Saturday, October 10, 2009
Ironman World Championships
Kona, Hawaii
All triathletes dream of racing in Kona, this is Fred Uytengsu's unique Kona experience.. ...
For as long as I can remember, I have wanted to do the Kona Ironman. Even before I understood it was the World Championships, before I understood you had to qualify to get there, before I understood the lore of the Hawaiian Gods and everything associated with paying homage and the mystique of the Queen K, I knew this was something I wanted to do before I pass.
And so my opportunity came early this year but non-traditional means but it was still the E ticket to the greatest event in the sport of triathlon. I kept this opportunity largely to myself not wanting to jinx it and also not wanting to deal with the pressure associated of going to Kona. It meant a jump in my training hours even though I have a self-imposed limit of 12 hours a week as a ceiling so as not to impose too much on my family time as well as work commitments. I did, however, realize that I would have to step it up for several months to be sufficiently prepared for the chance of a lifetime.
The weeks after Ironman 70.3 Philippines were going to be the most taxing and I certainly appreciated the handful of POLO Tri members who kept me company for many of my training rides and runs (Tony, Guy, Albert, Kirk and a couple others). It did help make the workouts pass by somewhat faster but also kept them challenging. Then disaster struck when Typhoon Ondoy hit the Manila. And we were even foolish enough to ride in it. The enormity of the situation did not really sink in until we were stuck in Alabang Town Center trying to figure out how to get home that afternoon and I was also advised that two of our factories were completely submerged. Although I got home later that evening, I knew there would be serious consequences on the business front and sure enough we had 350 employees and their families who were severely displaced. I thought I might have to cancel my trip to Kona because of the responsibility to our employees and the need to resume operations at the soonest possible time. We were able to organize relief efforts to most of our employees quickly and I decided to institute a financial aid program to those who were severely affected to help get them and their families stabilized. It also helped that we have good management teams who stepped up big time to help fellow employees and get things in order quickly.
So I decided to make the trip hoping that the worst was over even though much work still had to be done. Arriving in Honolulu enroute to Kona was just the appetizer as the airport was already heavily populated with “uber athletes” with 5% body fat, shaved legs with veins popping out except for those who had opted for the dork look of compression socks and there were many of them. (I choose to wear mine under my sweats).
The Sunday before the race, Lance Watson had an organized ride from Kawaihae to Hawi. This is the long ascent the marks the turnaround where many a triathlete falter and the trade winds have been known to knock people off their bikes. The purpose was to learn how to ride and stay in your aero bars even with cross winds. The climb was good and the decent even better. Although you might feel vulnerable in your aero position, you actually have a lower profile to the wind which makes you more stable so this was one of the tricks to learn in advance. There were a few light workouts scheduled before race day and one included a 30 minute run inside the infamous Energy Lab. I ran it on the Wednesday before race day and felt great. Held very easy 6 minute kms and wondered what the big deal was. In fact, I felt like I had this portion of the run in the bag. (More on that later).
Race registration was smooth and many of the key volunteers have been doing so for 15 or more years so they really have it down to a science. They are interested in your personal situation and always make it a point to wish you good luck. From that point on, I was athlete number 640. I met up with Gina Kehr to give her one of the honorary POLO Tri kits and Chris Lieto yelled across and said, “Fred, heard your 70.3 was great. I’m sorry I didn’t make it.” I responded, “I’m sorry you missed it but Gina can tell you all about it and I expect to see you there next year.” I won’t deny it was pretty cool to hang with the pros in that setting. Earlier in the week, Kerri and I had hosted Macca and Terrenzo with their significant others for dinner and on another day we had Cameron with his family together with Lisa Bentlely, David Cracknell and Lance for some stand up paddling. There just aren’t too many sports where you get the chance to connect with the elite in that sport the way we get to.
The Welcome Dinner was a cast of thousands and even with VIP seats, it wasn’t really an intimate affair. I guess the same can be said of the Opening Ceremonies at the Olympic Games. Kerri’s college roommate and sorority sister who works for NBC Sports joined us as did Lance Watson. There were some basic speeches and a handful of “special interest” athletes were featured after a dramatic video was shown to set the stage for race day. Interestingly, none of the big time pros show up for this event.
