No, at this point I'm not giving away the whole story, except
... You cannot discover new oceans unless you have the courage
to leave the shore. And so it came that the Darmstadt-based subdivision
of Team Pirate was heading for Ironman France, Nice on the Monday
before the event.
The magnificent panorama of the Cote d'Azur was enjoying summer
in full swing.
What a reward after a painfully hard winter and a rained-out spring.
We took position in an apartment high above the old parts of town.
Our unmatched logistics ensured a safe arrival of all critical
devices.
Naturally, our first expeditions took us to the beach.
On that occasion we learned that on this very Monday in all of
France it was allowed to play music all night without any restrictions
concerning volume.
This is an important, nation-wide festivity thoroughly celebrated
by all French(wo)men. Imagine this DJ enjoying spinning the finest
of house towards the panorama of the open sea!
Also more exotic styles were to be admired: For instance country
music played in a caravan.
Indeed, the night turned out to be immensely lively. However,
due to our fatigue from travelling we managed to get some sleep.
For the remainder of the week we engaged in a relaxed program
consisting of leisure and sports. The timeframe was determined
by an extensive, late breakfast and an extensive, late dinner.
I enjoyed some easy swimming in the sea, ...
... short runs in blazing mid-day heat (documenting Ironman insanity
to the locals), ...
... and moderately paced bike rides to the hills surrounding the
town.
On one occasion I also paid a visit to Monaco. An ambiguous experience,
as I find it hard to go along with the fascination that Maybachs,
Bentleys and surveillance cameras make on other folks. However,
I can now claim to have covered on bike the Route Nationale connecting
Monaco with Nice faster than a Ferrari! Quick bikers (and Pirates
ARE quick) know that roundabouts, traffic-jams, and crisp descents
make such things possible.
The lights of Nice are something special.
The Nicoise complement the beautiful light provided by nature
with a breathtaking setting of artificial illumination. The promenade
on the coast line seems to me like the easiest-going, publicly
available catwalk on Earth.
These calm days were a very special treat. And that was very much
necessary: As experienced last year, on the day of the bike check-in
an inevitable nervousness infects everyone.
Beware!
Do not feed!
The specimen below is about to do something immensely stupid.
By the way, now I know another big advantage of tubulars: You
won't have to be afraid of the heat popping the tyres. My Contis
can take 12bar. Sufficient headroom for me. Another good idea
is to remember exactly where the bike and run bags were positioned.
This avoids unnecessary choreographical ridiculousness during
the following event.
On that night, sleep is short but deep. In the early morning everyone
shows up again at the bike park.
Final preparations are made, ...
...accompanied by frequent visits to the portaloo, ...
... until it's time to engage in the ceremony of putting on the
wet suit.
And just as last year I find myself standing on the Plage du Centenaire
along with roughly two thousand five hundred endurance sport enthusiasts.
The excitement of these moments is hard to describe. And Nice
was presenting itself in a wonderful light of a young but long
day.
The gun!
>From here on, as a participant, I was engulfed in this strange
sphere of ultimate concentration and altered perception.
Instantly I was confronted with the flogging dealt out by faster
swimmers. I was rapidly pushed out of any viable draft: A rather
unpleasant experience.
I had made the mistake of justifying me lining up in the 1:06h
box with my 1:09h performed last year. Also I hadn't given it
a lot of thought what it meant to have the 0:55h swimmers right
beside this box. I had to duly pay for this stupidity when the
stronger swimmers showed me the propulsion they can establish
on the first few 100 meters. Consequentially I decided to concentrate
on remaining safe. I managed to get myself without any draft but
also without any damages or cramps into the second lap ...
... and finished the swim with a disappointing but uninjured 1:12h.
There are of course hardly any photos from the bike split.
However, I can assure you that this part is hardly to be surpassed
in fascination: Long climbs to bare mountain tops (1800m total
ascent), breathtaking descents and one spectacular panorama following
the next. My bike was running magnificently easy.
However, I should've brought along the extensions. The wind was
blowing hard from the hills and later hard from the sea - in effect,
hard headwinds throughout the whole split.
