About Me

Louisville, Colorado, United States
Born November 1946 and part of the leading edge of WWII Baby Boomers. Together with Ingrid since 1971, married '73. Both of us are from Europe, Ireland and Germany. We lived most of our lives in and around the Big Apple taking bites out of it when we worked there. My passion is obvious. I am trying hard to maintain the clock, can't turn it back and don't want to. Triathlon is my outlet. As of June 2019 have finished 26 IronMan races, 14 of them at the World Championship in Hawaii. I won in 2017, was twice in 2nd place once in 3rd & 4th. Ingrid's passion is her home and garden, very good for me after a long training day, and Hawaii. We are opposites but somehow it works. Hope you like my race reports and thoughts on training. If you want to learn more I coach with www.d3multisport.com

Tuesday, October 13, 2009

My Lucky Day – Angels in Kona




My Lucky Day – Angels in Kona

This years IronMan experience for me will never be eclipsed even if I manage to reach my long-term goal of racing past my 70’s. It will be a treasured memory that I will keep coming back to in my effort to reach that goal. It will not be because of my own achievement last Saturday but because of a new understanding of the spirit of people who finish late in the night and right up to and sometimes past the cut off time at midnight (17 hours after the start).

(For those friends reading this but know little or nothing about IronMan Triathlons and Triathlons in general please take a look down at the end of this blog for some information about the sport.)

I am not talking about lucky people like me who would not have been racing that late in the night except for a mechanical problem and the help of some angels. I’m thinking of those who are out there because they are not fast. The reasons for the slower speed vary, injury/illness during or before the race, very senior athletes, some of the lottery winners and those who simply did not anticipate the difficulty of this course and were humbled but not broken by the challenge.

From a spectators point of view IronMan Triathlons are unique in sports. The best thing to watch is the last people finishing. This is very apparent if you count the number of spectators at the finish line when the winners arrive and those struggling in between 11 and midnight. There are more last at night.

I have now watched ten IronMan endings from the sidelines. They were all incredible memorable nights. I will never tire of watching these and I did not think there was anything that could be better in the sport. I was wrong. This time I got lucky and got to hang out with the late night finishers on their own turf and some who did not make it. Those of you who I met in the dark last night helped me to a totally new level of understanding of what you have accomplished. Here is my day.

My swim was a bit slower than hoped for (1:23) but in a race normally lasting 11+ hours for me a few minutes were no bother. I made up some of that time with a fast, for me, transition to the bike.

Those of you who know me well know that I am rather anal about race preparation. The one thing I did not check for was metal fatigue on my bike. I am well aware of this potential problem as an engineer but it was not something I could check or was expecting (my bike is only 4 years old and mainly used for racing.

Coming out of the transition area on the pier in Kona I rode up the short hill on Parlini staying in the gear I had set before the start. As I rounded the corner onto Kuakini I may have shifted a couple of gears on the rear cog and then the chainring. I rotated the pedals a few times and suddenly they locked up and some nasty noises came from the rear of the bike. I stopped; it looked line the derailleur was bent. I tried to straighten it but could not do so without tools. If you want to see a 2 sec video of me carrying my bike go to http://rcvman.blogspot.com/2009/10/kona-2009.html (I am about 1:50 into this video, the whole thing is worth a look).

My memory about the next 15 min or so is fuzzy. I think a spectator went back to transition and Dave (sorry Dave I don’t remember your last name) arrived back. He was a race official and became I guess you might say my guardian angel for the rest of the day. Shortly after he arrived a bike mechanic showed up. A quick examination resulted in an announcement that my derailleur hanger was broken (this is part of the bicycle frame and the gear shifting mechanism is bolted to it. If broken it is like a broken transmission in a car). I could not believe this had happened but a close inspection on my part confirmed it. The derailleur had tangled up with and broken one of the wheel spokes as well.

This was the hardest part of the race for me. I knew this could not be fixed on the road or even in a fully equipped bike shop. The frame is probably junk. My brain could not shake the idea that my race was over. I asked the mechanic if there was a bike I could borrow and learned that he was the only mechanic left in town, the rest and all their spare gear was out following the pros. I leaned over the aerobars and quietly cried. Two years of dreaming of a return to race in Kona and 10 months of training for nothing.


