The Human Side of Ironman

September 2, 2012 I posted the following on Facebook: My 2012 triathlon season came to a screeching halt with the cancellation of my final race. So that leaves me no choice but to face the beast that lies ahead. Ironman Lake Placid 2013. 140.6 miles of swimming, biking, and running through the Adirondacks. IMLP is the second oldest in Ironman history and one of the most difficult courses in the world. And that town was born of the Olympics. The combination of IM and the Olympics makes LP the one and only place I want to bear my heart and soul to the Ironman gods. July 28, 2013. I've got a lot of work to do in the next 328 days.

Well…314 days have passed and to say I’ve done a lot of work would be the understatement of the decade. I have become IronFit and I have an IronMind. I've been called a machine so many times I think I almost believed it. When my body didn't want to go, my mind made it happen. I’ve come to acquire the telltale signs of an endurance athlete – chiseled cheekbones and a roadmap of veins crisscrossing my arms and legs.

This weekend was to be my last big training weekend before I start to taper. I knew it would be a mental challenge to put in the hours, so in an 11^th inning play, I decided to go to Lake Placid and do the work there knowing I would get energy just being there. Little did I know how much I needed to be in LP. Or that I would be bearing my heart and soul to the Ironman gods, exactly as I stated in September…although when I said that I was talking about race day.

I arrived in town Friday night hoping to swim a loop of the swim course, but I didn’t have enough daylight, so I hit the grocery store for some provisions and went to bed early. My body was clearly sending a message because I slept for ten hours. My morning was going to be a big one. How big? 2.4 miles big. I was going to be doing two loops of the swim course. A full blown Ironman swim. I had never done this before and as you know, the swim is my weakness. I’m happy to report, the swim went flawlessly. I executed according to plan and swam a steady pace for the entire 2.4 miles. This was such a huge confidence boost, I could have gone home right then and the trip would have been worthwhile. I went back to the hotel, chilled for a bit, and headed out for a 4 hour bike session. I contemplated doing the full Ironman bike (112 miles), but I didn’t have time….and quite frankly I didn't have it in me. The training plan prescribed 4:00, so that’s what I did. I rode one loop of the bike course and then continued on for another 45 minutes to hit 4:00. 

The Olympic Oval

More Bikes & Skiing

You know you're in Ironman Country
when the gas stations sell these!

Navigated the course without a map. I’m starting to learn the nooks and crannies, or more accurately the ascents and descents! It was windy out there and every time a crosswind hit my deep dish wheels I was reminded of its presence. Other than being tired, the ride was pretty uneventful. Time for real food. The challenge with staggering two long training sessions is that you don’t get a real meal. Although I did buy one of those PB&J sandwiches and admit it was the best 99 cents I spent all day! After a shower, I found a seat at the bar at the Lake Placid Pub & Brewery. Eric took good care of me, first filling a glass with the house Double Wit and then by bringing me a giant cheeseburger. Yup, you heard me….a cheeseburger! A bit of the TDF on TV and back to the hotel.

Beer first. If you insist...

I didn’t sleep well and woke up tired. I needed to do a 1:00 bike ride immediately followed by a 10 mile run. Since I was in Lake Placid, I decided to do the run course for 13.1 miles. I wasn’t excited about the bike, but knew the benefit of having to switch from my bike legs to my run legs. I set out on the bike course with the plan of riding 30 minutes and then turning around and riding back the same route. I reached my turnaround and was 40 minutes into the ride. I was reflecting on my journey, cruising down a -4% grade at 33mph in the aerobars. The crosswinds were still there pushing me around. I was overcome with the idea that my Ironman journey would come to a screeching halt if I were to get hurt. And that’s when it happened…. A car dusted me at full speed and the swirling draft sucked me across the white line. Way across the white line. Because I was in the aerobars I had no access to my brakes and my ability to react was limited. Some how I got out of the bars and corrected the situation without incident, but the damage was done. I was afraid to be on my bike. My bike. The place I spend so much time….the place that brings me so much joy. Terrified. I pulled it together and got back into town. Never was I so happy to start the climb into Lake Placid coming from the ski jumps. As the road flattened, I found myself unable to get back in the bars. I made it back to the hotel in a cold sweat with a twisted up stomach.

So much for my bike/run brick. I needed some time to compose myself and settle my mind/body. I finally switched over to the run gear and headed back out. Pure IronWill was calling the shots at this point. Had I been home, I probably would have bailed on this run. I was struggling big time. My body seemed to be in a good rhythm, but my mind was all over the place. I couldn’t focus. I reached the five mile point and stopped. Right there on the side of the road. These are Adirondack roads - no sidewalks, no shoulders, no nothing. I stopped, took a gel, and emptied a water bottle. I realized there was no place to get water out there, so I had to return back to town. Fine with me. But I couldn’t pull it together. I stood there overcome with emotion. Picture me squatting down, holding my head in my hands, tears pricking at the back of my eyes. I wanted to just sit down and let it all out. I didn’t. But I was there for several minutes trying to get my act together.

This was the view when I had my breakdown.
Breathed in some of that beauty and got back to work.

Started the five mile run back to town. Downhill. Right away the Olympic ski jumps are in sight. Thank you Lake Placid. I needed that boost. I finally settled my mind and grooved back into town. Those that know the course know there is a dreaded climb back into town and on race day a lot of people are known to walk it. I had already made up my mind I was going to run it. Twice. Right or wrong, in my world any act of weakness must be covered up with double the strength. IronBadass. So that’s exactly what I did. Up the hill, past High Peaks Cyclery and all the way to the Olympic Oval. Again….the powerful presence of the Olympics. And the finish line for Ironman. But I wasn’t done. I turned around, ran right back down that hill, and back up again. I needed that. Don't look now, but Nytro's back in control! I finished the run with a strong mind and body. I share this for all of you who think I am a machine; I am not. I am human. And today, that incident on the bike was a trigger for the physical, mental, and emotional exhaustion that has been building. If I had been home, I would have stopped that run right on the side of the road. But I was in Lake Placid and the magic there provided me with the power and energy I knew it would. When I needed it most.

Olympic Ski Jumps

I went to Lake Placid to put an exclamation point on the last 27 weeks of training. Pretty sure I did just that. This journey has been amazing. These are the things I learned just this weekend:

• The darkest moments don’t always happen in the night. Sometimes they happen under the blazing hot sun right on the side of the road for every passing motorist to see!
• If you “fall off your bike” literally or figuratively, do what your parents told you to do and GET BACK ON.
• Free the mind and the legs will follow.
• If I never drink lemon-lime flavored sports drink after July 28^th that will be just fine with me. 

Fourteen days. The hard work is done, but this weekend I got a smack in the head and a reminder that I am human. The Ironman gods got a sneak peek of how it works in my world. My world…powered by an IronMind and IronWill. The next ten days are all that separate me from being back in Lake Placid where I will finish this journey over the course of 140.6 miles. Thank you to those that have supported my efforts and I look forward to seeing many of you in LP!

Whatever it is you are up to, always remember….Do Epic Shit!