Ironman Florida 2008

Good day for racing!

2007-11-03T09:24:00.000-04:00

It looks like a glorious (though chilly) day for your best efforts at Ironman Florida today!

Observed at: Panama City, Florida (about 8AM local time):
Elevation: 20 ft / 6 m
56 °F / 13 °C
Clear
Humidity: 90%
Dew Point: 53 °F / 12 °C
Wind: Calm
Pressure: 30.13 in / 1020 hPa (Rising)
Visibility: 4.0 miles / 6.4 kilometers
UV: 1 out of 16
Clouds: Clear -
(Above Ground Level)

Mid-day conditions (about 1:30PM local time): Much warmer, sunny, a little windier!

Observed at:
Panama City, Florida
Elevation:
20 ft / 6 m
74 °F / 23 °C
Clear
Humidity:
50%
Dew Point:
54 °F / 12 °C
Wind:
6 mph / 9 km/h / 2.6 m/s from the WSW
Pressure:
30.09 in / 1019 hPa (Falling)
Visibility:
8.0 miles / 12.9 kilometers
UV:
7 out of 16
Clouds: Clear - (Above Ground Level)

Race numbers for Ironman Florida 2007

2007-10-27T15:40:00.000-04:00

Remember that your friends and family will be able to track you on race day at http://www.ironmanlive.com/

Ironman Florida 2007 Athletes

Andrew #1058

bleach

Carmen

Chris in Memphis, TN #533 (IMFL Yahoo Group)

Cuke #980

David Hopkins #916 (IMFL Yahoo Group)

Dia (friend of Ironjenny)

Doug Thomas #1713 (IMFL Yahoo Group)

EJ from the Netherlands!

IronGirl Nyhus (friend of IronJenny and blogger)

Ironjenny #2487

Jon Uri #1445 (IMFL Yahoo Group)

Julie #2158

Ryan Barnett Pensacola Fl #564 (IMFL Yahoo Group)

Trevor, aka, the t bag

Trifeist #2252 (editor of this blog, IMFL Yahoo Group)

TriNick (friend of Ironjenny)

If anyone would like to chat a little more about the upcoming race, there is a Yahoo email list set up for Ironman Florida athletes. For more information, point your browser here: http://sports.groups.yahoo.com/group/IMFL/

If your number is not listed, please leave a message in the comments section. I wish I had time to search through blogs for numbers but the next-to-last draft of my dissertation is due Monday. I will update the list as I have time until I leave for the race Wednesday morning. Safe travels to everyone!!!

Got Packing List?

2007-10-25T12:04:00.000-04:00

I'm woefully behind in my race packing. In fact, it just hit me that I won't wear my race outfit again until race day so perhaps I should put it in a safe place rather than the bottom of the clean laundry bin.

For those of you who are getting ready for race day, take a look at this Ironman Packing List put together by the blog owner, Nancy Toby. I'm using it as the basis for my preparations. Hope it helps!

Numbers are UP!

2007-10-23T09:07:00.000-04:00

OK, gang! Bib numbers for IMFL are available! Go to http://www.nasports.com/participants/. Choose Ironman Florida as your event, then search for your name in the participants list. Your number is listed next to your name. If you want your number included on the athletes list for this blog, please leave your name and the number in the comments. I will post them this weekend.

Ironman Florida 2007 Roster version 2

2007-10-14T09:14:00.000-04:00

Here we are, the blogging Athlete's of Ironman Florida 2007!!! WOOOHOOO!!! If you have any additions or corrections, leave them in the comments section. Let me know your race number when they are released on Wednesday.

If anyone would like to chat a little more about the upcoming race, there is a Yahoo email list set up for Ironman Florida athletes. For more information, point your browser here: http://sports.groups.yahoo.com/group/IMFL/

Ironman Florida 2007 Athletes

Andrew
bleach
Carmen
Cuke
Dia (friend of Ironjenny)
Doug Thomas (non-blogger who is a member of the IMFL Yahoo Group)
EJ from the Netherlands!
IronGirl Nyhus (friend of IronJenny and blogger)
Ironjenny
Julie
PSG
Trifeist (me the person who is updating the blog)
TJ
Trevor, aka, the t bag
TriNick (friend of Ironjenny)

Rocking Volunteers

Lana
Michelle
Murtha
Juancho ??

Taper is on! Time to plan!

2007-10-14T09:07:00.000-04:00

Hey all you IMFL athletes and IMFL volunteers. The race is rapidly approaching, we should all be tapering by now, and it's time to think about weekend plans.

Does anyone want to meet up for breakfast after one of the morning swims? Anyone interesting in meeting over at Spinnakers to enjoy the view and swap stories? If so, when? Do you have other ideas?

I'll be posting another version of the athletes and volunteer list today in anticipation of race numbers being released on Wednesday. Having a list of athletes and numbers was very helpful to me last year. Volunteers, let us know where/when you'll be working so we can say hi during the race.

Rest well, amigos!

No Denying It Now

2007-10-08T12:03:00.000-04:00

The Athlete's Guide has been posted to the Ironman Florida website. It's got a schedule for the weekend with all the events....things to bring to packet pick-up...all sorts of goodies.

Gulp!

Tools to help you obsess

2007-10-01T16:32:00.001-04:00

If you're like me, you've spent some time contemplating your finish time. Well here is a great tool to help you obsess a little more.

Plug in your swim, bike, and run paces, your transition estimates and go to town!

Almost Taper Time!!!!

2007-10-01T11:53:00.000-04:00

Hey all!!!!

We are almost to the race day, can you believe it? How is everyone feeling?

In the next few days this blog will be getting a lot busier as we all make the final plans for our race day.

There will be an updated participants list, volunteer list, and suggestions for places to meet on race day. The comments section is giving me a little trouble but I'll make an effort to drop by the blog to stay current.

Taper well, amigos!

The Current Roster

2007-07-11T16:36:00.000-04:00

OK...here is the list of people who will be at IMFL in 2007.

Trifeist (me the person who is updating the blog)
Ironjenny
Julie
Cuke
Andrew
PSG (in the comments but no blog, blog about your training!)
IronGirl Nyhus (the last three were ID'd by Ironjenny but I don't have blog addresses)
TriNick
Dia
Doug Thomas (non-blogger who is a member of the IMFL Yahoo Group)
bleach (commented on Cukester's blog but doesn't have a profile that allows me to see his/her blog)

Rocking Volunteers
Murtha

What a great bunch of athletes! We've got a variety of paces and skill levels here. Glad to know I'm not the only Iron Virgin. To me one of the toughest parts of IMFL is that it's so late in the season. There's an Ironman event almost every weekend at this time of year. All the race reports make me jealous! Hopefully this list will help us encourage each other on our way to IMFL.

If you're name isn't on the list, please leave a comment. The list will be updated in another week or so if needed.

Ironman training funny

2007-07-10T20:38:00.000-04:00

You know it's true, don't deny it.

http://www.comics.com/comics/frazz/archive/frazz-20070710.html

BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!

It's July!!!

2007-07-08T16:52:00.000-04:00

Alright every body!!! We got a few replies to the last message. We should all be seriously training by now. How is your training going?

On our way?

2007-05-24T19:30:00.000-04:00

OK, absolutely NO ONE replied to my last post. I can't believe that no one in blog world is training for IMFL in 2007? Let me try one more time. Is anyone doing IMFL this year or is it just me?

Roll Call for 2007

2007-04-06T11:18:00.000-04:00

Hey there all you blogging triathletes! Who is coming down for Ironman Florida in 2007?

Have you started training?

It's hard for me to believe that the Gulf Coast Tri in Panama City Beach is just over a month away. YIKES! This will be my second half IM, however, the course is much different that my previous half ironman race. Is anyone else headed to GCT?

Barney Rice Memorial Fund

2007-03-07T08:12:00.000-05:00

As you may or may not have seen in the April 2007 Triathlete Magazine, there have been 2 funds set up to memorialize Barney Rice, the triathlete who died at Ironman Florida last November:

There is a memorial foundation (to benefit underprivileged children), to which you can contribute online:
http://www.active.com/donate/brmf

But there is a second memorial fund for his three children (one of whom has some type of ongoing medical condition), which is collecting donation checks by mail:

Barney Rice Memorial Fund
c/o DA Davidson & Co.
PO Box 128
Kalispell, MT 59903

Please be generous.

Ironman Florida 2006 swim photos

2006-12-23T14:46:00.000-05:00

These photos were provided by Alan Erquitt (thank you, Alan!), taken from the 19th-floor condo high above the swim course at the 2006 Ironman Florida. They show many more support watercraft than I observed while I was swimming, which I was glad to see.

