Hiroyuki Suzuki visiting Florida for the world Championship 70.3

Back in 2007, Hiroyuki Suzuki (30), a young triathlete from Japan had qualified for the Foster Grant World Championship 70.3 where he performed an impressive race and covered the entire distance in just 4h46 – his best ever time on a half ironman distance.

Last September 2009, during the Singapore half ironman, Hiro did it again and managed to get himself a ticket for Clearwater in Florida for 2009’s World Championship. He was kind enough to share with us his experience over there.

It took me 2 years to come back again here at Clearwater. It was in 2007 last time I came to Florida. At that time, I did not have much experience on how to train and was just relying on will power and the desire to achieve something. This time was a little very different – I had focused on the race and had a proper training plan to prepare for it.

This year though, I had to work on the 11th so unfortunately, I could only take the plane on the 12th to arrive on the same day at midnight. The race was taking place on the 14th. Of course, as you can imagine, I was so tired so after taking care of my race registration, I ate some of the soba I brought back from Japan and went to bed to get some rest.

On the 13th, I woke up around 4am (1 day before the race). I went outside the hotel for the sunrise, set up my bike, went for a spin for 30minutes and went for a “quick” swim practice (It was very cold that I stopped after just 10 minutes). Okay… I was the only one swimming without a wet suit. The rest of the day was pretty uninteresting  as I had nothing much to do after I was done with the bike check-in. I was bored, sleepy and suffering from a headache. I stayed at the my hotel room trying to relax, massage my legs and kill time. For diner, I had again some soba :-). I had a hard time falling asleep as I have too many naps during the day and ended up sleeping only a couple of hours before the race.

I woke up again at 4am on the race day, ate 2 bananas and guess what else…? Yes … some soba :-), and left the hotel for the body marking.

The hotel I stayed at this time was very convenient as it was right next to the race starting point. After pumping up my tires, I could bring back my bump with some other gears and kept warm in my room.

SWIM = 1.9km:

The course that was originally planned was to start from Mexico Bay but unfortunately, it was changed due to the wavy ocean. I would have preferred the old course but…  anyways.

The start was given in a time trial style (one race after the other) and we were not allowed to warm up before hand. I was hard to get straight into the race.  I was very cold for the first few hundred meters but after a few minutes got warm pretty quickly. Blinded by the sun facing us, I found it hard to swim straight and stick with the course. My time was okay anyway and I finished the 1.9km swim in 29minutes.

Swim: 1.9km => 29min

BIKE = 90km:

My goal was to keep my cadence from 90 to 100 per minute from the beginning to the end. I did not push too much to keep some energy for the run. I was feeling good but for some reason did not get the impression I was going fast enough as 400 people past me (this is the world championship after all I guess and there are a lot of strong people out there). The last 10km, my legs were getting stiff and I felt I was not far from getting a cramp. I had to take a few salt tablets which helped me a lot. Once again, I did learn a lot from this race and found new ways to improve myself for next time. It’s amazing how much you can learn from each event!

This race was a flat and very fast course so I decided to use my full disk wheel. I was hoping to gain more speed but did not manage to get the sensation I was looking for – I still felt heavy. I thought afterward I may should have brought a lighter wheel. More than just the equipment, I was too low especially comparing to the other strong competitors

Bike: 90km => 2:31min:15sec

RUN =21km:

My start was okay but I did not have much power to pass people back after they passed me. I was thinking so many time my speed was okay and that I should stick to my pace and not worry about the others. My left thigh and left carve were really stiff and cramping up.

Along the course, I saw Mr. Tomoya who I met in Singapore last September (He’s living over there). His level is very high so seeing him on the course boosted my mental and made me more hungry to not lose against him. Then, I took some Coca Cola drinks at the aid station. Yes it’s true it’s great way to recover quickly, but, my stomach got upset from it 5km before the end and had to walk a little bit. I pushed as much as I could to finally cross the finish line after 1:39min17sec.

Run:21km => 1:39min17sec

Total time: 4h48m2s

I just regret I could not have more power in the end. If I did, I may have beat my last time 2 years ago. My mental was not stable enough along the race – I will make sure to train harder next time so that I will not have this problem again.

Next year, when I race, I should set my mind to push hard as if it was my last race. Craig Alexander himself, who I had the chance to meet, gave me a few tips that I will try to implement for my upcoming events.

For 2010, I m planning to go to California and Hawaii 70.3. Both races have a high level but they both offer some slots to qualify for the Ironman World Championship in Kona (Big Island) so I will try to get my chances there.

I will try to also participate in an event in Europe. I have never been there so would really like to experience racing there. Plus, because I am light, I am usually better for hilly course instead of flat. For this reason, I think a European race with a mountain course might be more adequate for me. I look forward to participate in one as I know they have so many strong athletes over there.

