140.6 miles
(2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike, 26.2 mile run)
August 11, 2012
"The more challenging the path… the more rewarding the life”
.. that loss shattered my life …..my world… and my belief.
Competing, racing….. meant NOTHING .............. life meant NOTHING.. I was NOTHING…
.. And let there be light..
I WAS going to race on August 11th… for MOM!
Trust….
Believe…..
This is a note written by Joe to me that I was not to read until AFTER the race:
I (joe) am sitting on the ferry ride to the start to see you come in from the swim, reflecting over the last 60-days, hell the last 2+ years of our life. After the shattered training I only expressed once that I didn't think you should do this race, because I was scared for your well being. But then you stated your determination TO do it, and I will never stand in the way of that. And so I want you to know, that no matter what happens today, I could not BE any prouder of you...NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENS. I think i can speak for your dad and safely say he feels the same, that your mom will be with you all day today, and I know in your heart this race is for her...
Looking back.. I remember the excitement and stress of signing up for this race.. I remember it clearly… I remember sitting very quietly in mom and dads camper at the beach as mom and dad napped… and praying that the internet service would hold up... that I would get in.. the race sold out in just 11 mins… with 2,500 people.. and I was IN!!!!
Although I could have done without the omg my credit card wouldn’t go through, frantic call to Joe while he was at work to get his credit card number in the middle of registration… but yeah that should have been a GREAT indication of what was to come!
Fall 2011
Fall was a great conglomeration of races and events and general normal madness with completing another 50 mile race, a marathon, and finishing up a very tough semester in Anatomy and Physiology for my pre-nursing courses. Mom handled her treatments well and EVERYONES birthdays and the holidays came and went and then it was 2012…
2012 started off with good intentions, a race, a polar plunge, and then things went into the shitter… I twisted my ankle AFTER a race walking and was out of commission for a few weeks.. Mom got sicker and we postponed our trip to see Joes parents in Florida…. then joe and I got sick with a two week upper respiratory and then two week stomach virus … for like a month we were sick and trying to train.. ( and we never get sick).. and oh yeah.. Anatomy and Physiology II was kicking my ass…
My last training posting on my blog was on February 28th.. my “Official” IM training had just begun and I was averaging about 4 miles of swim a week, 80 miles on bike a week (on trainer) and about 16 miles of running per week…
To say I came out of the early part of spring alive is an understatement. We ran a number of half Marathons, a marathon, I did a few sprint tris, took mom to philly for treatments, finished up my classes, my grandbaby was born, and I rethought the idea of being a nurse until a lady at work dropped “dead” at my feet and I helped resuscitate her….I knew then for damn sure what my calling was… I had always wanted to make a difference in one person’s life..I was going to be a Nurse!
And then the door slammed shut…….on a stormy night my mom gazed upon me for the last time ever…
Mom died. June 2, 2012
LIFE FOR ME STOPPED. …
Countless weeks past….
Countless weeks and days…
I couldn’t eat… I dropped another 5 pounds…
I couldn’t train ... no will
Smiling hurt…
Life hurt…..
I hurt…..
I really really hurt……
Then…….
I got a notice in the mail that I didn’t get into the nursing program that I was going to school for. DID NOT GET IN. I was #1 on the waitlist and didn’t get in. WHAT! God I saved someones life. You dropped a woman at my feet and I helped save her… you have taken my mother away...
THEN………………..
.. it was announced that my boss would be retiring and I will be out of job come April.. OUT OF A JOB…. Really? And… REALLY!?
REALLY…
Then something grew out of the sorrow.. out of the pain.. out of the hurt… OUT OF THE NOTHINGNESS that I felt… I grew strong…
A fire started to burn …
And it burned HOT…
This is a note written to me by my cousin:
“TRY NOT TO GIVE UP ON THE ONE THING YOU SEEM TO REALLY ENJOY ...YOUR RACES. IF YOU DON'T DO THIS NEW YORK THING YOU WILL FOREVER KICK YOURSELF IN THE ASS... LETS FACE IT THE WHOLE RACE IS ABOUT DIGGING DOWN AND PUSHING YOURSELF TO DO WHAT MOST PEOPLE CAN NOT ....SO PUT ON YOUR BIG GIRL PANTIES , STRAIGHTEN YOUR TIARA AND GET YOUR ASS MOVING !!!!:-) I LOVE YOU .."LIFE FOR ME RESTARTED……..
Trust….
Believe…..
No regrets..
SO..OFF TO NEW YORK CITY WE GO!!!!
To say that it was love at first sight.. not so much.. I am a country gal and don’t really care for a lot of noise and people.. and driving with Joe in NYC traffic.. was hmm.. just say… less than optimal.
We had some logistics that would make our weekend a little tougher, as if the logistics in general for the race were not hard enough as we had to bring our beloved Miss Bessie (pup) with us and we were not too sure where she was allowed to go or not..
