The water was a little rough looking. There were some decent sized (over my shoulders) waves coming in from time to time, but no huge breakers. Getting out to the buoy wasn't easy.
However, I think we may have had a slight current with us as well, so that helped.
Oh, yeah, I forgot to mention the Portugues Man-o-war. How could I forget that.
So, because of the surf, there were some little baby Man-o-wars being swept in.
As luck would have it, I grabbed one. Yup, grabbed the tentacles during my stroke. It stung me across the upper lip and bicep.
Luckily, since it was a baby, it only stung a little.
It was just enough to distract me from the rubbing of my wetsuit strap where I had tucked it in to my suit.

Not much. Maybe wear the lighter goggles due to the low sun.

Getting out of the water was a little tough, but I got out and started jogging. Still panting a bit, but a nice easy jog up the beach.
Transition was BIG! But I made it to my bike OK, and moved through my setup pretty well. Need help with the socks, and a little more with the wetsuit, but overall, it was good.

Practice stepping out of the wetsuit. Maybe get a little box for my electrolytes.

HOWEVER, I had a rough time with my water bottles. This was the first race on the TTX, and it felt way faster. However, the aero bottle came loose and on the first turn after the big downhill, it FLEW right out of the holder. That kind of sucked, as it was my entire nutrition plan.
Luckily I had two water bottles on the back, so at least I didn't get thirsty.
Then on the last downhill coming over the Julia Tuttle causeway, I hit another bump and lost one of my rear water bottles. I was a complete yard sale!
So, not only did I lose two water bottles (the aero one is about 18 bucks) but my bike was COVERED in coffee flavored perpetuem.

Get my bottle locked down (rubber bands maybe).
Also, don't run my tires at so high a pressure. I inflated them to 110, but had been riding them lower. I may try 100 psi.
I was VERY pleased to go so much faster in this race on the bike. I got passed, but not as much as in past races, and I feel like I can improve more.

WOW, I felt great on this one.
I came into the dismount area, loosened my straps and pulled my feet out as I was breaking. I even ended up skidding right to the line.
Of course, the first step I took was a little wobbly. However, I think the tri bike really helped, as I wasn't as sore or wobbly as in other races. That may have been the shorter distance as well.
Got to my rack after a long, and somewhat clouded run, through transition.
I slide on my shoes, grabbed my belt, and visor and started to go. I figured I could put my gear on on the run.

Run a little faster?
I felt pretty good on this one, not sure why I was so slow, except for the long transition.

WOW! I was trying to run hard, I figured I should be able to do sub 9, or may be even 8:30.
However, I saw at the start that I was doing OK, and I was able to keep it up. This was a great run, but I still wasn't able to catch the three guys who passed.
However, at the start of the run, I saw Chris Lieto and Chris Mccormick running shoulder to shoulder at the end of their race. That was pretty motivating.
AND!!!! I SAW SIR RICHARD BRANSON. At the turnaround, I noticed him running and shouted out "Is that Richard Branson?" He gave a fist pump. That was so motivating. I barely kept myself in check.

Not much. Since I hadn't gotten to eat on the bike, I was VERY happy with my run.
I just need to train to get a little (like 1 min per mile) faster.

Wander around aimlessly. Cool off, drink water, eat fruit salad and banana. Walked around an waited for the other group members.
After about 10-15 min, I decided to get a shower and my phone. That was worth it.
Caught up with everyone else, and had a great relaxing post race.


Get the new bike fitted better.
Get the derailler tuned.
Fix my water bottle issues.
TRAIN HARDER


I liked this race. Bigger than many of the other ones I do, but it was well organized and well run. Really neat to race on the same course with pros.
I liked the hills, but I need to work on them A LOT.
As a group, I think we were all pretty happy.
My biggest complaint...WHERE WERE THE DAMN COOKIES. When I race, I want a cheesy medal and some freaking chocolate chip cookies!
I like a banana as much as the next guy, but I want a cookie.