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I went riding a few weeks ago and flatted on the LIE past the 106/107. Pain in the Butt. Back wheel too. Started changing the tire and had a lot of trouble getting the new tube in and the tire over it. Luckily, this guy pulls over (embarrassing) and helps me out. Continued riding and got another flat on Avery. C'mon...I'm not on the service road anymore. Secluded place where not too many riders come to. What if I can't change the tire? Upset/Annoyed changed the tire with no problem. This tube was a little bigger than the other one and I think that made all the difference. Still happy but nervous. Being a boy scout I always carry 3 tubes and 4 CO2's. Down to 1 tube left so made sure to pay attention to where I am in case I gotta call for a pickup. Made it home. That week took bike to Brickwell to change tire. Ended up at the Manhasset store as opposed to the usual store. What a difference... It's a store more tailored for the richie-rich and is beautiful. There are 2 floors. Nice.
Anyway, the guy who changed the tire is a guy named Ted Tierney, a cop and an amazing tri-athlete. He knows Vinny and has a friend who is also doing B2B besides Vinny. Can his friend take my bike? Hm....
Yes - Spoke to Richie who also is a cop and knows Vinny who is gonna take my bike for me for a minimal $$ amount which will be cheaper than shipping. Yay...Richie also told me that Ted is a single digit Lake Placid finisher or in English "a sub 10 finisher". WOW!
Soft spoken, cop, triathlete with great attitude is changing my tire and giving me lots of advice. NICE!
Anyway, I met Richie and that sounds good too. Meanwhile booked flight and hotel so I am all set. Nice.
I did my usual swim Wednesday swim on October 19th. Swallowed some water and started coughing. No big deal. The locker room downstairs is still under construction so I had to do the long walk of shame past the cold doors to the other locker room. Kept coughing. Throat hurt a little but used to it. Once I start, it's hard for me to stop. Woke up Friday, October 21st and had no voice! Had pain but no voice. Went to packet pick up for the Rock and Roll Series: New York 10K with no voice. Saturday was the race and I was a little worried. On the one hand, I enjoy a short race the week before a long but on the other hand, my throat was hurting and running hard in the cold isn't neccessarily the smartest thing. And I did run hard. Well, that race went well and I was trying to figure out what to do. Doctor or no Doctor. Decided to wait till Monday to see. Throat getting better so decided to wait a little longer. On one hand, go to the Doctor and probably get anti-biotics which will weaken me in the short-term but good for the long term but(!) if I am getting better, then better to just hold off, right?
Monday, felt much better but still not enough. Maybe Tuesday? Monday, was gonna do my regular Monday swim when I got a call from the YMCA that the pool is closed due to Maintenace. Apparently there was no Chlorine in the water. Not happy about missing this swim but ended up going to sleep early and extra rest so good trade off. Tuesday still didn't go to the Doctor and at this point, I wasn't going to either. Got my last run in tho. Wednesday went for a short swim. Throat still on the mend. Thursday was complete rest day.
Here's another view of this week. Saturday was the race and Sunday I ended up doing nothing. I was initially going to go for a short ride but decided there was no point. Took the bike to Brickwell and spoke to Andrew about SOS. Told him about B2B and he promised me the bike will be ready by Monday. Cool.
Monday, Richie my bike transport, texted me. I figured we'd connect on Wednesday but he was thinking about getting the bike either Monday or latest Tuesday. Told him Tuesday but when I heard the pool was closed, decided on Monday. Now, my plan was to seperate all my stuff into 5 bags like Rob did for Chesapeakman but suddenly I had no time. Picked up the Bike, packed as much as I can as quickly as I can and took the bag and bike to Rich.
It was making my life much easier that he took my tri-bag but I was rushed and did my best. And that's it. My red bag, my bike and a bunch of stuff was out of the house. Weird.
Rich drove down with his friend on Wednesday. He got in touch with me on Thursday. The good news - they had 80 degrees and it was beautiful. The bad news - the temperatures were dropping. Race day was forecast for 30's going up to low 50's and windy. The word on the street was to bring winter gear. Don't worry about looking stupid, rather stay warm.
Thursday got home an hour earlier. Jessie had a friend over and I figured it would help if I was there. Also, I had to start packing. Started going through stuff and wasn't sure what to bring. Definitly brought extra stuff that I was sure I would not need. Little did I know.
