For anyone that missed the previous post, Caoimhe Ni Mhurchu has become the first club woman to complete an Ironman triathlon. Hopefully she will be the first of many. By completing the Hardman circut in twelve and a half hours she has set a serious benchmark for future attempts at the distance.
Her race report makes for interesting reading, especially as an insight into what an Irish take on the famous endurance challenge is like; traffic, eels, sheep and all!...
Hardman Race Report
I saw this race on the Triathlon Ireland Calender earlier on this year, and out of curiosity, I had a look at their website. It looked like a fantastic course, and the detail in the race manual was thorough and impressive. It’s a stunning part of the world, and I thought to myself, why would you travel to do an Ironman at great expense, if you can do a full distance race only down the road, in one of the most beautiful places in the world? But that was my only thought… I had no intention of actually signing up myself!
As the year progressed and I managed longer cycles and steeper hills in my training for the Alpe d’Huez, this race popped back into my head from time to time, and I thought, if I manage the half-ironman distance this year, I’ll give the full distance a shot next year. But as we all know this sport is addictive – there seems to be a continuous desire to go faster or longer, to do a tougher race and smash PBs…. So after I managed to survive the torture I inflicted on myself in France, I was already thinking… what next??
I thought if I could manage a 3 hour run with three weeks to go to the Hardman, I would seriously consider entering. I hadn’t really been doing much running, as I had spent the summer sitting on a saddle. I contacted the organisers and was told that the closing date was the Sunday before the race. This gave me almost until the last minute to make up my mind. With two weeks to go, I was feeling strong. I was well aware that I hadn’t followed any training plan for this race, but I thought I’d go for it. If nothing else, it would be a weekend away in my favourite part of the country. If I had waited two more days to enter, I would have changed my mind, as I injured my ankle, and didn’t run again until race day. But, it was too late. I was committed.
I have huge respect for the challenge, the distance and all those who have completed an ironman, so I kept it to myself. I didn’t want to broadcast the fact that I was going to try to ‘wing it’. But I felt pretty confident that my training for the half would get me around the course.
I drove to Killarney on Friday and checked into a B&B near the golf course – the location of the swim and T1. I registered that evening, and attended a very entertaining and slightly disturbing race briefing… the warning they gave us about the lake’s resident lamprey eels and the technique used to detatch them from your wetsuit was a recurring theme in my dreams that night!
Next morning as I was standing in the pitch dark at the lake waiting for transition to open, I began to have my first doubts…. About my sanity in general. But, I’m sure that’s pretty normal for anyone about to embark on a 140+ mile race! The race was later starting than originally planned, as the sun didn’t begin to appear until well after 6am. At 6.25 we were suddenly informed race would start in 5 minutes… I wasn’t close to being ready, so had to rush to get the wetsuit zipped up, and grabbed my goggles and hat. I didn’t have time for a warm-up but the lake water actually felt beautiful. Suddenly we were hearing a countdown, and we were off! The water seemed perfectly calm as we swam to the first bouy, but once out in the more exposed part of the lake, it was extremelly choppy. I got a bad start, and had to stop twice to clear my goggles. About half-way through the first lap, it began raining heavily, the lake water was swirling over my head, and I was finding it difficult to breath. It seemed so stormy and I started getting anxious. I’m not sure why, I love to be in the water, but I was starting to panic. I tried to settle myself, but I got more disorientated. I knew there were a couple of people ahead of me, but I couldn’t see them. The bouys were huge, and the course was well marked, but I got more and more disorientated and felt like we were swimming in zigzags rather than in the rectangle course which had been clearly explained. On my second lap, I rounded what I thought was the last buoy, and swam about 100 metres before a kayaker caught up with me and told me I had cut the course short. I argued with her as I was sure I was swimming to the pier. She pointed in the opposite direction, and told me I had 4 more buoys to pass before I got to the pier. At this stage my head was all over the place. Then I saw the next swimmer behind me passing the previous buoy, and swimming straight on ahead. Finally I gave up arguing with the poor frustrated kayaker, and realised I needed to keep swimming or I’d never get home! I swam after the guy I had seen and followed his legs all the way to the pier. I was so glad to get out of the water. This was definitely the worst part of the day. It’s a beautiful swim, but the conditions were tough on the day. As the very helpful volunteers helped me out of the water, I was told I was fourth and my time was 1.11. I walked into transition, and realised a good crowd had gathered. I had decided not to change, and use my tri top and shorts on the bike with a wind-breaker jacket. The forecast was supposed to be mostly dry, and about 16 degrees.
