(Photos courtesy of Tey, Lynn, Shazly, Michelle, Carmen and Shilpa - thanks guys, I can't begin to tell you how much these photos are appreciated by everyone, they really make the races special when you can look back at such high quality photos).
RACE REPORTIt's on, it's off, it's on honest, no one believes you, it's on, it's on, it's on. I have to say that I only started to believe that it was on when I heard rumours that the entry fee might be free at the last minute to boost the numbers (it didn't turn out to be free but at least it was on).
With the lack of confidence that the race would be on I relegated it to a "C minus" race in terms of importance and commitment for the season, i.e. it was a training day with no taper leading up to it. In fact I did ease off my training in a couple of days leading up to the race and instead of a 20hr training week I settled for a 16hr week - I did want to actually finish the race after all.
Race Morning
I woke up at 4:30, a bit keen for an 8am start but I wanted to be relaxed about it and didn't want to be rushing around (for once). Did the usual 4 strong coffees, 4 "sit downs" (very important prep), a Powerbar for breakfast (I like to eat light on race mornings especially if I feel I've still got food to be digested from the day before).
Living less than 20k from the race sight is a pretty cool experience, especially as a little stretch of the bike course was also on one of my main training routes. I was one of the first to get there and was numbered up and ready to go well before 7am.
I was very keen to listen to the briefing (the third one apparently, there was one on Friday, one on Saturday and there was going to be one this morning). The bike course was going to be tricky and there were going to be a lot of people screwing it up - that was my prediction and I didn't want to be one of those people.
The problem was that there was a loop within a loop and it needed some serious explanation AND understanding. The route
WAS NOT CLEAR to me from the map so
IT WAS CLEAR TO ME that I needed to listen carefully. Unfortunately I reckon at least a third and possibly up to half the competitors didn't listen carefully enough and/or didn't read the clearly laid out sign on the course giving directions.
It sounds like I'm laying blame on the competitors that went the wrong way - yes to a degree but let's clear here
IT WAS A VERY VERY STUPID COURSE. The organisers are the same as Langkawi Ironman and I predicted last year that there would be people doing too few and too many loops in IMMY. Sadly I was right.
When the body gets tired so does the mind, when the mind is starved of oxygen and fuel it doesn't compute complicated course routes too well - I had hoped the organisers had learned their lesson (I heard a rumour today that the IMMY course will be the 2008 route again [not a bad course] but time will tell). If the course needs to be a few K long or a few K short then so be it but don't give competitors puzzles to solve on route.
I also heard that one team got a DNF solely due to a technical error with the timing chips. Timing chips are awesome and great kudos to the organisers of any race for having them, but if you ain't gonna take a manual check as backup then please don't make a big inky number mess of our arms and legs, scratch our bikes with plastic numbers and gunk our helmets up with number stickers that never come off, not to mention numbers flapping around our waists.
So to the race, I only managed a few minutes swim warm up before I was told to get out of the water; which on reflection was probably the main reason my swim was so slow (no one's fault, I needed to hear the briefing, it was just an unfortunate timing thing). I was in the third wave to go and soon enough we were off.
The SwimI can't write too many exciting things about swimming so I shan't bore you. My last race, Alpe d'Huez, was a swimming disaster and that preyed on my mind a little so together with the lack of proper warm up the first half was not great, struggling to breath properly etc. On the way back it was a lot better and I started to push the pace and limit the damage.
Swim time 37:57
T1Transition was simple, number, helmet, go. Quick and simple, shoes already on the bike, nutrition also.
The BikeAs soon as I started I could feel the weeks of training and lack of taper in my heavy legs. To be expected but an unusual feeling at the start of a race. I'm pretty strong on the bike and I knew the training would carry me through. It took the first lap of three to stop noticing the fatigue but at 47mins (lap 1 of 3) I was happy.
I overtook a guy in my age-group on the second lap that I'd already overtaken on the first!!! I overtook him again on the third lap!!!! Strange considering no one overtook me all day - clearly a guy that didn't go round the inner loop. Oh well I thought, he'll either be DSQ'd, or not, so just to be sure I'd better stay ahead of him on the run. My second lap was 46 minutes and the last lap 50mins.
