Goosepond Island Half Distance Triathlon - Triathlon1/2 Ironman

Since it was windy, there seemed to be a lot of chop to the water. My time was ok but I know I can improve a lot here. I felt plenty strong and my breathing was good. However, my navigation needs work. I was swimming all over the place. I feel like if I sight more effectively and swim straighter I can drop a lot of time.

Swim straighter. I'm going to look into attending an open water clinic next year. I'm rating my swim as "average" mainly due to poor navigation.

Overall T1 was ok. Ran from swim exit to T1, got the wetsuit off quickly, shoes and helmet on quickly, etc. However, I had a problem getting my arm warmers on over the wet skin. Felt like an eternity getting those things on. It was cold and windy (about 55 - 60 degrees) so I really wanted to get them on. Ended up being worth the time as they did a great job keeping me warm.

Not much.

This is the best I've felt on a bike leg in any race I've ever done. I've spent a lot of time on this with my coach, Andrew Shanks. I felt strong and fast today. Usually, I'll start to fatigue during the last quarter of the race but I felt good the whole ride. I focused on keeping my HR at 140 and drinking enough water and Nuun. I also took in some energy gels for calories. I'm very happy with this bike leg. The time I've listed is estimated. The official time listed was 2:44:17. However, that time includes time spent in T2. Due to some technical glitch with the timing chip, my bike split and T2 have been lumped together. I checked the Garmin as I was approaching the dismount line and it was b/w 2:40 - 2:41. I think a split estimate of 2:41:17 is reasonably close.

Not too much. Very happy with the bike leg.

Happy with T2. Dismounted quickly, ran with the bike to the rack, got socks and shoes on, and ran out. The time I've listed is estimated. My timing chip did not split out my bike time and T2.

Nothing.

Overall I felt good. Probably started a little too fast - around a 7:30 mile. Started to slow down during the second half of the run - around a 8:30 - 8:35 mile. I felt great up until mile 7 - 8. The remainder of the run seemed long. My legs and back started to get tight. I was able to push through it and not stop or walk. I think I kept pace at 8:35 but the finish line was a welcomed sight. I ran across the finish line with my 6 year old son, which was fun! We both got a big kick out of it.

Maybe do longer runs more frequently. Overall I'm happy with the run.

Walked around, drank water, ate some of the food, etc.


Poor navigation during the swim. My legs and lower back got tight during the last 4 miles or so of the run. However, I'm very happy with my performance in this race. Far surpassed the goal times I set for myself. The weather was perfect (at least for me) - cool and overcast.


I think this is the first year they have had the Half Iron event here. They did a good job. Lots of volunteers and signs to help direct you - with one exception. At the very end of the run they snaked us along the back edge of transition to get to the finish line. It was not well marked and I had to slow down to ask the volunteer for directions. In the scheme of things, not that big a deal. I would recommend this race.