Rookies push their limits in Timberman race

LACONIA — A challenge such as the IRONMAN 70.3 Timberman that took over the city Sunday can bring elation to the people who reach the finish line. But with anything as arduous as an endurance triathlon, there are innumerable opportunities for disaster. The two members of the inaugural Daily Sun Timberman Rookie Academy experienced both the joy and the sorrow possible in such an event.

The Rookies spent months preparing to take their place in the starting chute for the event Sept. 18. Their task: Swim 1.2 miles in Lake Opechee; complete a 56-mile biking route that takes them to the Meredith traffic circle, down to Loudon, then back to Opechee Park; and finally, set off on foot for a 13.1-mile course that ended on Main Street downtown.

The Rookie Academy is a reincarnation of a program that was started by the Laconia Citizen, a newspaper that printed its last edition in 2016. The question behind the Rookie program is simple: could a regular person, who has never done a triathlon before, complete such a task? The results from this year’s class provide two answers. It is certainly possible, as the example of one of the participants showed. But it is also possible, as the other experienced, to have months of training be negated by a problem related to a race-day addition.

Read any type of advice about endurance events and one common refrain is "Don’t do anything new on race day." But it’s tempting, very tempting, to try and fine-tune your strategy in the weeks and days leading up to the event and, with supply-chain disruptions and shipping delays, it can be logistically challenging to get all the gear desired in time to get comfortable with it in training.

Such was the case for Antonio Coates, 39, who wavered with his plan when it came to the swim portion. He did his training in open water, without the use of a wetsuit, but once the temperature started dropping at night he decided to get one.

Wetsuits bring a set of benefits and drawbacks. They aid in buoyancy and provide insulation against cold water — important, considering that the swim could take athletes up to 70 minutes. On the other hand, they can be difficult to remove, and they can prove restrictive. That’s the part that bit Coates.

“I went into the water, I knew pretty soon, within a couple hundred yards, a lack of preparation in some areas was hitting home,” Coates said. His wetsuit, which he had tried on but never swam in, was tight around his armpits. Much too tight. “It was burning bad,” he said.

Coates pulled aside to tread water and assess the situation, and as the minutes clicked by, he realized that he wouldn’t be able to proceed and try to beat the cut-off time without risking an injury. “It was pretty clear to me pretty quick,” he said, so he pulled himself out of the race.

He made it back to the transition area in time to greet Melissa Aupperle, the other Daily Sun Rookie, and join the rest of her supporters in congratulating her on finishing the swim and continuing on to the bike portion.

“I really loved that, seeing that [support] in that team,” Coates said. “It was incredible ... She was so fired up.”

That was the end of Coates’ race but, though as disappointed, discouraged and “awful” as he said he felt, he said he expected to be better for the experience.

“It was the swift kick in the ass I needed,” Coates said. “For me, it’s back to the drawing board, fine-tuning different things, and owning every piece of it.”

For Coates, the Timberman experience has been inextricable from his Christian faith, and he said he sees the athletic challenge as something he was intended to experience.

“I will continue to look to the Lord, see what he has for me. I will stay active, I will continue to pursue that and implement all the things I have learned,” Coates said. “Taking it all in, sharing with all my friends and family all the great things that happened along with the worst. How do we implement the best things in our life and see what God has next?”

For Aupperle, the race was just beginning — and she said her race also started with feelings of anxiety. She had always had the most trepidation about the swim part, and had to get over her fear of the open water to begin to train for the event.

“By the time I got to the first buoy, I thought I was going to die,” Aupperle said. Fortunately, a friend of hers was also in the race, and she looked up to realize that she was right behind her. “I kept my eye on her the whole time. Nothing was consistent, nothing was easy” about her form, but she could focus on her friend until the beach was back in sight again. Then she got excited, and swam harder and harder until she could put her feet on sand again.

“Getting out of the water, I was so proud and happy,” Aupperle said. She had slain her first, and scariest, fear, and now she knew that for the rest of the race, she could always stop and walk if needed — where she couldn’t do that in the water.

Aupperle said that feeling of excitement carried into her bike ride, “which was such a fun, good ride,” she said. “I felt good, I felt strong,” and she was happy to be on her bike — a discipline she had come to love during her training. At around mile 45, though, she came back to reality. She stood up to climb a hill, and one of her quadriceps — the large muscle on the front of the thigh — locked up. It was a cramp, likely caused by a lack of water. Aupperle had brought salt pills to keep her electrolytes up, but dropped them earlier in the race. Now, her only option was to consume as much water as quickly as she could stomach.

She cruised back into the transition area at the end of her bike ride, and headed out, “feeling wobbly” for the run.

“I probably could have taken a minute longer in transition to figure things out, but I just decided to go,” she said. She hit the first water station — right after the run start — and realized she was going to have to walk at least some of the 13.1 miles. She started playing a game, counting to 100 running steps, then walking 50. Running 200 steps, walking the next 50. And so on.

“All the [aid] stations had things like bananas, oranges, pretzels,” she said, “I was literally snacking the whole time, trying to figure things out ... I just kept going and going.”

One foot in front of the other, that’s how all of the 1,000-plus finishers made it to the finish line Sunday, and Aupperle was right there with them. She found herself surrounded by others who were similarly struggling, so together they struggled, running the downhills and the flats, walking the uphills.

That wasn’t how she wanted to finish, though. As she got closer to downtown, the supporters on the sides of the course grew more concentrated. Many of them knew her name, too, and with each “Go, Melissa!” she obliged.

“The encouragement was insane,” she said, and by the time she crossed the finish line, she was at a dead sprint. She had been racing for 7 hours and 11 minutes.

“I felt so happy over the sense of accomplishment, the support on the course, that my body was able to maintain,” Aupperle said. “The hugs were endless, I felt so elated and loved.”

After the Timberman

“With an event like the IRONMAN, the training is crucial. I was nervous when I committed, but the training has been great, really learning who you are and what you are capable of,” said Aupperle, 50. “Age doesn’t matter, it’s just what you commit your mind to and push through to make happen.”

What’s next for Aupperle? She’s not quite certain. She’d like to join a relay team and carry just the bike portion, but that also doesn’t sound challenging enough after having completed each leg of the 70.3.

Aupperle said she is glad she said yes to the opportunity, even though she had strong reservations. “I made a commitment to myself, that this race was going to be about me. Me feeling proud of myself.”

Coates’ day didn’t finish when or where he envisioned it, but he said his goal remains the same.

“No matter what your race is in life, just be sure you know what your end goal is. For me, it’s Christ,” Coates said. “Enjoy every single moment in life. Because it’s going to be tough, there’s going to be peaks and valleys in life.”

The next class

The Daily Sun’s Rookie Academy was made possible through partnership with MC Cycle and Sport, Peak Triathlon Coaching, IRONMAN Foundation, Fit Focus, Bootlegger’s and The Wellness Complex.

The Laconia Daily Sun is looking forward to enrolling rookies for the 2023 class. Rookies are adult residents of the Lakes Region who have never completed a triathlon before. If interested, send an email to news@laconiadailysun.com with “Timberman Rookies” in the subject line.