Last Saturday was the Vineman Ironman which roughly half the team did as their event. Those of us who weren't participating volunteered to be wet suit strippers in Transition 1 in order to be close to our teammates and support them at the start. The plan was to see them off, do an 80 mile ride as our workout that day and then go to the finish and see them all come in. What we didn't realize at the time was we were about to witness something absolutely amazing and dare I say it, probably the most beautiful moment in my entire time with Team in Training. In order to give you my perspective of what happened, I need to take you back to 2003 when I first started as a participant on the run team.
One night at track, my mentor Scott Davidson was introducing me to people and at one point he pointed to Stephanie Frances. "See that lady over there? Her name is Stephanie, she is a grandmother and last year she was on the Ironteam." I looked at him like he was crazy "you've got to be shitting me,
Ironteam???" "yeah" Scott said "but she didn't make the swim cutoff and they pulled her out of the race. She's going for it again and I think she's going to make it..."
That race was Ironman Canada and she missed the swim cutoff by 20 minutes. She returned the following year and missed it again. She took a few years off before coming back to Canada, this time making the swim cutoff, but missing the bike cutoff. Each time she put in 10 months of training only to be turned away each time. Like a lonely soul looking for a partner, she never gave up despite the number of heartbreaks along the way.
August 2nd, 2008 she came to Sonoma, California to try once again at the Vineman Ironman. She arrived before the sun rose, her bike and gear seemingly outweighing her, she set up her transition area when I saw her. "I'm really nervous, Chris" she said to me as I got there. She and I talked for a bit but I could tell half of what I was saying wasn't registering. We hugged and had some laughs. Smiling the whole time, there was no place she would rather be than right there.
About an hour after the race started the first swimmers started coming in. Stripping wetsuits is chaotic, loud, somewhat violent, and a lot of fun. The time passed so quickly as we helped athletes undo their suits, everyone of them thankful and praising us as they went through. We were pretty professional about it until someone from the team came in, which of course made the scene that much louder, chaotic, and exciting. It was just before 2 hours after the start when I heard "here comes Stefanie!!!" and there she was, sub 2 hour swim! When we told her, it was if she won the lottery. She's jumping up and down, screaming and celebrating while the rest of us were yelling at her "GOOOO!!!! Get to your bike!!!!" And with that she left screaming the whole way. It was pretty amazing.
Her celebration however would end suddenly on the bike, About 3 miles into the course, another athlete crashed into her knocking her into a mail post. Both women on the ground, Stefanie got up quickly and helped the other, gave her ointment for her wounds (who in the hell carries ointment in an Ironman? A grandmother, that's who...) and helped her on her way. At mile 10 with the heat rising, the dry air caused Stefanie's contact lenses to curl inside her eyelids. She was forced to remove them, obviously affecting her vision. She continues on and gets lost. Crying on the side of the road she is asking for help from anyone near her, finally getting directions to the high school, her destination. Despite all that drama she continues on with the heat and distance. When she finished she knew she didn't make the cutoff. Crying and seemingly defeated, she arrives to find family members and coaches from the team. "I'm sorry, I got in so late..." she says. Coach Mike then says "are you ready to run?" Stefanie thought she was going to be pulled but as it turns out, they were going to let her go. "OF COURSE!" she says. and off she went to the changing tent to get her run gear on.
Waiting for her on the course was every available member of the Ironteam to cheer her on and support her. I saw her 3 times from the course and not once was she not smiling. You could see the pain and exhaustion in her face but you could also feel the determination in her eyes. She finished the first of three loops when a race official took her racing chip. He warned her that after 9pm there would be no more medical support on the course. She said to him my team and family were all out there for me, don't you worry about a thing..." It was at this point that Amy Chang started running with her. Amy and Stefanie both started Ironteam together back in 2002 and now they were going to finish the race together. After 11pm, the aid stations were breaking down and most of the athletes had finished, and Stefanie still had 13 miles to go. At midnight you might have thought the President was running, with a motorcade of coaches cars and Ironteam members running alongside, and cheering on the sidelines, Stefanie was well protected from the darkness and despair that comes at the end of any endurance event. Powered by pringles, coke, the support of everyone around her and her faith, nothing was going to keep her from finishing.
At 2:20am, with a couple dozen people at the finish line, the clock and crowds long gone, a victory lane was set up complete with a finishers tape fashioned by a metal foil wrap. As the headlights turned into the High School Parking lot, the clapping and cheering resumed. With a slight limp and her aching back forcing her to lean to her right as she ran, a beaming grandmother who started her day at 7am ran her way to the finish line where she was swarmed by her family. In unison, the coaches and teammates all yelled "STEFANIE FRANCES, YOU ARE AN IRONMAN!!!!!!"
I couldn't help but stand there in awe of the whole scene. Coach Wasserman fighting back tears as he placed a finishers medal around her neck. People hugging each other as if someone they cared for deeply with a seemingly incurable illness was finally healed. I remember telling myself to wait a minute before I went to congratulate her because I didn't want anyone to see me cry too! It was could be the most powerful event of my TnT life, which is bold statement to say the very least.
I am so grateful for joining this team, I cannot adequately describe it...
