IM World Championships 2011

IM WORLD CHAMPS RACE REPORT 2011

by Owen Martin on Monday, October 17, 2011 at 7:33pm

Well folks, that’s IM number 9 done and dusted!

Pre Race:

This year i decided it would be a good idea to arrive a couple of days earlier than last year, for the simple reason of getting my body clock adjusted to Hawaii time..last year i cut it to close for comfort! This year i arrived, and so did my bike..so no hick-ups at all. My prep leading into this race couldn’t have went any better, starting of racing in Vegas 4 weeks out, i wasn’t so sure at the time if this was a good idea..but i am glad now i done both..racing in the heat of Vegas was great prep for the blistering heat of Kona! I got off the plane and was relishing racing in the heat. It was great to be back.

Every day started of with a swim in Dig me beach..the location for the race start.. it was just great to be there mixing with all the other athletes..and swimming in the crystal clear waters is just pure heaven! After that it would be breakfast, rest a little then the second session of the day..either a bike or a run! All the signs were good for me.. i had no niggles and every session i was feeling stronger. I suppose the only thing that got me worried was a few days before the race the sea kicked up..big big swells! I wasn’t looking forward to racing in that, thankfully it died down a bit before race day. Last year when i arrived in Kona, i was a bit intimadated by all the fit looking guys an dolls.. this year having put extra work into my diet i was alot more confident! I couldnt wait to get racing. The day before the race i went to hotel reception to check what time breakfast would be served, i was informed 5.30am… this to me was a full hour after i normally eat, i threw my normally precise pre race routine up in the air! I wasnt happy at all, but what could i do.

Race Day:

Up at 4am, and down to body marking, i was one of the first there so i was back in my room to

collect all my pre race gear, then down to wait for breakfast to be served. I was getting quite anxious as alot of other athletes were in T1 already getting there stuff ready to race, and i had not even had breakfast, when the doors eventually did open i was a case of shove the oatmeal down, followed by 2 rounds of toast, a cup of coffee, then a rush to get my stuff on the bike, get the wheels pumped, and try and get my head together! Just as i was handing my post race bag in the cannon went for the pros, 30 min to go for me.. i was then happy as i wouldnt have to long to wait. I walked back over to the swim start, putting on my cap..then! DISASTER.. As many of you know i suffer badly with ear problems, to let water in is the worst possible situation for me. I was in an absolute blind panic, i even considered not even getting in the water can you believe! What i have to suffer when my ears are bad, not even winning the entire race would be worth it..

Anyway, in i got to the water with nothing else in my mind but just getting through the swim and still being able to stand up straight at the end of it.. BANG went the cannon and we were off.. On a scale of 1-10 i was swimming at a 5 maybe..my race plan had gone completley out the window. I got swam across..kicked in the face twice it was all going pete tong!! At the half way point in did calm and i found some feet..i actually thought, despite having a very bad start i swam quite well.

That was until i stood up and seen 1.16!!! I was devastated, totally gutted! Any thoughts of me doing well in my AG were well and truly out the window.. I had a quick transition for a change, and was out on the bike in no time..

