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Bernie Hall
Great Floridian XI on October 2000

Prologue

We left North Carolina at 7:20 am Wednesday morning. A friend, who completed Ironman USA 2000, had loaned me his Yakima RocketBox to go on top of our Blazer with my bike. I managed to get all my gear into the box, leaving the back of the Blazer for my family’s luggage. We drove through South Carolina (almost getting a speeding ticket in Society Hill in a thick pea-soup fog, but getting off with only a warning), Georgia, and Florida, before reaching Clermont around 6:15 PM. We checked into the Vacation Village and went into town for the athlete reception. 

Thursday I dropped my wife and two kids off at Disney’s Magic Kingdom, finding that much easier than I had envisioned. On the way back, I stopped at Summer Bay to register, pick up my race packet, and buy a couple of last-minute items at the expo. That afternoon, back at Vacation Village, I had a brief brick workout of about 20 minutes of each sport, swimming in the pool, then riding around Lake Louise Road, then running down by the lakeshore in the hard sand. (Lake Louise was much lower than Lake Minneola.) 

I went back to Disney to pick up the family at 5:00 PM, and we headed back to Summer Bay for the pasta dinner. That night we packed all my bags for check-in with the bike. That was mind-boggling enough, packing and repacking to try and make sure everything was in the right place. Friday, I dropped my family off at MGM Studios. The traffic on 192 was much worse on Friday, taking me a lot longer than on Thursday to get there and back. I met a friend at the Waterfront Park for check-in. We rode out to “Cardiac” Hill and back just to get a quick preview of the bike and run courses, then checked our gear in. After returning to pick up my family at 5:00 PM, we went to IHOP for my pre-race meal: an egg & vegetable omelet, with three pancakes, a bunch of water, and apple juice. While there we spotted another GFT athlete who happened to be #371; I was #317. We had a great conversation, and both families cheered for each of us the next day! 

After making final preparations, we tried to hit the sack at 8:00 PM. I lay awake for awhile, my heart pounding in anticipation of the big race. I eventually fell asleep, only to awaken at 12:00 midnight, went back to sleep until 2, then finally got up at 4. My pre-race meal consisted of two packets of Met-Rx Oatmeal with fruit, and lots of water. 

I have to admit, upon arriving at the lake, that I got very confused, having all my gear in six different bags, and trying to make sure I had everything where I needed it during the race! Now that I know how to do that, I think I could greatly reduce my transition times next year. The worst moment in the pre-dawn darkness shrouding the lakefront was that telltale “boom” that went off just before the swim start, followed by the collective groans of over a thousand people, wondering how they would find their bike tires after the swim!

Swim

After warming up in the lake, we were all called back to shore before the National Anthem, releasing of the doves, and the gun start. I don’t enjoy crowds in the swim, so I started off the front inside. This worked pretty well once we all got going into our own rhythms. I was amazed at the number of athletes cutting the buoys on the inside, then trying to get back in front of those of us in the mainstream. When I exited the first lap, I looked at my heart rate monitor, and realized that I had not gotten the stopwatch started, I started it for the second lap, I was looking for the PowerBar Perform Plus drink, but I ended up getting a cup of water instead. I was one of the ones who didn’t figure out we were supposed to run down the beach before beginning lap two. I ran right back into the water, running my heart rate up to about 165, before I finally dove into the two-foot deep water to begin swimming again. I actually had more contact with other swimmers on the second lap, but thankfully nothing major. I just have to have my elbow room, but I avoid contact at all costs. I really hate getting charley-horsed by a strong, wide, breastroke kick! 

I wore the Seal Mask, which worked fairly well, although it leaked a little bit on the last lap. It also looked pretty ridiculous on me in my wife’s pictures. I wear contact lenses, so I have to have a tight fit. As I exited the swim, I saw my wife and heard my kids cheering me on, and I looked back at the clock, which said, :58:25. This made me ecstatic and gave me a lot of confidence throughout the entire day. Rick had me shooting for 1:01. I’m glad I didn’t know at the time the swim was short. Now, I don’t mind one bit!

Bike

Running up into the transition area, I heard the volunteers, who did a fantastic job all day long, calling out our numbers to get our bike bags. Grabbing mine and going into the tent, I felt like a kid on Christmas morning emptying out my stocking. My heart and mind were racing, and I just couldn’t think of what to do or get. I ended up taking an inordinate amount of time on both transitions, which looks really ridiculous on my results: 10:20-T1 and 7:47-T2. Now I know how not to waste that much time in there again! 

