faster.

When I reached the final turn I then ran as fast as I could at that point. Running into the Olympic Oval was incredible! Spectators were cheering on both sides egging you on to keep going. As I was approaching the finish line I let up a bit as a father was crossing the line with his two children and I waiting until they got the finisher’s tape up. Here I was, at the end with arms extended over my head crossing the line in my moment of glory! The announcer stated that I was a first time Ironman and then he said those famous words, Wendy Lopez, You Are An Ironman!!!!! I did it!!!!!

Total: 13:54:33

What a journey!!! What a rush!!! I had a blast. Who would have thought that 14 hours of physical exertion would be fun! Don’t get me wrong, there was pain involved in this but the experience, the spectators and the support made it all worthwhile. I felt awesome when I was done. Better than I expected! During the day I never thought that I wouldn’t finish and the only surprise I had was how well I felt. I full on expected to throw up a couple of times and to fall apart at the end. No such thing. I even negative split the run; I thought that Jay would have been happy about that!

My catcher at the finish line was awesome taking me through the chaotic finish area, taking me to my Iron Crew and support team to get hugs and kisses where my mom broke down in tears making me cry, and then taking me to get a finisher’s picture and food.

I would like to thank my Mom and Dad for everything they have done and for my Mom for coming down to witness one of my greatest accomplishments in life. I would like to thank my coach, Jay Johnson, for coaching me the past year and a half preparing me for this event, putting up with my numerous emails and phone calls and believing in me. All the training did pay off! Thank you to Alan for being there for me, supporting me, taking me and my bike places, doing tons of stuff for me, bringing my mom down and putting up with me!!!

Special thanks to my Iron Crew: Melissa, Carla, and Ali for taking Larbi and I places, being my photographer, my PR, and taking care of me and my wounds, and for supporting me during the week. Thanks to my Iron supporters: Rosalyn, her kids, and John for also coming down and cheering me on! Trust me, it means a lot to have all that support there! Thanks to everyone at work for all their great support throughout the year, it really means a lot to me to work with such a great group of people who genuinely show interest in what I’ve been doing and supporting me and encouraging me along the way!

Thanks to Tracy for sharing her expertise and letting me tag along on long rides, I wouldn’t have been able to do them without you! Thanks to the U. of T. Triathlon Club for all their support and the great swim and run workouts! And finally, thanks to Sean Obrien, who was actually the one who convinced me to take on this crazy iron journey! It was always in the back of my head as something I would do one day, but he gave me the final push over the fence to actually sign up! Thanks to everyone, I won’t name everyone but you know who you are, for all their support and best wishes! I greatly appreciate it all!!!

I warned you that this would be long! 