Couch to 226km. My first year in triathlon

I am not an Ironman. I am a 53-year-old overweight bloke who has spent far too much time in recent years being dominated by a significant ‘F’ in my life, ‘Ferries’. Running an Irish Sea ferry company has taken my focus away from 3 other far more important F’s in my life, family, friends, and fitness.

The transport industry is 24/7 and it’s all too easy to get sucked into an unhealthy work-life balance which I have done in spades. Pile onto that challenging family life in recent times and it is easy to understand why a pork pie or a chocolate bar, or both seems like a really good idea at the time.

I’ll not bore you with all the details, but our son Will 22 has been through a lot in recent years. His experience has impacted the whole family not least Meg my wife and Bess our 20-year-old daughter. So, when Will re-discovered fitness and started getting into the idea of triathlon it seemed like a positive opportunity for change.

In July 2022 Will suggested to Meg that she should buy me an entry into Bolton Ironman for my 52nd birthday on July 20. Meg thought that this was a stupid idea but connected with the idea of me getting fit again and so instead brought me an Apple watch. Proudly wearing my new Apple watch Will told me about his idea and on the 28 July 2022 we both booked for Bolton. Neither of us had ever done a triathlon previously. Double win I had a new watch and an entry for Ironman! But just 11 months to train.

Apparently, triathlon includes biking which I have enjoyed over the years, running which is defo not my thing apart from a very slow Great North run many years ago, and also swimming front crawl. The full Ironman that I would attempt is a 2.4 mile (3.8 km) swim, a 112 mile (180 km) bike then a full 26.2 mile (42 km) marathon! The swimming presented me with the first significant issue as after two or three practice sessions it was clear that I would always run out of breath after less than 25m. Not being able to do a length was a major initial concern and I spent endless hours watching YouTube videos trying to understand the basics. Effortless Swimming became my go-to channel, although the reality in the pool was far from effortless.

The initial challenge was to do 400m without stopping as my first Tri was to be the Lancaster Uni event in early September. Proudly donning my new Decathlon tri suit I got in and set off confidently but promptly ran out of breath on the second length, and had to breaststroke the rest of the way. The transition was a fumble fest, but the bike went OK, followed by a Mr. McPlodmister session around the 5km run. However, I had done my first triathlon and my first interaction with some COLTS who all seemed very friendly and supportive.

Joining COLTS (City of Lancaster Triathlon Club) and attending a session was a big thing for me. I must admit that I went to a couple of swim sessions incognito, swimming in the public lanes, next to COLTS, trying to gauge just how much of an idiot I would make of myself if I actually went and joined in properly. Finally, I took the plunge, and the ‘Getting Faster’ lane soon became my safe place surrounded by some lovely COLT ladies as the real triathletes thrashed around in the ‘Fast Lane’. Slowly but surely my swimming improved. Capernwray sessions with Ceri were the next step, remembering each time to set my watch to 18m. Probably the proudest moment of my swimming career was Ceri telling me to move over to the middle lane, where I firmly stayed for the rest of my training.

Bike training was largely on Zwift in the winter which fits in well with family life although I probably maintained an overly optimistic view of my biking ability given it was the only one of the three disciplines that I had done before. As spring sprung joining a few COLT Sunday rides was again scary enough wondering if I would be dropped. As it turned out it was OK, I was only dropped on the hills which unfortunately did seem to feature frequently on any of Lorna’s routes! Running was also a challenge, I did bits, gradually increasing my distance slightly but did not do enough. Hearing about the idea of running 9 mins and walking 1 was a slight turning point for me and I tended to use this for the rest of my training.

A few smaller events were entered to test out my new skills, including some Parkruns, a Lancaster half marathon from Trimple in Morecambe, and the Ormskirk West Lancs Spring Tri where for the first time I swam the distance without resorting to breaststroke.

The Oxygen Addict Podcast was excellent as I learned about nutrition and other aspects of triathlon which proved to be helpful, although I never actually used a coach, apart from Will who would phone me with advice regularly.

My first real test was a solo half Ironman in the wrong order with an early morning 90km on Zwift followed by 1900m in the Uni Pool, then a canal-side half marathon. This gave me the confidence to book for the Outlaw Half in Nottingham which went well for me with a time of just over 6 hours. Will did brilliantly, beating fellow COLTS Brett and Adam over the line but equally enjoying a chat and food with them afterward. My new COLT tri-suit seemed to generate some cheers around the course and I was beginning to feel part of something, despite calling Adam ‘Brett’ every time I met him. Sorry, Adam, I am crap with names.

My next bike challenge came with the Fred Whitton, which I have done twice previously, but was delighted to get my best time ever at just over 8hrs 30min. I then started to ride the Bolton course including one lap of it starting and finishing in Lancaster which helped to build my confidence and endurance.

As the weather improved it was time to hit Capernwray and I quickly realised that swimming in deep clear water over divers, sunken helicopters and large fish was well outside of my comfort zone. A few initial sessions were cut short as my breathing went haywire and I had to breaststroke back to shore. Seeing how effortlessly people like Laura Bain transferred from pool to open water motivated me to stick with it, and 3 x 1-to-1 lessons from Ceri had a huge impact on my open water ability.

