IRONMAN TEXAS 2018

4.28.18






In August 2004, in the final minutes of a men’s league basketball game, I came crashing down on the floor of a YMCA gym with a torn quad tendon. I left the Y in an ambulance. While I was no stranger to knee injuries, having had ACL reconstruction in high school, I was 33 years old, and, a 33 year old knee is slow to heal. Over the next 8 years I gained 40 pounds due to my love for beer and pizza and my lack of activity. Additionally, I had an additional 5 knee scopes. When I left my follow up orthopedic doc appointment in 2012, he said, “see you in 4 years” as he expected me to be back for more surgery. In March of 2012, I bought a hybrid bike, with hopes of getting active again. As a new(ish) dad, I wanted to be able to be active with my kids, and, set a good example. Additionally, I’ve always been an athlete, and, much of my self identity has always been based on that. I rode over 2000 miles on that bike in 2012. I shed weight and gained confidence. So much so that I signed up for the Rahr 5k in September 2012. I remember the anxiety around running 3.1 miles, as I once believed that I would never run again. I survived, and, began to run longer distances. In March of 13, I accepted a position with the Fort Worth YMCA. The 1st Annual Mayors Tri was scheduled for July. I figured, as the Y director, I “had” to race. I trained hard for that race, as I didn’t know how to swim, and, had lots of doubts about my abilities. I finished that race, and, was hooked.


Over the next few years, I became a serial racer, completing over 40 races each year, but, struggling to ramp up to long distances, due largely in part to my discomfort with open water swimming. I completed a few short open water events, and, finally in October of 2016, toed the line for IRONMAN Austin 70.3. I'd gotten comfortable "enough" in the water to commit to the event. And, wouldn't you know it, the swim was cancelled due to heavy fog. I completed the bike and run that day, but, felt cheated. I immediately began to look for other 70.3's, and, in 2017, completed 3: TRIFW70.3, IRONMAN BSLT70.3, and IRONMAN Austin 70.3. My confidence in the OWS and the longer race distances was increasing, and, on race week of 2017 IM Austin 70.3, with a little nudge from my racing friends, I pulled the trigger on registering for IMTX 2018.


I knew I would need a little time off after the 2017 racing season, so, I selected a 14 week IMTX training plan that would begin the 3rd week of January. It was a time based plan, with the max weeks requiring about 16 hours of training. Just a few weeks after committing to the race, I sustained a nasty ankle sprain, and, as a result, my running ceased until mid January. That would certainly impact my base fitness as I geared up for my formal training plan. That said, by late December, I began to hit the bike trainer, and, in mid-Janaury, I ran the Houston Marathon 13.1, so, I was at a decent starting point.



Training:
Day one called for a 1 hour bike and a 1 hour, 10 minute swim. I remember having huge anxiety about that swim, as, most of my swim workouts had been 22-24 minutes, and, even when training for my 70.3's, I typically maxed at 45 minutes, or 2000 meters. My 1st swim of IMTX training would be my longest to date. I swam 3000 meters that day. It was a huge boost for my confidence. From January to race day, I would log 100,000 yards (57 miles) of swimming, 1600 miles of cycling (within just a few miles of my yearly total for 2017), and, 250 miles of running. A few notes on training: I felt confidence about my swimming ability, but, trained exclusively with a pull buoy and did no drills...just lots of laps. I needed the IMTX swim to be westuit legal, or, at least, wetsuit optional. Due to cool temps during my training cycle, I completed just 2 OWS sessions, each about 1300 yards. All but about 30 miles of my bike training was done on Zwift. I felt good about my cycling endurance and strength, but, did not spend much time in the aero position, and, was hopeful that my training would translate to an outside race setting. My run training was poor. I was feeling lots of pain and fatigue and apathy during my runs, and, as a result, they suffered. I suspect some of this is related to the November ankle injury, and, some likely due to the bad knees. I skipped most of the brick runs, and, maxed my run distance at 13.1, as I used a few half marathons as the long runs during my training plan. I also skipped the optional strength workouts, as layering in another discipline felt like a lot. All that said, for the most part, I followed the training plan, and, felt good about my fitness level going into race day. I'd also given up booze during my training block, so, went into race day about 15 pounds lighter than when I began my training. I'd raced heavy in 17, and it showed, particularity in Austin. I didn't want that to be the case for a race of this distance.


Race Plan:
Going into the race, I set some conservative goals. I believed I could hit those marks.
Swim: 1:30 (2:10 / 100 yards)
T1: 15 minutes
Bike: 6:30 (17.24 mph), with a stretch goal of 6 hours (18.66 mph)
T2: 15 minutes
Run: 6 hours (13:45 minutes per mile)
Total Race Time: 14:30 or less...



