Hi Allyson -
Yes, it was good to see you and meet Diana at the SFL. I am sure we will meet up again, maybe at one the Jersey races.
Concerning MIMS: Well... what can I say...
I made it to just north of the George Washington Bridge (18 or so miles into the race in about 5.5 hours, I think) and was absolutely roaring along before I had to DNF. In brief, and trying to not be too indelicate, the problem was that my urinary tract "shut down" on me and the gradual buildup of fluids got so bad that I started cramping and vomiting. It ended with me visting the ER of St. Vincent's hospital to have a a fire hose stuck into my bladder to relieve the pressure. In truth, I've known for the last month or so that I *may* have cancer "down there", but my urologist said that I could delay the biopsy until after the race, since it is a very slow-growing cancer. So... next Friday we will see what we will see regarding that issue. Either way, I hope we can find a way to make sure it doesn't happen again - it never had before, so who knew?
But, let's not dwell on that. The more interesting details of the race is that I went out a bit slow and was very relaxed. At about one hour, I ran into a huge, red jellyfish that stung so bad Deb said you could hear me scream a mile away. I lost all feeling in my nose, lips, and parts of my face and both arms and sides for a while and it HURT. But I regained my stroke and kept going. Starting at about 2 hours into the race, the trek through the whirlpool and the first part of the Harlem River was ENDLESS as the current was strongly against us. However, I was gaining on soloists and even some of the relay teams. Passed the beloved Yankee Stadium and Coogan's Bluff (where the Giants used to play) along the way. Once the current began to go with us, I really started to overhaul other swimmers. Right before (like 200 yards before) I reached the Hudson, they made us get out as a thuderstorm rolled through. Not sure, how long we were out of the water, but we finally got back in and I only made it another 1/2 hour or so. I felt so strong and knowing that I only had a current-assisted 10 miles to go made it really hard, but I was in trouble and Deb, who I trust absolutely, told me it was time to go get medical help. Still, as disappointed as I was, I was really happy at how well I was doing and knowing that I had trained and paced perfectly has kept me feeling pretty upbeat about the whole thing. I think that I would have been in the 8:30 range had I finished and maybe even a bit better, based on teams/soloists that I had passed and was gaining on. (Side note here that is not always the most popular opinion, but I must say that a huge part of how well it was going was my TI technique.) I had a really first rate kayaker and boat captain - both probably the best I've ever swum with. And my crew (Deb & Keith), as always, IS the best.
The ugly news was that the water quality was so-so at the start but deteriorated during the race due to some heavy rain squalls. I (and others, I've heard) picked up a bug and was SICK, SICK, SICK on Sunday and Monday. Hopefully, no one was on a airplane when it hit them or it would have been the worst ride of their lives.
Funny story: While I was in the ER, my brother, Keith, who was on my crew, called his wife to let her know what had happened. My two nephews (8 &11) were eager to know and when they heard I was in the hospital the 8 year-old yelled out "Did a shark get him?" Their mom said no and explained it to them. They two of them consulted in whispers for a moment and then the little one blurted out: "It's too bad a shark didn't get him." Carol was shocked and asked him why he would say that. The older one said (with his brother nodding rapidly) "Because it would be a lot cooler to tell our friends that uncle Leonard didn't finish after beating up a shark with his bare hands than because his w@@ner stopped working." When my brother came back into the ER & told me that I laughed so hard I almost fell out of the bed.
Well, the next challenge lies ahead and then there are more races to go to once that's out of the way. I hope to see you (& everyone else wading through this screed) there.
-LBJ
Hi Allyson -
Yes, it was good to see you and meet Diana at the SFL. I am sure we will meet up again, maybe at one the Jersey races.
Concerning MIMS: Well... what can I say...
I made it to just north of the George Washington Bridge (18 or so miles into the race in about 5.5 hours, I think) and was absolutely roaring along before I had to DNF. In brief, and trying to not be too indelicate, the problem was that my urinary tract "shut down" on me and the gradual buildup of fluids got so bad that I started cramping and vomiting. It ended with me visting the ER of St. Vincent's hospital to have a a fire hose stuck into my bladder to relieve the pressure. In truth, I've known for the last month or so that I *may* have cancer "down there", but my urologist said that I could delay the biopsy until after the race, since it is a very slow-growing cancer. So... next Friday we will see what we will see regarding that issue. Either way, I hope we can find a way to make sure it doesn't happen again - it never had before, so who knew?
But, let's not dwell on that. The more interesting details of the race is that I went out a bit slow and was very relaxed. At about one hour, I ran into a huge, red jellyfish that stung so bad Deb said you could hear me scream a mile away. I lost all feeling in my nose, lips, and parts of my face and both arms and sides for a while and it HURT. But I regained my stroke and kept going. Starting at about 2 hours into the race, the trek through the whirlpool and the first part of the Harlem River was ENDLESS as the current was strongly against us. However, I was gaining on soloists and even some of the relay teams. Passed the beloved Yankee Stadium and Coogan's Bluff (where the Giants used to play) along the way. Once the current began to go with us, I really started to overhaul other swimmers. Right before (like 200 yards before) I reached the Hudson, they made us get out as a thuderstorm rolled through. Not sure, how long we were out of the water, but we finally got back in and I only made it another 1/2 hour or so. I felt so strong and knowing that I only had a current-assisted 10 miles to go made it really hard, but I was in trouble and Deb, who I trust absolutely, told me it was time to go get medical help. Still, as disappointed as I was, I was really happy at how well I was doing and knowing that I had trained and paced perfectly has kept me feeling pretty upbeat about the whole thing. I think that I would have been in the 8:30 range had I finished and maybe even a bit better, based on teams/soloists that I had passed and was gaining on. (Side note here that is not always the most popular opinion, but I must say that a huge part of how well it was going was my TI technique.) I had a really first rate kayaker and boat captain - both probably the best I've ever swum with. And my crew (Deb & Keith), as always, IS the best.
The ugly news was that the water quality was so-so at the start but deteriorated during the race due to some heavy rain squalls. I (and others, I've heard) picked up a bug and was SICK, SICK, SICK on Sunday and Monday. Hopefully, no one was on a airplane when it hit them or it would have been the worst ride of their lives.
Funny story: While I was in the ER, my brother, Keith, who was on my crew, called his wife to let her know what had happened. My two nephews (8 &11) were eager to know and when they heard I was in the hospital the 8 year-old yelled out "Did a shark get him?" Their mom said no and explained it to them. They two of them consulted in whispers for a moment and then the little one blurted out: "It's too bad a shark didn't get him." Carol was shocked and asked him why he would say that. The older one said (with his brother nodding rapidly) "Because it would be a lot cooler to tell our friends that uncle Leonard didn't finish after beating up a shark with his bare hands than because his w@@ner stopped working." When my brother came back into the ER & told me that I laughed so hard I almost fell out of the bed.
Well, the next challenge lies ahead and then there are more races to go to once that's out of the way. I hope to see you (& everyone else wading through this screed) there.
-LBJ