Don’t you think it’s a lot for someone who is married and working full time in Japan?!

I don’t know if I can do it all or if I can take holidays. The number of holidays should be okay but we never know with Japanese companies right…? Let’s not even mention about the money factor as well … We will see

I registered already 3 races anyway for next year – I like to think that if I am registered, I will have to find a way to make it happen.

See you next time

Hiroyuki Suzuki

To access Hiroyuki’s report in Japanese, click on the link below:
http://ironman-lifesaver.seesaa.net/article/133454744.html

Hawaii Kona: Ironman World Championship (October 2009)

Ironman U.K. – August 2nd 2009 – Race Report From Sumie Kawakami

“I’ve done many Ironman races before,” I kept telling myself, but that didn’t make me feel any better. Experience does tell you how much you need to train beforehand, and how hard it is to finish another one. But, an Ironman race will never get any easier, no matter how many times you do it. I knew this from my experience.

The Ironman U.K. 2009 took place in Bolton, Manchester — a beautiful northwestern English town, surrounded by the hilly landscape of woods, meadows, and moors. We were in the heart of Emily Jane Bronte’s Wuthering Heights. (Well, some people may argue about this, but the landscape did remind me of the novel).

But, this was the first time that the city of Bolton hosted the event, and there were a lot of uncertainties. At the official race briefing, the event organizer told us that some people in the city weren’t very happy about the city’s plan to host the event, so some may attempt to move road signs or lead athletes to wrong ways (I’d never dreamt of such a thing as sabotage at such an honest event as an Ironman). There had been some confusions about courses and the way the race was organized. The courses were changed several times and there weren’t proper maps of the courses or of the transition area. Also, the weather was unfavorable. The city had been hit by heavy rain prior to the race, so the entire transition area was covered with mud making it difficult for us to walk around. The rain also lowered the water temperature — the Ironman U.K. website says the average water temperature is about 60 degrees Fahrenheit or 15.6 degrees Celsius, but we don’t know for sure because there was no official announcement.

I don’t want to sound too critical of the event organizer. All staff and volunteers were very kind and attentive. I appreciated their sincere efforts very much. I am just stating that my pre-race anxiety was reaching to an unprecedented level, due to these uncertainties and confusions.

August 2nd:
We woke up at 2:30 AM, finished our pre-race meal by 3:00 AM, and left the inn by 3:45 AM, so we get to the shuttle bus stop by 4:00 AM.

(Swim: Rivington Reservoir)
The transition was pitch dark when we got there. And, it is always the coldest before dawn. We covered our feet with socks and plastic bags to keep them warm until the start and to keep them free of mud. Fortunately, it was going to be sunny/cloudy.

The swim start area was narrow, so it took a while until everybody reached the water. The start was delayed by 6 or 7 minutes. I was one of the last persons to get into the water (just to keep myself dry and warm until the last minute). Luckily, the water felt a lot warmer than the previous days. I wore my long-sleeve wet suit for the first time, which really helped.

It was a straight line course of two laps. Really, this was the coldest water I ever swam in and being weak on swimming, I was not sure I could survive the swim. I told myself that I would make a brave decision of quiting any time if I felt uncomfortable. I started with breast-stokes and moved very slowly, and after a while, to my surprise, I found myself getting used to the temperature! I was almost laughing when I finished the first lap. Yes, anything is possible, after all!

But, the blissful feeling was gradually wearing out as I went on. I no longer felt cold, but my arms and hands went numb. I was moving my arms like a robot repeating the same task over and over, in my desperate attempt to keep myself going. I was so happy to have made it back! I did my PB in the swim section in Niijima Triathlon this season, so I was hoping to do better in the swim, but my swim time was 1:40, which was 10 minutes slower than last year (I didn’t see any clock so I didn’t know about my time until later).

(Bike: 3 laps)

We had to climb up a 200 meter concrete hill to reach the transition area. I was shivering so hard that I had a hard time changing my cloth. I grabbed a chair and sat for a while until I felt better. The transition was muddy and by the time I reached the bike course, my bike shoes were soaked in mud. I had to stop several time so shake the mud off my shoes, so I could click the cleats into the pedals.

The bike course was three laps. We rode through woods, moors and meadows. The landscape was totally wonderful!

The course map told us that there is only one major hill. The highest point was about 335 meters, but the reservoir was already 120 meters, so the 3-km climb was supposed to be only 115 meters. The climb starts immediately after the start. It goes through woods and meadows, and the first time around , I felt totally OK. Of course, what I thought was an easy piece of cake initially became a hell as I climbed for the second and the third time.

I occasionally spotted some sheep, cows, and horses, and enjoyed the scenery very much. The first half of the course was windy and cold, and the rest of the course was hot. It was interesting to feel how the weather changes in accordance with geography.

