I was very nervous about the swim (as usual), but it went really well and I felt really great coming out of the water (time flew by). It was a wetsuit race even though the water was pleasantly warm. I was relaxed throughout the whole swim and had total control over my breathing. It was a great start to the day as the sun was cresting over the trees and glinting off of the lake as we swam down the first leg.
My only area of dissatisfaction was my brutal navigating. I think I probably added about an extra 100m because of my zigzag swim path. Why can't they paint black lines on the bottom of the lakes for these events!?!?!

Better sighting, better navigation.
Having more confidence now, I could push the pace just a little bit.

My T1 really went very well (although I didn't realize it at the time). I just felt very very fresh coming off the swim, so the T1 was just easy and smooth, felt great. Wetsuit came off easily and quickly and I was wearing a tri-suit for the first time. The suit felt great on the bike and run and made transition way easier.
My friend Nick was just heading out of T1 as I was coming in... very cool.

not much.

I took it out at a pretty easy pace on the bike just to get my "bike legs" under me. I felt fresh from the swim but it didn't take long for the first few hills. I was surprised at how often I was chaning gears to address the hills. I felt quite strong throughout the ride, although my legs were starting to burn on the hills at the end of loop 3.
I was worried about a sore "saddle area" prior to the race, but this thankfully didn't turn out to be an issue.
I rode with the same group of people throughout most of the ride.
I watched in amazement as some of the very strong men and women blew by me at absolutely AMAZING speeds (holy crap they were moving!!!)

To give some perspective on the hills, my fastest speed was 65kph and my slowest was 10kph.

I was happy with my nutrition on the bike. I ate 4 gels and lots of water. I never felt hungry (which I usually do on long rides), so I think the gels did the trick.

It really was a scenic and beautiful bike course, and the weather was ideal for biking... thankfully not much wind.

I think I would push it harder on the flats next time, although not too much as my legs were getting a pretty good burn.
I would definitely dedicate more of my training time to bike for my next race of this distance (or any distance for that matter). The bike training helps with better bike time AND fresher legs going onto the run.

Like T1, T2 was uneventful and in hindsight pretty quick.
I had decided not to use speed laces because I wanted to make sure that my shoes were on properly for the run (I was willing to sacrifice speed for comfort). This turned out to be a good strategy, and I don't think that tying my laces cost me much time at all.
This is the first time I've worn a tri-suit, and I think it was a huge benefit for both T1 and T2.

not much... drink more water (see run)

It took me about 1.5 km to get my running legs under me at which point I started to feel pretty good. I passed my friend Nick on the run at about the 3km mark. My guess is that I was running at about a 5:10 min/km pace for the first 5 or 6 km (too fast and NOT DRINKING!!!).
At about the 7km mark I started to feel quite dizzy and actually started to stagger. My self-doubt engine kicked in right on queue and I started to think there's no way I'm going to finish this race!!! I was almost starting to panic at the thought of not finishing. I then recalled reading on some of the BT forums and other tri mags that what I was experiencing was a result of not enough water and/or electrolyte drinks. So, I walked for about 3 min to the next aid station and drank about 3 cups of water and 3 cups of gator aid. I walked another minute or so and BLAMO... back in the game! PHEW, that was close. I slowed my pace and actually felt quite comfortable for the remaining 12km (walking at every other aid station while I continued to drink).

As I neared the 19km mark, I could hear the crowd cheering the racers on at the finish line. This totally pumped me up, and started what would be a pretty emotional final kilometer. I was on an absolute high as I ran the final km and crossed the finish line. ABSOLUTELY AMAZING! GOD I LOVE THIS SPORT!!! A few tears of joy for good measure. My friend Nick's family were all there to give me some congratulatory hugs and high fives which I really appreciated.
I was VERY lonley at that point for my wife and two boys back at home in St. Albert. I really wish they could have been there with me, but it didn't work out this time. I gave them a call to share the moment as soon as I got back into the transition area.
My main goal really was to just finish the race. I had an un-official target completion time of 6:30, so I was VERY happy with my 6:09 finish!
My friend Nick crossed the finish line about 6 minutes later... AWESOME!!!

Pay much more attention to my fluid intake!!

Bask in the great tri spirit of my first Half Ironman and of all of the racers and volunteers at this VERY WELL run event (oh ya, forgot to stretch... a little stiff today... oops).



I really didn't train nearly enough for this event. If I were to do again (which I would like to), I would start my training MUCH earlier.


(note: overall rank number is based only on male results)

Outstanding race!!
Great organization, great volunteers, amazing location, perfect weather, nice hoodies, cool medals, good post race food.