Thankfully, all that worrying paid off. Our kids were happily entertained on the airplane (or asleep) both directions. And I wore everything in my suitcase at least once and didn’t wish I had more (or less).

We left SFO for Ixtapa on Monday, July 5. After a smooth day of travel, we landed in the heat of Ixtapa, greeted by cold lemonade and smiles from the staffers. Our room was fantastic – a ground floor room in the Iguana building – separated into 3 sections: 1 end for kids, the middle for bath/shower/sink, and the other end for Dave and me. A small porch provided invaluable clothes-drying space (except for that one night, when it rained….I mean poured… on our clothes that were hung out to “dry”).

The Iguana building was aptly named – a large herd of Iguanas lived right outside. In the heat of the day, they’d sit and stare you down as you walked along the path. We called it the Iguanapalooza. Kevin tried to catch one, but they were faster than he was.

I always thought Mexico was void of gardeners, since they’re all here. But any left all work at Ixtapa Club Med. The grounds are impeccable. I challenge you to find a dead flower, broken branch, or weed on the grounds. Not only is the landscaping beautiful, the facilities are top notch. Guys are out scrubbing the pool decks with bleach every morning before 7. The pools are vacuumed every day. The public area bathrooms smell like sanitizer, the garbage cans are always empty, the sand is raked pretty every morning. The ashtrays are all clean and have the Club Med logo imprinted on them. I think they must have a crew that picks up all the broken seashells and driftwood from the shore in the middle of the night.

Other than sleeping, we spent every moment outside. We’d play on the beach, swim in the warm ocean, get very sandy and dirty, wash off, eat, then swim in the pool. We were in this endless loop. One pool was “just right for me” as Kevin said. It was 2’ 6” deep, so he could stand and the water came up to his neck. He hopped around on his own, made friends with girls, borrowed boogie boards and water guns, and generally had a ball. Ryan enjoyed swimming too. He sat on the steps and splashed around, flirting with the older women. Dave and I visited the small gym a few times during our stay. I read something on my Kindle while on the elliptical trainer. Not a bad workout, considering the view of the ocean.

The family resorts of Club Med have all-you-can-eat babysitting. The kids “clubs” as they’re called, take children of all ages (over 6 months) and have a range of activities for them to do anytime of the day. Our friends that had gone before and the Ixtapa staff all encouraged us to take advantage of the clubs. We did and we didn’t. Ryan spent a lot of time in the “Baby Club” – for kids from 6 months to 2 years. They had several large rooms with padded floors and walls and age-appropriate toys; dark rooms with dozens of cribs, etc. It was perfect for him. He was likely much happier in the air-conditioned center, with lots of female attention than he would have been with us on the beach. When we took Ryan to the beach, he usually had eaten a handful of sand within 5 minutes and was miserable. The Baby Club staff fell in love with Ryan – they all called him his favorite and he lit up like a light bulb at their attention. We didn’t put Kevin in the kids club. He was really quite happy playing in the sand and swimming with us, and we liked it too. He was a happy-go-lucky kid, really fun to hang out with, and drama-free!

We spent one morning taking Kevin to “Dolfiniti” in downtown Ixtapa. Dave and Kevin donned on life vests and jumped in the water with the dolphins. Kevin gave a dolphin a big hug and a kiss and promptly forgot all about it. Of course, no cameras or video allowed, so we’ve got little to show for that adventure!

The food. Oh, the food! There was a lot of it, and it was pretty good too! The main dining room was huge – 4 large seating areas and dozens of different “stations” – ranging from Mexican food (of course) to Indian to Italian to American (i.e., fried stuff) to breads to seafood to fresh fruit to dessert. My all time favorite place was the fresh fruit section. There is nothing better than a ripe papaya, all cut up, ready to eat. I had my fill of mangoes and papayas, and then some. They had mangoes wrapped in salmon – one of the best things I’ve ever tasted! I ate shrimp-tomato-mango salad. I had fish tacos topped with mango. I had mango smoothies and mango drinks by the pool. Thankfully, Wikipedia tells me mangoes are good for me.

