IRONMAN California (CANCELED) Race Report

Let me start by saying that this will probably be my shortest race report as the inaugural IRONMAN California was canceled due to an historic storm in Sacramento. Lots and lots of much needed rain...

On top of that the wind was crazy strong...

PRE-RACE

This was my third official IRONMAN branded race. Previously, I completed IRONMAN Vineman and IRONMAN Santa Rosa 70.3. So these are the IRONMAN experiences I am comparing IRONMAN California to. IRONMAN California was far above the other two races in terms of organization, staging and communication. I would say the only weak point was parking the morning of the race. 

In order to control the number of athletes at registration, I had to select a time to check-in. I chose Thursday morning between 10am-11am figuring that it would take about an hour and then I could attend the 11am athlete briefing. The whole check-in process was extremely efficient. I was in and out in about 10 minutes! HS and I did a little IRONMAN shopping and then found shelter under a small awning with other athletes waiting for the briefing.

Trying to stay dry as we wait for the athlete briefing

Also during registration, I had to select at time to drop off my bike on Saturday. This was handled by simply choosing a business sized card with an hour time slot. I always worry about how things are going to be handled and what I need to do, this was super easy.

I was glad I waited for the briefing. Although most of the info was available in the athlete guide, there were a few changes that had been made to race day logistics. Due to the predicted rain, wind and cold, the organizers added full changing tents and instructed us to bring our "Swim to Bike" bags to the stadium with our bikes on Saturday. I appreciated the fact that they were willing to make last minute changes.

IRONMAN mask was part of the swag

After checking in on Thursday, we headed back home. I spent the next two days checking the weather and making last minute changes to my gear and spraying Scotchgard on everything that wasn't designated by it's manufacturer as waterproof. I also added a few decorations to my bags. 

Decorated my bags to help me locate

Glad "Press N Seal" worked great protecting my 
saddle and bike bag for the overnight stay in the rain

Saturday afternoon was an easy drive back to the ball field. It was cloudy but dry. I prayed that the weather people were wrong about their forecast for Sunday and that my biggest problem of race day would be ditching unnecessary layers of clothing.

Such a cool place for transition

Bike bagged up and tied to the rack

As I said earlier, the communication for this event was great. Saturday evening, after HS and I had already went to bed, I received the text message below. HS also got a notification on his phone because he was following me on the IRONMAN app. On top of that, I received an email with the same info. Since I was just laying in bed unable to sleep, I saw the phone screens light up. Curiosity got the best of me and I got up to check. 

When I saw that one loop of the ride was being cut, I was a little relieved. I knew that I could easily complete 56 miles, even in the wind (Well, "normal" wind, not what we woke up to LOL). However, I secretly wished it was the swim that was being cut. I was shocked that even after the accident and my fear of riding on the road, I was still more afraid of the swim. At that point, all I could do was climb back in bed and stare at the ceiling.

RACE MORNING

Race morning finally arrived. I got up, fixed some coffee and started dressing for the race. Instead of wearing the Pearl iZUMI tri suit I got in 2018 during my last year as a PI "ambador", I opted for the two piece kit I wore for IRONMAN Vineman. Actually, I was just wearing the shorts and a sports bra for the swim...less wet clothes to deal with. 

As I sipped my coffee, I scrolled through the various IRONMAN California Facebook groups. Some athletes were upset about the ride being shortened but most seemed to accept the change because it was made in the name of safety. I noticed a post about the change in the start time, so I re-read the text from the night before and saw that the start would now be at 7:30am. This was a relief because I had noticed that it was still dark at 7am, the original start time. I really didn't want to swim in the dark.

HS and I adjusted our leave time and I continued getting ready which included another double-check of my remaining gear bags. Since it was now raining heavily, I slathered my legs in baby oil and slipped on my wetsuit up to my waist. The wetsuit would keep me warn and dry until I had to climb into the American River. I then covered my feet in vaseline and slipped on my neoprene booties followed by a pair of shoes. 

The drive from Roseville (staying with my daughter and family) was a bit disconcerting. The wind gusts could be felt as we drove in silence. Neither one of us wanted to mention the fact that the truck was being blown around. How was I going to be able to ride in this. I'm not a very light rider, but I knew I didn't weigh enough to feel stable on the road. I was starting to get panicky about swimming in this kind of weather too.

At the athlete briefing we were assured there was plenty of parking at the ball field (for a $15 fee) and that our support peeps could come and go all day. The weather the morning of the race may have forced more people to drive instead of walk from their hotels because we were at a standstill once we got off of I-5 (we used the J St exit, not sure if that was the best choice, but we weren't alone). 