On Friday, I checked in my bike and that was another exercise in efficiency. There are two time slots and you have to check in during your assigned slot. There were two slots of 2.5 hours to check in 950 bikes each. I had wondered how this could happen. But as you roll your bike in with your helmet and transition bags, they have a cursory look and if all that is in order you are personally escorted to drop your bike at your assigned race slot and then you drop your T1 and T2 bags along the rack so you have an idea of where to get it on race day. On the way in there are about 20 guys on the side in chairs writing stuff down. It was like you were being judged in a pageant. So I asked, “How do I look.?” One guy responds… “Great. Awesome bike.” Then I realized that was bike count where they see who is riding what. I must say I felt a bit foolish at that point.
I bumped in to Terrenzo as he was going through his process and he was full of questions to his aide. Hard to believe this was his first Kona. I can’t deny that my nerves were getting the best of me. We had been on the island almost a week before the race but being at our place helped not getting sucked in to the intensity at the race venue. We also bumped in to Lisa and Dave and she was great at calming me down. Kerri had tried as she has not seen me nervous like this since my college swimming days and then not even that bad. I guess I felt there was more riding on this than expected, especially with the charity aspect. We had decided to stay in town the night before the race so we would not have to deal with finding parking on race day and it also gave Kerri and Kayla a place to stay during the many hours it would take for me on the bike and the run.
Race day I was up at 3:45 a.m. I slept fairly well and went through my checklist (as we all do). Had a bit of breakfast but I don’t think anyone really has an appetite at 4 a.m. Gathered my gear and then headed towards the King Kam (hotel adjacent to the Kailua pier where the swim starts). Body marking was yet another exercise in efficiency as it only took 10 minutes from the time I got in line. Dropped of special needs bags and then off to take care of nutrition and bike check. My phone rang just as I entered the bike area and it was Aaron Altura (Albert’s brother who is a very accomplished triathlete and close friends with Chris Lieto). It turns out he was right in front of me and he was volunteering so he helped get me set up on the bike with pumping tires, confirming nutrition etc. Even when you have done this a hundred times, you would be surprised what you overlook. Next stop was a pre-race chat with Lance at a designated area. Apparently many of the pros all have their areas staked out at the King Kam pool and Lance was chatting with Lindsey Corbin as I arrived. Macca had his entourage and it was cool of him to walk over and wish me luck. Here is a former world champion making the effort to a middle of the pack age-grouper. It was a nice confidence booster. Also saw Bree getting her race instructions. Kerri and Kayla had come over a bit later as agreed and Lance and I walked through things one more time to focus on nutrition. The training was there but if you fail on your nutrition, your race can go south very quickly. On went the speed suit and headed off to the water. The US Navy SEALS have a tradition of parachuting into the bay with flares attached. The main announcer (Mike Reiley) was commentating and the music was blaring so it is quite the scene.