Swimmers went around the course counter-clockwise for two loops. If you click on the photos to enlarge them, they give a good perspective of the routing swimmers took around the buoys (you can see many, many swimmers improperly cutting inside the first orange turn buoy). You can also see some swimmers that were swept to the east (left in the photos) by the current, although the wind-driven surface waves are coming from the opposite direction (towards the west). Due to the current, it seems that it would have been advantageous, in between loops, to run as far along the sand as possible rather than swim at an angle opposing the current.

The sand bar over which many people stopped to walk, about 50 yards off the beach, is clearly visible as a lighter band.

(I tilted the first one to level out the horizon before I got seasick.)

My edits of Photo #2 are below:

Barney Rice update

2006-12-20T09:18:00.000-05:00

Rice family and NA Sports announce the creation of the Barney Rice Memorial Fund and Foundation

BOULDER, Colo.-The Barney Rice family, in conjunction with North America Sports, has announced two ways for triathletes and others to honor him. The creation of the Barney Rice Memorial Fund and the Barney Rice Memorial Foundation will assist Mr. Rice's children and raise funds for underprivileged children.

Mr. Rice was 35-year-old resident of Kalispell, MT who passed away after competing in the 2006 Ford Ironman Florida triathlon this past November. Mr. Rice was married and the father of three boys. He was a member of the Vigilante Triathlon club.

The Barney Rice Memorial Fund has been put in place to assist Mr. Rice's sons, one of whom has medical condition that requires continual medical care. These funds will directly benefit the Rice family and also go towards the college education of Rice's sons.

NA Sports will match the first $10,000 raised for the Barney Rice Memorial Fund and urges athletes and others from the triathlon community to contribute to this fund.

"We urge the triathlon community to help us raise funds for the Barney Rice Memorial Fund," said NA Sports President and eight-time Ironman World Champion Paula Newby-Fraser. "This provides an opportunity for triathletes to help support a fallen member of the triathlon community."

Checks can be sent to the following address:

Barney Rice Memorial Fund

c/o DA Davidson & Co.
P.O. Box 128
Kalispell, MT 59903

Mr. Rice's triathlon club (The Vigilante Triathlon Club) has also set up a foundation in his memory, the Barney Rice Memorial Foundation. This long-term foundation will raise funds for underprivileged children in the greater Pacific Northwest.

A number of his fellow triathletes will race in Mr. Rice's honor in 2007 including a large contingent at Ford Ironman Florida. These athletes will race to raise awareness and funds for the Memorial Foundation. These athletes include:

2007 Ford Ironman Coeur d'Alene

Jane MacDonald
Bob Morris

2007 Ford Ironman Florida

Mike Rydell
Jeff Jaraczeski
Jabby Young
Jose Desouza
Reed Malvick
Danny Mendel
Laura Nyhus

The club will also compete in a number of other triathlons, marathons and running races in 2007, honoring their teammate along the way.

"Barney had committed to a lifestyle which defines us all" said Mike Rydell, Barney Rice's cousin and fellow member of the Vigilante Triathlon Club. "Everyday he was forced to test his limits, to achieve them then surpass them. Barney knew the Ironman was not just a race, but rather a lifestyle, a lifestyle in which ordinary men and women can become extraordinary on a daily basis. Some people say you can tell a lot about a person by the way they look. I say, you can tell a lot about a person by the way they live. Barney lived his life to the fullest, and we (the
Vigilantes) are honoring that everyday."

To contribute to the Barney Rice Memorial Foundation, please send checks to:

Barney Rice Memorial Foundation
c/o JCCS
Attn: Steve Mehaffey
P.O. Box 989
Great Falls, MT 59403

For more information on the Foundation and the Barney Rice Memorial Fund, log onto www.vigilantetri.com.

Official Crew Shirt for Next Year?

2006-11-29T14:37:00.000-05:00

Having discussed this extensively with fellow IronCrew from 2006, Shawn and I have found the perfect shirt for our volunteers and support crew next year.

Here it is: http://www.cafepress.com/gymskinz/1807853

Yes, Dawn, it comes in pink. :)

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

2006-11-23T08:03:00.000-05:00

Hope everyone has a wonderful day!

This blog will probably be fairly quiet for a while, until Linae and the other athletes begin really gearing up for the 2007 Ironman Florida.

There will still be a lot of good information remaining on this blog for everyone for 2007. Click on the sidebar links or on the search function at the top to look for information about 2006.

Best wishes to everyone preparing for the 2007 IMFL, as well as the 2006 triathletes who have gone on to other events!!

KIND OF LIKE HAVING A BABY

2006-11-06T10:49:00.000-05:00

I feel kind of like a woman who has a 3-hour first labor and glides her baby out with 2 pushes and says, "Well, that wasn't bad at all!" and then has her second baby with 26 hours of back labor and 3 hours of pushing.... "NOW I know what everyone is talking about. THAT wasn't labor; THIS is labor."

THIS is Ironman.

More thoughts in the next few days, I'm sure. And hopefully, posts that are not as long as it took me to do the race.

Tracking athletes at Ironman Florida on race day

2006-10-31T17:42:00.000-05:00

Ironman Florida race day is this Saturday, November 4th. The race begins with the mass swim start at 7AM local (central) time which is 8AM east coast time.

Online coverage should begin about a half hour before the swim start. You may be able to find a link to live streaming video coverage from either http://www.ironmanlive.com/ or http://www.ironmanflorida.com/

If you want the latest split data for an athlete, go to http://www.ironmanlive.com/ and click on the athlete tracker, then do a search for them. To track an athlete using the system, you need to know either their race bib number or their surname. If your athlete has a blog, you may also find the race bib number posted on their blog recently.

Be aware that the system is often flaky and may fail to update for an hour or more at times of heavy usage. Don't jump to conclusions that something awful has happened to your athlete!

Finding athletes: You can generate a list of all participants and their race numbers here. If you don't know a semi-anonymous blogger's real surname but you know their first name and where they're from, you may be able to figure it out from this list.

A listing of our friends and volunteers who will be at Ironman Florida is here. I've added some of the bib numbers that I can find to the list.

Usually the Ironman races are boiled down to one official hour-long telecast, which will probably be broadcast in a couple of months on the Versus cable channel, but don't count on seeing anyone you know unless they finished in the top five.

The secret signal

2006-10-31T08:39:00.000-05:00

Don't forget the secret "IM" hand signal!! Only those "in the know" will know about it!!

Here's some special encouragement from Calgary, Alberta from some fellow athletes, who have provided some wonderful song lyrics to howl at the moon when we're all running out there in the dark on Saturday night.

Our IMFL'06 friends - updated!

2006-10-31T06:00:00.000-05:00

We're delighted that some fellow bloggers and IMFL email list members will be with us on the Ironman Florida course! The official IMFL 2006 entrant list is here.

We will begin with these (if your blog, home page, or race number isn't linked below and you wish it to be, please tell us in the comments!):

Shelley #2384: Tackling her 6th? 7th? Ironman, leading the way!
Ellie #2526: On to her second Ironman!
Nancy #2484: Hoping for a first-time finish
Tri-Geek Kahuna #1576
Robo-Stu #1327
Commodore #758
Tri-Mama #2297
Tri-Daddy #774
IMmike
Cathy F.
Bolder in Boulder #1269
Debbie
Bev #2108
TriBoomer #1544
Adam T #770
Dave C
Dave O
Jason C
Paul M
Tom Collins #1166
Trey A
Rich F #192
Jonica B #2128
Lisa P #2315
ShirleyPerly #2417

And some FOB (Friends of Bolder) folks:

Jonathan at Boulder Multisports #360
Travis

And from TRI-DRS:

Cathy Taylor #2504
Bill Taylor #1956
David Jones #1302
Alan Erquitt #1609
Regina Fowler #2456
Forrest Fowler #1780
Greg Bassett #1424
Nancy Toby #2484
Shelley McKee #2384
Ellie Hamilton #2526

And we can't forget our Iron Volunteers! Even if you couldn't enter, there's always room for more volunteers - and hey, it's a beach town!! Come on down!!!

Linae
Kathy F.
Holly
Shawn

Who else out there in blogland will be with us? Would any of you planning to attend or volunteer or spectate in 2006 like to join this IMFL blog for 2007 as a co-author? We would love to have you with us, just let us know!!!

Pictures

2006-10-30T20:22:00.000-05:00

OK, I put some photos in my album on our Yahoo homepage. Yahoo is letting me upload photos. Blogspot isn't. Blogspot hates me. Anyway, go there (it only works for group members though) and scroll down a row or two till you see beach pictures. Those are THE BEACH and THE GULF OF MEXICO, and the other pictures are all the other stuff that's being gotten ready for us.

Sure wish I could post them to Blogspot. Dang. Nope.... just tried again. I get "Your images are being uploaded to Blogger" like forever and then "Page cannot be found." Blogger hates me.

