Chris Hutchison – Ironman Arizona 2025 – Race Recap

Chris Hutchison

Ironman Arizona 2025 

Race Recap

Ironman Arizona (IMAZ) was supposed to happen for me in 2024, however I overextended myself with other commitments and didn’t feel I’d have enough time to properly train so I postponed the race to 2025.  So, this is one whole year in the making! 

After my first, and only, Ironman (California 2022), I wasn’t sure if I had it in me to do another one.  At the time, it was the hardest thing I had ever done, and it took a lot out of me.  I find that the Ironman 70.3 distance (half Ironman) is really the sweet spot for me for both training and racing.  It’s manageable yet still challenging.  But there is always that itch to scratch – can I really push myself and do another full?  I’m three years older, maybe my body is a little more broken down?

IMAZ is known around the triathlon community as a great course, which has been around since 2005.  Unfortunately Ironman announced that 2025 would be the last year for this race.  I felt very fortunate that I was squeezing this race in before it went away and knew that it would be an even more special race for this reason.

Leading up to race week, I had put in a lot of training.  It had also been a big year for me racing – 8 races total before Ironman Arizona, including two Ironman 70.3s and two marathons, among other races.  My training went well, and I felt prepared heading into race week.  I had lost about 20 pounds towards the beginning of the year and did well to keep it off throughout the year.  I could really feel how being lighter made my biking and especially running easier for me.  Going into my only other full Ironman (IMCA), I felt I was in the best shape of my life.  Heading into IMAZ, I felt like I was in even better shape – a great feeling to have when you’re battling a little self-doubt and nerves.

For race week, I took the Wednesday off work so I could focus on packing and all the other things that needed to get done prior to heading out to the venue.  Here is the obligatory “you need a lot of crap for this sport” photo:

Wednesday went well, which included Cheryl dropping off Murray and Ozzy at “camp” (aka dog boarding) and me picking up my bike from being tuned up before the race.

Thursday morning, it was up early and getting all the last-minute stuff done, including packing up the truck with all our stuff.  Cheryl took the boys to school and shortly after she came back, we headed out for our 7+ hour trek to Tempe, Arizona.

We stopped to charge the truck in Indio, California and while charging, made a pit stop at Starbucks.  Cheryl and I both got some breakfast sandwiches.  Once the truck was all charged up, we continued on and eventually crossed the California border into Arizona.

Shortly thereafter, we had to stop to charge one more time in Quartzite, Arizona.  Then we made our way to Tempe, only hitting a little bit of traffic in the Phoenix area. 

We got to our hotel, the AC Hotel in Tempe, around 5:30PM.  Had there not been a 1-hour time difference, we may have made it in time to do athlete check-in for the race, but alas, we ran out of time.  But there was plenty of time to do this on Friday.

We had stayed at the AC Hotel back in 2019, when I did the half Ironman, so we knew how close and accessible the race venue was relative to where our hotel was.  Everything was easily walkable, which was important for me when selecting lodging, knowing Cheryl would be spectating all day.  I wanted to make it as easy as possible on her for what would be a long day.

After checking in, we unpacked all the things from the truck and brought them to the room (multiple trips!).  After settling in, we decided to have GrubHub deliver dinner, which ended up being PF Chang’s.  It isn’t Cheryl’s favorite but she knows how much I like it, so she gave in.  While we were waiting for the food to arrive, I hopped in the shower and did last-minute shaving of my arms and legs, something I typically would have done at home but I ran out of time.  Yes, I know it’s not saving me a ton of time, but it’s something I always do for races, and I strictly adhere to the rule “nothing new on race day”.  The food came and it was exactly what I was craving - pepper steak!

Cheryl and I were pretty tired from the long road trip so we got in bed early and caught up on season 4 of Stranger Things, as season 5 was coming out very soon.  We could barely make it through a full  episode so we decided to go to sleep.

Friday morning was here, and I got up early to get in a shakeout run.  I felt really good.  I felt light and fast.  What would typically be a faster pace for me, would have meant a higher heart rate but on this day, I was keeping my heart rate down for this faster pace.  I figured this was a good sign and should bode well for race day.  What was also nice was that my shakeout run was on the race course, so it was nice getting a feel for what would come on Sunday.

