4 days in Melbourne

Ironman Melbourne - Naomi's Race

Last June I decided I was going to do an Ironman triathlon. I had done a few triathlons before back home but never really took them too seriously. I used to do a lot of cycling for fun, but I couldn't swim and I hated running. My training used to consist of long hilly bike rides, a doggy paddle swim once a week and only worrying about the run when it came to race day! Fortunately I had enough fitness from my cycling to 'get me round' but my results were always pretty average. Time for a change! I signed us up for Ironman Melbourne.

I decided back in June that if I was going to do an Ironman, then I should probably join a club or at least hire a coach. I googled a few clubs and even went on a ride with one group but nothing worked out. Then one day whilst cycling up in the Perth Hills I saw a small sign for F4L triathlon club. I decided to give it a go! After a few emails with head coach Paul, I joined the group for a ride. I never looked back! Paul set me up with a training plan which was a bit of a shock to the system. I went from doing my own thing once or twice a week to a structured session almost everyday! But I was loving it! I even persuaded Chris to join (although he took a lot of convincing). Now I think we both agree that joining F4L was one of my better ideas! We have made some great new friends and both seen big improvements in our fitness.

Before I knew it, IM Melbourne had snuck up on us!

Taper Week

Ideally the last week or two before a big race you should start to slow down a little to allow a bit of rest before the big day. Our training plans were getting shorter and the odd 'rest day' even appeared in my schedule! However things didn't quite go to plan...

My first problem was that 4 weeks before IM, my work decided to cancel all the annual leave I had booked due to a shortage of doctors. Disaster! I had to do some begging and lots of shift swapping to get my 4 days off which unfortunately meant having to work over 100 hours and 9 days straight only finishing 2 days before the race. I finished a 13 hour shift, jumped straight on the red eye flight to Melbourne, then had one day to prepare before race day on Sunday. Fortunately Chris packed all my stuff and organised all the flights, taxis and hotels which meant as soon as I arrived in Melbourne I could jump straight into bed! Perfect!

All this kit...

...Fits into this bag!

Flinders Street Station, Melbourne

The next day we went to Frankston to set up our kit in transition. Here we met up with Ian, Martin and Mat (all F4L team mates). We gave the bikes a quick spin and went for a swim to check out the course.

The day before had been really stormy and Ian told us that he couldn't even get 100m out past the jetty due to the large swell! Today however the sea was pancake flat! Perfect! I am not a strong swimmer and have a fear of the sea so I was praying for the conditions to stay the same for race day! I even saw a huge sting-ray!

Setting my bike up in transition

Nice calm sea means nice calm Naomi

Dream Machine!

After a swim we all went out for breakfast then back to the hotel for jacuzzi and rest. Later in the evening Chris and I went out for Italian to 'carb-up.' The restaurant was only about 10m from our hotel which was pretty handy because as soon as I had eaten I became pretty sick! Unfortunately I lost all my carbs down the drain! I don't know whether the food was bad or I was just super nervous but another small disaster for me!

Anyway, early night for us because the alarm was set for 3am!

Race Morning

We woke up at 3am which was pretty easy as I didn't really sleep due to nerves. We had a quick breakfast then set off to Frankston with Ian and Martin. We had a quick check of our bikes then got changed into our swim stuff. It was still dark but the atmosphere was great! Music, nerves and excitement in the air!

Race tattoo on!

Breakfast, dinner and tea!

When the sun came up I went for a quick swim and was relieved to see that the sea was calm! My first bit of good luck!

Race morning bike check!

SWIM - 3.8km

Finally after 8 months of training, the race was about to start! The buzzer went and I ran into the sea to start the longest swim I have ever done! I normally panic a bit in open water but not today! The sea was calm and clear and I could see the bottom nearly the whole way around. I settled into my swim and actually enjoyed it! I saw lots of star fish but no sting rays this time! I completed the 3.8km in 1 hour and 11mins.

BIKE - 180km

After the swim I ran to transition to collect my bike gear. I quickly got changed, grabbed my bike then set off on the first 90km lap. Things seemed to be going really well. I was flying...keeping my speed up at around 35km/hr. I felt great, I remembered to eat my gels and I was enjoying it! I passed so many people, especially on the climb in and out of the tunnel!