Florida rocks; Blogspot sucks....

2006-10-30T19:00:00.000-05:00

I'm trying to post pictures -- of the beach, as in THE BEACH, where we'll start; the transition area, which is blocked off now and being swept and cleaned up; of the parking deck which is also closed off while tents are set up for the Expo; of people doing practice swims; cool IM-related camping rigs housing our neigbors at the campground..... I CAN'T UPLOAD ANY PICTURES !!!! >:-< Blogspot drives me crazy.

Well, we'll have to try the thousand-words technique. The beach is white and sandy and the aqua water is calm and cool. The air is neither hot nor cold, just right. More and more IM stuff is popping up... trucks, crew guys in IM t-shirts. A big U-Haul unloading bottled water and other stuff into a tent. Other tents in various stages of being put up.

Single bikers and group riders boogeying up and down the streets. Runners. People in wetsuits in the water.

It is SO SUPER COOL.

I've been wearing my red bandana everywhere, even though as far as I know only Rich has been here all weekend, and Shelley is supposed to get in tonight. This is getting more and more fun. Can't wait to see everyone!

Local hookups

2006-10-30T09:15:00.000-05:00

I found a restaurant/bar not far from the race site in Panama City that has a live webcam at the bar.

I can't comment on the food and drink, not having been there, but I believe they have free wireless connections, so I may go by it some time just to send/receive some email and update my blogs. And rehydrate, of course.

I think I may also stop in there after the race to wave in the live web camera to the folks back home!

The moon will shine on Ironman Florida

2006-10-30T08:46:00.000-05:00

I was thinking about getting a headlamp for the run leg of Ironman Florida - but when I saw this information, I figured, who needs it? I'll have an enormous moon shining directly overhead at 11PM!

Sun and Moon Data for Ironman Florida 2006

The following information is provided for Panama City, Bay County, Florida (longitude W85.7, latitude N30.2):

Saturday
4 November 2006 Central Standard Time

SUN
Begin civil twilight 5:34 a.m.
Sunrise 5:59 a.m.
Sun transit 11:26 a.m.
Sunset 4:53 p.m.
End civil twilight 5:18 p.m.

MOON
Moonrise 3:35 p.m. on preceding day
Moonset 4:53 a.m.
Moonrise 4:11 p.m.
Moon transit 11:03 p.m.
Moonset 6:05 a.m. on following day

Phase of the Moon on 4 November: waxing gibbous with 99% of the Moon's visible disk illuminated.

Full Moon on 5 November 2006 at 6:58 a.m. Central Standard Time.

Ready to meet up?

2006-10-30T08:37:00.000-05:00

Those of us bloggers that want to be recognized and say hello to each other during the race are going to wear RED BANDANAS somewhere on our body - neck or arm or wrist where they can be seen coming and going would work best! After all, red is fast!

How about we all try to meet by the athlete's dinner on Thursday about an hour in advance of the start - about 4:30 PM - to introduce ourselves and show the colors?? If not then, at the dinner Shelley said she would try to make sign that will say something like "Tri-Bloggers and TRI-DRS" and have it at our table so everyone can gather and say hello and sit together, if they wish.

It just keeps getting better

2006-10-30T08:31:00.000-05:00

The photo above is Panama City Beach on the morning of Monday, October 30th.

Accuweather says now:

Saturday Nov. 4
Sunny to partly cloudy and pleasant. Winds from the NE at 10 mph.
Realfeel®: 71 °F
High: 70 °F

Saturday Night, Nov 4
Mostly Clear
A moonlit sky. Winds from the ENE at 8 mph.
Realfeel®: 49 °F
Low: 52 °F

Northeast winds will be fine - a little extra push on the second half of the ride back towards the coast!!

Even the surf outlook is excellent for us weak swimmers and non-surfers:

OUTLOOK:

High pressure sits over the deep South and the Gulf coast states. No surf is expected for the next several days as moderate East flow will prevail. Maybe an East windswell trace on East facing beach to the far west panhandle on Monday/Tuesday.

Still checking the forecasts

2006-10-28T21:17:00.000-04:00

Intellicast
Accuweather
Weather.com
all seem to be in general agreement about Saturday November 4th, 6.5 days from now:

High 72°F to 75°F
Low 50°F
Mainly sunny. Highs in the low 70s and lows in the low 50s.
Winds ~12 mph from the north.

Accuweather forecast for race day is IN!

2006-10-24T15:09:00.000-04:00

Panama City Beach, Florida
Saturday, Nov 4

Sunny

Low: 51 °F
High: 73 °F

Packed for Ironman Florida!

2006-10-23T10:45:00.000-04:00

Yes I am!! Well, about 80% packed for race day. Are you?

All my essential race gear (besides my bike) is in this duffle bag. Yes, I've got all my eggs in one basket, so to speak. Tribiketransport better do their job and get it to me in Panama City Beach along with my bike, or there will be no race for me! But I figured if they didn't get my bike there as promised, there would be no race anyway. I'm dropping it all off at the local bike shop tomorrow night.

This is the most important bag of all. Notice the luggage tag to ID it, along with ID packed inside the bag and name embroidered on the front, and computer tie ready to seal it closed at the last minute - all insurance that the contents actually reach me in Florida.

I'll check it against my Ironman packing list before I actually head down to Florida myself in another ten days, but I wrote down everything as I packed it so that I could keep track of what I had already shipped. I fit an unbelievable amount of stuff in this one essential bag weighing only about 20 pounds!

My bike pedals still have to go into the bag for shipment, but I couldn't get them off myself so I'll have to ask the bike shop to do it.

Bag contents:

Swim stuff:
2 wetsuit tops (with and without sleeves)
wetsuit bottom
new goggles
bright swim cap for practice swims
mesh bag for swim practices
cheap flipflops

Bike stuff:
bike helmet
bike shoes with new cleats
Extra cleats
Extra skewer
pedal wrench
Extra tubes
Extra cartridges
2 pairs sunglasses (dark and amber)
aerobottle
water bottle
extra salt capsules
bike jersey
bike shorts
jogbra
socks
bike jacket
arm warmers
bike gloves
chamois lubricant
number belt
eyedrops
lip balm
spray sunblock

Run stuff:
run shorts
extra socks
visor
run singlet
thin long-sleeved shirt
heavy long-sleeved shirt
run belt with bandana, sunglasses, extra contact lens
glow necklaces and bracelets

Other:
2 gel packs for pre-race
2 bottles Ensure
3 gel flasks full of homemade gel
2 extra canisters salt capsules

I still get a second chance if I forgot anything in the suitcase I'll bring with me on my flight down. But that's most of it, all packed in small grocery bags and ready to go right into my transition bags!

Did they lie?

2006-10-20T19:34:00.000-04:00

They PROMISED us bib numbers today!!

But I've been looking and looking and looking and they're STILL NOT UP!!

I'm not quite sure why it's important to me, BUT IT IS. WHERE ARE THEY??

I'm hoping for 1559. Or 1659. Or 666. Or 911. Or something else meaningful. How about you?

Update: Still waiting on Saturday afternoon . . . waiting . . . waiting . . . .

I guess they just said "We will be assigning race numbers to the 2006 Ford Ironman Florida on Friday, October 20." but I assumed that meant they would also let US know then, too.

But we're chopped liver?

The really important IMFL prep

2006-10-19T10:06:00.000-04:00

I've nearly finished buying all my race supplies for Ironman Florida!! This is what I scored yesterday at the local dollar store:

First, reflective tape, which is required front and back on the shirts of runners that are out there on the marathon course after dark (as I will be).

Second, blinking necklaces!! In RED! Which means FAST! Yes, they hand out glow necklaces on the course, but those don't blink, and they're probably in dumb colors that won't go with my race gear, and they don't blink. So these will be IMPORTANT to my race performance!!

And finally, glow bracelets. Lots of them. It's important for a girl to be properly accessorized.

It's also important not to take this Ironman thing WAY TOO SERIOUSLY, like SOME folks I know. Who will not be linked to from this post, but they know who they are. Well, on second thought, they probably don't know who they are, sadly.

Let's have some FUN out there, people!!! It's way too long a day to do otherwise!!

A little Wager??

2006-10-19T09:36:00.000-04:00

We are going to have a little IMFLA wager. All you have to do is submit what you think your finishing time will be at IMFLA. We all put $5.00 in a pot. Who ever comes closest to their predicted finishing time wins the whole pot.

Just e-mail me at tri_gear@yahoo.com or go and post it on my blog. http://www.ironm4n.blogspot.com

It's becoming real

2006-10-18T10:16:00.000-04:00

I just received this email:

Dear Ford Ironman Florida Participants,

We will be assigning race numbers to the 2006 Ford Ironman Florida on Friday, October 20. If you are not racing and do NOT wish to have a race number assigned, please let us know by return email on or before Thursday, October 19. Be sure to include your name in the body of the email.