Over the past couple of years, they have set the pros off at 6:45 a.m. and then try to hold on to the age groupers to 7 a.m. but sometimes with that many people they have started sooner. So if you intend to be towards the front, it is advisable you stay in the water (treading) for 15 minutes to avoid getting stuck in the middle or back. Another option is to stay on the far right and hang on to some tires along the pier. I took this option based on several experienced peoples’ advise. I found a tire just under the large Gatorade inflatable that marks the start on the Pier. I was there with about 100 of my newest friends and all of a sudden a guy swims over and pulls me off the tire. At first I thought something was wrong and nobody else said anything. I treaded water for about 10 seconds to see if he was going to say anything and then realized he just stole my spot. So, I pulled him off and said “Hey buddy, go find your own tire!” Some weird stuff happens or should I say people behave oddly under pressure. The announcer then warned people to get back as they would start in a couple of minutes and those who were not behind the imaginary line would get time penalties. Perhaps less than 20 seconds after that the cannon went off what seemed like next to my ear and I must have dived off the tire from fright only to realized I could not hear a damn thing out of my right ear. It was like one of those war movies where a soldier is seeing the heat of battle but can’t hear anything. The race was on and I had remembered to hit the timer on my watch. Less than 25 meters in to the swim someone pulled me by the shoulder, then a second time, then a third time and I was ready to clock him and then told myself that would only serve as a distraction. Another 50 meters down someone grabbed me by the calf and pulled me back a body length. Amazing. I just didn’t think that stuff would go on. Another 10 meters and my goggles got knocked and filled with water. Fortunately, I am comfortable with that and just rolled on to my back while kicking and emptied the water out. They also have marshalls on surfboards to keep people from straying to the inside of the course but I managed to swim head first into a board and got a huge wake up call only to be met with some bonehead that decided to swim a hard 200 meters and then swim breastroke. WTF?! Needless to say, in all my years of triathlon I had not experienced as rough as swim as I had in the first 500 meters. I did swallow a fair amount of water which I would pay for later. I now have new found respect for those who have to mix it up in the middle.
Fortunately, we did start to break away and I got on some feet and worked my way to the first buoy. A quick glance at the watch and I was at 32 minutes. I had told myself that while I expected to be sub 1 hour in the swim, I wouldn’t let it ruin my day since it wasn’t going to dictate the final outcome. I did push a bit harder and without any more drama on the way back on the swim, I checked my watch as I touched the first step and saw 56:25. We did have some swells and a bit of current on the way out so I expected a fast swim coming back. I was stoked with the swim only to find out after I finished the race that there was a difference in where the swim was reckoned from. Only two professional men went under 50 minutes so it was a slow swim for the day.
As you all know, the transition from swim to bike is always chaotic and this seemed to be even more. A quick rinse from the hose in to a tent with dozens of people yelling for this and that. It felt like bootcamp and once you get out of the tent, it is easily 300 meters (or more) to get to your bike. Remember there are more than 1,800 bikes racked.
Hoped on my bike and had to quickly get the feet in the shoes for the climb up Palani Road which is quite steep and then the group heads off for the first part of the bike that takes you through town and a small loop before heading back on to the Queen K. I was up on my bullhorns and saw Peter Reid on the side. He was cheering and happened to see our POLO Tri top. He yelled, “Go Alaska”. He must have thought I was from up there. Whatever, it was pretty cool. Bikers were zipping by at incredible speeds. My instructions were to be patient on the first half of the bike because so many people blow up with the adrenalin and excitement. Still we were hitting speeds of 38 kph – 40 kph and others were out of their saddles easily going 45++ kph. This was in the first 5 km of the bike. I reminded myself that these were the best of the best so don’t be disillusioned. Finally, as I maneuvered towards the Queen K, I saw Kerri and Kayla who were avidly cheering and I told her how happy I was about the swim. She had checked my swim split on ironman.com and debated whether to correct my impression but since I was such in a good mood, she let it slide.
The ride on the Queen K is pretty much how you see it on the Ironman DVDs. Long, fairly straight and warm. I won’t say hot because racing in the Philippines is just as hot and our humidity is higher. Pace was good and I stuck with my hydration and nutrition plan religiously. At the 30k mark I was at 58 minutes. At the 60 k mark, I was at 1:59. And at 90 k, it was 3 hours. So all was going well. When you hit the turnaround in Hawi there are lots of people cheering and you know you can celebrate that you have actually done a bit more than half of the bike. But you then get your special needs (optional) and then brace for the decent from Hawi and hope the trade winds are not to strong. Indeed we were lucky (or so I thought). I was constantly dousing my head with water at each aid station and got blasted by a gust of wind that almost threw me off my bike. I tossed the water bottle and got my other had on the bike and took a minute to recover mentally as my knees felt like Jello after having just missed being tossed in to the lava rocks. Speed was good going down and still on target. As you descend through Hawi you get to Kawaihae harbor and there is a tricky climb that many people tend to hammer only to go lactic. So I stayed patient until we got back on the Queen K and then the unimaginable happened. We had a nasty headwind. On the way out speeds exceeded 30 kph but know hitting 20 kph was a struggle and heart rate was climbing. Then speed kept declining and at several points I was done to 13 kph on the flats! These headwinds prevailed for 50 kms. and the struggle began. I saw a few people with bike issues and a few had pulled out altogether. I dared not look at them too long as I resolved that I would finish no matter what. Only a medical person was going to pull me off this one and only chance. Quitting is forever!