Parking $30… walking down the lengthy car ramp in the blazing heat carrying a 10 pound ball of fur because you can’t take her on the elevator.. priceless….
Joe and I took turns going into the expo.. he waited outside with the taxis with Bessie while I went in to do my athlete check in… fill in my waivers.. promise wont sue if I die.. like I could if I am dead… check emergency contact info.. weigh in… yeah .. ok.. and uh huh… then back outside to switch places with Joe who could go inside and buy me some race gear .. sweet!
Then back up the too long, steep and hot car ramp with the ball of fur and back into the car for the ride to our hotel… HELLO NEW JERSEY..
So I purposely picked the NJ hotel over the NY hotel because (1) I could LOOK AT the New York skyline…I mean how could I really see NYC if I am actually IN NYC!??... and( 2) it was cheaper… !
Check into our hotel was a dream.. we unloaded about 4 elevator trips of crap for our 4 day stay and got an excellent 8th floor room looking out onto NYC.. I had upgraded our room when I reserved it so we could get a view of New York City and it was 100% worth the extra $20 a night…
The Ironman Banquet
The Ironman Banquet was back in NYC… so we had to buy ferry tickets $36 for both of us to get there… although our tickets said $75.. hmm… now to get over and walk the mile to the banquet. Oh yeah and the banquet was $50 for Joe to attend… ALAS…
There was a sewage spill up the Hudson river and the buzz was that they may have to cancel the swim if the water quality checks came back bad… they wouldn’t be able to let us know until Friday around 4pm… crazy… I don’t know if I was happy or sad about that… the swim was always very hard for me but I also worked very hard on it this year… and REALLY what’s an Ironman without the swim?!
The night streets in NYC are so alive!! … it truly is exhilarating!!… but I was glad our hotel was across the river as I needed to sleep and sleep was going to be hard with all this FUN going on… Ferry back to hotel and WOW….
DEFINITELY IN LOVE
Bike drop off – Friday, August 10th
Joe, Bessie and I woke up to an excellent NYC skyline… I flipped open the curtains and said HELLO NEW YORK CITY!!! They were calling for bad storms all day and so I made sure I put all my gear in double zip lock bags prior to putting them in the appropriate gear bags for the race… thank you mom for all those extra ziplocks I picked up at your house when cleaning up your stuff!
We ordered room service as it seemed easier while I packed my stuff and with Bessie being there… so $50 later for some French toast, fruit, coffee, and omelets we headed down to the ferry to go to transition to drop off my bike.
NAIL BITER… as I sit on the ferry they were just getting ready to pull away and he makes it!!!!! And off we go… I have never done an Ironman without Joe snapping some pictures and being there and so was REALLY happy that they allowed him to come on the ferry to transition.
This whole experience was so amazing… the ride to transition.. seeing the George Washington bridge… the bridge I would hopefully be able to cross over during the Ironman run…. And seeing the massive cliffs at transition. Honestly, I couldn’t imagine anything being more beautiful and fun…!!!!
I dropped off my bike and run bags, set up my bike.. and checked out the swim start… we walked up the hill that would be part of the run and bike course… and we noticed that the ENTIRE transition area was covered in feathers…
Funny.. how things just .. well .. are… and so we boarded our return ferry and the heavens opened up with rain and thunder…
Back at the hotel …. I was getting antsy.. I just wanted to get this party going… Joe said he couldn’t wait to get rid of me for 17 hours.. I must be a real pain in the arsh!
AND then they confirmed that the SWIM was a go… I would be swimming 2.4 miles in the morning in the Hudson!
Wake – Saturday August 11th 2:00 am
So what did I think about while on that ferry traveling to the start…??? in the dark with 400 of my “closest” friends…??? NOT a heck of a lot… !
The ferry docked and off we go to transition.. I make a quick stop at the bike.. tires still good and so I give her a pat and off I go to find something to do for the next hour until it time to get back on the ferry to the swim start…
Swim Start 2.4 miles: 7:00 am
HOW utterly cool the swim start was…. I snuck my way up towards the front of the line because my intention was to get onto the first ferry .. each ferry carried 400 people to the start.. and I wanted to get in that water towards the front… so I got my place in line and waited… fueling myself with a cinnamon poptart and gateraid… hheheheh.. breakfast of champions…
I see this really tall dude over yonder… YO DAN>. Here … Racing with peeps I know is exhilarating… idle chat and then we are boarding the ferries.. we will do this.. we both made it on the second ferry and up top and started waving goodbye .. bon voyage… and up the river we go….
Did the water concerns bother me… that they had dumped how many gallons of raw “chlorinated” sewage into the Hudson a couple days before… eh.. nah… I used to swim in filthy water on the Chesapeake back in the day when they put sewer into the water without chlorine… did the swim start bother me.. eh.. nah… I am ready.. I know Joe is worried and sure there is that worry always about making the cut off time but I felt really good.. unless someone drowned me.. I got this..
