Ironman Arizona 2014

Ironman Arizona Transition

Finally all the training was complete and it was taper time.  Some people were nervous during the 2 week taper but I felt relief.  I felt great accomplishment for the first time all year.  Every workout felt great and my statistics were improving.  It made me really look forward to race day because I knew my tank of energy would be full so anything would be possible at IMAZ.  I spent time reflecting on how far I had come.  I recalled my first TCSD Cares meeting, my first JCC swim class, and nearly choking as I sputtered across 25 yards of the pool, my first bike ride on the 56 bike path where I started to learn how to shift my gears.  I recalled my first super sprint of 200 yard swim, 7 mile bike and 2 mile run which felt like it took forever to complete.  I just kept thinking...LOOK AT ME NOW! I have met so many amazing people on my IMAZ journey.  My village of supporters and encouragers have been endless.  The triathlon family is like no other support system for sure. I felt ready to join the Mdot club!! Best of all, my coach Julie got me to the start line injury free!


We arrived in Tempe on Thursday to really soak up the festivities.  We stayed at the Residence Inn only 1/2 mile from the race so we didn't worry about parking and traffic.  We stopped immediately to athlete check in so I could pickup my race packet and backpack.  That was pretty awesome because I felt like I had just been accepted into the cool kids' club!  Thursday night was especially fun because we joined in the Underpants Run sponsored by Tribe Multisport Club.  It was a charity run where we donated money and dressed in underpants/costumes and ran about 2.5 miles along the Salt River with just the street lights twinkling in the background.  Marcus and I wore Minion attire while many wore superhero gear. It was fun to run for fun with a lot of triclub friends.  My Dunklette family was in full force!

Friday morning,  I went for a 9am bike ride to see how it felt at that hour and it was beautiful.  I felt like I was not going to need arm coolers because the temperature was perfect and the winds were so mild. My 1 hour route worked our well because I experienced the beginning of the bike course from town and u-turned before the Beeline Highway hill.  Then I went to the mandatory athlete race information meeting and we browsed the expo for a long time.  The Tribe club had a party from 3-5 but I declined and stayed off my feet until the Welcome Ceremony started at 6:30.  It was so inspirational to hear Mike Reilly speak to us and meet exceptional athletes that were physically challenged or the oldest racers aged 72 female and 84 male. It was incredible to watch a video that told us after we swam 1.2 miles, biked 112 miles, and ran 26.2 miles, that we would have earned bragging rights for a lifetime. 

Dunkle teammates with Mike Reilly - The Voice of Ironman

It never mentioned speed and it really made me proud to know that unless something horrific happened, I knew I had trained hard enough to finish under the cutoffs and that becoming an Ironman was literally only hours away. It was more important to enjoy every moment because it would happen so fast.  I tried to remember that my entire race day. Race with a Smile!! This is a pretty easy goal to attain with thousands of complete strangers telling you that you are awesome for up to 17 hours!

Saturday morning, I ran for 20 minutes to warmup before our athlete pre-swim for 800 meters in the lake. They kept announcing the water was 71 degrees which meant no booties were allowed on race day.  This was a disappointment because I really wanted the feet protection for the long .35 mile jog to transition from the swim exit.  I jumped into the lake and then GASPED because there is no way that water was 71 degrees.  It felt closer to 61 degrees without the salt.  I had a comfortable swim without too much bumping of elbows and was grateful for the experience.  After the swim, I quickly put on a bike kit and rode some of the run course for about 30 minutes. I wanted to check out Curry hill so I would know how it felt and also check out the secret "clean" bathroom at mile 9 on that corner that my Cactus buddies on FB had talked about!. The hill was very easy but I knew it would bother me on the second loop.  The good news was after the hill was a nice downgrade to make up for any lost time. After my ride, it was time to gather the bike and run/bike bags for pre-race check-in. As I hurried to get in line while still in my swimbikemom kit, the SBM Arizona Ambassador Esther chased me down and gave me a sweet goodie bag and hilarious inspirational

note. It felt so good to know that I had her support.  The bike check-in includes taking a picture of your bike which I assume assures you leave with what you came with and don't somehow magically swap wheels with someone I guess.  Anyway, good news, my rack was right by the entrance after the changing tent, but the bad news was I was the farthest possible distance from the bike exit!  oh well  my rack was so short that we had less bikes to jostle around too.  It was a bit shocking to dropoff the run and bike bags because the lines of bags were endless but orderly. Right then I visualized the in and out for swim/bike/run and my heart started racing! I was glad I added bright orange tape to my bags so I could spot them quickly in case a volunteer couldn't get to it before me.  After checkin, all the dunklettes met up and we had a last minute encouraging coaching session from Julie Dunkle.  The best warning was to be careful of Ironman porta potties at night because you don't want to step in poo cones from those that missed the toilet! ewwww! Take note...only go in one if you must and it better be well lit! We then all went to lunch together and rested at our hotel for the Big Race Day!

