Off the bike and into the wetsuit which I bought for a steal at the end of my first season and has been impinging my shoulders like a straight-jacket ever since.

Using the grocery bag trick to perfection once again this year, I did a decent job of pulling the sleeves fully on, but with all the sweat and grime, it wasn’t perfect and my shoulders were aching after only 200 yards.

My legs didn’t cramp in the cold, but I couldn’t pull much water and got frustrated. Not my best performance. That said, I came out only about a minute after Alaina and was ready to start running without slowing her up.

The sweetest part about this race is that Alaina and I start and finish together as a draft-legal team. We did a great job of drafting on this race, where I pulled on the flats and rollers, and she paced us on the two grueling climbs.

I was able to continue hitting 220 - 240 watts on my segments, which left me with plenty in the tank and cruised us along at a good clip. Only a couple of people passed us and stayed ahead of us on this out-n-back on the just-repaved route 125. The time we put in at Kensington metropark and on our CX bikes climbing the hills around here definitely paid off, as neither of us ever felt sapped on these courses.

After the race, this dude who was racked near Alaina told me, "you've gotten a lot better this year. I was trying to catch you for a long time today." Mofo was a strong rider too, so this compliment meant a lot to me. It's cool to hear positivity, eh?

Back on to the same damn Lamp Black trail run. It was hotter now than this morning, sunny in the mid-80s, and my aero helmet left me really cooking. I wore a covered hat rather than my usual visor to protect the dome from the kamikaze horseflies that will follow you for miles looking for a tasty bite of flesh, but I think this exacerbated my core temperature and I was definitely overheating.

My lungs were starting to tighten up and I was feeling queasy and asthmatic. Michigan has been cold and wet for the last 7 months, and my body was obviously not acclimated for summer. My legs were springy and able to hold 7:30 m/m with ease, so we held that pace, knowing that whatever we could save for tomorrow’s half-Ironman would be to the greatest benefit. I took a few salt stick tabs and drank water at every aid station, trying to keep cool.

More fluids

Hit up the ice creek and as much food as I could chow. Started feeling very lightheaded and space-cadet head. Needed sleep and water. Took in not enough of either.