If you have any other inquiry, please do not respond to this email and instead email us at admin@ironmannorthamerica.com and be sure to include the subject of your inquiry in the subject field as it will help us route your inquiry and expedite the response.

Melody Givens
Ironman North America

I suppose that means if I'm going to back out, I'd better do it now!

Nahhhh... I'M IN!! BRING IT ON!!!

IronBlog

2006-10-17T21:37:00.000-04:00

There's a great new triblog coming to us from Kona via active.com: IronBlog. Follow along with us and your fellow triathletes as we get psyched!!

More IMFL bike course

2006-10-15T16:04:00.000-04:00

Here's another great review of the IMFL bike course.

Also, below are a few screen shots that I took off of Google Earth. First the beach and transition area in the center:

This bridge is the highest point of the course, that we will cross twice at about Mile 12 and Mile 101.

This is a much smaller bridge we will cross at about Mile 65 while we're on County Road 2301.

THERE, I DID IT!

2006-10-09T20:04:00.000-04:00

That ride I didn't want to do. Did it. Loved it. I didn't make 75 miles (did 67), not because I couldn't but because that's how many miles were in the route I took.

I went east on U.S. 55 to Wardensville, WV. Now, as soon as I crossed the state line into WV, the nice gently-rolling Virginia byway I was on became West-by-Gawd-Virginia, 6,000 miles up in the air. Apparently I was going uphill even when I thought I was going down, because at one point I got off the bike and checked to see if my brakes were stuck against my tires or something. Nope. Everything was fine with the bike. It's just West-by-Gawd-Virginia, of which Garrett County, MD (where I normally live) is part, even though it's in Maryland.

Anyway. Finally I was on a grade that could be perceived as nothing other than pure uphill. Up and up and up I ground, in my granny gear, for the longest time. And up. And up. And up. FINALLY got to the top, where one of those down-bound-truck-warning signs informed me: "9% grade next 4 miles." I wailed, "Oh, no, I'm going to have to go up it on the way home!" That must have been what I just came up. I went down it with my brakes on most of the time. I don't do downhills hell-bent-for-leather unless (a) I know the hill like the back of my hand or (b) I'm wearing leather. (Not that I have any.)

Stopped in Wardensville at a 7-11 to refill my fluids and food. The sign on the bathroom said, "HALT!! Not a public restroom. Management must OK use." So I asked the cashier. Told her, "I've ridden from Winchester [32 miles], and I drank more water than I probably should have, and I really need to go." She said, "Gosh, I'd like to say yes, but I can't let anyone use it right now, they're counting money in there."

?????????

Found a laundromat nearby with a very nice bathroom. And then a very nice police officer who told me a MUCH better way to go home. Rolling, a few hills, beautiful scenery, thru 2 WV counties and out onto US Rte. 50, which is the very same road I'm using for my virtual cross-country bike ride [scroll down in the sidebar], which I haven't updated for quite a while. It was neat to be on Rte. 50 here in VA, which would be so close to the end of my virtual trip, when in fact I'm so close to my training-for-IMFL journey.

Anyway.... I did it, and I'm glad! I'm actually kind of looking forward to the challenge of tomorrow's 20/11 brick. Or 20/13, if I feel really good. Thing is, I tend to set these expectations of myself; if 13 is one of the choices, I'll have to be next-to-dragging to decide on the 11.

Or I could do 12.

IMFL'06 participant information guide

2006-10-09T15:06:00.000-04:00

It's now posted online here. Be sure to share the link with family and friends that may want to know all the details about your participation and when/where to find you!

Also make sure that online friends know your actual real-life surname (or race number) for tracking you online at http://www.ironmanlive.com/ on race day.

I also found it helpful to review the IMFL 2005 photo gallery to get some ideas of what the transition area looks like.

Mapping the IMFL bike course

2006-10-08T16:40:00.000-04:00

The official map of the Ironman Florida bike course is too vague for me. I need to know mile markers. I need to know what's coming to plan my race strategy. I take that rule about the participant being responsible for knowing the course quite seriously!!!

Here's a gmaps version of the Ironman Florida bike course that I mapped out. One turnaround is not exact, so it comes out to about 113.3 miles total, but it should be otherwise as correct as most bike computers. These mileages are all approximate.

Major turns (mostly right turns in a clockwise loop) are just after:
Mile 6 onto N. Arnold Rd/Hwy 79
Over the West Bay Bridge
Mile 12 onto Hwy 79
Mile 22 onto Hwy 20
(I've heard unofficially that the special needs stop may be just before the turn, which would put it quite early, about mile 48-49?? Watch carefully for it!)
Mile 49 onto Hwy 231
Mile 58 onto Camp Flowers Road to County Rd 2301
Over the bridge over Clearwater Lake
Mile 69 onto County Hwy 388
Mile 73-74? turnaround
Mile 89 stays on County Hwy 388 (via 77)
Mile 101 left back onto N. Arnold Rd/Hwy 79
Back over the West Bay Bridge
Mile 106 left onto Front Beach Road (to S. Thomas Drive and T2)

Also, just for reference, here is the Yahoo map location of the host hotel, the Boardwalk Beach Resort in Panama City Beach.

Don't forget to bookmark these for reference before the race!

Ironman broadcast schedule

2006-10-08T16:19:00.000-04:00

Want to get PSYCHED?? Just catch one of the Ironman broadcasts on (the former OLN-TV, now retitled) Versus. Here's the rundown of broadcasts - Ironman Arizona is playing this week. I even caught a glimpse of the aid station our own Commodore and Mistress were working at!

Here's the link to find the Versus channel number in your area.

29 days

2006-10-05T12:24:00.000-04:00

Less than a month to go. Before we know it, we'll be standing in the sand on Panama City Beach, looking out into the deep blue unknown.

It gives me shivers, it does.

IM Florida Theme Song

2006-10-04T12:02:00.000-04:00

This little ditty is by Comm.

(You know the tune. )

East bound and down, Florida we are comin’,
We're gonna do what they say can't be done.
We've got a long way to go and a short time to get there.
We’re east bound, just watch us triathletes run.

Keep your foot hard on the pedal. Son, never mind them brakes.
Let it all hang out 'cause we got a bike cut off to make.
Tri-geeks dreamer came from north of Atlanta and west of Texarkana
And we’ll cross that line no matter what it takes.

East bound and down, Florida we are comin’,
We're gonna do what they say can't be done.
We've got a long way to go and a short time to get there.
We’re east bound, just was us triathletes run.

Ol’ refs have got his eyes out and he’s looking at your line.
He ain’t gonna rest til you are two lengths behind.
So you got to dodge im’ and you got to duck im’.
You got keep that tri bike truckin’
Just put that hammer down and give it hell.

East bound and down, Florida we are comin’,
We're gonna do what they say can't be done.
We've got a long way to go and a short time to get there.
We’re east bound, just watch us triathletes run.

Ironman Louisville

2006-10-04T11:44:00.000-04:00

Next August 26th. Who's in?

It could really be a scorcher - here are the stats for that day in Louisville:

The Average High Temperature is 87 F with a historical range of 75 F to 96 F
The Average Low Temperature is 68 F with a historical range of 56 F to 75 F
There is a 39% chance of a Hot Day (temperature over 90°F).
(11 days out of 28 in historical record)

Daily Precipitation
The Average Daily Precipitation is 0.11 with a historical range of 0.00 to 1.12
There is a 29% chance of a Precipitation Day.
(8 days out of 28 in historical record)

Cloud Cover
Average Cloud Cover is partly cloudy

Wind
The Average Wind is 5 mph with a historical range of 0 mph to 10 mph

PCB Surf

2006-09-22T11:00:00.000-04:00

Looks a little rougher out there today, even though winds are calm. It still looks manageable, though. Anything but this.

Ironman cutoffs

2006-09-18T21:37:00.000-04:00

The Ironman Florida site says, in reference to cutoffs:

"What are the cut-off times? Swim: 2h20, Swim/Bike: 10h15 (Florida Race Only - all other fulls are 10:30), Swim/Bike/Run 17hrs"

Which is the same information at the Ironman Arizona website and at the Ironman Wisconsin website, except with a 15 minute earlier bike cutoff in Florida (presumably due to the earlier sunset in November).

However, at the latter two events, apparently there was an additional cutoff added of 9:00PM or 14 hours from the swim start to reach the halfway point of the marathon (13.1 miles). Read one account of an encounter with this cutoff here.

Forwarned is forearmed. Don't be cut off.

Holy cr*p #2

2006-09-16T16:32:00.000-04:00

These photos really scare me. Please tell me they never get surf like that in the Gulf.

