My Brother COMPLETED the Hawaiian Ironman Race!

For those of you who have been following my blog for the past week, you know that I’m in Hawaii to watch my brother Dustin compete in the Hawaiian Ironman race. Well, yesterday after a grueling 10 1/2 hours in the heat, sun and wind, he finished it – Yeah!!!!  Read on for more details and videos. (pic is of Dustin with his dad right after the race)

Dustin headed out to the race at 4:45 am for a 7 am swim start. His dad, myself and a couple of his friends were there to watch the gun go off at 6:30 am to signal the start of the race for the pros, followed by the amatuer at 7 am. All I can say is that I’m glad I wasn’t in the water! It was a mass start in a very small area. The field of ~ 1600 amatuer athletes had to get in the water at the same time. The water was deep so they had to tread water for 15 minutes practically on top of each other waiting for the gun to go off.  I can’t even imagine what it was like to be in such close quarters with other swimmers treading water  – not even to mention having to swim 2.25 miles after that!

For the next 9 hours, we staked out various parts of the race course to get a glimpse of Dustin and to cheer the other athletes on. We were exhausted just standing there in the heat and sun. It is mind boggling that these athletes were able to perform in these conditions.

Here is some info and comments on the race:
Swim (2.4 miles) Dustin completed it in 1 hr 15 min

Dustin’s comments: Swim was incredibly tough. We had to tread water for 20 minutes prior to the start and the water felt very cold. It was a very small swim entrance area for a large field of athletes. Once the race started, people were swimming all over each other. I ended up swallowing a lot of water, which made me feel sick for the next few hours. It was the hardest swim I have ever done  – and the most difficult part of the race.

Bike (112 miles): Dustin completed it in 5 hr 49 min and averaged 19.24 mph.
Run (26.4 miles) : Dustin completed it in 3 hr 21 minutes. This is an average pace of 7.41 minute miles
The bike and run course takes place on a highway surrounded by black lava rocks in the blaring sun … not a tree in sight for shade. This road is known for its strong winds. I was able to ride part of the bike course and experienced a SMALL part of this torturous course and can say that it was very unpleasant!

Dustin’s comments: Nothing could have prepared me for this bike course. It was the most difficult course I have ever been on. The winds were so strong they were sweeping some riders across the road (causing crashes). I had to expend an enormous amount of energy just to hold the bike stable. The head and cross winds were unbelievably strong. At some points,  I was only going 8 miles an hour. I was also feeling sick from swallowing salt water in the swim, so I wasn’t able to take in any sports bars or gels. Luckily I was able to consume sports drinks. During the run, they had fuel stations every mile. It turns out that I stopped every mile to take in a cup or two of sports drinks, coke or broth. I have never stopped so frequently to take in liquids – but this is what really saved me in this race.  A big part of this race is mental and trying to find a way to persevere and continue on. I just took one mile at a time. You don’t compete in this for a certain time – but just to finish!

Congratulations to Dustin and all the athletes who competed in this race. It was so inspirational!  Check out my videos of Dustin at the finish line, on the bike and run.