The Canadian - Iron 113 - Triathlon1/2 Ironman

There was more body contact in this race with 148 competitors then during the swim start at Ironman Lake Placid. Sheesh! I did manage to catch a draft for about a third of the race. I'm not sure it helped with speed but at least I didn't have to sight as much.

Swim time includes a long uphill run to the transition zone so total swim time is actually 1-2 minutes faster.

T1 is quite a hike (and uphill too) from the swim exit.

I really pushed on the bike but you certainly wouln't tell by looking at my overall speed. Odd.

This may be due to two things. 1) There was quite a bit of headwind coming back up to the topmost turnaround point. 2) The turnarounds are pin turns that pretty much require coming to almost a complete stop.

By loop 4 my legs were getting heavy. By the 5th and 6th loops I was really pushing to try to keep my pace up but found it difficult to stay in Z3. The legs just wouldn't have it.

I haven't swapped the laces on my running shoes to the elasticky ones and tieing regular laces takes some time.

The first loop was okay but I about half way through I started to get a LOT of stitches on my left side. I walked until they went away and then started running again. Within a minute they were back. I did this for about the next hour. I think I cooked my legs on the bike. I also developed a hot spot on one of my toes and when I stopped to check it noticed that one of my toenails was begging to lift which caused some discomfort.

Not the best run, for sure. I even contemplated DNFing a couple of times during the first part of the second loop but just couldn't bring myself to do it. I'm glad I stuck with it because eventually I got over the mental low and just kept pushing as best as I could, which really wasn't 'pushing' but it was the best I could do that day.

Fitness level. Over the fall and winter I need to work on 1) leg strength and 2) run speed. These are going to be top priorities for me.


This is a fantastic race. Very well organized, great volunteers, good crowd support and a scenic course in the heart of Ottawa.