New Zealand Dynamo: Dave Wignal

The New Zealand Blonde Dynamo

President of the Las Vegas Triathlon Club Dave Carlson sent me an email introducing me to a former Pro triathlete Karen Williams from New Zealand who had contacted him through the Tri Club website. He thought I could help because she was requesting locating a 58 cm bike to train on while she was in town. For those of who who don't know, that would mean she was taller than six feet. I'm the better part of 6' 5" hence the thought by Dave I might be able to find her a bike. Turns out it was a typo and she actually needed a 48 cm bike. That makes her about 5' 2". Luckily I was able to find her a 48 cm Trek for the time she was here.So I started talking to her via email, found out where she was staying and how long she was here in Las Vegas and got an idea of what she wanted to do while she was here.

I decided that since I have 2 unused bedrooms in my house in Summerlin to offer her one of them for the 10 days she would be in town. We also arranged to meet at the airport when her flight arrived. So there she was outside the baggage area when we encountered one another. A more fit 5" 2" 52 year old woman I haven't seen other than at Ironman.

Karen had entered the AFLAC Triathlon at Lake Las Vegas and had a list of things to do while she was here. The first was to "Not waste time." She didn't. This woman went from riding the bike I found for her the first morning, shopping for food, to riding the bus down to the strip and walking around all day to riding the bus home, did a run/walk with me, took a shower, a nap, ate and off to a club and returning about 12:30 AM, I think, I was asleep. Next day she Ran 8 miles, rode 6 miles to 24 hour Fitness where I had arranged a 2 week pass for her, swam and worked out for 3 hours, rode home again, freshened up and went to town again. Literally everyday was like this. She is an avid dancer and explored some of the dance scene finding the best was a Sunday evening at a church on Charleston near I-15. She also teaches dance and participated in the dance classes at 24 hour.

That first Saturday we rode through Red Rock and out to Hwy 160 for a 70 miler. That night we went to Primm for Merle Haggard and stopped by Mandalay Bay for a walk around afterwards. Sunday we went out to Lake LV, swam 1000 meters across the lake and back to get a feel for the water and rode 20 miles getting a feel for the area. When we got back she ate, freshened up and went out for the evening again.

Last year she had a front tire blow out at 30 mph on a curve while racing a half Ironman that dumped her on the pavement and slide onto the gravel edge road rashing her left thigh. Her boy friend came along with another wheel, changed it out, told her to "Go Love", ran one of the fastest half marathons of the day and finished in the top three. As a result of the crash she was very apprehensive about descending on the bike but said that was OK because during the race she wasn't planning on going really hard. She had knee surgery last fall and was just returning to run training full time although she complained of a sharp pain at certain angles while she ran.

Karen has placed in the top 3 at the World's and top 2 at Ironman. She held the age group record at Ironman Canada for several years too. She is also a member of the New Zealand Ironman Hall of Fame having done that event 14 times.After a full week of training, sight seeing, and going to various piano bars and clubs at night on her own, we drove out to Lake LV for the tri. She has the practice of being among the first to get into the transition in the morning so the whole time leading up to the start is elongated, hates to feel rushed. Well we were first and it was completely dark save for the street lights. It was fun to support and observe all the things that go on before, during, and after the event. When it was all said and done she had come out of the water more than half way into the group that started 5 minutes before her, was in the top twenty off the bike having overtaken many who started as much as 15 minutes earlier.

She did the International Distance finishing first in her age group by 30 minutes, 10th amateur overall, and 6 minutes behind the pro women.A friend had invited me to run that morning but I told him I was going to an all women's triathlon. He said "Good strategy." The race itself was poorly laid out at the only transition area for coming and going on the bike and worse for the runners who doubled back through the area on the way to the finish. The congestion encountered by the athletes with supporters, volunteers, each other, the public, and traffic access to the hotel was very inconvenient and dangerous at times. I ended up working the last corner into the transition off the bike with a woman who runs a very successful race in Lubbock, Texas. She and her husband's Buffalo Springs Half Ironman has been going on for nearly 20 years and is an Ironman Qualifier. She was also critical of the lack of organization of the event.

I was able to shadow Karen during the swim, catch her at the transition zone, and get several pictures of her on the run including the finish. After she had come across the line she came up to me and said, "you'd have been so proud of me. I didn't ride the brakes on the downhill like at Red Rock. It was more like, here I come, get out of my way." Having done many many tri's in the past, I enjoyed hearing the enthusiasm in her voice as she described different areas and people she encountered on the course.

The next day her left knee was swollen. Since she has been back in New Zealand she has gotten some very troubling news about her knee. Turns out that the training and racing had caused a sub condyle fracture in both the end of the femur and the tibial platform on the medial side. That means in the main weight bearing area of the knee, the smooth hard surface that rubs on the cartilage in between the upper and lower leg bones has disintegrated because the fracture causes loss of blood to the condyle. The condyle essentially dies and degenerates. The whole of the weight bearing area of her knee is undergoing non reversible degeneration. While she can't run and walking without pain is a problem, she can bike and swim. Her biggest concern about this however is the emotional struggle she finds herself in not being able to do what she has spent 20 years doing and at which she has had exceptional results.

You might wonder why this particular amount of injury for what was a normal week of training and racing. As I have found out myself, there is that last run. That last time when you are just running tirelessly at an elevated pace, no fatigue, no pain, only looking down the road, having that feeling of "This is why I run." She ran about 35 K while she was here and had talked about some knee discomfort but that by lowering her stance slightly she could run pain free. When you consider even if she had a one meter stride length (her's is actually shorter) to run 35 K she took 17,000 strides with each leg. That is 17,000 times the impact of the foot strike went up through her knee. Because the condyle and meniscus were compromised from earlier trauma and surgery, the impact of the foot strikes were being absorbed by the boney structure which fractured under the repeated stress. Karen hasn't come to grips with this yet. So while I have made a wonderful new friend she has experienced a life changing injury. There is a knee replacement option but a hard option to be thinking about.

If you have the inclination to contact her I have included her email address.

kd.w@hug.co.nz