He then offered to convert me to a single speed bike (one amazing athlete did the race on a single speed, intentionally, earning himself an honorable mention at the awards dinner, crazy guy) by removing the broken derailleur and shortening the chain.
I knew that this would mean an almost impossible bike ride for me but I was ready to try anything. Then he spotted my ovalized chain rings and said this would probably not work. He tried to set it up and also adjust the tension on the spokes of my wheel (It was out of true because of the broken spoke). I thought I was good to go. It did not work.

The mechanic had to leave to go out to the pros. Dave ran back to transition to see if there was any other solution. I walked slowly back with my bike. I was crushed there did not seem to be any solution. On the way back I found my friend Kevin Lynch, the cinema photographer who has filmed all the Computrainer Live Video courses). I did not realize it at first but most of our conversation was filmed. The mechanic had rejoined me and so had an angry spectator who kept insisting that he must find a solution for me. I did not think angels could/would get angry but this one did but to no avail.

As I left Kevin I had an inspiration and hustled back to transition. There were well over a dozen Cervelo P4 bikes at the Expo. Dave and others went off looking for a Cervelo rep or any of the bike reps at the expo. I think at this point more than half the staff on the pier were trying to think of a solution.

That took a good 15 min with no result. More discussion with the people around me and people coming thru transition and my biggest angel stepped up, Rocky Campbell, Director, and offered me his bike.

Rocky was about my height.He took off to get the bike after telling me to meet him where I broke down, to play by the rules. I wont go into the details why but it took another 45 min to get the bike. Angels are not all the same and come in different sizes.


The sight of Dave rounding the “Hot Corner” onto Kuakini riding the bike out to me looked like a present from Heaven. After over a 2-hour delay I got going.
It was amazing the love and concern I felt from all who tried to help or who were just there for me. There is a lot a talk of Ohanna (Hawaiian for Family and I think love and care for fellow man) out here.
I sure felt it Saturday morning. Tears were now of joy. I was late stating but knew I should have no trouble finishing before midnight, my slowest time at this race distance including the swim was 12:15 and I had more than 13 hours just for the bike and run. I even started to think of a new marathon PR as most of the run would be in the cool of the night.

I worked my way thru town very carefully. I was well over an hour behind the last person to get out of the water. There were still cops on the intersections but they were not looking for a biker. It was like a normal training day.

It got even more like a training day when I found the timing mats and entire turnaround set up on Kuakini was gone. I rode an extra ½ mile looking for them. Out on the Queen K the wind was very light and progress was good. I did not have my normal fuel/food on this new bike but was not concerned, as I knew I would be OK with what is offered at the aide stations.

Surprise, the aide stations were now all on the opposite side of the road anticipating the return of the professionals. I was able to get food and water but had to cross traffic to do so, which was now building on my side of the road, and later dodge bikes returning. The timing mats were also gone at Waikoloa. It was not until near Hawi, halfway, that I found aide stations still on my side and the mats were still in place at the turnaround (but my chip did not register for some reason).

The ride was tough. The bike fit reasonably well but it was not set up like mine except for a decent saddle height. I could not stay on the aerobars for extended periods and this got harder as the ride progressed. It slowed me down but the math told me not to worry, I would make the cutoff. I caught up to the first three bikes just before Hawi and then very slowly reeled in a few more. It was not a happy feeling as is usually the case when I pass fellow competitors. I knew that many of these people would not make the cut off.

I started passing a few more bikes on the way back to Kawaihae. It is physically very hard for anyone in these races but most of us normally have a support team around us in the form of others suffering the same way. These people were on their own but still in the game and I am certain they were not ready to quit. It was impressive.

The headwinds returned on the Queen K Highway but I was still in great shape to make the cutoff although with this wind it was no longer quite the sure thing. The people I was passing would probably not make it. There were two people I was looking out for and not hoping to find for a while. Sister Madonna Boulder (yes a retired nun 79 years young) and Rudy Garcia Tollesen. Rudy is a double above the knee amputee who was trying to be the first person to finish this race with this extraordinary challenge.

I know how driven a physically challenged person can be. My father was a below the knee amputee and a powerful swimmer who is always mentally with me in these races. Seeing Rudy struggling against a cruel wind and knowing that making the cut off for the bike was all but impossible was very hard sight to see. I am sure he will be back for another day, he did not make it.

