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Andrew Wathen - Ironman Wales 2023

I’d like to start by thanking Hereford Tri Club, STC and my partner Ruth Parry as without you this journey wouldn’t have been possible.

Preamble

The journey began back in Jan 23 when I stumbled upon a conversation between Richard Cawley and Darren Gibbons after a S & C session regarding Ironman Wales. They were muting the fact that they were about to enter. Sounds interesting but not for me, if I’m going to do a Full Distance I want to do an “easy” one, thinking something like Outlaw with a boating lake swim and relatively flat bike and run course. Anyway the next week I turn up to S & C and Darren calls me over. If you sign up to Ironman Wales then I’ve got something that you can have for free. Free!! Well that caught my attention, we all love something free, like a T-Shirt at the end of a race!!! Turns out if I signed up for Wales, Darren was willing to offer me a free coaching plan. A 32-week training plan to get me Ironman ready. Well, who can refuse something free so that night I went home booked Ironman Wales and overnight accommodation.

Training

The 32-week training plan put together by STC began middle of January and has been brilliant. It was great to have a structure to work to each week. I knew exactly which workouts I had to do and had the flexibility to move them around to fit in as best they could with my lifestyle. I went from running as fast as I could for as long as I could, to running as slow as I could for as short a time as possible. A very strange concept which I have questioned several times but appears to have worked. STC worked with me to continuously tweak my plan to ensure continued progress. The swim coaching I have received on Tuesday has been brilliant and helped me improve my speed and technique whilst at the same time conserving energy. My focus throughout the whole year was Ironman Wales but a few races were thrown in just so I could see where I was. I managed a ½ marathon and marathon PB, and improved my Outlaw Half time by about 10 minutes (still not enough to catch Andy T who seemed to be on overdrive that day) so I knew my training was going well.

STC was coaching three triathletes (if you can call us that) so a WhatsApp group was created so we could keep each other in the loop with how our training was going, and arrange meet ups to train together. After a few weeks one of the triathletes had to drop out so we were down to the three amigos (Richard Cawley, Darren Gibbons and myself). About 8 weeks out Darren picked up an injury which was going to keep him out for a month or so therefore his participation was looking less likely. Two weeks out Richard Cawley messaged to say he’d injured his foot so I was thinking it was going to be just me left on the start line. Fortunately both Richard and Darren recovered in time to be able to participate so the three of us entered the swim together.

I’d been giving the training week countdown on the WhatsApp group from week 32, before I knew it we were 2 weeks out. That’s when the panic starts to set in. What should I do during taper, what kit do I need to take? What food should I be eating? For the taper I continued to follow the training plan which was now only requiring me to do light exercise. As for the kit I must have laid everything out and put it into the individual race bags several times but I still wasn’t convinced I had everything. I even took photos of all the kit and sent it to Richard and Darren so they could check over and make sure I hadn’t missed anything. Darren had told me a story of a guy in transition next to him during last years Ironman Wales who’d forgotten his bike shoes and hadn’t realized until he got into T1. That was his race over and therefore I was keen not to make any similar kind of errors. I’d worked too hard to get this far just to mess it up with a kit issue.

Registration

I arrived at the Expo Friday afternoon. The plan was to register Friday afternoon so I could then concentrate on getting all my kit ready Friday night / Saturday morning. We left Hereford at just after 1, giving us plenty of time to arrive at registration, which closed at 5. However the traffic was rubbish and I didn’t arrive until 4:45 giving me 15 minutes to register. I quickly jumped out of the van and ran off to find registration whilst Ruth drove off to find a parking spot. Registration was really quiet so straight to the front of the queue, only to find I had no phone signal which meant I was unable to show my race license and QR code for registration. I was then sent to another desk so they could verify my race registration. At this point I remembered I had planned ahead and taken photos of my license and QR code, panic over, registration complete. I received my Ironman bag and transition bags. Great I’ve got the bag, that’s all I wanted, no need to do the race now!