I have cycled the Ring of Kerry twice before, and it is definitely an advantage to know the course. I was told the night before the race to break it down – 30kms for the bike and 5kms for the run – this was good advice. Mentally its difficult to sit on a saddle for 7 hours, so its important to not let your mind get too far ahead. I don’t use a heart rate monitor, but I have a good idea now, how to pace long cycles. So I set off nice and easy, and tried to settle into a comfortable rhythm. We were cycling into a strong wind, setting out, and this was to continue for a couple of hours. The road surface is quite poor in spots, but dodging potholes is only one of the many hazards you will encounter on the Ring of Kerry! It is one of the busiest tourist routes in the country, and on any summer weekend in Kerry, you are bound to encounter Festivals and Fairs. Coming into Waterville was pretty unique – the annual Charlie Chaplin festival was in full swing! There was also a vintage tractor rally on the route… You won’t find such novelties in Kona!
Coming back into Killarney was slow and required negotiating a number of busy junctions and traffic lights. I was delighted to be feeling pretty good approaching the second transition. My parents had come down for the day, and after a lonely 7 hours of peddling, it was great to see familiar faces! I hadn’t had a ‘bathroom’ stop on the cycle course, and my bladder was very unhappy with me, so as I arrived in T2 the first thing I asked was – where’s the LOO??! With a marathon still to do, I wasn’t in too much of a hurry. I took my time, changing socks and putting lots of vaseline where it is always required and finally got to relieve myself. Setting off on the run, I was feeling pretty good. This was the part of the race that surprised me the most. It was 3 laps of 8.3 miles plus an additional run down and back to T2. The three laps take you through the national park. There was a lot of activity, with tourists, and horse-drawn carriages, kids and joggers all sharing the park so there was lots to see and plenty to distract you. The hydration stations were manned by a wonderful bunch of volunteers, who were so encouraging and helpful. It was great to see your fellow participants too and we gave each other a high five and a ‘keep her lit’ as we passed each other. The first two laps were okay, but there were a few steep hills on the course, which were really starting to sap my energy reserves. When I got to the feed station before the final lap, I told myself I could walk the hills on the final lap as long as I ran the rest. This seemed like a very generous gift to myself, as I had originally decided, that I wouldn’t allow myself to walk at all. So I set out on the final lap. The legs felt much heavier, and the soles of my feet were burning. I was looking forward to the hills now, so I could walk! It was great to see my parents one last time before the finish line, and as I passed my Dad, with his camera pointed at me yet again, I remembered he used to tell me the marathon only starts at the 20 mile mark, and he would know having done about 50 of them! But I then began to wonder… at what stage does an ironman start, because I was starting to think I’d like it to be over right about now!
8.3 miles later, it finally was. I passed over the finish line elated, and was presented with my medal. There was a lovely finish line atmosphere – in the end there were only 16 individual finishers, but there was full medical facilities, plenty of food, hot drinks and chairs for everyone. There were also 9 relay teams, so 25 runners would have passed over the line. The final finisher came in before 10pm, and was accompanied by a cyclist wearing a headlamp!
I was delighted with my time. I could definitely have pushed it more on the bike, but then I may not have managed a 4.11 marathon. I didn’t really look at the watch though, it was just about completion this time!
Overall, I would highly recommend the race and I would really encourage people to support this event. At 140 euro, its superb value, and the setting and scenery are unbeatable. The cycle route is busy. The road surface is dire in parts. You may round a corner and collide with a flock of sheep. You pass through a town populated with little men in bowler hats. The hydration stations are manned by friendly volunteer farmers, and you may need to ask for directions from tourists due to a lack of marshalls… but this all adds to the charm of the race! For an inaugaral event, I was very impressed. The organisers are committed to making it bigger and better next year, and are very keen to get feedback – both positive and negative – to ensure that any ‘glitches’ this year are avoided next year. It was a great end to my season, and I would love to do it again. But I’m taking a few weeks off now. My runners are staying at home when I go on holidays this weekend. Flip-flops and dancing shoes are the the only things going on my feet for the next 3 weeks!
Full results can be viewed on the race website.