The first 2 mile of the bike is quite hetic, you have all the dudes overtaking when they shouldnt trying to win the race there and then..those are the same guys you see 10 mile out the road blowing through their arses!! And all this short time i am still thinking of my swim. Before you head up palani hill there is a real good down hill..35mph job:) thats when i hit a pot hole and 1 of my main nutrition bottles jumped out, and even worse my Garmin 705 went with it.. So there i was with 105 mile of the bike to do, no data to keep things in check, all i wanted to do was swing down the hill and go on the beer! I had my 310xt on my wrist, i tried to set it up on the go, but nearly fell of doing so.. I turned it off and decided there was no other way but to ride using only the “FORCE” i had remembered a T shirt i saw a German dude wearing during the week..it went as follows” WHAT WOULD JENS VOIGT DO” i said to myself>>>>STFU>>>HTFU>> and just get on with it! After that i settled i hoped my pace judgment would keep me on track and that i wouldnt go too hard and blow on the run.. The only time i noticed the wind was on the climb to Hawi..Apart from that the bike was uneventful. Last year i started to tire in the last 20 mile or so, this year i felt good..a sign i was fitter, or maybe i didnt push hard enough, but i think i done ok considering i had no concept of time or pace.. I was glad to be getting of the bike all the same..into T2 a the first thing that happens a dude nearly runs over me..like WTF was he at sprinting round the tent! he was hardly in a winning position! I had another good transition and was looking forward to the run, all the signs pre race were good. And i was confident of banging out a solid run.. But this is IM and anything can happen! The first 200m is uphill out of T2, a nice little stinger after a 112 mile bike..my plan was to go through the 1st mile @ round 7.30/7.45 pace..i went through @ 6.50. In my experience of IM those who start fast normally end up walking alot.. and just as i thought that who did i pass??? superman from T2!!! walking.. whilst running past him i made sure he seen my look..then my smile:) I was focasing on taking my pace down, but was finding it alot easier just to hold pace.. i decided to run 6.55/7.00 until mile 16 then hopefully increase the pace.. I met some friendly faces in Matt and Martin on Alii. Matt didnt see me, but myself and Martin exchanged high 5s.. it was boiling hot at this stage..but i was feeling good and loving it. Heading up palini my pace dropped, it’s a stinger, alot of people walk up it..i took baby steps up it.. then out onto the Famous Queen k once again..this is were all you hear is heavy breathing, and the slop slop noises of running shoes hitting the melting tar.. its a lonely place out there..if your weak..this is were you will meet you maker..away from all the crowds with only the aid station workers to shout you on.. Then it down into the energy lab for what is normally the hottest part of the run..the gods were now on my side as there was complete cloud cover.. its 2 mile in 2 mile out.. at the turn round point i noticed i had made up alot of ground on Martin.. I lost sight of him on the uphill but soon seen i was gaining fast..6 mile to go and im thinking.. Christ this is gona be like IRONWAR!! with 3 mile to go i was running on his heels.. Martin is an extremly talented runner..2.50 @ IM Austria this year..smashing the Irish record.. and and no sounder man will you meet! so there we were, 2 friends battling it out on the Queen K.. shoulder to shoulder we approached an aid station, i am thinking..” go on reach for it!” he did and I increased the pace.. only to hear him beathing down my neck a few moments later..now the wolf had become the rabbit! The pace was good and with 2 mile to go Martin cramped and i managed to escape the wolfs jaws:) the last mile is mostly down hill, last year i was in a full sprint heading to the finishline..this year i savoured the moment and grabbed the tri color of Ash and crossed the line an extremly happy and proud Irishman.. there aint no feeling like it i can tell you! What started in the worst possible fashion turned out ok.. i even beat my previous kona time:) And running a 3.03 marathon on a hilly course put the icing on the cake!

The next night myself, Martin,Rob, and the girls managed to get access to the K-Swiss after party, mingling with all the pros was sweet.. free beer we relived the race over and over, and i can assure you, the more beer that went down..the better the stories got! Ireland is a very small country, when you get a chance to race for it..it makes you damm proud..

So whats next?? I have no idea! I will take away alot of very valuable lessions from this race, there are not to many things for sure in this life… but here is one thing that is….. you will NEVER see 1.16 after my name in a swim again!

Thank you every one for pre and post race support messages its said all the time, but i really do remember all the messages, and they do keep the spirits up when it get tough.. A special thank you to my wife.. i wouldnt even be on the start line without her.. and there is more than me who thinks her race day support is 2nd to none.

Until the next time.. Aloha and Mahalo

Galway IM 70.3 2nd September 2012

By John “The Scud missile” Mc Kenna

Galway an Everyman/Woman Race Report.

Prologue

“Drinking in the morning sun, blinking in the morning sun, shaking off the heavy one, heavy like a loaded gun”, the opening lines to Elbows ‘One Day Like This’ and a perfect metaphor for how I felt on the morning after the day before and a late night on the tiles with the Setanta crew. Sitting in the outdoor jacuzzi in the Clybaun Hotel looking up at the crisp clear blue sky I thought of the famous George Best bellboy line “where did it all go wrong”, then I looked across to see the hungover head on Caraher in the tub opposite me and reality came crashing in, time to get back to the wife and kids!