When we finally made it to the intersection of Tower Bridge Gateway and Riverfront St I told HS that I needed to get out and get to my bike. We had intended to ride the shuttle together to the race start but I was worried that at 6am, I was running out of time. From the athlete entrance it was a winding route down on to the field where the bikes were waiting. HS gave me a kiss, told me he loved me, and I hopped out into the rain and ran across the street. I hoped we would meet up again before the swim start.

The red star marks where I finally got out of the truck

I walked up the area where the blue "Swim to Bike" bags were carefully lined up. I looked for mine and found it on the opposite side of where I was told to place it on Saturday. I tapped the top of the bag to check that my helmet was there and kept moving down to the field. Everything was soaked and the field was getting a bit flooded. Even though the entire field was covered in an interlocking plastic grid, mud and water pressed up with each step, soaking my shoes. 

Photo from one of the IMCA Facebook groups
credit to Bev Raines Hess

I dropped my red "Bike to Run" and grabbed my Gatorade and filled the bladder on my bike. Just then an official sounding voice came over the loudspeakers. At first it sounded like he was just reiterating the info I received in last night's text and email. However, the content had changed. After talking about the severity of the weather, he announced that the race had been canceled. I bent over and grabbed my knees and started to cry. I know there are much more important things in life than a race but I had so much emotionally invested in this endeavor that the announcement was soul crushing in that stormy moment . I stood up and looked at the faces of my fellow athletes. I wasn't alone in my disappointment. 

The announcer instructed us to get our bikes and gear and make our way out of the stadium. At this point, the wheels sort of came off the well oiled machine. The initial instructions said to leave the way we came in. It was like swimming upstream as athletes were still making their way into the stadium. I went through two sets of volunteers that were checking wristbands against the number on the bikes (thankful for that). I asked about my timing chip, but no one seemed to know what to do with them at that point. Just as I got to where the blue "Swim to Bike" bags were, a volunteer was turning people around and telling us to go the other way. 

I made eye contact with a guy on the other side of the railing he asked "What do you need?" and I answered "Can you get bag 631 for me?" He quickly located my bag and handed it to me. I thanked him and turned around and headed back towards the field. Eventually another volunteer opened up a space in the fence and pointed us to an exit. The next thing I knew, I was outside and had no idea where Hot Stuff was and I didn't have my phone.

I hoped he was still waiting in line to get into the parking lot so I walked in that direction. Cars were still lined up. The wind blew my bike around in my hand as I tried to push it with a bag balanced on the aerobars and two in my free hand. I walked the entire perimeter of the stadium before stopping at the entrance where soaked athletes were waiting in line to collect their gear. I scanned the cars driving up the street and the parking lots. It was still dark and the rain and the lights made it impossible to see much. I stood in the rain and waited.

Eventually I decided to change out of my soaked jacket and put on the clothes I had intended to wear on the ride. I had a long sleeve thermal jersey and a waterproof cycling jacket. I stood out in my bright yellow and pink jacket in the dark wet morning. No sign of HS though. 

From behind me I heard a woman ask a volunteer about her timing chip. The volunteer answered that she could take it. I unstrapped the chip from my left ankle and handed it the volunteer and thanked her. I returned to my search for HS. After about 20 minutes I decided to circle the stadium again. Although it was still raining heavily, dawn had started to lighten the sky. I felt like a lost child, too shy to ask to borrow a cell phone. Eventually I saw a familiar shadow coming towards me, I finally found him or more accurately, he found me. He helped me with the bags and opened the back door of the truck as I hoisted the bike quickly inside.

As it turns out, he gave up trying to park and drove to the swim start only to be told that the race was cancelled. He drove back to the stadium, parked, and was able to get down to the field because he had a ticket that allowed him to retrieve my bike for me. This was supposed to happen while I was out on the run, not the morning before the race started. When he found my bike rack (everything is well numbered) he realized I had already been there and was gone. He probably walked past me as I was standing by the entrance looking for him.

Mint condition swim cap and bib

Honestly, there were moments during our drive home that were scary and we were in a 4x4 truck. Every time a gust of wind shook the truck, I was thankful that IRONMAN made the difficult decision to cancel the race.

LOOKING AHEAD

After the rain and my tears subsided, I took some time to reflect on the opportunity I was being given. I went into this race feeling scared and under-prepared. I figured I might do another IRONMAN California some time in the future but 2022 was not in my plans. With the cancellation, it was like I was being handed a do-over. HS seemed to be 100% onboard with 2022 as well :-)

Part of my uncertainty about the race was due to an unspoken level of self sabotage. I had a race weight goal. I made a half-assed attempt and only got half way to my goal. I also knew I should get my bike in to the shop for a tune up because it's been on the trainer for over a year. That didn't happen. I procrastinated until it was too late. I did put new tubes, tires, and a chain on the bike myself, but couldn't bring myself to take it anywhere. I knew I should probably go on one of the group rides or swims on the course, but I stayed home.

