Wow, where to start?? Around August 2017, Kevin Sturm says he's racing IM Canada in 2018. I vaguely remember Whistler as mentioned in the Winter Olympics, but I couldn't tell you what year that was held. I stood a better chance finding Whistler on a map using a dart blindfolded instead of pointing to it. I did a little research and found Whistler was on the west coast of Canada. Easiest to explain like this, go to Seattle Washington, then go north for 3 hours. Close enough. My thought was that is too far away, too expensive for a family, and I'm probably not ready for a race like that. I read one athlete's comment from the bike course as, " Whistler's bike course is so hard, I was ready to sell my bike because I never wanted to ride it again after that course." I had been improving on the bike, but that didn't sound great. Then I saw pictures of the race course...
Alta Lake
where swim takes place
I was jealous! Whistler looked beautiful. Then Katie and Kalen said they were going. They did the leg work on hotel info. Found good race info. Encouraged me to join them. The pressure was on! I presented the idea to Brittney to do a family "race-cation." Make our family vacation destination Whistler, BC and oh by the way, I'll be doing an Ironman while we're there. Fully prepared for her to shoot that down, she jumped right on board to go. Said she wanted to see more of this big world and knows how much I like racing, let's do it!
I registered for the race before she changed her mind! We don't drop $700 to lose the money. Now, how the heck do I take the 4 of us across the continent with my bike and tri stuff?? Passports? We don't have passports!! Transportation, hotel, gluten free options?? Things for kids to do? This was a serious undertaking. Brittney's parents were told where we were going and explained Whistler was a bucket list place they'd always wanted to go. They asked if we minded to join us? We were happy to be the catalyst that would ultimately get them to such an amazing place. The time was ticking by. There was rumor that the bike course would be changed due to one city not being happy their traffic was affected on race day. The rumor was true. The new bike course was released. It was a 3 loop course to get the 112 miles in.
This is the elevation chart
Do you see the flat part? NOPE!! There isn't a flat part! How does a guy in OHIO train on the bike for hills like this in Winter and Spring?? Race is end of July. I didn't have all summer to prepare. Chris Tech got me all set up on my new bike trainer using a computer and 50 inch TV. We then pushed each other to see who could do the most trainer miles to prepare for Whistler's hills. Thank goodness we did that! Consistent training = race day success. So after months of training, travel planning, getting passports, and gathering all the intel I could get...I found myself in Whistler. Tri Bike Transport arrived with my bike. Due to life's surprises and health issues, the original 3 teammates who encouraged me to join them, were not coming. But 3 other teammates, Jamie, Brenda, and Chris had signed up to do the 70.3 race. The ironman and half-ironman are raced on the same day. I was blessed to make it to Whistler healthy and feeling strong with great teammates and friends who understand how difficult this sport is. Brittney says I did a good job not showing my nerves. Chris will tell you he had to deal with me freaking out about 20 times from a week out until the day before the race. So much went into just getting here, dealing with life, work, schedules, family, and all I wanted was to get this race going. I didn't really know if I had biked enough hills. Coach Ashlynn said I was prepared. She has been coaching me and making my workout schedule for the past 3 months. 140.6 miles is a long way. There was a water temp scare making people believe the swim would not be wetsuit legal. I can swim the 2.4 miles without a suit, but I swim it much faster with the wetsuit. Then the heat wave struck. Race day was looking like high in the 90's. Completely not like Whistler weather. Restaurants there don't have air conditioning because it generally doesn't get hot. Except when I come there to race Ironman. Not what I needed. I don't run my best in hot temps. Are you ready? Are you excited? Common questions for an athlete going into his big race. The truth was, I was SCARED. Scared of failure. Scared I'd fail to conquer the hills. Scared the heat would make me cramp so bad I couldn't keep moving. But out loud, I'd say, Im nervous but excited. I'm pretty good at masking my nerves. Then came the day before the race. We went to the IronKids race where Team Sass Masters crushed their race.