Friday woke up an hour earlier so I can eat, get ready and try to help with the kids. Cab came and on the way to LGA. Plan was to get there early as opposed to getting stuck in traffic. Got there early and waited. Relaxed and watch some tv while trying to tune out this stupid LGA employee with a whiny voice. Meanwhile, they announced a gate change. I go there and they tell me that I was initially in the right place. This guy overheard me and it turns out that he was sitting in the wrong place. Thanked me profusely. Went back to the gate and I spied a guy wearing a jacket that mentioned the Rye Triathlon. Started speaking to him. He was doing the half. Never did the full. He has parents there so he was all set. Lucky him.
Left the gate on time and waited in queue for 20-30 minutes. Seems like they figured out the wait time in the calculation since the pilot mentioned a much faster flight time. Landed on time at 10:35 am in NC.
Walked to the car rental agency. The woman offered me a car upgrade for a few more $$ and I took it. Didn't know if I needed the space or not. Also, asked for a GPS for 10 bucks a day. Damn thiefs!
They gave me a Tom-Tom GPS and it SUCKS! Hated it. Had issues turning it on, sticking it on to either window or dash and using it. I'm driving while holding it and the damn thing got me lost in the airport. This isn't a big airport. It's tiny and the damn thing almost put me in the water. Hated it. But it helps is the bottom line.
Too early to check in at the hotel so straight to downtown and the Expo. Got there at 11:55 and straight to packet pickup. The briefing was for 12 and I wanted to hear what they have to say.
Meeting done and I met up with Richie and his crew. Brought my car to theirs and took possession of my bike and the red bag. Now, while I didn't pre-pack my stuff, I did make a list of what stuff goes into which bag. There in the parking lot, I seperated and sifted. I think I was flustered that they were watching me. Wasn't very coordinated. They left and I was kinda glad. Took a deep breath and went through it slowly. Meanwhile, it's past my lunch time (approx 2pm) and I still haven't eaten. Not good. It wasn't helping.
Packed my stuff and realized that 1 of my bags ripped. Thank God, I brought a black garbage bag so I stuck my stuff into that and that bag into their bag. Whew.
Drove to T1 and (actually) found parking. Dropped off my 2 special needs bag and my Bike2Run bag. Decided not to drop off my pre/post swim bag and my Swim2Bike bag. Left my bike as well making sure that I know where I am gonna enter T1 and leave T1 and therefore how to find my bike.
From there to the Hotel to check in and to find some food. Big question is: It's almost 4. Do you eat a late lunch and then an early dinner or just an early dinner? Don't want to eat too much but need food. Bought some cashews for the instant calories to feel better and decided on an earlier dinner.
Now, most athletes are either getting dropped off at T1 or taking a shuttle from the DowntoWn Hilton to T1. Unfortunatly, I waited too long and I got locked out. No room for me.
Set up a wake up call, set up a cab, got my stuff together, went through my list again.
Had no problem falling asleep. Last IM I did but not this time. Wake up call woke me up no problem and I quickly got up, turned the clock radio alarm off and turned the phone alarm off too.
Started getting ready. Cab got there exactly on time and we left toward T1. I was worried about road closures so even tho T1 wasn't gonna open till 5am, I got there at 4:50. I was the first to get bodymarked. They weren't even set up for it yet.
Set up the bike, dropped off my Swim2Bike bag and started walking around as I like to do. A minute later I heard that the first trolley to the Swim Start was almost ready to depart and it has heat. Hm...I almost ran there. Got on there and enjoyed the warmth. Rode to Swim start and it was very anti-climactic. There was nothing there. Pitch black near the water. No lights. No music. Bunch of porta-potties and us sitting on the pavement. Soon more trolleys came and dumped their cargo. Everyone is kinda cold. Soon, people started putting on their wetsuits for warmth.
This guy walks near by looking for a spot on the ground and I offered him a spot. He sits down and we start talking. He is wearing a 70.3 hat and for some reason I am convinced that he is from Virginia or West Virginia. Chew the fat and then I decided it was time to walk a little. I get up and he suddenly calls out Vinnie! I turn to look at him and then get clapped on the shoulder by a huge hand. I turn around and it is Vinnie. And they know each other. And he is from Glen Cove. What are the odds of all that? Soon, his all crew shows up and things are a riot.
