The 10th Ironman Wisconsin Madison was held on Sunday, September 11, 2011. It was also the 10-year anniversary of the 9/11 attacks on the United States of America. I dedicated my race this year in honor of all who have sacrificed so much during and since that tragic day. There were many reminders throughout the day and many other athletes who honored the victims, the paramedics, the police and firefighters, the service men and women, and so many others that have been impacted by those events. Let us never forget and remain vigilant to make sure nothing like that ever occurs again.

 

Executive Summary
On a spectacular, yet warm September day, the main objective of the day was accomplished; I finished my third Ironman Wisconsin. Everything above and beyond that was pure bonus. It was not without help from a couple of strangers in Verona, especially the camera guy with the gorilla tape.

The day produced 5 PR’s in each the swim, bike, run, and both transitions, which resulted in an overall PR by nearly 42 minutes. The largest time gain came on the bike in spite of a mechanical issue which cost me 15-20 minutes. And it was fun to cross the finish line hearing Mike Riley announce, ‘Miles Burd; You are an Ironman for the third time’, while the light of day was still upon us.

Pre-Race Activities
Thursday
I arrived in Madison on Thursday afternoon, checked into the hotel, and made my way down to Monona Terrace for athlete check-in. At Madison athletes can check-in Thursday between 10 – 4 PM and Friday between 10 – 4 PM. If you do not check-in on Friday, you do not race. I arrived at Monona Terrace around 3 PM and did not have to stand in a single line. The process seems to be a little drawn out with six separate stations that you must progress through to complete the process. It was well organized and well staffed. The traffic through here on Friday is mind numbing.

After completing registration I still had time to shop the Ironman Merchandise store. I learned this year that buying the previous year’s event merchandise is the way to go. I bought both the 2010 IMOO cycling jersey and tri shorts and saved $90 (>60%) from the original sticker. The WTC (World Triathlon Corporation), the company behind the Ironman logo and events, has reported that the average athlete spends $250 on merchandise at each event they attend. Well I did my part to reduce that number significantly spending about half that this year on stuff.


Friday
After getting in a morning swim in lake Monona (the water was cooler than what I had been swimming in at Square, but still very nice. On race morning it was reported at 70F) and about a 3 mile run. I walked through the expo being grateful that I completed the process the day before. It was wall to wall people and lines that made my head spin. I made my way back to the hotel and prepared all of my gear and special needs bags for the race. I was taking a much different approach to nutrition, and my special needs bags consisted of one small Ziploc sandwich bag that contained a couple ibuprofen, nuun tablet, salted nut roll, and electrolyte tabs.

My brother and his family arrived around 5:30 and we headed out for dinner before heading back to Monona Terrace for the mandatory athlete meeting at 7 PM.

They do not take attendance at the meeting so I’m not sure the mandatory part is enforced. The meeting covers any last minute changes to the course, safety procedures, and a review of the rules, especially the drafting/overtake rules on the bike. All Ironman events operate under the rules of USAT, but without question, this event enforces the drafting/overtake rule harder than any other event I have ever participated in.

The rule states that while on the bike you can not be any closer than four bike lengths to any other bike unless while passing or being passed. You have 20 seconds to execute a pass or drop out of the draft zone after being passed. The problem is that with 2800 bikes out on the course and only a handful of officials the application of the rules is somewhat arbitrary. It comes down to being in the wrong place at the wrong time. If cited though, the penalty is stiff, four minutes stiff that is. There are penalty tents along the bike course. If the officials penalize you, you must report to the next penalty tent, where they hand you a stop watch and tell you to give it back when it reaches four minutes (ouch).

Saturday
Saturday is bike and gear bag drop off. So between 11 – 3 PM you take your bike down to Monona Terrace and put it in T1. For age group athletes the only thing allowed in T1 is your bike. Your helmet, shoes, etc. must be in your bike gear bag. I always let some air out of my tires to avoid them expanding and exploding. The floor of the bike transition is concrete, so it could get very warm on a sunny afternoon. It does require hauling a pump over in the morning to re-inflate them but I figure the inconvenience is better than the alternative.