Then Chris and I went to drop off gear bags and check in our bikes.
The row to the left is the PRO bikes. The 3rd row on the end closest is Vengeance! I had a sweet spot!
Back to the hotel where I put my feet up and started watching motivational videos on YouTube. I found a video of the IronCowboy where he talked of "putting on his uniform" and how his hat and sunglasses "transforms him" into the Iron Cowboy. He spoke of his WHY. What drove him? One simple answer was, "Because I told my kids I would." These 2 points struck me hard. I looked at my race kit. I only wear that kit for big races. I realized when I put on my race kit, I am transformed into Iron Dad. That may sound awfully cheesy to others, but it unlocked the confidence I'd been needing. The fact I told my kids we came all this way was to race Ironman was a driving force that the race officials were going to have to drag me off that course. QUITTING was NOT an option. Come hell or high water, I was going to finish this race. We had a team lunch at the Spaghetti Factory at 2 then we went to grab some pizza around 6:30 with the Tech family. I had my game face on and confidence boiling through my veins. I was ready. I was prepared. It was time to go to work. I slept as good as could be expected. Alarm was set for 3:10. I put on my race kit and felt psyched up. IT was RACE DAY!
Brenda, Jamie, and Chris were waiting on me outside. We walked to T2 and dropped off what we needed. No nutrition can be left in bags over night because it attracts bears. Then a quick bus ride over to Rainbow Park. Bikes were checked and bottles loaded. Then a "hypothetical" incident happened. There were 2 porta potties close to where my bike was racked. There were signs that said PRO's ONLY. The age grouper porta potties were on the other side of transition. HYPOTHETICALLY, If I used the PRO ONLY porta potty....Does that make me a PRO??
The athletes waiting for me to exit looked like they were in great shape! ;)
I found Jamie, Brenda, and Chris. We talked as we prepared the wetsuits, water was 72 on race day. Then I shook hands and wished them well on their races. I went and lined up for the swim.
Thats me, right there in the black wetsuit and green cap!
The PRO men started (there was no pro women for this race).
The countdown went off and we filtered into the water.
The course was a rectangle that I had to swim twice. Water was crystal clear. Felt amazing. It was almost difficult to keep face in water because I wanted to enjoy the scenery!! I smiled throughout most of the swim because I was simply blessed to be there and experiencing a mountain swim. It's easy to exercise when your thoughts are positive and not on tiring muscles! There was some bumping, I caught a heal to right cheek at one point, but the swim went great. There wasn't a current to push me like in Chattanooga or Louisville, but I crushed the swim in 1:14. I thought I'd be between 1:20-1:25. This was a great start to my day!!
I then grabbed my bike bag and went into the tent. Got my shoes and helmet on and went outside. My stomach grumbled a little and I stopped in a porta potty. Apparently that was just nerves, I thought. Nothing happened. Oh well, wasted a minute there. Ran around to get my bike. Ran past it, whoops. The mind can get foggy after a 2.4 mile swim. Grabbed my bike off the rack and my stomach said, umm you better get back to that porta potty. Put the bike back and visited the PRO Only porta potty again. OK, gut is empty now, LETS RIDE!!
Time to find out how prepared I was. I'd seen the elevation chart. I thought I knew what was coming. We had driven the course, we had ridden 15 miles of the course. With a strong swim under my belt, I was feeling great. The loop started with a small hill but turned right onto the highway pretty quickly. My thought was to take the first loop easy. No pushing fast pace, no crushing pedals. 112 miles is a long ride. About 12 miles in, I hit the first aid station. I take my Gatorade bottle from Martin, my zipline guide!! He yelled, GO MATT! All the volunteers throughout race day were awesome!!