Just 24 hours previous a gang of Setantas got up at stupid o’clock to congregate on salthill prom to race Galway 70.3. The line up included in no order of preference or ability:

Pistol Pete Tomany
Feargal “jesus he can move for a big man” Cunningham
Bryan “meet the fockers” Mccrystal
Robbie “you are what you eat” Caraher
Niall ” I wish the mrs would take up tennis” Casey
Neil “John Deere” Kelly
Yours truly John “the pocket rocket” McKenna. Unfortunately in my case the rocket involved is a Saddam SKUD which rarely reaches its target and usually blows 200 metres into the sea!
Also lining up were Clare Maher, Fra Murphy and Andrew Cunningham all of them far too nice and polite to qualify for a nick name.
And I almost forgot, a guest appearance by ,Stephen “the housewife’s favourite” Ralph. Stephen gave us a cock and bull story about being down for a relay,with Gretta, however we all knew that he was secretly hoping that Louis Walsh would be there to support Keith “the teeth” Duffy, and on seeing Ralph would realise his mistake of not picking him at his failed audition for a place in Westlife a few years back and put him in as the 6th member of One Direction.

For the majority of us the closest we will ever get to the Hawaii dream is watching re-runs of Magnum PI on Bravo or having a look at Owen Martin’s now annual October holiday pics on Facebook. Actually come to think of it Niall will probably get there; as Eve will need someone to carry her bike box and look after the kids when she qualifies. Boom! But for the select few, or in our case, the select two, Pete and Neil, Vegas was a clear goal.

Race morning the weather conditions were perfect. Dry and cool with a few rays of sun peaking through to give a little warmth. It was a relief for most of us as the sea on Saturday was that rough I don’t think even the club’s most seasoned swimmer Plug Watters would have been able to get through the 1900metres. Having rocked the casbah in College in Galway in the mid 90′s I was more used to staggering around the City of Tribes at 5am with a traffic cone on my head and spending my last 2 quid on 10 Malboro lights, so walking round at this ungodly hour with an Aero Helmet and spending my last two quid on a double caffeine gel was a whole new experience.

I was in the same wave as Pete, who is a cool customer at the best of times and is easy company on race morning. So I could not be standing beside a better person when I realised that I had left my goggles in the hotel. Of course Pete had a spare pair, so myself, himself and Niall headed up to his car to get them. Panic over. Next panic was for the 3 of us to get to the portaloo before the wetsuit went on. Strange how you but 3 irishmen together and the conversation will always turn to bowel movements. Enough of that. We met Feargal up at the start. Another cool hand Luke, he was dressed in his jeans and tshirt and was in no panic to get suited and booted for the race. Although him being in the geriatric age group with Niall they had a bit more time than the rest of us to get ready, as they were off closer to 8am, the race organises obviously feeling sorry for the aul fellas!

While getting the wetsuit on the race announcer told us the pros were getting warmed up and ready to go. I could not see them, but I had a little chuckle to myself picturing Bryan Mc down there with big headphones on ala Michael Phelps getting psyched and ready to go. I even picked the last song in the world that the big dog would be listening to before the start to pump himself up, REM’s Shiny Happy People!

The pros were off, then the young bucks, then my wave the 35-40, the biggest group of all the EMC’s (early midlife crisis set) I was actually really looking forward to getting going and wanted to get into the water as soon as, but Pete’s wise head suggested we wait until 2 mins to go so as not to get too cold. Good plan. I swam less this year than any other year and the game plan was to keep it very steady in the water and not to waste too much energy. So when the gun went I just settled into a nice rhythm behind a rather portly guy who pulled me out to the first bhouy and then dropped me, but I was in clear water and relaxed into a comfortable stroke and just tried to swim straight. That was the way it was for the next uneventful 20 odd minutes. At the turn for home I jumped on the feet of another big guy and that was it out of the water, swim over and feeling great and raring to go on the bike. I did not have a clue what my time was, as I did not want to lose the garmin in the melee at the start, which incidentally never materialised, and left it on the bike. Ended up with at 42 min swim, which included a long run to transition. Looking at the other times I would take that time again and run.

