Simple pleasures are the best

Now I must tell you, before we begin, I am a pretty big fan of rites of passage. I like the idea of doing things because of tradition or history. Without getting philosophical, I think it keeps us connected to our past and unites us as a community.

Ironman is not with out its traditions.... one of which is the Ironman Tattoo. The "M-dot," as it is known, is a symbol that connects us all as Iron"people" and lets each of us know at a glance that we share a connection and a similar want to push ourselves to the limit. And, like a secret masonary handshake, it identifies us as a member of that brotherhood of suffering.

Roughly, 20 years ago at university, I had decided to get a tattoo for roughly the same reasons. I thought long and hard about what I might like on my person as a permanent part of my exterior and at the time I was working hard as a music student. I was (and still am) a trumpet player at heart and at the time I was often bugged by my fellow compatriots that I contorted myself on stage when I performed and was often hunched over in musical bliss. In addition, when I was not sifting through the weighty tomes of philosophical ferment, I found solace in the cartoons of Bill Watterson.... specifically - Calvin and Hobbes.... so.... I decided to blend the two.

I took my original drawing from this very frame...

Blow, Calvin.... Blow!

It did not seem like too much of a stretch to remove the balloon and insert a Trumpet. However, I decided to make the tattoo small and over time and lengthy exposure to the elements Calvin began to fade.

Blowin' his horn for the last time

So this morning at 10:30 a.m., Lori and I ventured down to the home of the Ironman Tattoo.

Just as it says - the owner "Rob" began this rite 15 years ago..... and....

Apparently, they tattooed your Mom.

So, in technical tattoo terminology, what we would be doing today, would be a "cover-up." I was going to have the tattoo artist put the "M-Dot" over Calvin. This met my needs quite nicely, as I wanted the tattoo and I did not want to have another one elsewhere on my body, so the logical thing was to superimpose one on the other.

Like a complete unknown,

Like a rolling stone.

Tools of the trade.

As with my last tattoo, I decided I wanted to give it a personal touch. I took the standard "M-Dot" and added a little life to it and made sure that it spoke of the fact that it was Ironman Canada.

Bye Bye my friend.... Once we were warriors.

So this DOESN'T come off with baby oil?

The "M-Dot" takes shape.

Goodbye Calvin... hello Ironman

Derek wishes Tri-Guy Good Luck... or at least that's what his shirt says.

After the initiation, there is only one thing to do.... eat something you have been craving for months, but have not had for a year...... If you are ever in Penticton, I highly recommend Burger 55..... wow! I have never seen or tasted anything like it before.

Play clip below and you will know what was going through my mind as I let the juicy burger sauce flow over my wanting taste buds. Simple pleasures are the best.

I am IRONMAN!

Well you guessed it...... "I am Ironman!" (Ya gotta love Black Sabbath.)

Here all the data if you are into that kind of thing....my chip did not seem to register out in OK Falls for my 1/2 marathon time.

What a great city... I cannot say enough about the volunteers and their support. The best sign I saw on the course was: "The pain is temporary... Ironman is forever!"

I will let the photos below do most of the talking today, as I was blessed to have family members throughout the route taking the odd snap. That said, lets get down to brass tacks... shall we.

4:00 a.m. Tri-Guy checks out the signs.

SWIM:

There is just something about 3000 people all wanting to swim slightly under 4k together that gets you kinda amped. You could cut the air with a knife. Some people were down right nervous to people crying as they said goodbye to loved ones for what could be a 17 hour day of casual exercise. I even heard someone say that the saw someone throwing up at the whole idea of the start. I personally know of an athlete that did all the training (that's a whole year of their life) got to Penticton and saw a photo of the start and because of that they didn't even sign in and pick up their registration package, they stood on the sidelines and watched.

Me.... I like to think I exude a quiet confidence. I have had excellent coaching and I have swam the route several times. Other people in the water don't bother me at all.... we are all just trying to get along in the same little bit of watery real estate.

That's me on the left in the yellow cap

You can see why some people might have some doubts about the start...

As you will remember from previous posts, I put in some shampoo in my goggles to keep them from fogging. I have done this for years and trust me, it works well. Yesterday, I guess I did not wash all of it out, so in a rookie move, I was about 200m out when my left eye was giving me problems as the shampoo started to make its way into my eye, and it is not like you can stop to fix it. That said, what choice do you have. So I quickly did what I could. Seemed to help and I pushed my right goggle back on to create suction then put my head down. Well, in my haste, the goggle didn't seal right, so the suction drew in water into the goggle and now soap completely filled my field of vision. One more quick stop and it was all fixed. On the bright side, as I was drafting some guy, I noticed he didn't even have any goggles. As you can imagine... a lot of things get knocked off in the swim... caps, goggles.... I heard of a guy whose wet suits got un-zipped and he had to do the course with it open.

