Ironman weekend is a complete invasion of athletes upon a city to do battle with the course. By the end of the day, they all look like they’ve been to war. Ironman Florida was no different. 2500 athletes entered the ocean like turtles migrating to water for the first time. Survival it was as one many lost time fighting the subtle current. The ocean current pushed us right to left making the straight out and back swim difficult to maneuver. Many of us swam up stream to round the corner buoy. Swimming only twice since IM Canada (August) made things unnecessarily more difficult. I made the 2:20 swim cutoff with 3 minutes to spare and was the last official athlete out of the water. I felt for those who were still out there heading for shore only to be told their game was over.

Obviously disappointed with my time, I headed to T1 contemplating how I was going to pull a rabbit out of this hat and go home with a decent time. Since I knew I was going to hurt myself on the bike, I continued to take my time to make sure everything I needed was ready for the next 112 miles. While I normally settle into the bike for 10 miles before taking in calories, today there was no time. Its was nearly 2 ½ hours since the race started and the hammer was coming down early today so PJ #1 was gone along with ½ bottle of Perpetuem. Food was constantly finding its way to my stomach. By the end of the bike, I had consumed 2 PJs, 4 Hammer Bars, 4 Bottles of Perpetuem, 4 bottles of Gatorade, and a tree full of bananas.

By mile 10 I had warmed up. My trusty polar decided to keep my heart rate a secret so I had to go by feel. (Can you say Garmin?) “Captain to engine…more power Scotty. No captain. We can’t. Give me more power Scotty! I need more power!!! Captain, captain, she's gonna blow captain.” I rode with the feeling that I would eventually blow up; it was just a matter of time. Running after this ride was never a thought. With the exception of a few river and freeway crossings, the course was flat. Two stretches were 30+ miles without turns; this can play with your head. The second of these is about 40 miles directly into the wind. According to my watch, a 5:45 bike salvaged part of my race. Problem. 26.2 miles left.

Surprisingly, I had legs to run with but no energy. Time was the only thing I could think of. Mile 1; 8:30, Mile 2; 8:45, too fast. I’m go too fast. I can’t do this for 24 more miles. Mile 3-5; 9:00. Still too fast. Sure enough, there goes 1 wheel. Mile 6 10:45. There goes another wheel. The remaining 20 miles were an exercise in eating to run. While I seem to have the fitness, I had biked through all my calories. Eat, wait, run, repeat. I logged a mixture of 8 and 11 minute miles depending on sugar levels. I finished the course in just under 13 hours; 2nd best personal time.

The Florida course is popular with first time Ironmen (and women). Half the field were first timers. 2008 sold out in 7 minutes. Why? I think it’s the flat bike and run course that attracts new crazies. The ocean swim and wind make up for any advantages you may think this course has over others. Rumor has it that next year‘s IM Florida may be moved to AZ in November and the April’s Iroman AZ could be discontinued after 2008. Stay tuned.

One last thing. Congratulations to Phil Howard who had a spectacular day; 12:10. That’s an amazing time for a first time Ironman. Of course, he used a Coach-Tony training plan.

Thanks for reading. -Tony