Outstanding 6th Place for Rachel Joyce in world championships Ironman.
Last month on 10 October Rachel who swims with the clubs master programme took part in the Ironman World Championships in Kona, Hawaii.
For those of us not in the know the Ironman event consists of a 2.4 mile swim, 112 mile cycle, all of which warms you up nicely for the 26.2 mile run at the end!
Rachel arrived there 2 weeks before race day so I could get over the eleven hour time difference, and get used to the heat (35 degrees) and humidity (95%). and as she said 'it seemed to work as by race day I had at least got used to being permanently sweaty'!
Race morning arrived and she was ready to go! Positioned herself close to a couple of the faster girls so she could get into a fast group.
The canon went off and it was the usual scrum to begin with, but holding her own (even if she did end up with the hints of black eye!) and as the pace evened out she reckoned she was in a decent group and was pleased to see she had completed the swim in 53 minutes and was in 4th or 5th position.
The first part of the bike passed in a bit of blur and only when she turned onto the Queen K Highway did she settle into a rhythm. Her plan was to ride a negative split as it is easy to think your riding within yourself but if you go out too hard too early you pay in the last 30 miles! Just after the turn-around she took her first caffeine gel (my first caffeine for 6 weeks) and the effects were instantaneous. It felt good and ready to pick up the pace! This part of the course allows competitors to see what is happening in the race; however, Rachel claims she was concentrating more on getting a wasp out from behind her glasses without getting stung or riding off the road!
Despite the headwind on the way back to Kona, she still felt good and passed a girl and even passed a few guys which boosted morale! As she headed back into Kona and T2 she couldn’t help feeling excited: Lying in 4th place at the Ironman World hampionships! However she couldn’t get too carried away as 26.2 miles is a long way!
Rachel said 'I felt good as I started the run, and couldn’t stop myself from smiling. That feeling unfortunately came to an abrupt end at mile 10 as a combination of the intense heat and the steep gradient of Palani hill took its toll'. At that point, I made the decision to walk up to the hill and made a deal with myself that I would start running again at the top. It was a bit embarrassing: this is where most of the crowds are and also the spot where her Dad had his camera on paparazzi mode so now he has about 20 shots of Rachel walking…not sure they’ll make the album!
Rachel dropped three places on the run but by the final turn around point I took more notice of who was behind me and I felt confident of holding onto my position. At the aid stations I switched to drinking coke and at about 23 miles let herself start to think about the crowds in Kona.
The crowds did not disappoint 'I enjoyed every minute of that finisher’s chute: high fiving people and smiling all the way! My first Hawaii and 6th place: yep I’m thrilled with that and can’t wait for next year'!
Tamir Gonen-cohen is swimming in the Israeli National this week and has just broken her own long Course PB for 100m Fly, going 1.10.31 and winning Gold....
Home