Aside from beach and pool, we tried our hand at the trapeze. You start with a simple routine – jump off a really high platform, swing, hang by your knees, and do a back-flip off into a net. Simple enough, right? It was quite fun. I had to go 4 more times – the adrenaline was addictive – and I have the bruises on the backs of my knees to prove it.

Only two things went wrong on this vacation. Kevin got violently sick the second night – throwing up about every 30 minutes from 1am to 7am. He bounced back pretty quickly and thank goodness for the cleaning staff. And someone stole Dave’s flip flops from outside our front door. Not bad, right? Must have been all my planning/worrying.

Our first day included a visit to Nanny and Papa’s work places.  We started by visiting Nanny at her flower shop. She gave us a quick tour and gave Kevin a red carnation.  Then we were on our way to visit Papa at the hospital where he volunteers.

When we visit PA, we stay with my sister who is very nice to put up with us for 4 days (especially when Ryan wakes up crying at 5AM!)  Kevin and his cousin Roxie had a great time playing guitar that goes along with their video game. Kevin loves guitars!

We timed our trip to PA to coincide with the Mt. Gretna Triathlon, a local, fun race. This is the second year Dave has done the race. This year Heather also raced, doing a relay with Uncle Jeff and niece Roxie. Below left is a picture of the whole family out supporting at the race; below right is the relay team.

Dave competed with the best of them, and ended up with a 1st place Masters finish.

We packed in a lot of activities into the remaining two days of our trip. We took a drive to see Marshall, Nanny’s horse. Ryan got to meet and ride a horse for the first time. Kevin even rode all by himself!! We also got to see all sorts of other fun things on the farm including 6-week old kittens, roosters, and lots of tractors and farm equipment.

After washing off the horse hair, Kevin, Roxie, Uncle Jeff and Dave went to HersheyPark. I told Kevin “when I was a kid, I used to work at HersheyPark”.  [Now, wherever Kevin goes, he says, “when I was a kid, I used to work here!”]

Despite a little rain, Kevin had a great time riding rides with his cousin Roxie. Of course he loved the motorocycles, but I think his favorite ride was the frog hopper….he just couldn’t stop giggling.  He also went for a ride on his first rollercoaster and all he could say at the end was “let’s do that again!”

Kevin’s other cousin Maddie was away at swim camp during most of our visit.  She made up for lost time and played hard with Kevin and Ryan.  Below, she and Kevin are racing scooters down the driveway.  She taught Kevin how to lift one leg and “coast” on the scooter.  It is hard not to think of a dog peeing on a fire hydrant when he does this.

The remainder of the trip was spent hanging out with family. Nanny got a small bike set up with training wheels and Kevin rode it down their backyard hill over and over and over.  Ryan got to spend quality cuddle time with Nanny and Papa.

Below is a picture of 3 generations of LeRoy men. Ryan would have joined us, but he was probably napping during this picture!

Here we are just before heading out to the Philadephia airport for our trip home. Nanny, Papa, Uncle Jim and Aunt Elma Jean all came over to see us off.  We are very much looking forward to another trip back to PA next year.

Over Memorial Day weekend we flew back to Pennsylvania to visit my family.  There were a lot of family members anxious to see him.  It had been almost a year since we last visited and Kevin had changed a bit since then!! Above is a picture of Kevin in our driveway ready to head to the San Francisco airport. He hauled Mom’s suitcase most of the trip. He entertained quite a few folks at baggage claim.

When we stay in PA we stay with my sister and her family because they have a big house with plenty of extra room for all of us.  My nieces had a great time getting to know their cousin again.  They put him to work out in the big backyard helping them water the plants (below)

One of the first things on the itinerary for our trip was a little triathlon in Mt Gretna on Saturday of Memorial Day weekend. Friday I spent the day putting my bike together and then taking a drive on the bike course with my Dad and Uncle Jim.  Uncle Jim always likes to point out places where I can cheat and cut corners.   We also fit in a visit to see my Dad at work at the volunteers’ office of the Good Samaritan hospital. He loves showing his grandson off to all the ladies in the office.