Holy cr*p

2006-09-15T09:36:00.000-04:00

49 days.

7 times 7.

Here we go. . . .

IMFL pre-race video - of YOU!

2006-09-14T20:05:00.000-04:00

From http://www.trigeekdreams.com/ today - he says definitely send in your photos to him, 5 per person!!

How cool, eh!!???

------------------

IMFL competitors: Be a movie star
This idea came from Robo-Stu, who has a big heart for a man of steel.

We're going to put together a video for Ironman Florida competitors and anyone else who is interested. We'll marry up inspiring music and with the competitors' favorite race and training photos. The world premiere of the Cecil B. Kahuna film will take place after the carbo-load dinner on Thursday night. We'll also put the video on YouTube.com for others to see.

This will be just the inspirational tool to get us all geeked up about Ironman Florida.

Here's how you can help:

1. Ironman Florida competitors: E-mail the Kahuna (trigreekdreams@yahoo.com) your favorite five (more or less) photos of you competing or training.

2. Anyone else: E-mail the Kahuna (trigreekdreams@yahoo.com) a photo somehow contains an inspirational message (written or other otherwise) for those who are competing in Florida. Extra credit will be given for creativity.

All right. Send them quickly because the Kahuna has a deadline to meet!

Ironman Wisconsin 2006

2006-09-11T15:30:00.000-04:00

Congratulations to everyone who toed the line yesterday at Ironman Wisconsin and gave it their best. According to the local weather records, yesterday it only got up to 59*F, 14 degrees below the average temperature, there were 0.46 inches of rain during the day, and the wind speeds were as high as 20 mph with gusts to 23 mph. Brutal conditions for everyone! Special credit goes to those Iron Volunteers who were out there sharing the nasty conditions with the athletes, making the event possible for them, doing the dirty work without the opportunity to get a medal for their efforts.

According to preliminary 2006 results, of the 2439 triathletes who completed the swim portion of the course, at least 266 of them (10.9%) never made it to the finish line. Of 2475 starters, 302 (12.2%) got DNFs.

And yet today, the registration for next year's triathlon was completely sold out within one hour.

What kind of crazy sport is this!? There's a lot of people out there who want a chance at that challenging course and many more with scores to settle there!

Are you ready for anything?

2006-09-10T14:20:00.000-04:00

The weather at Ironman Wisconsin today couldn't be any more opposite to last year's heat wave. Today in Madison it's cold, wet, and blustery.

At about 1PM local time, weather reports for Madison, Wisconsin said:
57.7 °F / 14.3 °C
Light Rain
Humidity: 96%
Dew Point: 57 °F / 14 °C
Wind: 6.0 mph / 9.7 km/h from the ENE
Wind Gust: 15.0 mph / 24.1 km/h
Pressure: 30.19 in / 1022.2 hPa
Visibility: 10.0 miles / 16.1 kilometers
UV: 2 out of 16
Clouds: Few 1900 ft / 579 m
Scattered Clouds 2800 ft / 853 m
Overcast 3300 ft / 1005 m

I hope all our triathlete and blogger friends are having a great time out there and negotiating the day's challenges well!

Calm reassurance

2006-09-06T17:25:00.000-04:00

Then again, it is reassuring to look at the actual Panama City Beach webcam from time to time and see that the ocean is occasionally as smooth as glass, as it was today. Ahh, that would be perfect, to be able to watch the little fishies swimming around to pass the time during the swim! (Thanks for the reminder, Kathy!)

Update: Here's a daytime shot from this morning. Doesn't that look like a nice spot for a peaceful refreshing swim? With 2500 of your best friends?

The Ocean Wilderness

2006-09-06T14:18:00.000-04:00

If I weren't worried enough about the Ironman Florida 2.4-mile ocean swm, this part of a commentary on Steve Irwin's death reinforced some of my deepest fears:

"The oceans are a rougher and more difficult wilderness for humans to function in than any encountered by terrestrial or space explorers. The sea pummels us with an unbreathable and corrosive liquid medium; altered visual and acoustic characteristics; changing temperatures, depth and pressures; upwellings; tides; currents; sudden storms and giant waves. Drowning, not animals, accounts for the vast majority of ocean-related deaths, including about 200,000 in the giant Asian tsunami of December 2004 and many of the 1,800 people who died as a result of Hurricane Katrina."

Less than 2 months

2006-09-06T13:55:00.000-04:00

I was just over at Comm's site, where he's ranting about something-or-other, and I noticed his Ironman Florida countdown timer.

58 days to the Big Day.

*gulp*

I sort of feel like the wind was just knocked out of me.

Less than two months. That's the blink of an eye.

Good luck to all of those fellow bloggers tackling Ironman Wisconsin, a.k.a. IMMOO, this weekend! We will be watching with great interest!

Race day tide data

2006-09-05T20:26:00.000-04:00

Tides for Panama City Beach (outside) starting with November 4, 2006:


Day        High     Tide   Height   Sunrise    Moon  Time      % Moon
         /Low      Time    Feet    Sunset                    Visible

Sa   4      Low   3:23 AM     0.0   6:00 AM     Set  4:53 AM      96
    4     High   6:33 PM     1.8   4:54 PM    Rise  4:11 PM

So we'll have a low tide to start, and a nearly full moon on the run for those of us finishing well after dark.

Just in case. . . .

2006-08-30T19:48:00.000-04:00

When bad things happen to good triathletes. . . .

I heard about a woman at Ironman Canada who crossed the finish line at 17 minutes after midnight. I feel badly for her. I do consider her an Ironman, although she may not have a medal to show for it! She did the same course as everyone else! It just must have felt horrible to be a mile or two from the finish line at midnight and know the cutoff was happening and you still had a ways to go to get there.

Another woman I know had FIVE flats during an Ironman race. And still finished.

Which made me think today during my workout about exactly what minimum pace I'll need to have to finish the "run" section of the course, in a worst-case scenario. Those finishing the bike leg before the T2 cutoff will probably have plenty of time to walk the course, if necessary.

But what about if I'm just barely able to get out of T2 at the cutoff time, 5:15PM, to be permitted to continue in the run leg? In order to finish by 11:59PM, the run course would have to be completed in 6:44. That's an average pace of less than 15:44 minutes per mile, not even counting aid station or portapotty stops.

I timed myself on the track today at a reasonably comfortable walking pace at 4:40 for the quarter mile. That's a normal walking pace of 18:20 minutes per mile - and I'd probably walk more slowly if I were very fatigued. I couldn't finish the Ironman in time if I had to walk the entire run course. I'd have to jog probably one third to one half of the run course in order to make it over the finish line in time.

Now I know! I certainly hope that doesn't become a consideration, but at least I know what I have to accomplish if for some reason I have a disaster on the bike course and I'm up against the cutoffs.

YMMV, of course!

WHEN YOU DON'T FEEL LIKE TRAINING....

2006-08-29T19:31:00.000-04:00

.... train anyway.

For some reason I'm still tired from Sunday's bike ride. I was scheduled for a 12-mile run today, put it off till mid-afternoon hoping I'd work up some kind of desire for it, which didn't happen. So I set out with heavy legs and a heavy heart. Thought about Commodore's thoughts on quitting. Visualized being 12 miles from the finish line in the run of IMFL, when surely I won't feel like running 12 miles. At mile 2, I started with the beer bottles: "10 bottles of beer on the wall, 10 bottles of beer...." Every mile, I took down another bottle of beer. And the miles ticked by.

I visualized running with a handful of people in the Ironman, all tired from the bike, all wishing we were done, all of us helping each other along. You can't bike together in the IM, but you can run together. I thought about walking through the aid stations, then saying to my group, "Come on, let's go," and the whole group limps off at a jog again.

8 bottles of beer on the wall.... 7 bottles of beer... come on, gang, we can run 7 miles, look how many times we've run 7 miles before.

I got a blood blister on my toe. It squished with every step. And eventually I got back home, the run was done, I didn't quit, I didn't bag it, and it's more miles in the bank and practice in being mentally tough.

I am going to do this Ironman.

Inching up that bike mileage....

2006-08-27T20:38:00.000-04:00

I'm relaxing after a 70-mile bike ride... stats: 70.86 miles, moving time 4:46, total time 4:50 (read: almost NO stopping!!), average 14.8mph. My average speed has increased by about 1.5mph over the summer. I'm looking forward to some faster times on flat roads at ChesapeakeMan and IMFL. I did a favorite 20-mile loop twice and then my favorite 30-mile out-and-back. My lower back and my lateral quads hurt towards the end. After a plate of food and 3 aspirins, I'm feeling a lot better. It was a good ride. A really good ride. But I was glad not to have another 42 miles followed by a marathon.... thought lot about what Commodore said about quitting. I think that essay is going to keep me going a lot in the next 10 weeks. Even though I'm nowhere near quitting anymore, I still think about it, think about taking the shortcut home, wonder just like last year whether I'm up to this venture. Just because I did it last year doesn't mean I'm guaranteed to make it this year. But I will not quit. Not me.

