I hate run in starts. They get my HR way up and it takes me 20-30 secs to catch my breath. Much rather wade have in or swimming start. Beach had gully that you ran into and then out of and continued on to the surf. Having not done any sprint work in the past year, I was really going slow to keep my breathing down. Once I hit the flag I was about 15 people deep in my wave. I then felt great and swam extremely straight. I came out 4th in the wave. If it were a wade in start I believe I would have been in the top 2, but you have to race the course! Seemed like running and then swimming was easy when I was a kid. Not anymore! Took off wetsuit at waters edge so I lost some time. Not sure if this made it easier or not. Then we had a 300 yard run to transition through the soft sand so the times are slower than a normal 400m swim.

After IMLP training I can do more speedwork and maybe be better at swimming after a dash.

First race with shoes on pedals. Did ok and took about 2 blocks to get locked in fully. Best transition time I have ever had so I guess it was somewhat successful.

Nothing.

Felt like I was going faster than the official times show. I did not reset my computer so I can't measure if it was accurate or not. There were 3 loops and you had to turn about 12 times so that could be part of it. Only one rider broke 24MPH. Some riders I know who are strong were only at 22MPH, so I am not sure if the exact distance is correct. Time is correct.

One shoe fell off coming in and a volunteer grabbed it for me and put it with my stuff. Put socks on since new shoes gave me blisters without them. Not a bad T2.

Seems with my IM training I am becoming a one speed triathlete. My training runs and races are the same pace regardless of distance. I guess that means more speedwork after IM. Not a big deal as I really was doing this race for fun only.

A great race for a great cause. This was very well organized especially for a first time event. Lots of volunteers kept traffic off the course and directed where to go. Kudos to all the volunteers. Matt the race director did a fantastic job. Raised $30K for the injured marines. What a great experience and a priveledge it was to race alongside the injured Marines that were present. Inspiring to say the least. It was really cool to be able to run by and say Thank You to these great people.