I strolled off to find Ruth who’d managed to find a parking space around the corner and then we headed off to Kiln Park, which was to be our base for the weekend. Once at the caravan Ruth prepped the evening meal of Lasagna which we’d premade earlier in the week to remove one element of stress, whilst I focused on filling my transition bags and the kids turned their attention to drawing the “touch here for energy” signs. I’d received 4 bags, red, blue, white and pink, this was going to be stressful. Even though I knew the bags I was going to receive and had prepacked everything into individual carriers so that I could just take out of the carrier and put it into the corresponding bag, my head was all over the place, panic was really starting to set in. I must have messaged Darren a hundred times to confirm I was doing things correctly. Bags packed a plan was then made with Darren and Jim (another competitor staying on Kiln Park) to meet in the morning to head up to transition together, time for bed.

Transition setup

I met Darren early Saturday so we could take the bikes for a quick spin to check they were all in working order. This was a beneficial plan as Darren had a minor technical issue which he was able to resolve but could have seriously impacted his race had it happened on race day

Bikes tested we then met Jim and headed up to transition with our bikes, and red and blue bags. The nerves were already starting to set in. As we approached the transition arches deep sighs could be heard as we took in the reality of what we had signed up for. Bikes were racked, a little bit of air removed from the tyres and then bags hung up on our pre-numbered pegs. We then took the opportunity to have a walk around transition so we knew where we were coming in and going out on each of the transitions. It was also a good opportunity to look out for markers to help us easily identify where our bikes were.

Due to commitments Richard wasn’t able to head to Tenby until the Saturday so we thought we’d head up to registration to meet him. It was also an opportunity to buy a finishers T-Shirt and flag, Great I’ve got the finisher T-Shirt, I definitely don’t need to do the race now! Darren spotted a number of triathletes had received an orange Ironman wristband at registration, which he didn’t have so we then spent the next half hour trying to find him one only to be told they had run out. Richard was nowhere to be seen so we tried calling him but no answer. Speculation was made that he had seen sense and decided that an Ironman wasn’t the sensible thing to do.

We headed back to the caravans to rest up and have some more carbs. Shortly after returning to the caravan I heard from Charlotte who’d been in contact with Richard and confirmed that he was just outside Tenby. He was going to make it and the three amigos were going to make the start line.

The Ironkids races take place on the Saturday so Ruth, me and the kids headed back into town to offer some support. It was a great opportunity to start soaking up the atmosphere and offer some support. We met back up with Darren who had heard rumours that due to the heat, inner tubes were bursting all over the place in T1, so we headed over to take a little more air out, just in case.

Finally we managed to meet up with Richard and have a STC team photo so I could head back to the caravan and rest up before the big day, but not before checking Richard had taken a little bit of air out of his tyres too.

Back at the caravan it was the final prep of nutrition and pink bag, then off to bed at 9 for an early night. Tossed and turned all night and couldn’t get to sleep until 12, the alarm went off at 3:45 , at which point I could easily have gone back to sleep. Typical!

Race day

I rolled out of bed, had my porridge and a cup of tea before doing a final kit check, got my tri-suit and wet-suit on then headed down to Darrens caravan for 4:45 to meet Jim and Darren for the walk up. Considering the start wasn’t until 7 I thought this was a little early but the time soon flew by. Jim was already waiting outside. The walk up to transition was relatively relaxed with a bit of joke telling to take our minds off what we were just about to put ourselves through. The streets were really quiet with just the odd competitor trudging the streets and the sound of the drone flying over getting some early morning footage. Richard met us outside of transition, it turns out he hadn’t slept well last night either, he’d been worrying about the amount of air in his tyres!

