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Rick Spencer
Duke Blue Devil Iron Distance, September 14, 2002
Swim 2.4 miles, Bike 112 miles, Run 26.2 miles

This is a LONG report going out to all of my friends. I'll start with the basics & get into the details if you're interested.

BASICS

OK, I'll get the important part out of the way. Last year's time (at Great Floridian): 13:40:23. This year's time: 12:18:45 on a much harder course. 1 hour, 22 minute improvement. Swim: 1:17; Bike: 6:16; Run: 4:35

TRAINING

I had a pretty lazy December & January, but after that, I started training pretty well. By April, I was really seeing improvement in my running. I have the cross-country/track team I coach to thank for that. My 5K time went from 21:35 to 19:09 in a year. All of my running and triathlon times went down by about 12%. I lost quite a bit of weight too. At Great Floridian (October, 2001), I weighed 182. I went up to 190 in January. I weighed 164 Friday.

I didn't train a whole lot for the bike, but my bike training was very solid over the summer. I had 5 weeks of training 16-22 hours (everything- not just bike). That's a lot- the time equivalent of running 175 miles/week or biking 400 miles/week.

I DID NOT, however train at all for the swim. The swim is very easy for me to get through, but I'm not a very good swimmer (technique), so it's hard for me to do well. I only did 5 training swims all year! Suicide for most people.

I was expecting to do well this year & felt confident my hard training would pay off. I was much better trained this year. Once school started, I was forced to back off a lot, but I felt like even with those easy 5 weeks, I would be OK. I thought I'd be around 12:30, but had dreams of breaking 12 hours.

RACE DAY

I only got 1:45 of sleep the night before. I wasn't terribly nervous, I just couldn't sleep. I thought about cross-country mostly- not the race.

My stomach hurt when I woke up. I could barely eat a Clif Bar & some pretzels for breakfast. I should've eaten about 250 more calories, but I couldn't. On the way to the race, I felt like I was going to puke. I almost pulled over.

The swim started at 7 AM. There were only about 350 people in this race, because this is the first year for it. That meant that the swim was a lot less rough than most Ironman races. Most are like swimming in a washing machine with people swimming all over you. I bumped into a lot of people in the first 5 minutes, but it wasn't too bad & spread out quickly.

The swim was pretty uneventful. I expected to swim around 1:28. I was 1:21 last year. You do two laps in the water & I was amazed when I got out at :35 after the first one. I thought the course was short or something. My second lap didn't feel much slower, but it was. I felt extremely drained the last 1/4 of the swim. It was NOT b/c of my lack of swim training, but more likely b/c of my small breakfast. When I got out of the water at 1:16:55, I was happy with my time, but felt like all I wanted to do was go to sleep. I was very worried about bonking (running out of energy to the point that you can't do much of anything)- especially scary this early in the race. Not bad getting 4 minutes faster on the swim without any work!

I visualized breezing through the transitions really fast, but it wasn't meant to be. I fumble around too much. You had to run about 150 feet up the beach, lay down on your back, & let someone pull your wetsuit off, then grab your bag of bike gear & run into a changing tent.

I wanted to keep everything really simple this year. I didn't change except for shoes. I didn't even pack special needs bags (bags of clothes and food you get 1/2 way through the bike & run). Transition was 5:01. I don't know how it took that long to put on socks, shoes, a helmet, & sunscreen, and grab my bike.

I immediately realized I forgot my sunglasses, which meant I would have to deal with bugs in the eyes, sun, and possible rain. As it turned out, rain was the only problem.

We felt the effects of the tropical storm, which were good & bad. I don't think it ever got over 74 degrees all day. But for most of the bike & the first 6 miles or so of the run, it rained- from drizzle to pretty heavy. I would take 71 & rainy over 85 and sunny anytime though.

The bike used to be my strongest leg. It's not anymore, but I do OK on the bike. I'm able to pass a lot of people on the bike after my slowish swim.

I felt very sick on the bike though. I think I overcompensated a little for the weak feeling coming out of the swim & I took on about 600 calories in the first hour of the bike. I'd only planned on 350/hour. It might've been too much. I felt like I was going to puke almost the whole time. I did puke once- just leaned my head off the bike as I was going 20mph, let it fly & kept pedaling. Luckily, no one was behind me. Jennifer, her parents, & my parents were out on the course & I saw them about 10 times. They gave me some Rolaids. I ate about 8 of them over the course of the day & felt a little better.

I felt like had a pretty lousy bike ride. I did it in 6:16, or 17.9mph. I thought I'd ridden the course as hard as I could in right at 19mph 6 weeks ago, but I didn't realize until I got home that my training log said 18mph. I guess it wasn't awful- especially given the way I felt, but I'd hoped for 6:00.

I was REALLY sore when I got off the bike. I didn't notice it while I was riding. I pulled off my bike shoes (feet were really hurtin'), slid on my running shoes, grabbed my hat, & was off. 4 minute transition.

The whole race- & months before, I just thought of the race as running a marathon after some warm-up. I was really looking forward to running a great marathon. I started off at 9:00 pace, which is good. My calves & ankles were killin' me. I knew they'd loosen up. I stayed around 9:15 per mile for the first 7 miles or so. My goal was not to stop except for the occasional aid station. If I did 9:15 miles the whole way, I could get under 12 hours- my ultimate goal.

I break up marathons in fractions or by other race distances. When I start, I say, "OK, only four 10Ks (a little more)." At 9 miles, I say, "OK, run back to the start line & then back here." At mile 7, these high school girls said, "Great job. Lookin' good. Only 19 miles to go!" 19 miles?? 19 mile is a long way!! A lot longer than "Over a quarter of the way there." That really threw me. Almost exactly at that point, I walked 1/2 way up a big hill. I hadn't walked before then.