Saturday was the race and the entire family made their way out to Mt. Gretna early in the morning to spectate. I think everyone had fun watching me suffer.   I had a good time and it was a well organized event.  The bike course was pretty hilly but the run was on a railroad bed trail that Heather and I had run on in the past.  I really enjoyed that part of the race.  The results of the race are on my website.

After the race we spent lots of time with family and visiting friends.  Nanny took Kevin to visit Marshall, her horse.  The picture on the left is from our 2008 visit, the one on the right is from this year.

By far Kevin’s favorite part of the visit to the farm was playing with the pitchfork in the hay…yes we’re horrible parents for letting him play with a pitchfork…but it did make for some great pictures and he had a blast as can be seen below.

Finally we packed up and started the trip home.  We were a bit worried on the 6 hour flight home as Kevin was super hyper and very loud. We were not making many friends around us.  He had learned to “sing” at my sister’s house while playing Guitar Hero and was practicing his best Adam Lambert whiny/screeching singing voice for the first hour of the flight! Finally he lost energy and fell asleep on Heather’s lap.  I  had loaded episodes of Dora the Explorer and Sesame Street on my iPhone and that helped put him to sleep. He would sit on Heather’s lap watching, fighting to stay away, but eventually his eyelids got REALLY heavy until he fell asleep.

After a peaceful (for everyone) 2 hour nap Kevin was awake, had a snack and seemed to be enjoying himself.  20 minutes before landing in San Francisco he was sitting on my lap when all of a sudden he started vomiting like a volcano.  He was completely covered and I started feeling a wet, warm feeling soaking into my lap.  Two minutes later he was sitting in his diaper in his own seat giggling like nothing had happened. Meanwhile I’m sitting in a pile of puke and smelling wonderful.  I must officially be a Dad now because I wasn’t even phased by this…I mean, what can you do? 

Aside from the final vomit event, it was an excellent trip and Kevin was a real trooper. He adjusted well to east coast time and to the new surroundings and thoroughly entertained the family.

The cannon went off promptly at 7am. I swam 2.4 miles in 59 degree water in 1 hour, 6 minutes, and 2 seconds. I was about 1 minute slower than my projected time, but the times overall seemed a bit slow. I was 7^th out of the water in my age group (151 women ages 35-39) and 218^th overall (out of 1942 athletes). I was super happy about that. I biked 112 miles in 6 hours, 50 minutes, and 2 seconds. My projected time was 7 hours. I went out too fast on the first lap, completing it in 3 hours 10 minutes. Then I sort of died off and took 3 hours and 40 minutes for the second lap. Finally, I ran the 26.2 mile marathon. It took me a long, long time – 5 hours, 29 minutes and 31 seconds. I was projected to take between 5 and 6 hours. It was a tough run, particularly miles 12-17 when I couldn’t keep any food down. (More grotesque details on that in the write up below. J ) The weather was perfect. The fans were amazing. The course was beautiful. And I was surrounded by family and friends for plenty of support and encouragement. It was a perfect day.

Now, for the details…..

PRE-RACE

Dave, Kevin and I arrived in Coeur d’Alene on Thursday afternoon. I checked into the race and picked up my bike. We spent Thursday night in Spokane and made our way to Lake Coeur d’Alene early on Friday morning for a practice swim. The water felt *extremely* cold that morning. When I first got in, I couldn’t breathe and I was convinced I wouldn’t even be able to swim! I swam one lap (1.2 miles) and by the end, felt much better. Still cold, but not frigid. I did a short bike ride that afternoon to make sure all was in working order. I did another practice swim on Saturday morning and figured out where I would start the race and where my sight lines would be. My brother, Dave, and I drove the bike course on Saturday. That was eye opening – the hills were much steeper than I had expected, albeit short. We spent the rest of Saturday preparing our bikes with race numbers, organizing food/drink, sorting gear into various bags, etc. We had to check in our bikes, transition bags, and special needs bags on Saturday. We watched the Hawaii Ironman from 2006 to end the night and get pumped for the next day.

