Ironman Coeur de Alene - by Jessica Fasulo

Hey!! OMG I totally loved the experience!!!

My first Ironman and the first things that come to my mind are victory, cold, and garbage bags. I felt victory the entire time, in a sense that all my hard work and training paid off. Those 4:30am runs before work in the morning, waking up at 5am on a Sunday morning to crawl under the gate to run at Red Rock before the sun came up, the long hours spent on the bike and my constant smell of chlorine from my swim workouts paid off.

Going into Ironman, I didnt know what to expect. I have heard a lot about Ironman from fellow triathletes and I thought I understood, but really, you don't realize how much goes into an Ironman until you actually do one. I never understood why people go to an Ironman days before the event, and stay for a few days after, and now I know its due to all the logistics of the event. Taking care of gear check bags, setting up your bike, attending meetings, well it's overwhelming. Fortunately I had my best friend to share in the experience. With four years of triathlon racing in the past, she and I felt we were experiencing triathlon for the first time. We were filled with so much anxiety, excitement and thrill.

Race morning we had gotten up at 4:30am and did our usual breakfast routine and walked down to the shuttle that dropped us off at the Couer D'Alene Resort where we stepped out into upper 50's temps where the driver reminded us how choppy the water was becoming. I was told to get changed into my wetsuit in the women's changing tent to get into my own "chi" and so I did along with Danielle... still not believing that I was going to be doing my first Ironman.

My friend and I walked to the swim start, and it was a herd of people shuffling to the water where we walked to the beach surrounded by over 2500 other athletes. The wind blew but the excitment and nervousness we felt kept us warm. The beach was amazing... something I only saw pictures of and for the first time I was a part of. It was a beautiful sight. As I stood there I tried to understand how exactly all of us would fit in the water at the same time. Those few minutes waiting on the beach felt like seconds until the horn went off and I found myself elbow to elbow hopping into the lake. The entire swim was about survival. Trying NOT to get kicked in the face, fighting for a spot in the water. I was swam over, my feet were scratched and pulled, and I wondered if I would make it out alive. I couldnt believe just how brutal everyone was, and a few times I found myself questioning the sanity of the race director to allow this to happen. I was thinking, how the heck is this legal? This is a drowing waiting to happen... GEEZ!
The first loop went well, and I thought the second would thin out and I would get into a groove, but that wasn't the case. The second loop I was fighting fellow triathletes the entire time, and eventually I was out of the water in 1:10. I saw wetsuit strippers and laid myself down as my suit never came off so fast! Running into transition I went to the changing tent and was greeted by a woman who helped me get dressed and ready for my 112 mile bike. It was cool out so I wore both arm warmers and a jacket with gloves to keep warm and was so happy I did so. I got on my bike and shoved some food into my mouth and started pedaling. I was in no rush, knowing I had a long hard bike ahead of me. While riding I knew all my hill training paid off because although I wasnt moving that fast, I felt good. Around mile 50 my best friend caught up with me and we enjoyed one anothers company at the special needs area where we enjoyed peanut butter and jelly. I got off the bike just once to use the bathroom and after my two sandwiches I was back on for a second round of climbs. I was happy to finally get off the bike after 7+ hours and to the start of the marathon.

Coming into transition I was waiting for people to yell at me to slow down and dismount, but instead there were a group of men telling me to ride right into them and they help lift me off my bike where I found myself running into someone handing me my bike to run bag. In the changing tent a veteran Ironman helped me change and I found myself stuffing a bar in my mouth and beginning my marathon. The first half I felt strong and was running with a smile on my face, so happy to be running, until mile 13 where I started to become fatigued. I was in need of coke and chicken soup. As the rain came down so did my energy but fortunately my special needs bag had more peanut butter and jelly awaiting. My knees started to bother me but I wanted to push through the pain and keep going. The volunteers were amazing, and I attribute my success during the race, especially the marathon to their support. I found myself doing the survival shuffle at some points with trash bags on my hands to keep warm but I kept one foot in front of the other. I drank so much coke for the caffeine and chicken soup to keep warm, and kept pushing along until the last left turn when I saw the finish. I was so filled with emotion and finished running crossing the finish line in 13:39.
My first Ironman was a victory, cold, wet, and an experience I will never forget. Prior to Ironman my goal was to finish Ironman with no time expectations, and not walk during the marathon, and I did just that. I was fortunate to have my best friend with me, and surprisingly enough after shopping in athletes village the next day we spent the evening in bed achy and sore researching ironman.com for our next race.