When you're out there that long, you get a weird feeling. Even though I saw my family 10 times & talked to people around me, I felt incredibly lonely. I felt that way last year too. I cried 3 times yesterday. Once when another group of high school girls were jumping up & down and cheering me on. Something about them being so happy & me feeling so bad made me burst into tears. The last time, was as I was running up a big hill and saw my family. Nothing hurt too bad, it's just emotional. I can't explain it. I cry when I see Ironman races on TV too. I don't know.

The bike course was rolling- fairly tough. The run course was VERY tough. Hills everywhere- long ones. The only flat thing on the course was the swim!

The rest of the run went fairly well. I slowed down some. At mile 21 though, I developed a new strategy. I ran at about 7:30 pace (fast), & then walked a minute. I had only walked 3 times prior to that. Doing it that way, though, I was run/walking 8:45 miles- a lot faster than the 10:30 miles I was jogging even-paced.

The day before the race, one of my training partners who coaches cross-country at our rival school mentioned how competitive we are. I'm not a very competitive person (except in cross-country) and hadn't given much thought to beating him. I did think I'd beat him considerably because of my run & the fact that he trains pretty slow on the bike. On the run, I started thinking about beating him. I saw him on the run as I was coming in on the bike. He was 12 minutes ahead. I'm sure that motivated me on the run. At mile 22, I passed him while he was walking. I yelled at him to join me for the last 4 miles & if he had, I would've been happy running in with him, but he wasn't coming.

In the last couple of miles, I changed my goal to breaking 12:20. I couldn't help but do my run fast/walk thing even the last mile. I had it timed out so I could get under 12:20. I saw my dad at the last corner. I was really moving by then. I yelled out, "Can I make it in 2:50?" He said, "I don't know, it'll be tough." "2:39- can I make it." "Maybe." I went all out. He couldn't keep up. I ran as fast as I could (even if I were fresh) toward Duke Chapel. I am convinced I ran the last 800 (half mile) in 2:40 or so. I crossed the line at 12:18:45 at full blast, yelling with my hands in the air. The race announcer commented on my outfit. "Rick Spencer must've gotten himself dressed this morning. Bright orange top, blue shorts, and neon green socks. I wonder if he'd help me with my wardrobe."

I couldn't stop when I finished. I've read about this- when you've told yourself to go for so long, you can't quit. I walked fast and broke into a jog in the two minutes after I finished. I was really out of it. I sat in a chair & immediately sunk into it. I started sliding down almost to the ground. I said, "I gotta lay down." Jennifer almost helped me onto the mud. "No not the mud." I was at least a little coherent. I collapsed on a bench and stayed there for 20 minutes. I felt like I was in a hospital bed.

The whole run, I felt really overheated. I had to rub ice on my face, head, chest, & neck. When I finished, I was burning up even though it was only about 70. I packed my clothes with ice and Jennifer got a paper plate filled with ice and held it on my chest for 20 minutes. We put ice all over my face and neck too. I could've maybe used a trip to the medical tent just to have them check me out. I felt OK after a little while. Some people I knew came by to check on me.

WHAT DO YOU EAT?

Different people eat different things in long races. I can't stomach solid foods. I ate one bite of a Clif Bar. It was very difficult to chew and swallow. I spit the second bite out. I ate 1/8 of a bagel on the run, but it took me 3 minutes to chew & swallow it. I was very careful not to take in a lot of simple sugars this year & stuck pretty close to my nutrition plan. Simple sugars create energy spikes as opposed to even, slower burning fuel. I ate about 20 Hammer Gels (like a fruity syrup of complex carbs), 4 servings of a 1:2 mixture of Peach Cytomax & Sustained Energy (both like Gatorade, but with some vitamins & minerals, and complex carbs & protein rather than simple sugars), & about 6 cups of Gatorade on the run. In addition, I took 2 multivitamins,2 zinc tablets, 5 magnesium tablets, 8 Enduro Caps (electrolyte pills- never tried them, but they had them on the course), 5 ibuprofen, and 27 salt tablets. That many salt tablets would've been OK on a hotter day, but I'm wondering if that's not what caused my overheating. Lack of salt makes it harder for the body to absorb water, which causes a lot of problems (hyponatremia- somethingI had last year). It also causes muscle cramping.

ANALYSIS

Last year, I was depressed for a few weeks after the race. I felt like, "That's all?" It wasn't as tough as I wanted it to be and it was a little bit of a let-down after 2 years of training not to have something to shoot for. This year, I improved a whole lot, but I still feel disappointed somehow. I guess I'm pleased, but I wanted a better bike leg and a phenomenal run. I haven't gotten passed on the run leg in a race all year, but a few people passed me in this race.

Like I said, an Ironman is so emotional for me. It's so draining. I would pass my family once & be crying. 4 miles down the road, I'd be yelling & pumping my fist in the air. I thought about stopping for a majority of the bike and run... and not for any particular reason. I could not have finished without my family.

I'm sore today, but feel fine. I have a headache, which I'll probably have for a few days. I always do when I do something over 5 hours.

WHAT'S NEXT?

When I finished, I doubted if I'd ever do another Ironman. Today, I've come around a little. I may. I probably will. My biggest priority for the next 2 years (or less, if it takes less time) is to qualify for the Boston Marathon. You have to run a 3:10 for my age group. I'm really going to work on my run. I know I'll do a 1/2 Ironman next year, & may do a full one, but my priority is running. The thing about triathlon is that you don't have to be too good at any one leg. ...but I want to be good at something. On the other hand, I may do 2 Ironman races next year. I've thought about Lake Placid and Great Floridian. Who knows?

If you got this far, thanks for reading this LONG report!

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