I didn’t actually sleep more than an hour or so on Saturday night. My alarm was set for 4:40am. I choked down a big bowl of steel cut oatmeal, a bagel, a banana, and a yogurt. Dave recommended a big breakfast to ensure our glycogen stores were topped off and we had enough calories to make it through several hours.

Dave dropped my brother and I off at the race start around 5:30. We got our tires pumped up, transition bags ready, and then headed to the swim start. The water temperature was the talk of the town for weeks prior to the race. It was only 49 degrees in late May. But the warm weather in Coeur d’Alene did its duty and made the lake temps reasonable. I still wore a hood and booties, but the cold didn’t bother me.

The anticipation 15 minutes prior the race start nearly killed me. Standing around, looking at all your competitors, watching the helicopter fly overhead, listening to loud pump-you-up rock music…..it was almost too much. Keish shared his “secret” starting location with my brother and I – waaaay off to the right hand side, out of the fray. So, there we stood, waiting for the start. The cannon went off without warning (if there was a warning, we didn’t hear it) and we all charged down the beach and into the water.

THE SWIM

Starting way off to one side was key for me. I never touched another body, and thus got into a swimming rhythm (i.e., never panicked) right away. Sighting was a cinch – there was a perfect bell curve hill in front of the final buoy before the turn and I just swam straight for that. I swam extra wide around the buoy – those corners can be brutal because everyone slows down and gets crowded; that’s when you get kicked in the ribs or the face. I always figure swimming a little extra helps me – keeps me calm and I stay in my rhythm. A short stretch straight into the sun, then we turned another right angle and headed back toward the beach. We had to swim to the shore, get out, run over timing mats and back into the water for a second loop. I have no idea how fast my first lap was – there was no clock!! My first (of many) low point of the day was starting a second loop. Another 1.2 miles, I thought to myself. Yeeesh, it felt like a long way the first time. My second loop was slower – I lost focus many times, lost rhythm, didn’t swim very straight, and my arms were getting heavy. I was happy to be done. My best event over, now the hard stuff started.

Here’s a short video clip of the swim start. If you only watch one of the video clips in this story, watch this one. The swim start is quite a spectacle.

T1

After you get out of the water, volunteer strippers help you strip off your wetsuit and booties. You lie on the ground, stick your feet in the air, and they pull your suit off with one big tug. Very helpful!

I headed for the women’s changing tent for Transition #1. I bypassed two brand new Sundance hot tubs they had available to warm up. I sat down in a chair and a kind old woman volunteer helped me get ready for the bike. She put my wetsuit, booties, hood, cap, and goggles in a bag. She helped me get my arm warmers, helmet, glasses, shoes, socks, and watch on. I opened a Clif bar and took two huge bites and started chewing (I think I was still chewing miles later). I headed out for my bike. The whole transition seemed very quick, but it took me 7 minutes and 6 seconds.

THE BIKE

The weather was still chilly at only 8am. I was very glad I decided to wear arm warmers. Within the first mile, I saw my family and friends on the sideline. That’s me waving in this video clip.

We headed out first to a short (~14 miles) out and back along Lake Coeur d’Alene. It was relatively flat and I was pretty excited – my adrenaline was flying and I was moving! I saw my family when I returned about 45 minutes later and then headed out for the long loop (~40 miles). We had driven the course the day before, so I knew what to expect: lots of fast flat stuff at the beginning and then many short steep hills. My goal was to keep my heartrate average at 145 and I was averaging 160 for the first hour. Not good! I kept trying to slow down, and successfully did for a few minutes. But then I’d creep back up – adrenaline, excitement, all the people – I don’t know why. I finally managed to slow down and averaged a heartrate of 152 on the bike – still too high and that may have hurt me for the run.

