Ironman Coeur d'Alene 2007 Race Report

First off, the best news: We raised over $175,600 for CMCS and CCS, giving us 2nd place in the Janus Charity Challenge Competition and $8,000 additional bonus for the schools. Praise the Lord!! First place went to a gentlemen who raised over $500,000 for a non-profit organization called Rotoplast that helps people in third world countries with plastic surgery for various birth defects.

Regarding the race, it went quite well - especially considering the rough conditions. Temperature was perfect - in the 40's in the morning, warming up into the 50's and 60's on the bike, and topping off in the 70's for the run. Perfect. However, the wind was pretty tough. In the morning, the waves were so choppy and the conditions on the lake so rough that they gave the option for athletes to skip the swim and turn the race into a duathlon if they wanted. Few athletes took the option, but about 100 didn't finish or start the swim. The wind was coming right into our faces, and we had 3-4' waves to deal with. It was the roughest swim I've ever done.

Also, here is one other note on the swim that really demonstrates the Ironman spirit and what the race is really about. About 200 yards into the swim, it was sheer chaos as usual. Over 2000 athletes all starting at once - it is pretty rough with just all the bodies together, not to mention the big waves swallowing all of us. They told us in the beginning that if we were struggling, we should take off our swim cap and wave it in the air and a kayaker will come and get you. Well, about 200 yards in, I saw a swimmer waving his cap in the air, in a rather panicked state. I noticed that two other swimmers had already stopped their race to help out, and felt I needed to as well. So I swam over to the struggling swimmer and the three of us held him up while we called for help. We kept shouting for a kayak, but they couldn't see us in the midst of all the bodies and waves. I spotted a kayak on the other side of the mass of swimmers and started swimming across the swimmers to get the kayak. About half way there, another kayaker spotted the swimmer. I swam back and we made sure the swimmer was taken care of before continuing on. We probably lost 4 minutes off our time, but I think it really shows what Ironman is all about. When any of us sees another competitor struggling, we put aside our own personal goals and do the right thing. What other sport can you say that about? I was so grateful for the two that were already helping the man and glad I could be part of it as well.

Considering the rough conditions and the time and energy lost to help the drowning swimmer, I was pleased with my swim time of 1:19, in 883rd place. I'm typically placed mid-pack on the swim, so this was my best ranking so far in the swim - in the top third - even though my time was slower than usual. Incidentally, I talked with several people afterwards and all said this was the toughest swim they've ever had. One guy I met said he typically swims this course in around an hour and it took him an extra 20 minutes in these conditions. Many of us got blown off course because it was tough to spot the buoys with all the waves.

On to the bike... The bike course was different than past years. Much hillier! It was my toughest bike course yet. Although Lake Placid (2006 Ironman) hills were higher than this course, they were much more gradual and had longer climbs folllowed by longer downhills. This course had unending rolling hills on the back 40 miles of each loop. Up and down all the time. Most of the climbs were less than half a mile, but some were a little longer. As soon as we'd get to the top, we'd go back down and there would be another hill to climb. I made the first lap of the bike in 2:50, but slowed on my second lap to 3:04, coming in in 5:54 total, around a 19 mph average. I was happy to break 6 hours on the 112 mile course considering the wind and the hills. I also managed to pick up a few places in the race, moving up from 883rd after the swim to 447th after the bike. I was pleased with the bike, although my legs and stomach were starting to feel it pretty good in the last 30 miles, especially as we headed back into town for the last 21 miles into the wind.

I transitioned from the bike to the run in under 3 minutes and was off. Surprisingly, I felt great on the run. Since I hadn't eaten anything for the last 30 miles on the bike, I started getting in some calories on the run, drinking a couple sips of cola at nearly every mile aid station. I ran the first half marathon in 1:40, and felt great. But by mile 17 I was hurting and knew I wouldn't hold the same pace for the rest of the race. I had developed blisters in both feet and my right show was soaked in blood by that time. I decided to slow my pace a bit and finish strong, as I did not want to have to walk any of the marathon. The strategy worked, as I kept running and ended up with a 3:40 marathon, picking up another 200 places in the race and finishing 240th overall out of 2200 athletes in 11:03:53. It was my best finish yet, so I was pleased, especially considering the conditions on the swim and bike. Perhaps if I wouldn't have stopped to help the drowning swimmer in the beginning I could have cracked 11 hours, but I think I did the right thing :-)

The best part of the race was my amazing fan support which included my wonderful wife, Heather, as well as both of our kids - Michael and Maddie! My mom and dad were also there, as was Tenae Zondervan, our kids' favorite babysitter who came along to help out. Also, Roger and Bud Bonnema rode their motorcycles out and even volunteered at an aid station on the bike! I was SO grateful to all of the fan support! Maddie even got to run with me through the finish line.

Thanks to everyone who supported the schools through this effort. We were so blessed by your generous donations to both schools. Your gifts will change lives by allowing many kids to receive a Christ-centered education.

Thanks again to everyone who supported us in prayer and supported the schools. As always, this race is about God and giving Him the glory. I am just happy that he allowed me the strength to finish this race strong, and am so blessed to be able to compete in these events. As my jersey states on the back in the picture, "To God be the Glory!".

Mike

Race results available at http://www.ironmancda.com I was number 667.

Here is a picture of Maddie running through the finish with me.