2019 IRONMAN World Championships: A Rookie's Day in Kona

2.4 Mile Swim ~ 112 Mile Bike ~ 26.2 Mile Run

I thought this pic was fire 🔥🔥 Proudly showed it to my Dad, who proceeded to tell me that I looked like a horse, with a mane and all. It's still my favorite pic from the race though 😏 This is around mile 20. I could finally see town. I was less than 10K from the finish. And for the first time in 11 hours I thought to myself "Wow, I am actually going to be an IRONMAN."

Yes, that's right. This was my first IRONMAN. How I got a slot....
I am 100% honest about the fact that I didn't qualify. I take no pride in this. I have so much respect for the folks that earned their spot by winning their Age Group at a qualifying race, or raced 12+ IRONMANS (Legacy Program), as well as those that raised thousands for charity. But after my crash at IRONMAN 70.3 Texas in April... where I looked like this...

..I truly felt like 'you only live once, seize the moment.' So when my sponsor (HOKA ONE ONE) offered me a golden ticket 8 weeks before the race I reached out to the key people in my 'athletic' life - my Dad, my Coach (Jonathan Caron), my Mentor (Dan Empfield), and my 'Agent' (Eric Gilsenan). They all gave me the green light. And there you have it.

My only concern was if my body could handle everything in such a short span of time. Keep in mind that I went from trying to qualify for my pro card in the half distance a few months ago to waking up in the hospital being sewn back together, sucking food through a straw, broken nose, unable to turn my head, loose teeth, and having to live with my parents for weeks.

My coach pretty much had me on the 'recover, rebuild, test your fitness before Kona' torpedo plan.

But I did it.. we did it!! I fought so hard to get back. I lined up at IRONMAN 70.3 Augusta two weeks ago and went to work. Result: 6th amateur overall (3 spots short / 4 minutes shy of a pro card), fastest amateur run split, and 16th woman overall including pros. I felt both relief and pride! I also felt like "heck, I'm tough, maybe just maybe I can make it through a full ironman, THE ironman."

Journey to Kona
Disclaimer: I'll try my best not to use a lot of expletives to describe my first IRONMAN, the World Championships. But that was some crazy sh*t.

They don't call it the world's toughest endurance event for nothing. Between the chiseled, half naked athletes running around everywhere (I kept myself clothed!) to the uber expensive equipment all packed into a quarter mile radius; I was intimidated!! I kept thinking "what the eff did I get myself into.. I need to stop listening to men".

The famous pier. No need to rob a bank, just hold this place hostage. Millions of dollars worth of bikes in a confined space!!

I flew in on Tuesday and tried my best to quickly adjust to the time zone change (6 hours), heat, and humidity. The folks at HOKA were wonderful. Even though I'm a scrub 😜 they shuttled me wherever I needed to go. I was treated like a professional athlete.

Got to hang out with Lloyd who thankfully distracted me and shared some tips about the course.

Dad flew in on Thursday and all was right with the world again.

2.4 Mile Swim in Kailua Bay: 1 hour 20 minutes geezus
From the moment I entered the water until the time I got out, it was a strugglefest. I found the water extremely choppy. The exact opposite of what I had been training in all week. I was instructed to stay on feet and draft as much as I could, but I just couldn't hang on because I was being tossed all over the place. The first 1.2 miles weren't so bad, but after I swam around the turnaround "boat" (it's a big *ss yaht!! I felt lied to!), I really struggled the last mile. I consumed so much salt water I began to pray that it didn't have some kind of colonic effect on me. I mean .. who really wants to take a laxative then go ride 112 miles?!

By the time I reached land I was in shock. In fact my Dad said "that was the first time you didn't acknowledge me in a race." I heard him cheering but I was too disturbed by the whole experience to even give a thumbs up. So yeah ... that sums up my horrid swim. But you know what's crazy? I thought I was out there for two hours. 40 minutes faster than expected gave me a glimmer of hope!

