Redman Half Distance Triathlon - Triathlon1/2 Ironman

27 out of 29 in my age group is poor and I know it. I was getting passed by people two waves back. I know this is my weakest sport, I really need to work on it in the winter. I also know that because the swim is shortest my weakness does not hurt my overall finish time too much. Still, this is not an excuse.

My lack of sighting ability cost me time as I had to zigzag through the course always over-correcting. My swim stroke must be uneven and I just don't notice it as much on the 25 yard pool at the gym. This was an improvement though over past open water swims as I did not have to be coaxed back on course by volunteers on kayaks.

Need a towel to dry my feet before putting on socks.

Ouch, I did not realize I was 28 out of 29 slow in my age group. I know I lost about 10+ minutes on 6 port-a-potty stops. I think I over-did the hydration a bit in fear of getting cramps like my last 50+ mile ride. Another aspect that definately cost me time is not having aero-bars on the bike. I noticed almost everyone else using them to cut down on wind resistance. Maybe I will look into getting some for next year.

Finally, I can't overlook the most important factor in this and that is my engine. I just need to get more miles in and work on my speed in those miles. I also would push more next time, I was just too worried about quad cramps so I eased up the last 10 miles, just to make sure I would finish. 15 mph just won't cut it for a decent time.

I did not really practice transitions so I did not do any of the above techniques to shave time. But, on a 70 mile race, does saving a minute really matter that much at my level?

17 out of 29, not too bad. This is where I redeemed myself a bit. Although, the time was not great, I have run a 1:42 half marathon before, I am most pleased that I did not have to stop and walk during the run. I did stop four more times as port-a-potties to pee, so over-hydration came into play here as well, but these quick stops gave me additional bursts of energy and something to take my mind off the pain. I was slowed somewhat by twinges of cramps in my quads and hamstrings, but nothing strong enough to force me to stop and stretch, so that was good.

Definately, more bricks. I only did one in my training, strangely I don't remember jelly legs like I was expecting, but I was just slow all the way aroiund.

rushing to collect my finishers jersay and get out of there with my wife and 3 month old baby. They had been out in the sun for 2.5 hrs and were hungry. I did not stick around for anything else. A massage would have been nice, but I was not about to make them wait another 30 mins.


This was so well organized and I really like the atmosphere and people there to help.