After my 3-mile run, I went back to the hotel and showered.  Cheryl and I then headed out to do some Ironman merch shopping and get me checked-in for the race.  I got to go in a special, much shorter, line for check-in, as I am a bronze Ironman All World Athlete.  This means that I’m in the top 17% of all athletes in my age group from races I competed in last year.  Points are awarded based on how fast you are / how well you place at each of your races.  Then your top three races are chosen, and you’re ranked at the end of the year.  For the past 2 years, I’ve been bronze.  There are special perks like the shorter line, a low bib number/good bike rack placement and a special swim cap to designate my AWA status, among other things. 

We attended a mandatory race briefing in Ironman Village.  I knew most of the information but what was new for me was that there were going to be “bike catchers”, which meant after I got done with the bike, I’d just hand my bike to a volunteer and bypass the bike rack area, just grab my run bag, change and head out.  The other thing that I really wanted to hear about was the weather and the effect it could have on the race.  The forecast called for rain both Saturday afternoon/evening and on race day.  Because I knew how gross the Tempe Town Lake water already was, I was concerned that if it rained too much, they’d cancel the swim due to run off.  And if they cancelled the swim, then I wouldn’t truly be doing a full Ironman.  Had it been my first Ironman, I may have fretted a bit more, but because it was my second, I tried not to worry about it and kept the mantra in my head, “you can only control what you can control”.  

After the athlete briefing, we had plans to have lunch with friends, and fellow endurance athletes, Jonathan and Paige Geller.  They were recently married and were in town for Paige to run a marathon in Scottsdale, Arizona, on the exact same day as my Ironman.  What are the chances!?  Jonathan picked a great place a few miles away called Four Peaks Brewing Company and we enjoyed a nice lunch.  I had a delicious hamburger on a pretzel bun and a side salad.  We caught up and talked all things triathlon and marathon.  It was great to see them and chat for a while.  We wished each other well on our respective races, as Jonathan dropped us off at our hotel.

Cheryl and I chilled for a bit at the hotel.  I then started to work on putting stickers on my bike, bike helmet and bags and organizing my gear, as all my stuff needed to be divided into 5 different bags.  IMAZ has what is called a “clean transition”, meaning you cannot bring your stuff into transition and set it up next to your bike.  Rather, you divide your things up into a morning bag, a bike bag, a bike personal needs bag, a run bag and a run personal needs bag.  You get each bag at the appropriate time during the race.  While this does take extra effort and planning, it is nice to know that all your stuff is where it should be, when you need it.

My awesome coach, Tom Mossman, came into town on Friday, driving from Albuquerque, to support and watch me race, which was so appreciated.  I made dinner reservations down the street at The Keg Steakhouse and Cheryl and I met Tom there at 5:00PM.  Quick side note: Waymo driverless cars were everywhere in Tempe – I mean everywhere.  There’s something about them that freaks me out a bit.  I saw one almost clip a cyclist.  Anyway, we enjoyed a lovely meal, where I got one of my favorite things, prime rib!  

Tom went over race logistics with me, and we also started chatting about my race plans for 2026 (more to come on that later).  

After dinner, we parted ways and headed back to the hotel to decompress and watch a little more Stranger Things before bed.  The night before the night before the race is always the night I try to get the most amount of sleep, so we went to bed relatively early, and I tried to sleep until 9:00AM on Saturday.  That didn’t perfectly work out, but it was close enough.

I got up on Saturday and headed out for a shakeout bike ride with Tom.  A lot of our ride was on the course, which again, was nice to help get acclimated for race day.  Arizona State University is right down the street and had a big football game so getting around that area was a little tricky with traffic, but we managed.  Shortly after we got out of the congested area, Tom realized that something was wrong with his saddle on his bike.  We pulled over and it turned out Tom was missing a bolt that was supposed to keep the saddle from moving.  It was nowhere in sight, so he tightened other things down as much as possible and we continued on our way.  I got in a good 13-mile ride and the bike and legs felt good.  Tom rode back to his hotel and I cleaned myself up.  Cheryl was nice enough to go grab us turkey sandwiches while I was riding, so that we could have an early lunch.  We ate in the room and then I finished packing up my stuff into the aforementioned bags.  Upon doing so, I realized that I wasn’t going to have enough of my endurance drink, Tailwind for both the bike and run, so Cheryl and I made a plan to try to find some at the expo at Ironman Village.