Before you go into transition you get to drop off your bike and run special needs bags which was great, one less thing to stress about. Into transition, nutrition on bike and tyres inflated and then into the tent for one final kit check. Everything offloaded and final toilet visits done we were then left with our infamous pink bags so the walk to the swim start began. We met Ben Probert briefly for a team photo, then I smothered on the anti-chaffing cream and sun cream, and have one last toilet stop. Ben then headed off further into the queuing athletes to get his place with the faster swimmers. Darren, Richard and myself had already decided we were going to head in with the 1:30 group so we could hopefully avoid the faster swimmers swimming over the top of us. As we got in the queue Richard pointed out we were behind that guy from the TV, we all agreed yep yep definitely him but couldn’t remember his name. It was Mark Lewis Jones (Google him).

The queue to get down to the swim start was slow with a lot of spectators blocking the route trying to get their ideal viewing position. You could sense the tension everyone was going through. This was broken by a spectator trying to get the attention of her husband, Steve. She could see Steve just beyond us and was trying to get his attention but he couldn’t hear. One by one we all started shouting out Steve’s name until we managed to get his attention. He made his way back through the crowd of athletes to his wife for a final kiss before heading back into the crowd accompanied by a big cheer. Awwww. Now get your head back in the game Steve…

The queue finally started moving and we got down to the zig zags where we had to place our pink bags. Unfortunately there was nowhere to sit near where my pink bag was located so I would be having to do this transition standing up.

We made it down onto the beach just before the National Anthem started – this was a great build up to the beginning of the race. It was followed by the iconic Thunderstruck, however by the time this came on we were too far along the beach in the queue to hear it. But we did manage to see the fireworks! Turns out the only reason Ruth came down to the start was to listen to Thunderstruck, she wasn’t interested in seeing how I got on!

The Swim

The female pros headed off at 6:55 followed by waves starting at 7:00. We got to the start line about 7:10, final good luck, goggles on and into the water we went. Despite an improvement in my swimming this was still the element I was least looking forward to. I waded out as far as I could to give myself a chance to acclimatize and then into my swim. The first couple of minutes were a nightmare, the salt water got in my mouth and despite the water looking very calm there was still an undercurrent. A mild panic set in and my breathing became rapid. I knew this was just the initial fear that I would overcome so got myself into a steady rhythm. I made sure to stay out to the right hand side to stay away from flailing arms and legs. In hindsight with the way the current was going I would have been better off starting on the left; as it happens I ended up having to fight the current to keep myself in line for the first buoy.

The swim to the first turn is the shortest, but still a marker to tick off. I was feeling good and headed off along the top section of the triangle. You could feel the current a little bit more when swimming directly against it and the swimmers all started to merge. I found a small group and decided to sit as close as I could to them. This part of the swim takes you past a number of anchored fishing boats and the smell of fish is not the most refreshing.

Before too long I was at the next turn buoy. The way back in was great with the current helping you back in. I made a conscious decision not to push it, it was going to be a long day. About 25m from shore you can stand up so I took this opportunity to get some blood back in my legs. Onto the beach for the Aussie exit and I manage to catch site of Ruth who’d managed to squeeze her way to the front of the crowd. It always gives you a boost to see familiar faces. A quick look at the watch - 40mins. Brilliant! I was hoping for a swim time of between 1hr 15 and 1hr 30 so was on track. Back into the water for lap 2. This time the entry felt a lot easier. The current had picked up and on the swim out to the first buoy I found that I had drifted quite a bit off to the right so realigned and off I went. The swim towards the second turn buoy was definitely more crowded. There were arms and legs everywhere and I was taking a few hits so using a lot of energy holding my ground. I decided to head wide to find some clear water. For about 5 mins the second turn buoy didn’t seem to be getting any closer. 10 strokes, look up, find the turn buoy, repeat. Still I didn’t feel like I was making any progress so I started to use the anchored boats as markers so I could confirm I was moving forward. Finally I got to the turn buoy and the final straight. I found some feet to sit on and just relaxed on the way back in. Again 25m out I stood up to get the blood back in my legs. I took this part very steady as I was feeling a little wobbly. As you exit the swim there are a group of volunteers lined up to help you unzip your wetsuit. This was definitely helpful. Final swim time 1 hour 30 minutes, so the second lap was 10 minutes slower which was strange as I felt I had managed to maintain my stroke all the way. Talking to a number of competitors after, it turns out the current had picked up for the second lap and the majority of people had a slower second lap so not just me.