I love the mirage affect in this shot.

Where did he go?

There he is.... I am the first guy (blue goggles) behind the dude without a top in the center.

BIKE:

I hit T1 in excellent time and after coming out of the change tent The Giant was rarin' to go and I really had to work hard at letting a large majority of people pass me. My game plan was to settle the HR and find my legs and as much as The Giant wanted to go after the pack, I held tightly onto the reigns of my HR monitor and kept it easy.

Now you have to understand there is every type of athlete you can imagine here. It can actually be a little intimidating. People checking in with $15,000 Cervélo bikes and all of the best gear. There bikes are so light that they barely register on a scale. They have the latest and greatest tech, clothes and shoes. So with all that, you just kind of assume that they started the way you did.... you know.... you enter your first race using your mountain bike with slicks on it.... you swim in your tri-shorts 'cause you can't afford the wet suit and you run in your cross trainers. So you gradually get hooked and as you improve you make a move towards better gear. NOPE! Yesterday it was cemented very clearly for me that some people just have money and buy the best. I am guessing that they figure it is the gear that is going to get them around the course. I am saying this because as we hit McLean Creek road, I was passing people like they were standing still. I saw people out of the saddle at the slightest hint of an incline, dropped chains from bad shifting and people wobbling about on their bikes unable to keep a straight line. I am not surprised by the number of people I saw on the run with road rash.

I raced the race I wanted and through it all just kept giggling and singing... as a girl would pass, if her name had a song, I sang it. Let see.... there was.... Diana, Amanda, Laura, Rosanne(a) to name a few. Look folks.... anything to pass the time..... in fact at one point on the run I could not get the Logical Song (Supertramp) out of my head. Anyway..... my day was basically get passed on the flats and pass on the climbs and the descents.

The weather was the shits.. one of the worst in IMC history... some guys even got hail. I am so thankful for my arm warmers... they really saved the day. The wind was definitely a factor and I heard loads of people complain about it. Luckily for me, I was just like home.... I cannot think of a day without wind on the prairies. At Keremeos, the weather really started to turn and you could see people melt as the wind picked up so much that debris was blowing across the highway. We are now talking gale force winds the kind where every now and then you are getting blown off the road. I felt so sorry for anyone out there with the solid rear wheel... they would of had a hell of a time keeping their bike together. The to make problems worse it started to pour and hail on the ascent to Yellow lake and into Penticton making the roads nice and slick.

All in a days work... I hit the "Ess" turn on this massive descent into Penticon at about the 165K mark. It was the last big drop and although it was slick, I was determined to push it. I told myself "no dying" and attacked. I was able to pas about 5 people and the the speed wobble started.... right in the same spot that it hit Krauss a few years ago...... just eased on the brakes and managed to steer away from the cement balustrade and keep myself in the race. As with any major accident avoidance, it does not hit you at the time it is something that sneaks up on you about 2-3 minutes later. So .... predictably, I had this wave of panic wash over me on this little flat section.

The rest of the ride was a blur. "All's I know is" is that my Max Speed on my ODO reads 75.2kmph. I wonder where I hit that......

Cranking-it up to Yellow Lake

This part felt like I was on a stage of the tour.... there were people everywhere.

RUN:

I found my running legs easy.... we have done so many bricks throughout the year that it seemed no worries. I followed the plan and kept my HR low until mile 20. Aid stations were: Water/ Gatorade Mile 1, Coke/Water Mile 2 and Gel/ Gatorade Mile 3 - repeat. At each aid station, I stopped for 20-50 sec to drink/eat, as Pat and I had planned from the start. I knew that if I was going to put together a semi decent run, it was all going to be about pacing and let my body talk to me about what I had left in the tank. Man, am I glad I did. I am so proud to tell you that I ran every inch of that course (with the exception of the aid stations as previously mentioned). I ran every hill and I was so pleased as I passed more and more people. On the hills, I put my cap down and just stared at the ground in front of me and dug as deep as I could to get the job done.

My gut was the biggest issue.... as they say.... what you can eat and stomach on the bike, you might not even be able to force down on the run. Well, I got to tell you that those Gels became a torture. It was all I could do the get them in me, and each time that I did, it felt like someone was wringing out my intestines. The pain, at times, was maddening, but... funny enough... it would eventually go away as I ran it off.

