Ironman Australia
Sunday 2nd April 2006

Short Details
9hrs 31:56mins (swim 51:16mins, ride 5:27:55hrs, run 3:12:44hrs)
35th overall, 6th in Men 35-39

Long Details
The gnarly old warhorses of Ironman events are full of nuggets of wisdom...like pace yourself, eat enough, smile and wave, and expect a month's worth of emotions in a single day...a big ask for we blokes!! A further gem of experience is that the relief, satisfaction and enjoyment of the last km or so washes away (most of) the hard memories of what came before it...and you'll be talking about the next race before you unwrap the finisher's towel and take the medal off. (The reality of Ironman is a lot of effort over a lot of preceding months...ahhh, the fine print.)

So as still a relative Ironman novice with 2 finishes under my belt, I was off to Port Macquarie in mid-north NSW for the Australian Ironman...but feeling way more experienced than the nearly 450 or so true virgins in town. Port Mac is a new venue for IM Aust - I never raced at the previous location (Forster) - so there was lots to look forward to. Fantastic beaches, great bodysurfing, nice weather, relaxed atmosphere and an untested course. As eventual women's winner, Canadian, Lisa Bentley said...she mightn't have come if she knew how tough the new course was!!

Sunday dawned beautifully. We did our final bit of registration, pumped up bike tyres, checked, re-checked, porta-loo'ed and re-checked again. I love/hate this time...when there's nothing more to do and it's nearly start-time. The race is a bit like a victory lap for all the work leading up to it. No more talk. No more wondering. When the flag drops the crap stops. Let's get started!

A narrow start line for 1600 people is always a worry but a seeded start based on estimated swim times helped. Nonetheless everyone still has two hands and feet they can - and do - hit you with. There was meant to be a start cannon but someone foolishly blew a hooter first...which made the subsequent cannon pointless!! The Hastings river swim course was smooth albeit with a tidal current working both with and against us during the two lap course. I had a pretty 'clean' start and unremarkable swim except for thinking that we'd been swimming for half a day by the end of it. However it was actually just 51:16 min for the 3.8km - a 1:30min PB for IM swim and a good start.

The crowds were fantastic. Big and loud. Just great. I got through T1 quickly and to more cheers - I knew more people spectating than racing - was off on my bike over said course Ms. Bentley was so enamoured with. Take away the effort of it and the bike course was spectacular. Past Town Beach, Rocky Beach - the surf was looking good - further past Flynns Beach, the Lighthouse, along the straight, boring stretch to the far turnaround through a lovely eucalypt forest which shaded the road and likely many kangaroos and koalas, also.

But put the effort back into the course and it seemed that the picturesque parts also coincided with the hills while the boring parts were flat. Maybe the scenery is meant to offset the difficulty...I don't bl**dy think so!!! The ride was 3 tough out-and-back laps; 30km out, 30km back. The same roads, same hills, same wind three tedious times.

I'd been in pretty good form leading into the race and feeling really fit and ready to race…maybe even ready to step beyond novice status. But confidence can be a bad thing as you tend to go too hard too early…remember the gnarly old warhorse tip #1, that's the one…pace yourself… So showing I really am still a novice off I went enjoying tip #3…smiles and waves for all!!

Lap 1 was great. Yeah some people passed me but I consoled myself knowing that running is my strength. These chicken legs aren't made for riding 180km. First half of lap 2 was OK which took us to 90km - half way through the ride leg. I'd be happy to fast-forward the next few hours at this time…

My housemate later asked me what a bonk is. It's not what Boris Becker does in the boom cupboard. But if he'd kept it up for the time it took me to ride the next 80km then he'd be more of a legend than winning 3 Wimbledon's earns. And I'm sure he wasn't as miserable.

I was on the floor, down for the count, empty legs and grovelling. Never again. This is stupid. Bugger Hawaii. Maybe I'll just cruise the rest of the race…drop by a costume shop for a gorilla outfit for the run. That might be the best way to get a smile out of it. But quit…not a chance.

Up Mathew Flinders Dve on lap 2 I nearly didn't make it. I think I can, I think I can, I think I can…I did!! Dammit, now the rest of the hills. You get the picture. I gave tip #3 a rest this time and just kept turning the pedals and hope the piano I felt I was towing would latch onto the streams of other cyclists going past.

Supplementary tip #927B says that Coke is liquid gold in these situations. Not for the caffeine but the sugar. So Coke it was - two full bidons, fizz and all. Buuuurp!! Slowly it took effect but not until about 160km mark. Only two "I think I cans" up Mathew Flinders Dve on lap 3 and then it was downhill into T2 and for the run - 42.2km. Yay!!! Ride time of 5:27hrs…ohmygod.

Onto the run and I was happy again. Quick porta-loo evacuation stop and I was freeeee. Hip hooray for the run leg (2 laps). I was packing in a full year's worth of emotions already!!

The first out-and-back section was a great chance to see how other friends were doing. Pete was about 8 mins up, Sam was flying about 22 mins up, Sean (rival) was kicking my ass and others. Great to see them all having a good day…and many more friends on the sidelines.

We struck some of same hills at about 12km and the pendulum swung again. Oooohhh. I love running, but… 4:10 min/km pace dropped to about 5min/km and a coke-immunity mechanism had kicked in. But I was still moving forwards, generally speaking. Ohmygod. Half way in about 1:35hrs.

When Coke starts failing you, you step up the concentration. Jelly beans. Big, fat, juicy, meaty jelly beans. Why did I wait until half way for this? Six nuggets later and I would normally be bouncing off walls with that much sugar in me but at this time they were life saving. And so I started to run faster…relatively speaking. This sensation was enhanced by the carnage amongst the other runners who were really paying the price of the hard bike course.

And so the pendulum swung again. Feeling good again I ran all the hills, started smiling again (hold the waves - they take effort) and wanting the marathon to be 50km. The last couple of kms are really nice both visually and emotionally. Past the Beach hotel you can see the finish line about 1km or so away across the river. That's where I'm headed to.

This is not so bad after all. The sun is shining, birds are singing, spectators still cheering enthusiastically - they were great the whole day. And so with the finish line ahead all the memories of 9hrs 31min and 56secs racing really do wash away. The finishers towel is soft and fluffy and the medal chunky and shiny. Seeing friends have great races lifts your spirits (great work, Sam).

You know…Hawaii's quite a nice place to be in October. And AUS$695 of entry fee says I'll be on the start line for another day full of experiences…I live for amazing and challenging experiences. Just maybe after then I'll stop being a goddam novice at this event.

Thanks to Buddy & Dave, swimming buddies (Martha, Grace, Kate, Tony, David, Koya, Danielle, Katherine, Kent & Claire), Andy and Tribal guys & gals, Hillman Cycles, Zoot sports, eGel, Fuelbelt and Bakers Delight.