Before Bolton, my final test was to try a solo metric Ironman with some long transitions for Teams calls and emails. Nevertheless, I did manage to swim 2400m, do 112km on Zwift, and then run 26.5km on what turned out to be one of the hottest days of the year. A short holiday in Greece provided some excellent open water practice and much to my surprise I swam over 10 km over the 7 days. Once home a couple of laps of the bike course with fellow COLTS and I was ready, or so I thought!

And so, to Bolton and the mind games began. Mostly negatively, unfortunately. Dropping off my bike at T1 on Saturday was a nightmare. The wind was awful, and I made the mistake of going to look at the swim course at Pennington Flash where wave conditions appeared to be like a bad day on the Irish Sea. Getting a text from daughter Bess late on Saturday evening wishing me good luck whatever happened and saying how proud she was of me was a hugely emotional moment as I tried to get some rest. Sleep was limited as the alarm sounded at 0400 hrs I wasn’t too sure how the day would unfold.

The primary challenge at the start appeared to be the queue for the toilets but a quick adventure into the undergrowth got me to the start on time where it appeared that a completely random self-seeding system had me standing next to a large tree and the incredible Mr Nick Hewitt. I finally got into the water at 0615 hrs and despite the waves and mucky water I just settled into it and concentrated on my breathing. ‘Just keep swimming‘ I kept telling myself and so I did. A year ago, the swim was my nemesis so to get around in 1 hr 22, with zero breaststroke, was for me at least a fantastic achievement.

The bike leg started well but it soon became apparent that it was slightly windier than I had hoped for. In the build-up, I had said to the family that I didn’t mind rain or even the sun but I didn’t want the wind. It was without doubt quite windy. Jeanie passed me confidently as we approached Tottington on lap one and as I shouted encouragement, I knew that was probably the last I would see of her, she was looking really strong.

COLT Alley (where the City of Lancaster Triathlon Club stands to support) was incredible with huge support from COLTS that I knew but also from many that I didn’t. On lap 1 the guy I was cycling alongside (not drafting) asked me ‘What the hell was that’? It was just some fellow COLT’s I said. His response ‘Well they are f**king amazing’. Very true!

The next 2 laps got progressively slower, I started to back-calculate the 10.5 hrs cut-off time. Would I make it? Hanging onto the bike in the crosswind descents in Darwin was exciting but as my left knee started to twinge on lap 3, I started to doubt myself. In the final few kilometers of the bike, I began to think about the justification I would give to my family for stopping after the bike. The reasons why it was sensible to give up. Not wanting to damage my knee further.

Bolton was without doubt a challenging bike course with over 3,000 m of elevation and then the high winds thrown in for good measure.

As I got to transition, I took a deep breath, I changed from my tri-suit into some shorts and a top and I decided to just try the first of the 4 x laps. As I started to run my knee amazingly started to feel better and I quickly got sucked into the crowd support, the atmosphere, and as many gels, jelly babies, crisps, water, and Gatorade that I could stuff into my mouth. I remember listening to someone saying smile your way around, thank every marshal and aid station volunteer, and have fun with the crowd. For the next 40 km that’s just what I did and without a doubt it got me through. From the drunken blokes on the wall singing at the top of their voices to the 4 x ladies counting my laps by how many champagne bottles they had consumed, to the young kids with their high fives, and the cardboard power-ups that actually did seem to have a positive impact. Even the random bloke that screamed at me to stop walking, thank you, I did.

And to the other athletes, for your mutual encouragement, for the laughter, and for the ‘craic’ which ‘was mighty’ (as they say in Ireland). The great thing about the run course was seeing other COLTS, some of whom I met for the first time on the run. Well done to all the COLT participants in 2023.

On the final lap, I got talking to a seasoned Ironman who had done over 40 events. he told me this had been the hardest he had ever done. I could only agree!

As dusk approached, I made it to the finish line in a time of 15:12:47. 'ALISTAIR EAGLES YOU ARE AN IRONMAN' blasted across the PA system. Seeing Meg, Will, and our friend Jamie there to cheer me home, in addition to the die-hard COLT supporters was amazing. (Swim 1:22:58, Bike 8:23:08, Run 5:10:58)

The last 12 months have given me a new focus, I have learned to swim, I have overcome’ish my fear of joining new groups, and slowly have started to become part of something that for me at least has always been a challenge. And for the first time in the last 30 years, I spent a solid 15 hours thinking about something other than the Irish Sea ferry industry. The 15 hours of Ironman was the longest I have ever spent away from my mobile phone, which I am glad to say was genuinely incredible.

My triathlon journey started with my son Will who in the end had to defer his entry due to a slight niggle with his left knee. Now that Bolton is no longer, he has decided to enter Ironman Austria for 2024, and bizarrely I have decided to join him, so another Ironman looms!

Ultimately Ironman UK in Bolton was an amazing experience and I have no doubt that Ironman has changed me. I have a small tear in my eye as I try and conclude this rather long race report.

The last 12 months have been especially challenging at work and at home and one of my goals that I never really achieved was to lose some weight through all the training. As Maggie Wild told me this Wednesday at Capernray ‘You probably need to eat less’. Thank you all for your continued guidance!

However, it does appear that I am an Ironman after all! But that is just the medal around the neck. For me, it has genuinely meant much more than just that.

Thank you all so much. Thank you fellow COLTS. And a final huge thank you to my wife Meg for your support and patience through the long hours of training.

And for anyone reading this and considering if you could accomplish an Ironman or other distance triathlon then my advice would be just go for it. Life is short, but if I can do it, then really anything is possible!