Silverman 2008
Welcome
Breakfast
Jirka with Dave Scott
HydroDocs
HydroDocs
Swim Start
Swim Start
Swim Finish
I can run too
Transition I
Weather
It rains
Flying Michael
Michael at Three Sisters Silverman - World’s toughest triathlon
Only the strongest survive
An Iron Man distance race at the Lake Mead and in Henderson, Nevada, November 9, 2008;
A relay team, HydroDocs, Jirka Simunek, Michael Young, and Karletta Chief
November 8 2008: I got up at 5:30 a.m. and at 6:00 a.m. took off for Nevada. I set the cruise control on 78 miles/hour and after a little bit over 3 hours I arrived at the MultiGen center in Henderson (a suburb of Las Vegas), the registration site of Silverman. I was here early enough to get a Mormon Church’s sponsored breakfast (my first free meal). I registered and looked around the Silverman Expo. Here I got an autograph and photo of Dave Scott, supposedly one of the most famous “Iron Men”. Later I learned that he is the 6-time Ironman World Champion. Shame on me! I really had no idea how famous Dave Scott is. Then I tried to check in at my hotel, the Hilton Garden Inn, but no rooms were available yet. At 11:00 a.m. I met with Michael and drove with him in his truck to the Lake Mead to leave his bike at the starting place. It was beautiful sunny weather, the lake was very calm. We wished we had this weather during the race! Then we went back to my hotel where I finally got my room. Michael picked me up again at 2:30 p.m. and we drove back to the MultiGen center for an obligatory pre-race meeting. We were told again and again that this is the world’s toughest iron man distance race and that only the strongest will survive. Here we met with Karletta. After the pre-race meeting we went to Michael’s house and later on to an Italian restaurant to load on hydrocarbons to have enough energy for the race.
November 9 2008: Wake up call at 4:30 a.m. At 5:00 a.m. we all meet at my hotel and drive in my Corolla to the Lake Mead. It is still dark. The weather changed quite dramatically over night. It is cold, cloudy and windy. We get our timing chip, I get into my wetsuit and Michael zips me up (something I can not still do myself). The lake is still relatively calm. Except for two girls, everybody wears wetsuits, mostly full body even with arms covered. I have a sleeveless wetsuits. The race (full triathlon; 2.4 miles of swimming) starts as planned exactly at 6:30 a.m. My goal is to finish somewhere between 1:08 h (my fastest time in the pool for this distance) and 1:20 h. It is a group start and all the hell brakes up. People are swimming one over the other, elbowing and kicking each others. After about two minutes I’m already quite exhausted and am wondering if I can finish this endeavor. Fortunately, the field spreads out and I can get into my pace. I swim conservatively, not really knowing what to expect after practicing mostly in the swimming pools at UCR and the Canyon Crest Athletic Club. But everything goes quite well. We quickly get to the middle of the lake (894 yards) and make the first left turn. Then 1373 yards parallel with the shore. I control my direction mostly by watching under water the other swimmers and only occasionally looking myself ahead for another buoy. Things are still looking good, although the weather is turning bad. Winds start picking up and waves start developing. Things get more difficult after we make a U-turn (about 2300 yards) and start swimming back. Now we start getting waves from the right side, which is the side at which I breathe. But I’m still doing fine. Winds are getting stronger and waves bigger. I relax my kicking, feeling that I could cramp up. Before we turn right to head back to the shore (3355 yards, 3.02 km) I check my time for the first time. We are in the water less than one hour, which is not a bad pace for me. Now I’m thinking that I should finish in about 1:15 h. However, now we are going straight against the wind and waves. Things get really ugly. I’m wondering if I make it back or get blown away to the Arizona shore. The last 870 yards are endless and at times I’m not sure if we are making any progress at all. It is difficult to see buoys and I can not see them from my regular free style. I always have to switch to breast stroke for few strokes to get into the right direction. Waves are quite big and water drops are being blown over them by wind, which makes breathing rather difficult. If one gets above the water to look for direction, one usually gets hit by another wave. But eventually, in 1:22 h (about 10 minutes slower that I had hoped for), I make it to the shore and pass the timing chip to Michael and he takes off (for his 112 miles ride with 9,721 ft climbs elevation).
At 8:00 a.m., that is 8 minutes after I’m done with my part, the half triathlon should start. However, the officials declare the conditions at the lake to be dangerous for both athletes and kayakers monitoring the race at the lake and postpone the start by 15 minutes and then again by additional 20 minutes. At 8:35 a.m. the news spreads that people should get back to tents, that the swimming part is canceled, and that they will be doing only bike and run. We decide not to wait for the start and take off with Karletta after Michael in my car. Only in the evening do we learn that the half triathlon eventually started at 9:00 a.m. (that is 60 minutes late) with the swimming part after all. We follow the bike course until we catch up with Michael. It is raining and there is a strong head wind. We take few pictures when Michael is passing one of our competitors and head back to my hotel. I get a big breakfast and take a hot bath, while Karletta goes to her home to get ready for her race. My part is done.