Growing up in Ireland with Nun’s all over the place never prepared me for Sister Madonna when I met her for the first time in 1997 in Perth Australia at the Olympic distance World Championship. I must confess to being a bit of a skeptic about her credentials. A Nun who was taking the time to race! But gradually over the years my view has changed as I learned more about Sister Madonna and recognized that the life of a Nun is not the same today as it was when I was a young boy in the 1950’s

She has been an inspiration to everyone in the sport and beyond for many years and she probably had hundreds of thousand spectators/Triathletes around the world rooting for her. I am sure she was out there just thanking God for just letting here get this far and for all the amazing things she has accomplished in her life. I got a smile as I passed her and greeted her. I did not have any magic words of encouragement and felt bad about that.

Both Rudy and Sister Madonna did not make it. The last person I passed on the bike two miles from the finish was 80-year-old Robert Southwell. He made it to transition before the cutoff but for some reason did not start the run. I so much wanted to chat with you Bob. I sure hope you will be able to try again. I would love to meet Rudy some day and get to chat with Sister again.


T2 could was a very welcome sight and I got a royal reception from a bunch of new and old friends, who had helped me earlier. Samantha Campbell, who had helped me all week and materialized on the water when I needed help with a cramp, high fived me.
Dave and Esra Kellerman (friends from home volunteering and an aspiring IronMan) escorted me around transition and carried my bags into the Changing Tent, Ellora Weston

ART trained DPT, my ART Angel) rounded up a bench and a male ART Doc John worked on me for 20 min. Muscles that I did not know I had had not taken kindly to my new bike position. Twenty min later I got going again and was the last person out of T2. Dave, my guardian angle was also with me until I left on the run, what a guy. The bike worked Rocky and worked very well but one part of my anatomy did protest louder than the other parts the next day, the part resting on your saddle. Nothing wrong with the saddle Rocky just my ass was not used to it. Once again thank you so much.

I passed over 150 people on the run and said something to well over a hundred of them and ran/walked with many. I had the time of my life. At first I did not realize what was happening to me however. Gradually it became clear that I was not just watching these amazing people from the sidelines struggle to reach their goal but I was for the first time part of it.

I had no doubt at this point that I would finish the race so I was not quite in the shoes of the people I met. But I was out with them and could feel their will to finish being challenged every step of the way. I spent 15-20 min with Lew Hollander on Alii Drive. I have met Lew a few times before; he is a legend in the sport at 79 years old. He was worried about finishing before midnight. Somehow I knew he would make it. I kept looking for Bob Southwell not knowing about his fate.

Finding Ingrid my wife and her sister on Alii Dr was a special treat. Ingrid had a stroke two years ago a month after we came back from my last race out here. She is not 100% recovered getting tired easily and she had been expecting me to be finishing sometime after 6. Here I was starting the run. She was out there for me the rest of the night. How could this be hard to do with such

a special person rooting for me. I am lucky. Ingrid and sister Gisela.

The Queen K is a lonely place in the dark. I finally thought of an intelligent thing to say as I caught up with people, “How are you doing” with an answer I was able to come up with some appropriate words of encouragement, most of the time. I fell in with a lady on the Energy Lab road and ran down the hill with her. She was like many others out there not having the day she expected but was getting back on form and was I think over the worst mental worries, she would finish. Then she ran off the side of the road and fell. She sat on the ground for a few seconds and I could feel the brain going thru a mental checklist of all her body parts, she was OK. Not so Harriet Anderson, I think she was the oldest female finisher. I don’t know if she broke her arm but she was running with a sling when I saw her.

The wind was carrying announcer Mike Riley’s voice from the finish line well over 2 miles out the Queen K as we got close to town. I could feel my pace picking up and that of the other ghosts in the dark. I thought one more time about my personal inspirations, mum, dad, childhood friend Connor (died at 19), almost lifelong friend Ralph (died at 50) and other old friends. They had been with me the whole day.

It almost pays to get back to the finish area late at night. Let me revise that, it does pay. If you are on the sidelines it is amazing to be part of the excitement and feel the emotion of the finishers. Being the finisher is almost too much. I did feel during most of the run I was out there on false pretenses. But for the last 2 miles that idea vanished in the love I felt from thousands.

