Ironman: Chapter 3

With Derek out of the water and on his bike the fun could start.  We headed out to the bike course to see him.  The bike course is 112 miles.  After going into town for 20 miles, the athletes start a 45 mile loop they do twice.  This has some massive climbs - one almost a mile long called lovingly The Wall.  We camped out at mile 66 and waited for Derek.  There he was - flying by, and smiling!  The wind continued throughout the bike, and though he expected to have a 6 hour bike, the wind slowed him down to 7 hours. 
  We were there at T2 when he got off his bike and onto the run.  He said as he transitioned he didn't know how he'd be able to pull off a marathon.  Physically spent and emotionally drained.  But he just started - one step at a time.  As he passed us he said, "Here goes the death march."  He tried to run a few times, but the cramping would begin, and he'd be back to walking.  Due to the tear, he couldn't put weight on his right leg. He walked a very quick 15 minute mile and kept clicking off the miles.  The run course was awesome for specators - it was an 8 mile loop they did 3 times.  And it would be down a street, back up the same street, over 2 blocks, and down and up again.  We could see him many times throughout the race.
   We also saw Brady and Doug - still running, still looking great.  Doug caught Derek on Doug's last loop, and Derek's second loop.  Doug walked with Derek and they were able to swap war stories of their day.

Derek in blue, Doug in white

 Then Doug was off to the finish line.  Derek kept plugging away.  He was getting closer and closer.  As the sun began to set Derek had to come to grips that he was going to finish in the dark.  That was never in the plans.  As we thought about his pace we knew he would have about an hour of wiggle room before the midnight cutoff, so we felt great as he kept on walking.
   After Doug had finished, he crossed the finish line, and kept on walking.  Back to the run course.  Back to Derek.  He started walking with him.  Again.  After doing his own Ironman.  140 miles isn't enough for some people!  He ended up going 8 miles with Derek.  148 miles in one day for him.  How Doug had it in him to do that I'll never know, but I'll always be grateful.  It was great to get the fatigue and pain off Derek's mind by talking to his friend.
   At 11:00 that night, Derek was minutes out from the finish.  The excitement of Team DK was palpable.  We could see him coming!  As he came down the chute we were simply beside ourselves.  We felt like we'd just completed the Ironman!  He summoned his courage to run the final bit, and finish looking amazing. He finished under the bright lights and we could see him get his medal on the jumbotron.  I videoed it on my phone and Derek's sister Angey is on it screaming, "They just medaled him!!".  We all felt like screaming, and crying, and sleeping.

  After finishing he headed to the massage tent to get some much need work done.  We gathered his gear, his bike, enjoyed the last few minutes of our Iroman experience. As a hobbled Derek walked the block to our truck, he kept saying, "How did Doug do that??"
  All in all about 500 athletes didn't end up finishing, due to that relentless wind.  That gave the race a 29% Did Not Finish rate- one of the highest in Ironman history.  The pro woman who won said she's done 44 Ironmans and never done one this hard.  In her interview at the finish line Mike Reilly asked her about her swim, she said "I thought I was going to end up on an episode of Lost".
  It's an emotional thing - to be done with something you've really put your heart and soul into.  It's humbling to have an amaing support team - wherever they were.  It's scary to have such a rough experience in the water, and then it's faith-promoting to be blessed enough to finish your day.  It wasn't the race Derek envisioned, by a long ways.  He thought he'd be around 12 hours, he was 16:03.  But Derek worked incredibly hard, reached his goal, and became an Ironman.  My absolute favorite part of watching an Ironman is the finish line when Mike Rielly, announces the finishers.  All day I heard him say, "Come on home, You Are an Ironman!".  All day I kept saying, "I just want him to say 'Derek, you are an Ironman".  Turns out we were all screaming way too loud to hear what he said.  But to Derek I say I couldn't be prouder - and you are an Ironman.

Ironman St. George finishers:  Brady, Doug, and Derek

looking a bit better the next morning

Ironmen and Ironmates:  Amy & Derek, Alison & Doug, Andrea & Brady

At home waiting for him.

  *This was an Ironman post, and anyone who made it to the end is an Ironman reader in my book!*