October 23, 2022 | Sacramento, CA
Official Time: To Be Announced in Part 2
Welcome back to another race recap! Today we are going to be talking about IRONMAN California. For those that don't know, an IRONMAN is a 2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike and a 26.2 mile run (a full-marathon).
For this post, I'm going to talk all about the lead up to the IRONMAN, including my last workout, the taper, and all things race week. Since the race is a lot longer than the marathon, this is going to look a little different than past race recaps and I'm are going to split this event into two parts.
Stay tuned next week for Part II, which will recap the race and post-race. Also, in the future I will make sure to post about my training during the months prior to the event. With that, let's dive right in!
Sign Ups
Back in November 2021 an advertisement popped up on my Instagram for IRONMAN California registration: "Hurry up to register! Limited spots available"
I was sitting at my desk at work and thought to myself... this is my chance! An IRONMAN in my hometown. SIGN ME UP!
Now keep in mind that at this point in life, I had only been in endurance for a few years, since the beginning of COVID. I hadn't raced in any marathons or triathlons, much less the full distance IRONMAN, but knew that it was on my bucket list and it seemed like I was at the perfect point in life (no wife, no kids, honestly not a ton of responsibilities besides work) to check off this amazing goal.
So, I hopped on the website, registered, and $901.15 later, the only thing standing in my way to becoming an IRONMAN was 232 hours 39 minutes 19 seconds of rigorous training (I am glad I didn't know this at the time, otherwise I might not have had the courage to sign up!)
Taper / Race Week
Fast forward 11 months later and it was about time to taper. Two weeks leading up to the IRONMAN, I still hadn't done any long session brick workouts, so I decided for my last big workout to attempt (note the keyword: attempt) an 83 mile bike (approx. 2/3 the IRONMAN bike distance) and a 16 mile run (approx. 2/3 the IRONMAN run distance). Don't know how or why I picked those numbers.. just felt right, ya know?
I didn't do the best job of simulating race conditions: woke up late and got a late start at 10AM instead of 7AM. But I still had my big workout morning ritual breakfast - coffee, bagel + banana + honey. YUM :)
I felt great as I biked along Lake Mary Road and Mormon Lake in Flagstaff, AZ. Weather was perfect: slight fall breeze, cool 68 degrees. I listened to a few audiobooks, not the type of "go-all-out" vibes you're looking for in a workout but when you have trained as many hours as I had at that point, you can only listen to Big Bootie Mix for so long. I took a few gels and tried my best to practice race day nutrition for the bike, having one around every 45 minutes.
I heard that my first couple miles off the bike, my legs would feel like jelly. My legs definitely felt the bike ride, and but I can't say it was too bad as some people say. I felt like all of my training to that point just prepared me for it.
What really hit hard during the run was the dehydration. I didn't bring my Camelbak Running Vest, so I didn't have any water during my run. Feeling super dehydrated and starting to see stars, I made my way to NAU's campus, where I asked a student at the turf fields where to find the nearest water fountain. She pointed over to a hose, and I walked over, hands on my head, trying not to pass out. I drenched my head and took as much water as my stomach could handle, but it was too late. I had already bonked.
I walked back to my car in the dark, frustrated at my lack of planning and nervous for the race only a few weeks away. Needless to say, this was not the mental state I wanted to enter into my taper with. I was unconfident about my odds of finishing in my goal time and honestly unconfident about my odds of finishing in general.
After sitting in my car for a bit before driving home, I came back into a headspace knowing that overall, it was a good thing that I learned those mistakes of dehydration and that I could change it in the race to drink more water / sodium throughout the course. It wasn't my legs or aerobic fitness that let me down, it was just nutrient intake.
Remember to drink your electrolytes is all I gotta say!
I drove over to my parent's house in El Dorado Hills, California the week prior to the race. I drove over early for three main reasons:
It was nice to settle in and relax at their house and not have to worry about travelling close to the race start date.
I wanted to get acclimated to the climate and elevation of the race conditions (Coming from Flagstaff at 7,000 ft. it's a pretty big difference to Sacramento at 30 ft.)
With this being my first race, I didn't want to worry about bike transportation. I've read too many horror stories online about people losing their bikes with bike transportation companies.