As we headed down the highway, I learned quickly there were some places I didn't need to pedal. I was flying down hill. No need to burn extra calories here. Then we turn onto Callahan Rd. Lots of talk about the vaunted Callahan Rd climb. 10% grades at times here. It was wild to be crawling up this long steep mountain while on the other side of the road, cyclists were FLYING!!! The sounds of bikes flying is pretty cool! There was an Asian guy halfway up Callahan who had Salt N Peppas PUSH IT on repeat on his boombox and he was holding up a sign that said Push IT!! He would cheer all of us on to continue "Pushing it" up the hill! A little longer up the hill, I got to turn around. The half iron went all the way to the top. I turned around and started heading downhill. It is to be noted that prior to this race I have never had my bike over 40.2mph. When I started blasting down Callahan, I was on my brakes. OMG was this fast. I had white knuckles and was talking myself down to stay calm, keep breathing. Bikes were passing me and yet I was flying. Holy smokes, this was FUN!! Left hand turn to go up the highway.
There were 2 speeds on this course, really fast and pretty slow. No long flat stretches to be comfortable on. So I cranked. I got up that highway and rolled back through town. Lots of spectators out on the highway! Great cheering sections! Roads were in great shape, a few bad places were marked well. Then left turn on Alta Lake Rd. Alta started off fast then you start climbing. It curves right, then left, then back and forth as you climb more. There is one spot that is majestic. The view is simply incredible. Snow capped mountains, trees, just amazing. I got to the turn around point and realized loop 1 was done. Although I was still careful coming back down that winding hill, I allowed myself to enjoy some free speed. The wind felt great! Road was plenty wide and athletes were being safe. Right turn back to the highway. See Martin again, but he's waving a flag now. Still hollered out for me! Down the highway and back to Callahan. That guy is still PUSHing IT! I stopped at an aid station on Callahan to pee and refill bottles. Then the turn around. Guy right in front of me crashes! I think he took the turn around too tight. I slowed my turn to avoid him and continued on. I'm guessing his pride was hurt more than his body. Now that I knew what to expect going down Callahan, I opened it up. I was all out getting it! My garmin says I hit 46.2 mph during the race. It was wild. I stayed safe, but had fun with the free speed. Crawled back up highway, and back to Alta Lake Rd. The sun was out in force now and I was feeling the heat. I tried staying hydrated. My Infinit plan was working well. I knew the 70.3 athletes were out on the course but I hadn't seen anyone I knew. I was working my way up a hill on Alta Lake Rd when I hear a female voice say, "Matthew Kennard!" behind me. I was focused on the road and trying to keep a high cadence when I heard my name. I yelled out, who is that? "Its Brenda!" That made sense since she was the only female I knew racing today. I wasn't able to turn around and see her. I said, Hey Brenda!" "Yea Matt" came the reply, "I'm proud of you!" I said. "I'm proud of you too buddy!" She made me smile as I was trying to get over this hill. I was again reminded how lucky I was to have teammates, friends, out there with me! Then the thought hit me, loop 2 is done. I'm crushing this! Back to the highway. A cloud covered the sun!! For all of 2 minutes. I asked the good lord if he could bring that cloud back. Apparently he was busy tending to others who had crashed at that time. That was the last cloud I'd see for hours. Now I was baking. I stopped at bike special needs and refilled a bottle with Infinit and got more sunscreen sprayed on me. Volunteers were amazing, did I already mention that? Off I went. Back to Callahan. No more Push It guy. Extra heat to help slow my pace. 80 miles of cycling on my legs, and this is starting to suck. That turn around point must've been moved back because it took forever to get there. I was one happy guy when I turned around at the cone knowing I didn't have to go back there again! Flew down Callahan and crawled up the highway. That sun was full force. Draining me of fluids.
