Dutch mother of two wins Kona slot at first try

Today’s interview is with Marlies Schoonhoven from the Netherlands. She qualified at Ironman Austria 2011 as 5th in her age group (F40). Her finishing time was 10:25 hours (swim 1:08 / bike 5:25 / run 3:41)

Marlies, how was your race at Ironman Austria?

Marlies: Since it was something I wanted to do for years and with a perfect preparation of one and a half years, with a real triathlon coach and my husband giving me his full support, it was like living a dream. I was aiming for a time of around 11 hours something. Beyond expectation, I finished in 10.25.45 as a total surprise as I lost my watch in the swim. It was awesome all the way and finishing an Ironman is a feeling you’ll never ever forget.

Can you tell us a bit more about your race day? How did it go on the swim/bike/run?

Marlies: We were so lucky because the temperature was perfect, 24°C and a little wind(force 2). Last year it was 34°C!! There was no rain, so that already was a brilliant start. The start itself was amazing, with the music and the sun coming up. Although I have read books about not getting in the middle of the pack if you are an inexperienced swimmer, I looked up and realized after some 800 meters that I actually was in the middle of the pack. Now here’s a tip: don’t stop and look around in the swim because I got closed in from all sides and got swum over from behind. Once we got to the canal it was fine. You could swim straight on without having to look where you were going. From there we all knew that the bike was within reach.

The bike ride is said to be the most beautiful in the world and I believe that straight away. Ever since I got on my bike I felt as if I was flying. I past the first round (90km) in 2h40 while I had hoped for 3 hours. So I thought that I’d have to pay for going too fast now, somewhere in the race later. But I finished the bike ride in 5.25 and still felt great.

I learned during my training that the first half hour after the bike, I feel strange. A bit dizzy, disorientated, funny feeling in the stomach. I also learned that it would disappear after 30 minutes and it did. Maybe I had a little too much to drink on the bike because when I got to km 20 in the run, it felt as if I just couldn’t get any more into my stomach. It felt like a balloon. I decided to stop taking a gel or water of energy drink until I felt better. At km 27 it was gone and I could even run a little faster. I tried one more gel with water at km 30 and felt excellent until the finish line. Wow, those last 200 meters to the finish line, what an unforgettable experience!

Did you try to qualify before?

Marlies: No never, it was my first Ironman and as it takes so much time away from your family (our children are 6 and 7), I made an agreement with my husband. The time is now right to do it and train for it and if ever I’d make it to Hawaii, we will go for it. If not, too bad, I’d give it another shot at the age of 50.

How did you prepare for Ironman Austria? What was key to your success?

Marlies: We (my training buddy & me) started to train in January 2010 with a Dutch triathlon coach Frank Heldoorn (8 time Dutch triathlon champion). His approach of training was totally new to me and I really had to get used to it, but it worked out better than I had hoped for. I used to be a runner, (half marathon in 1.30.35 in December 2009) but I never cycled a race bike before and I had to learn how to swim as per January 2010.

How did a typical training week in your preparation look like?

Marlies: We trained between 15-20 hours a week, did some half triathlon races to prepare (Gerardmer sept. 2010 and Challenge Kraichgau 2011). We swam on Mondays, Tuesday and Saturdays with a swim instructor to learn proper crawl. Bike training on Mondays, Wednesdays and weekends. Running 4 times a week. Only 1 day to rest in a week. No marathon. The longest run we did was 2.5 hours.

How did you manage your time with 15-20 hours of training per week and having two children?

Marlies: I have a part time job of 27 hours a week. I have Mondays (afternoon) and Wednesdays off, so on those days I could do bike and run trainings. I did some runs before my husband went to work before 7 am. The earliest I ever got up to go for a run was 5 o’clock. Swim workouts were mostly in the evenings or early mornings. It’s true, you get very experienced in time management. . And a modern father who likes to take care of the children and never moans when the whole Sunday is taken up by training helps a lot!

What was the hardest part in your preparation?

Marlies: The climate in Holland. We had a very rainy cold winter which makes it hard to do the bike training. A tacx can be of great help to complete them indoors. I enjoyed most of the trainings so much, I can’t think of any difficulties I encountered. Maybe the flat tyres, I had that often in the first year.

Do you have any advice for athletes who want to qualify?

Marlies: I asked my coach Frank if it would be possible for me to qualify. He said: “I’m always trying to get the best out of you, within your possibilities (i.e. job, children etc) so I think you might, since the 3rd girl qualifying in 2010 in Klagenfurt finished in 11.33. You do need some luck though, and it also depends on the quality of your competitors. But let’s give it a try!

So the advice is, see in what times people qualify in your age group in the previous year. Then see if your estimated time comes anywhere close to that. Ask your coach if that certain time is something you could achieve and let him adjust your schedule if more training is necessary to reach your goal. But since the 3rd girl finished in 11.33 in 2010 and I was 5th in a time of 10.25 in 2011 it goes without saying that the quality of the participants is increasing fast. But never give up on your dream, because sometimes everything falls into place and there you are with that slot in your hand!!

How does it feel to win a Kona slot?

Marlies: That was the ultimate reward, because I got it through a lot of luck by a roll down of two slots from 2 other age groupers. It was also a total surprise, and it was something I had hoped for so badly. Winning a slot because you come in first or second (I had 2 slots in my age group F40-44) is something you know before going to the slot allocation, but being in 5th place and going to the slot allocation just to hope that someone is not going to pick it up, is something totally different. I got so lucky to get the last slot. I still feel the happiness I felt then, when the speaker yelled my name!!

Do you have a plan for Kona?

Marlies: First I thought to go with the Olympic idea: participating is more important than winning. But my coach said: “I know you well enough that you are eager to finish in a time close to the time in Klagenfurt”. Well, that much is true. But Hawaii is a totally different climate and the swim is in the sea, known as one of the most brutal swim starts in any Ironman race. It can be striking hot and the head winds can be terrible on Queen K Highway. But a proper food and drink plan will be my saviour, my coach said. And he, having been there 7 times, is the one I trust 100% to get me over the finish line with a great feeling again.

Good luck for Kona. I will follow you for sure. Thank you for the interview.