The bike course was filled with rolling hills. Hills are not very steep, but the constance ups and downs wore me out. But, what really bothered me was not the course but a lack of bathrooms. My stomach began to run after the first lap, perhaps because of being in the cold water so long during the swim section (People say slower swimmers suffer the more from cold waters). I had to stop at the aid stations, but every aid station I stopped, there was a lineup of people. As I resumed riding, I passed a few riders, but then again, I had to line up for a cue. I had always been boasting how strong my stomach was and how I was able to consume foods during my bike, but I guess I cannot be lucky all the time.

I was so worn out when I reached the transition. I looked at my watch for the first time, and it was already 3:45 PM. I tried to do a mental calculation to make sense of the time. Was it 9 hours or 10 hours since the start? Does this mean that I rode more than 8 hours? When was the cut off time anyway? But, I was just too tired (or too dumb?) to do the simple calculation. I decided not to care. The important thing was that I survived the bike section and all I had to do now was to run the 42.129 km.

(Run: one and half laps into the town center)
At the transition, I met Numata-san, the only one Japanese female other than me participating the event, who also said the bike section was hard. I also met Mary, from the United States, who was staying at the same inn. We congratulated each other for surviving the tough course, and hurried to the run course.

It was a little before 4:00 PM, but the sun was still high. The course was again kind of hilly (not very steep, but constant ups and downs). The most scary thing of all was the absence of the kilometer marks. Throughout the 42 km, there was not even a single kilometer mark. We knew it was one and a half laps( going into downtown, coming back once, and finishing at downtown); we knew that the course was almost straight except for two detours, but other than that, we were not sure of where we were and how much longer we had to go.

I trained very hard in running, and I wanted to go faster than last year. But I figured that I should save my energy instead of push myself for a PB in the run section. Firstly, I was already too slow by the end of the Bike section to do my Ironman PB, and doing the PB in the running section would not make up for it.

That turned out to be a good strategy. After first one hour, my stomach began hurting and I was even sure if I could finish the race. I was worried about going out of energy, so I took a power gel to compensate for my bowel movements, but to my surprise, I suddenly felt so sick that I threw up (Luckily, I managed to make it to the bathroom, to avoid a public embarrassment). This was the first time it had ever happened to me during a race and it scared me a bit).

At this point, I did think about quitting. In fact, I was thinking of every reason I should quit. Well, the water was too cold, the bike course was too hard, my stomach is running, and I even threw up. Give me more reasons why I should not quit??? Then, I thought about the faces of friends, teammates, and colleagues who supported me during my training. This year, I’m doing a fund raising for an charity organization. So, I did think about all those who pledged donations in support for me. I told myself, well, they will forgive me… Now, I could quit now…

Well, to be totally honest with you, this phase of finding reasons to quit does not happen to me all the time, but happens occasionally during Ironman or marathon races. I admit I am a weakling! But, luckily, I brought anti-acid pills and pain-killer with me when I left the transition. And, that helped me immensely. The medicine began to kick off after 30 minutes.

After I passed the last turning point, people told me I have 9 more miles to go (without a kilometer sign, we could not be 100 percent sure, but I figured it was about right). By then, I felt totally OK and I knew for the first time that I WILL survive for the rest of the race (Amazing how the body can recover so quickly). Part of me was ashamed of being so slow (by this point, I knew that I would not even make even 14 hours, or even 14 hours and a half. This would be the slowest Ironman I ever this). But, part of me said I should be proud of myself no matter how miserable I looked. I told myself to accept myself as who I am. Let’s face it I am an ordinary athlete, who could barely make an Ironman, but at least I am doing it. I decided to smile, instead. I smiled and cheered every fellow runner as he or she passed by, just as people on the streets cheered for me. Some of them smiled back, some were in too much pain that they didn’t even seem to notice. It didn’t matter.

The hardest part of the run course was Queens Park, where the course goes up and down inside the course. We had to do this twice. The park was beautiful, but the idea of going around and around itself was tiring. I walked the last few uphills in the park. We were told at the end of the park that we only had three more kilometers to go.

The rest of the three (which felt more like two kilometers) was the most wonderful moment of all. I almost cried when I saw the finish gate and a crowd of people cheering from both sides. It was the toughest, muddiest, and coldest Ironman I ever did, but I thought of all the people who supported and cheered for me as I crossed the finish-line. I clocked 14 hours, 40 minutes and 42 seconds. Happily.

Thank you everybody, for your support and encouragement. Special thanks to Peter, who had to wait for me at the finish-line for four or five hours!!! I guess waiting for somebody at the finish is harder than doing an Ironman yourself, since you never know whether the person is really coming or not.