During the meeting the day before they told us that sunrise won't be until 7:28 and therefore the start will be delayed by 15 minutes. The Coast Guard will not let us into the water in the dark. Safety issue. I was a little annoyed and worried. They said that all the cutoffs will be pushed except the swim. So, I don't need 2 hours and 20 minutes for the swim but I don't want any changes. Still targetting the 5:15 bike cutoff. I have no problem swimming in the dark - I'm not scared but I am beginning to get it. It is really pitch black out there. Can't see anything.
There's a long walk to the beach start. The Halfs are swim waves and in water start. We, the fulls, are a mass start. A run into the mix. The music starts. Some of my favorite songs: Snap's The Power, followed by Survivor's Eye of the Tiger and then lastly followed by Eminem's
Swim starts and it's a little hectic. Some are swimming and some are still running into the water. I could fight but don't want to. I let them go. I stick to the side as well. Little bit hectic.
They told us it would be a fast swim. A very fast swim. They gave us the usual line with the usual "if you put your chip in a Doritto bag and catch it at the end then you will have a great swim" line. Been there - done that. Heard that line way too often. Still, they seem to be right but I can't tell progress. I don't really know the course and can't tell where I am at. Sighting is also hard but I think I am doing ok. I tried to be on the side of things but at times I had to make corrections. Whenever I could, I stopped to look. Whenever I saw the swimmers doing an arc, I took the shortest path for a straight line. I don't follow the herd because that's what the herd does. That's stupid. We apparently passed by where the half's would later start. I never saw them. I looked because that would give me some bearing for distance. Richie's friends later reported that they saw us fly by like crazy. They tried to run with us a little but couldn't keep up. Wow!!! One of the times that I stopped, I started again with Breaststroke for a minute. Boom! I connected with someone. In plain English, I kicked someone. I have a strong breaststroke kick and I know I got someone, perhaps in the face. Not sure. But it was definitly a good kick. I stopped to make sure he was ok. He stopped too and I apologized and he said no problem. Glad he was ok. It could have gotten ugly for him. The swim is usually somewhat physical but I really connected with him.
Soon, I spy the ladders. There was a bunch of them but almost everyone missed the closest one. Overshot them. Not me. Learned from the Lighthouse Swim. Made sure to hit that one. Got there. There's a volunteer sticking his hand out. I don't need that. I grab the ladder and take a step and there is no bottom step. Sucks. Grabbed the volunteer and the ladder and pulled up. Richie later also reported the same thing. Tried to step on the bottom step and OOPS! No bottom step.
Climbed up and looked at my watch. I see 45+! W-O-W!!! I go to a wetsuit stripper and I never had the privilege. This guy is good. BOOM! No wetsuit. Go to a shower, rinse off, gargle a little beacuse of all the salt in my mouth and a 400 yard run to T1. Small complaint here: No carpet or anything after you come out of the water to low 40's temperatures? My feet never hurt but they were hurting but I ran. Gotta make up time now so I can loose it on the bike. I still suck on the bike.
Get to T1 and start the process. Pulling on sleevies on wet arms is never easy and certainly wasn't a pleasure but it had to be done. I was wearing a tri top and tri bottom. I added the sleevies, full length tights with suspender thingies, long sleeve shirt, bike jersey and I was on the fence for this, a windbreaker. Under the helmet, I wore a running hat. Put on the long finger gloves and made sure to have my finger-less gloves in my jersey pocket. I figured I would switch gloves when I get warm enough.
As soon as I started biking, I realized that I would NEVER-NEVER-NEVER switch gloves. It was cold. Also, my plan was to eat a power bar in T1 but couldn't open the bar. My fingers were cold. Oh well.
Bike started and the first thing is a bridge with metal grating. They warned us that if it was raining, they would cover it with a carpet. Later they changed it to if it rains, then no carpet but you will have to get off the bike and walk but thank God it wasn't raining and so it wasn't covered.
Right away we have wind. Everyone told us that we would have 75 miles of 20-30 MPH wind. I was hoping they were exaggerating. That they were kidding. They weren't. It was real. It sucked.