Marcus went to pickup our kids and their spouses at the airport while I rested at the hotel and prepared mentally and rechecked my stuff was all ready for the next day.  When he came back with

them, they presented me with an amazing banner and a personal note from THE swimbikemom Meredith, wishing me the best of luck and to enjoy every moment.  It brought tears to my eyes that a complete stranger cared enough to encourage me to achieve my goals.  I so wished SBM was my Mom at that moment!  They also showed me their personalized Team IronMom tshirts they would wear proudly so we could easily find each other on the course.  It was a pretty spectacular moment and the only thing left to do was make my dream come true the next day!  Laid my wetsuit by the door and tied a bag to the frig to make sure these things were not forgotten !! I applied my tri-tats at night so I didn't need to stand in the bodymarking line in the morning. The port potty line would be long enough! We had a great early dinner where I had chicken and plain pasta until I was stuffed. I took my niteaid pills at 730 with OSMO pre-hydration and was asleep by 8. 

Alarm went off at 3:30am because I needed to eat everything by 4am for all the fuel to be out of the stomach.  Breakfast included Pre-Race Osmo with banana, hearty oatmeal, pumpkin bagel with nutella and coffee.  I was stuffed with 800 calories! Put on all my swim stuff and warm clothes and grabbed the remaining bags for special needs x2 and my morning bag.  It was beautiful outside at 5am and we walked the 1/2 mile to the transition area.   Transition energy is crazy electric!  Mill Bridge was lit like a Christmas tree and just stunning.  It reminded me I would swim under 2 bridges and after the 3rd bridge would mean the turnaround was coming soon. I just love bridges. It means "connection" to me.  Two things are joined together by a bridge that were once separated.  Now they are one.  That's pretty special.

I met up with my family outside of transition for a few minutes with hugs and kisses.  They looked excited and blurry eyed but I was so happy all 4 of my kids were there!  They had a minion balloon and letter L so I could locate them on the course throughout the day.  I wanted to get in the water early so I didn't feel panicked to swim the 200 yards to the start line.  I also wanted to start to the right of the start line buoy.  I just couldn't go into the mass of 2500 swimmers and feel safe. I'd rather swim further than panic with arms and elbows and feet all over me. 

As I started to leave, I had a moment of panic over the cannon start gun and the masses.  I hugged Marcus with all my strength and begged him to go with me!  I felt so vulnerable! He assured me I would be fine so I let go and ran off, never looking back.  I was so scared.

I positioned myself exactly where I expected from my visualization.  Go to the front inside buoy, backup 100 yards, start with the buoy on the right while the masses were on the left of the buoy. However, I stopped in a sea of green caps!  EEEKK all males!  I would surely be water boarded!  I treaded about until I had a few pink caps around me.  I had less than a minute to wait for 7am and then Mike Reilly said FIVE more minutes!  OMG suddenly everyone squeezed closer together. It was so claustrophobic!  The cannon exploded and a WHOOSH of swimming piranhas rushed forward!  The washing machine had started!  I couldn't lay horizontal because racers were so close but yet I was moving forward quickly with the group draft.  I kept my head up for a few minutes so I didn't get kicked in the face.  Then I had some space and just sighted constantly to try to find open spots to swim. Swimmers eventually gave some space but there were limbs everywhere and people zigzagging every direction.  It was rough to the 1 mile turn around.  Space opened up on the return but it was harder, like swimming up stream. 

I still stayed close to the inside of the river but apparently the winds had already started and were blowing against us causing some current although I didn't know it at the time.  It was so gratifying to pass under the bridges.  I knew exactly where I was and could see the last red buoy was in reach.  I was so excited to swim toward the stairs.  I still had so many people around me but I tried to pick the stairs with the least line of swimmers, my lesson learned at SOMA.  I learned at the preswim to hop on the first stair with my butt and then pull up with my arms.  This worked great except I suddenly had sea legs and couldn't support my weight.  A guy came to me and lifted me right up to my feet and walked me to the platform.  I INSTANTLY saw Marcus and SCREAMED.  YESSSS  I MADE IT OUT ALIVE!!!  What a rush of adrenaline!  I gave him a kiss and took off to the wetsuit strippers and changing tent with a huge smile on my face.

