I spent too much time in the beginning trying to draft and to mix it up with others around me. Finally I decided to find an outside line and get into my own groove. That was a good idea and I found my rhythm. It was not too crowded, so the swim was relatively stress free. I did have to keep reminding myself to stay in the moment as I kept thinking about the rest of the long day ahead. Overall, the swim was good, right around the time I expected and right around the energy expenditure I expected.

Nothing much. Maybe swim my own race from the beginning.

It was fine. It felt pretty quick, but it did not feel calm.

Probably put on some sunscreen.

The ride was good. I started strong, but faded a bit by the end. It was a lonely ride with no specators and not a lot of other riders. Somehow I still managed to get passed by about 5,000 people! I think I may have drank too much during the bike, though. My stomach was not feeling great by the end. There were a couple of scary looking crashes and I was glad I was not a part of any of it. The third loop was a bit of a struggle, but I don't think I overexerted. I was very pleased with my time.

Maybe not wait until the last 5 miles to have my powerbar. I think I needed too much water to wash it down and it set me up for a miserable run.

it was fine.

maybe more sunscreen (sensing a pattern here)

The run is normally my strength. I tell all the fast bikers that I will see them on the run and I usually do pass a bunch of them. Not this day. I started out with a stitch right away and I thought that was okay because there is always some adjusting to do when you get off the bike. No biggie. Except for the next hour and forty five minutes I alternated between a side stitch and a bloated, sloshing stomach...miserable.

I finally realized towards the end of the race what the issue probably was. For one thing, I have not had a chance to really practice the race nutrition and hydration for a couple of years. I am used to races having aid stations spaced out approximately one mile apart. I usually have a bit of water and maybe some gatorade and I walk through the station and off I go. Well this race had aid stations every kilometer. I did not make the adjustment. I think that drinking every kilometer was too much and I did not realize that until way too late. Once I did reallize it and I skipped a couple of stations, my stomach got better and I was able to finally find my running stride. Before this I did quite a bit of walking and quite a bit of sitting at aid stations waiting for my cramp to go away.

I was happy that I finished relatively strong, or at least without any stomach issues. First lap was 1:20 and second lap was 1:00...

monitor my fluid intake better.

nothing much


running with a stomach full of water


First year for this race. Tough for the race directors as they had too change dates at the last minute because of H1N1. Also a very small number of participants meant they probably had to cut a few corners. Overall, it was okay. I hope to see it get more popular next year.