My Dream Had Been Realized

Some dreams are easy and some are small. Some seem near impossible. Sometimes we go our whole lives without carrying out our dreams. Here is a little of how Sport Fit Severna Park member Tom Zorn was able to finally realize his...

A Guest Post by Sport Fit Severna Park Member Tom Zorn

For almost ten years I’ve dreamt about being able to do an Ironman event. I was hooked when I watched them show the highlights from the Kona, HI Ironman on TV. I clearly remember them talking about various individuals that had participated in the event, including a nun. I was so incredibly amazed at the determination it took for those that participated and then the incredible joy on the face of those that crossed the finish line. I so wanted to feel all of that. Even as I write this I get choked up. I knew what it would take to train for such an event so for now I knew my kids needed to come first but that one day I would get my chance.

Last year, after my youngest left for college I thought it was time to give it a try. I brought it up to my wife Nancy and she didn’t even hesitate to tell me to go for it. She has put up with all of my adventures but she knew how much this one meant to me. So late last year I started to lay out the plan. I looked into triathlon trainers, got my equipment up to date, made sure my bike was fitted properly, and decided on the event I wanted to train for.

I chose the Chesapeakman Ultra on the Eastern Shore as my event since it was local and would help keep the cost down. I was very close to signing up with a triathlon trainer but thought about the cost and realized because of the expense involved that I had better lay out my own training plan. I initially started out last October with five work-outs a week, two boot camp classes, two spin classes and a run on Saturday. I did that for several months. I then laid out a formal training plan that involved all three sports which started the first of May. I actually kicked off my hardcore training by participating in the inaugural Ohio University Sprint Triathlon as a relay with my daughter and wife. From then on I trained 7 days a week.

What made the training incredibly hard was the fact that I have a demanding job that requires a minimum of 11 hour days. There were times when I was just exhausted between work and training that I had to take a day off but for the most part I tried to stick to my schedule. Towards the end of the training schedule it gets very demanding because you’re doing over 130 lengths in the pool, 20+ miles on your runs, and upwards of 100 miles on your bike. As intermediate events I also participated in a 100 mile bike event (The Tour De Cure) and a ½ Ironman (Quakerman). I participated in the ½ Ironman 2 weeks prior to the full ironman, with the hope of giving myself the confidence that I was ready. I did pretty well but thought about the fact that I would have to double the distances in just two weeks and that started to weigh heavy on me.

Well the time came and the event was at hand. It was do or die, and for those that know me that is unfortunately my true mentality. I refuse to quit. Anyway my plan the week before the event was to try to sleep a little extra in an attempt to bank some sleep, knowing I wouldn’t sleep the night before the event. The race was on a Saturday so I took the Friday before off to drive to a hotel which sponsored the event, check in and pick up my race essentials, rack my bike and to organize for the event the next day. The swim start was at 7am so that meant on race day my morning started at 3:30am. I had to get up and get breakfast, get my wife and daughter up (which is no small feat at 4:00am), drive to the local high school, drop off three of the five bags of equipment/food, and to catch a shuttle to the swim start.



At the swim start you have to check the other two bags, get body marked, get organized, and then get stuffed into your wetsuit to get ready to swim. Once I took care of all of that, the reality of what I was about to do set in hard. The anxiety level was “through the roof”. All of the many months of training came down to this one moment in time.



I was especially worried about the swim. I wasn’t sure how I was going to do since for me swimming 2.4 miles in open water is not a trivial thing and on top of that you’re battling with about 300 other swimmers for your place in the water. Unless you’ve experienced it it’s hard to describe. Anyway, I tried to relax but that was not working. I knew the only time I would get relief was when the event started. We were finally told to go to the start where, like many of these big events, we start with the singing of the national anthem. I really look forward to that part. What made it even more special this time was as the singer was signing her mic went out so all of us started to sing it ourselves. It was actually a very special moment standing there with several other strangers, as the sun was rising over the water, singing our national anthem. Well it was then, as I said earlier, do or die. We counted down the start and the horn went off and off we went. The first ¼ mile of the swim is an all out battle.



It’s almost as if you’re in a brawl in the water. Hands and feet are everywhere. It finally settles down and like my good friend Steve told me, I found my place and my pace. Once I rounded the first corner buoy I settled in pretty well. After the first mile or so I started to feel pretty good and with about a ½ mile to go I was really enjoying myself.



I guess all of the pool training and dry land training I did at Sport fit was paying off. I finished the swim and popped out of the water with a huge grin on my face and all I could see were my wife and daughter cheering their heads off. At the same time I could hear the announcer call my name over the loudspeaker. What an incredible feeling.

Well off I went into the transition tent where I had to do battle with my wet suit to get it off and to get into my biking gear. I made a relatively quick change and then shuffled in my bike shoes over to my bike. Off I went to start my 112 mile bike adventure. The bike portion took me just over 6 hours and it was very isolating because you can’t ride next to anyone, because you will get penalized, and there weren’t many people out on the course to cheer you on. The ride itself took us through the Blackwater Bird Sanctuary so that was very nice. We also had the pleasure of pedaling for about a mile in ~6 inches of water because the marshes had overflowed onto the roads. It slowed us down a bit but I really didn’t mind too much.


When you’re doing over 100 miles you have to set small goals several times so you don’t mentally psych yourself out. I broke the bike up into 15 mile pieces. At about 65 miles you can stop and pick up your bike special needs bag where you can get some extra nourishment to help finish the bike portion. I opted for hot chicken soup and PB&J. That really helped me a lot. After that I put my head down and pushed through the remaining 47 miles. I then handed off my bike, picked up my running gear and headed for the changing tent once again. I quickly ditched my bike gear, through on my running gear, and proceeded out onto the run course.



Attempting to run after biking 112 miles is almost humorous. Your legs feel like lead and you awkwardly plod down the road until you can finally get your legs under you. This is where all the core work from the boot camp classes really pays off. As you start to put on the miles and the energy drains out of your body you need to count on your muscles to keep it all together. I’ve learned the hard way how important core work is to surviving this type of an event. I need to thank Joe Bocek for all the core workouts. They really paid off. I really thought that after I finally got my legs under me that I would be able to just put my head down and knock off the miles like Forest Gump. Well it didn’t quite work out that way. After your 8^th or 9^th hour of constant pushing, your body starts to rebel a bit, and it’s not just leg muscle pain. You often have to deal with back pain, stomach cramps, headaches, leg cramps, low blood sugar, etc. The trick I’ve learned is to fuel early and often. If you wait until your body tells you it needs something it’s too late and you’ll never completely recover. Anyway, my goal was to run well in-between the water stops, walk through them, and then run to the next water stop. That worked well for me. I didn’t break any records but I completed the marathon in 4 hours and 15 mins. I’m sure I could have done a little better but in the long run it really wouldn’t matter. I met so many nice people on the run and since it was a three loop course I got to know them pretty well. On my last lap I was hugging and high fiving everyone. I was even presented with an Hawaiian Lei which I proudly ran into the finish.



I never relaxed and allowed myself to think that I was actually going to finish until I was within a mile of the finish. I figured at that point I could crawl if I had to. When I was in sight of the finish all I could hear was my daughter’s voice cheering me on. I can still hear her voice in my head. As I rounded the turn I could see my lovely wife jumping up and down with this huge grin on her face yelling to me that I had done it.



My wonderful wife and my incredible daughter were with me every step and I wouldn’t have wanted it any other way. My dream had been realized.