The Energy Lab is just beyond the airport and I saw a helicopter hovering which meant they were covering something interesting. But I couldn’t tell who until I started passing Faris (me on my bike, he was running in his trademark speedo). Then I saw Terrenzo and finally Macca but still could not tell who was where. Finally saw Lieto looking strong and thought he might be winning. As I got to T2 I managed to get my running gear on and a brief pit stop. I headed out of the tent and heard the roar, Crowie had won again. So I started my marathon as the men’s champion had finished. Then on a stretch I saw and heard people shouting at me but it was Lieto. How I wish someone had a camera to snap a shot of me running a step ahead of Chris. I congratulated him but he was spent. He told me later he didn’t have the energy to even acknowledge since he thought someone might run him down from behind. At that point, I know he had less than a kilometer to go and I had more than 40!
My run plan was fairly simple. Run from aid station to aid station and walk the aid stations. But I struggled in the first kilometer and did some brisk walking to get my legs back and then started hitting the plan. A key part again was to ensure I had the right nutrition plan, making sure I had enough water, Gatorade, salt tabs, etc. Things were feeling good and I saw a few people I know from Kona who were all praises. The first part of the run is out and back on the southern stretch of Ali’i Drive. A lot of homes and people were camped on their front either cheering or offering hose showers. Aid stations were well organized and again the volunteers were great. As I got back to Palani I never realized how steep it was and I decided to walk it since I doubted my “run” would be fast enough to call it that. Once up on the Queen K, back to the plan which was working well. A small group of Filipinos were at an aide station and when they saw my race number, they cheered me on big time.
Lance was up there cheering and checking on his athletes and I heard his words of encouragement. I was at 2:25 at 21km, so we were on schedule. Shortly after that, Lisa and Dave showed up on their bicycles offering great words of encouragement but I was starting to struggle. I was about 2 km from the Energy Lab and I remember if I just get there, I’ll be able to handle it. Finally got to the top of the Energy Lab and the sun was about the set. It was a striking scene. I walked through the aide station and saw about 6 people in front walking and I made it my goal to pick them off. But then a strange thing happened. I just couldn’t fire up my legs and no matter what I did or said to myself, I simply could not even muster a little shuffle. I started talking to myself. “Fred, let’s go. Get tough. Man up.” Ashamedly, I ended up walking for close to 10 minutes and I know I had lost precious time. Now it was dark and the dynamics were quite different. Out came the glow sticks. At least 5 people were lying on the ground some already with medical assistance, some asked for those who passed to call a medic.
I decided I had to try something different so I decided I would run 100 steps and walk 20. This seemed to work and while it wasn’t blazing it helped me focus on a game plan. I also reflected on those affected by Ondoy and the charities that I was racing for. I recalled the training hours. And I knew Kerri and Kayla were waiting for me and I didn’t want to keep them waiting too long. This renewed my sense of purpose and I finally got back to the top of the Energy Lab which had successfully “owned me”. Here I thought I had this thing licked and what was I thinking when many a pro had lost it in the Energy Lab. In subsequent chats with Terrenzo, Macca and Cam they all mentioned they too struggled in the Lab. Just as I exited a woman started walking very quickly towards me. It was dark and a huge spot light was in my face so I couldn’t quite make out who it was until she was practically in my face and it was Kerri’s sorority sister. She gave me quite the scare but it was probably a good thing as I needed to get jolted from the funk I was in.
