Ironman Wisconsin 2005 by Shelby Katz

The lovely and talented Shelby Katz went to Wisconsin for her 1st IronMan. She kicks ass.

Greetings everyone. Well, I’m home from Wisconsin!! I want to start
by
thanking all of you special and wonderful friends and family who sent
me
well wishes before starting this grueling day. I also want to thank
all of
you who called me throughout the day, letting me know that you were
there
with me on Sunday, sharing my day with me. I cannot begin to tell you
how
amazing all of this made me feel. In the end, I know there was no way
I
could have done any of this without your amazing friendship, love and
support.

Let start this race report (which is sort of long, sorry, it was a long
day)
with a recap from the founder of Ironman about what the athletes went
through on September 11, 2005 in Madison Wisconsin. He told us that in
all
of his years coming to Ironman races, he has never seen such horrendous
race
conditions. Two weeks ago was Ironman Canada, he said it was hot there
and
as people crossed the line, they started to throw up. They dubbed
Canada,
VOMITMAN. Well, he said with the HEAT, (94 DEGREES), HUMIDITY (OVER
60%)
AND WIND (UP TO 20 MPH), there was carnage he’d never seen before.
Ergo,
our dubbed name of CARNAGEMAN. He told us that Ironman has only seen a
drop
out rate of 6-9% on average. In Wisconsin, 20% of the athletes dropped
out.
That’s 1 out of every 5 athletes. He also told us that 250 people
dropped
out of the bike section of the race. That does not include people who
didn’t make the bike to run cut off time. These are those who just
couldn’t
get through the bike. I can't begin to tell you how many people on
the run
who were on the ground incoherent!! There were ambulances flying all
over
the place that day, working harder in Wisconsin than any other race.
CARNAGEMAN… that about sums this day up!

But, with that said, I am sooooo proud to say I finished Ironman
Wisconsin.
I can now say that I am an Ironman!!!

Just in case you are not familiar with Ironman, it consists of a 2.4
mile
swim, a 112 mile bike ride and ending with a 26.2 mile run (all in one
day).

Our day starts off generally at 4:00 am. I was up at 2:00 am eating a
peanut butter sandwich. Yummy! Back to bed for a few more hours of
sleep,
then, up at 4 to get ready for the race! My bike and other equipment
were
already set up in transitions, so really all I had to do was get my
special
needs bags for each leg to the trucks, and get to the start. I met up
with
my girlfriends Bobbie and Meredith and we dropped off our special needs
bags
(these are bags that will have food and other goodies in it that we get
roughly half way through both the bike and the run. Things we can’t
carry
the first time around and need to replenish). The three of us go off
to our
bikes to pump up the tires and make sure we have water and other
goodies on
our bike. The volunteers body marked us (put our numbers in black ink
on
our arms and legs) and we were ready to go!

The start: we headed down to the swim start and the emotions were
flying
for me! I started to cry. Not from fear, but because I had been
preparing
for this for over a year and here it finally was…

The swim: In an Ironman, the swim is not divided up into age groups.
We
all start at the same time. That means 2200 people in the waters of
Lake
Menona, a gun goes off and we all go! Holy CRAP! Bodies are everywhere!
Arms
are everywhere! Legs and feet are in your face! I got punched so many
times
I can’t remember!! People grabbing your legs, pushing and pulling you!!
There is nothing else like this!! It was so amazing!! As you turned
your
head out of the water to take a breadth, you could hear the pounding
and
splashing of the water and more importantly, the cheer of the crowds!!!
I
have no clue what my time was for the first loop of the swim (we did
two 1.2
mile loops) because my watch was stopped by someone’s foot, or hand,
who
knows… Someone told me it was roughly 38 or 40 minutes. I went around
for
my second loop feeling so happy and content. It never mellowed out
there! I
was in the thick of it. I had planned to stay to the outside so I
could
have some clear water. Well, with the drag of the water, I ended up
being
on the inside, sometimes hitting the bouys!!!

I turned the last corner, saw the convention center and all the
cheering
crowds and couldn’t believe I was almost there! I kicked hard and soon
I was
being helped out of the water!!! HURRAY!!! I FINISHED THE SWIM!!!!!!
In an
Ironman, as you get out of the water and they have what they call
Strippers
or Peelers there for you. You unzip your wetsuit and someone peels it
right
off you. Takes about 4 seconds to get that wetsuit off! That would be
sweet
for an Olympic distance race since I always struggle with that!!!

