Aloha from Kona, Hawaii!

First, allow me to thank all of you for your text messages, emails and well wishes before the race. It all helps, believe me.

As for the race itself, it was everything I had expected. First impressions? How about hot, humid - windy...let me repeat...hot, humid - windy. I now know why they call the Ironman World Championship in Kona the toughest of all the M–dot races. You simply do not know what the day is going to bring you, and that alone is the most challenging part of it.

What makes it easier, though, is that I have been so blessed in having an amazing group of friends around me since my arrival in Hawaii. Right when I got here I was contacted for interview after interview. Although it was an honor, those interviews started to tax on me as we were still doing two full training sessions a day, aiming to get off our feet by one in the afternoon to relax. For me, this never happened according to plan. By the time I was done with everything, it was more like six in the evening ( Dave don't read this ). There was always a lot to do after training, including Interviews, bike mechanic work, more training sessions, massages and trying to catch up with all my friends.

Race morning, I was up at four o'clock in the morning to eat breakfast. Being in an event of this caliber, and in a place I call home, was such a huge honor, but it also seemed to make race morning speed by far too quickly. Six o'clock was body marking, then twenty-five minutes later I had to meet with Dave, my coach, to receive final instruction. By this point I was on Cloud 9. He grabbed me, looked me in the eyes and said, "Remember when you are out on the Queen K Highway that you belong here." Dave has a way with words, and he means it when he says it.He has so much passion for this sport, and has taken me under his wing. Not only has he been my coach and mentor, but he is my friend and role model.

At 6:30 a.m. I had my speed suit on, and fifteen minutes later headed to the water. My heart was pounding. I was ready. After all,  I have been dreaming of this race for 16 years! I couldn't wait to get into the water, the same water I train in weekly when living in Kona. This was my backyard, my training grounds. I knew I was physically and mentally fit to take on this race that has broken so many. I wanted the challenge, and could not wait to see what it was going to do to me. I had never felt so confident in a race before, and I give Dave all the credit. He broke me in many a training session; and I mean broke me hard, to where I couldn't bike anymore. Dave is a 9-hour Ironman, by the way, and his wife is a 10-hour. I love training with them because I know my mind and body will get worked the way they need to be.

Ali'i Drive

Before the race, though, Dave had to remind me: "Jason, this is only a training day for you. You have UltraMan in 5 weeks."

I had practically forgotten about that, but what was I going to do? Hold back? There was no way I could do that. I wanted this race. It was such an honor to be there with hundreds cheering me on, but I had to be aware of the fact that a bigger beast waited for me right around the corner. Okay, I had to admit it, that Dave was right. This day,  October 11th,  2008, would be a big training day for the 2008 Hawaii UltraMan World Championships on Thanksgiving weekend.

Queen K

 
At 6:50 a.m. I was in the water, warming up. I looked down at my legs -- my left calve had been sore and noticed my timing chip was floating in the water. I couldn't get it back on so I tucked in my speed suit. At 7 a.m. it was game time. I start to get the chills as I felt the prayers ( thank you  ) and BAM, the starting gun went off.
 
Suddenly I found myself being trampled, pushed, and kicked. It was crazy, and I had my jaw rattled. I thought to myself, what am I in, a boxing match? But no, it's just the start of the Ironman World Championships. I had to take it like a champ and keep going forward, and remember to "Never Stop." The swim was actually smooth after the first fifteen minutes as I got into a good rhythm. I enjoyed every stroke. At the turn around I looked off to my left and noticed a boat following me with a cameraman getting close-ups. I wondered who that could be. Was it for the film (A Painted Race), or NBC, or someone else entirely? Out of the water at 1:35....

Then I had to put on the brace, glove, sunscreen, bike shoes, and helmet and out the gate I went to a shout of "Go Lester!" I had no idea who that was, but I couldn't look back. Went up Palani, then south on Kuakini, and heard a loud "Go Jason!" I briefly wondered, who are these people? Out on the Queen K and here is where the day began all over again. I felt like I was flying as I moved to the left passing people like I was Superman. "Jason, take it easy. You have at least six more hours out here on your training day," I kept telling myself.

Lava fields in Kona - By : Dave Ciaverella

On my way up to Waikaloa a cameraman pulled up next to me. I couldn't help but feel my heart pound being on camera. I had to look strong, right? But then I reminded myself to  just ignore them. I had to just go with it, this was my race, just me vs. me and no one else. But it's hard to ignore a camera crew riding alongside you. I could feel them, and heard the the camera man saying to the driver, "Get closer. He looks great." I hoped they'd still be saying that at mile 100. Next thing I knew I was in Kawaihae. It was hot and getting windy. The pros were on their way back already, many of them standing up as they climbed out of Hawi as i descended. They looked beat, and I knew this was going to be a long stretch.

As I turned the corner to head towards Hawi, the wind really kicked up. I hit it head on, and when I looked down I saw I was going 12 mph, 10, then 9. I was thinking, please God just this one day, take the winds away. But it wasn't going to be that easy. Cross winds, tail winds, head winds, you name it and we got it all right there within that nine mile stretch. Just get to Hawi, I kept telling myself, and then it came, the turnaround, and the bike was halfway there. It was supposed to be all down hill from there, right?  Going 40 mph, with a cross wind trying to blow me over, and me holding on with one arm, I road the breaks and let people fly by me. I had to be safe. I kept telling myself, "if you crash here, there is no Ultraman." So I backed off and stayed safe.

The bike from Kawaihae to Kona was thankfully uneventful, but I could feel in my legs I had pushed the bike too hard those first 60 miles, and knew I needed to save some in the tank for the run. Ultraman was all I could think about, how I didn't want to blow myself up too much and have a long recovery. "Training day...training day..." is what i kept telling myself. It's hard to hold back because you want to compete, and you want no one to pass you. No one. I was happy when the palm trees at the airport came into view. This meant we were less then ten miles from transition.