We headed out to drop off my bike in transition and my bike and run bags as well.  

We scoured the expo for Tailwind and it was nowhere to be found.  I started freaking out a bit, but I remembered we had seen a Road Runner Sports in the same parking lot as the steakhouse the night prior, so I figured maybe they’d have some.  We went on their website and it didn’t list any in stock so I called but couldn’t get through to anyone.  Even though I wanted to be in the hotel room relaxing at this point, Cheryl and I decided to hop in the truck and head to the store. 

Upon arrival, they had Tailwind!  While it wasn’t the flavor I was used to, they had enough for what I needed, and I felt so fortunate.  At checkout, the saleswoman told me that a lot of people had been coming in for the same reason, so they just put everything out they had in the stockroom.  I felt even luckier that I was able to get what I needed. 

After Road Runner, we went to Target and grabbed some bananas and a few other snacks.  As we were headed back to the truck to drive back to the hotel, it started raining.  Oh no!  Please, please, please, don’t let this affect the race!

We made it back to the hotel and relaxed a bit.  We ordered GrubHub again, this time from North Italia.  We had an early dinner around 5:00PM and the food was delicious.  I had some grilled chicken and vegetables and some pasta with marinara sauce.  I did my final race prep, and I headed to bed around 9:00PM, praying that the rain would stop and we’d have a dry race day with the swim intact. 

I woke up around 3:45AM and looked outside.  Even though it was dark, I could tell that the ground was pretty dry, so maybe it hadn’t rained that much?  I looked at the weather forecast and what was previously a 70% chance of rain that morning into the afternoon, was now around 15%.  I checked the Ironman app and didn’t see any messages about a cancelled swim.  I felt so happy, I could cry!  Right after that, I got a text from Dylan wishing me good luck.  It was surprising because he should have been sleeping, but it was also so nice to receive that text. 

After double and triple checking that I had done everything I needed to, Cheryl and I left the hotel around 5:45AM.  I first dropped off my run personal needs bag in the appropriate area and then headed into transition to get my bike and all my nutrition squared away, which didn’t take too long.

I exited transition and found Cheryl and Tom.  We chatted a bit, Cheryl helped me put my wetsuit on the rest of the way and then I got in line for the swim.

For the swim, you line up in your expected total swim time, so that you’re swimming with similarly-abled swimmers, which means less of a chance of getting swam over by stronger swimmers.  I lined up with the 1:20 to 1:29 folks as I was hoping to finish the swim in under 1 hour and 30 minutes, so this grouping was perfect.  

A quick note about my goals for this race:  I finished Ironman California in 13 hours and 22 minutes.  My main goal for Ironman Arizona was to beat my IMCA time.  My second goal was to be under 13 hours.  My third, and most lofty goal, was to be one hour faster than IMCA.  Okay, now back to our regularly scheduled race report…

The time between when you line up for the swim and when you actually get into the water sometimes can feel like forever, especially when it’s cold. In this case, the weather wasn’t too cold and they actually got us in the water relatively quickly, compared to other races I had done.  I helped a couple guys with their wetsuits and I chatted with a few folks around me, some first time Ironman participants.  This is about the time where I say to myself “what are you doing; why are you doing this!?”.  I do this at every race – I know it’s just pre-race jitters.  If I wasn’t nervous, then there’d be a problem!

The cannon went off, and the pros started their swim.  Shortly after, it was my time to start the race.  I headed to a dock, which was moving a bit too much for my liking.  They let about 3 to 4 people at a time jump into the water feet first.  It was my turn, they let me go, I started my watch, jumped and my race had begun.

After coming back up to the surface, I started my freestyle stroke.  I noticed the water was warmer than I had anticipated.  Before the race, athletes were freaking out about how cold the water was supposed to be. In 2024 I believe it was around 58 degrees.  This year, it was 67 degrees, which is a perfect temperature for me!  My sleeveless wetsuit was perfect for this temp.  I settled into my stroke and was feeling really good.  I was pacing myself because I knew I was going to be in the water a good amount of time. 

