Triathlon Rediscovered

So much of triathlon seems to be like modern fast foods - prepackaged, plastic and predictable. The excitement seems to have faded, the feeling of being part of the fringe element and stretching yourself mentally and physically has disappeared. This is my experience.

Earlier in the year I attempted my first 3 day triathlon stage race with the Sri Chinmoy 3 Day Ultra (15/400/100) and absolutely enjoyed the challenge. BUT I needed something else. I needed to really put myself up against the hardest thing I could find.

Enter ULTRAMAN.

For triathletes the world over the word Hawaii conjures up images of lava, heat, wind, hills, humidity and downright torture. Imagine 3 days of swimming (10k), biking (415k) and running (84.4k) in this very same environment. MMMMMM. The challenge was put in front of me and I decided to accept it.

What was ULTRAMAN like? In the nature of triathlon recollections my account may differ from that of other athletes competing in the same event. This is my account of ULTRAMAN Hawaii.

DAY 1 - Swim 10km Bike 145km.
The moment I had worked towards for months was finally here. The hundreds of kilometres clocked up in training, all those early morning starts and lonely mind numbing laps of Caringbah pool were going to pay off today. I felt that I was swimming the best I had for a long time. 10 k's should take me 2:45-3:00 depending on conditions (currents, swells etc). The week leading up to race day had seen huge seas, big swells and great surf! No problems I am a strong swimmer and have done a lot of open water swimming - bring it on. Race day turned on relatively calm conditions.

We started out from Dig Me Beach (the Hawaii Ironman swim start) and I quickly found Matthew my escort paddler. We had previously worked out the line we were going to swim so off we went. Just as quickly the pack spread out and I found myself in second place - things were going according to plan. At the 1:30 mark I was still in second with Gordo Byrne the leading swimmer still in sight and 3rd place about 200m behind. We had been swimming into a slight current with the promise of a push home for the last 3k. The day was turning out as planned so far. I started to visualise myself at the swim finish with a big grin on my face running to my bike and charging up the first hill.

WRONG! I got a bad dose of sea sickness. I have never had this before - ever. This was the worst feeling I have ever had. I lost all momentum and drive. My stroke fell apart. All I wanted to do was throw up, get out and go home. Unfortunately I could do neither of these. I finally escaped purgatory and exited the water in 6th position at 3:28 with very wobbly legs and a queasy tummy (Leonie later told me I looked a strange grey/green colour). I have never been so glad to get back on dry land. I think I will just sit here for a while before facing that hill I had earlier visions of. Once again my plans were foiled - this time by a Brazilian camera crew there for the event who had their camera right in my face the whole time.

As soon as I got on the bike I felt FANTASTIC. I wish this had happened 2 hours earlier! The first 9k were all up hill - you climb to an elevation of 500m in this time. I guess it is best to get all the climbing out of the way all at once (what fantasy world was I living in?). The next 50k is spent - at full race pace - going up and down between 550m and 300m (at least 3 times). I knew I was in good shape when I moved into 3rd place before the 25k mark.

Fortunately the turnaround is the highest point on the course so the return trip should see more down than up. Soon after, I was back in 5th position when a couple of guys blasted past me. These guys are really going hard so I had to pick up the tempo or risk losing more places. Retracing our outward steps (up and down, up and down, up and down) eventually saw us high on the Kona escarpment for the downhill rush to town. The scenery all day had been magnificent - wide vistas of the Hawaii coast in all its brutal glory. There was a combination of lush greenery and cruel lava with the volcanoes in the distance and the ocean far below mixed in with heat, wind, rain and humidity. Now it was time to come down (what goes upÉ). We are greeted by a 5km steep, straight and smooth road. I quickly got to 90kph when it started to rain again so that was the end of the speed. This is a great way to finish a ride!

I got off the bike in 5th with a time of 8:14. That was tough! That was fun! This is the event I had been searching for. Time to get a massage, drink, eat, drink some more, eat, drink some more and get a bit of sleep. What will the next 2 days hold?

Day 2 - Bike 276km
I awoke early to discover that my legs felt great after the previous day's efforts. I was feeling fresh and rested and ready to face the big day ahead. The mood in the pre-dawn darkness was in contrast to the nerves and excitement of the previous day. There were a number of bleary eyed athletes and lots of tired looking support crews. All the athletes were aware of the immensity of the challenge ahead on this day - 276km of hard riding over many hills with the wind already starting to pick up.

The day began with a mass start but not before the officials warning (repeatedly) that they were going to be really tough on drafting. There was going to be little chance of drafting on this day! A group of 5 broke away very early and had a good pace going. My dilemma - should I go with them or should I be conservative and ride to my own plan. I decided to stick to my own plan. After about 20km I was back in 11th position with a lot of people a long way in front - I had to trust MY judgement.

