IRONMAN!

We are in Penticton, British Columbia for the 28th annual Ironman Canada race! Roughly 2700 athletes have invaded this small town for the 2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike, and 26.2 mile run. We have 3 racers in this year's event -- 

Brother-in-law Andy (#682) is going for his fourth Ironman finish (previously Coer d'alene, Madison, and Lake Placid). He is our godfather of racing and spread the tri fever into the family years ago. 

Michael's brother Kevin (#333) is going for his second Ironman finish, after completing Louisville in 2008. He is an incredible athlete -- regardless of a knee surgery (or six or seven). 

And Michael (#484), also his second Ironman (Lousiville '08). Always an athlete, he got the 'bug' when he lived in Hawaii. This boy's stamina and endurance is so inspiring to me! 

This is Michael and Kevin's second IM together but have been racing together and with Andy for years. They all signed up for this last fall and have been actively training for a year. They all did the Disney Marathon Goofy Challenge in January and the St Anthony olympic-distance triathlon in April. The boys have projected their race times, we have a spectator plan, and are expecting a good race from everyone!!

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RACE DAY! 

It's 5AM (PST) and the boys are geared up for the race and are prepping to leave for transition area/start line. There's talk of gear, the course, bowels, nutrition, the weather. It's currently 48-degrees, and will be the perfect race temperature once the sun comes up. Andy is the most excited; the brothers are more quiet. Here's praying for a safe and fun race. We will be heading down to the transition area soon ourselves and are hoping to be able to see them before the race starts.

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SWIM...

We make it down to the race start. The race begins on the beach of Lake Okanagan, and it's a mass swim start -- 2700 swimmers all start at the same time! IM Canada is known to be one of the widest swim starts as racers spread out all along the shore before heading into the water and on to the first buoy. We find a spot on the far left side. The beach and water are filled with athletes, all in black with yellow (men) and red (women) swim caps. It's so cool to see them all. The pros take off at 6:45, and we're still searching the crowd to find our 3 familiar athletes. All the swimmers who were warming up are called back to start lining up, and just when we thought we wouldn't get to see them....

Ta-da!!  Our racers are geared up, excited, and ready to. Then, they're off on a 2.4 mile swim!

We watch them until they are lost in the sea of swimmers. It is awesome to watch all of the athletes take off. The water looks like a bunch of fish or birds flapping at the surface, and the view is so beautiful with the wide lake and mountain surround.

Swim splits & transition 1 (T1) (viewable on IronmanLive.com):

Kevin - 01:07:11 & 8:13
Andy - 01:13:34 & 5:31
Michael - 01:39:29 & 5:54

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...BIKE...

We are renting a house that is right on the bike and run courses, so after seeing them off on the swim we packed up and headed back to the car. We made it home, pulled out the lawn chairs, and camped out in the drive as we waited for our bikers to come by. Kevin came through first, and it must have surprised us all as no one has a photo of him! I was actually inside putting Adam down and just missed him. I hope Jenny's Dad caught it on video. Then up was Andy, looking great and smiling, and Michael looked excited to see us, too. Everyone is looking awesome on mile 6... only 106 miles to go!

Latest update @ mile 42:

Andy - 2:04:33 / 20.23 mph

Kevin - 2:15:14 / 18.63 mph

Michael -  2:29:20 /16.88 mph

From this point on our racers will head into the steepest climb of the race at Richter Pass. Next update will be at the end of the bike.

Race reports are saying that the weather is deteriorating rapidly -- heavy wind and rain around mile 90, and the temperature is dropping. There are torrential downpours around mile 90, and the wind is picking up.

Final total bike / overall pace / T2:

Andy - 6:02:59 / 18:51 mph / 4:42

Kevin - 6:47:50 / 16.48 mph / 5:57

Michael - 7:14:03 / 15.48 mph / 8:02

Next update will be at the halfway point of the run (mile 13.1). 

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...RUN!

Good news is that the weather has improved. I don't know how bad the weather got for them on the bike ride. Here at the house it was gusty but didn't storm. It then blew through and was warm and sunny when we saw Andy come through. Andy passed by our mile 6 location and did a pit-stop in the bathroom at the house, kissed the family, and headed back out.

It started to sprinkle heavy drops by the time Kevin came through, but it didn't stop him from stopping to greet the family. 

Now the sun is back out so hopefully it will be great weather for the finish. Everyone so far looks great! Michael passes by and also pops in to our restroom -- convenient location for a bathroom! He chats to us briefly and says the bike crushed him, but the good news is, he's been exactly on his predicted times.

We see everyone pass back by the house. Andy stops to rest again with us. He says the bike was brutal with rain and a very strong headwind. He even had his front tire blow out while going 40 mph on a downhill! Tough day, but they did it!  Only 6 miles to go!!

Splits for the first half of the run (mile 13.1) & pace:

Andy - 1:52:12 (8:33/mile)

Kevin - 2:25:15 (11:05/mile)

Michael - 2:49:19 (12:55/mile)

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FINISH... IRONMEN!!

It's a huge party down at the finish line with hundreds of people, music, and announcers. Spectators have been there for hours waiting for their racer to come down the chute. Those along the front rails bang the banners on the fence in rhythm, making a loud cadence for the runners finishing. There is so much emotion here -- accomplishment, pride, heart, endurance. Volunteers hold up a finishing tape for every triathlete to break through as they cross the finish line, and announcers call out each racer individually as well.

Mom, Adam and I go down and are right along the rail when Michael comes down. He is PUMPED up! He is charging down the chute, pumping his arm, looking awesome. He came through almost 15 minutes before I expected to see him, and I had so much joy and pride for him! It was so very cool to see him in his moment.

CONGRATULATIONS, OUR QUADRUPLE & DOUBLE IRONMEN!!

You Can Watch the Finish Line LIVE at:

http://ironmanlive.com/audiovideo.php?race=canada&year=2010 

Overall run / OFFICIAL FINISH TIME!!

Andy -  4:12:41 / 11:39:14 (not a PR, but still sub 12 hours!)

Kevin - 5:08:21 / 13:17:32 (PR marathon & PR IM!)

Michael - 5:40:20 / 14:47:48 (last 5 miles of the run were his fastest!, PR IM!)

The race deadline is midnight, so in order to get an official finish, medal, and tshirt, runners must cross before midnight (the 17 hour mark). The party gets really wild as that deadline approaches, and as everyone hopes that after this long, trying day, they finish officially. By the time we get home we get to watch those last finishers come across on the live tv broadcast. The last man to come through had 15 seconds to spare, and the guy right after him didn't make in time. Heartbreaking!