Within the first 10 miles, I felt like my legs were toast. Legs were burning and hurt.
Right away I noticed that something is going on with my bike computer. I see distance and speed but not RPM's. At 1 point on the road, I see a bike tech and I flag him down. That's what they are there for and since he wasn't busy, I figured 1 minute with me wouldn't hurt. Voila. Glad I asked.
Side note: During the meeting they told us that a) the roads were marked every 10 miles b) at one point they were marked every 5 c) the aid stations start at 22ish and are every 11ish miles or so and that d) the special needs bike bag is around mile 54. This is important for later.
The truth is is that I am in Survival Mode. I am not exaggerating. The wind sucked and I am moving but it wasn't easy. I know that without the swim buffer I built, I must maintain a 14 MPH minimum. Doing my best and making it. Everything ok until after I passed the first aid station at mile 22.
Regarding Vinnie on the other hand...Vinnie has S.I.P.E. He unwittingly discovered it when he first attempted the B2B (not sure if it was the full or half). He got in the water and started coughing up blood. Swimmer Induced Pulmonary Edema is something not a lot of people know about including his MD. Very simple to deal with tho...Get acclimated to the water slowly. Go in the water and splash water on your face slowly.
I knew he would start the swim slowly and that I am faster on the swim but that he will catch me on the bike. My plan was to try to hold him off and eventually he would pass me on the bike. If I held him off enough, then I would be able to run with him.
Soon after that aid station, I hear my name being yelled at. There's Vinnie. He's doing well. He's riding with some girl and having a fun time. He's also drafting and I am afraid that I will get a violation for drafting too.
Soon he and the girl pull off and I can't keep up with him. Very frustating. I know I won't see him again. Sucks.
At mile 30ish, I see some riders heading back. They are the Half's and they are doing well. Glad they cancelled the rain but it's misting/raining now and it just adds to the annoyance.
My short term goals now are either passing the aid staions or racking up the 10 mile markers. I don't get off the bike but others do.
Saw plenty of eagles flying on the way. It was pretty cool. Kept wishing one would do a fly by and get a mouse or something but didn't happen. They were just floating lazily.
They weren't kidding about the wind.
Before I know it, I get to the Special Needs Bag for Bike. I pull in but I don't feel like I need anything. I just stop and get off the bike. A guy comes in and maybe he cramped up because he just falls over. He is lieing on his side, still clipped in and looks dazed and confused. He has no clue where he is. The volunteers run to him. A girl comes in and she falls over. Jeez.
I ride out.
I get to a really open section and I get buffeted by the wind Kona style. The wind actually moves me over by a few feet.
During the ride I see a bunch of people wearing different things. I wore a hat under the helmet. Vinnie wore a shower cap on top of his bike helmet blocking the vents. Kinda smart I guess because he could adjust it on the fly. Saw plenty of people tho just wearing tri-tops and tri-shorts and completly red. They must have been hypothermic. I couldn't imagine. I actually asked a few if they aren't cold. I guess they didn't appreciate it but it's stupid in my opinion.
Everyone complaining about the ride. They are all asking about the tail wind and about mile 75. We are all wondering if it's 1 cruel joke.
We have a quick out and back and we actually have a tail wind for the back. Just a tease.
Mile 74 has an aid station. I see it and scream. I stop. I stop but a little away from it. I lean the bike against a truck and stretch. A volunteer came running at me asking if I was ok. I told him I was hurting and when is this wind gonna stop. I guess, I looked "funny" because he said that the SAG wagon is picking people up. I told him NO WAY! I am not stopping now, I am just resting.
He tells me that once I make the right turn, I'll have the wind in my back.
I don't feel any different but I am going faster. There are 5 mile markers and things are better. 80. 85. 90. 95. 100! It's almost over.
105...At 106, I hear my name yelled out again. Vinnie...And riding well. I yell at him "WHERE THE HELL DID YOU COME FROM?" but I can't hear his response. He just rode away laughing.
I'm at 110 and up until about mile 90, police support was amazing. Seems a little sparse now. At 110, my butt is overjoyed. I am in the right lane and something seems wrong. The left lane is closed and I am hugging cars. Weird. If anyone opens their door or throws out something out their window and I am in trouble.