T3: off the bike and into the tent only to discover that my run bag was lost. They handed me the wrong one, and no one knew what to do. I was fine with it for the moment because i got to sit and relax for a few minutes. Got the bike shoes off, lotion on, then visor, running shoes, gels, and out of the tent and on to the run. "Go Jason!" I heard again. Did I know these people? "Lester!!" someone yelled. I was in awe. There I was trying to find my legs and figure out how this run was going to go, and there were literally hundreds of people screaming my name. It gave that boost i needed. I was honored that I had made the front cover of the West Hawaii Today paper. Perhaps it had inspired all those people. How many there were, I don't know, but when I was out pounding the pavement I had fans and new friends, and angels looking over me. What an amazing feeling.

The run : I made a deal with myself. If I held back and didn't blow myself up I could walk every aid station to get ice, water, more ice, and more water, because it was hot - real hot - like 106 degrees hot. I have never stuffed ice down my pants, but I can tell you that it cooled off my core and felt amazing, and it saved my day. As I ran  down Ali'i I heard another loud "Go Lester!" from about 100 yards back. I later found out it was ZOOT's Mike Rouse, my good friend and brother in JC. There was a long day ahead of us still, and all i was focused on was seeing Dave and Ann. I wanted them to do well. Dave is an amazing guy not just as an athlete, but as a person who really has a passion for helping others achieve their goals. Dave and Ann raced thirteen times in the past twelve months, and Kona was going to be their last race. I wanted them to be blessed.

As I was looking for Dave and I to cross paths, all i could hear was, "Great work Jason!" and "Go get em Lester!" and "198, you are amazing!" One guy even yelled, "Go get 'em Ultraman! Cant wait to see you at UltraMan!" Then I got, "Are you Jason Lester?" I replied, "Something like that." He said, "I read about you in the paper the other day. My kids want to meet you." My heart dropped and I started to tear up. I felt my father, and I started to miss my Mom, whom I never knew. How could I miss her if I never knew her? Why was I suddenly missing my father, who has been gone for 21 years? Then it hit me. They were there, right there with me, I could feel them, and it hurt. My heart hurt, and i cried, and thanked them for being my support in spirit as I was enjoying my dream.

Dave and i finally crossed paths on Kuakini. I had fifteen miles left to run. Only 15 miles! I could do that in two hours. Dave and I slapped hands and he yelled, "You have all day bro, all day, take your time!" He reminded me that I was here for a long training day, and did not want to blow up. I walked every aid station, all twenty of them, and got my ice, water and soup. Along the way i met a lot of folks who seemed to know who I was was, had read my story, and knew that Ultraman was my main goal in all this. I was honored to inspire them, and I thanked each one, and even though they didn't see it, I had tears and my heart was hurting.

With five miles to go, running down the Queen K at night is lonely. It was just me and the road, but then suddenly an angel came along. It was my training partner, Kelley Hovland. It was great to see her and we encouraged each other to run to the finish together, at four miles, then three, then two. Kelley started to pull away, and I told her I would see her at the finish line. She looked strong, but the next thing I knew we were neck and neck at mile 1.5, and we ran together all the way to Ali'i drive. As we turned the corner it felt like I was part of a movie or a dream. Here i was, finally, finishing the 2008 Hawaii Ironman. The fans went crazy. All I could hear was, "Go Jason!" and "Well done!", "You rock!", "You are amazing!" and "Lester!". With 100 yards to go I sprinted, and I couldn't hear a thing except for "JASON LESTER YOU ARE AN IRONMAN!"

Thirteen hours of training, all for the big show on November 28th, 29th and 30th. I'm still not sure what hurts more, pushing for a PR in an Ironman, or training and pounding the pavement for thirteen hours in one.

My thoughts? The Kona Ironman Championship race will humble you. I feel honored to have been a part of the 30th year anniversary race. I feel even more honored to have placed first in my division. and look forward to being back one day to race it - my way.

Massage therapist Jesse, Coach Dave Ciaverella and Ann Ciaverella

My good friends Doug and Annette have been my angels since the moment I stepped off the plane. Not only have they been kind enough to open their beautiful home for me and give me a place to stay, they have been the glue to keep me together while the stress piled on. I love being around Doug because he never lets anything get to my head and always reminds me to stay grounded. His wife is such a sweetheart, (and also bakes the best healthy cookies Kona has ever tasted: To Good To Be True Cookies at http://www.2g2btcookies.com/).

Swim coach Karlyn Pipes - Neilsen

A special thank you and Mahalo goes out to all the fans and locals of Kona. To God for giving the strength to endure ... Thank you to my family, friends and sponsors without whose love, support and prayers this journey would not be possible. Daniel Brock - West Hawaii Today News Paper, Michael Tsai - Honolulu Advertiser, Grams, Dean Karnazes, Oli and Julia ( Cycle Station ), Cari ( Amazing ), Dave and Ann, Doug and Annette, Jesse, Roberto, Karlyn and Eric, The Ironhead crew - Pam, Grant, Christian, Chris V, Kelly Hovland, Lucita ( CHAF ), Team FCA ( Linc and Stan ), Katie (Max Lelli ), Mike and Kimmie, Carl, Jason Lee, Tai ( Tai Graphx ), Derrie, Ernie ( Token Products ), Brian ( Zoot ), Jon ( cameraman ), Randy ( Film ), Steve Santczak, Nancy Peters - for your love and support - and for being apart of this amazing journey. To my biggest inspiration - Katana - I love you and miss you !