When I left Chris in the last post he had just finished the 112-mile bike portion of the Ironman Triathlon. It was the middle of the afternoon and the temperature was in the high 80’s. Perfect timing to run a marathon (26.2 miles).The run course was spectator friendly although I don’t know if the competitors liked the idea of running the same loop three times. I think this is about mile 6. Here is the ever-important support team. Dan had scoped out areas to watch for our runner.   

I took photos each time we saw Chris, but he doesn’t look much different from one photo to the other (and that’s a good thing in a 26-mile run). So I’ll skip to the finish. First, a couple of photos of volunteers. There were aid stations at each mile along the marathon course. Some of the volunteers got a little creative with their outfits.There were even super-heroes helping out. While Chris was on his third lap we decided that we’d better find our place at the finish. Dan stationed himself to take a video at the end of a loop where the runners turn for the finish line. Kurtis, Katie, and Meryl stood in the bleachers right at the end. I stood just below so I could get photos in two directions (and I wasn’t directly in the path of the blaring sound system).

Chris coming into the finish area with two turns before he sees the finish line.

It’s in sight. As the runners cross the finish line the announcer gives the name and says “You are an Ironman!”

 First smile we saw all day.

Not quite finished with the support role. Happy sister & brother-in-law     Proud parents.

In the last post I described the day prior to the Ironman. Saturday morning we got to the swim site about 5:30. The first task was to have a volunteer mark numbers on arms. Next it was time to stand in the porta-potty line with 2,999 other competitors.Daylight now. Don’t forget the chip on the ankle……and the sunscreen. The pros started at 6:45. The “age-group” competitors started lining up in the water during the singing of the National Anthem. Green caps are men and pink caps are women.The age-group competitors began their event promptly at 7 a.m. Chris told us later that he got kicked, punched, and knocked around. I can see why. I think there must be some strategy to avoid that–maybe get out ahead and stay there?This is a view from the bridge over the lake. The swimmers start out on the right, turn around the yellow buoy on the end, and then head for a channel that goes to the left of the photo. In this photo the swimmers on the left of the buoy are the pros who have already made the turn. The large group on the right of the yellow buoys are the age-group competitors and the group in the foreground are the swimmers who chose to wear wetsuits (see the black arms) and, therefore, had to start 10 minutes behind the non-wetsuit swimmers (see previous post about that).

Speaking of strategy, it was important that the support crew developed a strategy also.Here is the support crew (minus me, the photographer). That’s Dan, Katie, Kurtis, and Meryl. Our job was to figure out how to find Chris and cheer him on in as many places as possible, all the while keeping ourselves fed and watered and in the shade as much as possible. Oh yeah, and get good photos too. Katie and Meryl were able to spot Chris in the swim and get a photo there. They cheered him on as he emerged from the water after swimming 2.4 miles in just a little over an hour.  These are the bags in the swim-bike transition area that hold the gear necessary for the bike component. I stationed myself at the bike area to try and catch Chris as he started the 112 mile ride.

         Once Chris was on the bike we knew it would be about six hours before we would see him again. Time to find coffee and breakfast. I mentioned the infrastructure necessary for this event in the last post. About six hours before the winners would run across the finish line the equipment and structure was still being assembled.Security was also an important consideration and included dogs as well.The bike area before any of the cyclists have returned. While the others of our crew were waiting at the bike-run transition to see Chris begin the marathon I waited at the end of the bike course to cheer him on there. Do you know how hard it is to spot a cyclist in time to make sure you get a photo of the right one? White helmet, white jersey with blue around the arms. He wasn’t the only one who could be described that way.Cyclists must dismount at a specified point and run with their bikes into the transition area and on to where their run gear is bagged. The last component is the marathon. I think that will have to be another post. Stay tuned.

I just got back from Texas where I visited my daughter and we watched my son, Chris, compete in the Ironman in The Woodlands, near Houston. Some of you may not know about the Ironman. Here is what Wikipedia says: “An Ironman Triathlon is one of a series of long-distance triathlon races organized by the World Triathlon Corporation (WTC) consisting of a 2.4-mile (3.86 km) swim, a 112-mile (180.25 km) bicycle ride and a marathon 26.2-mile (42.2 km) run, raced in that order and without a break.”

Chris prides himself in being in good shape for his firefighter job (USFS Hot Shot), but the Ironman requires even more. It requires a lot of planning and dedication by the athlete to put in the hours necessary to compete at this level. And it doesn’t hurt to have dedicated family and friends for support. The infrastructure and number of staff and volunteers necessary to put on this event is amazing too.

Here are some photos I took after we got to Texas in the days before the Ironman.You can’t do a triathlon without a bike, and we shipped Chris’ bike to Katie’s and Kurtis’ house near Wimberly. Chris had to reassemble all the parts that we took off to fit it in the bike-shipper box.After assembling the bike Chris needed to ride to make sure that everything was working right. This is his introduction to the hills and humidity he was to face (although fortunately the Ironman was not in the Hill Country).

We drove to The Woodlands on Thursday so that we would be there for check-in. Dan, a dedicated teacher who rarely misses work, arrived early Friday morning (2:30 a.m). We spent Friday organizing equipment, driving the bike course, and resting up (as important for the support crew as for the athlete, it turns out).Bags ready to go. There is one each for swim, bike, and run. Making it through the transitions quickly is an important part of the competition. Once the event starts, there can be no support (other than moral) from family or friends, so everything the athlete needs for the transitions has to be in these bags.

Friday morning the athletes were allowed to go for a swim to get a feel for the lake. There are temperature limits that dictate whether or not wetsuits are mandatory, optional, or not allowed. It wouldn’t be until 5 a.m. the next morning that the athletes would know for sure. (It turns out that the water was warm enough that wetsuits were optional, but if you chose to wear a wetsuit you would start 10 minutes behind the others.)After the swim practice it was time to deliver the bike and the bags of gear to the swim-bike/bike-run transition area.

Bike racked and ready to go.   There is room here for 3000 bikes–an amazing site when it is full.  Getting tips from Dad. Chris has a lot on his mind.Here is a preview of the Support Team. Stay tuned to see photos of the Ironman.