Race Week:
Because IMTX is a Saturday race, we broke the boys out of school early on Thursday and headed to The Woodlands. I'd initially booked a room at The Drury Inn, but, when Alex was giving up a room at The Marriott, we transferred it over, which would prove to be a great move. The Marriott is located at the race finish line, only a short walk to race transition and a little over a mile walk to the swim start. It was perfect. We had no issues with the drive down and, arrived at around 3:30, giving us plenty of time to check in.




After buying a bunch of gear, the family headed to Grimaldi's for dinner. It was my plan to eat early, prep gear bags for Friday check in, and, attempt to get a decent sleep. We headed to hotel where I prepped bags and gear, and, then early to bed...

Friday: There was an organized practice swim scheduled, but, I opted out, as I'd heard warnings of athletes getting sick from the lake water. However, I walked to the swim start with several buddies as a few would swim, and, I wanted a shake out run after. I took my bike, not realizing that I could not check it in until 10, but, it all worked out.






After watching our crew swim, Katherine, Jeff and I ran the mile back to transition. Alex was kind enough to take my bike on her car.






I got my bike racked and headed back to hotel to connect with the fam for a little lunch. Soon after lunch, we walked gear bags to transition, and, let Lindsi and the boys get a lay of the land.





On the way back to the hotel, Lindsi spotted a sign that would prove to be a good race mantra on Saturday.





We headed back to the hotel to allow for some additional race prep and dinner. We opted for room service, and, in retrospect, my shrimp scampi pasta was a bad choice. I got to bed early, but, did not have a great night's sleep. The combination of pre race jitters and a sour stomach made the night tough. I was up just before my 4:40 alarm. I hoped to be at transition by 5:30, to allow ample time to inflate tires, fill bottles, etc., before the walk to the swim start. Lindsi helped with Tri Tattoo and sunscreen application, and, I was out the door. I'd made it out of the hotel and a few hundred yards towards transition when I realized that I'd forgotten my premixed nutrition bottles...back upstairs for me.

I arrived to transition and saw Alex just leaving. I borrowed her air pump to top off tires and headed in to finish up my prep. I topped off the front tire with no issue, but, managed to let all of the air out of my back tire when attempting to top it off...temporary panic set in...I thought I'd use a CO2 cartridge to get it back inflated, but, no luck...additional panic...finally, I was able to get it inflated to appropriate pressure with the pump. I filled bottles and headed towards the swim start.



Swim (1:47:33 - 2:47 per 100M):
I arrived to the swim start with plenty of time to drop my morning clothes bag, get my wetsuit on, and find a spot in line. This would be a rolling swim start, so, I figured I'd position myself at around the 1:30 mark, which would be a little less than a 2:10 / 100 yards pace. Appropriate, I thought. Took a gel on the shore, and, was ready to go. We entered the water at 6:59, and off we went. There was some early contact, but, eventually, the congestion would thin out. I was breathing every 2 strokes, rather than my usual 4, but felt great, other than a little stomach pain. On a few occasions, I realized I was swimming slightly wide, but, worked to correct my path each time. I continued with my steady pace, and, finally reached the canal. At one point, I was kicked in the head, and stopped briefly. At that moment, I realized that the canal was shallow enough for my feet to touch. I finally reached the swim exit, checked my watch, and, was shocked at how slow my swim was. I'd entered the water with Remi and Jan, and, Remi was out of the water 22 minutes before me...Jan, 11 minutes before me. Other than swimming a little long, I'm not sure why I was so slow.





T1 (12:56):

I made my way to the wetsuit strippers, and, had a heck of a time getting the suit stripped and getting back to my feet, due to a wet, slippery ground. I saw Lindsi and the boys about that time, which was a good boost. I headed into the bike bag area, picked up my bag and headed to the T1 changing tent. Transitions in full IM events are different, as there are full changing tents with volunteers, chairs, fluids, etc. I had a seat and spent time drying off, taking in some nutrition, a hot shot, and, prepping for the bike. I dropped my swim gear back in the bag, handed it to a volunteer, and, left the tent. My upset stomach had not subsided, so I made a long stop at the port-a-let to take care of business before getting on the bike. My slow swim time became incredibly evident as I entered transition and most of the bikes were gone. I took advantage of some volunteers covering me with sunscreen and grabbed my bike.

Bike (6:57:38 - 15.61 mph):
I made my way to the mount line and joked with FWTRI and Trident folk before mounting and heading out.