As I mentioned before, the water was pretty darn gross, so gross that I bypassed the organized pre-race swim on Saturday, just to avoid the chance of getting sick from the water the day before the race.  The water was like a brownish-green color.  There is no visibility at all.  Not only can you not see anything below you, but you can’t see other swimmers and you can’t even see your own arm!  During the race, I kept telling myself, “don’t take in any water, don’t swallow any water”.  It worked for the most part, but it was just unavoidable at times.  There were little swells that would come up, and I’d get sloshed in the mouth while I was taking a breath.  I did the best I could, but I definitely took in a decent amount of water during the 2.4-mile swim. 

I felt good pretty much the whole swim.  I did feel like I slowed down a little bit during the back half.  I wasn’t sure if it was because I was tired or because I was going against a little current.  It was probably both.  But all in all, I was happy with how I was feeling.  I was only swam over a few times, got scratched on my heel by someone’s fingernail and got punched in the nose pretty good at the first turn.  And I say “only” because typically in a triathlon swim, you can get clobbered a lot more!  There was also one standard zig-zagger that no matter how much I stopped and tried to move elsewhere to compensate, he’d end up in front of me, swimming wildly!

One thing that made me laugh to myself during the swim: I break the swim up into sections, in this case 8 sections.  While I’m swimming my stroke, I say to myself 1, 1, 1, 1, etc. until my watch buzzes that I’ve finished 500 yards and then it’s 2, 2, 2, 2, etc.  For me, it helps the time pass more quickly.  I was at 6 and then transitioned to 7 so at one point in my head, I said 6-7.  This was a running joke with my Minnesota family, from when I did a marathon there in October.  It put a big smile on my face and took my brain off the monotony of swimming for such a long time.  

I made the final left turn and could see the finishing dock in sight.  I went a little bit faster and finished up my swim.  My swim time ended up being 1:25:06, which was right around where I wanted to be.  Let’s go!

I made my way up some steps and into transition.  I heard Tom calling out to my left.  I found him, waved and kept on moving.  

As I headed into transition, there was an area where they had wetsuit peelers, which are basically volunteers that will help you get your wetsuit off.  As I jogged towards them they told me to slow down.  I apparently didn’t slow down fast enough because before I knew it, I had slipped on a wet mat and fell to the ground on my back and right hip.  The way I imagined it was almost like a cartoony pratfall.  The volunteer yelled “safe” which made me chuckle and it helped to take my mind off the stupid thing I had just done.  I just hoped that the fall wouldn’t affect the rest of my race (luckily, it didn’t – although I was still a bit sore for a handful of days after). 

After the volunteer got my wetsuit off, he handed it back to me and I quickly went to find my bike bag.  I yelled out my number “480!” and by the time I got to my bag, a volunteer had found it and was handing it to me. I headed to the men’s change tent where I was to change out of my swim stuff into my bike stuff.  Once I got inside the tent, this wave of humidity hit me right in the face!  So many athletes were in there changing.  Some were doing full changes into dry clothes, others, like me, were staying wet and just getting their bike gear on.  I found a chair and sat down and started doing what I needed to do.  It was very muddy in there, which wasn’t ideal, but I just kept moving.  Once I got my helmet, sunglasses and bike shoes on, I put all my wet stuff in the same bag and then headed to my bike.  I placed my bike bag next to my bike, grabbed my bike and started jogging towards the “bike out” arch.

       

I passed the mount line and got on my bike.  I saw both Cheryl and Tom as I made my way out for the 112-mile bike leg. 

The bike was 3 laps.  This has its pros and cons.  Pros are that you get to see your spectators more often and you know what’s ahead for you on the subsequent laps.  The con is that you know what’s ahead for you on the subsequent laps.  There’s something nice about going out half the distance and then coming back once, which feels less painful than doing laps, but I knew what the course was and tried to be positive.  I broke it down into chunks.  Each lap was about 37 miles of an out and back, meaning each out or back was only a little over 18 miles.  Breaking it into smaller pieces really helped my brain.  “18 miles each segment is nothing!” I told myself, trying not to think that I had to do 6 of those!