Back on the Queen K with a bit over 10 kms. to go, I felt it was time to motor. I know I had lost a lot of minutes in the Lab but was still hoping for a sub 5 marathon. I was back to my run from aid station to aid station and just focus on nutrition. I was getting lightheaded and it was getting harder and harder to keep gels down. I would simply suck one down with water and hold my mouth to prevent vomiting. I feared that if I lost the calories that would be worse than the nauseated feeling I was having. I passed people, some people passed me. It was pitch black. Something you should know about the Big Island of Hawai’i is that it is home of one of the leading observatories in the world and over 8 countries have multi-million dollar telescopes atop Mauna Kea. As a result, there are no streetlights on the Queen K highway. The race used to revolve around a full moon but now they have had to give way to cruise ship schedules so athletes are not guaranteed a bright night. This was the case on October 10, 2009. We were approximately at half-moon but because of a cloud cover, it was virtually black.
I came to a point where I thought I saw someone sprawled on the ground. I asked if he was alright and someone else on a bicycle answered. I hadn’t even seen that person that’s how dark it was. So, I kept soldiering along with short steps fearing I might step in a hole. Guys, this is one reason why you want to finish in daylight. In Kona, this means an 11 hour or better time. Then I tripped. But I hit something and realized it was one of those orange cones they had used to mark the road. I landed on my hands and knees but no damage. Just some personal embarrassment. Put the “witches hat” back up and continued to run/walk strategy. I approached another aid station and heard Michael Jackson’s “Thriller”. I had never been a huge Michael Jackson fan but hearing the music was a nice distraction and when I asked the guy how far thinking I had about 3 km to go, he said almost there…..5 km to go. That got me. Ugh! A 2 km difference may not seem like a lot but at that point in the day, it might as well have been 20 kms. I lost focus and started to walk until a man and woman came by at a decent pace and I hooked on to the back of them. We agreed to take it back strong even as we passed groups of people who were walking. We called them “pity parties” and nobody was stepping up to make a difference. With two aid stations left (there was one every mile), I decided I would not walk them and we dropped the girl with us at the first station. We got to the top of Palani Road where all the street lights are flashing red lights. A very surreal look and experience. The guy I was running with said he was going to pick it up but running downhill was killing my already sore quads so he dropped me.
I had arranged to meet Kerri and Kayla and the corner of Palani and Kuakini which is where you turn off before you have that last 500 meter run along Ali’i where you see people slapping Hi-5s. I gave them my fuel belt and they gave me the Philippine flag and then I froze. My legs just didn’t move. I had these flashbacks of when this has happened to many an athlete just before the finish line. I just could not explain it. Kerri and Kayla had rushed back down to see the actual finish and this is a lonely segment just before you hit the limelight. A spectator on the side shouted…”you’ve worked this hard all day, make it worth your while.” Wow, what a difference a few words make. I shuffled around the corner and was greeted by tons of people. They were screaming, cheering, Hi-fiving. Suddenly I felt like I was running on clouds. I could hear the music blaring, I could see the lights. I picked up the pace but not too quickly because I wanted to savor the moment. Lance was about 50 meters from the finish line with a huge smile on his face. I saw the carpet, I heard Whit Raymond mention Ironman 70.3 Philippines….I had finally finished Ironman Kona. The emotion was overwhelming. I raised the Philippine flag and felt so proud to have had the privilege to represent the country. I looked up on the big screen TV in front and saw the image. It was brief but it was magical.
I stepped down the platform and then for the first time all day, I felt cramps coming on. A few of the WTC executives I had met during the week came over and congratulated me. Very classy on their part to do so. I was hurting but still happy. Kerri and Kayla were able to make it down to where I was and kissed and hugged me. I can’t describe how special that moment was knowing they too had a long day rushing from one vantage point to another just to get a glimpse and offer words of encouragement. We should never forget our families in these events because without their love and support, the accomplishment wouldn’t mean half as much.
Writing this account has become a pastime for all of us in POLO Tri but it also helps us remember the myriad of experiences we endure in an Ironman. This memory will last a lifetime!