Right before the bridge, there is an intersection and a few cops. A cop starts screaming at this car that is taking a red light right in front of him. The driver must have been an idiot. I yell THANKS and cut left in front of them to where I belong. It wasn't marked but it makes sense.
Tons of runners on the field streaming out. I am headed into Battleship park. I got runners coming out on the left and spectators and finishers walking out on the right. I am in between and it's tricky.
I ride in and they took my bike. They were supposed to take our helmets too but didn't. As I was approaching T2 on the bike, they radioed ahead and got my Bike2Run bag. They handed it to me and I run into the changing tent. So freakin happy to get off the bike.
Vinnie is their holding court, taking with someone. Apparently he stopped at every aid station and got off the bike and stretched. He looks good.
I ask him about clothes. I decide, after listening to his advice, on staying with the tri-top, tri-bottom and sleevies. Vinnie is waiting outside but his friend said to me that he is gonna be comfortable and wear more. Makes sense...Too bad I took everything off.
I'm wearing tri-top, tri-short, sleevies, long sleeve shirt, cap and light gloves. I hope it will be ok.
The run is 2 loops. Each loop is 6.5 miles, out and back for a total of 13.1 miles run twice.
I leave Battleship Park and get to the bridge. Fighting against the wind and cold. The wind is still terrible. I refuse to walk up the bridge. I feel like it would set the tone for this run and I won't. Vinnie already left and my goal is to catch him. He's mine.
There's a low railing and the wind is so strong I get buffeted again. I actually put my hand on the rail. Falling off the bridge will not make a good run. No I am not exaggerating. Everyone of the athletes I spoke to said the same thing. Also, that it was a little freaky looking down at the railing and seeing the water below.
I get to the first aid station and ask for a black garbage bag. They look at me a little weird but 2 of them run to get it. The woman beats the guy and she brings it to me. I ask her to punch 3 holes into it and she knew exactly what I wanted. Punched 3 holes and helped me put it on. Took my race belt and used it as a belt for my new windbreaker.
I don't care how (stupid) I look. I am finally warm. I am comfortable. I am chasing down Vinnie.
Gotta take a minute here and talk about the Volunteers. The RD mentioned that they are supposed to have about 1,000 of them. I figured he was exaggerating but he wasn't. There were tons of them out there. They were great at swim finish. They were great at T1. They were great on the bike. They were great at T2. They were great on the run too. Can't say enough here. Apparently we had 50 of them on stand up kayak/boat thingies, between 10-20 at every bike aid station and a slew of them on the run and I don't mean at the mile marker/aid stations. All over the course they had a group of volunteers cheering us.
I caught Vinnie at around mile 2 but still felt good. Figured why should I stop now. I'll just keep running. Figured the other shoe will drop soon enough. Gotta make some distance on him.
At my mile 3, I see Rich coming back. I figured he's done. He says no but I can't believe it. Still, that would mean that I'm at 3 and he is at mile 10.
I'm feeling good and decide it would be pretty cool to chase him down but impossible.
We get to the Downtown area and it's cobblestones. Don't like running on cobblestones. It's a recipe for disaster and for twisted ankles.
Besides the outgoing bridge, there is 1 more uphill that sucked but I am running.
There is a marking on the road, "FREE BEER HERE" with an arrow pointing to a bar. They marked it in both directions. I got a couple of girls offering me beer. Jeez. Rich said he accepted and that beer never tasted so good. Carbo loading and all that.
I get to the path in this park. Nice area. Before I know it, I am at the turn around, 6.5 miles in. Still feeling good.
I see Richie again at my mile 12 and his mile 14. Ha? He must be hurting. Did I really make up 7 miles on him?
I am in full chase mode but not. It's too early. Way too early.
Still, how cool would it be?
Running with the knowledge that I am going to get him. Running but I don't see him. I guess he decided that I won't pass him. He's holding me off. Where the hell is he? I'm actually getting worried.
On the second loop at an aid station, I hear Guns-n-Roses playing. "Take me down to the paradise city where the grass is green and the girls are pretty. Take me home." I am doing well, running well and euphoric. All the volunteers and spectators are cheering me on. They yell comments like "you look great" and "look at his stride" etc. I start belting that song for a few miles. I'm just feeling great.