Next we ran through the shower hoses, which I really wanted to spend more time in. You know, wash off the salt water. But noooo everyone just kept sprinting. So no soothing shower for me. Onto the bike I went.

112 Mile Bike: 6 hours 26 minutes wow

I had an amazing first 40 miles. I felt great. I was averaging about 20 mph. Nutrition was on point. I was able to grab a water bottle through every aid station. I even managed to have a brief convo with Petey who wizzed by on the back of a moped and took the pic below. I mentioned to him that the wind was picking up....

Photo courtesy of Rook Productions Media

Then my day went south FAST. I was in aero one minute, making the ascent to Hawi, and the next thing I knew I was on the ground looking up at the sky. I heard that the crosswinds were bad - like 30 mph bad - but what scared me the most was that you couldn't anticipate them. (Coach later told me that I'm not the first to get blown off and won't be the last)

A super nice competitor pulled over, unclipped, and helped me up. We gathered my bottles and nutrition off the road (yay for not littering). He asked if I was alright or if he needed to flag down a medic vehicle to take me back. I mumbled something like "heck no, I'm finishing this damn race" and got back on my bike.

Unfortunately my bike was not ok. I broke both aero bar shifters and ripped the tape off of the right aero bar, which was a bummer because my sweaty palm kept slipping when I was in aero.

I cried for the next 20 miles. Fogged up my visor and everything smh. Plus I had to sit up like this for about 80% of the ride back down Hawi and onto the Queen K.

Once I got over the pity party I had thrown for myself, I refocused my attention on completing the bike leg. Did I consider dropping out? Of course. But the truth is, I had one job: cross the finish line. Whether it took me 12 hours or 16 hours. I was there to finish. I see nothing wrong in a DNF. You have to assess why you are there. Everyone's circumstance is different. I was not seriously injured and I didn't have a mechanical that stopped me from riding, so - to be blunt - I didn't have a good enough reason to quit.

26.2 Mile Run / The Marathon - 3:37 help
What on Earth... I got off my bike and tried to run... like all the other people in front of me. Nope. Wasn't happening. My legs were jello. I entered the "Bike to Run Transition Tent" and plopped my pathetic behind in one of those folding chairs. Volunteer comes over:
  Volunteer: Are you ok?
  Me: I mean.. not really
  Volunteer: Would you like some water?
  Me: Yes, that sounds wonderful... drinks water
  Volunteer: Would you like some gatorade?
  Me: Ohhhh yes, that sounds great ... drinks gatorade.. and if she offers wine I'll drink that too
  Volunteer: Are you sure you're ok?
  Me: Yeah I'm just trying to convince myself to go out and run a marathon now.
  Volunteer: I don't know how you folks do it!
  Me: 😭

Keeping in mind that I was staying at the Seaside hotel, literally located around the freakin corner from the tent (no lie), I had to dig deep in the well to keep moving and resist temptation to call it a day.

I shuffled my decrepit *ss back onto the course and made a pact with myself that I was going to be brave and go for it. I think it was a mix of stupidity and arrogance, but I went through the first half of the course entirely way too fast (goal was to break 3:20..yep.. stupid) ...

I saw Coach Jonny at mile 3 on Alii Drive and he began yelling "take it easy.. slow down Sika." But noooo, I was stubborn. Again, at mile 6, he told me to be conservative. I was surprisingly feeling really good. Had a great rhythm going, then flipping Palani happened. I wanted to walk up that freakin long mountain hill. Unfortunately, the women from Self Magazine were there cheering for me (I did an interview earlier in the week). My pride wouldn't let me walk in front of them (thank you guys <3). So I carried on and powered up the hill, turned on the Queen K...

Courtesy of Bill Flanagan

....and truly learned what suffering in a race felt like. I've hit the wall before, wanted to drop out of marathons, etc, but this was on another level. I went through the half marathon point in 1:41.. then .. Wow! I could no longer take in nutrition. Only fluids. My stomach was wrecked. I switched from water/Gatorade to Red Bull. And in total desperation began chugging Coke which I haven't had in 15 years!

