Beach to Battleship HIM - Triathlon1/2 Ironman

Swimming is by far my weakest event so I knew going in not to expect anything spectacular. But after reading about the current in the past two years I was certainly hoping for a better time. I was thinking it would be 34 or 35 minutes but hoping for 32-33 minutes. When I got out of the water and saw 39 on my watch I was a little disappointed. But I went back and did some comparing of this years times with last years. I compared the 100th best time from this year and last and same for the 300th best time. Both times from last year were about 8 minutes faster. There was definitely a current this year but it must not have been as strong. And I'm guessing the headwind and chop played a role too.

But overall it was a good swim for me. I didn't feel too exhausted coming out of the water and 39 minutes is far and away the longest open water swim I've ever done. Wetsuits and salt water are great!

Site better, didn't do a very good job of this. And use body glide on my neck! I have a rash on the right side where it rubbed during the swim.

Kind of slow here but my plan was to take my time in the transitions and not rush things. Took time to go pee in the porta jon. No lines there so that didn't take long. The run from the swim end to T1 was pretty long so that took up some time. And I struggled with my wetsuit too.

I packed my T1 bag for the cold weather but didn't end up wearing any of it. Stuck with my tri shorts, sleeveless jersey, and no socks. Felt great, glad I didn't overdress.

Took one gel and was off.

Get my feet out of my wetsuit faster.

As I mentioned earlier my group was the last to go off in the swim so I was at the very back of the overall pack. T1 was a ghosttown when I got there. My plan going is was to ride at a comfortable pace and save my legs for the run. There was a headwind going out but I felt good throughout the entire ride. Did a ton of passing since i started at the back. I was only passed by one guy the entire time so I felt good about that. Was averaging right around 19 out to the turnaround and that was with the headwind so I knew the ride back would be faster. Got my overall average up close to 19.4. Could have probably taken it higher but wanted to just continue to ride comfortably and save my legs.

Drank a bottle of perpetuem and a bottle of ironman endurance. Also, had about three deep wells worth of water. Took one gel and ate half of a protein bar.

Not a thing. Well maybe I didn't need quite as much water as I drank. Had to pee around the 25 mile mark but didn't want to waste the time getting off and going into the woods. And I'm wasn't going to let ride on the bike. So I just held it until T2.

Everything went pretty well except for the line at the porta jon. Probably lost 2.5 minutes there.

Saw my wife and daughters on the way out and that got my run off on the right foot so to speak.

The run surprised me the most of anything I did all day. I had not put in the proper training leading up to the event so I was expecting a decent bit of walking. Only ran 10 miles once before the race and didn't log enough miles during the weeks leading up. But my easy pace on the bike paid off. I felt great during the first three miles. The next 3.5 felt pretty good too. It was a relief to hit the turnaround and know that i was only 6.5 miles from finishing my first 70.3. I told myself at the turnaround to just make it back to the 8 mile mark and then you can walk if you need to. But I felt great there as well so I decided to run to the 10 mile mark. At this point I met up with a guy named Blaine and he and I ran together the next 4 miles. He was an ultramarathoner and running with him, listening to his stories made the next three miles go well. By that point we were at the two miles to go mark and I was feeling good. Blaine told me to take it on in if I felt good. Told him I better hold off for a bit longer before I push it. With one mile left he stopped for Heed but i was feeling good. He told me to go get it and take it in under 6. I appreciated his support and that gave me the last push I needed. I finished the run averaging less than a 10/min mile so I was happy. The only time I walked was to drink my water or heed. And also walked up the steep hill next to the parking garage about 2.5 miles out.

For hydration and nutrition I took a cup of water and heed at probably 8 of the aid stations. Also had a cup of pepsi at one. Had orange slices at several and grabbed a GU early on but never took it.



Nothing. I was very happy with my run.

Found the first chair I could and plopped down immediately. Not 10 seconds later my four year old daughter runs up and jumps in my lap. I think I got to wear my medal for about a total of 2 minutes. Before I know it she has it around her neck and my race belt around her waist. She thought she was hot stuff. And then my wife walks up with our one year daughter. She puts her in my lap and all my daughter wants is my water. But for me there was nothing better than having them both there in my lap.

So I drank some water and then found the massage tent. That felt amazing. My quads and calves were super tight.


Lack of training.


Thoroughly enjoyed the day and the race. Setup Events does a terrific job. And the volunteers were outstanding!