IRONMAN WESTERN AUSTRALIA
By Anthony Palmer

At the beginning of 2004 I decided to embark on the famous ‘Ironman Journey’. Having completed successfully three Busselton Half Ironman races I decided it was time to fulfil a personal dream and try to complete an Ironman race. My goal would be Ironman Western Australia. After completing a very solid 24 Week program, under the guidance of Andrew Budge, this is how my race day unfolded.

The Swim
As the start of the race approached I felt apprehensive at what laid ahead but calm and ready at the same time. I positioned myself behind the wave of professional athletes, took one last look at all of the other competitors and the amazing crowd, put my finger on my stopwatch and waited for my day to begin.

The gun sounded and I was off. In all honesty the start of the swim was very civilised. Unlike sprint races there was very little ‘crash and bash’ and virtually straight away I had my own space of water. The swell and chop did not bother me but like many people I probably swum extra metres as I struggled to cite the buoys, especially the red ‘hot dog’ buoy that they removed after the start of the race.

After completing one lap I was in a reasonable rhythm and was confident that I was on sub one hour pace. The only drama of the swim came 500 metres from the end. All of the sudden my right calf muscle cramped, probably due to the fact that my legs had been ‘floating’ for most of the swim due to the extra buoyancy from the wetsuit. After pointing and flexing my right foot for the next couple of hundred metres I was back in business and heading for the swim exit.

As I stood up from my 3.8 kilometre swim I immediately looked for the timing clock. I ran up the beach untroubled by my right leg and I could hear my family and friends cheering very enthusiastically - the type of cheering that you immediately sense that you are on track. As I ran under the first time check the clock read 55 minutes and 50 seconds. The day had begun very well.

The Bike
Upon exiting transition one it was like a Western Australian reunion. The names of ‘Howley, McSwain, Bernhard, Sammut, Weijers and Durham’ all sounded through the race commentary. As I began leg two of the race I knew that this section of the race was about keeping an even and controlled pace. In the back of my head I could hear some of Budgie’s words of wisdom; “Remember, a 180km cycle is almost equal to a 48km run. That’s a bloody big warm-up for a marathon!”

Lap one was great. Stayed out of the way of the packs, the nutrition plan was going according to plan and I felt like I was holding back. As I began lap two I rode past many of my family and friends, gave them the thumbs up and set out for a second time ahead of schedule.

As I rode on through lap two the pace and nutrition were still going very well. However, lap two was very memorable for a couple of reasons. At about the 90km mark I took my first toilet break on the bike ever. I stopped pedalling, free-wheeled, relaxed and let the water works run. That was not too bad I thought as I glanced down at my water bottle. Mental note – move the water bottle from its cage before relieving yourself! My next memorable experience came at the special needs station. Gave my number and collected my bag with no dramas. Once I had the bag though, this is where the fun began. Keen not to lose pace, opening a plastic shopping bag that had been double knotted and which contained three bidons and some food was quite the challenge. Eventually I had ‘restocked’ my bike and I was on my way to completing lap two still in very reasonable shape.

As I began lap three I noticed that the wind had started to pick up. Also, when I hit the back loop of the bike course I started to feel very flat and struggled to take in my gels. The race had truly started now! Still ahead of schedule I kept downing my fluids and even snuck in a small coke or two at the last two aid stations. By the time I hit town for the third time I was very glad to be off the bike. As I entered transition two the clock read 6 hours 5 minutes and 35 seconds. Again I heard those familiar cheers that everything was going great. My pre-race goal was to be out on the run in 6 hours and 15 minutes so after a trouble free transition I had about seven minutes up my sleeve. The question was, “Had I gone too hard?”

The Run
After receiving a surge of energy from the crowd through and out of transition two I settled into a comfortable pace. It was at this point that I realised two things. Firstly, a run under 3 hours 30 minutes would be my goal as I had probably cooked myself on the bike a tiny bit. Secondly, coke, water and salt tablets would be my nutrition plan for the next 42 kilometres as the thought of stomaching anything else was not appealing at all.

Lap one was fantastic. I thought I had gone out conservatively enough but my split was 1 hour 6 minutes. The eyes widened as the possibility of an extraordinary day might be possible. My goal for the race was sub 10 hours. Anything under would be ‘icing on the cake’.

By the time I reached the halfway point of the marathon I was hit with a reality check. My pace had dropped significantly and I then realised that in an Ironman race big time gains or losses, in my case losses, could be made in the second half of the marathon. As the evergreen Dave Boyes passed me and told me to keep downing the coke, it was time to dig deep, very deep.

The next fifteen to seventeen kilometres were all about focusing on keeping hydrated and trying to hold a consistent pace. I knew my sub 3 hours 30 minutes marathon was not going to happen but the losses in time were not huge. I was still ahead of schedule.

While running the last five kilometres, I had managed to pick my pace back up to five minute kilometres and avoid two hamstring cramps by stopping briefly, twice, for a quick stretch. As I approached the finish chute the adrenalin kicked in. Just before the chute I ran past the City Tri Club crew who crowded the road with support and high fives.

I was about to become an Ironman.

The Finish Chute
I had been over the finish chute in my head a million times before the race. Now this time was for real. As I write this it all seems so surreal. I went for the no glasses option, turned to my left and entered the chute. The smile on my face must have been enormous. The crowd was pumped and suddenly running became effortless. As I ran down the chute I spotted my family and friends and gave them all high fives. When I got to the end of the line I realised that my wife was not there but was standing up ahead just inside the finish chute near the walk way. I gave my biggest supporter a kiss and then ran the last few metres of my ‘Ironman Journey’. As I leapt across the finishing line, with both arms raised, in a time of 9 hours 46 minutes and 47 seconds I became an Ironman. I had lived my dream!

Anything Is Possible!

My ‘Ironteam’
Like Jason Shortis said, Ironman is not an individual sport. It takes a whole team of people to get you to and through an Ironman race. I would like to thank the following people for helping me become an Ironman; my wife Sandra who is my number one supporter, all my family and friends, especially those who made the trip to Busselton, my coach Andrew Budge who prepared me so well for this race, my training partners, especially Al and Marcel, Ian at Stirling Cycles, City Tri Club, Mike Sibbald who is a work colleague but was my personal photographer for the day, my workplace community at I.J.’s, all of the organisers, supporters and volunteers, and the W.A. Triathlon Community.

Is Ironman Worth It……….YES!!! Live Your Dream. Become an Ironman!