The 1st 20 miles of the bike course includes a few neighborhoods and corporate areas. I was eager to get on the Hardy Tollroad, as I figured I could drop into aerobars and cruise for 80 miles. The course consisted of 2 loops on the toll road, with each leg being approximately 20 miles. The forecast had called for very little wind on race day, but, alas, that was not the case. I figured I'd be fast on the tollway, but, I quickly realized that would not. The 1st 20 miles on the tollway were into a headwind, and I was having trouble getting comfortable in my aerobars. I quickly realized that my lack of training in the aero position would be a huge problem. While I spent some time in the aero position, I was experiencing lots of upper back and neck pain in doing so. I was afraid that it was going to be a long day. I'd planned on averaging somewhere between 17.25 - 18.6 mph on the day, but, quickly realized I'd be lucky to hit the 17.25 mark. At 17.25, it would be a 6.5 hour bike leg. The wind, the small climbs for overpasses, the heat, and, my inability to stay aero were becoming problematic.  At mile 25(ish), the nose of my saddle shifted downward.  It would be impossible for me to ride in that position.  Fortunately, just after that happened, I saw a stranded cyclist on the side of the road.   He had broken two spokes, and his day was done.  However, he had a multi-tool that allowed me to make a quick adjustment and I was on my way again.   It hit the turnaround at mile 40, and, as per usual, unclipped due to my discomfort with hairpin turns (this would be the case for all u-turns...7 in total, I believe). I took some nutrition and headed back. I benefited from a little tailwind on the way back, but, was still struggling to stay aero. I made the turn at 60 and stopped at special needs. Up to that point, I'd taken in 3 bottles of tailwind and 2 waffles. My nutrition had been decent. At special needs, I took a hot shot, ate a sandwich, and took a quick pee break. I refilled tailwind bottles, and headed back out. The next lap was much of the same as before. I saw most of my racing buddies during the bike, and realized that Jan was not too far ahead. Throughout the bike, there were he packs of cyclists riding in pace lines and pelotons. After the fact I realized that the course officials were pulled from the course for "safety" reasons. The large packs of cyclists didn't really impact me at all, but, many athletes were frustrated by it. My nutrition on the 2nd lap was not as good, but, the sandwich helped, and, late in the bike, I tried to catch up by taking in a couple of waffles. As I approached the 100 mile marker, I saw Jan off of his bike stretching. I called out to him to see if he was ok. He assured me that he was. The tollway portion of the ride ended shortly thereafter, and we were routed back towards the race site. Finally, after almost 7 hours, I was off of the bike. Clearly, my race was not shaping up as planned. I handed my bike to my TRI buddy Kevin, and, he told me "keep moving forward" just what I needed to hear after a frustrating bike. I made the long walk to the run bags and the transition tent.

T2 (12:48):

Much like T1, I sat and took in nutrition and a hot shot. A volunteer was kind enough to help me change shirts. About that time, Jan entered the tent. I waited for him, and, we headed out of T2 together. We had nearly 8 hours to complete our marathon.


Run (6:53:32):
Jan and I started off with a slow jog, but, quickly realized we needed a little time to let our legs acclimate to being off of the bike. We began our first of the three 9 mile loops walking with the occasional jog. Each run loop had some good moments, as the aid stations were well stocked with great volunteers, there were really fun moments with lots of crowd support, and, the looped course allowed for lots of spectator and athlete interaction. Our 1st loop took us about 2:15. Clearly, we were moving slower than planned. That said, I still felt like we could come in sub-16 hours. Each time we entered one of the fun zones on the run or saw our friends, we would run, but, those runs were short lived. The support from everyone was awesome, and, we knew that if we simply kept moving forward, we would be ok.

We continued our slow steady walk late into the night. My back and neck pain was present throughout, and Jan had some moments that required stops to stretch. But, we weren't going to quit.



Finally, we were nearing the end of the 3rd loop. We would miss our sub 16 time, but, would still finish with nearly an hour to spare.

As we entered the finishing chute, the energy and crowd support were electric. High Fives were abundant, and the music was blaring. Friends and strangers shouted our names, and, finally, Mike Reilly said: "Derek Smith, you are an IRONMAN!" It was incredible.

Lindsi and the boys were just on the other side of this finish line waiting for me. I was so happy to see them. They have been such huge supporters of my racing. I can only hope that I am setting a good example for them.

I skipped the athlete food and headed back to the hotel. Lindsi and Griffin were kind enough to go to transition and pick up my bike and bags. I took a shower and cracked open my 1st beer of 2018...a Weekend Warrior. I took just a few sips before going to sleep.




We hit the road early and headed back to FW. On the way, I thought about what my next 140.6 will be. Maybe Arizona or Florida 2019. That said, I could be convinced to return to IMTX. It was a great experience.

I learned several things on this one:
Swim: more OWS prior to event would be helpful
Bike: While my training mileage was there, I need to train in aero position and practice nutrition.
Run: I could have moved faster.
Overall: Truly, anything possible.

I headed to see Andy on Thursday to commemorate my accomplishment. Truly, I thought an IM was out of reach, and, here I am planning another.