Ironman Coeur d'Alene Race Report June 29th, 2003 Drew Hartman
Hello everyone, The Ironman race in beautiful Coeur d’Alene, Idaho was indeed a tough one. To begin, I’ll throw out a few statistics to sort of set the tone of the race. When I competed in Ironman Florida in 2001 the race experienced the highest percentage of finishers in the history of the event (approximately 80 DNFs or “Did not finish”). In the opposite direction, Ironman CDA experienced the highest percentage of DNFs of any Ironman distance race in its 25-years of existence. 233 people did not see the finish line on Sunday. Information from the local paper stated that more than 2,500 gallons of liquids (i.e., water, Gatorade, cola, etc.) were handed out on the course and they gave out more than 30,000 oranges to the competitors. Who knows how many bananas were handed out??? The main reason for the record setting DNF stat is the heat. Temps on the bike reached as high as 103F and it was well in the 95+F during the run. Add to this the lack of shade on the run course and the decreased wind during the run and you have yourself a record DNF day. The race was on Sunday, June 29th. Shanny and I got into CDA on the previous Tuesday to have ourselves a vacation and experience some of the great things CDA has to offer. Being that I’m a sucker for nature, I can say that this place is amazing. I think my buddy Lafe said it best, “If God intended Heaven to be on Earth He would pick Coeur d’Alene.” With Lake CDA’s crystal clear waters and the mountains and greenery everywhere it is truly amazing. The people here are amazing as well. I can only compare them too the people I grew up with in Northern Wisconsin and this is probably a bias opinion. Just really nice, supportive people who would give the shirt off their back to help you out. Shanny and I hung with the locals enough during the week to see how cool they are. We stayed at a little B&B called the Roosevelt Inn. The place was great and all the other people staying there were there to compete in the race. It was our little family of Ironmen who we got up and had breakfast with every morning and got to know well. The oldest couple of the bunch was both accomplished scientists. Bob, who was competing in the Ironman (his 4th) is one of the lead authorities on stem-cell research. His wife is considered one of the top six research scientists for Parkinson’s disease. She, herself, has the disease and uses triathlon training and good nutrition to help combat the illness. They were such incredible people to chat with. I felt like I gained a couple IQ points just being near them. There was also another couple with their kids from Cincinnati. The O’Brians. They ended up being the couple Shanny and I hung with the most. Tom (Dad) was competing in his first Ironman, and to make things sweeter, using this race as his qualifying race for Hawaii. He’s one of the lucky ones who got a lottery spot so he needed to finish this race to be officially accepted at Kona. His goal was to break 10hrs, but the heat and bike course tore him up like the rest of us. He finished in 12hrs 34mins and wasn’t too bummed about it. Like the rest of us, just happy to see that beautiful finish line. OK, for the race: The weather predictions during the week started at 78F with a chance of rain. By Saturday, the predictions were high 90s with a chance of rain in the afternoon. CDA is known for its dry heat and mild temps. It couldn’t have been any more the contrary. I got up that morning and was able to get some food in me, but not quite the breakfast I was hoping for. I like big meals 3-4hrs before the race, but that wasn’t happening today. I had been fretting over the swim portion all week and Shanny can attest to this. I’ve been feeling very strong on the bike despite my lack of century rides getting ready for the race and my running has never been betterr. My focus for the race was improved form on the bike and run a solid marathon. Unlike Florida, I felt like I could knock 45-mins off my run for this race and only walk briefly from time-to-time. Well, all of this concentration pointing at the bike/run left me starting to doubt my swimming abilities. My swimming performances at Memphis and Tri-Shark were good, but I wasn’t enjoying myself so I worried a little. OK, a LOT!
