by holli81 » Fri Jul 31, 2009 4:25 pm I have the big responsibility today of getting digital video of all the guys for IMLP. As we started our walk down the road, I was making sure I knew how to use the video camera and ended up getting a great shot of Jared walking down the road with his wetsuit over his shoulder. Cool! We get to the transition area and I’m not allowed in. Jared asks me where I am going to go, but the thing is, is that I don’t know where to go. I would go to the Detroit Iron tent, but I’m not sure exactly where it is. So I took some videos of the transition area, then started to wander around to see if I could find anyone I knew. I saw a couple of the DI guys getting marked, so I went over to talk to them and see how their nerves were holding up. Finally, I see Jared and wait with him while he gets marked too. Then we head down to the tent. There is already a great showing of spectators, so I know this is going to be a good day. It’s suppose to thunderstorm, but there has not been any rain yet. But then it started and the guys decided to get their wetsuits on and get ready for their race. I walk down to the water with Jared and then he disappeared in the sea of people. I took some pictures, then it started down pouring, so back to the tent I went! The rain died down and it was almost time for the swim to start.
I had no clue where Jared or any of the other guys were, nor could I actually see over the many heads blocking my view. The announcer is speaking, trying to get the guys pumped up and asked the supporters to cheer as loud as we could. Then, with no further indication, the gun went off! Damn! the video camera’s not ready! I turned it on and willed it to hurry up. It was finally ready to go and guys were still running in the water off the beach, so I didn’t miss too much. I hit record. Nothing happened. I hit record again. Still nothing happened. This damn thing! What is wrong with it?? I push another button and finally “STNDBY” shows up, so I know I can now hit record and it will actually record. What I ended up with was some cool shots of all the swimmers, but unfortunately I didn’t get the actual start. When the first pro was out of the water, I walked over to the chute to see the swimmers running to T1. I found a great spot overlooking the chute above and behind Jess, Nicki, and Katie. It turned out to be perfect because I could get the guys running down the chute and smiling or high-fiving the girls on their way. Damon was first out of the water, which was no surprise. Go Damon! Then it was Stuart. Stuart?! Yes, Stuart. I had the video camera on standby so that I could hit record the second I saw another DI guy in the chute. I hit record. Nothing happened. Ugh, now what?! The camera turned off! So by the time I had it turned back on again and ready to record, Stuart was long gone. Sorry buddy! I did scream for you though! Next out of the water was Asher, followed by Brian, Jared, and the others (sorry guys, my brain is a little fuzzy to remember the exact order right now). But with the exception of Stuart, I got all the guys on camera running toward T1. Job well done! Now it’s time to eat! All this spectating and video taping is wearing me out!
I made plans to meet up with Anika and Kyle before making the 3 mile trek out in the middle of the bike course to cheer the guys on during the beginning of their 2nd loop. I had the ingenious idea of bringing my fuel belt along – 2 bottles filled with water, and 2 filled with beer. Yes, beer! By the time I got to Anika and Kyle’s (literally right around the corner), my beer was foaming so much it was leaking out of the bottle. Great! So much for THAT idea! I chugged the beers at the house and then attempted to run 3 miles. Not good. Especially since I also had a beer with lunch before I even left the house to go to Anika and Kyle’s! So I found out first hand that pasta and two beers is NOT good nutrition right before a 3 mile run. Let’s all keep a mental note of that…
Finally out on the course by the Olympic ski slopes and we are ready to cheer on our guys. Anika has the cowbell, Kyle has the megaphone, Nicki is tracking as many guys as she can on her phone, and I have the video camera. First up is Damon! Looking good Damon! Next up is Kevin. Go Meathead! Then Stuart. Lookin’ good Stu! And wouldn’t you know it, there was another damn problem with the camera right when Stuart passed us. I swear it wasn’t on purpose! I got the rest of the guys on video, but some of the footage is not very good :/