I’d watched a few YouTube videos in the run up to doing Wales and a number of them highlighted the importance of not getting too excited on the way to T1 and keeping your heart rate low. I stripped the wetsuit down to my waist and started a gentle jog along the beach, managing to catch site of Ruth and give a quick thumbs up to the camera man before hitting the renowned zig zags. I found my bag and started rushing to get my trainers on. Remembered that there was no need to rush so calmed myself, took a swig of water, washed my feet off, toweled them dry and put my trainers on before grabbing an energy bar to eat on my run to transition. The run through the street was epic. The crowd was 5 or 6 deep all the way on both sides! I took my time, soaked up the atmosphere and headed under the arches into T1. I’d already had several discussions with Richard and Darren as to what to wear on the bike and we had all decided that comfort was key. So off with the wetsuit, another towel down and on with the bib shorts before talcing my feet, putting on the long socks, bike shoes, helmet and gloves. Bag hung up and off out to the bike I go. “Numbers to the back” come the shouts from the volunteers. S**t where’s my race number. I couldn’t recall seeing it in my bag, if it had been then surely I would have put it on. Anyway back to my bag I go and rummage around in a mild panic for what feels like hours and then I finally find it. Phew. Race belt on and out to the bike remembering it’s between the L and the M markers and in line with the M of Ironman on the truck. Jog out to the mount line and then off on the bike.

Bike

Garmin started and off I go. I Managed to catch sight of family and friends just as I headed out of town. A quick celebration as the swim is now done and now heading out on the bike. The idea was to not push the bike at any stage; it was going to be a long day. A quick look at the watch to check to see how I was doing time wise only to find it was saying transition, so pressed the button to end transition. It was now telling me the bike leg was complete. What the heck? Decided to make note of the time, just under 2 hours and restart the watch in bike mode. The garmin on my bike had been recording the bike leg from the start so I knew how far into the bike I was, I just need to know how long the overall event was going to take me. The plan was to try and average about 15 mph for the 112 miles.

First section was easy in comparison to the rest of the course. I found myself averaging 17.5 mph without putting in too much effort which was great as I knew this would be needed if I was to achieve 15 mph over the full distance.

I stuck to my plan of drinking every 15 minutes, eating every 30 minutes and taking a gel every 45 minutes (High 5 gels, SIS bars and High 5 electrolytes in the drink). I had enough fuel on my bike to get me through about 80 miles but intended to stop at the bike special needs station to replenish stocks. I didn’t want to use any of the on-course nutrition as I hadn’t used it in training (I was worried it might upset my stomach).

It wasn’t long before the hills came and the average speed gradually started to decrease. My initial target was to get under 100 miles to go as 99 miles sounds so much shorter than 101! The 40 mile marker passed and I was still holding 16.5 mph. In my head, Tenby was about 70 miles into the ride so I’d calculated Wisemans would be at about mile 60 and Saundersfoot hill shortly after that; these were my next targets. I had completely forgotten about the climb through Narbeth. The day was really starting to heat up so I made the decision to start taking on water at every aid station – grabbing a bottle and tucking it into my jersey. I also had some salt tablets so started taking these every hour. I passed the 100 mile marker and thought I can’t wait to get back round to that. By this time the race leaders had already started to go past me. How on earth had they managed to put 40 miles ahead of me? It did mean I got to see Simon Oliver and Nikki Bartlett though.

Wisemans was soon upon me, so granny gear and tapped my way up. There were a number of competitors walking but I persisted and with a bit of standing on the pedals made it to the top. I reached the top alongside another competitor and we both congratulated each other for making it to the top. It was a tough climb and I remember thinking I’ll be walking that the next time around.