The Swim (2.4 Miles): We headed down to the lake and I got myself into race mode and got my wetsuit all snug and feeling good. I gave Shanny the last smooch for the day and headed over with the other 1,800 crazies to get ready for the canon. The big day is finally here and I felt ready! The canon sounds and I’m off into the lake. I got myself behind a pretty fast group of guys and I felt like they were pulling me right along for the first 500yds. The first buoy came up real quick and my shoulders and lats were feeling good. I was actually enjoying myself this time and every stroke felt unrushed and smooth. It would have made Eric “the Eel” Arnt proud!!! I kept that same pace and attitude throughout the rest of the swim and came out at 1hr 4mins. I was very pleased with my swim. All that fretting for nothing (as usual)!!!!
The Bike (112 Miles): I got into the change tent to get all my gear on and that went very well. It almost felt too fast like I was forgetting something, but I guess I planned it out well. The bike course starts with a down & back portion along the lake with one good climb. The wind was coming from the East so we were getting a nice cool wind off the lake. I personally feel after doing the race that this caused a lot of people, including myself, to push too hard too soon. We really had no clue how hot it was until we reached the back half of the course. That first portion was really a great ride though with the lake and the mountains in the background. Like I said, I’m a sucker for nature!!! As I got into that first climb I saw Spencer Smith coming back so I scream a big “Hammer Mutha” to him as he went by. That was the last time I saw him and I guess he hammered too hard. He dropped out after 4-miles into the run. As you come back into town the fun begins. You have this downhill ride into town with people all over cheering you on. Maybe this compares to IM Wisc, going through Verona? I guess I’ll just have to do Wisconsin someday to find out. Anyway, it was a very cool experience having so many people cheering you on. You couldn’t help hammering hard and looking as tri-geeky as possible!!!! After getting through town the course takes you to the two major climbs of the race. All I heard all week was how fast this bike course is. I think I must have been talking to some Le Tour winners!!! The first climb was long with a pretty good grade. It took about 10-mins to climb (for me) and I knew my legs were eating way too much energy so I tried to back off some. As you reach the top you hit a couple small hills then the descents begin. The descents are pretty hairy for this guy of the corn. My top speeds were reaching around 50mph and the corning was a bit crazy. The first loop on these hills had a lot of people around me so that made it even scarier. As you go down you can smell burnt rubber from everyone laying on their brakes. It was quite nerve racking. In fact, I think I was more tired going down those hills than going up because I was so tense. On the second loop I learned to relax more so that was a good thing. The people of the mountainous regions had a tremendous advantage on this course. When I reached the second major climb there was this elderly couple standing on the side of the road. The cute, little old lady was actually counting off what place we were in as we went by. “399…400…your 401…” Funny! I’m like, “hmmm 403rd place, just hammer a little harder and I’ll be right up there with Spencer…pfffffff!!!!!!!!” The 2nd climb was by far the toughest part of the course and also labeled/sponsored by my Degree Team, “The Degree of Difficulty”. It was just that. Like Lake Geneva, I found myself spinning past people doing 5mph. Some people were getting off their bike on the 2nd loop to save them legs for the Marathon. At the time I thought that was actually pretty smart, but there’s no way I’m walking a TitanFlex up no stinking hill!!!!!! It was brutal and a lot of people (in my opinion) gave up the race on that hill. It was THAT taxing. After getting through the hilly section of the race things get pretty flat. I think the course would have been fast here if it wasn’t for the Eastern wind. People around here seldom see wind from the East so it was just one more factor to add to this challenging race. We had about 25 to 30 miles of headwind coming back into town. Part of this course took us on a Dog Track, which I thought was kind of cool. We circled the track then kept heading into town. Once you get into town you begin the 2nd loop and do it all over again. The big climb on the 2nd loop about killed me. I knew I had to slow it down if I was to do anything on the run. I finished the bike portion in 6hrs flat, about 30-mins slower than my goal, but that’s OK. I was just glad to be done biking!