Here is where I make a bad mistake, instead of recognizing my fluids level and heat, I take one water bottle and keep going through an aid station. Knowing what I know now, I should've stopped and re-filled all my bottles. Live and learn friends, live and learn! Back to Alta Lake Rd for one more hard climb, in the heat, and running out of fluids. This is when my left shin expresses its displeasure with today's activities. Cramps are an athletes worst enemy. I think I'll stand and stretch it out. My quads voice their displeasure and tell me to stay seated. Hot sun, big steep hill, cramp warnings, and I hear, "Bear! Bear!" right behind me. My brain is so fried it takes me a minute to process what I heard. The lady who yelled it out rolls up next to me and asks if I saw the bear? The whole trip all I wanted to see was a bear, and apparently it was 10-20 ft away from me. But NO, I did NOT see the bear. Total fail. Somehow someway, I make it up Alta Lake Rd, then back down. I go into the last portion and finally head toward the bike finish portion. I didn't look at how long this took as I was scared how long it took me. Later I would find out it was almost 7 hour bike ride. 112 miles and over 8,000 ft of elevation. Some people, including PRO Matt Russell, reported they had over 9k elevation for the course. Whatever the elevation was, it was TOUGH! The heat made it worse. In a sick way, it was really FUN! Flying down hill and embracing the suck to climb in that scenery was amazing!
Rolling into T2, I was ready to get off my bike. I knew I needed fluids. I knew my legs were tired.
I was very concerned with my left shin which was pissed. The 95 degree heat was unrelenting. So now I gotta run a marathon??? I heard Chris yell at me. I heard my girls! They were all waiting to see me. I picked up my run gear bag and walked over to them. I was in NO HURRY to start my marathon. I knew this was turning into a slog fest. I needed their energy. I saw Chris' finisher's medal! In the last 8 months he went from a guy scared of the deep end of a swimming pool, to a half-ironman finisher!! Simply impressive feat! I gave Brittney a quick kiss and got some high fives. Then the Tootie Tah. Savvy and Heidi learned this super silly dance in preschool. Savvy had woken up Thursday before race day and was doing Tootie Tah. You gotta use your imagination here... thumbs up, elbows out, knees end, butt out, tongue out, eyes closed and spin.
I got most of it correct. Everyone was cracking up. I'm a goof ball at heart. I appreciate anyone who stands out in the heat to cheer me on and if I can provide 1 minute of laughter, I will do so. I explained I had to go because I had a marathon to run and off I went. A guy waiting on another athlete, who was close to my cheer group, told Heidi, "You have a really cool Dad!" Unbeknownst to me, Brittney watched 4 athletes come into T2 and QUIT. No hesitation, no thought process, just quit. One guy had his family cheering him to get his run shoes on and he simply told them NO and removed his timing chip and handed it to a race official. The heat and hills defeated them. I had seen others crashed on the course. I wasn't exactly sure how I was going to cover 26.2 miles....into the changing tent I went. Right foot was ok, taped it up and shoe on. Left foot was a different story. My left quad wanted to cramp if i tried putting foot on right knee. HMMMM?? I couldn't reach my foot to put shoe on. This isn't good. AHA, open shoe up as best as possible. Stood up and insert foot in shoe! Success!! I put my shoe on!! (When you are cheering putting your shoe on, life might not be great at that moment.) I got it tied, and out I went. More sunscreen sprayed all over me.
Begin marathon walking. Yea!! Thats what I'll do, I'll walk this marathon. Great idea! Left shin says oh no you won't!!! Left shin starts to cramp. If it hurts to walk and hurts to run, might as well run. So I start to run. Shin feels much better! Sweet!! Tiredness and heat say slow down there big guy, take a walk. So I walk again. Shin flares, run! Mile 1 is done, only 25.2 miles to go! This will take a while, but I think I can do this. I keep moving. I think of all my motivation. I think of my kids. I had seen a post the day before that said, "You never know who you are inspiring." I think of my teammates. I think of Paige and Ollie Tech. I think of my "warriors", Julie and the Gargasz family, Rachel Blackburn, Pam Pennington, Jill Caldwell, people who have or are currently battling serious health issues like warriors. I have a guy come around a corner and thank me for representing Team RWB and supporting our nation's veterans! The thought, if our military guys can be away from their families, miss the births of their children, I can suck this up and fight through. The run course starts through a shaded path in beautiful trees.
