Ironman Florida- Game Day

Its less than 14 hrs from when I am expecting a cannon to sound and 3000 rabid triathletes begin Ironman Florida together. Yet, as sit down on the sofa of our beach side condo, I am simply thankful for friends. Over the years, life's story took many loved ones away to pursue medicine, ministry, adventure, and family. Yet, as I look around the room, my story involves new people that God has brought into my life for a purpose and I smile. "John- John" throws a terrible 2's tantrum while his Dad drinks a beer and pretends not to hear it but that's impossible. His 4 year old brother James threatens to "pile-drive" me so I lock him into the "Boston Crab" move I learned from Nintendo WWF and perfected on my sister. Stacey tends to the little guy so that there Mom Amy might keep some sanity that is foreign to most mothers who have a 2 and 4 year old. Kelcy, Laura, and Hannah are all laughing at the little boys while asking me crazy questions regarding how athletes "relieve themselves" during such a race like Ironman (I'll save that for another day). And my long lost friend Erin finishing up her amazing pre-race meal of lasagna, salad, and garlic bread, to which I successfully added a whole lot more butter to in a moment she wasn't looking. I end the night spending a few minutes responding to texts and calls from friends and family. I assure my Mom that I will be fine but don't stop praying, and that Dad should sell my triathlete bike (my most valuable possession) but must keep my dog if anything goes south. Than I reflect on the good people He has surrounded me with and I see that in some of life's coolest moments, you are rarely alone.

After a restless nights sleep, the alarm goes off at 5 AM and I know the Ironman is finally here. In my OCD preparation, I have already prepared everything for that morning. I simply walk 2 feet, and all my gear, clothes, and food is laid out for me. I am anxious, nervous, but excited. I am not thinking Julie Moss, but Dave Scott and Mark Allen (both 6x winners of Hawaii). I feel good and after eating some food, its time to get this party started.

As I walk down to the race site, you can feel the energy in the air. Its absolutely crazy! Athletes from all over the world and there families have migrated to Panama City Beach, Florida to compete in what many call one of the toughest endurance events in the world. My mind is flying so I cannot recall what I was thinking but I see my heart rate is fricken 123 bpm (resting: 47 bpm)! Task number 1 is to pump up my tubular wheels which is a process that may have stole some sleep. After the anxiety attack of trying to fill the disc wheel (not a bad problem though- thanks Bruce!), the bike is good to go. Green and looking hot- I may or may not have kissed it multiple times. I throw my slick aero helmet in my bike bag (thanks Rachel!), grab my wetsuit and meet the crew for some pictures. Its now 20 minutes from the 7 AM swim start and a long day in Florida.

Swim- 2.4 Miles

Its a beautiful morning in Florida. The air is crisp, slight wind, and its all blue skies! I notice the "pancake flat" waters of the days before are gone. There is a good chop which should make the swim a bit more challenging for everyone. After goodbyes to Stace, Amy, and Erin, its time to jockey for position among the 3000 lined up over a football fields length along the beach. I talk to this Australian guy before we started and some calming quotes from Dumb and Dumber came into my head which was nice ("That's a lovely accent you have. New Jersey?", "Austria", "Austria! Well, then. G'day mate! Let's put another shrimp on the barbie!") As a good swimmer, the game plan was to be in the first 3 rows of my area, hammer 400 meters and see what was going on. If I could find the "60 minute group" to swim with- do it. After what seemed like eternity (2 minutes), the MC who was telling everyone "if you are not good at swimming, be in the back of the pack or risk getting swam over", gave us the 10 second countdown. Soon a cannon sounded and Ironman Florida began! To understand an Ironman swim, imagine taking a seat inside your washing machine, adding a few pairs of shoes, and hitting the wash cycle. Everyone thinks they're Michael Phelps but in reality they're probably more like Michael Jackson. So as planned, the field thinned by the first turnaround buoy, as reality hit for many "swimmers." The waves were challenging but I liked that because I knew others did not. I got into a decent rhythm where I felt pretty smooth, tried not to get kicked in the head, and finished the first of two 1.2 loops in good form. The second loop was easier than the first minus some big ogar who about scissor kicked my head off, but I was out of the water in 58min and some change which put me in 72nd place overall- don't want to build any suspense- that did not last!