The descent into Saundersfoot was soon upon me and the crowds were awesome. I jettisoned one of the Ironman bottles at the bottom of Saundersfoot Hill, tactfully thrown to my dad. Great I’ve now got the Ironman bottle, T-Shirt and bag - now I definitely don’t need to do this! At the top of Heartbreak hill you arrive at the special needs station. I stopped off, put on some more sun tan lotion, had a cheese sandwich, can of Coke and refilled all the nutrition before hopping back on the bike and heading down into Tenby. This section is nice and easy. You can basically freewheel for about 5 miles at a steady speed all the way to the lap 2 point.

Start of lap 2

A competitor pulled alongside me and we were chatting for a few minutes to pass the time when all of a sudden there was a mighty crash behind us! Another competitor had smashed into the curb and had flown off. It was on a straight so very strange. The only thing I could think of was he’d seen the photographer and lost control whilst trying to pose for the photo. Ruth and the kids had said they were going to be outside Kiln park cheering me on so I slowed up to catch sight of them. Unfortunately the tracker was a little glitchy and they thought I was still near Saundersfoot and so hadn’t made their way out to see me until later.

At mile 80 I stopped at a feed station to get more water and use the toilet. Made it back up to Narbeth and then I knew there were just two more hills to go. 100 mile marker passed, woohoo! Not far now and my feet are now starting to hurt so really looking forward to getting off the bike. In the mile or so leading up to Wisemans I made the decision to spin my legs out to give me the best chance of getting up - and I did! Result! Just Saundersfoot to go now. Threw another bottle to my dad at the bottom then off up the climb I went. The crowds had lessoned for the second lap. I’m not surprised, it was a long day to be out supporting. Back into special needs, topped my electrolyte bottle back up so I could have plenty to drink on the way back into Tenby. I also tucked the remainder of the bag down my jersey, I didn’t like the idea of losing a couple of inner tubes and some compressed air. Back on my bike for the final descent. Here I got to see people out on the run for the first time. They must have been having a great race. Down to the roundabout, hang a left up a cheeky little hill through the big crowds of Tenby and then into T2.

My biggest fear on the bike was getting a puncture or having a technical issue that I couldn’t repair. Thankfully neither of these things happened. I found that I was really strong on the uphills and constantly passing people but then they would all come back past me on the descent. So this is something I definitely need to look at going forward. There was only one point on the bike, around mile 90, that I thought I might struggle to make the bike finish, but I overcame this by slowing up a bit and consuming some additional food and drink.

On the second lap there were a large number of competitors coming off their bikes or sat on the verge. I guess the heat had got the better of them, or technical issues had brought them to a halt. I bet they were gutted.

Bike dismounted before the line, steady jog to drop off the bike - look for L and M and then in line with the M of Ironman. Bike racked, garmin taken off the bike and in my back pocket, another toilet stop and back into the change tent to grab my run bag. I changed into running shorts and a vest in the hope that I could trick myself into thinking I was just doing a marathon and hadn’t done the bike and swim first.

Run

It was great to be out of my bike shoes which had really started to dig into the soles of my feet by the end of the bike. This was the first time during the day I allowed myself to think I was going to become an Ironman as long as I took things nice and steady, as I had plenty of time before the cut off. The beginning of the run felt great and I forced myself to run slowly. Beth reinforced this by telling me to take it steady, no need to rush. I got about a mile into the run and the first climb began. I eased back even further. It was shortly after this that my stomach flipped. I knew there was no way I could take on the gels that I had with me, my stomach wouldn’t take anymore so I was going to have to rely purely on the feed station offerings. I got to the first aid station, threw some water over myself to cool off, grabbed two cups of water and two cups of Pepsi to drink. I repeated this process for every aid station I passed although occasionally I would grab some salted crisps or jelly babies. There were also a number of spectators spraying hoses so I took every opportunity to wet my sponge (tucked into the back of my cap) to help keep me cool. I’m so glad I took the sponge. There were a number of competitors who were very jealous of my sponge!

