70.3 California - Triathlon1/2 Ironman

Not one of my better swims. I was trampled on almost the entire time. Other waves caught up to me and they were killing me out there. I was constantly stopping to try and find a way to avoid everyone and stay out of their way. Got smacked in the head quite a bit and also got a mouthful of salt water, which made me want to vomit. I don't think it was such a great idea for them to put the young, fast guys in the back.

I need to work on my swim. Let's face it - it sucks. I'm planning on doing some 5K swim events this year, and hopefully that will improve my sucky swimming skills.

The run to transition was very long! While running, I tried to at least get half my body out of the wetsuit. Both my arms ended up trapped. I had to stop, go to the side, and fight to get my arms out, since they were keeping me from running to transition smoothly. I may have dropped a few F-bombs in the process.

It probably would have been better to just wait until transition to attempt removing the wetsuit. Running + stripping = frustration.

Since the first 30 miles or so were fairly flat, I made the mistake of going all out on this course. But at the same time, I have no regrets. It was a fun course. But since I was moving at a faster speed than usual, I spent too much time focusing on the road ahead of me, and not enough time eating/drinking/refueling. I ate and drank very little on the bike. It seems like the time just flew by, and I didn't even realize that I hadn't been eating/drinking. I decided to take in a lot of food at the big hill, but it was so big, this wasn't possible. Again, I was focused on getting to the top and I was also looking out for other people who were zig-zagging all over the course. I didn't want them hitting me. A lot of people were walking up the big hill. I went over to the right side of the road, away from the cones and most of the people, and continued the climb on the bike. It was unpleasant, but I kept reminding myself that I would only have to face this hill one time. A few other hills showed their ugly faces on the course, but none of them were as bad as that first one. I did manage to eat and drink a little bit on the rest of the course, but not nearly as much as I should have.

Eat and hydrate better.

Got changed into the running gear quick enough, but I took some time to drink a lot of the fluids that I didn't take in while on the bike. I was thirsty!

Drink more on the bike so I don't have to do it in transition.

Started a bit rough, with the lack of fluids and food on the bike, but the aid stations were well stocked with all kinds of goodies! Stopped at the first aid station and grabbed a cup of pretzels. Huge mistake. While eating the pretzels, I inhaled a crumb and it left me in a coughing frenzy. Not even one mile in and I'm choking on pretzels! I made a lot of stops at the aid stations, since I was super hungry and thirsty, due to my negligence on the bike. I drank a lot of water and gatorade, ate tons of oranges (which were super yummy!), and drank 3 cups of cola, which really energized me. About 5 miles into the run course, I was feeling much better and was able to run more. I was finally re-fueled! And the volunteers were awesome! I kept an eye out for Dean, Kim, Kerri, and Rick and eventually found them all! Looking for them really kept my mind off of running, and the run course seems like it flew by! The last mile seemed like it was 5 miles long. I passed the big "12 Miles" sign and tried my best to keep running. It felt like I was going nowhere. I stopped and started walking and suddenly noticed tons of people to my left. They all started screaming at me and I realized I was really close to the finisher's chute! So off I went, and I was DONE! I made it to the athlete's lounge, and again, continued eating. I had 2 slices of pizza and 2 cups of cola. Yummy! I took a moment to lay down in the sand and relax, and then I went over to the bleachers to look for the others. I saw Kerri and Kim finish, and then I started to get really cold. It was time to grab my stuff and head back to my room for a shower.

Again, I need to drink and eat more on the bike so I don't waste so much time on the run course stopping at every aid station to pig out. The buffet should be AFTER the race, not during. I could've done much better on the run had I not stopped so much.

Taking a little rest in the sand really helped.


Improper nutrition/hydration on the bike.


Great race, and I know I'll return someday!