Today's ride finally took me out of Colorado into Kansas, in my fantasy "Tour d'Amerique." For folks unfamiliar with this illusion, I'm mapping my bike mileage as a trip from the Pacific to the Atlantic, starting in Oregon, went south for awhile, and stumbled upon U.S. Route 50, which goes uninterrupted all the way to Ocean City, MD. Click on the link to see my map so far!Someday I hope to actually do this trip. Not necessarily Rte. 50, but definitely from sea to sea. Judging by how straight the road has become, it's flatland, which is no doubt a distinct relief -- maybe I can start making better time now :-)

Actually 70 miles is not my longest ride so far in this training season. About a month ago I did 87, but bonked badly with about 20 miles to go, which I figured out was from sodium depletion. I'd underestimted how hot it was going to get and how hard I was working. It took me a couple of weeks to bounce back (except I didn't bounce, I kind of climbed hand over hand) and during that period of fatigue and slow recovery, I really did think about quitting; in fact told my husband I thought I'd stop training for IMFL, and then I burst into tears.

But that was then, and this is now. I'm feeling incredibly better, due largely to getting more rest days, specifically every other day. Not the usual standard, but I'm going longer and stronger on my training days, so it's working better in the long run.

Family and Volunteers

2006-08-18T14:50:00.000-04:00

Every athlete knows we cannot compete without our family supporting us and volunteers on the course.

It's Linae here, official CHEER person and future IMFL 2006 Volunteer. Does anyone have family who want to volunteer? Is anyone interested in getting family members organized? I don't know what I have in mind. Maybe a phone tree of cel phones to give out progress reports when we see one of our athletes. Maybe something else. Or maybe just getting people together so we have as much cheering coverage on the course as possible. We can wear our t-shrits from cafepress.

Suggestions? Ideas?

ROLL CALL

2006-08-18T10:04:00.000-04:00

OK.... who exactly is doing IMFL? Nancy, Commodore, Bolder, Shelley Bev , me (you don't need a link for me, you're here already).... who else?

Since not everyone reads my blog, maybe you who do can put out an APB so that all the IMFL folks will get a heads-up and pop on over to sign in. Or you can just tell me they're doing it.

There is going to be a HUGE crowd of bloggers and emailers who know each other but haven't met yet. How are we going to recognize each other?

I'm posting this on the my own blog as well.

Chime in, folks! Thanks!

Update: Please see the current IMFL 2006 roster HERE, and let us know in the comments if you need to be added!

SWIM-BIKE BRICK!

2006-08-17T19:27:00.000-04:00

Wow! What a great day. It's hard to believe that just a week ago I was so tired and discouraged I told my husband I was thinking of giving up on IMFL.

Today's workout was a 40-minute swim followed by a 50-mile bike ride. As I got into the 74*F water for a warmup, I thought how actually the swim is a cool-down --- the swim pre-cooling me for the ride. I had ridden to the lake and didn't know how to handle my wetsuit getting there and then heading right out for the ride, so I didn't use it today.

Now, either I'm going crazy, or getting increasingly dyslexic, or the earth has moved. I always start my lake swims on the right side of the swim area, where the bottom is sandy, then start encountering rocks and boulders and reefs about halfway, which persist until the turnaround 75 yards later. Today, I saw rocks and boulders and reefs as soon as I started swimming, and they cleared as I approached the turnaround. Am I crazy? This is backwards. These boulders are too big to have been displaced by lake currents and transported 75 yards to the other end. But there they were. I swam over them (actually brushing some with my hands while stroking -- incentive to keep my stroke wide and shallow), exited at the now-sandy end, and decided to reverse my direction from usual to make my exit easier for transition. Either I'm going crazy or the earth moved.

41 minutes netted me 1650 yards. Damn. If I'd been watching my laps instead of the time, and doing the math, I'd have gone one more lap to have just over a mile. But I was watching my time and it was time to get out.

Transition was 4:56, including carrying my bike across a couple hundred feet of grass and up a set of wooden stairs. I needed to pee but the bath house was too far away -- I could stop by the side of the road faster, and would.

I could tell as soon as I started biking that it was a good day. Took it easy, trying to keep my effort even (did not use HRM), didn't overexert myself, and had averaged 14.8mph by the turnaround at 25 miles, including a 1/2-mile downhill that I took maxing out at 43.8mph even squeezing my brakes intemittently.

Of course, I had to go back up that hill, which I did in my granny gear. I used it for a few others, too. By the end of the day my average was 14.0, so obviously there was more downhill on the way out, and vice versa.

I didn't take that pit stop till the turnaround. Kept just putting it off. I had my watch set to beep every 10 minutes, when I drank Gatorade spiked with an Airborne tablet, with a longer beep every 30, when I took a salt capsule with water and ate something. Eating every half-hour was an experiment and I found I feel better eating half as much every half hour, than eating more every hour. On the way up the monster hill, I got a sudden, strange, specific craving for turnip greens. ????? And, since I'm a redneck, I just happened to have some at home, which I included in my post-race meal -- canned, since although this is redneck country it's not turnip-green country, too far north. I ate them with cider vinegar; they would have been better with some bacon grease, but I'm not so much of a redneck as to have that on hand. Still, they were so good I ate the whole can, along with a breaded fried chicken breast (more redneck food) and rice with BUTTER. I deserved it.

The ride home was just as nice as the ride out, despite the increased uphills. With about 12 miles to go I got another craving, for the chicken bouillon broth I'd brought, so I stopped, fished it out of my Camelback pocket, and swilled that down. It hit the spot directly. I was taking no chances on sodium depletion today, even though it wasn't all that hot or humid, high 70's, clear, mostly-shaded roads. I kept being amazed at how I was able to go up hills with a nice cadence and relatively low effort on higher gears than earlier in the season (although, yes, I did use my grannies on about 3 of the hills. What the heck, I AM a granny.) I was feeling a little tired after about 35 miles but nothing serious. Got home still feeling great; I had left my running shoes on the picnic bench for a quick transition in case I felt great enough to add a short run, but getting off my bike and looking at the running shoes I decided I didn't feel THAT great and scratched the thought of a run. It wasn't on the schedule custom-designed for me by my coach so it must not be in the stars.

So a pint of chocolate milk, put the chicken on to cook while I showered, sat down to the aforementioned chicken dinner, and I'm done.

My total bike time was only 10 minutes longer than my actual moving time. I had a couple longish stops waiting for traffic, crossing the main road; one to see what noise my front wheel had started to make (I still don't know... sounded like katydids buzzing -- bearings?); one quick stand-up pee stop on the shoulder of the road (girls, you have got to master the stand-up no-mess pee technique); one to get my salt broth out of my Camelback and guzzle that down; and one a couple miles from home for 2 vehicles driven by tourons (a locally-coined word combining "tourist" and "moron"), one towing a boat, the other 2 jet-skis, trying to make a sharp left turn into the angled driveway of their vacation house. There was no shoulder where I could go around them (soft gravel and grass) and I couldn't go around to the left where they were turning. So I pulled my bike off the road (good move, the trailer with the jet-skis rolled back a couple yards to right where I'd been) and sat on the guard rail waiting for them to figure out what they were doing. I had been on a good roll for the upcoming incline but said touron vehicles were fooling around right on the incline, and when I ground to a stop I didn't downshift, so when the touron trucks finally got off the road, it was hard for me to get going again in the gears I was in. But I managed and was soon on my way again. I think IQ testing ought to be mandatory for tourists, but I don't seem to be able to get that program up and running.

So I'm back in the saddle after my bonk 10 days ago and some gun-shy hesitation to get back on the bike, cured fairly well by Sunday's 30 miles and completely by today's 50, enough sodium capsules and a squeeze-bottle of chicken bouillon.

No doubt only a few of you have actually read all this; it's as long as my ride was. But I had fun writing it.

What's a realistic first Ironman time for me?

2006-08-17T12:27:00.000-04:00

This is an interesting subject for those of us starting in our first Ironman adventure this year. My personal goal is "to finish" and anything ahead of 16:59:59 and a medal around my neck (the same medal as the 4th place finisher) is just frosting on the cake.

Experienced triathletes say, to estimate your Ironman time, take your half Ironman time and double it, then add one to two hours. That will get me over the finish line somewhere between 16:00 and, um, 19:40 (that won't do at all, nearly three hours after the cutoff!). So I'll work on closer to 16:00.

As a solid back-of-the-packer, in most of my races in the last two years I've ended up finishing somewhere at the 80th to 90th percentile in my age group. Occasionally faster, sometimes slower.

