Grabowski completes first Ironman
By MARK JOHNSON
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mjohnson@morrisdailyherald.com
Jim Grabowski did not crack the top 500 at the Ford Ironman Louisville Triathlon Aug. 30, but he fully met his personal expectations for the event.
Though the 40-year-old Grabowski has raced triathlons for about 15 years, the 2009 race in Louisville was his first shot at an Ironman. Typical triathlons consist of swimming, biking and running for varying distances. At an Ironman competition, athletes swim for 2.4 miles, bike for 112 miles and run a marathon, which spans more than 26 miles.
Following months of training, Grabowski was one of 2,352 competitors at the Louisville Ironman that made the official results. The Minooka Village Administrator officially finished in 545th place.
"I had three goals going into it," said Grabowski. "The first was to finish, and the second was to finish with a smile. The third was to finish in under 12 hours, and I finished in 11:37."
Grabowski's wife, Kristin, and children Michael and Anna were in Louisville and able to watch him at various points throughout the race. They first caught up with him as he was climbing out of the Ohio River and preparing to transfer to his bicycle. They caught up to Graboswki when he was riding his bike, and again when he transferred from the bike to the marathon stage before watching him at the finish line.
"Oh my gosh, no," said Kristin, when asked if her husband looked exhausted at the conclusion. "I thought he'd be sitting to the side, trying to catch his breath. Instead he was so pumped up. He has so much energy, I couldn't believe it.
"It was really awesome. Everyone was so excited. The atmosphere was thrilling, being there to watch everyone cross."
Though it took about 30 years for him to actively participate in them, Jim Grabowski first got exposed to Ironman triathlons when he was growing up in Oak Lawn.
"My first introduction to it actually came when my mom and dad brought me a shirt back from Hawaii when I was about 10 years old," he said. "That was actually from the world championship, which they hold in Kona. That's where all the pros race. You actually have to qualify for it. But that was my first introduction to it. It's always on T.V. They show that real famous scene with Julie Moss crawling across the finish line in the mid-80s because she's so exhausted."
Grabowski had left, and returned to, the Chicagoland area before he entered a triathlon for the first time.
"Through college [at Iowa State University], I played intramural sports," he said. "Afterward, I missed the competition aspect of it. I liked to bike, and liked to run. A friend of mine was thinking about running the Chicago Triathlon, and I said I'd join him."
Over the past several years, Grabowski competed in triathlons in locations like Chicago, Lake Geneva (Wis.), Pleasant Plains and Michigan. He raced a half-Ironman "four or five years" ago, but it was not until 2008 until Grabowski decided to take the next and ultimate step in triathlon racing.
"At some point, I said it would be kinda cool to run an iron man," said Grabowski. "I guess it was about this time last year that a friend of mine and I were talking about it, and we decided to go for it. We decided we'll do it next year. We registered in October."
Nearly a year remained from the time Grabowski registered until the event itself, but his preparation for it started almost immediately.
"I got a training plan from a friend of mine who raced in Louisville last year," he said. "I had maintained a base from running and biking and continued with that through the first of the year. Then in January, I started doing two- and three-a-day workouts for the race. Basically you have to build up gradually to the distances you run in the iron man.
"You don't actually go the full distances until race day. My longest days were, at some point, I swam two miles straight in the pool and in open water. I did bike, on four separate occasions, 100 miles in a day. I rode through Morris a lot. I know Cemetery Road about as well as you can. As far as running, on three separate occasions, I went 20 miles straight."
In one respect, training for an Ironman fosters relationship building. In another, the time required can take a toll on existing relationships.
"I made a lot of friends, with all the different training partners I had," said Grabowski. "On the 100-mile days for riding, I would ride with someone different every day. Some of my friends didn't go the whole distance, but they were training for other things and would join me.
"My family was unbelievable the entire time. How supportive they were with the time commitment alone was amazing. I have got to be sure to give credit to them. I tried to get out as early as possible and train, but sometimes it trickled into the afternoon. When I was training two or three days a week, I would work out before work, then do something at lunch and then train afterwords."
Grabowski's wife confirmed the amount of time he spent readying himself for the event.
"It was like him having two jobs," said Kristin Grabowski. "He did what he could to make it very easy, by doing a lot of his training in the early morning before we would be up. He would also do some at lunch, so what he would have to do after work wouldn't be as extensive. On the weekend, he would spend four to six hours training, but again, he would get up and do it in the morning, for the most part."
All the time and energy that went into preparing for and completing the Ironman paid off.
"It was amazing," said Jim Grabowski. "The whole training experience and then racing, it was just an unbelievable experience. When you look at the distances on their own, they're pretty darn overwhelming. ... In the winter and spring especially, when you're indoors all the time, it gets tough. Once the weather broke and and I was able to get out there and bike, it was a great experience working toward my goal."
"The Ironman is like a commercial entity. It's a brand. They do an incredible job with the race. Everything is very professional. Down there, you're talking about a 17-hour day, and for some people where are out there setting up before the race, it's a longer day than that.
"But everyone is extremely professional. Everyone that is there has dedicated 10 to 12 months to getting there, and they show a great respect for everybody. They were incredibly welcoming. And I was struck by how vocal people were. As you ride the course or run the course, there are people sitting there, cheering you on, that didn't know you from Adam. But they're there, cheering on runner No. 1666."
While Grabowski was unsure how many, if any, other people 40 or older were competing in their first Ironman, he related that athletes around his age or older were common.
"I know the largest age group is my age group, which is 40-44," he said. "I talked to more people that had done multiple Ironmans than that hadn't. For some people, it was their third Ironman, or their fifth, or their eighth. One guy was doing his 60th Ironman. The oldest person that entered was 77."
This Saturday, from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Minooka Village Hall, the Grabowskis are coordinating the fifth annual Madison Grabowski Memorial Blood Drive, in the community meeting room.
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