Swim to Bike Transition

Got out of the water, this Nazi "wetsuit stripper" yelled at me to lie down. So I did. She quickly ripped it off, handed it back to me, and said "Go!" So I did. Seriously felt like Forrest Gump in a few unique ways. The rest of transition felt like a sheep being led to the slaughter. I was just following the masses and did what they told me. Put my cycling shoes on, helmet, food in jersey, and got the green machine and was off on what would be a interesting long ride!

Bike- 112 Miles

As I jumped on my smoking hot bike/ girlfriend for many years, I settled in for the long haul. This course was flat and fast, which was good, but as a result prone to a few things: wind and cheaters. Put those two together and you have a very frustrating combination. For the record, I am a decent cyclist, yet each race this discipline is where I lose the most time to my competetors. I blame my Colombia genetics as they are generally known to be great "climbers" and not the best "time-trialists." But in truth, I am just lazy and never lift weights thus I am not that strong (145lb weigh-in!). Having a good swim and being in front of quite a few people, I quickly realized that regardless if I was Lance (well maybe not him) but say a better cyclist, I could never compete with the masses of cyclist working together (cheating). So I settled into my own race, fought the 15-20 mph headwind myself, and may or may not have let a few comments out as these "peletons" passed me. What was hard to swallow, is that I knew a few of these athletes, but I made the decision to do it "fair!" Screw them. On another note, I would not care if I never drank another bottle of Gatorade again. My nutrition plan was perfect though and much love and credit goes to being the case study for 12 awesome dietetic interns at Vanderbilt. Lucky me! My plan of 40 oz/ hr of sports drink and water, accompanied with 300 calories (Clif Bars, Shot Blocks, and Gels) went very well. My stomach felt great the whole ride, wish I had better legs, but was happy to get back home and start the Marathon slightly frustrated, yet in good spirits.

Bike to Run Transition

Just happy to be off the bike- got really bored the last hour. Again, like sheep to the slaughter but had a really funny conversation with the "helper" in transition. During our 90 second conversation, while I took off come cycling gear and put on running shoes, we laughed and made light of such a long race. Wish I knew his name, because he really gave me the lift and perspective I needed in that moment.

Run- 26.2 Miles

The course again was flat and familiar to me as I did an early season race on it. Its just the idea of running a marathon after 5 1/2 hours on a bike that's a tad daunting. Yet, coming out on the course I saw my gang! I gave them all a hug, took a picture, and headed out feeling energized. I settled into an easy pace that I knew I could maintain for hours without much trouble. The emphasis was on eating, staying hydrated, and having fun. I ran with this German guy for the first 13 miles which kept me sharp...kind of. We talked about family, beer, racing, and poked fun of other racers. I felt like a moran when I initially asked him if he was from Boston...to which he replied "Germany!" I also asked if him if Germany hated us for our steroid-infused picture of Drago in Rocky IV...to which he replied "Soviet Union." Not sure how sharp I actually was in that moment. Yet, we'd run through aid stations asking for "Cerveza" and this made me laugh. After 8 hrs I still had no problem smiling and enjoying the moment. I ran the next 10 miles with a middle school principle from Alabama. He had 3 boys and another on the way. At one point on the course, you run over this mat which identifies who you are. In front of you is a big jumbo screen where encouraging comments from families and friends appear (if they typed them in at the expo). Nothing for me, but my little man (seriously maybe 5 ft 2 inch's) had some great stuff from his boys. It read "Finish quickly Dad! We miss you and can't wait to see you!" We'll my man starts crying as we run. Feeling touched but somewhat in an awkward moment...I tell him "to save that water- he might need it later in the race!" The sun's seriously going down, and my body is actually feeling awesome. My pace has been solid but much slower than my pre-race goal. Maybe I was scared to "blow up" ala Julie Moss, but I'm guessing the harder than expected bike was the culprit. Yet, I figured I would drop the little principle and hammer (faster shuffle) the last 3 miles to ensure I finished under 11 hrs. Coming back into town and reaching the masses that surround the finish line, I feel both overwhelmed and relieved. My quest to conquer the Ironman is finished. I cross the finish line pointing up to Him with my hand across my heart. He has allowed me to do this, provided all my strength, and has taught me so much in these moments together. This endeavor was finally over yet I know the journey has just begun!

