Heading into this year, I decided on the Door County Half Iron Triathlon because I had heard great things about the race from fellow triathletes and I knew that I could talk Erin into going if we stayed a few extra days to explore Door County. I knew that my training in 2017 was not sufficient, so after a lot of research, I purchased the "Iron Fit Secrets for Half Iron-Distance Triathlon Success" book. I did some trial runs with the training framework for some short races last summer and fall with a lot of success so my confidence was high when I started my 16 week training cycle on March 25th.
It only took a couple of weeks for me to realize how challenging and time consuming the training program was. With the support of my family, I was all in and I clearly saw progress each week. In addition to following the training program, I spent a lot of time fine tuning my fuel and hydration strategy. I also incorporated a walk-run strategy on some of my longer runs occasionally and made sure to include plenty of hills while cycling. I did everything that I could think of to make up for my mistakes in Lawrence.
It was a long 16 weeks and there were several times that I wanted to call it quits, but I just kept visualizing how it would feel to cross that finish line. Before I knew it, I found myself packing and loading up the truck to head to the Quad Cities. There, Erin and I said good bye to our 2 daughters who would be staying with Gran and Grandpa Weiler while we made our way up to Door County, WI. We arrived at Murphy Park for packet pickup in the afternoon while the kids triathlon was underway. After getting my packet, we took some time to cheer on some of the kids at the finish line and to check out the swim course. The wind was blowing in on Lake Michigan at 20 - 25 mph with very large waves and I was immediately intimidated. I began to pray hard that the wind would calm down by morning.
After checking in at Parkwood Lodge, we headed to Al Johnsons for dinner (they were watering the grass on the roof so no goats) and then got to bed early. When my alarm went off at 5:00 am it was already very light outside. The temperatures were in the upper 60's, humidity was low, and best of all, the wind was light. As soon as we arrived at Murphy Park, things started moving quickly. I got marked, picked up my timing chip, and got my transition spot all set up. Before I knew it, 8:00 was fast approaching and they started calling for the first swim wave to line up. As time ticked away and each wave started, I got my wet suit on and headed down to the beach. I'm happy to say that I never really got nervous waiting.
 |
| Pre-race meal at Al Johnsons |
At 8:39 am, the horn sounded and my swim wave was off. The 70 degree water felt good after waiting in the warm sun. I kept a quick cadence in the water and because they had marker buoys every 50 yards, I had no trouble sighting. After making the turn back south, it was clear that the wind was picking up, as was the wave activity. Even though the swim felt like it took forever, I ended up finishing in 47:10, over 4 minutes faster then my swim in Lawrence.
 |
| Coming out of the water after dominating the swim course |
I opted to pass up the wet suit stripping station (although it looked hilarious) and head into transition. I was not worried about speed in transition, so I took my time and managed to apply sunscreen and down a pack of sport beans in addition to my normal process. I also took some time to help a fellow athlete who was struggling to get his shirt pulled down.
As I headed out onto the bike, I was feeling very confident. The first 15 miles flew by and I was averaging around 19 mph on very smooth and fairly flat roads. As I headed into Sturgeon Bay, the roads got a bit more rough and I hit some miles that I was biking into the wind which slowed me down. The entire ride, I stayed on time with my hydration and nutrition. In addition, I managed to take advantage of the aid stations throughout the bike course. This was a whole new experience as well and I was truly impressed with the volunteers working those stations. Each time, I was provided with a pre-opened water bottle, directly to my hand while going 12 - 15 mph.
 |
| Finishing up a solid bike ride |
It was just before 1:00 pm so the sun was straight up and there was little shade for the first 4 miles of the run. I immediately opted for a run-walk cadence of 2 minutes running followed by 1 minute walking. The miles kept ticking by as I made sure to walk through each aid station to down a cup of Gatorade, a cup of water, and to dump a cup of ice down the back of my tri suit. At about mile 4 1/2, we finally got some shade but were also greeted with some hills, including our first trip up the bluff. After hitting the turn around, we finally were running into the wind which felt great. We also had a nice descent back into Egg Harbor before meeting back up with the road we ran out on.
It was at this point, about 8 miles in, that I began to feel panic as I started to feel my calves cramping up. This was exactly what happened at about the same point of the run in Lawrence that nearly ended my race early. The difference is that this time I was ready for it. I switched to a cadence of 1 minute running followed by 2 minutes walking. I also changed to a more flat footed stride to keep my calves from working so hard. Most importantly, I stayed positive and confident! I spent some of my walking breaks talking to other athletes which helped to make the time pass quicker. At mile 9 1/2, I walked along side many others as we made our way a half mile straight up the bluff on one of the steepest roads that I have ever seen.
 |
| Using a walk-run style made all the difference in this race |
I kept a consistent pace going through the remainder of the race and with about a half mile to go, turned on the jets as I made my way back down the bluff towards the finish line. By this point, every step hurt, I could feel the sun burning my skin, I was extremely hungry, and I just wanted to lay down. As soon as I could see the finish line and hear the announcer, all of that went away. I flew through the finish shoot as the announcer said "And here comes another finisher! Coming to us all the way from Grimes, Iowa, Patrick O'Connell!!!"
 |
| My face after crossing the finish line tells the whole story |
A few tears may have made their way down my cheek as I crossed the finish line, stopped my watch, and got my medal. Not only had I made it to another finish line, I had done it on my terms. The way that I wanted to. I have finished a lot of races since I started on this journey in 2014, but I have never been more proud of myself then I was in that moment. My run time was just over 2:49, over 28 minutes faster than Lawrence. Even better yet, my official time for the race was 6:53:24 which beat my previous PR (set in Lawrence) of 7:47:06. You read that right, I beat my previous PR by 54 minutes!!!
As always, I want to take a moment to thank my wife, Erin, and my 2 girls, Abigail and Bridget. They provide me with support and encouragement every single day. The amount of time that I spend training and racing requires them to sacrifice a lot and they never complain for a single moment.
 |
| I don't know who sacrificed more for this race, but we both earned it together! |
With this race, I have officially checked off my 6th goal for the year! I have 2 remaining goals for the year. The first is to set a new Olympic distance triathlon PR, which I hope to accomplish at the Bluff Creek Triathlon on August 18th. The 2nd is to finish my first full marathon, which I hope to accomplish at the IMT Des Moines Marathon on October 20th. In addition to those races, I will be competing on a relay team with my friends, Justin and Matt, at the Accel Triathlon on July 27th.
No comments:
Post a Comment