Thankfully, my deferral to IRONMAN California 2022 is automatic so I can't do anything to sabotage that. I've already created a new spreadsheet to track my weight race goal. With a little less than a year until the race, there is no reason for me not to meet my goal. I've also decided to do more workouts outside instead of hidden away in my house (See "Tethered By Fear"). I will also break out of my comfort zone and participate in group rides on the race course and practice swims in the river.

First run outside in the books!

On top of that, I am super excited for the new team I joined "IRACELIKEAGIRL". Real triathletes that also have a Zwift presence...for those days I decide to stay inside :-) 

Here's to October 23, 2022! 

PS: I knew there would be more... I will age up in 2022 and although I will 54 at race day, my late December birthday means I will be in the 55-59 age group. This is a welcome surprise because this year my age group was the largest women's group!

Tethered by Fear

In July, my pastor put me in touch with a member of our church who had been hit while riding her bike. She shared some photos and talked about what happened. Her injuries were much worst than mine. We chatted for a while but at the end of our conversation, I seemed to feel worse. This was just another reason for me never to ride on the road again. 

The next weekend, as I pedaled away on my four and a half hour trainer ride, I came up with a catchy titled for a blog post that would justify my fear of the road. I started writing it, but it seemed boring and a little pathetic even to me. I had several paragraphs detailing every accident I had ever been involved in. I wasn't feeling it and I decided to think about what I was trying to say before going any further.

A few weeks later my training calendar reminded me that I was starting the toughest week of training. Roughly 14-1/2 hours of training not counting my daily walks. I rode 132 virtual miles on my bike, ran 22.75 miles on the treadmill, and completed 6,600y of swimming tethered to the pool deck. Swimming was one of the few times I actually ventured outside to do any training.

So, you might be asking yourself why I don't run outside. Well, after the hit and run on my bike, my anxieties seemed to get the better of me. On top of that, posts on Next Door about pit bulls running the street and other scary incidents had me afraid to run around my neighborhood. I was sure I was going to get attacked by something. I was always cautious before, making sure to take off all valuables except my Garmin and to tell HS my route so he could come find me...but there was no amount of caution that would make me feel safe, so I stuck to the treadmill.

September 30th rolled around and I decided that the anniversary of the accident would be the perfect time to finish my long boring blog post about being scared. I read what I had wrote so far and stripped out most of the long detailed paragraphs about car wrecks and bike accidents. It still wasn't any better and honestly, some of the car accidents I had been involved in when I was a kid didn't seem to have the same affect on me as recent ones. It's only been the incidents in the last five years that have me scared of the road.

Damage from the last hit and run.

Just to summarize, in the last five or so years, I have been involved in three hit and runs. Yes, three. Two in my cars, one on my bike. The accidents have left me feeling a little invisible and a bit worthless as a human. How can someone hit you and leave? What has changed in the last several years that make drivers think this is ok? People drive around completely distracted, driving way over the speed limit only, and only appear to think of themselves.

BACK TO MY POST

Back to my unwritten blog post... the bike hit and run anniversary came and went and I decided it was nothing to memorialize with a post. A few days later a triathlete I met before my first "official" IRONMAN was hit by a driver during an organized cycling event (Story Link). The driver fled. Thankfully she wasn't severely injured and the police were able to catch the driver not too long after the incident. I saw her name on the list of participants for IRONMAN California. I hope she makes it to the start line.

TAPER AND PREPARE TO UNTETHER

IRONMAN California is this weekend. As I write this, I have already checked in and there is not much left for me to do. As a triathlon friend once told me, "The hay is in the barn". I tell myself this, but I'm suffering from a bit of imposter syndrome. I'm worried that my "tethered" training isn't going to be enough. On top of that, the weather is going to be horrible. 

Rainy day for check-in and athlete briefing

Rain and wind forecast for race day...

The few IMCA Facebook groups that I follow are all over the place in terms of how to dress for the weather. Early on people talked about layering clothes with items you were willing to discard if the weather warmed/dried up. I kicked around a few options but as the forecast has remained unchanged (other than getting worse), I've decided to swim in an older 2-piece tri kit and then cover it up for the ride with waterproof (PI Dry Fabric) tights and a rain jacket. I've also got gloves and shoe covers. 

Anyone that know me knows I don't tolerate cold well (I have a space heater at work for afternoons when the AC gets too chilly). I would prefer to stay as warm and dry as possible on the ride. Fingers crossed that my choice in clothes works.

Other than that, all of my stuff is double bagged so it stays dry in the gear bags provided. 

Sunday morning will be time to cut the cord and face my fears. Suddenly, riding on the road has taken a backseat to the weather. My goal remains the same...finish the race!