Then you leave the shade and go out into the path in the wide open by Lost Lake and Green Lake.
It felt like forever to get to the turn around cone. The sun was scorching hot. My legs hated me. My brain was scared a huge debilitating cramp was coming. I used Base Salt to try and quell the cramps. I had ice dumped down my back, ice melting in my hat over my head. Cold water poured over my arms. ANYTHING I could do to keep body temp down. It was a fight. My legs were so tired at this point I have to use a mental trick that Stephanie Little loves to use. Counting strides. Sounds easy enough. It worked for me. By mile 4 of the run, I had to count to 20 walking strides and then count running strides. First was 20 walk, 20 run. Then 20 walk, 30 run. Now I challenged myself! walk 20 run 50! walk 20 run 50 twice. Oh yea! I'm smiling again. This sucks, but it's kinda fun. That little voice in my head says, "Hey , were moving forward. Keep it up!" If I walked more than 20-24 steps, the left shin would cramp. If I ran more than 50-100 strides, the calves and quads wanted to cramp. So I counted. Finally I knew I was coming close to the turn around point. I was pretty sure my family and teammates would be there somewhere. I started repeating my Muhammad Ali mantra. I use his speech from the George Foreman fight, "I have wrestled with an alligator, tussled with a whale! handcuffed lightning, thrown thunder in jail!" When I saw Jamie it made me smile!
Then Chris!
Paige high fives me! I see my beautiful wife and Savvy! My father in law is there cheering me on! I holler out Ali's words! I mask my pain. I SMILE. I flex the bicep that makes all the girls swoon!! (work with me here, my brain was fried ;) )
I push forward. 13 miles to go. Back through the trees. I stop at special needs and get my Hot Shot. Horrible spicy tasting stuff that helps quell the cramps! More salt, more water. Continue the fight. I get to pass my cheering section again. They all rock for being out there for me. Brittney tells everyone she will be right back and walks a little bit with me. I ask if everyone else finished their races and she confirms Chris, Brenda, and Jamie crushed the 70.3 with no injuries! That makes me extra happy! Then a group of people with squirt guns were trying to help athletes cool down. Brittney took this pic:
That felt great! Super cold! Brittney said the next time she sees me will be at the finish line! Wishes me good luck and off I go.
I continue the struggle of counting strides. I then talk to Lucian. Lucian is doing his first IM today. 28 years old, no wife or kids, but one day he sees himself a family man. We go back and forth in front of the other only to get passed again soon. We talk small talk. Try and joke around. Admire the scenery. I count strides. Lucian goes to turn around at the 70.3 cone. He suddenly realizes his mistake, (his brain was fried, I give him a pass) he continues on toward our cone. Takes forever to get there! I'm so happy I don't have to see that cone again, I tell it! Back we go. Lucian starts to pull away. I start slowing down. Dang Hot Shot wore off. A turtle laughs at me as he passes me. (that may not have happened, or did it???) Either way, I keep moving forward. I'm happy with my progress and start really thinking that I will finish this. Thats when I encounter athlete X. I don't know his name but he was shorter than me and looked like he was in good shape. When I caught up to him, I asked how he was doing? He gave me a death stare. As a cop, I've seen bad looks in people's eyes. This guy was in trouble. He said, "Well, about 5 minutes ago, I seriously considered walking out into traffic and ending it." "This all sucks and I'm about done." He follows up. I think, "Holy shit! Get away from him and his negative energy quick Matt!" I tell him to try and keep his head up and off I go. Really ugly places the mind can take you if you let it! Closing in on mile 23, or just after..my watch dies. Better the watch dying than me! But now a new problem arises. Were racing in Canada. All the mileage markers are in kilometers. So the next sign I see says KM 39. I think I've got 42 total KM of the marathon so 3K to go! But I don't know how long a KM IS!!! Guess I should've figured that out before now! Just keep moving forward Matt. I'm still smiling. Everything hurt but I knew what was coming. A female racer who would smile back at me at turn arounds finally caught me. She said, "Hey, It's Mr. Friendly!" Brain fried ears, I had to ask, "Whats that you say?" She replied, You've been so friendly all day! Always smiling and encouraging everyone else. Thanks for doing that!" I thank her for smiling back and tell her to keep up her strong pace. She goes on, my heart is warmed. Which is odd, because everything was overheated...I finally hit the last kilometer, however long that is...people are hard core cheering. If they aren't, I yell, "I can't hear you and I need you!" Boisterous noise ensues! Then I hit the part where we run through the village. SO many high fives and cheers!!! Last left turn. I see the Subaru arch and the FINISH LINE just past it. I have done it. I have survived the bike elevation, dehydration, a marathon in 95 degree heat. I grew up wishing to experience ROCK STAR feeling of people cheering me. I have found my dream. It just takes 140.4 miles to get there. Walking doesn't hurt anymore. Matter of fact, everything seems to feel electric. People on both sides of the gates cheering like mad.