My angels were at the finish line, what a reception. After a massage Ingrid and her sister Gisela started to escort me home. It was about 11:15 at that time. As I got past the finish line I realized that all the brave amazing people I was watching finish were friends I had met in the dark. I cried and I am crying again thinking about them. Ingrid agreed to stay to the end. She has never seen the end of an IronMan and she now understood why I have gone back to watch the end in all of my 11 races.
I have got dozens of messages since writing this blog and they are all so greatly appreciated.
I do honestly feel so lucky that things started out so bad on the bike. It was such a great experience. My respect for those around me Saturday night has soared. My respect for the Pro’s who sometimes have a bad day like us amateurs but finish anyway many hours late has also soared. My respect and love for Ingrid has soared.

Triathlons

IronMan races are the longest triathlons that are done by large numbers of people There are longer races but the participants are often less than 100 compared to over 2,000 for an IronMan race. The distances and order of events are 2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike and a 26.2 mile run. Triathlons are as short as a few hundred yards in a pool for the swim, 8-10 mile bikes and 3 mile runs. Kid’s races are even shorter. The Olympic Triathlon is 1.5 kilometer swim (just under a mile), 40K bike (24+ miles) and a 10K 6.2 mile run. The Olympic distance is one of the most popular.

The race in Kona is the World Championship for this distance. You have to qualify at another IronMan or Half IronMan, or get lucky in a lottery to race here. The Kona course is one of the toughest of well over 20 races around the world. Most athletes coming here for the first time get a very rude shock on race day. The only racecourse that is it’s equal and perhaps harder that I know of is in the Canary Islands off the coast of Africa. That’s not to say that the other races are not hard. Racing this distance and giving it all you have is very hard even on the dead flat usually cool IronMan Florida held in November.

What makes the IronMan in Hawaii so hard is the heat, humidity and winds. They are almost always high. Temperatures are usually at or above 85 with humidity varying between 70 and 90% (this is why I was happy to realize that I would be running in the cool of the night). The winds are always 20-25 mph and several years have exceeded 50mph in gusts. There is almost always a section with headwinds, crosswinds and tail winds. Often the wind switches direction during the day and you get a headwind coming and going.

Friday, October 9, 2009

Power Meters Oct 2

With and engineering degree I was destined to become a tech geek when technology arrived in the running and cycling world. Now I have a dilemma.

Yesterday I did a planned Functional Threshold test on the bike. This is something I should have done out here on my last two visits but did not. After a long warm up I did a 20 min test up a long hill at the end of Alii Dr. I forgot to run the calibration test before hand. The results were very surprising. In Boulder, at 5,000-6,000 ft my FT was just shy of 260 watts, yesterday it registered 293. I checked the calibration on the coast back down and the watts registered zero, a good sign. This morning I did a full Torque te

st and found 1 in-lb. Don’t know if this is significant but am going to do a 5 min retest up the same hill today to see if there is a difference.

Either way I think my power output is up and I am going to make some adjustments to my race plan. I may do another full test on Monday.

Today is move day from our rental unit to our timeshare closer to Kona, so this entry is short.

Ingrid Oct 3

Two years ago I dragged Ingrid out here for the 6th time. Dragged is probably not the right word, she loves it out here, but she does put up with a lot when I am preparing for an IM. It’s a good thing this place is magic and we both love it so much. There is no way she would put up with my antics in any other place.

This year she is back with me and as many of you know not as healthy as she once was. She still loves this place but it is hard on her. She has been doing very well considering. Sleeping without oxygen is much more comfortable and she is sleeping much better. She seems to have a bit more energy than at altitude but does still run out of steam quickly. The hard part is communicating or rather not being too good at it. For someone who used to be able to hold three conversations at once in her very busy office

(I have watched her do this) having trouble focused on one conversation is very fr

ustrating and exhausting. And, we are in situations like this a lot out here.

Ingrid has always needed a bit of a push to try new things and places but I have been lucky that at the end of the day she has enjoyed most of passions or at least the side effects such as visiting Hawaii. This has included flying, skiing, sailing and now following me to Triathlons. I am a lucky stiff and thanks to her I am feeling lucky about the race in a week. It’s a very nice feeling, thanx Inka.