Coming back to the coast line I decided to spin easily and get
my muscles prepared for the marathon.
It's imperative to not over-pace on the bike split in Nice. The
following marathon takes place in blazing sunlight on bare, hot
tarmac without any noteworthy stretches of shade. That time of
the year the sunlight comes in at a very high angle and anything
that protects from the rays is worth investing.
The team had also prepared for the conditions ...
... or, alternatively had decided to prepare for the runner-up
in the "bronzed adonis" category once back in Germany.
Obviously, last year's experiences lead to a much more refined
support strategy.
Calling out split times, motivating conversations, ... All of
high value ...
... and highly appreciated as, again as last year, laps 2 and
3 of altogether 4 turned out to be incredibly hard. At some point
I was feeling so ill that I could hardly keep a pace while trying
to figure out how to establish nutrition for the following miles.
Eventually the blessings of caffeine and sugar kicked in. I was
able to crank up the pace for the final lap and a properly received
finish.
During the bike split I had met a participant of my age group
who had travelled all the way from Canada. In the meantime this
acquaintance has evolved into a curiously magical story (more
on this below).
The team was also delighted and stepped into poses.
... holy mackerel, this guy is taller than me. If he'd only knew
how fast he could swim ...
And I had accomplished my highest priority goal!
In contrast to last year, I was able to enjoy the "closing of
the finish line" fireworks with a healthy musculoskeletal system.
SWIM 1:12:12
T1 00:05:13
BIKE 5:38:41
T2 00:06:45
RUN 3:34:32
TOTAL 10:37:23
M45 15th of 403 ALL 227th of 2735
But here comes THE PUNCH LINE!
In addition to achieving my main target I was confronted with
a totally unexpected occurrence.
The day after the race, for reasons of curiosity I went to the
Theatre de Verdure, 2 P.M. sharp.
... AND WAS CALLED OUT FOR A SLOT FOR HAWAII !!!
I just had to take a picture of this baffled face! And under such
circumstances one is also allowed to walk about with the customary
plumage.
With my position as 15th of my age group I had not expected any
chance of getting close to a slot. Last year's experience and
the rather inconsistent training through a grueling winter left
such ambitions largely out of focus. But there were so many M45s
not attending that indeed I had been called out. And so it came
that to the citizens of Nice it was announced that the Pirates
were setting sail to Kona.
We engaged in discussions on which means of transport would be
suitable.
We also enquired on the applicable nutrition to cover the substantial
needs concerning vitamins and calories.
We even implemented a nutrients-based currency for rewarding successful
counterstrikes against aggressive insects.
Whereby my son clearly took the lead in accumulating credit.
The magic of our journey was topped off when we discovered that
lizards were populating the walls of our terrace during evenings.
Perhaps some readers remember the tattoos to be found not only
on my race bike (see previous report).
It was time to do the last swim, the final lap in this wonderful
blue, Mediterranean Sea.
Below you can see the amazingly competent head of life-guards.
When I went for my first swim he politely recommended me to avoid
public nudity. Instead he offered me to change behind the door
of their outlook.
But apart from him being a highlight for the female visitors on
the beach, he was also a strong swimmer and, without any question,
knew exactly what to do should anyone be confronted with a medical
or psychological problem.
When he spotted me with my Hawaii necklace he promptly congratulated
me with a heartfelt, triple "chapeau".
The bus ride to the airport had a melancholic timbre. Even after
coming here for the second time, the sea and the town had not
lost any of its fascination. I am pretty sure that, no matter
what this Hawaii-thing will be, I shall return some day to Nice.
The IMFR is a beautiful and tough race! And some day I shall run
a proper marathon there as well.
APPENDIX: Now I own two of these nuggets plus a floral necklace.
But when I contacted the colleague from Canada (remember the finish-line
photo above) I found out that after some back and forth he also
had received a slot!
So, I will be meeting Devashish in Kona!
That leaves me with nothing more to say than ...
ALOHA !
Peace
Captn Crook a.k.a. Alex |
.. 
Pirate 