On my drive, my mom called me to make sure she got everything that I would need to fuel prior to the race. Total mom move! Compared to my lead up to the Mountains to Beach Marathon, where I focused the whole taper week solely on simple carbohydrates (easy to digest), this time I changed my plan to focus only on protein and healthy fats, depleting my (carbohydrate) glycogen stores for the first part of the taper, and then 3 days out of the race, I transitioned to the simple carb focused diet. I am not sure which approach I preferred, both led me to achieving my goals. I'll have to research more on this topic and post more about it in further posts.
In terms of what I did activity-wise during taper week, I focused heavy on recovery by walking, spinning out my legs on the stationary bike, stretching, and getting in lots of sleep.
During the week, mom drove me over to Lake Natomas and I did one last practice swim while she walked around the lake. This was my first time in my wetsuit - I would not suggest waiting until the last week to do this lol. Luckily it fit perfect and felt right as I swam.
Quick side story - Back in middle school my mom and I would go to Lake Natomas to beat the heat in the hot Sacramento summers. One time I attempted to swim the to the other side of the lake and back. I must have been gone for a pretty long time, because she got worried about me and send a lifeguard to come look for me! Even at a young age I was a beast in the water (jk just an expert doggie paddler) so I was fine and made it back.... Anyways, thanks mom for your support!
While waiting for race day, I also helped my mom and step-dad around the house, taking the dog on walks and finishing up building their chicken coop.
On Friday, I drove to downtown Sacramento to the athlete check-in. By this time, my nerves from my failed last workout calmed down and I began to get pretty excited about the race after seeing all of the fellow racers. It helped that at the check-in packet pickup, the volunteer complimented me by saying that it didn't look like it was my first time doing an IRONMAN, she said I looked like I was ready to win haha!
It was fun going through all of the booths, picking up essential race day items (i.e. bib, drop off bags, race wristband, ankle-band timing chip) and also a few non-essentials (cool IRONMAN logo gear and free giveaways (my favorite was Athletic Brewing Company's Non-Alcoholic Hazy IPA)). I walked a little bit around downtown Sacramento, used the free lunch pass provided by IRONMAN to grab a sandwich, and then headed home. It had been awhile since being in a big city and it definitely showed in my face walking around!
The day before the race my dad and stepmom picked me up at the Bike Drop Off Station (River Cat Stadium). I put my number stickers (provided by IM) on my helmet and bike. Pumped up my bike tires and dropped off my bike and all of my personal items: a bike bag filled with gels, cleats, helmet, sunglasses, biking shorts, t-shirt, socks, sunblock, anti-chafe stick, etc. and a run bag filled with gels, gummies, shoes, spare socks, visor.
I want to do a post in the future on a more in-depth "what to know for your first IRONMAN - race week logistics" (i.e. athlete check-in, athlete briefings, bike/run gear drop bags, race day procedures, etc.) but the items listed above are pretty much a high-level overview of what I brought.
We drove the bike course and they filled me in on all the family updates, it had been since May since I had last seen them. Way too long! The bike course looked nice and flat and beautiful with all of the farmland / country.
We met my girlfriend (Tessa) and her family in Davis (town next to Sacramento) for dinner. We got pizza and pasta at Paesano's and went to a local ice cream shop for dessert (not claiming this was the best pre-race meal but it sure was tasty!).
Everyone wanted to know: which event are you most nervous about? I wasn't nervous for any particular event, but the start of the swim was freaking me out a bit since I heard bad experiences of people pushing, shoving, and going over the top of one another in the water (disclaimer: this was not the case at all on my race day, I had no need to worry!)
Overall, it was great being able to see them before the race, especially since Tessa had a work trip and wouldn't be able to go to the finish line. I feel like I've said this before, but it's so nice to be surrounded with friends and family before an event like this. It can be pretty easy for me to get in my head, but being with other people helps break down any pre-race nerves.
That night, my family went to our hotel in downtown around 15 minutes from the bus spot. I put all of my clothes and breakfast out on the counter. I've heard that the night before a race is supposed to be the worst sleep you ever get, but I have to say, like Mountains to Beach, I slept like a baby! Good genetics I guess haha.
STAY TUNED FOR IRONMAN CALIFORNIA RACE RECAP PART II!
Hope That You Enjoyed the Post!
Please let me know what you want to see in future posts! Feel free to like, comment, subscribe!
Who else was at IRONMAN California? Give me your details!
What are some of the best IM races to do in the future: 70.3 / 140.6?
Pineapple on Pizza?
Comments