The first part of the bike was great. I didn’t have any problem with any of the hills, coming from North Carolina. When I summitted Sugarloaf, I had to ask one of the guys near me if that was really it. The Final Kick guys were great up there, blasting “The Boss” singing “Born to Run,” while beating pots and pans a’la the Tour de France. It was very motivational. On the return trip to town, I stopped for my first Port-a-Let break next to the school on the first run aid station. There was no one else there. My family was at the 35-mile point on East St. cheering me on. The remainder of the bike was easy...going out. Coming back, the headwinds were taking their toll on my calves. 

I had some almost-cramping there. At the special needs area I lowered my seat a little. I later figured out I probably should have raised it a little, because they continued to hurt. 

At one aid station, I thought for sure I was going to be disqualified. The head USAT official and his motorcycle driver were pulled over getting some bananas and water. There were a lot of other cyclists slowing on the right for bottles. I didn’t need any there, so I passed them all, crossing right over the yellow line! I guess that was one of the “exceptions to the rule,” because I have no asterisks** next to my time. Then, around mile 95, I heard a hissing sound, and in the wind and leaves, figured one had gotten stuck in my spokes. Looking down, I saw that my rear tire was flat. I changed it with no problems, while just about everyone I had already passed on the bike wizzed past me. It did take about 10 or 15 minutes off my time, though. My CO2 cartridge overinflated the tire a little, forming a little bubble, which made my tire bump once we got to a smooth surface. I rode those last 17 miles as fast as I could, hoping to get back to town before I had to mess with that tire again. Luckily, it held up. Reaching the transition area, I was never more ready to (a) get off my bike and out of my bike shoes; and (b) start running a marathon! The bike time elapsed on my computer was 6:14.00. My total bike time, with the rear flat, restroom stops, and special needs stop, was 6:39.15.

Run

After spending way too much time in the changing tent again, I was ready to run. I didn’t even change for the whole race. I wore a new Sportful suit from Nashbar. I knew about the five miles of hills, so I was prepared for them. I kept running the whole time. By the time I returned to the lake trail, I knew I was going to finish. During my last marathon, the 1997 Marine Corps Marathon, I had a stress fracture in my left ankle. I also suffer from Plantar Fasciitis. It’s manageable, but takes a lot of managing. So I was the one running in the grass as much as possible, trying to make sure that neither of those potential problems caused me a DNF. 

I enjoyed the view of the lake, the sunset, the cooling temperature, the variety of aid stations, and the camaraderie on the run. My favorite part was running across the ChampionChip mats three times, beaming across the entire worldwide web that I was going to be an Ironman! 

Turning right to head towards the finish line, I could see the search lights and hear the crowds. As I approached the carpet, my daughter Kathleen, 14, and son Steven, 12, merged into the chute with me to run under the banner while my wife filmed and took pictures. What a great feeling! 

My run time was 4:38.34. My finishing time was 12:40.14. I got my medal, finisher’s shirt, posed for pictures with my kids, and then got a piece of pizza and a bottle of water. Then I called my parents. I signed up for a massage, which was going to be at least an hour wait. We went back down to the lake to get my bike gear packed up and taken to the car. 

Watching all the runners still going around the lake really had a compelling effect on me: there were still a lot of athletes out on the course. We shouted encouragement to as many of them as we could. Returning to the finish area, I was starting to get chilly, but my heart was still racing. It was time for the massage, though, which warmed me up, while calming my heartrate down. The volunteers there were also great. When we got back to Vacation Village, my stomach was still in shock and a little queasy. I had two protein-fruit-peanut butter shakes, which really settled my digestive system. Then some packing, a long, hot shower, and to bed! We had to leave early Sunday morning!

Epilogue

Looking back, the past 10 months of training for the GFT X have been the most focused period of my life. I truly enjoyed the whole day. But while I had fun, I also had to reach deep within myself for the motivation necessary to keep on going through the difficult spots. As Mitch Thrower says in “Ironfever” (Triathlete, October 2000, p.16) “Once you decide to do an Ironman, everything you eat, everything you do, all the hours that you sleep, all suddenly become hyper-important. You begin to pay close attention to how you spend your time...In training for an Ironman you’ll find out what is important to you. In racing an Ironman, you’ll build your self-confidence to an unimagined level...For months after an Ironman, the glow of the event will sparkle in athletes’and spectators’ eyes ...Becoming an Ironman is like putting an invisible self-confidence charm in your pocket. Whatever you do for the rest of your life that may seem difficult, you can pull out that charm and know that you can make it through anything.” I definitely plan on repeating the Ironman experience... hopefully, the same time next year at GFT XI!

Bernie Hall, 43 - #317 Asheboro, North Carolina

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