Looking at the results from last year's Ironman Florida was very instructive for me. Here are the ACTUAL times for the 2005 finishers in my age group, which is women 45-49:

Swim time, 80th percentile: 1:41 (2:41/100m)
Swim time, 90th percentile: 1:46 (2:48/100m)

Bike time, 80th percentile: 7:22 (15.2 mph)
Bike time, 90th percentile: 7:30 (14.9 mph)

Run time, 80th percentile: 6:31 (14:56 min/mile)
Run time, 90th percentile: 6:58 (16:00 min/mile)

Finish time, 80th percentile: 15:25
Finish time, 90th percentile: 16:38

Any of those times would be fine with me, and just about what I had been thinking of for realistic finish times - FOR ME. Sounds good to me! Yeah, I'd like to go faster, and I'd like to qualify for the Boston Marathon some day too. But for right now, that's just not realistic for me at my level of training (ya think 1:52 faster than my PR from 9 marathons might take a little while to whittle down?).

It's always helpful to me to check actual performance data of the people most similar to me, rather than relying on what someone says that I "should" be doing (who may be using male 35-year-old age group athletes as their major point of reference).

Why not take a look at your own age group results and see where you might realistically fit? And if you go faster, well, it's always nicer to be pleasantly surprised on race day than bitterly disappointed, right?

Update: Don't forget Phil's handy-dandy triathlon time calculator here - also great to play with to estimate your finishing time from various speeds and transition times.

Great Ironman race report

2006-08-14T16:24:00.000-04:00

There's a lot of great Ironman race reports out there - every participant has an amazing story, it seems. Here's a recent one from the 2006 Ironman Lake Placid that I particularly liked:

"From Aid Station to Aid Station I shuffled, never thinking of the full road ahead of me. To borrow the words of E.L. Doctorow, racing an Ironman is like driving a car at night. You can see only as far as your headlights, but somehow you can make the whole trip that way. My Ironman headlights only extended to the next Aid Station, yet I knew that this would get me through the entire race. "

Twelve weeks to go

2006-08-12T17:19:00.000-04:00

12 weeks. Including taper. Which brings us down to 9 to 10 weeks of full training until we're on the beach preparing to go into the water for Ironman Florida 2006.

Will I be ready? Will you?

Is anyone besides me getting a teensy bit nervous? Can I convince my body to pedal the bike a mile or two per hour faster, and run each mile in a minute or two less, in a mere 9 or 10 weeks?

Probably not. I'll just do my best to get around the course with a smile on my face, and enjoy every mile of the 140.6 along the way of the journey.

Race cutoff times

2006-07-21T08:26:00.000-04:00

For those up against the cutoff times at Ironman Florida, it's important to note that (according to the USAT Rule Amendments for all 2006 Ironman events that this race has earlier cutoffs than any other Ironman:

Swim leg finish is the same: 2 hours 20 minutes
Bike leg finish is 15 minutes earlier: 10 hours 15 minutes (by 5:15 PM)
Total time on course (run leg finish) is the same: 17 hours (midnight completion time)

This is probably because it will be DARK! Twilight ends at 5:18PM that day.

Penalties on the bike course are given and served on the course.

Also remember - cover your torso and no booze during the race! :-)

Ironman Florida potential temperatures

2006-07-07T08:22:00.000-04:00

The typical weather for November 4th in Panama City, Florida:

Average high: 74*F
Record high: 91*F

Average low: 54*F
Record low: 34*F

What is the water temperature? Between 68-72 degrees at that time of year (76 degrees for 2000)

Free bike shipping to IMFL?

2006-06-17T14:59:00.000-04:00

If you haven't booked your flights to Ironman Florida yet, you may consider this:

When you book your flight on US Airways through any of the Ironman North America U.S. Web sites, you'll receive an electronic certificate to ship your bicycle for free on US Airways. Here's how it's supposed to work:

Two weeks after you make your reservation, you'll receive an e-mail from US Airways with a certificate for free bicycle shipping.
Print the certificate and present it to the ticket counter agent when you check in for your flight.
The agent will check in your bicycle and waive the standard $80 each way fee with the certificate.

This exclusive offer is only available through the Ironman North America Web sites. You cannot receive the free bicycle-shipping certificate by making your reservation directly with US Airways.

Singlets?

2006-06-09T14:14:00.000-04:00

Mark found an excellent site for custom technical-fabric running tshirts and singlets, Running Banana. We could set up our own graphic, and they would run about $30 each. Who would be interested in getting some for our IMFL group, so we can recognize each other easily at Panama City Beach? Respond in the comments, please!

Swimming with the sea-cows

2006-06-08T17:34:00.000-04:00

Pirate Rackham posted this photo today, which a) cracked me up; and b) immediately made me think of myself in the upcoming Ironman Florida swim. Uh, that would be me on the right, heading out from Panama City Beach.

150 days

2006-06-07T12:16:00.000-04:00

One hundred and fifty days. That's starting to sound like a frighteningly small number to me to go until we all toe the starting line at Ironman Florida.

I've just hired a child care helper for the summer to give myself another 6 or 8 training hours per week. Are you doing anything differently this summer in order to crank up your training volume?

Halfway there!

2006-06-01T21:42:00.000-04:00

Right now we're just about halfway between January 1, 2006 and the final taper week before Ironman Florida - when all the deposits need to have cleared in the Bank of Ironman. 21 weeks done, about 21 weeks to go.

It's a good time for a spot-check.

How are YOU doing on your journey to Ironman Florida?

What are you doing now that's working well? What are you going to change in your approach to ensure that you finish in the manner that you are hoping for?

Nutrition on the IM course

2006-05-16T18:15:00.000-04:00

We are still 6 months out from Ironman Florida, but it may take that long for me (at least) to fine-tune my nutrition and race-day strategy to get through the course in one piece.

Here's a great summary of strategic recommendations for the Ironman Lake Placid course, which I wanted to bookmark so that I remember to review it before IMFL.

Six Months

2006-05-04T07:25:00.000-04:00

Six months from this moment I will be in the sky on a plane on my way to Panama City for Ironman Florida.

I will feel both fear and confidence. I will feel both fully ready and totally unprepared. My body will be in the best shape of its life.

Six months and two days from this moment I will be in the midst of two thousand other athletes attempting to swim 2.4 miles in the Gulf of Mexico.

Six months and two days from now I will get out of the water, take off my wetsuit, spray on the sunblock, and get on my bike and ride 112 miles.

Six months and two days from now I will dismount from my bike, already having traveled 114.4 miles that day under my own power, and begin running a marathon.

Six months and two days from now I will be transformed.

Six months and two days from now, if I complete my preparation with diligence and everything aligns correctly on race day, I will become an Ironman.

Wanna get psyched?

2006-04-28T16:47:00.000-04:00

Check out this Ironman Florida movie. WOW!

Starting the day the right way

2006-04-20T11:29:00.000-04:00

The woman waving in this great photo in the midst of the athletes is TRI-DRS member Catherine Paulson, on her way to becoming the 3rd place Athena at Ironman Arizona. She ROCKS!

More IMAZ

2006-04-11T15:47:00.000-04:00

Fe-Lady just posted some great pics on her blog from Ironman Arizona 2006 - here and here. And the best yet - here!

PLUS: This slide show with narration from IMAZ is not to be missed.

Congratulations Ironmen!

2006-04-10T16:46:00.000-04:00

Congratulations to all the finishers of Ironman Arizona yesterday, especially Iron Benny. Well done! More amazing photos like this here.

Hurricanes in November?

2006-04-04T14:57:00.000-04:00

Let's hope not in Florida! However:

"The Colorado State University team led by Dr. William Gray, a pioneer in forecasting storm probabilities, said it expected 17 named storms to form in the Atlantic basin during the six-month season starting in June. Nine of the storms will likely strengthen into hurricanes, with winds of at least 74 mph, the team said. . . ."

"But they also said there was less chance of major storms making landfall in the United States compared with 2005's record-breaking hurricane season."

It's all one ocean

2006-03-30T14:54:00.000-05:00

Snopes.com says this is a true photo, taken near Capetown. Yikes again!

IMFLA swim..YIKES

2006-03-27T21:28:00.000-05:00

The half IM that wasn't

2006-03-17T16:51:00.000-05:00

It's forecast to be rainy with a high of 58*F in Oceanside, California tomorrow for the half Ironman. So the organizers are offering a "different" option:

"Ford Ironman California 70.3 is offering an optional 700m swim for athletes who are not comfortable swimming in colder conditions. Those athletes choosing this option will go in a wave at 8:30am and swim 700m, bike 56 miles and run 13.1 miles. Your results will be posted in the new category so you can see how you finished compared to your fellow competitors in your race. You will receive a finisher’s shirt and medal however you will not be eligible for awards, Ford Ironman World Championship slots (Hawaii), Ford Ironman 70.3 World Championship slots or Ironman North America race slots."