Kukio Blue Water Swim Oct 4

I did this race three years ago. If any of you get out here for the weekend before IronMan

Google this and sign up. The swim takes you out into Blue Water. For those not nautical this is water that is deep enough to not suffer from land born pollution and is deep blue. Swimming in it is magic and the sights magnificent. Divers will know what I am talking about. Today I missed the best sights, a small pod of dolphins, but there was about ten of them somewhere near me.

When I did this race in 06 there were less than 100 people in it, it is now over 230. Ages ranged from 7, yes seven, to 78. A 74 year old partially paralyzed on one side, he had trouble getting over the rocks to the beach were we started, did the swim in 40 min, an13 year old had one of the fastest times of 24 min, amazing.

I missed the friends that were around me from NY last time but we had a good time. Met some nice folks from the island and California. Food was great as last time and I was 5 min faster than 06, Yahoo!

Friends Oct 5

Good to have some, even it some of them are competitors. But the friends I am thinking about are not over here with me this year. When I raced here the first time in 2001 there were 11 members of the Long Island Triathlon community with me. Over the years there has always been several of those original gang coming back. As one good friend put it on the phone the other day “the competition is getting better and better” The bar is certainly being raised yearly but I suspect the economy has something to do with it as well. Those of you who have jobs are fighting hard to keep them and those that don’t are not spending their money on expensive trips. My SWAG, (Scientific Wild Ass Guess) is that it costs over $5,000 for one person to qualify and race in Kona and that just getting and staying at the location and paying for entry fees.

And of course there are our new friends in Colorado. Several are with us which is great but there are two VIP friends who are not, Barry and Jodee Siff. The last two times out here Jodee and Barry were in the Tower at the start line giving us an thumbs up. In 2006 somehow several LI friends found each other on the beach before the start and I found Mary Ellen hanging onto a surfboard at the start line.

I will also miss finding you on the bike and run. Typical of me was getting left behind in the water, passing a bunch of friends on the bike and getting passed myself on the run. I used to gage how well I had done in the swim by when I would pass Nancy Lipira on the bike and then how well the run was going when she passed me on the run. It was not until 2006 that I had learned enough about pacing not to pass Nancy on the Bike but find her on the run. Sadly that year Nancy was not having a great run day and my hope, when I caught here at about mile 13 that we would finish together did not work out.

I did have some great company in 2003; I think that was the year, when I was near and with Tom Waldrop (one of my big rivals in my AG) from Hawi to almost the finish of the race. That was the most fun IM ever for me Tom.

I will miss the mental push from Dave Schneider. He uncorked a sum 4-hour marathon in his first IM passing me at about mile 22 (his swimming sucks but he tells me he is working on this for real this winter). When he has been out here the specter of a near 8 min miler has pushed me to the finish line.

I have learned a bunch from all of you and do honestly think I have worked out the pacing game for IM. The weather can always be counted on to throw curves at you out here so

we shall see if I can adapt.

Friday – One more day

Not much time for Blogging the last few days. Ingrid's sister arrived Wednesday evening ready for some warm weather, it was heading to the first snow day in Boulder when she left.

Met a colleague from an Inside Triathlon article yesterday.

Desiree is unfortunately not racing this year. She lost her mum a few months ago which must have messed up her training. I think she will be back someday somehow. It was nice to be recognized.

It seems a long time since I qualified for this race back at Buffalo Springs. I was revisiting that race in my mind yesterday as I chatted with a couple from London. It is a small world. Amy Brooks (Swain) works for RTE, Ireland’s National Radio and Television Company. So does my cousin Tim Thurston who has a weekly radio show. Amy is going to surprise Tim if she can with a picture she took at the Welcome/Carbo dinner last night.

When I got up this morning I immediately went thru a physical check on my way to the toilet. Right calf (very tight after a bad cramp I got swimming on Monday) feels great. Minor back discomfort was not to be found. Plantar issues almost gone, nothing to worry about. Pulse a nice low 40. In short I think I am ready. Now all I need to do is stay relaxed today and get ready.

My mind is not working too well right now for blogging, I am fussing about what is left to do today, so will come back when all is done.

Thursday, October 1, 2009

The Getaway, to Kona (Sept 25)

Three years ago I came out here three weeks ahead of the race and learned that the guidance for two-week heat acclimatization was on target, for me at least. So this year we arrived two weeks and two days ahead of race day.