The run through the Energy Lab made me question my sanity. Between all the coke, the heat, peeing on myself (OMG) and knowing I still had to run 8 more miles... I was just wanting the misery to end! My entire body ached. The sun was setting and the roads felt so lonely. I began to count down "ok it's just a 10K... now it's just an 8K... just a 5K Sika you can do this". Before I knew it I was running down the hill and could hear Mike Reilly's voice echo within the IRONMAN Village.

"Sika Henry you are an IRONMAN"

Those words made it all worth it!!! There was nothing like it. What an experience! I crossed the finish line in 11 hours and 35 minutes. While the competitor in me wishes I was faster (I predicted a much faster bike and thought I had a sub 3:20 marathon in me somewhere), I did what I could with what I had. No regrets!

Thank you Dad for flying to Georgia and screaming for me all over the IRONMAN 70.3 Augusta course. Then less than two weeks later making the 11 hour flight to Kona to be my Sherpa at the IRONMAN World Championships. I love having you as my sidekick!

How I celebrated...

I finally got to have some wine!! I gave up wine and coffee - per Mom's orders - she was afraid of me getting dehydrated: "Work hard then play hard". Thanks for the tips Mom ;-)

Memories for life...
Thank you HOKA ONE ONE for gifting me this opportunity. In a time where we still read about women losing sponsorship for getting pregnant, I can say that HOKA actually increased their support of me right after my crash.

Thank you for connecting me with 6x IRONMAN World Champ Dave Scott! Fun Q & A I got to do with Dave: https://www.hokaoneone.com/blog?postid=sika-dave-kona

"Do what you can do in the moment" ~Dave Scott

Women of HOKA Panel with IRONMAN icon Julie Moss and HOKA President Wendy Yang

Thank you Eric for including me on this panel. It was a special moment for me! I was so honored to be seated next to these two women.

My Coach ... compatibility is hard to find. I really lucked out.

You wouldn't believe everything Coach Jonny and I soldiered through these past 6 months. Some days my body wouldn't cooperate, and other days I mentally shut down. I'm sure training me was like figuring out a giant jigsaw puzzle. Thank you for sticking with me. Now we get to do it again for another season... ain't life grand.

One of the highlights of my trip:

I'm not really someone that likes to have a camera in my face following me places, but boy am I happy Greg Browning was here to capture this moment. Drone footage: my coach is swimming in the lead, I'm drafting behind and we ran into a pod of dolphins!!

Dan!!!!!!!!!

Where would I be without you? Definitely not in this sport. My Dad said "the only way this trip could have been better is if I got to hang out with Dan" .. what the hell. Brothers from another mother.

"The race is not to the swift or strong but to those that endure to the end"

There are so many more talented athletes out there. I often times feel undeserving of all the help I've received. Nonetheless, I am eternally grateful for the companies that support me and help me chase my dreams:
- Shawn and Mark aka Zoot Sports - thank you for checking in on me throughout my recovery. And of course I LOVED rocking this custom Ultra Tri DragZero race kit (with special ice pockets and a message sewn inside). I felt like a bad *ss on the course.
- In & Out Express Care - Dana - I'm sure you thought to yourself "Again, Sika, really?!?" when I said I crashed and needed to come in for X-rays. Thank you for taking excellent care of me this season. Having local support means a lot to me.
- Point 2 Running Company - Andrea - You sponsored me when I was "just a runner" and not even a fast one! Point 2 has literally become my emergency stop. I always run in there frantically 2 days before I fly out for a race smh.

Photo Credit: Rook Productions Media

Cervelo, HED., ISM - I literally get to ride my dream bike because of you <3

Last but not least, thank you Sfuels (nutrition), Saris (bike trainer), HUSO (recovery), and Hawaii Blue (skin care)... it takes a village!

Up next...