The first lap felt great.  I felt like I was flying.  I was passing a lot of people and was keeping up a good pace while keeping my heart rate down.  I was feeling really great until I was passed by the first group of pros.  “You’re telling me these dudes just did their 2.4-mile swim and 37+ miles on the bike while I was just in my first few miles on the bike!?”.  Wow, these guys are studs.  I later found out that two of my favorite pro triathletes, Sam Long and Ben Kanute, were two of the guys who flew by me.  Pretty cool!

The majority of the bike was on the Beeline Highway, which is a slight incline all the way up to the turnaround.  We were racing alongside the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community which felt special.  I got to my first turnaround and bam, wind!  No wonder I felt like I was flying on my first leg; I had a tailwind!  On the way back into town, with a headwind, I just kept telling myself, “this is not even close to as bad as Ironman California”, which it wasn’t.

Along the way, I unfortunately saw a dead dog on the side of the road.  It was awful and I wish I hadn’t seen it.  I still cannot get the image out of my head now.  I did the math and told myself not to look to my right at mile X on the next lap so I wouldn’t have to see it again. (spoiler alert: I saw the dog all 3 times – ugh!)

I battled my way back into town where I knew I was going to see Cheryl cheering for me at the next turnaround.  This was the motivation I needed to finish the first 37 miles.  I saw Cheryl off to my left and waved and smiled.

As I started on my next lap, I saw Cheryl one more time and then headed back to do it again.  I was executing my nutrition plan flawlessly and was keeping to a pace that I was happy with and felt was feasible for the rest of the race. 

I got to the next turnaround and then the wind hit again.  I knew what I was in for since I had just done it, however the wind was getting stronger as the day went on, so it was a little more powerful this time around.  There were times that even though I was going slightly downhill, it didn’t feel like it.  Again, my motivation was to just get back into town so I could see Cheryl again. 

I almost dropped my bike chain once but quickly recovered.  I also was dealing with a cramping right triceps for some reason.  In addition, I had some random right kneecap pain.  Both the triceps and knee pain stayed with me the rest of the race.  I saw a woman being carted off in an ambulance with a neck brace; her race day done.  I told myself my pain was nothing and said a little prayer for the woman. 

I got back into town and there was Cheryl again – and Tom!  It was so nice to see them and to hear other spectators cheering.  Once you get out of town, it gets pretty lonely out there in the desert, so it was nice to see people.  

Last lap!  I just did this twice; I can do one more!  I took it in even smaller chunks this last lap.  My first chunk was, “just get to mile 92”.  This was the longest training ride I had done before the race.  Then it was “just get to 100”.  Then it was, “what’s 12 more miles”.  It was getting lonelier and windier the longer I was out there.  The last chunk after the last turnaround was the most brutal.  I was really tired.  I kept having to get off my saddle and stretch, while still trying to move forward.  During all this, I knew that it was still possible to be under 6 hours, so this motivated me to get the rest done, at a decent clip.

I got back into town and made my way back to the transition area.  I didn’t see Cheryl, but I found out later that she saw me.  I heard Tom yell but didn’t find him.  I got off my bike and couldn’t unclip from the left pedal.  I tried and tried and could not get it to unclip.  I made the quick decision to just take the entire shoe off and leave it clipped on the pedal.  The bike catcher was about to head off with my bike (and one shoe) and then I thought to myself “maybe I should take my other shoe off too, smart guy!”.  I gave the bike catcher my second shoe and off I went to T2, barefoot.

My total bike time was 5:54:08, exactly where I wanted to be – score!

Next up was grabbing my run gear bag.  I yelled out “480!” and there was a volunteer with my bag!  I took it and ran to the transition tent, but before that I really needed to pee!  I had only gone during the swim and not during the bike at all.  I knew it would be a miserable run if I didn’t go, so even though the clock was running, I dropped my bag outside a port-a-potty and went inside to relieve myself.  Yes, I was still barefoot.  Yes, it was gross.

Into the change tent with my run bag.  I sat on a chair and kept thinking to myself, “how nice would it be to just sit here and not go run a marathon”.  Then I snapped out of it and got changed into my socks, run shoes, hat and grabbed my handheld water bottle and bib number.  I exited the tent and handed my run bag to a volunteer and walked towards the “run out” arch.  Before I officially started my run, I grunted audibly as if to tell myself, “yes, we just rode 112 miles, but dude, we have to go do a 26.2-mile run now – get your act together!”.

