Finally... three weeks later, a race report / some musings on my day out in Weymouth and my lovely cycle in the Dorset countryside...
So gentle readers, i believe we last saw our intrepid Lizzie Lou in the wave 4 holding pen about to walk along the beach to the start, and then at the sound of the klaxon stumble into the water battling huge waves, the 200 odd fellow athletes and the bonkers swell.
Honestly gang, it was brutal. Imagine perfect surfing/body boarding waves and then imagine swimming in it. You know what happens to your stomach when you drive over a hump back bridge? You kinda lose it? Well that's what kept happening to me as the waves were so huge the swim down really did take your stomach away. The swell was horrific. Felt really queasy (NB - some people were actually sick in the water - eeeuck). Let's just say i looked at my watch, it said i'd been in the water just over 5mins and i was seriously thinking of giving up. There may well have been a few tears too. All i could think of was it'll be over in an hour. You've flapped about in ridiculous sea conditions before and survived (although if you all remember the Olympic tri in July a lovely kyaker did pull me along for about 200m as i was constantly swimming but not going anywhere due to the stupid tides). But basically i knew that i could flap about for an hour and swim about 2km so i knew i could do this, i just had to keep going...
Sighting - the ability to get from A2B when open water swimming without also swimming the other 24letters of the alphabet. I knew i was doing a rectangle. Swim up to the big yellow buoy, swim horizontal to the shore to the next yellow buoy then straight down to shore to the big blue finished the swim arch. easy. Oh i forgot to say that when we watched the full IM doing their swim, loads of them were ending up by the rocks as they'd drifted too far left of the blue arch. It was all abit terrifying.
i thought i was doing a super job of sighting till i realised i was WAY left so had to swim back along the shore line past the rocks before i could swim straight down to the shore. Yay, 33mins later i was stumbling out of the water with a fixed grin on my face knowing that i had to walk back along the beach waving at the spectators and then do the whole bloody thing all over again. The swim marshals on the shore helpfully pointed out that i'd had some sighting issues (no sh*t sherlock) which i politely thanked them for.
I'm known for "loving" triathlons - which i do - but that walk along the beach to go back into the water was tough. BUT i'd done half of it so just woman up and get back into the stupid rough sea and get swimming.
Which i did.
I was super concious of sighting this time though and kept my eye on the yellow buoy as if my life depended on it. And then another helpful marshal, this time in a kyack pointed out that i was swimming towards the wrong yellow buoy. Oh crap. I re-looked and yes, there was the first yellow buoy off in the far left :(
With a cheery thank you smile and a wave i turned to my left and started swimming again. Lets just say i saw quite a few purple hats bobbing about in the middle of the swim course. Poor sods. So in the immortal words of dory... just keep swimming, just keep swimming, just keep swimming . Another marshal tried to tell me i was now swimming back hugely to the right of the blue arch but i just shouted tides and thanks and just kept swimming.
I could see the blue arch. I'd nearly finished the swim. OMG - i'd nearly finished the swim. i kept trying to see if i could put my feet down but couldn't. In fact the blue arch didn't seem now to be getting at all closer. I didn't panic. I just thought what would Paula Radcliffe do in this situation? She'd count to a hundred and then re-asses. So i did. Still couldn't put my feet down. Counted another 20. And then miracle of miracles my foot felt the bottom. I just kept swimming. Nearly done. Two burly boys were hauling swimmers out of the water. They didn't grab me in time as i was sucked back by a huge wave and then unceremoniously dumped back by the burly boys who hauled me out saying well done. I of course WHOOOOPED and kept whooping as i jogged up the carpet to the blue arch and the first timing mat. Lizzie Lou had completed the swim leg of the half ironman in 1:00.51 - the 628th swim leg finisher.
As i jogged along the carpet to transition thanking everyone and anyone (a huge thank-you to Ellie - a very friendly and encouraging face :) I just knew i'd be able to do this and it felt fabulous. There would be no more salty tears of terror or distress from yours truly today - any crying would be from the sheer happiness of participating in my first ever half ironman. YAY!!! time to grab my red bag and get into my cycling gear in the changing marquee.
14:06mins later i was on my bike.
I had to put on my glasses, drink water, blow my nose, try and get out of my wetsuit, try not to fall over, dry off, slap a load more vaseline all over, pull on cycling shorts, socks/shoes, gloves, helmet, cycling gillet and i decided to pop my cycling jersey on - i hate being cold and as Jan pointed out i could always take it off if i got too hot. I stuffed all my swim gear into the red bag, blew my nose again and then headed out of the marquee (do i need to pee? decided no) to get my bike and walk it to the mount line while waving at spectators and wishing my fellow competitors good luck.
I was off on the cycle leg - 90km / 56miles of beautiful Dorset countryside here i come.
And there was Ellie waving me off on the cycle! Talk about heading off on my long cycle with a smile on my face - i was LOVING this.
www.everyclick.com/halfanironman
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