If I raise my arms in success, they cheer LOUDER!! Everyone wants to high five me. I'm the STAR! I'm looking for my family. I first see Chris! He gets a big high five and a hug. Paige gets a high five (she didn't want a hug from me, trust me) I ask where my wife is? Right next to them! Brittney has this look that shows how PROUD she is that her goof ball husband and father to her children has once again beaten the odds and crushed IRONMAN CANADA. I give her a sweet kiss! I tell my daughters I LOVE THEM! I then high five Brenda and her husband JR. Jamie gets a high five! I hear my name and Dayton,OH. I heard the words," YOU ARE AN IRONMAN!"
So happy to be done!Lots of lessons learned here. Most importantly, when I set a goal, don't get in my way. I can take obstacles. I don't quit. After I finished, Brittney said she saw an athlete with the AED pads being applied. The next day, IM announced a 15.9% Did Not Finish rate. Your average person doesn't sign up for an IM. These are people who work hard and prepare who didn't make it. Mentally, physically, emotionally, didn't make it. I did it. I conquered it. I've EARNED the title of 3 time International Ironman!! Not bad for a 270 pound lazy dude nine years ago. I can't put everything in here, but I think I got the high points. I'll end this with this: If it doesn't challenge you, it won't change you. Take on something that SCARES you. Then ask yourself, How do you want to feel the next day after the event, right Sean???
Thank you!!! First and most importantly to Brittney. You are my rock, my beautiful wife and biggest supporter. Your flexibility and support is amazing and I can't thank you enough.
Thank you to my kids!!! Heidi and Savvy amaze me every day with their smarts, personalities and sense of humor. Fearless minds and yet so caring of others. I hope I set a great example to always persevere. Life can be tough, keep moving forward! Never Quit!
Thank you to Chris Tech!! From setting up my computer, bike stuff, to pushing me, competing with me every step of the way and being a great example of another working father and husband who makes the time to tri, and for his family! I can't wait to race with you in Louisville!!!
Thank you to Kevin Sturm! I still blame you for starting this mess ;) but it was EPIC!!! If you hadn't started this, I would have never jumped in. Running in Roanoke with you helped show that I can keep going, even when the course is against us! I look forward to seeing you crush Chatty!!
Thank you to Coach Ashlynn!! Your training plan pushed me. Made me WORK!! Got me prepared for an event I never knew would be so difficult. But you had me prepared! Thank you!!
Thank you to Brenda, JR, and Jamie!! Having you guys out there was inspirational and made everything fun! The pre-race laughs were great! I look forward to more races with you soon!
To Paige and Ollie Tech, You ladies are super fun to vacation with! Thanks for the support out there and I look forward to more time spent together-- KT Connection!!
TO Rogue Tri --Thanks for the well wishes and cheering from a far! Seeing everyones consistent efforts motivates me to continue getting better at this sport!
Oh, by the way, if this seems like a challenge you want to take on, or an adventure you'd like to take, you'll find me at IM Mont Tremblant in Quebec next August!
