IM Wales – A Tough Day at the Office

After almost 13 hours of swimming, cycling and running, I finally got to hear those immortal words “Matt Lewis … you are an Ironman”. Now where to start:

It had been a strange few weeks leading up to the race. With a house move, a change of job and a heavily pregnant wife, the thought of lugging myself around 140.6 miles really didn’t appeal. Still, the 400 notes spent on entering the race, and the fact I was doing it with my best mate, was motivation enough to head over to Tenby.

The alarm went off shortly after 4am. There was no spring in the step or excitement, just a sense of trepidation, and that this was going to be a long tough day. A quick bowl of porridge, and it was time to head into Tenby, park up, and make sure the bike was all set up in transition. This turned out to be a rush job, as transition was about to close. Still, I didn’t need long, and then myself and Jeremy started the long slow march down to North Beach. The good news was that this year was a rolling start. There were over 2000 people entered, and the view from the organisers was that the mass start would have been intimidating for a lot of people nervous about a sea swim. Personally, I could have lived with either approach, but it was going to make it easier.

I put myself into the pen for the 1:25 – 1:35 swimmers. Before long, the Welsh National Anthem boomed out of the loudspeakers. This was the first of many special moments on the day. Finally, shortly after 7am, I was walking into the waves, and the worst part of the day was about to start. The swim around the first buoy was tough. Although the sea looked relatively calm, there was a large swell, and it was a completely new experience for me. I was struggling with my pool stroke, and kept on taking on sea water. I battled on, and was surprised when I finished the first lap in around 43 mins, as it felt much slower.

Onto the second lap, and the swell had got worse. As I got close to the first buoy, some water I took on had the distinct taste and smell of boat fuel. I stopped and hung onto a kayak. Initially I started wretching and then was violently sick a number of times. My throat was sore, my head ringing, and I just wanted out. Still, I decided to just try and carry on. After 1hr 27 mins, I finally exited the swim. I felt beaten up by the sea and pretty low. I took my time back to transition, and wondered long this day was going to take.

It was a relief to get onto the bike and start the second discipline. I still didn’t feel good, and had to make another impromptu sick stop. My power felt low, my throat was still sore, but the good news was I was moving, and it was at a reasonable pace. There are not too many things I remember about the bike. The weather was surprisingly good which was a relief. The two hilly laps were hilly, but manageable. The support was great.

The most memorable part is the climb up St Brides Hill coming out of Saundersfoot. There is a mass of spectators, many in fancy dress, most with cow bells and other instruments. First time up the crowd parted just enough to let me up, and it is the closest I will ever get to experiencing the Tour de France. It really was incredible and is something I will always remember. I started to have a few bike problems over the last 30km when I struggled shifting between rings, but at least it took my mind off the race.

Finally, it was time to get off the bike, and get ready for the marathon. I’d had a tough experience at the Outlaw, where I started at 4:50 min/km pace, and kept slowing down until I was shuffling at 6:20 min/km pace at the end. My quads had been on fire and that was on a flat course. My plan for IM Wales was just to take it gently and try and enjoy it. I set off almost a minute a kilometre slower than at Outlaw, but didn’t mind and didn’t feel the need to pick it up. I was only expecting to run a 4.5 hour marathon, so was happy to be running almost an hour for each 10km. The run course was better supported than the bike. It was an unbelievable experience running down tiny thronged streets in the town centre being cheered all the way. I saw a couple of friends and stopped to chat to them, and I walked 20-30 seconds at feed stations. It started to get slightly tougher but the pace stayed the same. As I came round to complete my third lap, I had the most unexpected surprise of seeing Niamh, Cian and my folks shouting me on. This was by far the highlight of the day, and I couldn’t believe they’d made the journey. I met up with Jeremy on my final lap and we ran it together which went in a flash.

And that was that. I crossed the finish line to have completed my first official Ironman race.