The bike course was beautiful. Plenty of rain and snow melt offered up very green hills and numerous types of trees. Aid stations were placed approximately every 10 miles and the nutrition offered was exactly the same at every station in exactly the same order. By the end of the day, I realized how important that predictability was. Gatorade, water, Power Gels, Bananas, Oranges, Gatorade, water.

I had planned out my nutrition very carefully for the bike. I drank Hammer Nutrition Sustained Energy – 360 calories per bike bottle. In my aerobar drink bottle, I had regular concentrate Sustained Energy that lasted for the first hour. Mounted on my down tube, I had super concentrated Sustained Energy – enough for two more aerobar drink bottles, to last for the next two hours. After three hours, I planned to switch to water and Gus (which were in my “Bento box” mounted on my top tube). Everything worked out well until I got to the GUs during the third hour. I used a new GU flask (never use something new on race day!) and it took too much energy to suck the GU out! That was frustrating. I hit the “special needs” stop on the bike at mile 62. There, I had a plastic bag with another GU flask, a previously-frozen-now-cold bottle of regular concentrate Sustained Energy and a cold bottle of super concentrate Sustained Energy. By this point, I was having my second low point of the day. My legs were getting tired, I had pushed too hard earlier, and my stomach was feeling unsettled. When I saw my family at mile ~70, I actually pulled over and stopped. I had Dave turn my bike upside down to empty my aerobar bottle (it was full of unwanted water) and gave him my GU flask. I learned that Kevin was at our hostess’ house, taking a nap with Grandpa. J

I was off again, headed out for the 40 mile loop for the second time. The hills seemed steeper and longer the second time around. And we had a good headwind on the flat, fast section toward the end, which caused my 3^rd low point for the day. Dave always said that the race starts at mile 90 of the bike. Then the race becomes a test of who slows down the least. Ugh.

I averaged 16.4 mph for 112 – slightly better than I had expected. The average for all competitors was 16.2mph. I was hoping to finish the bike in 7 hours, so I was 10 minutes faster than projected. I didn’t eat any solid food for 7 hours – just liquid calories. I think that may have caused some stomach issues I had later on in the run.

Arriving in transition after 112 miles…..I had never been so excited to run!

Here is a graph showing the elevation on the two loops of the bike.  Total climbing was about 5600 feet.

T2

I took my time in Transition #2. My legs were feeling like jello, I was hot, and I was covered in salt from all the sweat. I changed out of my one-piece and into my favorite pair of Brooks running shorts and a t-shirt. [Dave and I had funny t-shirts made for our family and friends, so I wore that.] The transition lady got me a wet cold cloth so I could wash my face, arms, and legs – that felt good! That was followed up by some other lady dousing my face and arms in sunblock. So much for being clean!

THE RUN

Leaving transition on the run was a blast. The crowds were 3 or 4 people deep along the running path. My bib number had “Heather” printed on it, so people were screaming my name. It was all very exciting – I felt good, I was running 10 minute miles, and I was happy. This video clip shows my happiest point during the run. The rest of the day got tough and ugly.

I kept up a pretty good 10-11 minute/mile pace for the first 12 miles. The crowds helped push me along for quite a while. And I enjoyed cheering on my brother and friends that were also competing in the race. Similar to the bike aid stations, the run aid stations were very predictable: Gatorade, water, Power Gels, food (bananas, oranges, Clif bars, pretzels), chicken broth, Power Gels, Gatorade, water. Since I had lost plenty of salt, I opted for water, chicken broth, and bananas at every aid station.

