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| Leaving T1 |
One of the hard truths about Ironman racing is that we have to accept the hand we are dealt on race day. We spend weeks and months preparing, trying to limit the variables, and take control of the things we can control. For the average age group athlete this means that you can literally spend your whole year focused on one race and then catch the bubonic plaque the night before. This doesnt happen often and the chances are very slim, so we continue to train, to plan, to race.
I came to Brazil in the shape of my life with expectations for a good race. I truly enjoy my trips to Florianopolis, which is why i have returned 4 times in the last 6 years. The thing that really makes the trip enjoyable is the group dynamic created by Ken Glah with Endurance Sport Travel. I have travelled to this race solo the last two years and each time have had a thoroughly enjoyable time with the old friends I see and new ones i meet. This makes for an extremely relaxed race week, which is always a good thing.
I dont want to ramble on too much about the details of swim, bike and run, but i will share some highlights/lowlights. I had a good swim. 52-something. Thats a good strong swim for me. On the bike i was riding well and sitting about 3-5mins behind the leaders when i punctured at km 50 (ish). Last year I started using clinchers on my race wheels so i could make the change quickly on just such an occasion, so i fixed it up and got back on my bike. From the splits it looks like i lost about 5-6mins. Not bad, but it could be better!!
One of the things i did lose with the puncture though was my proximity to the front of the race. I never did find what was in my tire and felt it deflating slowly through the remainder of the ride. I got off the bike about 20mins down. Even before i started the run I knew i was in trouble, GI-wise. I later found out they served tap water on the bike course and I drank 2 big bottles. Whoa!!! What a mistake! When situations like this arise, you arent just dealing with the time spent in the porta-potties, but also the loss of nutrition, the time spent running slowly, butt cheeks clenched while looking desperately for the next toilet stop. It can get messy. So, all things considered, i was quite pleased to cross the line in 4th place. Not the day I wanted, but the day i had. I cant be disappointed by the way i handled things and I certainly will not drink water on the bike if i come back next year!!
Back in the hotel after the race, I got the news that a childhood friend who had been fighting brain cancer had passed away that morning. Sometime during the second half of my bike ride, 3 times zones and half a world away, Alyson slipped away peacefully in a Calgary hospice, surrounded by family. Anyone who met Alyson knew that from the time of her diagnosis to her passing she dealt with the hand she was given with humility and took on the project of fundraising for future cancer-suffers with an energy and vigour that most of us can only conjure during childhood on Christmas morning. It has been oft said but it is so true that Alyson was a very special woman and will be missed by many.
Alyson and I became close in about grade 2, a time when many of my important friendships were forged. I remember that we would embark on various creative projects and games, as you do when you are 7 years old. One such project, that we would still laugh about as adults, was a book of songs that we had composed together in French class. I dont think it was an official class project but a task we simply took on for the fun of it. I can remember creating the tunes in our heads and carefully laying out the lyrics in a booklet that we stapled together with hand-drawn pictures. The center-piece of our booklet was a simple song called "Alyson joue au domino" and i can remember a day when Alyson and I took control of the class while a subsitute teacher was on duty. We each took half the class and sang "Alyson joue au domino" in a round. The last time I saw Alyson before she began to decline, we took great pleasure in singing that same song (in a round!) for ol' times sake.
So, back to Brazil. As i assess the ebb and flow of my race career, the good races, the bad races, the in-between, its difficult not to be effected by Alyson's story, her perspective on life and the value of the time we have. Somehow, flying to Australia and having my bike crushed by the airline, getting sick and having GI issues on a run course are all very managable problems that can be easily solved by accepting the way things are and moving forward to the next task simply because i am lucky enough to be here and do the things I love and hang out with the people i love and watch the sunrise on the day after and the day after that.
My deepest condolences go to those who were closest to Alyson. Her family and friends from Kitchener who i remember fondly and her partner Jared. I only met Jared once but i knew from the way Alyson spoke of him that she had a very special guy. My heart is with those who loved her most.
Goodbye my friend.
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| Myself, 3rd from left and Alyson (eating a giant hotdog) at what looks like my 8th (?) birthday party |
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