The Run (26.2 miles): When I got off the bike I immediately knew something was wrong. My back was going through spasms and I was short of breath. I got myself into the change tent, got my running gear on, and hit the bathroom for the first time of the race. This was a bit odd for me. I drank at least 8-10 32oz bottles of Cytomax/Gatorade on the bike along with Thermotabs (salt), but yet no peepee. Where did all of this liquid go??? This was not a good sign! I started into the run and felt bad from the get-go. The crowds kept me going for the first mile, but then I walked. I’d get going again, but with every breath came stabbing pain in my back so I’d walk some more. That’s pretty much how my day on the run went. I’d see a big crowd of supporters then try to get into stride. I’d do that for about a block’s distance then walk some more. The desire to run was there and I think I had some energy, but I really couldn’t hack the pain. Maybe Advil or something would have worked, but as I found out later it was dehydration that caused the back pain. My kidneys were failing and this caused the pain with every breath. The first loop took me 2hrs 50mins to get through so I checked the clock and said, “OK, lets do this the best I can and get home under 13hrs”. Well, the running was pretty much eliminated at this point so I walked the entire 2nd loop. I estimate I walked roughly 24-miles of the course, which was disheartening considering how much training I put in to “run” the race. As I got through the first loop I tried to find Shanny to let her know how I was doing. I knew she had to be worried sick because I’m usually pretty good with my predictions and this race I was WAY off!!! I never did find her until near the end of the race and I could see she was not doing well with the situation. It’s important for me for us to share the experience and I wasn’t able to do that this time. Even though things went bad for me I wanted to at least let her know that I was still breathing. Just not well!!! On the 2nd loop I walked by another Degree teammate and he asked me if I was doing OK. I told him “not really” and he turned around to help me, but I told him things were good. I just needed to keep walking. He was actually willing to drop his race to help me out and that was pretty darn selfless. I’ll never forget that. On the turn-around on the run where the Degree folks hang to cheer people on for the “Degree of Difficulty” on the run, my teammate told them about me. They actually phoned in a Degree EMT to come out on a mountain bike and make sure I was doing OK. I told her I would just keep pushing along and she ended up checking on me several more times during the walk-a-thon! These people have been really taking care of me!
I ended up walking the last 12-miles with a guy from Denver who was experiencing the same issues. This was his 10th Ironman and he experienced one other race like this with terrible heat. It just sucks the life out of you. We had a good walking pace going and after 13hrs and 20+mins I could finally hear the crowds cheering on the finishers. I asked my new buddy Dennis to go ahead of me to get through the shoot. I start up a run for the finish then I see Shanny with this huge look of concern. She asks me if I’m OK and all I could really do is nod my head. I ran the final stretch with a nice easy stride, high-fiving everyone I could find. I hear the guy announcing my name and it felt very very VERY good. The only bummer part was he didn’t say my occupation. I had myself listed as a “Private Dancer, Dancer for Money.” I think I would have found the energy to cut some rug!!!!
The EMTs got me to the medical tent right away (or what seemed to me like the MASH tent) and hooked me up with an IV. This is when reality set in. I began shaking uncontrollably and nearly convulsing! I’ve never felt this bad. After four IV bags I was starting to feel better and my system seemed to stabilize. Next to me in the other bed was Emilo Desoto. You probably wear something he’s made. We helped each other out. He watched over me and yelled for Docs when I started shivering more. I tried to talk with him to get his mind off his cramp pain. He started to cramp on the bike and never recovered during the race. I’m sure he’s better now though. After two days I’m still short of breath, but feeling much better. The Docs said it would be that way so I’m good with that. The race was truly an experience I will never forget. The finish-line didn’t have that sweet taste Florida had, but Florida didn’t have the course and conditions CDA had. You take it as it comes and prepare the best you can. I look back and know there are some things I would do different, but that’s the beauty of the Ironman. It’s an iterative process you’re willing to try again and again, learn from, and grow because we tri-geeks think it’s worth it.
Swim, Eat, Bike, Run, Sleep. Take care, Drew. Coeur d'Alene Photos