As normal for most athletes preparing for a major race like this the last few weeks are hard. Not just physically but mentally. If things are coming together well, as they have been for me, you feel like you want the race to start tomorrow before you do something stupid or some germ comes your way. The latter does create some overly neurotic behavior. My sister in law started coughing on the way to the airport yesterday, I got worried about giving her a kiss on the cheek. A weeks ago the head guard at the pool were I have my masters swim program had a very bad something, I stayed clear, washed my hands after picking up some paperwork from her and again after touching the railings on the pool ladder. I could not tell you how many times I washed my hands on the way trip here yesterday. Hope it all works to ward off evil spirits.

It felt great yesterday morning to be on our way to our seventh visit to Hawaii. Kona is now the most visited tourist destination in our lives unless you count the one I lived in for 15 years of my childhood. The reason for all these visits is clearly the race but I like to think there is much more to it.

We had the most interesting travel companion on our flight from Phoenix to Kona yesterday, a (probably the) retired dentist from the village of Waimea. He met his wife in O’ahu a bit over 30 years ago and move to Waimea 30 years ago. Listening to his description of life out here confirmed my idea that despite a very big difference in climate my life growing up in Ireland must have been similar to a life in Hawaii. All very small scale, very self sufficient and close-knit communities. I can see keiki (kids) riding their bikes down to the beach from Waimea on their own and swimming at beaches with no adult supervision just like I did as a child. A bit dangerous perhaps. But, far less so than living in a big city with massive supervision. And, the fun factor, no comparison.

Hawaii has changed but is still a world apart from the frantic pace of life in big metro areas, even Denver/Boulder (although we both feel that Boulder Co has the best of both worlds). Barack Obama was very lucky to have been born and raised out here even if it was in the mad rush and hustle (our dentist friends opinion) of O’ahu.

The bad news from our companion was that that Madame Pele has been serving up some unusually bad stuff of late called Vog, a mixture of humid air and sulfur fumes from her volcano. Vog has always been a problem when any volcano has been active out here but for some reason the current activity on the Kilauea volcano has been especially problematic. The trade winds are carrying the Vog around the southern end of the Island and up the east coast to Kona. It was very visible yesterday when we landed. I could not smell it, you sometimes can, but my throat felt it. Today is better. Sometimes when it is very bad it affects the colors you see making the place look gray, not a good thing for the tourist industry or the locals.

So no we have humidity, wind and Vog to worry about. Stuff happens be prepared.

The Pit (Sept 26)

It is disturbing when you compare the finish times on the IronMan from the 80’s and early 90’s and consider that these times were done without aero bikes, aerobars, aero bottles or aero helmets (I don’t think there were helmets in the first few races). There certainly were tube socks, 10 speeds, home made fuel mixes. All of which has been replaced by rather expensive stuff that is supposed to make us faster, it’s a rather bad bang for the buck. And of course there was the “Pit”

I have pondered the impact of the Pit on the race, more specifically the run, in the past. Yesterday I took my first run into the Pit (we are staying near the original T2 at the Kona Surf Hotel, now a Sheraton) to refresh my memory. Coming out of T2 back in the day you immediately started up a short but nasty hill, I ran up it comfortably last night but very slowly. Then there is a bit longer down ramp and another short moderate climb leading to the decent into the Pit.

I ran about 5 last nights under a cloudy sky (with Vog in the air). Even then it got cozy and warm as the strong onshore breeze failed to penetrate the depression of the Pit and the surrounding trees. I can only imagine what people thought as they ran down that last steep incline and turned around soaked in sweat. On a day like yesterday with just a 30 min run planned the run back up the hill was not hard but it was not fast.

Now consider you are the Man or the Grip. You have just finished a bike split that is as fast as many Pro’s ride today without carbon everything and you have to deal with the Pit. They probably did not think too much about it, everyone had to go that way but it had to be slow. But consider, in the famous Iron War between Mark won the race in 8:09 and the current record is only 8:04.

The run, and bike course has changed but I suspect that anyone coming back to race after 10 years will not notice much different in the water. Even some of the man made landmarks on the bottom my be familiar, but with a few more barnacles. It sure felt good to follow the coral rather than a lane line. A fantasy realized after many meters in the Louisville pool.