In Wisconsin, the transition area is in a parking structure, so you
have to
run up a Helix to get to your stuff. It’s four stories up, so I start
running! I’m laughing and smiling the whole way! I’m almost to the top
and I
see Bobbie and Meredith just coming out of the changing room. I yell
cheers
to them and they are happy to see me! I get to the transition area and
start
to change (here is lesson one by the way… I wore my bathing suit and
decided to change to all my bike gear… it’s really hard to do this
when you
are wet. So, next time, if there is ever a next time, I’ll go with my
biking stuff on me already). It took forever for me to change, but
there
was this amazing volunteer that helped me change, put my food in my
shirt as
I put on my socks, and got me out the door. I ran to my bike and there
was
my family and friends! They had run to the outside of the transition
area
and were waiting me for to cheer me on!! Even better though by the
mount
line were Bobbie and Meredith. They had waited for me!!!!! We were
going
to do this together!!! Yes, it brought tears to my eyes and my heart
swelled
with pride knowing I had the most amazing friends!

The bike: The start of the bike course takes you down a 4 story helix
and
out to the outer towns of Madison. Towns like Verona, Mt. Horab and
Cross
Plains. We saw hills, cows, farms, and families on tractors!! In
Ironman
Wisconsin, you do roughly a 14 mile ride out to just outside of Verona,
then
start a loop that takes you on a loop of the towns that you will do
twice
before hitting that 14 mile road home. The ride was great and I felt
amazing! I hydrated and ate like I was supposed to… then the heat
came,
then the winds, and the humidity began to rise. I couldn’t hydrate and
eat
enough.

The hills were beautiful, not like the hills of Colorado, but they were
hills and there were a lot of them!!! Roughly 40 hills (20 for each
loop).
Some short and steep, some long and mellow. The best was coming to the
Degree Hill of Difficulty hill. Old Sauk Pass. This hill wasn’t too
bad,
but man, the cheering crowds were incredible. After doing this pass,
we
came up to a hill that was steep and while short, it seemed long at the
time. Going up this though was unreal. It was like the Tour with the
people cheering you on, right next to you. I had always wondered what
it
would be like having people cheer right in front of you, and then part
just
as you come up to them. It truly was amazing! I felt like Lance
Armstrong
out of the saddle pushing up those hills! Some people walked, I would
never
dream of it! Oh, and coming down from these hills, we were riding
under
walnut trees… one fell out and NAILED my shoulder!!! I had a huge red
mark
the entire day from it. Scared the you know what out of me and the
first
expletive of the day screamed from my mouth!!! (LOL). THIS WAS SO MUCH
FUN!!!

After this section, it was a few miles to Verona and then a few more
miles
to our special needs bags. We hit Verona and there again we see our
friends
and family!!! There was my mom and stepdad Steve cheering me on just
in
Verona! Then Bobbie and Meredith’s family right behind them! They were
easy
to spot since we made them HOT PINK HIGH ALTITUDE HOTTIES t-shirts (for
those of you who don’t know, Bobbie, Meredith and I raced Escape from
Alcatraz as an all female relay team, and won, and our team name was
the
High Altitude Hotties). It makes a world of difference when you are
hurting
to see your friends and family out there rooting for you! EVEN WITH THE
PAIN, THIS WAS AMAZING!!

After this, I had run out of water just before we hit the half-way
point. I
pushed to get to my special needs bag where I knew I had more food and
a
COKE! It was rough, really rough. We got to our bags but there was no
water
there. I drank my Gatorade and coke and ate what I could stomach in
the
heat. Lesson number 2, throw everything including the kitchen sink in
your
special needs bag. It’ll be there when you need it and if you don’t,
you
can toss it aside!

We spent a considerable amount of time at the special needs stop. We
ate,
Bobbie used someone’s foam roller to work on her IT bands, I went to
the
bathroom (THANK GOD!). We were off and it was getting hotter! The
winds had
picked up and I still had no water. Now, why is it that when you are
out on
your bike and there are winds, they are only headwinds and crosswinds,
but
not tailwins??? We wondered that the whole bike ride!!!! It was
nuts!!!
The next rest station was roughly 10 miles away. We finally get to
that
rest station and they are out of water. Not good at all. I fill up on
Gatorade (warm, they had just gotten some boxes of it and didn’t have
time
to get it in ice). Oh well, you do the best you can with that…
Regardless,
the volunteers were amazing and we were having so much fun!!!

The second loop was rough, but it is on this second loop I see my
friend
Gerhard, Steve and my dad!! They were waiting on the hills to cheer us
on!!
That made a huge difference!

Luckily, the next aid station had water and plenty of it. Two went in
my
bottles, two over my head. We were off again and while feeling the
heat and
wind, we were still moving. We saw a lot of carnage out there.
Crashes,
flat tires, heat exhaustion, you name it. People were just lying on
the
side of the road waiting for ambulances. The worst was when you saw a
$3,000 bike just lying beside the road with no rider. We had to stop
for a
while at another aid station because Bobbie was having heart
palpitations.
(Oh, we had decided before the race that if we could do this together,
we
would, no matter what!). When she felt better, we were off!!!