Recovery! Then (hopefully) a full, healthy race season filled with plenty of IRONMAN 70.3s! My #1 goal for 2020 is to earn my pro card.

You can follow along at: https://www.instagram.com/sikahenry/

IRONMAN 70.3 Augusta: Redemption

"Goal": Qualify for my Pro Card (top 3 amateur overall)

Result: 6th Amateur (at the second largest half ironman in the US!)

I fell 3 places short (4 minutes shy) of my "Goal" - which I put in quotes because you wouldn't believe how often it changed over the span of 6 months. I actually registered for this race before my crash at IRONMAN 70.3 Texas in April (competitor swerved into me, I ended up on the opposite side of the rode). When I woke up in the ER and learned what happened I thought "never again" and said goodbye to triathlon. 

I temporarily moved in with my parents and underwent a lot of procedures

However, two days later, when I was reunited with my family, I decided that I would do everything in my power to get healthy and fit enough to be on the start line in Augusta. It was just too soon to throw away my dreams without a fight. But boy oh boy... I had no idea how difficult the 6-month journey back would be. I felt vulnerable, weak, mentally and physically destroyed. I developed infections from the road rash, I couldn't eat solid food because I knocked my teeth loose and had to wear a splint. Forget looking in the mirror, it made me nauseous. Broken nose, stitches EVERYWHERE. It was a lot to take in. I even lost range of motion and couldn't lift my head nor turn it right/left. I was a mess.

This is me in my over sized diaper with my Dad who is teaching me how to walk. My mother is behind the camera watching closely.

This is how I felt for the first 2 months.

But I never lost sight of Augusta, and my coach (Jonathan Caron) did everything in his power to help me slowly regain fitness. His motto was "we will find a way". I couldn't turn my head so he had me swim with a snorkel. When I couldn't handle high intensity we scaled back on effort and increased volume. Still, things did not go smoothly. I had a very hard time stringing together workouts. The number of doctor appointments left me drained, my dental issues left me hungry and moody, and I felt depressed at work because I didn't want to be "seen". But, like most things, I had to be patient and let time run it's course.

I began to work on things I did have control over: I got my butt out of bed early and worked one-on-one with a strength conditioning coach (Danielle Kearns) before work, received weekly treatments from Rene' Johnson and slowly regained mobility....

Me: I should have taken the year off after my crash

Danielle: But you didn't. You're here now so let's do this!

I also received this dream machine - the new Cervelo P3X with HED wheels, ISM seat, tubeless Schwalbe tires:

Photo courtesy of Shelly Liebler

I've had a lot of people tell me that they would never get back on a bike again if they had a crash similar to mine. Truth is, when I woke up in the hospital I thought I had been in a car wreck on the way home from the race. My mind never associated the accident with a bike crash which made it a heck of a lot easier to get back on one; the brain is an interesting organ! Plus ... come on, look at that bike!!!  For my first post-crash ride I took it for a 60-mile "spin".

As the weeks went on, my fitness came back and the feelings of despair began to disappear.

I rode .... A LOT. Thank you Dylan for pushing me!

Then ... 2 weeks before IRONMAN 70.3 Augusta... it happened.. AGAIN. I crashed. Not nearly as severe, but still, it was my fault and it really shook me up. Long story short I leaned over to drink from my aero bottle, by the time I looked up I was on my friend's wheel, broke hard and over corrected... nearly took her out! I went straight to In and Out Express Urgent Care for X-rays and to have my head checked because it took quite a beating. (I thought about leaving this part out, but I don't sugar coat my life. It isn't perfect. I make mistakes. I'm just a regular chick, with a corporate job and a crazy hobby).

Only superficial injuries. Thank God!!

I called Dan (Empfield) the next day and pretty much decided that this was it. I was quitting. His response: "You're just getting warmed up".

IRONMAN 70.3 Augusta

I was so excited to be with my family <3

Mike (Reed) and I trained hard for this race! His lovely wife Chelsea and my parents planned to be all over the course to cheer and give splits. I love you guys!

