Hello World

In the winter of 2005 I made the decision to do something I would have never thought was possible. I decided to participate in the largest “Ironman” race in the world, sporting more than 3000 tri-athletes and well over 100 thousand spectators. (A Ironman race consists of three parts; 3.8 km (2.4miles) of swimming, 180 km (112 miles) of biking and 42 km ( 26 miles) [marathon distance] of running in that order, which has to be completed in one long stretch. After the swim you jump out of the water and on the bike, and after the bike ride you switch to running shoes and keep on going)

As you may know I always try to push my self further and participating in such an event turned out to be just right for me.

All through winter, spring and early summer, training has been extremely fierce and very time and energy-consuming. Having lost aprox. 10 kg (22 lb) since winter, by late June I was only a shadow of myself. If anything training for this race has been the best diet I have ever come across. To make it short I will state that training has consisted of countless hours in the water, on the bike and running in the Århus area. This combined with a total ban of alcohol for the entire period (almost ). As you could imagine it has been very hard indeed.

Fast forwarding to the race itself, the event was situated in the small town of Roth near Nuremburg in southern Germany. As my brother and I arrived to the city of Roth we could see that something mayor was going on. The town looked as if it had doubled its inhabitants at least ten fold. At first we were a little bit confused but completing the registration was very professional, and all in all we were very amazed with the magnitude of the entire event.

The final days up to the race we were, of course, very nervous and constantly thinking about what to do while in the midst of it all and on all things that could go wrong. However, we managed to make it to the race day morning on July 2 getting up at 4 o’clock to eat and mixing our energy drinks, after all the race commenced at 7.20. Making our way to the starting point, we were once again amazed with just how big this event really was. In the starting area thousands of athletes were putting on the wetsuits, getting ready for the swim and making their final adjustments to their bikes. Surrounding this area was tens of thousands of spectators getting ready for the start. The area was packed with people and I was so nervous that I had to go pee 5 times.

At the starting area the athletes were divided into groups of 500 with the first group starting at 6.20 (I was in the final group starting at 7.20). As the first group was getting ready to start we made our way to the shore to see it all start. The atmosphere was just totally indescribable and chills were constantly running down my spine. By the starting area there was large grassy knoll, two shore line and a large bridge crossing the Donau canal in which we were to swim. All areas was totally packed with people, my guess is that there was around 60-70 thousand people by the stating area.

As we stood by the shoreline and the race started the crowd went totally wild, cheering and celebrating to a level which I have never seen before… it was just so incredible. About one hour later I made my way to the starting area getting ready to embark on my journey towards becoming an Ironman. Everything seemed so unreal, people were cheering and everything was so loud… helicopters and hot-air balloons were flying about as I made my way to the water. Then it all began…

At first I was totally confused… swimming like at madman. Having started with 500 others, the space was a little crowded but I managed to find a nice pocket where I to a certain degree could swim in my own tempo. The swim was amazing… there were so many athletes in the water and I got kicked a couple of times, but took I all as being part of the experience. Before I knew, precisely one hour and twelve minutes later, the swim was over and I leaped out of the water, once again met by this gigantic herd of spectators. Quickly I made my way to my changing bag and 5 minutes later I was on the bike and getting ready to spend the next 180 km (112 miles) there.

The bike race was just another totally amazing experience. Throughout the route there were so many spectators and the landscape was beautiful. As I made my way through the course I passed through several small towns which were all packed with spectators cheering me on as I raced through the winding roads. The atmosphere and noise was so incredible that I can not even begin to describe it. I passed through forests, up and down hills and speed through hairpin turns throughout the course. The temperature was reaching 29 Celsius (85 Fahrenheit) and climbing. There was not a cloud to be seen…it was just magnificent. As I raced through the course I sometimes met some very steep inclines. At these inclines the crowd and atmosphere was even more amazing and as I climbed from the bottom of the hill I was once again swept away by the magnitude of this event. Thousands of people were standing centimeters from me and cheering as I made my way up the hill. The further I climbed the more narrow the path got due to people getting closer and closer. The final 25 meters only one single rider could squeeze through the herd of spectators at a time. It was just so amazing to experience and gave me the biggest adrenaline rush ever. Once again everything was set up very professionally and there were lots of depots for where I was able to re-supply my water etc. 5 hours and 48 minutes after having jumped on the bike I was getting ready to get back off.

At the transition zone, helpers were ready to assist me with my bike, and five minutes after having jumped off my bike I was in my running shoes embarking on my marathon distance. As the previous parts of the race the run was a great experience. There was only one problem, and that was a stabbing feeling of “stitch” (sidestik) which could be felt within the first 500 meters. Hoping it would go away I of course continued to the best I could. However, it did not go away and it really caused me a great deal of trouble throughout the entire running distance. Once again the crowds were great and there were depots for getting water, energy gel and fruits every 2 km (1.2 miles).

Furthermore, sponges with cold water was handed out which was crucial for cooling down as the temperature had risen well over 30 Celsius (86 Fahrenheit). As I made my way through the course I could see why they call it an Ironman race. The participants were literally dropping like flies. People were vomiting and fainting all over the place and ambulances were passing all the time. Especially on the final kilometers people were just lying on the side of the road with IV’s (drop) in their arm. It was quite spectacular to see and strengthened my determination to complete the race even though I was getting very very tired and my stitch (sidestik) was killing me.

The final 4 kilometers was just a total blur, I remember the enormous feeling of happiness and relief I felt as was passing through the goal area and hundreds of spectators were cheering me on. 11 hours and 52 minutes into it all it was suddenly all over… As I passed the finish line I swear I was in another dimension. My legs would not stop moving and my head was spinning madly. A lady came and congratulated me and put at medal around my neck but I was not really mentally present.

Fortunately there was a huge tent were about 50 masseuses were lined up to take care of you, which was just amazing. As I laid on the table I was thinking about the whole experience. It has without a doubt been the most challenging and enriching experience I have ever had. It was just amazing. The race has, for me, been the ultimate personal test and having completed it is just an amazing feeling.

Would i do again... of course i would

For more pictures of the race visit my webalbum