The Queen K Highway is a stretch of road that defies the imagination with its hostility and unpredictability. Today she decided to give us a strong headwind on the way out to Hawi (the Ironman turnaround). My mentor had given me some advice on how to ride in these conditions and his advice was perfect on this day. By the time I had reached Hawi (85k) I was in 6th position - I knew my plan was the correct one. This 85k had been really hard with the last 25k being an uphill grind into the wind - any change was going to be welcome. Hawi is a quaint little town in the middle of nowhere but it is famous the world over due to the annual Ironman circus. We didn't turn around here. We went through town and made a right hand turn to begin what was described as a scenic section!!! The first thing you are faced with after making this turn is a dead straight 3k stretch of road that goes straight up (before it disappears) into the Kohala mountains - bring back the Queen K. The next 19k saw us cover 1,200m of elevation - with some spectacular scenery. After that initial section the road just keeps on going steadily up with no respite. The upper reaches really opened up into some beautiful countryside - and some more headwinds. I have never sweat so much in such a short period of time - my clothes were just dripping wet (not for the last time on this day)! By the time I had hit the top I was in 5th position and making up ground on those in front. A few minutes later the descent was over!

Every long race has a bad patch - mine was about to begin. After the relief of going over the mountain top and the fun of coming down again the relatively flat 10k at the bottom was very tough for me. Maybe the legs just stiffened up, maybe I needed more carbs, maybe I lost focus or perhaps I was just tired! Whatever the cause I still struggled. After I gave myself a few harsh words and a good uppercut I got back on track - there was still a long way to go (150+km) before I could relax. At this stage there was a long descent down to the coast of about 25-30k. This part of the course I really enjoyed and relaxed, refuelled and refocused - the only problem was I knew I had to turn around and ride back over this exact same stretch of road.

It was midway through this climb that my left knee decided that it disapproved of all this climbing. No worries - it is just another hurdle to jump over and I can deal with it at the end of the ride (forgetting about the run tomorrow). If I have learnt nothing else over the years I have learnt that the endurance athlete's best friend is patience. If you keep going forward the end will come - you just need patience. The long climb back could have been incredibly demoralising but I knew that I would get to the top and I was that much closer to home. I also knew that coming up (in about 40k) there was a long, fast down hill stretch. It was during this stretch that I dropped back to 6th position. Markus from Switzerland couldn't stay with me on the uphills but he was like a rocket on the downhill - how does that work?

At about 235k into the ride we were back on the Queen K - at least we will get a tailwind going home. WRONG! The headwind of the morning had become a headwind in the afternoon. It was a case of head down bum up and grind all the way home. 9:44 after I started my day was finished and I was able to maintain my 5th position in the overall standings. It was the hardest ride I have ever done in my life (even harder than the 400k in the Sri Chinmoy race). With reflection it seemed like I was climbing all day - the uphill sections took a long time but the downhills were over with all too quickly! I was very glad to get off the bike but disappointed that the day was over. The sheer exhilaration of successful achievement will stay with me for a long time.

Day 3 - Run 84.4k
There is only one word that adequately summarises this run - BRUTAL. Everyone who I spoke to afterwards described it with the same word. People who have done Ironman know how tough the Queen K is to ride but imagine how tough it is to run. For those who have not seen this wicked stretch of road imagine a dead straight road that disappears into the heat shimmer on the horizon. There is hill after hill with the scenery consisting of lava with the occasional clump of Spinifex clinging to the rock. There is no shade anywhere and it is hot and often windy. It is like being in a blast furnace.

The mood in the predawn darkness was very sombre. Everyone was tired from the previous day's effort and restless night sleep combined with the uncertainty and knowledge of what the day ahead would hold. All the athletes gathered together and joined hands with the support crews forming a larger circle around them whilst a traditional ceremony and prayer was said. It was a truly humbling and inspiring moment. This group of athletes and support crews had bonded together like nothing I have ever seen before. Now it was time for the pain to begin.

There was very little chat as the group ran the 1 mile to the Queen K - just the occasional bit of nervous banter as the pecking order became established. Sergio Corderia from Brazil was the unbackable favourite to take line honours today as he has before with the only question being by how much. While the result was as expected the margin back to Tony O'Keeffe from Canada proved that he did not have it all his own way. These 2 guys along with Don Fink showed that you can race this course in these conditions. They looked like they were doing it easy (looks are very deceiving) while my story was a lot different a long way back.

Fortunately as time has passed the memories of this day have faded somewhat. It all seems like a bit of blur but several themes have been indelibly burned into my memory. My left knee very quickly reminded me that I had failed to give it the adequate care and rest that it demanded during yesterdays ride. Despite the problems with the knee I was able to run according to my pre race plan for about 3 hours when I was very comfortable (this is a very relative term) and able to very easily tick the miles off one after the other - maybe this day would not be so bad after all.

The day very quickly heated up with no cloud cover and no cooling breeze - it was becoming a blast furnace. Fluid intake in these conditions becomes the most important factor in deciding if you will finish or if you will fall by the wayside. My crew (Leonie, Michael and Kathryn) were just fantastic. They kept up my supply of ice cold PB Fluid and Electrolyte Drink. I thought I was on track but I could not have been more wrong. By 3:30 I had stopped sweating - DANGER AHEAD. My dilemma became a choice between continuing as I was and hoping for the best or walk/jog for a long time while I tried to rehydrate enough to get me to the finish line. Wisdom prevailed and I did a lot of walking and a lot drinking for a long time - this was getting really rough.

