Dream Believe TRI Coaching and Clinics

Ironman Wisconsin 2011 Report

Posted on Nov 22, 2011 by Kim Reistad   |  

At last, my Ironman recap! On September 11^th I was among the 2,500 athletes to jump into Lake Monona to compete in Ironman Wisconsin. While the day was absolutely amazing (I will explain more), it was the journey that got me there that made the entire experience. The journey started September 10^th 2010 when I impulsively registered for the event. That alone is a big step, making a commitment and understanding the discipline and determination that will take place for the entire year. I didn't specifically start training for Ironman until May, prior to May my focus was on an adventure race and a few local races.

Training was full of ups and downs. While the weekday hours didn't change too much from my normal training, it was the weekend long training days that were both critical and time consuming. Without the support of my amazing husband, my dream of completing the Ironman would have been impossible.

Jumping forward to the actual race day. The weekend of Ironman our awesome friends, Marci and Whit, came to visit from Athens, Georgia. It was really special to have them around for the weekend. Marci was awesome; she took my mind off any worries or stresses I may have had about the race. The night before my other dear friend Lorin came in from Chicago and we all had a healthy and nutritious dinner together!

Race morning, the alarm went off early. I immediately ate my breakfast and drank my coffee; the excitement of the race was running through my veins. Nick dropped me off close to transition where I went through normal body marking, pumping my tires up, and standing in line for the port a potties. After feeling confident I had everything readyI left transition and made my way down to the lake. I got my wetsuit on, hugged all my friends and kissed my husband for good luck and off I went into the water. Going through all the steps the morning of the race I would feel my heart race periodically in excitement and my eyes would get a little teared up. The emotions of what the journey has been all about and thinking about what was ahead made me thrilled and emotional all at once.

Finally, we were out in the water. The 2,500 of us swimmers were all waiting in the water for the gun to go off. As I was floating, I took a moment to embrace it all, I looked over at the shore to glance at all the fans and support. There were hundreds of people up along the Monona Terrace, the shore and what Madison calls the helix (the circular ramp that leads into transition). I took a moment and said a prayer to myself, both being grateful to make it through all my Ironman training healthy and safe and asking for strength to help me get through the day. The gun went off and all 2,500 swimmers were off. At this point, it is hard to put into words what happens. All of us fighting for water and fighting for a spot becomes mighty chaotic. I grew up swimming and have never felt uncomfortable in any open water situation, however, this time I felt extremely uncomfortable. I paused for a moment to get my composure. However, I found out fast as I had two swimmers swim over me and another swimmer kick my head that I needed to keep going. I just kept swimming and filled my head with positive mantras ('This too shall pass'). The swim course is two rectangular loops. IM Wisconsin is known that when you approach the first turn buoy that all the swimmers start to 'moo' like cows being herded. Well, I can tell you for a fact this is true at the turn buoy and is enough to make you smile through a tough moment. After about two thirds of the way done with the first loop the swim was finally starting to spread out. The second loop was no problem and by the time I rounded the last turn buoy I was excited to see the swim exit banner. Upon excited the swim I was immediately overwhelmed with the loud crowd noise. I had the 'strippers' slip my wetsuit off fast and then took off running up the helix to transition. The helix was crowded with all the fans. I felt like a super star and couldn't help but smile the entire way to the top. At the top you run inside the building to the extremely well organized changing tent. Volunteers are shouting your number and helping you get your helmet, shoes etc. on. Then off to transition to grab your bike and once again head to the helix to exit among the swarm of fans.

The bike course is a 16 mile ride out to the loop, two loops, and then back into town. The course is beautiful, you ride through country hills, past farms, and through a few towns filled with spectators. The support that Wisconsin brings to the Ironman event is unreal. Within the 112 mile bike course I never was on a road that didn't have fans out cheering as I went by. The bike course itself is challenging, there are two main hills that are pretty tough. If you haven't been training hills you'll quickly wish you had. The exciting part about these two hills (you have to ride twice) is that people line the hills, cheering, ringing cow bells, holding signs, and the best were the people wearing customs. In those moments of climbing the hills I felt like Lance Armstrong and my fans were just lifting me up the hills with their cheers. Nick even ran along side of me on the steepest climb, feeding me with positive cheers! The first loop was awesome; once again I don't think I ever stopped smiling.

I soon ran into troubles. I was having a hard time eating. My stomach was not agreeing with me. However, I knew if I didn't force myself to eat the day would go sour real fast. Upon starting the second loop you'll ride through the station where you grab your special needs bag. In there I had a plain power bar that I knew I could eat and would settle things down. It did just that, but took some time to get the energy back to feel confident on the hills again. Second loop, same energy from the fans, different signs of encouragement but most all the support and energy didn't change from the community. My favorite sign I read was going up the last high hill. It was girl who had a swim suit on underneath the sign but made it look like she was naked under the poster board. The sign read, “ Do you want to sell your bike?” I laughed out loud and smiled.

As you near the end of the bike, you can start to see the capitol again. This was a happy and reassuring moment since transition was right near the capitol. By the end of the bike your butt is ready to get off the bike and start running! Once again up the helix and into transition where one volunteer is paired up with each incoming athlete to help you with your transition items. As I ran up to the volunteers I noticed that the next volunteer was my old babysitter when I was a little girl (crazy). I shouted “hello” and told her who I was. She laughed, grabbed my things and helped me on my way. As you leave transition the first thing you'll see is the big white capitol building. I knew the next time I would see it would be at the half way point and again at the finish. Mentally I was ready! On the first corner upon exciting I heard a ton of screams for Kim. Sure enough, there were my cousins and their two kids, cheering and smiling. It meant so much to me to have them there, cheering and supporting. The run was AWESOME, the course is two loops with a series of out and backs and a lap on the football field of UW Madison's Camp Randall stadium. The run course was filled with volunteers having a fun time and tons of people that came out to cheer. There wasn't a single moment on the run course I did not see 10, 20 or 100 people cheering on the Ironman athletes. I was able to see multiple times my parents, my in laws, my aunt, uncle, cousins, friends, clients, and awesome husband. The support is what gave me the strength the entire run. The first loop came smooth; the second loop had moments of ups and downs. But every time I felt a low moment I would smile and give myself one of the positive mantras I had my close friends and family give me before the race. The mantra that stuck in my head the most that day was from a gracious friend, “ Every moment counts.” This was so true both throughout the Journey getting to Ironman and especially during the race. During the day I kept believing in myself, there were so many people that had come out to watch and support me and through them I had energy and inspiration.

The final minutes, as I ran up the capital one last time to make the turn into the finish, I really embraced the moment. I was ear-to-ear smiles and truly excited and proud of all the hard work and preparation I had put into the race. I felt blessed and honored to have a strong and healthy body to get me to the finish and loved when I saw my family and friends at the finish with big smiles. The day was perfect.

To enlarge photos, click on the image

2500 Swimmers at Ironman Wisconsin

Motivation along route

Proud finish