By the second lap the wind had been getting quite feisty and by the third lap the long long long drag of a hill really didn't look like it would end. One incredibly important saving grace though was the temperature, according to my bike computer it didn't get over 31 degrees on the bike which is unheard of in Malaysia - I was very happy about that.
I have to say I loved the bike, I stayed focused and was in the "Zone" from start to finish. Just a thought for the organisers though, I appreciate that you guys have a great sense of humour but having the drink station at the bottom of a hill was a tad silly don't you think? I cruised through at about 55kph the first time and left a trail of dropped bottles. Yes I did slow down on subsequent laps but there were so many perfect places to have the station - WHY PUT IT THERE?
Bike time 2:25:19
T2I came into transition and one of the Aussie race directors commented that I made easy work of the bike course. That was really cool to hear and gave me a real boost. There were not to many bikes racked up but ominously there was number "206" (I think) which must have been in my age-group. Work to do!
The RunI swallowed a gel and set off at a good strong pace but remembering my last half Ironman (Desaru some years ago) and having to walk within the first kilometre I kept in mind that I had a half marathon to run. Things were going well and I got over the bridge heading towards Presint 2. I love this course, other than the bridge it's pancake flat. I was cracking out a really good pace, the temperature was comparatively cool and I was back in the "Zone" (Although you might not think so when you see the next picture - "Zone of Pain" more like). Suddenly I realised that I'd reached the turnaround and was a quarter of the way through.
Coming back I saw Aaron, not in my age-group but a great training buddy who loves to lay down the hurt. I beat him last year in Powerman by one place and he beat me in Phuket by one place. So I had a rabbit to catch in front, "206" and a wolf chasing me down from behind. Slowly I started winding up the pace.
I got to the half way point and took another gel. An interesting decision because clearly I needed it but unfortunately I spent the rest of the race throwing up a frothy mixture of gel and water. Must have looked a bit like the Exorcist.
Up and around, over the bridge and now time to turn up the afterburners again to notch up the speed a bit more. I was feeling really strong and not breathing heavily which was a good sign. Then I saw him, Mr "206", WALKING BACKWARDS and appearing to be looking for someone or waiting for someone - very strange! He looked in very useful shape but maybe in my tired state I'd got the numbers wrong - ah what the hell, keep going, every time I see someone in front of me try to catch them and then pass them - simple and effective strategy and it didn't take too much mental effort to work it out.
I hit the turnaround and in what didn't seem like more than 90 seconds I came across Aaron, a few words of encouragement to each other and then the last big push for home. He was maybe 3 minutes behind me, he was capable of making that up in 5k so once again I tried to pick up the pace a bit more.
Run time 1:34:37
Before I knew it the finish line was there
4 hours 40 minutes 51 seconds, almost a hour better than my previous half Ironman PB and 27 minutes ahead of the second placed guy. I was pretty sure I was on the podium, and quietly confident I was first or second but having been a bridesmaid so many times I wasn't going to get too excited. As it happened I won my age-group and was 4th non-pro overall. I can't tell you how chuffed I was. I'd qualified for the worlds in Clearwater too.
BUT! and here's the big
but, a few actually. It was too easy, and by that I don't mean to be arrogant but there wasn't a lot of competition (probably due to the postponement of the race), I qualified as I did at Xterra earlier in the year, but I think to go to the worlds you've really got to feel that you've had to fight for it tooth and nail, you've got to earn it. That's my take on it anyway, I hope I'm not offending anyone, I certainly don't mean to take anything away from anyone else or undervalue their achievements, I'm simply talking about what I feel inside, about me.
The second BUT, is that let's face it, a half Ironman doesn't have the same romance as an Ironman (same as a Half Marathon compared to a Marathon), both races are great achievements but the full distance event take a damn sight more than twice as much out of you physically and mentally.
The third But, is that Clearwater just ain't Hawaii - period.
A final anecdote, on finishing I received my finisher's "tent" (a rather large T-shirt). I asked if I could change it for a medium. The IDIOT of a man said no they'd all finished.