I noticed there were plenty in the tent which meant my swim was decent and found a seat.  Ladies on both sides were shaking so I guess they were cold but I felt great. Water temp supposedly was 68 so not booties legal unfortunately.  It still felt much colder without the salt.  I'm a slow steady swimmer and the goal was to feel warmed up after the swim and not exhausted so that goal was achieved!  My volunteer helped me change my shirt and we prepared me for the bike.  I took off grabbing my bike after the tent exit and ran to bike out. My family was right there cheering me on! the walls were lined with cheerleaders and I squealed with excitement!

my husband

I had cycled this course in my warm-up so I was confident in where I was going which really calmed my nerves.  However as soon as we turned on Alma School Road, the same direction as Beeline Hill,  I knew this was different.  I slammed into a headwind...It's 9am!!! this doesn't happen until 3pm right??!!  Not today!  20mph winds in the face made for a crawl until the next turn...I was worried that the 3rd lap might be unbearable and I decided to take it easy because it was a long day.  Beeline hwy was a bear.  I was crawling 8mph up a 3% grade!  the wind gusts were up to 30 mph and trying to knock me over and I could see the volunteers' hair and flags blowing in every direction.  I then saw a guy laid out on the pavement on the downhill. He wasn't moving and his body looked like hamburger meat. All his clothing was shredded.  He must have slid down hill over this bike.  I decided to be cautious and be aware of who was around me. So many riders were getting flats although the roads looked clean to me.  I heard the wind was blowing billy goat thorns across the road.  My best investment has been $10 bottle of OrangeSeal gel inside my tubes for flat prevention.  I hit a staple at Lake Stevens, pulled it out, and both holes healed themselves.  I won't race without it now and it lasts seemingly forever! At the uturn on Shea Blvd, there was a moment of bliss because the fight was over, then the wind came from behind pushing you forward with mighty strength.  I was flying and tried to hold tight as I flew 35 mph!  It was such a relief to see Marcus at the special needs station at mile 25 although I would stop only on the 2nd lap.  We picked the perfect volunteer shift for them to see me the most on the bike.

My kids were on the opposite side of the street holding my banner and it was wonderful to see them screaming for me! they saw me because of the yellow DO EPIC SHIT socks and I saw Marcus with his bright yellow hat!  Seeing my

My daughter

my Coach

my son and spouses

support team was such a relief.  It gave me milestones to reach them each direction as soon as possible. At 2:30, my front bottle was empty and right on schedule.  I had 3 bottles for the course with 510cals ea of IM Perform and Carbo Pro. However I was scared to fill it in route due to wind so pulled over to refill  I wouldn't open my bento box either so ea hour I grabbed a small snack like banana piece or GU as I passed the aid station . I reached special needs at mile 66 to grab my 3rd bottle and neck muscle cream and my family was holding my bag open for me.  They each held stuff out so I could grab it as I could, switch nutrition bottles and take off quickly.  they were an awesome team!  They loved helping out all the cyclists and cheered for everyone while the wind was blowing so hard and freezing although I was pretty comfortable!  My race plan was to STOP every negative thought and replace with gratefulness. Vineman Aquabike Full nearly cooked me to death!  I was grateful for the cooling winds since I never overheated!  I think I smiled for 7 hours straight!   The third lap came and  I saw my family as I went up slowly again but they were gone on my return and it was a let down but I pushed hard to reach them at the bike finish, excited to start my marathon of all marathons!

The bike chute was a blast!  my family held my banner at the top of a platform and met me at the transition.  I quickly peed and striped in the port potty to save time.  I dashed into the tent and lathered my feet in Run Goo, changed top and shoes, grabbed a handful of chips and water and took off in a streak, missing my family on the exit !  Luckily I rented an additional tracker, MyLiveAthlete GPS tracker so they learned I was already on the course as they franticly looked for me. When I first started, I felt like I had been riding a horse forever.  I concentrated on jogging  11-12 min pace for 5 minutes and 30 sec walk.  I hung on to this painfully until it started to get dark.  I just yearned for the special needs station at mile 13.  When I got there, I sat down and opened my bag and had no idea what I was looking at.  Everything in the bag looked useless.  I was scared to change socks.  The ball of both feet had been burning so I didn't know if they were hot spots or blisters.  I decided I wouldn't look at the them in case it was a bloody mess.  I TOTALLY regret this decision.  I wish I had dumped my bag and looked at each item.  I had packed backup plans and used none of them.  I had duct tape that I could have taped on my feet.  I had fresh socks.  I had RUN GOO.  I had pain reliever meds.  I wish I had packed a long sleeve shirt or windbreaker for the night run! All I grabbed were M&Ms and Minion Peeps!  I stuffed the sugary peeps in my mouth, stuffed the candy in my bra and took off as Marcus told me every loving supportive thing he could think of as I pleaded that IT HURTSSSS !!!  I also grabbed my highlighter pink wristbands that lit up at night.  It was nice to see them in the pitch black of night.  Two sections of the run are completely dark unless you see another runner with something that glows.  Racers loved my lights!

