...tragedy strikes!
Training has been going fine, some great days, some average days, some crappy days....'it happens'.
I have been fortunate enough to get on the IMOO course twice, the first time the beginning of August which ended up being a 108 mile ride. Things went very well that day. I was comfortable, nutrition and hydration were spot on, and I was able to get a feel for the course....and those hills.
No doubt it's a tough course, but after finishing, I know I can do this IM thing. The run may not be pretty, but I'll get it done.
Other work outs have been fine, nothing outrageous. My body and mind are certainly fatigued, which they should be this month with peak training. I almost go into a robot like trance, and just go about the business and not really think about. Yes, I have skipped a couple workouts, typically the swim, maybe a short run, usually in the interest of more sleep, which I think is the right call at this point.
This past weekend I competed in the Madison Open Water Swim (MOWS), which has several races. The most popular is the 2.4 mile Wetsuit legal race. This is essentially the 'dress rehearsal' for IM for almost all folks that enter into this, as it is on the IMWI Swim Course, 1.2 mile x 2 loops vs. the current 2.4 x 1 loop IMWI course. I had a good swim, finishing in 1:07, which was good enough for 4th in my AG and 24 overall. I can honestly say I felt sluggish, I was not on my A game that day, however being at peak training, it was anticipated. What does this mean for my anticipated IMWI swim split? Wow, not really sure. 1. I would expect to feel more fresh with a good taper, however, 2. Do I really want to push hard in the swim to save myself 5 minutes in the day? I'm not really sure what will happen. My gameplan is to be solid in the swim, stay efficient and try not to push to hard. I believe in doing so, my pace will be good enough to keep a 1:10 overall time. Of course, if I catch a good draft, I may be able to knock a few minutes off of that, but I'm more concerned with having a clean swim vs. saving myself 5 minutes or so. By clean, I'm looking for open water, not much in the way of bumping, pushing, dunking, goggles coming etc. So my plan is to start on the outside, take the long angle to the first turn buoy and then find a draft and go from there.
So anyhow, this past Saturday, after finishing MOWS, many of us head out to the bike course and get some miles in. The plan was to start at Fireman's Park, and ride 2 loops on the course, which would be about 84 miles. Off we went, and I was with a group that's a bit faster than me, so be it. They were kind of enough to stop every so often to let me catch up (yeah, that makes a guy feel AWESOME). First loop was uneventful, and in fact, felt rather strong on the hills. We stopped to reload on water and headed out on the second loop. By this time, the heat had crept up on us, and it was a reported 91 degrees....and we were wilting quick. The breeze had picked up a bit as well, so fatigue was setting in for all of us, and we were looking to get done. We made our way through the second loop, and as usual, the rest of the group had pulled ahead, not a big deal, I'll see them later. I came up to the first of the 3 Bitches, Old Sauk, which is a long windy hill, not the steepest, but the longest, so time to hunker down. I made my way up the hill, doing okay, and crested. As I began heading down the flat immediately following the hill, shifting gears (in small ring, advancing rear cassette gears), I hear a long bang and all heck breaks loose. My rear time is locked tight and I'm in a skid. I manage to maintain control, unclip my left foot, and come to a stop. As I unclip my right foot, and dismount, I look down and see my chain around the rear fork, and the deraileur is looking meek. Yep, the cage on the dera broke. Crap....now what? I had a phone so started calling another guy in our group, who ended up getting the message and called back. In the mean time, I continued my investigation, as many other bikers stopped and offered to help any way they could. Well, remember I told you about that chain on the frame, well there was an abrasion of sorts on the fork, which, left me wondering what it was.
Long story short, an incredible lady had stopped and offered to drive me back to my car, about 16 miles away. She was a fellow IM, and was simple awesome.
Monday I take my bike into the shop to see what's going on. Turns out...the frame is cracked....the carbon fiber rear fork cracked on two sides, and we are thinking from the impact of the chain, as there is no other explanation. The theory is that something got stuck in the dera or the spokes which caused the chain of events to occur. Trek unfortunately deems this an "accident" and thus, will not cover anything with their warranty. They will however, sell you a frame, a 9 series speed concept, to the discounted tune of $2600. That isn't going to happen at this point.
As I am near vomiting in the shop with this news, and pondering what in the world is going to happen...such as....how the heck is IMWI going to happen now, as I'm just 2.5 weeks out, with no bike, the owner starts a discussion, which ended up continuing the next day on the phone.
Emery's Third Coast Tri in the Falls (other shop is in Milwaukee) is being incredible with this. We have done a LOT of business with them, and we refer people to them all the time. Ben, offers to provide me with Cervelo P2 Ultegra as a loaner to finish my training and to race with at IMWI. Once I'm done with the race, we will work on a gameplan to fix my bike vs. getting a new frame, but he doesn't want me to worry about that right now....stay focused on IM. I was literally ready to call it quits, ask my wife (she wasn't happy), and just chalk it up to 'it happens' and try to do this in a couple years again. With this offer, I could actually breathe again, and I'm gaining confidence that everything will be okay.
So today hopefully, I will get fitted with the P2, and this weekend get a nice ride in on it and get a feel for it. It's funny, because when I first started this Tri thing, and I was googly eyed by all the 'fancy' bikes, I always told my wife I wanted a Cervelo P2.....and now it looks like I get a chance to ride one. Destiny? Perhaps, or dumb luck. Either way, I'm counting my blessings that this opportunity was provided, and I will try to 'pay if forward' to others any way I can.
I think I"m ready for this.....I think I am going to be an Ironman. I know it all comes down to one day at this point. I've put in the miles, now it's just time to believe, and to execute the plan. The plan you ask? Well, I have a plan, and a back up plan, and a back up plan for that.......and then, as hard as it is for me, I know I have to be open minded that day, and roll with the punches. Game day management, like the game of golf, is going to be vital. Will it be hot, or cold, or windy, will my stomach get angry with my Infinite early on....lots of stuff can happen. It comes down to making decisions on the fly, that will impact me an hour later. 17 hours is a very short long time.
PS: I also wanted to mention the incredible support from my wife and Donkey's when news spread of this bike issue. I had offers to borrow bikes left and right, and I can't tell you how awesome it was to know I had that kind of support. Incredible people in my life, and I am thankful for that.
