Monday, September 12, 2011

Ironman Wisconsin- Race Report #2

We spent a few hours last night watching the run at miles 9/22 of the race.  It was pretty quiet out there as far as spectators, as it was the farthest point out on the course.  This is where the runners have to dig deep to keep going- there is no crowd, the finish line is far away and you have to do it TWICE.

In the beginning the runners were sparse but as the mid packers starting coming it was really fun to cheer people along.  If you have been to an Ironman, you know that the race bibs have the participant's first name on it.  As a result, you can cheer people on by name and it makes it a little more personal.

We cheered for strangers for a couple hours and spent a mere few minutes with the friends we actually knew. The range of speed at this point was huge.  The pros running past us were booking and it was painful to watch some of the age groupers walk so slowly, knowing they had 13 miles to go.

Spectating with a toddler was challenging, but I am glad we did it.  She even got into it at some points, clapping and cheering for the "runners".  Congrats to all the finishers and I hope you are feeling great about your accomplishments today!

-Coach A www.sparkmultisport.com

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