I made my way onto the run course and quickly saw Tom.  The run was also 3 laps, just like the bike.  Same pros and cons as I mentioned before with laps.  I felt pretty good as I started out.  I was happy with my pace and was feeling pretty strong, all things considered.  The beginning part is a little out and back section after which you come by the transition area again before heading out on another, longer out and back, so I knew I’d be seeing Cheryl and Tom after about 3 miles or so, which I did!  It is always great to see smiling faces and hear words of encouragement at any point along a triathlon course.

I said my goodbyes and continued on my way.  I crossed over a cool suspension bridge, which was hanging above the lake I had swam in earlier.  I got to the other side of the lake, ran a little bit longer and then the first bigger hill.  I knew it was coming so I did the best I could to keep moving.  I was fueling per my plan but my stomach was starting to feel a little “off”.  I kept going and just told myself to get back to seeing Cheryl and Tom again, which would be around mile 8.5, and there they were!  I yelled out “I’m so tired” to which Tom replied “what, it’s only a marathon!”.  That made me smile. 

I tackled the next 3-mile section before I was going to see Cheryl and Tom again.  My stomach started to hurt a little more and my pace started to drop around mile 9 to 10.  I took some Tums with gas relief to try to help.  It helped a little. 

I saw Cheryl and Tom again, gave some high fives and off I continued.  Again, I knew what was in store because I had just done it.

      

Around mile 12, I was chatting with a girl named Sara who looked like she was struggling.  I was on the struggle bus too, so we commiserated about that.  I was dealing with stomach issues and she was dealing with hip and IT band issues.  I found out it was her first Ironman and she was in town from New York with another friend who was also racing.  We kept chatting, to try to keep our minds off our respective pain.  I found out she was also on her second of three laps.  Turns out we would keep each other company and try to motivate each other for the rest of the marathon.  I learned so much about her and she learned so much about me in those 14-ish miles.

We got done with the second lap and I saw Cheryl and Tom again.  I introduced Sara to them, then we kept going.  I shared with Cheryl how bad my stomach was and that I felt like I was pregnant but that I was going to keep moving forward.  Every single race I’ve ever started, I’ve finished.  Today was not going to be the day I quit.  I stopped at my run personal needs bag and grabbed a few items including more Tailwind mixed into water to refill my handheld water bottle.  Sara also stopped at her bag and grabbed some snacks.  Then we kept moving.

At this point it was starting to get dark, but there was a decent number of lights around the run course, especially the lake area.  This last 3-mile section before the last 6-mile section felt like the longest, I think both because it was getting dark and because my stomach was so bad.  There were dirt sections along this area and for some reason on the last lap, it felt like the dirt was kicking up more from the runners in front of me.  It might have been because I could see it better and it was actually happening on all 3 laps.  There were times when I told Sara that I think I needed to walk but that she could go on without me, to which she walked with me.  There were also times where my pace could have been faster and I could have taken off, but I stayed, running alonside Sara.  We were going to finish this thing together and I wanted to see her finish her first Ironman!

We got back to seeing Cheryl again and she ran with me for a little bit.  I told her that my stomach was really bad.  She gave me words of encouragement and off I went for the remaining part of the marathon.

Lots of walking then running, walking then running.  We then got to a point where Sara felt like it was hard for her hips and IT bands to stop and then start again, and she just wanted to keep going, so we got into a rhythm where she’d keep going, I would walk a little bit and then I’d catch back up to her, at her pace.  This went on for a little bit, back and forth.

I distinctly remember getting to a very dark section along the lake, probably with about 2 more miles to go, where the streetlamps were flickering so badly, I had to close my eyes at times because the strobe effect was so strong.  I thought about my brother who has epilepsy and how horrible it would have been for him.  I also had the thought that it was like I was in Stranger Things and somebody was communicating from the Upside Down. 