Special thanks to my family, friends Kelcy, Laura, Hannah, Stace, Erin, Amy, Bart, Chris and Sarah, the lil ones, Kendall for the support and also leaving the country which gave me a great reason to do IMF, my awesome swim coaches Carol Carr and Chris McPherson, Trace Bikes (they are the best-seriously), Bruce, Rachel, Ed, Cory, Zafer, VUMC Dietetic Interns and Charlotte, Will (training, racing, challenging me), and all of you whom I may have missed and who deserve a hug- thank you.

If you made it this far- January 4th will make a huge chapter in my life. Hope to reveal that to everyone in a few days...

Ironman Florida- Pre-Game

Its Tuesday November 3rd and I am wide away. I turn over and my digital clock, which could be large enough to land a plane, is telling me its almost midnight. I close my eyes and instead of sheep jumping over a fence, I see fellow athletes swimming over me. I see myself tearing off my wetsuit only to have forgotten my racing uniform and thus scarring many innocent bystanders. I see myself running to my bike and the tires are slashed from another competitor who was jealous of my flaming green bike. I see myself stumbling out onto the marathon, passing out, only to wake up with Jesus giving me a high-five in Heaven. With the race in 4 days from this moment, I would have taken any pill, said any prayer, licked an amazon frog, to find some relief from the insanity that was my mind!

After what was a very interesting night's sleep, complete with vivid nightmares, my uber alarm clock tells me its time to get ready to go. Erin, a beach virgin, is on her way to my house to pick me up. When she heard about Ironman and I heard she had never saw the ocean, it was no brainer that she was coming to Florida. Erin could take care of this major blemish in her resume called Life, and I could have someone to wipe the drool from my mouth after the race! Score. So after what seemed like a 12 round fight with the bike rack I borrowed from a friend, it was finally time to get on the road. On my Facebook I write: "Dear Ironman Florida, I'm going to destroy you! Wait...I didn't mean that, can I take it back? Please be nice to me!"

After a night's stay at my swim buddies Fletch's house (thanks!), we stayed at a really cool place about 1/2 mile from the race site! It had an 80's tropical theme that was both scary and calming. The ocean was flat as a pancake and the weather amazing. Soon friends from both work and church came down and over the next 48 hrs I would occasionally forgot why I was there...until I walked into Walmart. How about every other person looking ripped, walking around in some cheesy triathlon related shirt, shaved legs, and carrying various forms of gold...I mean pasta. Or the sports drink aisle looking like the milk fridge at a Nashville Kroger's when 1 inch of snow is forcasted! And lastly the beer lane, ravished, for what many may use to enjoy the pure bliss of such an accomplishment or bury the un-holy pain that accompanies 140+ miles.

On Thursday Will and I went over to the site to pick up our race packets. Crazy! We played "guess the European" way too many times. Some french dude strutting a "grape smuggler" and a t-shirt about ran his little crepe into me while I was buying some gels, almost vomited. After waiting in the long registration line, Will and I somehow get chauffeured into the main tent, because this lil old lady, who thought Will was my dad (he's 30), was on crack. We took advantage and zipped to the front of the line and made it official. Awkward moment inside the tent- we had to weigh in. So I gladly stepped on the scale, did my De La Hoya flex for the crowd, and shamefully told the lady I weighed 145 lbs! Seriously...apparently the Kentucky Derby will be next on my list!

Friday Morning I met Will for a little jaunt in the gulf. The water felt great and I began to realize how much I love swimming open water. There is something about having the waves lift you up, the slight right to left current, salt-water buoyancy, unlimited depth of sight, and jelly fish! Actually the last thing kind of wigged me out as I pictured my months of training going to waste because of some boneless fish I can't eat! However, my intuitive open water skillz came into play, and I moved right on Will's toes. The man had a wetsuit on, I was pretty much naked! We met up again to "check-in" our bikes and transition bags. Wow. Have you ever second guessed yourself? What is it called when you do this say 87 times? My bike and run transition bags had everything in them. From endless amounts of yummy (sarcasm) foods to my shoes, socks, and hat. You can only imagine how jacked we became questioning our preparation. Will, I, and Holly (Will's Girlfriend) headed out the door to the race site. I cannot describe in all my rambling words the pit that was in my stomach. If I ever get married, walking down that aisle will be no problema! I looked over at Will to which he states "I think I want to vomit." We check in the bikes, bags, and my soul. Will goes to get taped and I make the lonely walk back to my place. Time to anticipate, time to reflect, time to prepare, but more importantly time to pray. Through this adventure God and I have had some pretty amazing times together and this moment was no exception. You know when Rocky yells outside of the Father Carmine's window, asking for a blessing, before he fights Apollo in Rocky II...it was kind of like that minus the whole Catholicism thing. As I talked to Him, I received a calming peace that was pretty amazing! God is good and even in the face of the blatant conflict/ idol that is triathlon training, He was with me and was excited for me. Than I stepped on one of those prickly seeds on the beach, lost that feeling, and now had a few things/ words to seek forgiveness for! T-Minus one rough nights sleep! More to come!