Humidity (Sept 27)

Yesterday was more like the Kona I remember. The morning was clear and magnificently sunny. I looked like we would have an afternoon similar to the prior two days with a hazy overcast but coolish afternoon. But by 2pm the sun was in full bloom again and at 3:30 I headed off for my first more extensive workout, a short 30 min ride and 1 hr run. I forgot my helmet but realized that less than a mile from the house. When I got back I was already sweating hard.

The ride was more to test out my bike than a workout but even at what normally would be an easy pace it felt like work. Part of that was the heat/humidity (about 87/75) and the other part was working against a denser air. This dense air thing was a surprise when I first came from Boulder to Kona in 06 and it still something that takes getting use to and accepting. The good news is that there is more oxygen down here and I ran a test on the climb up Kuakini Rd (an early climb in the race). Normally for me an effort of 250+ watts up that hill would produce some significant heavy breathing and HR. This effort did not seem to be as hard as a similar one on Boulder.

The humidity had a river running down my legs on the run but the extra oxygen intake more than made up for it. Overall pace for the hour was just under my most optimistic goal race pace of 9 min miles (including walking every mile for about 30 sec). Pace when running on the flats was just over 8 min miles and felt easy.

I went to bed last night feeling good about the race. Heat adaptation I know will reduce the effects of the humidity as will some more tapering. Now if I can just keep the bike pacing under control in the race I should have a very good run. To that end I am riding about 70 miles today, the last 70 miles of the course.

The winds of Kona (Sept 28)

Yesterday we drove out to the beach in Waikoloa (about mile 30 of the race course) were I parked Ingrid on the sand and then did a ride to Hawi and back. She then followed me back to the top of the Energy Lab road were I went for a short run. It was a great workout, nailed the goal power output, I have it at 190 these days and averaged 19mph. The run felt very good after that effort. I have my hopes up.

The weather seems odd this year. Clouds have rolled in every day for most of the afternoon. Vog is clearly a potential big problem although I learned today that it has improved of late. It has not been bad the last three days but it is noticeable. If it gets any worse it will have a significant affect on the race. Locals have told me that over the last couple of years this problem has increased with increasing activity on the south end of the Island.

The wind was howling north of Waikoloa but not quite from the usual direction, a bit more to the North. It affected the ride all the way to Hawi although it was not a head wind until the last 4 miles. That made for a wild but fast climb and an even faster wild decent. I don’t like the wind at any time but when there is traffic on the road it is quite scary. With time it got better especially when I started to think like Natasha and “fly like an eagle” (excerpt from her acceptance speech in 2001 when the winds were gusting to 55). My guess is that some of the gusts today were 40+

I would strongly recommend a pre race ride up in the typically windy part of the course to anyone coming to race here. You do get used to it after a while and learn to adapt. I am still a firm believer in trying to stay on the aero bars when it is that gusty. When you sit up you present a lot more resistance and raise your center of gravity. After 30 min or so today I remembered a trick I used in 2001, watch the grass on the side of the road. It will tell you in advance were the gusts are coming from and to some degree how strong. The windy part of the course has more vegetation than closer to Kona on the Lava fields. Using an aero bottle between the aero bars is essential as there will be sections were you will want both hands on the bars at all times.

You do need to be ready for sudden 180 deg changes in wind direction. Most of the time this occurs as you go thru a cutting in a hill of lava. Heading north yesterday the wind was from the right. As you enter a cutting it gets all confused, switching from calm to the opposite direction. When it is calm the heat radiates of the lava walls and black road and you realize that it is very hot.

You don’t need to make it a long ride to get an appreciation for the wind and develop some skill and confidence. For anyone much under 150 lbs I would not consider an aero wheel on the front (unless you are chasing a podium finish or a pro). Something like the Zipp 404 on the rear would be OK and a 303 up front. I am riding a 404. I would not recommend anything deeper. Aero Helmets are a problem as well. With cross winds and slightly more rearward they were trying to lift my helmet off my head. It was quite disconcerting but I don’t think it was adding too much to the challenge of riding in a straight line. Sill I have asked my sister in law to bring out a regular helmet in case conditions get worse.


