Race Pics

Moments before the swim start. I think Brian had been eating powdered donuts.

The End of an Era?

After months of training and planning, we all took the starting line at Utah Lake in Provo, UT -- Monte Johnson, Brian, Geoff and Chris McCombs. I had been nervous all morning as my mind kept telling me to not start the race. When we got to Utah Lake State Park, Monte was looking strong and confident, and it made me feel much more confident about the race. We all setup in transition, got suited up in our wetsuits and walked down to the water. Brian and I swam to the starting line just minutes before the starting gun fired at 7 am. Right before the gun went off, Brian and I grabbed hands and wished each other a good race. Ahead of us was over 70 miles of unknown. How would our bodies respond to the rigors of this event? Would anyone have equipment problems? Would we all make it to the finish line? I think the unknown contributed to the fear and excitement. Here are the results from the day:

Swim:
Geoff McCombs - 38:41 Place: 57
Chris McCombs - 42:11 Place: 111
Brian McCombs - 44:47 Place: 147
Monte Johnson - 1:57:18 Place: 272

Bike:
Geoff McCombs - 2:35:46 Place: 57
Brian McCombs - 2:40:52 Place: 86
Chris McCombs - 2:47:47 Place: 127
Monte Johnson - no data

Run:
Geoff McCombs - 1:59:14 Place: 60
Brian McCombs - 2:03:43 Place: 80
Chris McCombs - 2:50:45 Place: 223
Monte Johnson - no data

Total Time:
Geoff McCombs - 5:16:48 Overall Place: 45
Brian McCombs - 5:32:19 Overall Place: 72
Chris McCombs - 6:25:00 Overall Place: 184
Monte Johnson - 8:38:02 Overall Place: 260

Brian had an impressive result for his first half ironman. He totally smoked the bike, passing Chris and was nipping at my heels by the end.

Chris struggled on the run due to foot injuries, but he still pulled through with a respectable time. He had an altercation on the bike when another rider accused him of drafting, to which Chris responded, "Hey, I have an idea - SHUTUP!"

I was 24th overall on the bike at the halfway point, but I flatted just after the turnaround and got knocked back 50 places.

But by far, the greatest story of the day was made by Monte. 340 people took the starting lane and 260 finished. Monte was the last one to cross the finish line. 80 people abandoned during the race, but Monte showed to have the strongest will of the day. He just would not quit. He got out of the water and had to convince the officials to not disqualify him. He headed out on the bike for a long lonely ride. The volunteers had all left and closed up the aid stations by the time Monte got on the course, but he did not give up. He finished the bike when most had already finished the entire race or were in the last few miles of the run and he did not quit. He headed out on the run with the very real possibility of finishing after the 3pm deadline. He kept going, and the volunteers kept the aid stations open for him. We awaited his arrival at the finish with great anticipation. When we saw him turn the corner and start down the last stretch, we all jumped to our feet and cheered him to the finish. His perseverence was inspiring to us all. Way to go Monte! You're a Half Ironman. Beat that, Johnson brothers!

While I was suffering on the run, I began to wonder if this race would mark the end of an era and the beginning of a new one. I start Grad School in 2 weeks, I'll be working full time, and there won't be much time to train. I'll run the Top of Utah Marathon next month, and then I'm going to hang it up for a while. While I'm looking to the future with optimism, I can't help but reflect on the past 6 years of racing. Here's my top 10 list:

10 - My first Half Ironman in Guerneville, CA

9 - Getting hit by a car on a training ride, flipping over the car and totaling my bike, yet not suffering any serious injuries.

8 - Blacking out on "corkscrew wall" in the World's Toughest Century

7 - Only 15 minutes away from qualifying for Kona at the 2003 Utah Half Ironman. My best result ever!

6 - Escape from the Rock Triathlon in which I swam from Alcatraz and had to pull out after the swim due to hypothermia. Thanks for rubbing the life back into me, Mom!

5 - April 2004: Ironman California, Driving a moving van to Nauvoo, World's Toughest Half Ironman, Salt Lake City Marathon...all in the same month!!

4 - Ironman California 2007 when my parents came to Oceanside, CA to support me and then attending Priesthood session of conference with my dad.

3 - Full Vineman Ironman, August 2003 with my best friend and mentor, Rick Bird

2 - Utah Half Ironman, August 2008 with Brian, Chris and Monte

1 - Hawaii Ironman World Championships, October 2007

Grad School Roller Coaster Ride

SO, I was accepted into the MBA program at the U a couple of months ago, but my acceptance was contingent upon my retaking the GMAT and scoring above a 50 percentile on the quantitative section. Evidently, quantitative is a fancy schmancy way of saying Math. Why don't they just say math? Anyway, I studied for a month, putting my Ironman training on hold to learn how to do algebra, geometry, fractions, and long division again. I didn't even touch the verbal material in my studies because all I cared about was getting a 50 percentile in math. I took the test on Saturday and scored 30 percentile on the math, 81 percentile on the verbal. I think I may have had a better result if I had studied the verbal and not touched the math. When I saw my results, I could literally see my hopes of getting my MBA go up in smoke. I wanted to cry, so I went out and killed my body for 2 hours on my bike to vent my frustrations. It made me feel much better, even though I threw up in my mouth twice and almost passed out from heat stroke, but I digress. After my ride, I emailed the admissions committee to tell them what an idiot I was for not doing better on the math and that I'd hope to see them before my 50th birthday. I also made sure to mention my high verbal score. :) Today, I got the best birthday present of all from the admissions committee when I received the following email:

Geoffrey,

The Admissions Committee has had an opportunity to review your circumstances and previous coursework. They feel you have much to offer the program and are willing to welcome you into the PMBA program on the condition you maintain a 3.25 GPA during your first semester. The GPA condition is in lieu of your quantitative results on the GMAT. I have attached a contract and ask you to return it by the end of the week. Please let me know if you have any questions.

University of Utah Admissions


Did you notice the part about me "having much to offer the program"? I wonder if they're referring to my fantastic leg shaving abilities.... Now if I can just figure out how I'm going to pay for this, I'll be in business. Anyone know how to count cards?