We finally hit the road back to Madison and we are ready to go. It’s
mainly
downhill at this point. We make it back to Madison, ride back up the
parking helix (dizzying by the way) and cross the timing mats into the
transition area. We get water, change and get ready to run a marathon.
As
we left the transition area, our family is again out there for us!! We
stop
to hug and kiss them and we are off for the run. We were all smiles and
ready to go!!!

The Run: The winds in Madison were not there, so it was just hot
stuffy and
humid!! But, we were off our bikes, so we were happy! The first 13
miles
were okay. We had a plan. We would run from aid station to aid
station
(roughly every mile). We’d hit the aid station and walk while we drank
and
ate, then start running again. This worked for most of the first 13
miles.
(the run was also a double loop). We hit State Street in Madison and
the
cheering crowds were amazing!! They really pushed us and got us moving,
even
wanting to run hard!

The second 13 miles were hard. We walked more than we ran. My feet
hurt
every time I took a step. The three of us supported each other and
made it
possible to move forward. We ran when we could, we walked when we
couldn’t
run and we steadied each other when we wobbled. Our families were out
there, cheering us on, the fans stayed out there all night for us!!
They
were amazing and I know I couldn’t have done it without them.

We came to this one area where people had made signs that one of the
sponsors brought down so we would know our fans were with us. It was
an
area hard to get to for fans, so it was quiet. That was good, because
there
were a lot of signs to read! It was motivational and the first time
through
we ran the whole way, the second time, not as fast, but it was still
inspirational!

As we neared, it seemed like the miles were taking longer and longer.
I was
overheated for sure and my sodium levels were way down. I knew I
couldn’t
get food in my system (for fear of throwing it up) and the thought of
anymore Gatorade was sickening! But, I managed to get some down and
make it
to the final mile.

The finish line: We got to State street. It was a short uphill, then
turn
left with the screaming crowds… you could hear the announcer and see
the
lights of the finishing line. The state capitol was lite up and the
music
was pumping and the crowds were so loud I couldn’t hear myself. I
wanted to
take it all in, but I was overwhelmed. Bobbie was to my right and
Meredith
to my left. We started to run hard knowing we would make it and be
Ironmen!
I couldn’t wipe the smile from my face. As we turned right down the
finishing shoot, we grabbed hands and threw our arms into the air… we
were
almost there!!! I heard the announcer say it. Shelby Katz from Denver
Colorado, Bobbie Lutz from Denver Colorado and Meredith Rose from Davis
California, you are an Ironman!! We had crossed the finish line!!!!!!
We had
done it, we had done it together!!!! We made it through the hottest day
and
the hardest Ironman ever!

I am an Ironman.

For you triathlete friends, I highly recommend doing this. I know I
talk of
suffering in this report, but I can honestly say this was the most
amazing
experience of my life. Nothing compares. I don’t even think I can put
my
feelings into words. What I gave you above was more of a factual
account of
the day. The emotional side … well, it’s hard. The support from your
friends, family and people you don’t even know volunteers and other
athlete's friends and family made you push harder. It made you feel
empowered and strong. Knowing that even though it’s hot out there, you
have
what it takes. While you hurt, you know you have what it takes to cross
the
finish line. This feeling is beyond amazing. Being with my two
wonderful
friends throughout the race, sharing it all with them, I am the
luckiest
person and a better person for it. Everyone was amazed that we were
able to
stick together. I didn’t think that was the amazing part because it
wasn’t
about times… it was about sharing this day together and finishing
together.

While our time was MUCH slower than I anticipated (by 4 hours), I know
that
I gave it 100% and accomplished an amazing task! I know that all of my
training paid off for me, that I am not sore at all today because of
it. I
am fully recovered because of that training.

So, here are a few simple thank yous…

Melissa, my coach, thanks for knowing when to push me (99%) of the time
and
knowing when not to push (the remaining 1%). You helped make this day
happen!

Family, for being there, for supporting me, even when you didn’t
understand
what I was doing, and for the continued love and cheers.

Bobbie and Meredith, I couldn’t have done this without you I love you
guys
and you are my inspiration!

Nick, my bike was the HOTTEST bike out there because of you, thank you
for
your patience, understanding and support!!

Gerhard, you braved 16 plus hours out there to cheer me on!!

Scott and Nicole, thank you for your final words of encouragement,
soothing
words and tips!!

To all those who sent me emails and called me… I was too emotional
then to
talk or respond… but your words meant the world to me!

Thank you everyone…

Shelby, aka, IRONMAN