It was on my way up the first hill I saw Ben Probert. He was just turning off to collect a band, and was out of sight before I could offer support. Shortly after I saw Richard running down the hill. “Hey Rich, go on my son!” Pre-race I had assumed we would get out the water about the same time and then he would put some decent time ahead of me on the bike. I had been waiting all day for him to come past me on the bike. I was hoping I could hold his wheel for a bit and enjoy some company. When he hadn’t gone past me I’d incorrectly assumed I must have been in front of him. Richard was about 500 meters ahead of me on the run so I thought I’ll try and jog a little faster so that I can catch up and have a chat. It took a good couple of miles to catch him! During this time I also saw Darren coming in on his bike, he shook his head at me. Something had obviously happened for him to be this far behind.

Richard and I ran together for a bit. Turns out he was out of the water and had had a good bike. He thought he’d dropped me by a large margin on the bike so was surprised to see me. After a while Richard decided the pace was a little quicker than he would have liked so told me to head off. It wasn’t long before I was in the town weaving in and out of the streets. It was here I really struggled. I was on lap 1, still 3 to go and my head just went really light, I thought I was going to pass out. I needed to get to the aid station for more fluids. The heat of the day had taken its toll and I was not in a great place. I walked / jogged to the next aid station where I took on plenty of water, cooled myself off and had some more Pepsi.

Lap 2

Blimey, perhaps I’m not going to become an Ironman after all! Ran past the toilets and then decided to turn around and use them as wasn’t sure how far it was to the next lot. When I came out I could see Richard jogging about 200m in front of me. WTF. I’d only stopped briefly in the toilet. His pace obviously hadn’t dropped off that much. I jogged to catch him back up, which I managed to do just before the big climb back out of Tenby, We decided to walk this together. Being out of town my head felt loads better, and the walk and chat with Richard definitely improved where my head was at. We collected our second bands pretty much together and on the downhill back into Tenby Richard eased back a little which left me running solo.

I got myself into a routine; walk the hill out of town, jog back down it. I knew everytime I went into town I was going to feel light headed so just had to manage it. I also knew where team Wathen, Gibbons and Cawley were stood supporting, so seeing them each lap helped to break each lap up further. I was also running past Lee M and Darren running in the opposite direction during most laps so we got to cheer each other. At one point my daughter Ella walked alongside me to keep me company, ringing her cowbell and chatting to me like we were just on a stroll through Tenby. It was great to take my mind off things. I don’t remember much from the conversation other than her asking why I was walking!

Three bands collected. Wow, there’s a strong possibility I’m going to do this. I still didn’t have the ability to pick up my pace but knew if I kept trudging I’d reach the end.

By the fourth lap it was starting to get dark and the heat of the sun had eased which was a welcome relief. A big fist pump as I collected my fourth band. The hard work was done, it was just mainly downhill from here. On the final descent into Tenby I passed a competitor really struggling with cramps so handed him my salt tablets which he needed far more than me. Into town and a few more high fives0, around the last corner and the red carpet was in front of me. This time I would get to run down it and not have to turn right.

At the start of the red carpet, first timers get the opportunity to ring the bell so I jogged over and went to ring the bell. I couldn’t see the cord inside but then realized that there was a little hammer by the side that you had to use to ding it. A big roar from the crowd. Someone was running down the red carpet just in front of me so I eased back so that I could soak up the atmosphere but also hopefully get a descent photo at the finish line without someone being in my way. “Andrew Wathen - you are an Ironman!” I’d done it in a time of just over 14hour 30 minutes which given the heat I was really happy with. Although you always look back and think if only I’d pushed a little bit more here. But what if pushing myself more meant I would have failed to get to the end?

The run element was much harder than I had given credit. It was hilly and hot. Not being able to consume my energy gels didn’t help. I made a point of high fiving as many people as possible as this kept the crowd cheering which in turn helped carry me around the run course.

It was amazing to go through the experience with Darren and Richard. We had all put in a lot of training and to all cross the finish line was simply fantastic.

Sorry for the essay it seems I had a lot to say!!

I guess that just leaves two questions. Would I do another one? And am I going to get the tattoo? I think I’ll just leave those out there for a while. Watch this space!