After standing around and cheering for 1 ½ - 2 hours, we head back into town. Anika and I are hungry and decide pizza and beer sound good. Nicki decided to head straight back to the tent. By the time Anika and I got to the tent (we showered and drank a beer first), it was almost time for the guys to come through at about the ½ marathon point. Sure enough, they started running by. Brian was first, followed by Mike Blackburn, Kevin, Bora, Ken, Stuart, Damon, Jason, Greg, Jared, Brett, Asher, Andre, Mike Jacobs, and then Bora again. Holy crap! Bora is flying! He only has a few miles left and I wanted to get all the guys at the finish line. I was getting great footage of all the guys running as they passed the half marathon point. Now comes the dilemma of do I stay put to get all 14 guys on the first stretch of the run, or do I not get the last few in order to get as many as I can at the finish? I decided the finish would be better. So there we are (Anika, Nicki, Kyle, and I) right by the finish, waiting for our IRONmen. I got 3-4 of the guys on camera and then Anika and Kyle wanted to go another part on the run. Nicki was already gone so she could congratulate and support Brian. I was left there with a megaphone in my left hand and the video camera in my right. Multi-tasking like this is not easy, but I managed to get some good footage while still cheering on the guys. I have to admit that after Jared went through, I left my post and went to see how he was doing. So, my apologies go out to the last 5 guys on the team for not getting them on video as they crossed the finish line. Next time, we need a non-biased videographer…
When I got to the finisher’s area, I saw Greg and gave him a hug and congratulated him. I didn’t see Jared anywhere, but Greg said he would let him know I was waiting for him. Poor Jared could only answer “I don’t know” to any and all questions I asked. Even when I said he should go to the med tent, his response was “yeah, I don’t know.” He wasn’t looking so great and I was worried he was going to pass out right there. Being that he’s a pretty big guy, and I was on the other side of the fence, I knew there was nothing I could do if he did pass out. I asked him if he could walk by himself to the med tent, otherwise I would call over someone to help. Of course, his response was “I don’t know.” Fortunately, he did make it to the med tent and someone escorted him in. I knew he’d be okay. After an hour and a half, I started to get a little worried. Fortunately, I saw Stuart and he said that Jared was on his 2nd IV. Ashley was nearby and Stu told her that Damon was getting ready for his 1st IV. It’s 10:00 pm now, my feet are KILLING me, and the last time I ate was at 11:00 am! Damn, we’ve been out here for a long time! Another hour goes by and we are getting worried now. Finally, the security guards let me and Ashley go in the med tent to see how Jared and Damon were doing. We had to tell a little white lie in order to get in
– we told them that we were their wives. Jared was just finishing. He still looked a little pale to me, but the doc said he looked much better and could leave if he felt okay. Damon, on the other hand, was still very pale so he was going to be there for a while… On the way out, we saw Asher. Poor guy was shivering and shaking like a cold, wet puppy dog. He was swaddled in blankets, looked exhausted, and was also quite pale. We couldn’t stay much longer though. I had to get my Ironman home, cleaned up, fed, and tucked in bed for a good night’s sleep. Luckily, this plan was successful. Another job well done! I went to sleep next to my Ironman, exhausted yet satisfied. I did my best out of the course and it was a little stressful at times trying to decide where to go and when to go there, but I know my exhaustion was nothing compared to what those 14 DI guys just did. Great job guys! You all made me so proud of you. And when I said multiple times before that I would never dream of doing an ironman, I now believe that anything is possible. And after spectating for 17 hours, I think racing might actually be easier! Ha! My goal now is to do a half ironman in 2010. We’ll see how things go from there, but I have a feeling residency might have other plans for me :/
Congratulations Guys! It was great watching all of you and I’m glad I was there to show my support. Hopefully, Jared and I will have a video ready soon to share with all of you. In the meantime, get mentally prepared for your next big race! I hope to see you on the course in Wisconsin 2010!
. I'm looking forward to some great weddings DI style.