Great course. Crossed under 3 bridges so had six opportunities to see/hear fans. Somewhat narrow so 3/4 of the time was in pretty tight packs with other swimmers. Had my wedding ring kicked off my finger.

Wear a smaller wedding ring!

This was my first Ironman. My plan was to have slow, deliberate transitions. Stuck to the plan.

nothing

Very strong winds, 28 - 38 mph. Out portion very comfortable with tailwind, return into headwind...very difficult. 6 mile city loop portion was very enjoyable. Lots of fans and good diversion.

I rode a standard Road Bike with no aerobars/aero wheels. I've since switched to a tri-bike and aero position.

Also, I wanted to be conservative and save something for the run. In retrospect I felt great on the run so I may have been able to squeeze another 1 or 1.5 mph into my pace.

Again, the plan was a slow, controlled T2. I am pleased with my performance

nothing

The course was beautiful. Lot's of spectators except for a somewhat lonely portion at the 10/20 Mile mark. Lot's of clay path. I stopped twice to change into dry socks...kept my feet comfortable. Chicken broth was a welcome snack around 15mi mark.

On a few occasions I linked up with some walkers and my walk breaks went a bit too long. I have no doubt I could have shaved 15 minutes if I limited my walk breaks to shorter intervals. I ran (jogged actually) the last 6.2 miles and still felt very strong at the finish.

walk to pick up the bike. kept moving for about 30 minutes then watched the rest of the finishers come in.


Two factors: 1. The wind on the bike course took me about 30 minutes off my target.

2. Because this was my first Ironman I was a bit more conservative than I needed to be. I don't regret this decision becuase it got me to the finish.


Given my times/rankings some people may question why I ranked most of my performance indicators as "good". The fact is I had a good race plan and I stuck to it. I did not give into pride/ego and kept my heart rate exactly where (or somewhat below) I had planned. My target finish time was 15hr. The strong wind caused me to slow my bike pace a bit thus the 15.5hr finish.

Ironman is the first endurance event I've ever done where I wasn't sure if I'd make it to the finish line. Getting there was a life changing experience.

The temperature was almost perfect. It was actually a bit colder than I would have liked. The town of Tempe was buzzing with the event the entire time. I'll definately do this race again.