Charlene and Alexandra arrived Saturday afternoon, and the balance of the day was spent relaxing and enjoying time with the family. Saturday evening we went to Granite City for dinner where I had my share of carb loading.

Sunday
Transition opened at 5 AM Sunday morning. I arrived about 4:50 AM, having already had a cup of coffee, oatmeal, and two bananas. I had two bananas Saturday night before bed and had another two that I would eat before the race started at 7 AM.

I pumped up my tires and filled my water bottles on the bike. I dropped my specials needs bags (one for the bike and one for the run) off. I ran in to Tina and Teresa at the bag drop off. They were both there volunteering, and I was glad to see their smiling faces.

I was supposed to meet the family outside of the building up near the helix leading down to the beach between 6 – 6:30. When 6:30 passed I thought that I might not get a chance for final hugs before making my way to the swim. Kyle found me and informed me that the others were just behind, running a bit late. I was relieved they made it and that we got to see each other before the race started. I was excited that they were there and would draw on their energy throughout the day!

The Swim – 2.4 Miles

The swim course is a large rectangle that consists of two counterclockwise laps. I cannot compare the swim start at Madison to any other Ironman event since it is the only one I’ve done. And it does not compare to any other triathlon I have done. It is a deep water mass start and is truly as mentally challenging as it is physical for me. Over the past several months I’ve debated and changed my strategy for the swim, and especially the start multiple times. In the end I decided to start about 20 yards to the right of the first buoy and attempt to stay about 20 yards wide around the entire loop. This approach results in a slightly longer swim but I was hopeful it would mean more open water and less battling. As I waited for the cannon to sound I tried to relax and just breathe. The blast startled me and I quickly remembered why this start is so challenging. I battled for what seemed the whole first 800 M, the length of the first side of the rectangle, and didn’t seem to find clear water until I was about half way across the first short side of the course. On the back side I was able to get clear and got into a good rhythm. I kept my stroke long and felt good in the water. On the second loop things went fairly well until I was about half way down the back side of the course. All of a sudden I was surrounded again. The guy next to me was trying to push me even further wide of the course. I thought, you have to be kidding me, either go around or back off, why do you need to be in my face? After tangling arms more than what was necessary I pulled up and let him continue to swim wide. I briefly thought, go ahead and swim out into the middle of the lake, just get away from me already…

I exited the water feeling good about the swim. The wetsuit strippers quickly separated me from my suit, got me back on my feet, and I was headed up the helix to T1.

T1 and T2 at Madison require navigating the helix. Up the helix into T1, down the helix coming out of T1 on to the bike course, and back up the helix coming into T2. T1 and T2 are inside Monona Terrace. You enter the building after climbing up the helix, enter the bike gear bag room, and then into the changing room. There are volunteers in the rooms to help you, get you water, help get stuff in and out of your gear bags, etc. (Thank you volunteers! Your help throughout the day was greatly appreciated!) My goal for T1 was 7 minutes, I was very happy with my 7:07 this year.

The Bike – 112 Miles

It has been reported that due to a last minute reroute the course was actually 113.2 miles this year. The bike course at Madison is a lollipop shaped course with the stick being 16 miles and a 40 mile loop. The course is relentless with endless turns, shorts climbs, fast descents, and very few sections with flat terrain. You are not doing any one thing for more than a few minutes, which means you cannot just zone out and ride. I would classify the course as technical and challenging. There were many sections this year with new pavement and, in general, the course was in excellent condition.