We got through this section and only have a little bit more to go.  I told Sara that we were going to get to the finish line, no matter how much pain we were in, that she’s going to go ahead of me and ring the first-timer bell and then finish before me.  The last mile felt like 3 miles for some reason, but the famous Ironman red carpet was in sight and I could hear the faint roar of the crowd and announcer.  We got there and Sara went ahead and rang that bell and finished her first Ironman.  As I was about to finish, I heard Jonathan and Paige yell out for me.  I couldn’t find them at first and then caught them at the last second and gave some high-fives.  How cool that they came out to support me, especially after Paige had just run a marathon that morning!

I headed to the finish line and was looking around for Cheryl but didn’t see her.  For my first Ironman, I made sure to tell her ahead of time that I wanted to see her before I finished and to yell out for me.  This time around, I must have forgotten to say that!  

I crossed the finish line as I pumped my fists into the air and heard the famous words, “(Chris HutchiNson) You Are An Ironman!”. 

 

I found Sara and gave her a hug and congratulated her. I was handed a finisher hat & a finisher shirt and a finisher medal was placed around my neck.  I returned my race timing chip and then headed outside the finish line area to get my picture taken by the race photographers.  

My total run time was 4:38:42, about a half-hour or so slower than I wanted to be, but I pushed through the pain and I finished!

I then bypassed the food tent (stomach still not great!) and found Cheryl, Tom, Jonathan and Paige.  We chatted for a bit and I found out that Paige had set a PR in her marathon – go Paige!

I then shared about how bad my stomach was and that I just wanted to head back to the hotel to use the bathroom!  It was a pretty long walk at this point and I was tired.  Cheryl held my hand the whole way to help my slow-moving, aching body from falling.  Tom, Jonathan and Paige walked with Cheryl and I for most of it before we said our goodbyes.  Cheryl and I then made our way the rest of the way.

Those goals I mentioned before; well I hit on ALL of them!  Even with the stomach issues on the run, I still finished over an hour faster than my first Ironman, with a total time of 12:13:52. I know, had I not had the stomach issues, I could have achieved a sub-12, which would have been phenomenal for me.  But I was still so appreciative that my body let me do what I just did and that I did everything I wanted to do on this racecourse.  I was so proud of myself that I pushed through and didn’t quit, even when things got really dark – both figuratively and literally.  This is what I love about this sport.  I know I will never be on an Ironman podium for my age group.  I know what my limitations are.  But I am able to go out there and test myself against myself.  I’m able to push myself to do hard things.  And I CAN do hard things.

Cheryl and I arrived at our hotel room and I was so happy to see my bike and my race bags there.  Cheryl and Tom had retrieved them for me while I was out on the run course.  SO helpful!

I promptly used the facilities, and before I knew it, I was throwing up.  This had never happened after a race for me.  Then it dawned on me: it was from the gross lake water!!!  It all clicked.  I felt even more thankful that I was able to get through the day and that my body let me finish and not give up!  At this time, I was also able to check my phone for the first time and see all the wonderful messages from family and friends who had been tracking me.  Some of my favorites were a video from my sister of watching me finish and her cat Piper who also “offered congratulations”.  In addition, my Minnesota family was watching and sent a video of them cheering me to the finish line.  So special. 

As those close to me know, I like to reward myself with a post-race meal of epic proportions.  These meals usually consist of all the things I deprive myself of while training, like pizza, wings, nachos, etc.  Well, this was the first race ever where I didn’t have a post-race meal.  I was so nauseous and couldn’t even think about eating.  At one point I thought, I should at least try.  Cheryl went to the hotel lobby to see if she could order me a hamburger, but it was too late to order.  It was definitely a blessing in disguise because I doubt I would have been able to keep it down.  Instead, I tried to go to bed and sleep it off.  I was up a number of times during the night in the bathroom again.  Ugh!

After only about 3 hours total of sleep, Monday morning came.  I was still very tired and sore and also worried about packing up and then getting on the road.  How was my stomach going to hold up!?  Luckily, I had planned to break up the 7-hour drive on the way back and stop off at my Uncle and Aunt’s house in Palm Springs.  This meant only about 4 hours of driving and stopping once to charge.