On the second loop, everything is familiar.  You urge to see the mileage markers and aid stations and chicken soup.  Mile 9 and mile 22 have the longest little upgrades which hurt like hell on Curry Road.  I promised myself to run down hill on Lakeview because the gravity was free and chicken soup was at the bottom!  Also before this hill is a REAL bathroom that is so clean and lit up.  I used it on both laps to avoid the port potty.  The other side of the river is just cold and dark and lonely.  My best friend became my hidden pack of M&Ms eating a few at a time! My awesome coach Julie was placed exactly where we needed her which was on the dark side turnaround!  I saw her and started to cry for the first time in the race.  I knew I had lost focus, I was missing my goals and suddenly I felt a heavy burden of disappointment.  I was going to embarrass my coach because I am so slow.  She yelled at me.  (I love that)  She said she would never be disappointed unless I quit.  JUST DONT QUIT!!....sniffle sniffle...ok I won't. I trotted along looking forward to the clean bathroom at Curry road.  Stay positive! Damn no chicken soup but still peed.  Up Curry at a snail's pace...like everyone in front of me which made me smile again.  ahhh the team sufferfest is better than a lonely one..and whallaaa I was at the top and as I ran down THERE IS SEF!!!  squeeze a hug....click click for photos and he says...HURRY now, Joy hasn't passed you yet but she is getting close!  OMG REALLLYYY!  she always catches me in a tri!

I will hurry!  It was the lift I needed for sure to get going a little faster.  And there suddenly was my chicken soup!  whooopeee!  Seriously this salty hot liquid is what kept me going and warm until... I started to shake and feel dizzy.  A man passed me and asked what was wrong and all I could say was...sooo cold.... and he said to ask for an aluminum blanket at the next aid station and he was gone.  Ugh... up the little grade of the river and I stopped to look for a blanket and saw nothing. I asked for it and a man went off to his little jeep cart and grabbed one out of the back!  It felt so good to have this metal cape wrapped around me.  Looking back, surely I was starting to shut down because I can't recall eating anything on the marathon except soup which is only after dark, water, a couple marshmallow peeps, and a bag of M&Ms.  I definitely should have eaten more food but somehow I just worried about liquids.  A big SHOUT OUT to Lisa Reilly who single handedly may have saved my run with those Minion peeps which I threw in my special needs bag at the last minute.  So odd... I hate peeps and it is nearly the only thing I saw in my bag...well minions are my special little friends that keep me smiling so that is probably why I grabbed them! Certainly my brain was dead by the time I got to Run Special Needs. I really could have used runner's gloves on that 2nd loop. If you know it will be dark, pack gloves.  My hands were numb and I pulled my sun sleeves over my fingers for more coverage.

I started looking for lights and listening for noise.  I knew the supeheros' aid station was on the corner of the overpass.  I pushed through with more chicken soup.  I couldn't run but I wanted to run.  I begged myself to trot but I just leaned forward more, still trotting 15 min mile pace with my feet on fire.  I focused on the street sign.  Rio Salado was lit up.  One more turn to the next aid station.  I passed it with determination.  I was over 15 hours and for a second it made me sad.  My feet were now raging on fire. My fingers were frozen. Then I smiled.  The crowd was getting louder. I could see the bend on Rio Salado to the right.  It was lined with people screaming that the chute was just in front.  I was in shock.  REALLY REALLY?? YES she said with big eyes and rushing me along.   I ripped off my superhero cape of aluminum and it flew off into the wind like a helium balloon. Free at Last. YOU MUST RUN!!  and I did....tears filled my eyes and I turned the corner blinking into the bright lights.  First I saw Chris Holley who had finished long ago and we high fived! Everyone was banging on the chute walls.  I didn't even realize 4 of us were together in the chute.  I wanted to take my time and cherish this moment but it was so hard.  I couldn't see my family in the bright lights. I couldn't see the timer clock. I couldn't hear anything but noise and then suddenly all was silent except for The Voice I had dreamed of hearing say....  LISA SERRANO...YOU ARE AN IRONMAN.... and just then I saw my family to my right as I went under the arch with a time of 15:41.
Yep all the previous Ironmen were correct.  The final chute is WAY TOO SHORT!!  It was over in a flash.