Wheel-Gate

You know how I mentioned earlier that I make mistakes. Well... I made a big one. A HUGE one. When I got to my hotel room I unzipped my Scicon Bike bag, pulled out my new HED Vanquish disc rear wheel, opened the other compartment and.... pulled out ANOTHER HED rear wheel. Yep! I packed TWO rear wheels. I began to hyperventilate. Literally. My parents tried to calm me down and figure out what was going on, but every time I went to speak the words couldn't come out. I began to cry. Soooo.. this would have been an easy fix except for the fact that I have a thru axle and disc brakes. Basically the newest equipment on the market. I called every bike shop and stopped by every wheel rental booth at the Ironman expo. My only option was to buy a set from ORR. Let's not even talk about how much I spent! But problem solved.. it is what it is. (If anyone wants a brand new pair of disc brake ORR wheels, I have some to sell at a discount. They're at Village Bicycles.)

Ran into Ironman Champ Lionel Sanders!!

Sent this pic to my coach and he called me a groupie 😜

The Race

   Me: I feel like I'm in the best shape of my life. Am I fooling myself??

   Coach Jonny: It's so hard for me to answer this because I feel similar to you... it's like you just had an 18-wheeler truck run over you and I'm staring at you saying in my head.... ''well, she is in pretty good shape, there is no reason for her to be...but she is'' .. but don't focus on how you will do, focus on how to maximize your current fitness/condition and we will see how it turns out.

Swim Start: My series of unfortunate events continued... I'm lined up, about to head out on the pier, put my new swimskin on and asked Mike to zip me up. POP! I made some joke about over-carbo loading but I secretly wanted to cry. My non-aquatic behind was going to have to swim without a swimskin. I felt like my race was over before it began. But then my friend Erica Lazarus did one of the kindest, most selfless gestures and took hers off to give to me. I felt terrible accepting it!! But she said to me "well now I get to be part of your journey." BTW she ended up winning her age group ;-)

1.2 Mile Swim - 31:21

This expression pretty much sums up my swim!

143rd amateur woman. As someone once told me (who will remain nameless), you "stunk up the water". Sure did! Not only did I take forever, I wore myself out in the process. Go figure. Luckily the race doesn't end here.

56 Mile Bike - 2:41 
Not to sound like a complete cornball but this was a very emotional ride for me. The last time I did this I was knocked out on the pavement by mile 4. Every time I saw a 5-mile marker I smiled and rejoiced, thankful that I made it a little further down the road. I was hyper-vigilant the entire ride, making sure to yell "on your left" loudly every time I passed someone, constantly looking over my shoulder to make sure I wasn't cutting anyone off, keeping my distance from other cyclists, and sitting up on turns and blind spots.

This course was far more challenging than I expected - they changed it this year and made it harder (that's why splits were slower than previous years). Coach Jonny told me to take it easy on the climbs (don't go above FTP), tuck in aero on the downhills (I ended up riding my brakes... ptsd?), and go to work on the flats.

I did ... I went all out on the flats. Didn't hold back at all. And it paid dividends. I rode my way from 143rd amateur woman to 30th. For the first time, I can finally say that I'm turning into a stronger cyclist (6th fastest in my age group). All of those 60 - 80 - 100 mile rides this summer + strength training + an awesome piece of equipment (Cervelo P3X) lead to massive gains.

Working the flat sections

When I saw the 55-mile marker and began to approach transition, I had the biggest smile on my face. Relieved that I made it back unscathed and proud of myself for facing my fears and giving it my all for 56 miles.

Approaching the dismount line

Photo courtesy of James Crumlin .. thanks for the cheers!!

13.1 Mile Run (half marathon) - 1:31 *fastest amateur woman*

There was actually an out and back section towards the end of the bike. It was the only time I was able to get a sense of where I was place wise. I counted at least 20 women wayyyy ahead. I knew I was going to have to run my *ss off if I wanted to get on the podium. 