 There is a no pass zone which you must navigate on the way out and again on the way in about a mile or so from transition. A few miles into the ride we went over some rough railroad tracks and I heard a loud snap. At the time I had no idea it came from my bike. Over the next 12 or so miles I realized that I had a problem. My seat kept getting lower and lower. Its funny that my seat had dropped nearly four inches before I mentally connected what was happening. When I got into Verona, about 16 miles or so into the ride, I pulled over. I had the allen key in my saddle bag and thought that the seat had just come loose. After further investigation my heart sank when I saw the crack in the seat post clamp! My first thought was that my race is over, there is no way I can continue. A volunteer came running across the street and he spent a minute or two looking at it and commented that I would probably not find repair parts. Then this camera guy, like a television camera guy, with a big camera, comes running across the street. After filling him in he commented that he did not know if he was allowed to provide assistance but had some really strong tape (gorilla tape) in his van. We sent him for it and in a minute or two he returned. The volunteer teared the tape and we put it around the bottom of the clamp and around the top of the clamp. Hoping that if it did start to fall again, maybe the tape would get wedged and keep it from dropping. After getting the tape on I tightened the one bolt on the side that was not cracked, put away the tools, thanked them both for saving my day, and headed back onto the the course. I don’t know for sure how much time had passed, but I’m guessing somewhere around 15 to 20 minutes.

I saw the Burd Crew a few times on the bike course. When I saw them the first time around mile 40, I pulled over to tell them what had happened. While I was making my next loop they ran over to the hardware store and purchased some hose clamps thinking that we might be able to make additional repairs if needed. I saw them again around mile 70 and decided to keep going with the tape since it had held up so far. The seat did end up dropping about a half inch over the course of the ride but was not really a factor. I know that the help I received was probably not completely within the rules, but I’m extremely grateful for the help and am now a big fan of Gorilla Tape. I’m also wondering if I’ll end up on the Universal Sports broadcast, since the camera guy taped the entire encounter.

T2 – Bike to Run Transition
I was happy to make my way back up the helix into T2 and was glad to hand my bike off to yet another great volunteer. My steed had survived yet another day and was on his way back into the the corral for a well deserved rest.

I started running out of T2 when I realized I forgot to take my cycling jersey and shorts off, whoops, there’s a couple minutes I wont get back. My goal for T2 was three minutes and I stumbled out in a loping 5:34…

The Run – 26.2 Miles
The run at Madison is technically two loop out and back. The turnaround though is only two blocks from the halfway point as the bird flies (no pun intended). It is great for participants and spectators because you can see your athletes/support a lot more. The run course is challenging, it is not excessively hilly, but it is not flat either.

The high temp for the day was 85F and when you were in the sun it was HOT! The good news is that there was a breeze and there were quite a few shady areas. As the day progressed and the shadows grew, there were even more opportunities to hide from direct sunlight.

I had come down with something (flu-ish like symptoms) earlier in the week. My allergies this time of year also usually flare up. Some combinations of the above results in a GI that was less than happy all day. I fought with it on the bike and the run started off in much the same fashion. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not complaining, all in all, I felt pretty good all day. But this did impact my strategy on the run more than either the swim or the bike. I settled in with a walk jog approach. I jogged the first two miles and walked through the water stop. I followed this pattern pretty much the rest of the day. I would run to the next water stop, grab water, fruit, etc., and walk a bit and then repeat to the next. Every time I saw the Burd Crew along the way it would pick me up and get me going again. I can not thank them enough for their support!


The Results
Finishing with the sun still up was a good feeling. I came up short of my goal time but am very happy with the result given the challenges of the day. Hearing once again; Miles Burd from Cottage Grove, MN – You are an Ironman!.

The day produced a Madison PR and I improved in all disciplines. I did not sign up for the 2012 race but will be there to volunteer and give back and cheer on my fellow athletes. I tentatively plan to register for the 2013 race, I age up for 2013 to the 50-55 year age group. I will be one of the youngest 50 year old’s on the course and I feel that there is another hour to hour fifteen out there I can get so who knows where that might lead…stay tuned…