What do you all think of that? That's 36% of the half IM swim leg distance. While it's a nice gesture to accommodate those folks that would have withdrawn otherwise, it seems like once you're cold and wet you might as well swim the whole leg. It will be interesting to see how many people actually complete that option.

Update: At 10AM local time on March 18 in Oceanside, weather reports say 55*F with broken clouds and average 8 mph winds. Precipitation in the last 6 hours was 0.03 inches. That's about 10 degrees colder than the average high daily temperature, but well within the normal range. According to NOAA, the average water temperature in Oceanside in March is 58*F. Everything looks well within the normal range of weather and water conditions.

Update 2: According to Ironmanlive.com coverage: The water temperature was 56 degrees (2 degrees below the average). 2115 triathletes were registered to race. 14 athletes elected to do the shorter swim course.

Tri-bloggers unite!

2006-03-16T08:57:00.000-05:00

Our thanks to Comm for this great article which appears on page 26 of the April 2006 Triathlete magazine. If you haven't joined yet, and would like to be on an email list with fellow triathlete-bloggers, please join us in the Tri Blog Alliance Yahoo discussion group! (You don't need to be a blogger to join the fun, but your blog helps us learn more about you!)

Ready to go to IMFL!

2006-03-13T15:32:00.000-05:00

Well, I did the easy part, at least - I booked my flights today.

Arriving in Panama City Beach 8:59 AM on Thursday, November 2nd; picking up a rental car at the airport and heading straight to the race venue! Departing Panama City Beach 7:00 AM on Monday, November 6th. I'm having my bike shipped separately so I won't have to worry about that until I arrive.

I also splurged and paid $15 for trip cancellation insurance, which also pays up to $5000 for medical expenses and $15,000 for emergency medical evacuation at any time during the trip. Just in case, you know, I have a teensy problem on the Ironman course. Not that I'm planning on needing it, but it will be nice to know it's there.

NEW! IMFL tshirts available now!

2006-03-09T12:01:00.000-05:00

Getting ready for Ironman Florida, like several of us!? Linae's design talent produced this great logo for shirts and other items for us! We are selling these AT COST (that means we are taking NOT ONE CENT PROFIT!) at Cafepress NOW!

Get psyched for Ironman Florida! We'll add some designs and styles (e.g., special "Crew" shirts) as we continue to get more creative. (Naturally we have to be careful about copyright infringement, too.) Keep checking back and let us know if you have any special requests!

See you there!!!

Chesapeake Endurance Triathlon

2006-03-07T21:06:00.000-05:00

Along with the third edition of the Chesapeakeman Ultra-distance Triathlon in Cambridge, Maryland this September 30th, they are offering a new event on the beautiful and pancake-flat Eastern Shore:

The Chesapeake Endurance Triathlon, with a 1.2-mile swim, 65-mile bike, and 10-mile run.

Sounds perfect for a long workout and dress rehearsal, 5 weeks back from Ironman Florida! The race management team always does a superb job on their events. I'll probably enter. Who else is with me?

If those distances aren't long enough for you, they're also offering a 2.4-mile swim, and an "AquaVelo" with a 2.4-mile swim and a 112-mile bike. Something for everyone!

IMNZ swim cancelled

2006-03-03T14:08:00.000-05:00

Here's a shot from from the Lake Cam at Taupo, New Zealand on the day that the Ironman New Zealand swim was cancelled. Those whitecaps look tough! Smart call, and let's all hope for milder conditions in Florida in November!

Ahh, here's an alternative shot from the Panama City Beach webcam. Now that looks a little nicer!

How NOT to prepare for IMFL

2006-03-02T07:32:00.000-05:00

Here's an instructive tale, with a touch of self-deprecating humor by someone who tackled Vineman. Also known as Whineman. It's worth reading through to the end. It's pretty amazing!

Moronman!

Bike shipping

2006-02-26T21:40:00.000-05:00

If you're coming to IMFL from a long ways away, (as I am, 1860 miles round trip), you may want to consider this company for transporting your bike for $210 (and optionally, a gear bag with your helmet, wetsuit, bike shoes, CO2 cartridges, etc. for another $25) to Panama City Beach. I haven't used it yet myself, but based on the highly positive reviews that I got from some experienced Ironmen, I signed up with them today. I'm hoping to step off the plane into Florida sunshine well-rested, instead of driving down over 2 or 3 days, with my most important gear shipped down safely the previous week. I can use my other bike if I need to do a couple last-minute rides to stay loose. For me, the expenses of shipping the bike and flying just about break even with the costs of driving and motels along the way and saving a couple of my husband's vacation days. I'd pay a lot more to arrive well-rested!

250 days to go!

2006-02-26T14:38:00.000-05:00

Today is 250 days until IRONMAN FLORIDA.

It's just under 36 weeks away.

Do you have your lodging lined up? How about your transportation? Do you know how your bike will be getting there?

Most importantly, is your training on track to get you to the starting line in the shape that you want to be?

Shelley rocks!

2006-02-24T20:26:00.000-05:00

Yay! What a cool person! Shelley was first in line for the good-luck TRI-DRS dogtags at Ironman Florida. I requested them after her, but I was out of luck - too late! But being the super-nice person that she is, she decided to give up her turn and offered them to me to use.

THANK YOU SHELLEY! I'll use them mindfully and conscious of all the good karma they bring along. I'll also bring them across the finish line before midnight, if at all possible. And if I do, it will be a PR!

Jerseys

2006-02-20T15:17:00.000-05:00

Here's another source for custom tri-wear and bike jerseys:
http://www.louisgarneau.com/usa/ctm_catalog.asp?catalogue=C6
We're getting some of their stuff for a local tri-club.

And another:
http://www.sugoi.com/consumer/main.aspx?from=home

I'd be glad to help on artwork if we want to put together a group order, but I'm not collecting the money!! :-)

Hey, Shelley, weren't you going to get t-shirts made for us!?!?

Ironman Florida Jerseys

2006-02-20T12:55:00.000-05:00

http://www.velowearcustom.com/live_overview.asp

I can't remember who offered, but someone was going to design up IMFLA jersey's...here's a start!!

Transitions Bags.

2006-01-31T15:14:00.000-05:00

http://ironm4n.blogspot.com/2006/01/transition-bags.html

This gives you an idea as to what all of those bags are when you register for IMFLA.

PCB area radar

2006-01-30T15:08:00.000-05:00

Another valuable link for you: the Panama City Beach area weather radar.

PCB Beachcam

2006-01-30T15:01:00.000-05:00

Here's a beach webcam in Panama City Beach, just to make you long for summertime.

PCB buoy data

2006-01-30T14:43:00.000-05:00

For those who geek out on weather information like I do, you can access weather data from a buoy just off Panama City Beach, site of the Ironman Florida swim leg, and look up lots of current weather information there, including historical data (in kludgy text format).

Here's the data for November 2005.

My longest ever swim

2006-01-30T13:56:00.000-05:00

I finished my lifetime longest swim this morning. 2550 m in 1:40. (Which is almost exactly 2/3 the distance of an Ironman swim).

If I do the Ironman Florida swim at that pace, I'll be finishing up the swim right at 2:30.

Ten minutes after the cutoff. Done for the day.

Not to mention exhausted.

Within that workout I did one 800 m straight swim in 27:41. If I could hold that pace for 3862 m, I'd finish the IMFL swim in 2:13. That sounds MUCH better. Now maybe with only 4 turns in the water instead of 4 million, and a wetsuit, and buoyant saltwater, I might really be close to making that 2:20 cutoff!!

It still looks like I have my work cut out for me for the next nine months to be confident of making it to T1 on time on race day! If you can make a baby in that length of time, surely you should be able to make a swimmer, too, right? Yep, it's 277 days from today until race day, that's 39.5 weeks. Go forth and train!

Finish line: the time to beat

2006-01-29T17:58:00.000-05:00

IMFL clothing

2006-01-29T17:09:00.000-05:00

I was browsing over at the Ironman gear store to try to find some inspirational training wear for this coming season. Something to get me out there when I come down with the "idontwannas". What I really want is this singlet - but I can't wear it due to that 2005 Finisher stuff on it:

This swimsuit would be great too, but once again, I am disqualified by that Finisher label:

They do have an "Ironman in training" t-shirt, but the blah gray and backwards-N design really does nothing to inspire me:

I do like this technical t-shirt, but I fear it might be mistaken for a finisher shirt too. Maybe if I wrote "in training" on it with a Sharpie?

What do you all think?

All I know is that I will NOT be wearing a shirt like Shelley's any time soon.