The Gift of the Present: 2017 Ironman Lake Placid Race Report

Feet up and resting the day before Ironman Lake Placid, I scrolled through Facebook and saw this post from my friend and fellow coach Mary: The next morning, I stood on the beach of Mirror Lake, waiting for the 2017 Ironman Lake Placid to begin. In that moment, I lived a different present than the last time I raced an Ironman, 3 years ago. When I first registered for IMLP 2017, I wanted to chase my Ironman past. I felt like I had unfinished business with Lake Placid. I had goals for Ironman – back in 2013 and 2014 – that …

25 Minutes of Bliss & Lessons Learned from Injury

“Before you come back next time, go for a short run. We need to see where that leg is at,” said Dr. Terry Andrus, my physical therapist. Wait, did I hear that correctly? Did he just clear me to go for a run? *Big smile* I guess he was reading my mind because he added, “Don’t make it a half marathon or anything. Easy and short. 20-25 minutes.” “Okay,” I replied, laughing. “I know. I know.” I was excited, but also a little bit fearful. The last time I had tried to run was February 2nd. I ran only 10 …

I’m injured, but I’m not out

I have a case of what appears to be hamstring tendonitis in my right leg. At first, the injury led me to drop running from my training, and replace it with aqua jogging, while continuing my training with swimming and biking. However, at the end of last week, it became painfully (literally) clear to me that I would have to also drop the bike and aqua jogging. My coach took it a step further and said: no kicking while swimming. My first response: SERIOUSLY? I found it impossible to be optimistic and find the silver lining at first. This news …

Life’s a little different now: Some observations on Ironman training

I’m a little over 25 weeks out from Lake Placid Ironman. During this early phase of base training, along with the training I did in preparation for the HIM Bassman in October, I’ve noticed several changes in my life. I thought I’d share some. Maybe some of you can relate? Observation #1: Positive Correlations Most athletes preparing for an Ironman expect that the longer the race distance, the longer the training times and miles. What I didn’t account for was the fact that those training distances aren’t the only times that increase. While the training plan may have anywhere from …

Satisfying the demands of reason and emotion through gradual adaptation and 1% improvements

I’m antsy. I’ve got work to do.   It’s been a week since the half iron distance triathlon. The soreness has faded. The feeling of accomplishment is there, but I can’t help feeling that I want to do better, go faster, be stronger. My basic goal for the triathlon was 6 hours, and while I accomplished that goal with a time of 5:55;37, I secretly (or not so secretly) wished I would do better–like 5:45 would have been great. I had wanted to place in my age group, but was 4th (by over a minute). My rational mind knows that I …

The Spirit of the Ironman-Lake Placid 2009

The Lake Placid Ironman was held on Sunday, July 26, 2009, with 2051 athletes finishing the race, according to the official race results (2258 began the race, but 207 athletes did not finish). For those of you who may not know, the Lake Placid Ironman is a 140.6 mile race that must be completed within 17 hours. It consists of a 2.4 mile swim, followed by a 112 mile bike (over some seriously mountainous terrain), and finished with a marathon (26.2 miles). There is little dispute that this event is tough stuff. But, these numbers only tell a very small part of the …

Volunteering at the Lake Placid Ironman 2009

The Lake Placid Ironman was a fantastic and motivating experience. I was moved to tears at several points throughout the day as I witnessed the sheer strength and determination of the human spirit. Watching an Ironman is an experience that I would recommend to anyone. John and I signed up to serve as volunteers, and that was an excellent decision for so many reasons. First, volunteering gave us priority registration for the 2010 event, and I’m happy to report that we are registered. This consideration is not insignificant since Lake Placid has sold out onsite in previous years, and this year was …