The race was point to point so I basically just swam a straight line and got out. I had wished that I had studied the map a bit better for landmarks as I had no real sense of how far along I was throughout the race. When I looked up and saw the finish buoys it seemed so soon that I thought I was seeing things (my goggles were a bit foggy after all...). It was definitely the finish. The swim was over before I knew it!

Try to pick out landmarks on the swim before the race (i.e. swim under two bridges, that kind of thing). Wear fresh goggles that weren't so prone to fogging.

I wasn't overly concerned with the transition times for this race. My main goal was to finish and not feel dead (or discouraged) at the end. Clearly I could have gone a bit faster here. I am honestly not sure what took me so long. I did put socks on which I normally would not do and I was about as far as I could be from the bike out so I had to run quite a distance with the bike. Who knows...

I was really please with the bike leg. I had ridden the course twice with a training group but wasn't really sure what my time would be come race day. Generally, my rides had been in the 15 mph range so was guessing 3:30 to 4:00. The course was essentially flat for the first 17 miles and then goes to rolling hills. I took a water bottle bottle at one of the water stops. I had never done that before so wasn't sure how well I could execute the hand off. It was pretty easy, one of those things that made you wonder why you were so worried about it in the first place. I kept the gear in the big ring in front for most of the ride (which is unusual since I am usually riding hills) and maintained aero for probably 90% of the ride (also unusual for me).

Again, not overly concerned with time. I actually thought T2 would have been longer then T1 so that surpised me. I stopped to use the port-o-potty at this point.

I felt good for 95% of the run. I ended up walking 60 seconds at every mile marker. My legs felt great at the end which is what I was hoping for since I am on track to do the B2B full in 4 weeks. The water stops were well stocked. Lots of ice, snacks and sponges in addition to water and IM perform. I was so excited to round that corner and come down the finishers chute! I was trying to look cool while I was choking back the tears of joy :)

I had some GI distress somewhere around mile 11.5 through the end of the race and then for a few hours later. I am not altogether sure what caused it so that concerns me a little bit going into B2B. I am guessing it might have been the Ironman Perform drink that was being handed out on the course.

The only comment I had about the end was there was quite a line to get food and the offerings seemed kind of limited to me compared to other races I have experienced. There were potato chips, oranges and pizza. My stomach wasn't feeling any of that at the time. I really just wanted a plain bagel and there were none to be found. Any other time, I would have been all over the pizza so it could ahve just been the way I was feeling at the time.