One of my passions outside the practice of law, is doing Ironman Distance Triathlons. I had completed 25 of them before the most recent race that I did. This became a hobby of mine about 10 years ago, when my brother asked me to do a triathlon with him. I figured it would be a good way to get in shape and burn off some of that stress that the legal profession can sometimes provide. Little did I know, that over a decade later I would have done races in five of the seven continents, raced in two of the World Championships and spent countless hours training!
The most recent race took me back over to Europe to race in the Swissman. As you can gather from the name…it is in Switzerland. This race is part of the Xtri series, which is a smaller circuit than the Ironman branded races. However, these races are exponentially harder than the Ironman brand. A few reasons it’s more difficult are that: First, you must have a support crew who follows you the whole race, as there is no nutrition or water stations on the course! Second, your support must run either the whole marathon or part of it with you. Third, it entails huge elevation gain on the run and the bike. Finally, the swim is usually incredibly cold.
Swissman took place June 25th of this year starting in Locarno, Switzerland. My wife, daughter, brother, and his partner all came to support me! Of course, heading up the race wasn’t without a few mishaps. As I was building my bike when we arrived, my daughter accidently knocked it over and bent one of the gears. So, after some fretting about what to do, I found a local shop, and an hour later they had bent it back in shape and I was good to go! The night before the race, I had dinner with my family our hotel and enjoyed a gorgeous sunset. Despite the early dinner and jetlag I wasn’t able to fall asleep until after 10 PM (prerace jitters)…that might not seem too late but it is when you have a 1:30 AM wake up call!
Before the race, I had a quick bite to eat, and then my brother and I drove to the start area. We got my bike set up in the transition zone and zipped me into my wetsuit. Then I had about half a mile walk to the boat that took me out into the middle of the lake, where there was a small island that all the athletes unloaded at. Once we got off, we walked into the lake to acclimate to the water which was approximately 60 degrees, which was warmer than I was expecting.
At 5 AM they rang a bell and off we went!! The swim was 2.4 miles long with a blinking light that we were to swim towards. Of course, as luck would have it there was a headwind that we had to swim into. I was slower than I was hoping but came out fine at 1.5 hours. My brother was there as I exited the lake and helped me get out of the wetsuit and then onto my bike. Here is where the fun was starting (insert sarcastic tone). Little did I know, this would be the longest ride of my life. I realized about an hour into the race that I should’ve researched the course more. As the day dragged on the task I undertook was starting to seem insurmountable. The ride was about 114 miles with 13,000 feet of elevation gain! There were three massive mountain passes we crossed with hundreds of hairpin turns. Some of the roads were cobblestone, others were not, but it was not easy on either terrain. I wish I had my road bike as that would have made this endeavor easier, but alas I did not. I spent the next 10.5 hours climbing and riding through the Alps…which I will admit it was beyond beautiful!
The day was a bluebird day, the grass was a deep green color, the water had a glacial blue hue to it that I will never forget. My family would meet up every hour or so with me to hand me whatever I might need, water, food, a jacket, etc. As the day dragged on, I realized it was just as hard on them as it was on me. I met them at the second transition near Giessback, Switzerland around 5 PM. When I say I was happy to get off the bike, you better believe it. The day was so long it seemed to never end, and I have never been as good of a biker as a runner. So, now it was really time for me to have some fun!
At the second transition my family was all there to help me change into my running gear and get going. My brother was also ready to start running with me. The run started off with a nice 20 degree climb. I had to walk most of the first 1.5 miles. In addition, I was just not feeling too great. However, as I started to get more fluids in me, I was able to pick up the pace and started to pass numerous people. I was feeling pretty darn good at this point and knew that I was going to be able to do well. We pushed the pace and were running 8.5 to 9-minute miles as we ran through waterfalls, along the lake to Interlocken and up the mountain roads to the Eiger. The run was gorgeous as the sunset over the Alps, but I still had keep pushing. We arrived at the final check point around 9:00 PM. We had made all the cutoffs and were cleared by the medical to head up the mountain. At this point we had gone 22 miles and climbed over 3,000 feet. We still had 6 miles left with another 3,000 feet of climbing. And thus, we began the final assault of the race to get to the top!
The last bit of the race we wore headlamps and jackets, endured cold rain, and getting lost on the trail, but it was worth it. We pushed as hard as we could go, which was a fast walk. We made it to the top at 11:53 PM. We came in 174th place and rejoiced in the bells and horn blowing of the Swiss who were there to cheer the finish line! Overall, my time was 18:53, the longest I have ever raced before. This was an accomplishment, a very proud one that I could share with my family. Having them all there to cheer me on and support me was a great experience. I never could have done this race without their support. Now, it’s back to the training in preparation for my next race on August 21, 2022, Ironman Mt. Tremblant!