There was definitely some "walking" wounded out there. I even called over an official to tell them that there was a guy passed out in the ditch. The official looks at me and says what mile is this, and I said 22, he looked at me and said that it was basically par for the course. I saw people limping like zombies, clutching various body parts as they ran, people trying to run with their legs apart as their groin was obviously chaffed beyond tolerance, people vomiting... you name it... everything that you might expect to see from people pushing themselves to the limit.

I just kept my visor down and sang Supertramp.

Waving hello to my adoring fans on the way out to OK Falls... aka Mom and Dad

Stopped to say hi to my brother and sister-in-law at mile 25.

Enough of that... I gots to go!

In the zone and heading for home

Hey everyone I am almost there!

About 700m from the finish

Run Forrest, Run!

THE EPIC FINISH:

It sort of surreal now, as I type this, but the run went by in flashes... I was here then... I was there... then.... I was somewhere else... but lo and behold... I was in the city and running out towards the Sicamous making that final turn towards the finish line.

I saw my family and I knew I was going to make it. Then it became all about the finish. I looked ahead and checked behind me. I had a good 100m to the next person and the person behind me was about 75m behind my with no hopes of a sprint. PERFECT. I have seen so many finishers photos with 5 or more people in them. I wanted it all to myself.

The last 50m are EPIC!

I basically have been thinking about crossing that finish line for a year. I decided that if there was room, then I would finish with an airplane that high-fived people on both sides.

So there I was...all alone. I start my final approach to the runway. The crowd went nuts. As I was all alone, the announcer, Steve King, had time to read my full bio and shout encouragement. It felt amazing... a whole year's worth of effort summed up in something so simple as running about like a three year old with your arms extended.... a perfect end for a guy like me.

Zoooooooommmm!

So I hit the finish line..... then everything changed. I hit the ground and every muscle in my legs screamed in agony and I had to be helped up by two "grabbers" as I was having a real hard time walking, let alone moving. They got me to the rest area and they decided I needed some chips, as the salt would stop the cramping. Well I had the chips and my stomach did its final death cramp and I was off to the port-a-potty to evacuate the contents of my stomach by the quickest means possible. After that, I was invited to spend some time in the medical tent as I could not stop shivering.... what a night, but it was worth every second of agony.

You cannot fake that smile.... that's the kind you have to earn.

Epilogue:

This morning, my family held a champagne brunch in my honour and I had my first sip of something alcoholic in a year..... sigh.

The bubbles tickle my nose

In the afternoon I napped and let it all soak in. I am done. I have as many days off as I want..... and I want a few.

For closure, Paul, Lori and I went to the awards ceremony and saw all the great people there and had a chance to put the final brush stroke on this absolutely perfect painting that was Ironman Canada.

For a lark, I went to check out the lost and found... I guess people don't value their pumps.

Tribalistic Finishers - Tri-guy, Lori, Scott, Brian (who one his age group) and Paul

I am extremely grateful to everyone for all their support over this long process. I know I could not have done this without you. Your emails and posts were with me as I navigated my way around what is considered to be one of, if not the most, challenging courses on Earth.... for that I am extremely thankful..... to give back to the blogospheric community, I am going to post a little treat for you all tomorrow, so stay tuned.

The Giant heads for home...........Bye Bye baby.... see you soon....

You go man.... you go.

Yawn...... nyup... nyup..... blink-blink. Time to check the countdown....

Holy Schnikies!......... Id' better get training..... oh.... wait a minute... that's how Scott Taylor woke up this morning.

As you may have surmised from my last post, I did not get home until late and was quite tired when I finished the blog. So instead of getting up at some ungodly hour to swim, I decided that sleep, if I could get it, would be of the utmost importance. Lo and behold, I slept in until 7:05.... now that might be a bit problematic tomorrow as the race starts at 7:00, but today it ROCKED!

The day called for some time in the lake,on the bike and a bit of a run. After a cup or two of coffee and a hot tub, I was out to greet the morning for one last training ride, as the hot tub was the closest I was going to get to the water today.... it just was not worth it. To be more specific, there really in not much training left to do today... I'm kinds thinkin' I'm good. There is certainly no more fitness to be gained. However, it is your one last chance to test out your gear and it is good to warm-up the muscles a bit, as well. As the swim goes, I will have a warm up tomorrow before the mass start.

After a quick shower, it was time to do my finally check and pack up all of my goodies for the day.

Looking relaxed and ready

Each transition gets its own bag and you pack everything, including your shoes and helmet into them.