Low point #4 and very low point #5. [If you don’t like to hear about vomit, don’t read this paragraph.] After mile 12, I was unable to keep any food down. Thankfully, there were plenty of porta-potties along the way, so no one had to witness my nausea. I was miserable. My ribs and stomach ached from throwing up and I was starting to get worried about how the rest of the day would pan out. I had no intention of quitting – I was way ahead of the time cut off, so I knew I could slowly walk the final half of the marathon and still finish. But yuck. Very low point #5 was at mile ~13. I stopped to throw up in a porta potty. I had my sunglasses perched on top of my running hat. And next thing I know, the sunglasses are IN the porta potty! Lucky for me, this particular potty was full to the brim, so I didn’t have to go in too far to get them! J I washed them off at the aid station and perched them back on top of my hat. It sounds really disgusting, but at the time, I didn’t really care. Guess that tells you what kind of mental state I was in.

I ran by my parents at mile 14 and stopped to chat (I was walking at this point). My Mom convinced me to get rid of my hat and let my head breathe (that felt great), so she took my hat and potty glasses. I did warn her where they had been!

I was very low on energy from miles 12-17. I walked nearly all of it, continuing to try bananas and chicken broth at the aid stations. I saw David and Troy at mile ~16. Troy encouraged me to keep eating and he said, “Just know, it CAN get better.” I stopped throwing up after mile 17 and started to regain some energy just in time to walk up a big hill at the final run turnaround near mile 20. I began running (slowly) at mile 20, vowing to run between each aid station until the finish line. That seemed to work – I ate a chunk of banana each mile and half a cup of chicken broth. Our friends Sid and Brian were biking alongside the course and checked in on me every so often. They were lifesavers! They also called Dave to keep him apprised of my progress.

The final few miles of the run were brutal – I was excited to finish but my legs were throbbing and tired and I just couldn’t turn them over any faster. I started running the numbers in my head about what a potential finishing time would be. I could break 14 hours! I was delighted by the prospect of that, considering how lousy I had felt earlier in the run. The last couple miles went quick, with massive crowds lining the streets. I saw Kevin and Dave just a couple blocks before the finish line. I managed to muster a big smile, but I was hurting.

Here is a graph showing my heartrate on the run.  You can see the “low points” – my heartrate was much lower than it should have been because I was walking.  Then, I picked it up again for the final 6 miles.

As I went through the finish line, the volunteers held up the finishing tape and the announcer boomed, “Heather, YOU are an Ironman!” Yay! I was done! 13 hours, 38 minutes and 51 seconds. I was hoping for something between 13 and 15 hours. My family and friends were all there at the finish. It was a long day for them too, so I was happy they stuck it out till the bitter end.

I spent some time in the recovery tent, getting warm and drinking some soda. I felt pretty grimy – covered in chicken broth and banana mush. My stomach wasn’t interested in food until the following morning. But for the following three days, I ate non-stop like a crazy woman.

IN HINDSIGHT…

I have a short list of “lessons learned.”

1) I probably didn’t appreciate the training required for this length of a race, given that I had a baby in August 07. Losing a bunch of extra baby weight and restoring my stomach muscles after a C-section gave me extra challenges to be ready in time. But the timing was good – training gave me something other than baby, baby, baby to think about. It was a good, big, lofty goal to focus on.

2) Never try anything new on race day (even just a GU flask).

3) It is a long day. Unless you are trying to win or qualify for Hawaii, you’ll waste more energy trying to hurry up.

4) I wish I had done more long brick workouts. I only did a few of them, and my longest runs were just 6 miles. Doing a couple long bike workouts, followed by 10+ miles would have been helpful. I think Ironman boils down to just that – getting through the bike feeling good and then being able to run strong for many hours.

5) Coeur d’Alene is an excellently run race – very organized, very smooth running. The course is perfect and the volunteers are hard to beat. I would recommend it for anyone, particularly a first-timer Ironman.

6) Support from family and friends is crucial.  Training for an Ironman is a big commitment and you sacrifice a lot in many areas of your life.  Other people pick up the slack because you are just too tired.  I’m thankful for Dave, my husband and coach, who helped prepare me in a methodical, reasonable, and loving way.  I’m thankful for Kim, my brother, who never wavered in his training and his upbeat-ness was a big motivation.  And I’m thankful for all my other family members and friends who supported this wild idea and helped me get to the finish line.