YOU ARE AN IRONMAN video

 I just wanted a blanket and my UGGS!  Then, Esther, the AZ Ambassador to SwimBikeMom draped me with my medal and I cried like a baby and squeezed her so tight.  She was part of my perfect ending of the day.  It started with SBM and it ended with SBM.  My volunteer asked how I felt and still I was so cold, which is so odd for me.  I'm never cold.  His name was Hector and he held on to me tightly and wrapped me in aluminum and stood by me while we waited for the ironman finisher picture.  He held all my stuff, waited, and rewrapped me.  He urged me to take 2 chocolate milks but I couldn't fathom drinking that much! hahaha!

  I looked at all the pizza and decided maybe fresh French fries with salt would be good.  I sat down and ate 3 fries with my milk.  I chatted with Celin, her #2 IM and Julianna who chased me all race and was only 3 minutes behind at the finish!  It was awesome to be with so many friends in this race.  I can't imagine my first Ironman without my TCSD friends everywhere whether suffering or volunteering.  Every single GOTRICLUB was so powerful.  I don't think any other branded race would have held the same power to get me across the finishline.  Now I see why San Diego triathletes repeat this race.  It's not the course, because it is rather boring, but it's the camaraderie.  You are on a team and you are supported and reminded constantly of this support.  It's incredibly powerful.  My family found me slumped in a chair and gave me a sweatshirt.  We waited until the last of my friends completed the journey.  I was so proud to see they made the cutoffs with time to spare and then we rented a pedal pusher cart to drive us back to the hotel.  I couldn't eat even at the hotel because I was nauseous .  I soaked in Epsom salt.  I took a warm shower.  I rolled around in bed painfully until 3am when my hunger jolted me out of bed. I drank a muscle milk.  We were awake at 5am.  Marcus needed to get in line for his IMAZ 2015 registration and I wanted my finisher's jacket.  It was so cold and I was so thankful this wasn't race morning.  We quickly spent $1000 between his entry and my Ironman stuff and finally I had breakfast.  We packed up and drove off into the sunset where I dozed for most of the way home!  My thoughts were solely on my tattoo.


I had prepared my kids for this event.  Ironman Finish. Ironman tattoo. No debate. No pause.  My family had nicknamed me Ironmom and it seemed appropriate to customize my mdot in some way that included my family.  I did research, asked for recommendations, and by Friday, I was ready to commit.  I went to Avalon because two other ironmen had recommended this place.  Hunter was such a professional and showed me how everything was sterile and one time use.  He downloaded the registered Mdot emblem and gave me multiple fonts to choose for the IRONMOM.  We placed it a few times for the best position and after 45 minutes and minimal pain, my journey was complete. Now I can't swim for 2 weeks (or donate blood for a year) but it's worth it.

Why did I want this tattoo?  I have had a difficult childhood.  I never belonged.  I have had 8 half-siblings in my life with my mom's 4 marriages. I always had a different name until my mom just forged her 3rd husband's last name on my school records to shut me up. I was mostly an only child living with a lot of turmoil. I have never played sports. I have never been on a team. TCSD Cares accepted me on their team as is. No judgment. No expectation. Loads of support.  As I graduated in triathlon distances, I still belonged to the TCSD club and GO TRICLUB became the most awesome two words in my world.  I love hearing it.  I have always worn my TCSD kit just to encourage it.  Everyone supports one another no matter what your ability or speed.  We are a family of 3000.  However there is a subset in this family.  Those that reach the peak are Ironmen.  We respect them all with awe.  When I see the mdot on someone,  I know what they have endured. It is the ultimate accomplishment that requires more mental than physical strength. Now, I am connected to a unique team called Ironmen and I want others to see my tattoo and know I BELONG.  So I proudly wear my badge of two major accomplishments in my life to show I believe that  Anything is Possible. I AM A PROUD MOM of 2 amazing kids and an IRONMAN.  I AM IRONMOM and I want to inspire others to belong.

12/1/2013 to 11/16/2014 training for IMAZ 11/16/14

Cycled 4916 miles in 333 hours

Ran 920 miles in 162 hours

Swam 408,905 yds= 232 miles in 140 hours

avg 4.7 miles swimming a week (8272yds)

avg  103 miles cycling a week

avg 19.71 miles running a week

avg training hours per week = 13 hours

Worked a fulltime job.