Second time at the turn around. I start saying good bye and thanks to all the Volunteers. I'm done. It's dark and there are people walking. At the start of the second loop, I get a glow necklace.
I'm encouraging other runners. I tell them to remember that "champions finish in the dark". They light up.
At one point, I see these 2 guys wear clear windbreakers. I pointed to mine and said mine is better looking and they laughed. Later everytime we ran into each other we laughed. Last time through, I told them mine is the new black and then my goodbyes.
Somewhere in the first loop, I saw 2 jets doing a fly by. Not airplanes. Jets as in military jets. I was running 1 way and the flew the other way so I couldn't really tell what they were. Still it was cool.
About half a mile from the turnaround, the second time around, I saw Richie again. I am a mile away from him. I'm relieved that he was ok but that's it...He's mine.
He knows that I am gunning for him. He's running away. Trying at least.
I catch him at mile 24. I ask him if he is ok and he tells me he is good and that I should GO! GO! GO!
I'm close to the bridge. Done chasing Richie but still chasing people. Random people. All during the race, I saw a guy wearing a US NAVY tri-top. I didn't realize that I have been gaining on him as well. But I have. And I'm at mile 25 and there he is and there I go and there he isn't. I'm close...Almost at the park. I'm near where I dropped off the bike. Near the turnaround and I am in full blast mode.
I'm in the final stretch where I sprint. Little twisty and guy in my way. I yell on your left and he moves and I rock by. I see Rich's friend who already finished the half and is going to pick up my bike and stuff. He's cheering me on. I know I have a PR with the IM. I know I did well in the run. No clue for my run time but not bad either.
I go to the warming up tent for a minute to drink something, then food and I run into Rich. He had just finished.
One of his friends, I think Pete, was gonna get my bike and all my bags except for my pre/post race bag. Got my bag and asked for the volunteer to help. Put on my new finishers shirt on top of my garbage bag windbreaker. My jacket on top of that. Sweatpants on as well.
There was a long line of people leaving the Battleship when I started the run. They said it would be crazy when the Half's were leaving. I was hoping it would be better when I finish. There was a long line. Sucked.
A 1/4 mile walk to a 30 minute line. Yuck. Whatever...Had to happen. No cars were allowed in Battleship park and it's either a long walk, a bike ride, a trolley or the water taxis. Started going to the trolley line when a parked car started backing up. It waited for me to clear and I waved a thanks. Hm...I am a NYer and nothing gained by not trying. Hm...Flagged him down and asked "Any chance I can bum a ride to the downtown hilton"? I figured I would grab a cab from there or call a cab back to the hotel. Well, in the car was a guy, his wife who completed the full, and her parents in the back seat. Her parents scooted over and I got in. Mighty nice of them since I stunk. They were going to the Hilton to drop off her parents. Yay...The line for the trolleys was huge and boom! I was there. When we got to the Hilton, I said my thanks but before I got out, she asked me where I was staying at. She then told her husband that it's less than 5 minutes and me not to get out. I'm telling her it's ok and she probably wants a shower and she said forget it...About 10 minutes later, my chauffer lets me out at my hotel.
During the ride I saw these 2 dogs lieing in the grass a little away from the front yard of a house. I wasn't sure if they were dead or not. Looked like a German Shepard and a Rottweiler. They didn't bug me at all and I was hoping they weren't dead. Later, I read some race reports that said that the German Shepard jumped at or near a cyclist and he went down. Nothing more than that. Speculation was an invisible fence.
I'm always afraid of the time boundaries tho with the swim buffer I give myself, I am theoretically ok but with the late swim start and everything getting pushed back, they told us that the cutoff won't be midnight but rather 12:15 or I guess 12:20 really. They also warned us that since this is a shipping town/city/state, we can expect the drawbridge to be up at 12:01. Man...That would suck. I don't know if it happened or not but something else happened. We passed over some train tracks during the run. Made sure not to fall. Later I heard and read about a train going through. Some people reported it as a good thing. Very long train (10 minutes or so) passed and gave some runners a break to rest and relax. A forced rest. It helps. Other people reported it as a very unwelcome break where they got cold and muscles started cramping. I'm glad neither happened to me. Never saw the train. Never heard the train. Didn't get affected by it.
Here's the list in no particular order...