"But I was one of the first finishers, they can't be all gone yet!" I said.
"If everyone wanted to change their shirts where do you think we'd be?" he retorted.
"You mean if everyone wanted a finisher's shirt that actually fitted them" I said with an air of irony "And anyway I put medium on the entry form"
[This is a classic] "That was for your entry T-shirt, this T-shirt is a free giveaway, it's not one you can change" said the rather flustered bureaucrat who was rushed off his feet having to pick up a T-shirt and hand it to his helpers at a rate of one every 3 or 4 minutes!!!!!
[He was referring to the shirt you earn for this gruelling race but only provided you finish, having already paid a huge entry fee for - what a tosser]I wasn't moving and his argument was embarrassing everyone around him, sure enough he dug out a medium and tossed it at me. I politely thanked everyone; then I thought for one split second whether I could ask for a blue one instead of the red he gave me but thought better of it.
A few shout outs: -
Jens 1st 30-34 - Blistering speed (5th overall including the Pros)
Aaron 2nd 30-34 - Your turn in Powerman dude
Cort 2nd 35-39 - 3hr38, tough age-group (3rd non-Pro)
Sofian 3rd 50-54 - Historical podium finish and the biggest smile of the day
Sam 1st 55-59 - Jet lagged, in cruise control, and still crushed the opposition
Emma 1st 35-39 - Swam triangular course 2.2k but still won by miles (1st non-Pro)
Don 1st overall in the inaugural "90.3 Half Ironman and a bit" - he kindly did 4 laps on the bike to take the pressure off the rest of us.
Shilpa for coming to support me at the race and constantly in my training
Sid and Seb for their unconditional support - they say they only do it for the free Milo and ice-cream but I know better.
A final note: - It's very easy to criticize and point out what was wrong with a race but the good stuff usually outweighs the bad and is quite often forgotten. All in all, this was a great race, on the whole good organisation, a fabulous location [Take note - MORE RACES HERE PLEASE], great food (for a change), almost without exception (let's forget the T-Shirt man) wonderfully friendly and helpful organisers, marshalls and volunteers. Marks out of ten? "Six", but the potential is huge and I dearly hope that the race is here in 2010 AND that the organisers listen to the competitors, learn from their mistakes and give us a race to remember next year for only the right reasons.
Carmen and I got up on time this morning and we were walking towards the swim practice area by 7am. There were lots of people already in the water since sunrise in Kona is around 6am. We dropped our stuff at the Gatorade tent as usual and tip-toed across the road careful not to trip over the construction of the finishing chute. 
As we entered the water, Carmen recognized a girl from Singapore also called Leong Shawn who races in Malaysia. She had just finished her swim to the coffee-bar boat and back. Carmen reckons she is a weak swimmer and she will suffer if today’s sea conditions are similar tomorrow. 
The chop had disappeared from yesterday but this was replaced by a significant swell which will not be good for those that suffer from motion sickness. What was more important, Carmen felt more comfortable in the water today and she seems less freaked-out about the swim. As we hung around at the beach after our short swim, we saw Alex Bok about to go for a swim. I had an image of this pale and unfit mat saleh that would find it difficult to swim in the sea conditions. How wrong I was. Hats off to Alex, he took off like a seasoned cross-Channel swimmer and that was the last we saw of him. I presume he turned back at some point ….. otherwise he’s headed for Los Angels some 5000 miles away! 
After a late breakfast, we started to get the bike and the race bags prepared which did not take too long. Bike check-in started at 2.30pm for Carmen’s race number and we got there early so that we could get back for an early dinner. 
However, we found that hanging around the bike check-in was a good opportunity to see some spectacular bikes and to see some of the pros. We were lucky to catch Faris Al Sultan, Michaele Jones, Bella Bayliss and husband Stephen and Chrissie Wellington. 
And full marks to Chrissie. I shouted at her to stop and pose for the folks back in Malaysia and of course…she did! Nothing seems to be too much trouble for her; she is truly a great ambassador for the sport. 