At 11:30 a.m. I’m picked up at the hotel by Kathy, Michael’s wife, and we head to Three Sisters, the famous climbing place on the bike course. From the present crowd we have learned that local bikers call this place three bitches due to its difficulty. The level of difficulty was dramatically increased by locating this place at the 95th mile mark. Michael provided the map and timing. He expected to be here around noon. It is very cold with strong winds. Most people are indeed struggling to get up the hill. About quarter of them just pushes their bikes up; one person falls down from his bike. Waiting is quite entertaining because of other spectators, mostly from the local bike shop. We are waiting almost 80 minutes before Michael shows up. He just flies by. We are joking that he must have been saving all his energy for this climb so that he could impress us. We are quickly trying to get to the other place on Michael’s map, but get there just at the time Michael flies by. Then quickly to the MultiGen center to see Michael finish and to encourage Karletta before her race starts. Michael finishes his part in about 6:25 h. Considering these weather conditions, quite impressive. I’m waiting few long minutes before Michael can stand straight and then we are going to get some free food (my second) and beer in the recovery tent.
After the free meal we are going quickly to the Michael’s house so that he can shower before heading back to the Green Valley Center to see Karletta at the 11 mile point. She has to do two laps of a course and will get to this point twice, first at 11th and then 24th mile. I find this a horrible arrangement, to have to run a half marathon, and then set up for another half from the same place. I think that psychologically it is way better to go in one direction and then back. We make it there at a time based on our calculations of when she should be there. We are waiting about 25 minutes, discussing that Karletta must be either doing really well and we must have missed her, or not that well, hoping for the former. We leave Kathy there in case of the latter and take the Michael’s truck to go along the course to find out where Karletta is. We catch her somewhere between the 15th and 16th mile, which means that her pace must be faster than 10 minutes/mile, which is very good. She is still smiling and waving at us. Large parts of her run, Karletta was running with Trace Thelen, the eventual winner of the female category, before leaving her behind. That's our Iron Girl! It is freezing cold, windy, and occasionally rains. Going along the course, I realize how difficult the race is, with long uphill runs at 15 and then again 20 miles. I can not imagine doing these climbs that late into the race.
Now we have about an hour before Karletta will be back at the Green Valley Center and thus we head there and wait in one bar. After one beer we are going to the 24th mile mark (identical to the 11th mile of the first loop). After she gets through this point she has only about 2 miles to the finish line. We get quickly to the end zone and wait for Karletta. She is there very soon (at about 4:14 h); she must have been pushing really hard at the end. She gets through the finish line, sits down and faints. The emergency crew takes her quickly to the emergency tent, put her on an IV and measures her temperature. Karletta is badly dehydrated; her temperature is in low 90ies. They are trying to worm her up. Fortunately, she regains relative soon her color, temperature and mood. She is an inspiration to both of us. Especially I feel like I should have tried much harder, not feeling much tired (which I though I should after doing one leg of an iron man), and not knowing yet that my ailing body will confirm tomorrow that I have indeed put all my energy and my best effort in it. We are going back to the finish line to get the finisher t-shirt and a pro-photo. Then for another round of free food (third) and beer; and finally to our homes and hotels.
We have finished sixth in the CoEd division in 12 hours and 5 minutes (two minutes ahead of the fastest woman). Priceless!
November 10 2008: Sun is back. Where was it when we needed it? I’m heading back to the West and not planning to swim for a while in anything bigger than the pool in my backyard and under any other weather conditions than those shown in the photo below!
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Paradise
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Questions: This all leaves us asking few questions. Are we going to do it again next year? Have we not suffered enough? Has it really been fun doing it as we are saying? Or are we just trying to persuade each other that it has been fun? Already this year I have been the oldest relay participant. Perhaps it is time to retire from this. Captain Michael is threatening to retire me next year unless I shape up and replacing me with my daughter who could easily swim my part half hour faster. Pressure, pressure. If I get kicked off the team then I should perhaps do the whole thing. Dave Scott wrote on the autographed poster: “Jirka, Next year – the entire race!! No excuses!” Inspirational - but impossible. Perhaps half. Twelve months to decide.
HydroDocs live!
Quotes of the day:
Jirka: I have been sometimes just happy not to get blown away to Arizona.
MikeL In some hills I have been grimacing so hard that I have been getting facial cramps.
HYDRUSing will make you strong!
Transition II
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Karletta at 16th mile
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At 24th mile
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Finish Line
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Finish Photo
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Karletta with Trace Thelen
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Silverman Trailer from Momentum Advertising/Production on Vimeo.
Other notable sporting events:
Marathons:
2002 - Rock & Roll Marathon, San Diego (4:01:30)
2007 - LA Marathon, Los Angeles (4:37:47)
2007 - Rock & Roll Marathon, San Diego (3:59:48)
done with this torture.
Half-Marathons:
2002 - Palm Springs (1:43:45)
2003 - Palm Springs (1:44:24)
2005 - San Dieguito (1:53:32)
2005 - Palm Springs (1:46:18)
2006 - Palm Springs (1:43:28)
2006 - Fontana (1:41:52)
2007 - San Dieguito (1:50:27)
2007 - Palm Springs (1:42:41)
2008 - Palm Springs (1:49:25)
and many more since then.