I am finally back home from a long trip to Japan. What a great trip, and another hard-fought Ironman Victory. I am so lucky to have great sponsors supporting me through my season. At Ironman Japan I was privileged to be hosted by my title sponsor Astavita. They are based in Japan and went above and beyond to make my trip successful. The fact that I was able to team up with World Vision Charity makes this Ironman victory that much sweeter. Overall it was a great race and trip, and more importantly, I was able to give back to those in need.

I arrived 4 days before the race and was able to see the whole course and ride most of it. It was daunting to see how much climbing there was on this course. It was about 7,000 feet of climbing on the bike course. There were some great switch back climbs and very technical descents. The last 2 days before the race it rained almost all day and the winds were blowing hard. It was nerve racking trying to understand the Japanese weather report for Sunday’s race. It looked like it was going to clear up but be really windy.

Race morning I woke up and looked outside and it looked dry which was a good sign considering the technical aspect of the bike course would have been very dangerous with slick wet roads. I opened my window from my hotel room and the wind blew it open so fast it almost broke. It looked like it was going to be a really gusty one. Got in some Japanese breakfast and piled in a van to drive to the swim start which was about 20 minutes away. I got everything together and decided to stick with the disc wheel I originally planned on using. The swim was choppy and I was satisfied to sit behind and let someone else lead the swim through the rough and windy conditions. I was out of the water comfortably in 3rd position a little over 2 minutes down to Brent Foster.

I decided to build into the ride and not go to hard from the get go. I slowly reeled in Foster and was able to get to the front about 20 miles in. There was an age grouper, Brian Fuller from Australia, that lead the swim and was hammering the beginning of the bike and it took me until 20 miles or so to catch him and get to the lead. After taking the first couple climbs and descents hard I found myself with about a 15 minute lead by the halfway mark of the bike. That was a good feeling and it allowed me to pace myself a little more the rest of the ride to ensure a good run. The winds and rain made the ride a little more difficult. On one descent it was very technical with lots of switch backs and tight corners. I took one turn a little too fast and with the rain I was very worried I was going to slide out. I had to apply the brakes which puts your bike upright and makes it harder to control. I was heading straight for the mountain side unable to make the turn. I was very lucky that my bike slowed almost to a complete stop - just inches from the side of the rode. My heart was in my throat and I was a little jittery for the next couple of turns. Some of the sections also had a howling crosswind that threw me around every time I went through it at speeds close to 45 miles/hour.

I made it successfully through the ride with no accidents and ended up setting a new bike course record by almost 10 minutes. At that point I knew I had a good ride, but was more focused on the job at hand. I started the run not knowing how much of a lead I had. The first couple of miles had out and back sections so I was able to see some of the riders coming in off the bike as I was heading out. It looked like I had about a 15 minute lead or so and was confident that I could run a comfortable pace and get the job done. I paced myself and wanted to make sure I didn’t over extend early in the run. The run course was great with rolling hills throughout and spectators everywhere. It was a 2 loop run with no more out and back sections, which meant I was getting no information on splits or what was going on behind me. I had to run my race and hope that my pace would be sufficient. Petr Vebrousek was the man behind me and I knew I had at least 15 minutes on him. After a few quick calculations, I realized that he probably couldn’t run faster than a 2:45 marathon which would still put me as the winner.

I continued at a solid pace, trying desperately to communicate with the volunteers at the aid stations. I realized that I forgot to ask what the word for “water” was in Japanese. No one understood me and I got a variety of refreshments at each station and usually had to slow down or stop to make sure I got some water. I would yell ahead to the aid station “water” and they would look at me and start grabbing cups, usually everything but water! Finally some of them would say “whoughtah” so I would try “watah” but still they would shake there heads. I was not pronouncing it correctly. I finally figured out which letters to emphasize and it got a lot easier the second time around. I felt good on the run and finally got a split with 2 miles to go that Peter was 5 minutes behind me with 6 miles to go. So I figured it was probably going to be close. I looked back a couple times as I was approaching the finish and saw that it was clear. I came across the finish line and was greeted by the Mayor of Fukue. What a great race. It was nice to have an Ironman that was not a struggle mentally. After the last couple races where I had to dig really deep mentally and physically it was nice to have one that came together nicely.

This race was extra special because as I mentioned my title sponsor Astavita was there the entire way. It was their first experience at a triathlon event and they really enjoyed it and it helped that I was able to win in there home country. Astavita is a vitamin supplement that is made with Astaxanthin (carotenoid antioxidant algae) which helps kill all the free radicals and stress in your body. It definitely helped me leading up to this event with the stress and recovery of my training to the nerves of the pre race week and the race itself. Astavita was a huge help in making this Ironman a success and a victory.

This Ironman also marks the 3rd Ironman bike course record that I have broken in less than a year - Ironman Canada last August where I won, Ironman Malaysia where I finished 2nd and now Ironman Japan. My new Trek TTX frame and Bontrager wheels have proven to be the fastest bike set up in triathlon. Special thanks to Trek for making great, fast equipment. Also, thank you to Ironman Helmets for making fast, comfortable helmets that let me glide through the wind. Thank you to my coach Lance Watson for being patient with me and for my workouts and really laying out the framework and detailed schedule to make it all come together. Thanks to Speedo for a super fast tri suit that has also been proven in wind tunnels to be as fast in the wind as it is in the water. Also to my support crew, my family, Karis and my son Kaiden for there support and patience - my Chiropractor Dr. Bergman for keeping my body and nutrition in tip top shape - my pilates instructor Steve Smith from IMX Pilates - I definitely feel a difference in my body throughout the race to the finish. Cassidy Philips from TP Massageball for the product and knowledge of how to keep all my muscles free from injury and race ready - and to my friend and manager Chris McCrary of Katalyst Multisport for all his support and coming out to Japan to see me win another Ironman. Thank you to Powerbar, Fizik, Oakley, DMT shoes, Penta Water, Blue Seventy, and Ultimate Direction for supporting me and providing the best product in the sport.

I have joined up with World Vision, a nonprofit charitable organization www.worldvision.org, to support those in need in Africa. We have identified a community in Africa that I want to support by sponsoring children to feed them and give them the education they need to live. Also, I’d like to try and provide for the community by helping build schools, water wells, supply livestock etc so they can have a future and educate their children to support themselves. I am donating a portion of my prize money that I make at every race this year. I was able to give $500 for Ironman Malaysia and $1,000 for winning Ironman Japan. My goal is to raise $25k this year through my races and through those who want to give through my website www.chrislieto.com/charities.php. In the spring of 2007 we will have a trip to that community in Africa for a week to see the changes that we have made and to help out during that week to help build a community. Anyone that would like to give please do so through my website which is linked directly to World Vision www.chrislieto.com/charities.php . Those who give are also invited to join us on our trip to Africa. Thank you for your consideration and support.