As we were motoring to the start Dan and I were commenting that the slack tide may be over as we pointed out the boats that were anchored and the tidal current was starting to move.. hell yeah. In our favor…
They docked both ferries 1 and 2 at same time on the barge while ferry 3 and 4 waited… Dan and I on Ferry 2… (which is to the right in this picture)… got off and filed to the plank… we wished each other luck and off we went.. I was given great advice by someone on the boat.. stay large.. put your arms out so you don’t sink towards the bottom when you jump in and then start to swim right away to get away from the barge so you don’t get jumped on..So its what I did.. I jumped in large… and started to swim fast … and I was ON MY WAY…
I couldn’t remember what Dan had said… was it orange buoys for first 1.2 miles and then yellow or was it the other way around…!!?? Damn… I was sighting to my right and all I could see was the shore line so every once in a while I would have to actually bring my head up and look over to the left to see where the buoys were…
Swim .. swim.. swim.. with 2,000 of my “closest friends”…. OMG can swimming get any more boring… … I got smacked in the head once hard..and I was a little ticked about that.. I mean come on folks.. I aint invisible… and I did get bumped and jostled and run over a couple times but no more than usual.. so I started kicking and thrashing about to make sure peeps stayed away..
As I neared the finish… the current picked up and threw me into one of the buoys… I looked up and it was like kissing a giant orange.. or was that yellow floaty… so after I wrestled myself off the buoy I swam into finish and in error tried to put my foot down…. EWEEEEE…. Stepped into a large mound of mud and instantly pulled my foot out…… BACK IN… the volunteers held out a helping hand… and I was DONE.. FINIS!
I think Joe was IN SHOCK… about my fast finish time… it took him TOTALLY off guard.. his excitement only magnified my excitement… I made that damn swim and made it well!! I didn’t realize that there was a coating of filth on my face from the river.. and that Joe actually snapped a picture and posted it .. I should have kicked his ass on that one..
PS: A man died during the swim portion of the race and I wouldn’t find out until the end of the race.. so very sad to think that this person MAY have been one of the people on the boat talking with me, I will never know. Joe saw them bring him in.. bless him and his family.
Trans 1
I have to reflect on the fact that being in the water for only an hour makes a person feel a HELL of a lot better than being in the water for 2 hours… I need to seriously keep working on that swim .. because it will only help me in the future.
I had no problem getting out of my bathing suit and into my cycling clothes.. I felt great.. and had a volunteer help open up my bags and such…in a matter of minutes I was on my bike and ready to tackle 112 miles..
Bike 112 miles 8:30am
Almost immediately I noticed TOO many people ….in too small of a space… drafting. Everyone was on each other’s wheels.. because there was nowhere to go… I would say for the first 10 miles it was draft heaven .. I tried my best to stay out of zones.. but we were easily 3 across and in packs of 9 or more… the hills didn’t get to me until later… I zoomed down them like a rocket and up them like a small snail… and then I started to see crashes…
I saw three bikers on the return (this was a two loop up and back course) and they SMASHED into each other and bikes flying everywhere.. DUDE!!! and they were crawling to try and get off the course so they were not run the HELL OVER… and then later down the road a girl was covered in blood and in a neck brace off off to the side of the road.
This course was literally the most dangerous course I have ever biked.. the potholes, the open grates, the open sections of road large enough to swallow a wheel.. and the sheer volume of people in a small areas and high speed down hills made for very dangerous conditions… I saw TONS of people with flats.. and tons of debris on road from people hitting the holes and losing their stuff. I saw WHOLE drink bike cages and bags on the ground…
Getting water at the stations without stopping is truly an art… you slow up but don’t stop.. the volunteer slightly runs beside you and you get the water (hopefully you get it)… you then have a few seconds to invert bottle fill it in your front drink holder, while still moving, drink some and put some on your head.. and then oh yeah toss the bottle in the correct throw out zone.. I don’t know.. I guess maybe we had 100 yards for this entire activity… while moving..truly an art…
I felt real good until about mile 35 then I realized..I need to work on my distance.. A BIT MORE! The course was really draining in that it took a lot of extra mental strength to dodge the debris, and fight the wind on the back half.. and by then my nutrition had failed so things were starting to look UGLY.
I was cramping.. I was having excruciating pains in places I didn’t even know existed.. and if I saw one more damn hill I would throw my bike down and scream.Trans 2
In the changing tent I went… it would have been a lot more helpful if they had water left.. UM may I have water.. I am sorry but we are out.. UM.. ok.. but they have some outside at the start of run course.. UM.. ok..
