I love the swim in this race. I did the Sprint here a few weeks back so I knew exactly where I was going and where I wanted to be. I worked to the outside left before the start and wanted to be on the left side of the yellow buoy as fast as I could. Horn went off, I was at the buoy in what felt like 5 strokes, this water was moving! Got a bit more left and was feeling good, got to the left turn and started getting a little choppy but no biggie. I knew from the last race the channel marker I wanted to spot to in order to help cut the corner on that last leg. About 300 yards from the finish got kicked square in the face and knocked my goggles right off. Luckily I grabbed them and got them back on and made it to the latter. I was feeling great!

Nothing!

Out of the water, someone asked If I wanted a stripper - After a chuckle the guy had my suit off on about 5 seconds. Fantastic! Off to grab my bike. Ran the 400 yds into T1. Grab my riding pants put them over my tri-suit. Shit they are on backwards..struggle w/ that for about 2 mins, finally get situated. I grab my knee brace put it on, now Im debating about what to wear for my top, I op for my Pearl Izumi riding jacket (thank god) but for somereason I dont put my gloves on. Dumb. Out in under 6 mins. Im a bit bummed. My T1 transitions are normally very fast.

Learn to put riding pants on the correct way! and dont forget my gloves.

I came out of T1 feeling great, on my bike w/ a plan to go easy for the first 20 miles, crank it up after that for the next 20 and bring it home strong. Well that kind of went out the window. The head wind and the cold really got the best of me. I lost feeling in my feet about mile 15. Then at Mile 25 my left elbow rest on my aero bars cracked off. Shit - this was really going to suck. Ended up just tucking my arm between the mount and my neck of the bike, it honestly wasn't to bad. I was drinking my perpetium about every 5 miles, and my Yoo Hoo about every 10. Mile 35 was a godsend. The drizzle stopped, picked up a tail wind and averaged about 22 the rest of the way in. I tucked a PB&J in my jacket in the morning and ate it at mile 40, that w/ the YooHoo I was good to go.

Not forget my gloves!

All I can say is Ugh. I pull into T2 bike hand off is no problem. I always leave my shoes on the bike, so Im hobbling up towards the changing tent, on gravel, it would have been nice to have a few more mats down. My feet are pretty much numb so it really doesnt matter. I get into the tent sit down and start rubbing my feet to get them to work again. Guys in the tent are great, they help me get my stuff off and my running shirt on.
A funny side note - My wife called me a fashion disaster! I have my try suit still on, bright green long sleeve top, black and red running shoes with bright green laces!
Anyways, Im sitting in the tent still my feet are starting to get feeling back and Im like screw it - time to go.

Not at all happy w/ 11 mins. My wife put feet hot pads in here bike shoes and had no issues, next time its that cold, I may do the same.

The run is by far my worst event. I'm not made for running at all. I have grown to actually enjoy running, but Im just slow. I did what I call a modified Galloway method, where I would run 4 mins and walk 1 min. It works for me. I really wanted to beat my 1/2 marathon time of 2:22 and I started off pretty strong and a nice tail wind help out as well. I got to the turn around at 1:14 and thought that if I could kick this up just a bit I could do it. Got to mile 9 and things started going down hill a bit. My feet really started to hurt. I have never had that issue before so I was a bit annoyed at that. By mile 11 it felt like my feet were on fire, I was about 2 mins from just pulling my shoes off. Then someone ran by me and said the pain stops in 2 miles. That was exactly what I needed to hear. I pushed thru, grabed some soup at mile 12, walked up the bridge and ran the rest of the way in. Seeing that finish line, a wave of emotion came over me like nothing I have ever experienced before. I crossed the line got my medal and just knelt down sobbing like a baby. I could not believe what I had just done. It was amazing.

After I gained my composure, my friends and my dad found me. My friend Julie handed me a beer which tasted just absolutely amazing! I was in a state of euphoria, when I found out I broke 7hrs, It made it that much better. My wife also did the 1/2 and I knew she would be coming in soon. (we passed each other at mile 10) So we hung out at the finish line until she crossed. 6:58:58 for her she was a happy camper, I was just glad she didnt beat me ;)


I will never use MS as an excuse or a limiting factor for anything. If anything it makes me go further that I would have otherwise gone. I know that I will never be that elite tri-athlete. I train hard and my workout partners help push me to limits that I never thought I could reach. Yea it hurts, yea it takes longer to recover, but hell, thats what life dealt me, I just suck it up and deal with it.




Overall - I loved this race. The bike weather sucked, but everyone had to go thru it - just adds to the good battle stories! They did end up losing my T1 bag which I was not too happy about. I not only had the sticker on it but I also duct taped and put my name on the bag. So I was a bit annoyed when I got my bags and only 2 where there along w/ the the sticker for the 3rd. The bad did turn up the next day so all was fine. Im glad I put my name on my wetsuit b/c there were about 20 other suits just like mine w/ no names.

Mad props to the volunteers - they were great. Especially on the run, they got me thru a few low points and have that push when I needed it.

Props to Setup Events. Logistics for a race like this are a nightmare. I think overall they did a great job. Wish they would have had a few more transport ferries running.

I need to thank my wife who also did the race. We did some training together but having 3 small kids, long runs/rides were tough to do together. She did keep me motivated and pushed my ass out of the bed for those early morning runs.
Finally I need to thank my workout wife CA (nickname give to her by my wife!). She has changed my life in so many ways she will never know. With her coaching, training and motivation I went from 260 lbs and not being able to run a mile, to 195 and finished and 1/2 IM . She is a rock star!

Completing this race has given me such a different out look on things, and of what I can accomplish. I know I will do this race again and I am now 100% sure that I will be doing an IM in the future. I just added that 70.3 to the back of my car and could not be happier....thats when I noticed there is just enough room above it for that 140.6!