I passed my parents and Chelsea within the first mile and that gave me some much needed energy. I briefly glanced at my Mom's face and could tell how relieved she was that I was off the bike and on the run course. Me too Mom, me too! I took in some nutrition and kept reminding myself to grab water, gatorade and ice at every aid station. It was getting HOT... upper 80s / low 90s at this point I believe.

I began to click off 6:45/6:50 miles (sub-1:30 pace). My Dad later asked me if I went out too fast. Nope! Coach didn't even give me rules to follow, he just said "do what you do." I figured it was best to go out fast early because it was only going to get hotter as the miles went on. I knew my body would begin to shut down later, but if I could hold it together and still maintain a faster pace then the other women then maybe I'd be in contention.

Thank you for the cheers Tony! I can't believe I spoke English.

The first 4 miles of loop one were great. Spectators lined the streets and I passed the BTA (Black Triathletes Association) tent where I was greeted with lots of cheers :-) Then things dramatically shifted. I began to suffer. My pace slowed and I wanted to walk. I just focused on making it to mile 6. I had to break the race up into small achievable goals. Aid stations became my docking station where I would "recharge" and I pretended that every cheer I heard was personally for me.

Through all of the suffering I was still passing 2-3 women each mile. On the second lap Khadijah shouted to me that I was moving up the leaderboard and running 40 sec/mile faster than some of the women ahead. I mumbled something back in gibberish. I wanted to walk like you wouldn't believe so I was grateful that she was giving me stats throughout the race. It was so hard though!! I began to talk to myself..."you're a warrior...you've gotten through much worse... you're one of the toughest chicks out here ... blah blah blah."

With less than 2 miles to go Chelsea began to sprint parallel to me on the sidewalk encouraging me to keep fighting and passing people. I did. I ran my way into 6th place for amateur woman and crossed the line in an official time of 4:49:10.

My parents were there to greet me and it was a very emotional moment. I was bummed that I missed a top 3 spot. I think I even said something to the tune of "maybe I'm just not cut out for this sport" to my Mom. However, now that I've had time to reflect on everything - the crash, recovery, training, and race - I realized something about myself: I am tough! I know how to put up a good fight. Less than 6 months ago I was physically and mentally broken, but I didn't let it destroy my spirit or take away my drive to compete. While my best wasn't good enough to qualify me for a pro card, I KNOW I did everything in my power to give myself a shot.

One final race for the year...
I am doing my first full IRONMAN next weekend, and it's a HUGE one. I'm flying to Kona to participate in the *drumroll* IRONMAN World Championships in Hawaii!!! I've been keeping this a secret because 1) I wanted to make sure I could get through Augusta first, 2) I did not "earn" my spot in Kona - it was a gift from my sponsor HOKA ONE ONE (they get a slot since they sponsor the race, they offered me the golden ticket), and 3) honestly, I'm sensitive and wasn't sure I could handle criticism for being given a slot. Still, I'm putting it out there. I accepted the slot. I am bib # 404 and I'm going to give my all on Saturday, October 12th. I have no time goals. I respect the distance. I respect the race. The best of the very best athletes in the world will be there and I'm just honored to share the course with them. To even finish a 2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike, and marathon run is commendable. I will follow whatever race plan my coach gives me and hopefully that will be enough to cross the finish line with my head held high.

You can follow my personal Kona journey via my Instagram page (link also below) where I will be posting frequently over the next week. I will also be taking over HOKA's Instagram story this weekend so please follow them as well: https://www.instagram.com/hokaoneone/

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Sika Henry (@sikahenry) on Sep 29, 2019 at 7:43pm PDT

Thank you to my family, friends, and companies that supported me this season (Sponsors: HOKA ONE ONE, Zoot Sports, In & Out Express Care, Point 2 Running Company; Support: Sfuels, Cervelo, ISM, HED Wheels, Village Bicycles, Hawaii Blue, HUSO, Saris). You did not have to ride the roller coaster with me, but you did. I am forever grateful <3

Cheers!