Epic Fail!

Well, as the title says....I am not an Iron Man :-(

Why, I had to pull out due to mechanical failure at about the 120km on the bike! Jesus, of all the things that were out of my control....mechanical was pretty much the only thing that would stop me after the weather was fine (hot but fine). At the 84km mark on the bike, I changed my gear from the large chain ring to the small one, and during that process the deraillier got entangled in my spokes and snapped off, leaving me stranded! I waited for the Shimano team guys to come for about an hour, they then made my bike a 'single' gear bike, which was fine because it meant I was still going, albeit now on plan C - just finish! Well, 5kms down the road, the cassette at the  back was pretty much stripped of its threads, so as soon as  applied pressure on the peddles, the cogs spun, but the wheel did not. So, I ran / walked about 6kms back to Lake Cathie (23km out of town I think) and waited again for the Shimano guys to come. 30mins later, they swapped my wheel out for a spare they had, I was still running a 'single speed', but I was on the move again, now over 2 hours since it first broke :-(. Still, I headed back to town, on my very expensive single speed bike, into a head wind, thinking, at least I will still be an Iron Man in 14odd hours at most. I just needed to go for 100km! I got back into Town, and the peddles essentially seized! My day was done! I walked / rolled back to where I thought I would find my family, and had to officially pull out. I nearly shed tears when I explained to them what the problem was. Its so hard telling them you have DNF'd when they have all made such huge sacrifices to be up here to support me. Everyone has sacrificed resources to make this happen for me, and I failed! Jeez its a hard and bitter pill to swallow, and unfortunately, its stuck in my throat! So, no 25th Iron Man medal, or towel, or finishers shirt for me, and 12months of preparation for a DNF!

So, thats the bad news. The good news. Iron Man is awesome! The whole build up to in from Thursday, seeing all the athletes milling around, preparing, discussing and just for the most part being great people. (believe me there are wankers there big time). Checking the bike in, being a part of the breifing, checking in on the morning is fun. Seeing all the competitors checking equipment etc was sensational. I was so nervous, and seeing my family at the swim start was great.

The start.....is unbelievable. Helicopters overhead, the national anthem, the cannon going off and us going for it...over 1500 swimmers! Unbelievable! I came out of the water in 49mins, apparently 7th in my age group, and 30th overall or something, which I am pretty chft with. I swam within myself as I was swimming with a group tucked in behind their feet to make it easier. With about 800m to go, i swam around them as they were slowing substantially, but I was very comfortable. I grabbed the wrong bike bag on my way to the tent, so had probably the slowest transition of the day, but I was having a hoot. I was onto the bike, and did the first 60km lap in about 1.44 (I think) which was a little faster than I thought I would be, but I was in control of my Hear Rate and very comfortable. There was heaps of guys flying past me on the first lap, but interesting enough I was starting to reel a few of them in on the second before disaster struck :-(. The rest is history.

The other guys....sensational efforts all round! I am so pleased for them to have finished in what became tough conditions out there. Hot and windy! Jase, Andrew, Matt, Tim and Jeff, supremem efforts guys, you should be proud of yourselves!

So, I have unfinished business now.....I am not an Iron Man, and unfortunately have to wait probably at the least 8months to try again, more like 12.Maybe Busso in WA, or I am thinking about Taupo in NZ in 2011. Regardless, that additional time on the bike in training will only prepare me better, and maybe, just maybe my bike will be repaired and running.....lets hope they replace the gear for free as a 1month old bike should not do that!!

Thanks to everyone who has read this blog over the past year, and for all the messages of support during that time, this essentially is the last blog. I am sorry it could not have been better news, and more exciting, but thats Iron Man, its a long day, and you cannot plan for everything...she dealt me a bad hand this time, but I aint defeated just yet.....

Over and out (one very devastated Iron Man wannabe!!)