I bumped into Bryan the day before and his advice was settle in don’t force it and let the power, or in my case the 100 odd watts come! I had a meal with Neil another uberbiker on the saturday and he told me his plan was not to go over 155bpm. I listened to both of them and just relaxed into an avg 153bpm. I had hit nearly all the cuchulainn league nights this summer and was all the stronger for it, as even though I felt I was cycling very easy I just kept passing other bikers. 20mins in I started to eat and drink. A few lads passed me, but I think it was Owen’s report from a few years back that said if fellas are passing you it normally means they will blow on the run or they are simply faster, so I let them off.

I knew the road well and knew where the hills and dips where and I think that really stood to me over the bike course. At the turnaround I looked at the watch and saw 1:15ish, feck me I might be on for a good time here. I gave it a good dig around 50-75k mark and settled in for the last 15k to try and save the legs for the run. My only scare on the bike was when I took a stupid notion of trying a Mo Farah arms above the head ‘heart pose’ for the camera man in middle of road in Connemara. A speed bobble and angry camera man later I decided to stay aero for the rest of the journey back to salthill. 2:39 mins later and a flawless dismount, if i do say so myself, I hit the run course.

3 laps appeals to me over one big loop, as I don’t like running and in my mind, physiologically counting down the laps makes the time go quicker. There was plenty of support from the locals and seeing the other setantas on the run course and shouting encouragement back and forth really helped when the going got tough. The wind was strong and as the run went on I saw my avg pace slowing creep up from 7:50 to 8:00 to 8:05. I dug in hard over the 16k mark but it was not coming down. So much for a 1:45 run, but I knew it was going to be respectable. Finished with a 1:47. Mixed middling not too shabby. My friend from Galway who was waiting in the stand for me came down and said “well done is 5:19 any good?” I was coughing up some manky gel and couldn’t answer him. After a sip of water I asked him did he see my time, his response “5:19 you dope!”. I asked him was he sure and his wife confirmed it, I was ecstatic.

The club are lucky to have the two best long distance athletes in the country in Byran and Owen, two lads who no matter what sport they threw there hands to would excel, but both of whom will always give you advice, pointers and tips. But for every Bryan and Owen there are a 100 other weekend warriors who make up the ranks in triathlon like myself, who for the most part do it for a bit of craic and a bit of banter and bit of personal achievement, taking satisfaction in knowing there are worse places you could be in (not many mind you!) than the Bush Track on a miserable Monday in February with Oliver Harkin screaming in your ear, or out at the Long Woman’s grave dodging hailstones in March or landing home to your better half and getting the “all picture no sound” treatment as the 2hr saturday spin became 3.5hour. I hope she does not mind me saying it but the cheshire cat smile on Clare’s face said it all as I saw her coming off the bike and on the run and I think that’s what gets most of us out there, the good days when the sun shines, the legs spin and it all comes together nicely.

I started with the opening line from Elbow’s one day and I will finish with the closing line. “So throw those curtains wide, One Day like this a year will see me right!” What a day what a sport!

Epilogue

After the race Rob left me for the resident bar to watch the Dublin game and I slept for 3 hrs to be woken by a text from him saying “boggars in the bar are more fun than you, gone to the Quays to meet the lads”. Shook and body and soul creaking, I rocked in to find Alan Gray holding court in the Quays with the rest of the crew. Fra had finished, Pete has his Vegas spot. Happy days! Texted Neil and unfortunately it did not work out for him, but I would bet the negative equity in my house that neil will be booking his flights very soon, you can’t keep a good man down, especially one who has kango hammers for quads!

I witnessed a phenomena which I have to share. I never thought it possible that a person could eat deep fried chicken while asleep. Rob proved it could be done in supermacs at 1am that morning. Ripleys Believe It Or Not have already bought the rights from me to the IPhone footage.

The next morning after checking out myself and rob went to a fancy coffee shop to sober up for the journey home. The waitress even before we sat down took one look at us and said “lads I am just letting you know we don’t do a fried breakfast”. With that I knew the game was up, it was time to get out of Dodge and head for home.