The other part of the visit so far, the tourist part, is going very well. The beaches are as magnificent as always and the undersea life in Kailua Bay as beautiful as ever. Lava Java is doing its usual constant business and the Germans are all over the place.

A ninety-minute run today will end the longer stuff for me except for some long swims. I am looking forward to a true Open Water Swim on Saturday, a fundraiser for a wilderness park 20 miles north of Kona. The swim takes you into water well over 200ft deep and the sights are amazing. I did this race in 2004.

Lane Lines (Sept 29)

For some reason getting into the pool yesterday after three swims in the ocean did not seem nearly as onerous as the last few in Louisville. It must be the knowledge that the next swim will be back in the ocean. I really think that inland pools such as those in Colorado should but a nice coral reef on the bottom of the deep end of our pools. Even if it was artificial everything, including some robotic fish, that would be cool. Perhaps the older members of the Aerobics class would be fooled into thinking that the water was warmer because it is tropical.

Nothing compares with the real thing and this morning’s swim was not exception. The first ½ mile out from the IM start line is quite shallow and there are several coral reefs with lots of little ones of many colors. I have not seen any bigger fish until today when out of the corner of my eye I saw something. It was a modest size Manta Ray. Fortunately a harmless and a very graceful swimmer. Tomorrow I will be heading out for a longer swim and have my fingers crossed that I will find my Dolphin friends. I have been lucky once in 7 visits and can’t wait for another encounter.

I think I am adjusting to the heat. A run a bit over 100 min yesterday and a 2 hr ride today all felt good. It is hot and humid but is not overwhelming. Saw Chrissie cruising down Alii Dr this morning and Crowie twice at the Pier heading out for a swim. Both look like they are ready to take on the challengers.

We headed out to the beach were the Kukio Open Water Swim ends next Saturday and were brunch will be served for all by the Four Seasons Hotel. This race is a fun raiser for the preservation of a wilderness area and historic park adjacent to the 10 million + homes that you walk past to the beach. A wise young lady observer a few years ago that there was something wrong with the picture of a bunch of athletes raising funds for a park that only makes the multimillion summer homes even more valuable. Ingrid had an equally good observation as we passed a sign yesterday that read, “Please stay on the foot path (a concrete one to the beach). This area is historic and has special meaning to native Hawaiians” Somehow the developer got to build these homes on “native land”. We learned a few years ago that the annual maintenance on these homes was over 100,000. Could they not pay for the park?

It’s worth the $45 to do this race; it takes you out into a magic world of deep blue ocean and magnificent schools of big fish.

Bit more on The Pit (Sept 29-30)

Slowtwitch has an interesting graph on its site showing trends in performance at IM. It compares the times of overall winners and the average for the top 10. It sure supports my idea that we have not got much from all the new bike technology. Chrissie’s best time, last year, was achieved on the run when compared to Paula’s record of 1992 when she went under 9 hours. On the men’s side the evidence is not as clear but if you look at the trend not much has changed in almost 20 years. And, don’t forget prior to 2001 there was the Pit.

Traffic in Kona (Oct 1)

My first visit to Kona was in 2001. We got here about 10 days before the race and the town seemed quiet but very pleasant. That changed a bunch during race week but still it was not what I would call crowded.

Nine years and a lot has changed. The news on Xtri that my friend Mark Van Akkeren had been knocked off his bike and out of the race only strengthened my view that paradise is not quite what it was. Mark was hit by a “cruiser motorcycle” that tried to pass him on the right as he was turning into his condo development. Fortunately his injuries are not life threatening, he has some hand damage; hopefully this is not too serious.

This is not a good time for my friends. Another, Nancy Lipira had a crash last weekend while on a group ride. From indirect accounts she will be back to race again (In Kona I hope) but has some nasty cuts and bruises.

Traffic is hectic out here these days although the economy (and a widening of the road into Kona) does seem to have taken the steam out of the growth rate. House prices are a steal (relatively) these days. You would not however know we had a recession based on the cost of food and gas. Gas is 3:50+ for regular, meat prices are off the charts even at Costco (Gas is cheap at their pump at 2:65).

I had a great chat with Bobby McGee yesterday morning getting some very valuable last minute advice from him ranging from pacing to nutrition, keys to success out here or in any IM, thanx Bobby. Now I have to execute those ideas.