We packed up all the things in our room, which felt like double what we originally packed and checked out of the hotel.  We stopped in Goodyear, Arizona to charge and Cheryl went to Starbucks to grab some food and a coffee.  I wasn’t sure if I could keep food down but I found a Vietnamese place next to Starbucks.  Cheryl thought broth might be healing so I ordered some pho to go and ate it slowly in the truck while we were charging.  It was the first solid meal I had eaten in over 40 hours, and it tasted SO good.  I was luckily able to keep it down without any nausea.  Phew!  

We finished charging and headed out to Palm Springs.  Cheryl captured this cool shot as we entered back into California:

We got to my Uncle and Aunt’s house Monday around 3:30PM and it was so good to see them.  We chatted for a while and then headed out to dinner at a nearby Mexican restaurant.  The food was good and the company was better.  We headed back to their house, and I took a long soak in their hot tub which was amazing for my sore muscles.  Cheryl and I headed to bed to watch some more Stranger Things and then went to sleep.  Sleep that night was better than the night before, but still not super restorative.

On Tuesday morning, we had plans to go to The Living Desert which is the zoo they have in the Indian Wells/Palm Desert area.  Cheryl and I end up going to a lot of zoos around race venues, so this was perfect for us.  And while it may seem counterintuitive to do that much walking after a race, it is actually helpful to keep moving so that my body doesn’t get too stiff.

My Aunt Lavonne is a volunteer at The Living Desert and was our expert tour guide that morning.  We felt as if we had paid for a VIP tour!  We ended up walking about 3 miles.  

We bought a few things at the gift shop and then headed back to their house.  We packed our things, said our goodbyes and started to make our way back home.

We decided to stop to charge the truck at the outlet malls in Desert Springs/Cabazon as Cheryl and I had always driven past but never gone.  They were slow chargers, so it gave us some extra time to walk around and shop.  After a little bit of shopping, we went to the food court and had some Chinese food.  Then back to the truck to take it off the charger, then a little more shopping at one more store that Cheryl wanted to go to.  Another 2 miles of walking!  

It was a little later than we wanted it to be at this point, meaning we knew we were going to hit rush hour traffic at some point, which we did, but it wasn’t too bad. It rained a bit on the way home and ended up taking us a little bit more than 3 hours to get home all in all.

It was so nice to be home and to see the kids and our cats (dogs would come home the next day).  And then it immediately felt overwhelming because of all the unpacking and laundry we needed to do!  All that said, I was so thankful to be home safely and that I had just completed an Ironman less than two days prior. 

Speaking of being thankful, I have so many people to thank:

To my coach, Tom Mossman – thank you for all the coaching, the training plan and the sage words of advice along the way.  I am so happy being a part of the Go the Distance team and I am so happy you are my coach.  Thank you for making the trip out to Arizona to support me.  It meant so much.

To my teammates and training partners, especially Sean Caughron, Tim Rhodes and Howard Roth – thank you for accompanying me on some of my long training rides.  They would have been way more painful and way less fun had I been by myself.  I’m there for you if you need me in the future.

To my friends Chris and Caroline Liebe – thank you for letting Evan stay with you and thank you for taking both boys to school each day we were gone.  We knew the boys were in good hands with you and we love you and thank you for your friendship. 

To my parents Ty and Judy and my mother-in-law Janine – thank you for picking the boys up from school and taking them home each day while we were away.  This was so helpful and so appreciated.  And a special shout out to my Mom for constantly keeping me in her prayers.  I like to think it was you who prayed away the rain on race day.

To my kids, Dylan and Evan – thank you for your support and for not missing me too much while I’m out there training for these crazy races.  I hope I make you proud and I hope you know that anything you set your mind to is possible.

And to my wonderful, awesome, beautiful, Queen Sherpa, Cheryl – you know I couldn’t do any of this without you.  You allow me to train long hours while you are holding things down at home.  You let me freak out about things pre-race, you support me during the race and you help me so much after the race.  You are my one constant and my ultimate support system.  I love you more than you’ll ever know.

This was my last race for the 2025 calendar year.  I’m so proud of all I’ve accomplished and yet somehow depressed that I don’t have another race soon!  I told Cheryl and Tom that I would take it a little easier next year and not do as many races.  As of now, it’s at 7 instead of 9 – progress!  And one of those 7 will be my attempt at my third full Ironman, this time in Madison, Wisconsin in September 2026. 

Until then, IronHutch out!