Change to my super cool Ironman Gear that Joe bought me at expo… and NOW TO GETTER DONE.. I really have to tell you.. I love running.. running is my strength.. but right then and there I didn’t want to run not one lick.. not one single step… but I knew I had no choice.. and so I marched my sorry ass out of the tent, back into the heat and smiled… .. Joe was there wildly screaming for me and then reached over and gave me the biggest kiss ever.. heck .. I think I like these ironman races!
I started to wonder why I hadn’t seen Dan yet , last time I saw him was when we jumped into the water.. I thought for sure I would see him on bike since it was a two loop out and back and so I began to worry.. worry that something happened.. worry that he didn’t make cut offs.. worry .. worry.. and then I saw him! HI DAN!
I had seen my buddy Jeff during the bike.. as he went past me thank you very much.. and then on the run as he was ahead of me thank you very much.. and now I finally saw Dan.. GREAT!!!! All the buds are out and about… we are doing this!!!!
Because my nutrition was off , I kept up this walk, jog thing.. jogging the downhills and walking the uphills… eating oranges, grapes, pretzels, and ICE… chewing the ice was my favorite.. it gave me something do to do as I walked and jogged and kept me cool…
I AM IN LOVE!
When I came off the bridge we entered a section of the course that was in a park and it was dark and I wonder if they thought about the peeps who would be running ALONE in the dark in a NYC park late at night…. BECAUSE I don’t care how Ironman I am .. I AM STILL a female who ran unescorted through a New York City Park at NIGHT with groups of non racing men milling about for their “evening strolls” .
This was the first time in my life that I felt REALLY UNEASY about my surroundings and was wishing I was packing something more than gummy bears..
NOW realize I did NOT have any specific problems and the two groups of men that did pass me where gracious enough not to turn around and try and rape or kill me.. but the feeling of being so vulnerable in the desolate sections in the dark made for a lot of mental unrest…
OH yeah and did I mention I saw my first New York City rat at around 9pm on the run path... I was like oh my God oh my god a rat look.. look a rat.. pointing at it.. the only dude near me didnt speak any English and didn't seem to notice or care as it scurried off the path …. .. Not cool..
I was disappointed at the snail pace of my ironman run this time but given that I had absolutely no nutrition going at this point and was struggling to stay upright.. I will take the 6-1/2 hour run time and kiss my lucky stars..
After zig sagging through the park a GAZILLION times I just wanted to know where the damn finish line was.. and finally I saw someone who could tell me.. one of my best pals Jen and her daughter Chloe had driven up to New York to see me race and to experience New York in all its finest and they were waiting in the “dark” on a NYC bench waiting for me.. I hear this voice.. is that Wendy.???. I am like who the hell is that.. then they ask again is that Wendy????.. I am like yeah… and they run to me and I hug them and said I AM NEVER DOING THIS AGAIN >> EVER>.. Chloe calls Joe to tell him I am near finish.. I feel like someone who just came home from the war… to feel so special and loved by family and friends..
If I am ever going to get a coach I am getting Jen.. she knew exactly what to say to me.. she briefed me on how much longer I had when to start my run again and so on… and so then I was off.. to finish my race.. as I came near the finish I saw Joe.. and I waved and entered the finish shoot.. and then I heard it..
Wendy Mastripolito you are an Ironman…
I was done 15 hours and 43 mins later…
The volunteer came up to me and held on to me as perhaps I may collapse and walked me… and talked.. are you ok she asked… I was thinking maybe this was a trick question… ?
I said I was fine.. and thanks for asking and I smiled… and she said you have done this before haven’t you.. I looked at her and said yeah… smile.. but this may be my last time..
I smiled again and said .. really I am fine.. and thanked her and finished my walk to get my gear bag.. finisher shirt and find Joe because I WANNA GO HOME.
THE END
I didn’t cry.. I didn’t have any type of emotional release… why… I don’t know.. because maybe I left it all on the course.. or maybe I was just too damn tired.. or maybe because I was soo damn happy…
We had to jog to the ferry and Joe laughed and said you can still jog.. ?
I smiled and said.. OF COURSE I can…
Trust….
Believe…..
No regrets..
PS: This is my 3rd full Ironman and who knows if it will be my last but it was one of the most memorable experiences in my life…
Thank you to my family and friends who stayed up late watching me come in.. and tracking me all day… … dad, heather, chuck, di… cine, connie.. and all my friends.. THANK YOU.. knowing you were “watching” MOTIVATED ME .. kept me going
Thank you to Jen and Chloe for coming all the way up from Delaware to watch me finish… special people like you are one in a million.
A special thank you to my mom in heaven because for the first time ever you got to see the whole thing from above and for keeping me company when I was alone!
A special beyond belief THANK YOU to Joe.. who without saying is my soul and rock… who believes in me even when I am not sure I believe in myself…
.. God thank you… because .. I know you were there..
