Peaks and Valleys

It's already been 2 weeks since Ironman Wisconsin and much like training all year for a race, life is full of extreme highs and pretty crappy lows.

Qualifying for the Ironman World Championships is exactly what I set out to do.  The level of satisfaction of setting a goal, busting my ass for a year and achieveing what I set out for is very hard for me to put into words. The first time I qualified for Kona was at Ironman Louisville '09.  It's the absolute last qualifier for the given year, which meant I had exactly 6 weeks to recover from the race and plan for huge trip and the biggest race of my life.  It had all come and gone before I even realized it!  This year, qualifiing at IMWIS is the polar opposite.  It's the first qualifing race for the following year, so now I get to ride this wave of euphoria and plan another trip to the Big Island but I get 13 months to do it!  Seriously, when describing this feeling, Cloud 9 isn't even remotely high enough.

I've taken the idea of taking "some time off" to the extreme (see a theme here?)  I've been eating like an absolute hog and haven't spent a minute exercising since the race.  To achive what I have in this sport, hobby isn't an appropriate word.  I developed a lifestyle around eating well and exercising, everyday.  The habits I've formed are obsessive and in my opinion it's what's required to competitive.  So needless to say, removing myself from this lifestyle has been very tough.  I feel like crap when I eat like crap, I feel like crap when I don't exercise and I sleep like crap because frankly, without exercise my body isn't really tired.  See this vicious cycle I've built.

So with the high highs come the low lows, and I wish me feeling like garbage was the low I'm describing, but it not, it's way worse.  A friend of mine was making her final preparation to race in Kona this year.  She was in a horrific bike accident and is now literally fighting for her life.  Even though she's from the Metro Detroit area, the first time I met her was in '09 in Kona.  She's in this group of "cool" kids that are bad ass enough to race Kona every year, and one of the things I was really looking forward to was hanging out with them again next year!

And then it happened...in the blink of an eye, Amy went from 5x USA Triathlon All American and 5x Kona Qualifier to being the subject of massively organized Power of Prayer session at Henry Ford Hospital.  I've been obsessively checking her Facebook page for updates from her sister and boyfriend on her condition.  I've been in denial since the accident and have been waiting for the post that says she's feeling great and is thinking about getting back on  her bike.  Sadly, it's going to be a terribly long road and a victory will be scored by the 1000's of people pulling for her if she can wake up from her coma.  This is serious stuff and what scares me most is that it could have happened to any one of us.

We all have mothers and fathers, sisters and brothers, friends and spouses and children that are way more important than this, or any race. 

I still have a ton to share but for now my message is a simple one but it's the most important:

Please, please, please be careful out there.
Train SAFE.
Corey

Ironman Wisconsin 2012 - Race Report

Summary:
Swim: 57:55
Bike: 5:19
Run: 3:17
Total: 9:43
5th in M35-39 / 30th Overall

Goals: Going in, and as was highly publicized here, I wanted to get back to Kona. As my race goals further evolved leading up to the race I wanted to get on the podium and figured I’d need at least a 9:45. My time predictions from my training and race simulations were sub 1 swim x 5:20 bike x 3:15 run, so a 9:45 was within reason.
 

Pre-race
2 days out, I always start by cutting my toe nails just a little too short and removing all of my nose hair. Just kidding, it’s really 4 days out for the nails. Race morning 4am rise for breakfast, coffee and pre-race evacuation. My staple pre-race breakfast is a .....

Never Say Never

Ironman Wisconsin Results

Swim: 57:55
Bike: 5:19
Run: 3:17
Total: 9:43

5th in AG / 30th Overall and I'm going back to Kona!

Midway through the year I had doubts if this was even possible again.  Then yesterday, a dozen times on the run course, it would have been so much easier to just give up.  If there was any doubt, doing well in these races isn't all about who has strongest body.  The mental aspect of hanging in there until the very end can't be captured in a picture.

I was gonna hang it up for iron distance racing if I didn't place Top 5 and qualify to go back to Hawaii.  So it looks like I get to keep pushing along for my really long victory lap next October on the Big Island.  I've learned a ton along the way and now that I'm no longer competing for a Kona slot, it's time to spill it.  No more secrets.  I'm completely open to questions and topics.  Please feel free to ask, as I will certainly elaborate to the best of my ability.

Upcoming topics include:

• A detailed breakdown of my race by discipline.
• My Go Fast "secrets"
• "These dudes must be on something!"
• The "OFF" season
• "Are you gonna eat that?"

Stay tuned.

The Odds Makers - Ironman Wisconsin 2012

Back in the day they used to call it stalking and it was creepy. Now a days, with the advent of social media and internet sites like athlinks and slowtwitch learning about your competition can be classified as doing 'research'...although it's still a little creepy, it's really not much different than a scouting report and college recruiters. Regarding my competition, I've always said it all depends who shows up.  It's not uncommon for a FOP age grouper to get whooped up on by a former pro runner at a local sprint triathlon but said FOP age grouper could run away with win at a big Iron-branded race.  It all depends who show's up.   All that said, I've done a limited amount "research" to identify some potential contenders in the M35-39 AG at Ironman Wisconsin....and let me tell you, the FIELD IS STACKED! ....