T1 (T stands for transition) - swim to bike..... (blue bag above) has my helmet, cycling shoes, socks, cycling gloves, arm warmers, HR monitor, shades, small towel, transition mat, a gel for after the swim (as it is a little hard to eat while you swim - try it some time), inflatable Cervélo, some extra body glide, a Cliff bar for the 3 hr mark - a little celebratory treat for making it half-way on the bike, a small bag of electrolyte caps and 3 Advil, Ventolin inhaler, my race belt and number.

T2 - bike to run (red bag above).... Running shoes, new (well... worn once) fresh socks, Jet pack, Timex hat, Tri-shorts, a bag of extra extra body lube, another Ventolin inhaler as I will not be able to get my other, spare toenails, 2 gels and my fuel belt with 2 8oz bottles of Gatorade in case I am in need and there is no aid station in sight.

Once the bags were packed, I was ready to go down to the check-in. It was really fun and very relaxing. I will let the photos speak for the rest, as check-in (like registration) was really fun, and it was interesting to see how everyone else prepares for something like this.

So I walk in and meet Christine.

"Hi, Tri-Guy," she says. "Follow me and I will show you around." Christine has done Ironman Canada twice.

"Put your bike here,"

Nice rack, eh?

I have an executive spot with my name on it..... cooool huh?

The Giant is all bedded down for the night....

and has been told to play well with the other 3000 bikes.

"Then you put your swim to bike stuff here."

I'm hoping that this is not some bizarre game of hide and seek, cause the camouflage thing is not working for me. I'm thinking it is one of those just for laughs gags and they put a big snake in your bag or something... that is if you can find it again.

Where the hell is my bag again?

Same thing goes for your bike to run bag.....'cept it's blue.

So after each event you hit the change tent.... you and 100, or so, of your closest buddies all getting naked together and slappin' on body glide....

Just waiting to be the butt of some joke. (I have now laughed for a good three minutes at that caption.... I am ready to race... as I am just ping-y!)

The big orange pumpkins are all ready to go out.

23 whats? 23 miles..... what the heck did I sign up for?

However, they are not out yet, as the water was seriously choppy.... like 3ft swells.

"Thar she blows," shouted a half-crazed Ahab.

So it is interesting to see how everyone else prepares for this ting called Ironman. Some pimp out their rides....

Afterburners?

Liquid Love.

I'm hoping this does not oink when it passes you... as this guy/gal undoubtedly....... wait for it..... wait for it..... HOGS the road! Haaaa haaaaa haaa heeee heee snort.

Keepin' the flies off.

Girls like to "pretty" up their day and are not to proud to show it.

Does that mean check out everyone's shoes when you go by or compliment them on their outfit? I can't decide.

[I know that comment is going to get me in trouble, but it was just too easy of a shot not to take].

Or how about these?

That's one way to tell if you are in a head-wind. Whirrrrrrrrrrrr.

Then it was neat to see how everyone packed for the event... some optimistically with no obvious tools or spares and others with two extra tires and three tubes..... talk about preparing for the worst.

Let's look at nutrition..... I personally don't tape my stuff to my bike, but it is something I am going to try after tomorrow, as the idea seems solid enough as you tear off the top and open the gel when you remove it. Right now, I bite off the top like a hand grenade and then squeeze in the contents.

Some people get the one flavour they like and stick to it...

Jet Blackberry hell.

I am not a fan of Banana Strawberry, but this athlete is.

See I am more like this guy.... a little bit of everything keeps your palate engaged and involved in the supple texture of each individual gel pack as it glides its way over your palate, teasing your taste-buds along the way with its wonderful subtle hints of Bananas and Strawberries.

I like the mint chocolate (1st one), but you cannot seem to get it in Winnipeg.

Then there is this guy... he plans to eat a gel every 20 minutes... there are 16 strapped to his bike.

So what the hell has he got in the bento box? .... a couple of sandwiches?

(For you non-triathlon types, A bento box is the little nylon bag in front of all his gels... traditionally used for more food..... that's what makes the joke kinda funny in a groaning shake your head kinda way... and if you have had gels before you would still be laughing at this point because of the brilliantly executed description above about them... as they all actually taste like eating a bowl of warm icing sugar.)

Lastly..... you see everything at this kind of event, but my friend here is all over the spirit of innovation and modification..... or maybe he just didn't want to pay the extra fee on the plane to bring his bike to Penticton... whatever the case... You go man.... you go.

I hope those deep dish HED rims get him where he wants to be.