The 20k stretch between 40-60k was a real death march. My knee needed icing every drink stop, my feet and ankles became swollen and bruised, my achilles tightened up and my groin muscles felt like they were on fire! I sunk as low as I have ever been - the feet were dragging and the head was down. A number of times I was not able to even walk in a straight line - how was I going to finish? There was however no way I was going to stop - all I needed was patience. As is often the case with these events I came good (relatively speaking) with about 21k to go. I was able to basically run the whole way home and finish strongly. It took a long time and I kept telling myself that I was never ever going to put myself through anything like this again BUT I kept going, dug deep and did what I set out to do - finish. I finished in 15th this day after 10:08 of running (walking, staggering and sulking). I was able to finish the event in 10th - a result I am very proud of.

This was the best finish I have ever experienced in triathlon - running to the finish line carrying the Australian flag with the band playing "Land Down Under". The months of training, the early mornings, the thousands of kilometres in training and the thousands of dollars spent all culminated in this moment - 28:09:30 after the event began. I was an ULTRAMAN.

I have to do this event again. I was only the third Aussie to have done this race but I would love to travel over next time with a team of people to showcase what we can do. This event was the hardest thing I have ever done but it was also the best triathlon experience I have had.

The long distance triathlon is a solo event but the athlete could never do it without a good support base. I could not have survived the months of training without many people supporting, encouraging and helping me. I needed someone to have a word in my ear (often a telling off) when I was getting grumpy, cranky or downright obnoxious but still communicate their support - I have one such couple who do that - THANKS. Training partners are often a fickle bunch (especially over winter) but I was fortunate to have the backing of the Cronulla Triathlon Club without whose support I would not have made the start line. My swimming has improved out of sight in recent months due to my coach Amanda Jones at Caringbah Pool who never let me take the easy option and even though this event did not demonstrate my improvements we knew the progress we have made. I was also fortunate enough to have the best massage therapist in Australia - Vanessa Porter - working with me to help me stay injury free. Unless you have your fluid and nutritional needs sorted out it would be impossible to survive the long training sessions or the event itself. PB Sports Nutritional products have given me the necessary tools to make sure I can meet these needs in the most effective way - their products are truly superb and despite the volume I have consumed recently I still enjoy the taste!

Without the love and support given to me by my wife Leonie and children Michael and Kathryn I would never have even had the courage to attempt this epic event. The teamwork that they have displayed this year makes me appreciate them so much more. Ultraman is about family and support and following is Leonie's perspective in being the support crew to an Ultraman lunatic.

If you are not crazy enough to ever contemplate doing an Ultra but looking for a holiday in KONA - be the support crew. Here are some DO's and DON'Ts on how to crew at the ULTRAMAN Hawaii and enjoy the experience!

• DO make sure your athlete has a relaxed attitude to racing ie will mix up their own drinks, change their own tyres, doesn't get too nervous - in short the less support you have to give the more time to enjoy!
• DON'T include anyone in your crew that you won't enjoy spending 3 days squashed in the car with listening to their music.
• DO spend a couple of days driving the course prior to the race days - then you can appreciate the scenery instead of continually looking for the best spots to pull over and hand off supplies.
• DON'T bother warning the children not to fight during the race unless you know that will work!
• DO remember to take the list of phone numbers provided by the race organisers with you on Day one - without the contact numbers the phone supplied becomes useless.
• DON'T worry when your athlete comes out of the water looking greenish grey - apparently once on dry land sea sickness disappears.
• DO trust your athlete's memory - doubling back on a narrow road to make sure they take the correct turn only creates driver stress.
• DON'T take it personally if your athlete drops a bidon during hand over or hits you with an empty - after all its their fault for going too fast.
• DO encourage your athlete to ride back to the hotel after the end of stage one and two - it's good to give the legs a spin and saves you a second trip.
• DON'T panic when you wake at 2am and realise the phone hasn't been charged - you didn't need it on Day one so you probably won't need it tomorrow.
• DO cheer on all the other athletes - its well worth seeing their smiles (or grimaces).
• DON'T miss out on the local food - the malasadas at Tex Drive In are worth the stop and your athlete has a long climb ahead so you're bound to catch them up.
• DO take whatever toilet stops you can find - sometimes you just have to detour to the resort restrooms and leave your athlete to cope on their own (how hard can that be on the Queen K in the middle of the day!).
• DON'T have just one driver on the run support crew - it's hard running with your athlete knowing that the further you get from the car the further you have to run back to it to drive to the next stop.
• DO have a flexible stopping schedule - sometimes one mile becomes just too far for your athlete to go without a drink.
• DON'T underestimate the encouragement and camaraderie that comes from all the athletes and support crews - it is a fantastic family!
• DO embrace the roller coaster of emotions on the run when your athlete is looking good, then not so good, then really bad - still the wheels stay on and they regroup to come back strong again.
• DON'T miss the finish line - minus the huge crowds it is an intimate personal celebration of an awesome achievement.
• DO appreciate the privilege it is to share in such an amazing race experience and plan to come back and do it again.