Ironman Triathlon...Seriously?

Well over a year ago, my friend Will Hager suggested we should take our mediocre triathlon talent to the next level and the ultimate stage. He suggested we should sign up for an Ironman-distance triathlon. For me, when I thought about doing Ironman images of Julie Moss doing the 1982 Hawaii Ironman flashed in my head. If you have not seen her jaw-dropping deconstruction where she eventually crawls over the finish line- check it out on YouTube. Yet, for some jacked-up reason it took me about 1 minute on the phone to take the bait and decide to sign up. Maybe it was my long ago adopted motto I learned doing this sport, that "you pass out before you die" which gave me the inner-peace of knowing I wouldn't feel a thing if things went sour that day. Or was it my unknown Colombian genetics which may have involved some guy who loved the thrill of smuggling drugs or possibly just taking them, that enabled me to make such a quick decision? Either way, Will and I agreed to play the game that is trying to register online, 1 year in advance, for a race that usually sells out in 3 minutes. Crazy scenario but unfortunately we won, and were now 2 of 3000 people who got a slot for the 140 mile (thats 226K for my euro buds)race known as Ironman Florida.

How does one prepare? You tell your girlfriend, friends, family, dog, and life that you love them, but you'll see them in a year. You tell your accountant that I you understand the expenses equal a good down payment on a home. You tell your body that sleep is overrated and that God sent down manna from Heaven because they were carbohydrates and He wants you to marry them for 12 months. You tell people "I hate you" for them asking you why you are so skinny all the time. Yet you tell yourself, "only the insane do this", and in that notion a smile always forms and everything is justified.

There is something to be said about the feeling you get when you notice someone reaching for a coffee early morning to wake up, and you've already ran 10 miles and swam 3000 meters. Yet, one will always remember the sick feeling of seeing a family enjoy a nice picnic on a beautiful Tennessee day, and you got a date with your triathlon bike(that cost more than your life) for the next 5 hours! However, through all these moments, you begin to love it. You love how you body changes from a wannabe slob to a regimented machine. You love the fact that in a weird way you begin to feel like Jason from the Bourne Identity. You love the camaraderie of the OCD community that is endurance athletes. You love how after running 20 miles on Sunday you can eat 30 fried chicken wings, drink 4 beers, and finish it with 3 bowls of Moose Tracks ice-cream w/ chocolate sauce! It may not be a life for many, but for those who embark on this strange sport and event called Ironman, its kind of fun!

So after 10 months of solid training and preparation, 3 half-ironman races, 2 olympic-distant races, 1 sprint race, it was time to tackle the Beast. Was I going to reap the benefits of hard work or was this thing going to put me in the fetal position like it did Julie Moss and many others who were probably much more prepared than I? Stay tuned as I'll give everyone the race report from a fool who didn't really know what he was getting himself into but for some reason was really glad to be there!

Welcome to E's World

Like many people who begin a blog, you wonder if your life is really that interesting to start this in the first place! I can honestly say up this point, there have been only a handful of events that were worth posting. The time I ran into a tree at camp and woke up 25 minutes later in front of 300 kids. My Mother questioning if I liked guys because I hated this girl after a breakup. An emergency room visit to remove a sweet 4 inch fishing lure from my thumb. The moment I got caught in the dark with the preachers daughter by the preacher only to tell him we were having a "bible study" and him believing it. The adventure that was going to a conservative Christian college because of the preachers daughter of earlier reference. The amazement of having God find you in a dark place in your life and reveal himself to you. The glimpses of a journey that He reveals to us when we finally and stubbornly submit to His authority. So with all that said, here we go! After many years, I can honestly say I have now arrived to a place where maybe more than my Mom will be interested in what I am doing. Life is about to change and a new adventure will begin. Stay tuned and hopefully you can laugh, learn, and live with me as I begin this new chapter in what I feel should be a hilariously awesome good time!