However just before I finished the first lap, disaster struck! I suddenly lost control of my bike and realised I must have punctured. I changed the tube as quickly as possible but couldn't find what had caused the puncture. After about 15mins I was back on the road but with no spare tube on me. I had decided to carry one spare on my bike and have another spare in my 'special needs bag' - a bag that you can collect on the second lap if needed. I finished the first lap and started the second, by this time the wind had picked up and I was battling a strong headwind. The all of a sudden...flat again! This time my back tyre was flat! Damn! I had no spare! I had a puncture repair kit but I decided it would take longer to fix again if the repair didn't work so I just called for the bike mechanic. Fortunately I wasn't too far from the special needs bag collection so eventually someone brought me my spare and I could fix up and get going again. Now I was worried...I'd never had a puncture in Australia before and now 2 in 90km and I still had 90km to go and no more spares!

Fortunately my tubes survived the rest of the bike leg. The next 45km were probably the toughest of the whole race. By this time I'd stopped twice to fix the puncture and was now trying to get back into a rhythm in a strong headwind. For some reason my right shoe really started to rub so I tried to take it off whilst on the move....another mistake because this manoeuvre caused my whole leg to cramp up! This cramp would then continue on and off of the whole day! Not one of my better ideas! I eventually reached the turn around point which meant just 45km to go and with a tail wind. I knew that once I got to this point I would be fine! Even better I saw Kendall (another F4L team mate and Ironman) cheering me on! Kendall had come over from Perth to support us and was there the whole day cheering us on! I cannot tell you how much of a boost it is to see a friendly face in the crowd!

The last 45km were pretty uneventful and I eventually made it back to transition in 5 hours 59mins. I was fairly pleased because my target was 6 hours, but also a little disappointed because I knew I lost a lot of time fixing the bike...oh well these things happen!

RUN - 42km (and a bit because I'm sure that last 1km was much longer!)

At last came the run. I dropped my bike off in transition and got changed into some fresh kit for the run. My plan was to run to each aid station, but then walk through the aid station (about 20m) to take on some food and drink, then carry on. This worked really well I couldn't believe how good I felt on the run. I was running very slowly (some may say shuffling!) but I was moving and feeling pretty good! The support on the run was fantastic and so motivating! I can't believe that I actually enjoyed the run!

The weather was very hot, about 28-30 degrees so lots of people kept spraying me with hose-pipes and giving me ice to hold which was great. I was holding up pretty well for the first half marathon but  at about 24km my leg started to cramp again. It wasn't too bad and I was able to continue running but lesson for next time is to take salt tablets with me!

The second half of the run was all along the coast towards St Kilda. It was beautiful. Lots of people were at the beach and cheering us on. By now I knew I was going to finish so that spurred me on even more!

At about the 36km mark I saw Kendall at the side of the road! This again gave me a massive boost! Kendall ran with me for a little while and told me that all my other team mates were doing really well and that everyone was going to finish! Fantastic! Now just 6km to go for me!

Kendall at 36km!

The sun set by the time I reached 40km which was great because people gave me glow sticks to run with! The super speedy boys missed out on this!! With just 2 km to go I tried to pick up my pace. I could see the strobe lighting and lasers at the finish line and I could hear the music and partying...almost there!

Eventually I turned the corner onto the finishing tunnel. I ran down the red carpet and was cheered along the last 100m to the finish line! The atmosphere was incredible! It was so loud with everyone shouting! I had the finishing tunnel to myself so all the shouts were for me (I had my name on my race number!). I heard Chris shouting too but I couldn't see him so I just carried on. Then I finally crossed the line and heard the announcer say "Naomi you are an Ironman!" Dream come true! I had done it!

The next few minutes were a bit of a blur as I was given my medal and had photos taken etc. I felt like a pro athlete not just another pack filler! The volunteers were amazing, they checked me out, gave me food and drink then I went for a massage.

I finished the run in 4 hours 53mins. I couldn't believe it...I was expecting around 6 hours! My overall time was 12 hours 14mins (my goal was 13 hours!). One very happy Stacker!

I found Chris afterwards and he told me all about his race (I'll let you read about it in his blog). We then went home and ordered room service! I was too tired to even eat my burger and ended up just falling asleep!

Tired, sore, sick of gels, blisters, chafing, cramping but overall one of the best experiences of my life!

On the podium!