LongHorn Triathlon Festival - Half Iron - Triathlon1/2 Ironman

First, assuming the course distance was accurate, I smoked this swim. However, I felt like I was having a horrible swim. I'm not sure what this means. My right goggle started leaking early and by the first turn I tried to dump it and get it readjusted. It didn't work. It filled up even faster the second time. Fortunately, that is my "down" eye, so my dry eye goggle worked and I could sight. Before that, even, my pack swam away from me, again. I was getting passed by the next wave before I even got to the first turn. I was getting pretty discouraged but obviously had no choice but to keep on going. I could never get a decent draft, but I did manage to get in the way of what felt like most of the rest of the swimmer as they swam over and past me. As I rounded the last turn, it felt as if I was swimming backwards. Well, I finally made it to the beach and was ready to simply bail until I saw my time on my watch. It showed a 39 min swim. I couldn't believe it as I was prepared for another 55 min like last year. Even if the course was short, I swam better (and as I'd trained). This gave me a lift and I headed up to T1 ready to ride.

Who knows? I swam a lot, got a lesson, worked in open water and improved over the summer, but I'm still such a slow swimmer. I'm not satisfied with this and will take some time to discuss with Jeanne and others.

Even though my "down" eye was cloudy from all the water in the goggle, this was a pretty good T1. I wound up tied for 70th with about 3-4 other AG guys. I remembered the lesson from TexasMan and had a water bottle for feet cleaning. The transition area was in dry dirt, so any wetness drew mud, dry grass, etc. to it. The water bottle and a towel worked great and I slipped sockless and pretty clean into my shoes. Glasses, Headsweats cycling cap and lid all went on smoothly, and off I went.

Bring a larger water bottle and maybe a small towel for each foot.

Clearly, the bike is my strongest event. I really enjoyed riding my new bike on this course. Some of the roads were super smooth, but there was alot of chipseal, too. I felt really good with only minor discomfort in the saddle. One small adjustment and I should be good to go. The 3/4 inch extension I made to the aero bars last weekend did wonders for the left elbow/shoulder issues I'd been having.

The course was different from last year. Some of the grinding hills were removed and replaced with more chipsealed country roads. There was an early hill which we didn't ride last year, but I was aware of it and didn't get burned in the wrong gear like a lot of people did. I felt in total control of the bike, and got it up to 35.6 mph on at least one downhill. I climbed well, cornered well, and cruised the straight, long stretches well. Most of all, I stayed within myself, saving something for the run. I really wanted to average 20, but I'll take the 19.7 on only my 4th ride on the Kuota. I cramped up slightly on the third to last hill, but made Quadzilla, and it's precursor, without any trouble. Overall, I didn't work as hard as last year, went faster and was ready to run. I did try one new thing on the bike, this time I taped the gu to the frame. It worked like a dream. I also ate only gel cubes and jelly beans in preparation for the run and to fuel the bike. No bars this time, which was also a good decision. In anticipation of the bottle hand ups, I only carried one bottle, leaving one holder open. All my Gatorades were pre-opened this year, but I double checked anyway, just in case.

Like the swim, I need to develop a better training program to get stronger. I want to see averages in the 21s. It should be doable with this bike.
I might have brought one NUUN tablet for the middle and gotten a water instead of gatorade. It got too sugary later on in the ride. Overall, everything blended into the aerobottle anyway, but it was nice to grab a bottle of water at the last stop, just for the change and ability to dilute the gatorade.

I chose to keep my shoes on due to the dry dirt conditions. I also chose to put on my socks for the big run. Glad I did both. I still wound up tied for 77th in the AG with 2-3 others.

I think I made good decisions for this transition; decisions made while on the bike.

A much better run. First, it wasn't as hot and the cloud cover was a welcome relief. Second, I prepared well on the bike, and having a tri bike helped, too, I think. Third, I didn't have any phantom body issues - one pee stop in mile 2 and that was it. Fourth, the abundance of cold sponges, towels water and gatorade. Fifth, the electrolyte tabs and sixth, much better mental preparation.

I broke away from the negative downer dude early and overcame the threatening left knee cramp by backing off the initial pace, and into a comfortable 9:15. Knee never bothered me again, nor did any other body part. I hit first aid station with a clear conscience and sponged the salt away from my face and began hydrating all over again. No shame in walking these stations and by doing so, I was able to keep a steady average. I decided to get the pee break out of the way early and rightly figured I wouldn't need another. I did have to fight through the "heaves" a couple of times when I drank too much too quickly. Over time, though, I learned to dilute the gatorade and sip on it to avoid the sloshing. At nearly every aid station is was: sponge/towel over head, cup of water, cup of gatorade; splash some water into gatorade, take small sip of water, pour rest over me; meter out gatorade on walk, then get running again. I ate a gu on each descent down toward Quadzilla, which I didn't do last year and I also had made the decision to walk Quadzilla. Best decision of the event. I had so much extra energy at the top of that hill that I could immediately begin running again, and keep going. By the second time, I kept up with a slightly younger guy who was "running" up it. Then, I simply ran away from him at the top. What a difference that made. Another difference was the electrolyte tabs. I had never taken anything like that before, but figured, if they're handing them out on the course, they can't be bad for you. I took 3 on the second outbound leg and noticed a seemingly immediate change. I took a couple more on the inbound park leg and was off to the races for the final few miles. What were they? I'd like to know and get some.

I finished strong. After Quadzilla, there were a few little hills to get up and over before the line. I chose to run these in the last lap and felt pretty good doing so. I knew I'd smashed each of my times from last year and was excited to finish exhausted, but strong.

Not sure. I could have pushed a bit faster earlier in the second leg, but I ran the run I wanted and always felt in control of my thought process.

I hit the mist tent for about 20 minutes and enjoyed a mango icee that someone brought to me. I knew I was in much better shape than last year and after a while grabbed a banana and went to the finish line to watch Angela and Jill finish. When they did, we were done. Then it was of to the food tent for a burrito and pickle juice (that stuff works!). We hooked up with old friend Brad, who placed 3rd in the Aquabike and hung out visiting. Finally, it was time to pack up and head for the hotel, as the euphoria was beginning to wear off and reality setting in. Plus, it was windy and dusty and we'd had enough of that today.


Wow, how to answer this as I blasted my time from last year. Granted, the conditions were a bit different, but there's a lot to be said for doing something a second time. I exceeded my goal time by 13 1/2 minutes, so for starters, that was awesome. I had hoped to be down near 6 hours, never dreaming of a 5:46. I took a whopping 53 minutes off of last year's time, too. How did I do this? Well, an incredible 16:30 of that was in the swim (assuming the course distance was 1.2 miles), 13 more minutes came off on the bike and 24 minutes from the run (I had a horrible run last year). Ironically, my transitions were slightly higher and "cost" me a whole minute against last year's time. I put alot of effort into swim training this summer and absolutely love the new bike. I didn't push the run too hard but hadn't been training for a hard run, either. I executed the race as planned. Nutrition, mental and the other three disciplines of triathlon all seemed to converge for me at this one.


First of all, kudos to KEJ for an awesome event. Last year's little ol' experiment of less than 1000 participants was just a warm up for over 2000 this year. Hardly noticed the increase and that was good. Also, great job recognizing the parking issue and delaying the start as needed. Many thanks to all the volunteers (where did they all come from?). They were positive and worked hard to keep the sponges cold and wet and the drink cups filled. I also appreciate the cops on the streets for keeping the frustrated motorists at bay (and from doing u-turns on the course) while the massive peloton cruised by. Also have to thank Spectator Extrordinaire Tuttle for all his help before, during and after the race.
When do we sign up for next year?