“I completed my first full distance ironman 17 years ago in Penticton, BC, the original home of Ironman Canada. It has always been somewhat of a back-of-the-mind goal of mine to be fit enough to race another ironman in my fifties without too much effort to prepare. Well the years sure do catch up to a person, and I found myself at 48 looking to work towards a full again. I decided to race the new Ironman Canada in Ottawa, one week before my 50th birthday. Ottawa is s a beautiful city, the course would be scenic as well as historic (and flat!), and we could combine with a side trip to visit family in Ontario. Also lots of things to do and see for the family. Win-win.

The course has two separate transition zones. The swim is one loop in the Ottawa River just south west of downtown. The bike is a three-lap loop of several scenic byways that crisscross right through the heart of downtown in front of the Canadian Parliament. The run is two loops of parkway paralleling the Rideau Canal and the finish line is in a park right next to Parliament.

We were shuttled out to Britannia Beach very early for the swim start. Air quality was somewhat of a concern due to wildfires in neighbouring provinces but I didn’t find it that bad to be honest. The haze helped keep the sun from getting too strong and the dryness kept the famous Ontario humidity to a dull roar. The water temperature was cold enough for a wetsuit swim so a lot of folks were happy! The official temp was 23.5.The water was typical Ontario brown so not great visibility although clean. Conditions were somewhat choppy and there was a current that made things interesting. I’m a strong swimmer and I found I had to course-correct often to counteract the effect of the current. It was subtle but there.

Then at about the middle of the swim I could see a group of people …gathering? Was there an accident? A big group of observers? As I got closer I could see that there was a random sandbar in the middle of the river which made the water depth about two feet deep. Many athletes took the opportunity to stand and walk, stretch, sight, chat, and generally wander about. I kept swimming because it felt strange not to. Rumour has it that next year there will be an aid station on the bar with snacks and entertainment…

The bike was super fun: flat and fast. Yes there were some rolling hills but as someone that group up in the Rockies, they really weren’t that bad. The challenge was keeping aero for that long. The crossover in the middle of the city was super cool. Very Tour de France-like with spectators. Also really enjoyed the car-free experience. It’s not often long stretches of wide parkways and busy city streets are completely closed to traffic. There were some bumpy sections of pavement but it was rideable. The course took us across the Ottawa River twice via two different bridges. Super fun. Pavement on the Quebec side was “sporting”.

The finale of the race was the beautiful run. Lot’s of spectators here as well and scenery to keep the brain occupied. The volunteers all had neon pink shirts which were like beacons of light in the darkness of race-brain fog. The “highlight” was the 13% grade climb up the backside of Parliament Hill at about two kms to go. Very masochistic of Ironman. It was a great topic of conversation for those who could still manage a word or two at that point.

The finish was of course epic. Lights, music, lots of cheering people, and that famous Ironman ramp to the finish line. Highly recommend doing it once just for that. The poutine for post race snacks looked yummy but my stomach was on hiatus by then. I really tried to soak it all in. Last time around I was hurting too much to enjoy the finish-line feels.

My husband has seen me through two of these races. He had some observations. While I’m not nearly as fit as I was back then pre-child and full-time work (don’t worry, he said this in a nice way), I certainly wasn’t as hurt this time around post-race. Was it because I didn’t push as hard? Maybe. I also focused a lot of my training on strength, resilience, and making sure I was recovered after hard sessions. My focus was enjoyment. I know the word enjoyment sounds counterintuitive for an Ironman race, but it really was fun.

As an “old lady” of 50, one of the biggest changes I noticed while preparing has been my change in eating preferences. I can no longer tolerate gels or other heavily processed snacks for long periods. In fact both Ironman events left my mouth and throat burned, I think from all the concentrated sugar. Also hard workouts – I aimed for quality rather than quantity. This time around I didn’t have the luxury of time for long naps during the day between workouts or shirking domestic duties as I did in my 30’s. I did have a few long runs and rides in two months leading up to the race that likely helped my brain more than anything.

I enjoyed the experience. Both co-participants and spectators were fabulous. We stayed right downtown so that I could stumble from the finish line into bed. I would recommend going if you’re considering the challenge. Makes a nice birthday present.”  ~Natalie