Not a bad swim and not a great swim. Water was calm and a perfect temperature for wetsuit. I did have to swim around, and unfortunately, overtop of some of the people in the waves before us.

Funny thing is only 2 people that finished ahead of me in my age group had a faster swim. My swim has come a long way and I think I can get even faster.

Good transition. Leveraged the strippers and ran through the shower. Put on race number, sunglasses, and helmet. Grabbed a bar and my salt tablets and I was out. Had some trouble getting my right foot into my shoe while on the bike but I'm happy with this transition.

The good news is I executed the bike exactly like I wanted too. The bad news is I executed on the bike exactly like I wanted too. I knew I didn't have the bike fitness I wanted to, so the plan was to go easy on the bike. Problem is I left waaaay too much on the bike course. I could've pushed harder and saved 3-4 minutes. I swallowed my pride BIG time when 5 people in my age group passed me on the bike. I sooo badly wanted to pick up the pace but I just didn't know what my bike fitness would allow me to do on the run.

I also drastically changed my hydration plan for this race. In talking with some of the pro's on the Jack and Adams team they said they'll take anyware from 1200-1500mg of sodium per hour on the bike. I tried this a couple times in training and it seamed to work well. It turns out I took ~1500mg of sodium per hour and for the 1st race of ANY distance in the last 4 years I didn't have to struggle with leg cramps on the run. Sure, I know 1 coach that is going to say that the reason I didn't cramp on the run was because I went easier on the bike. I know my bike fitness wasn't great but I really do feel that with the added sodium and water intake I now know I can push the bike harder. It's still a fine line but I know if I get in better bike shape the additional sodium will have a huge impact.



This was literally a leisurelly Sunday ride and I wish I had gone harder. But, with my lack of bike fitness it was better to err on the side of conservatism. Next race I'll hit the bike harder.

Rack bike, put on socks, shoes, and hat and off. Typical T2.

For the first time in 4 years, no leg cramps. I started feeling great and had to slow myself down. I passed one of the women pro's from the J&A team while on her 3rd lap and she was hurting. I slapped her on the butt and told her to get moving. As I got 25 yards ahead of her I stopped and turned around to ask her if she need salt tablets or anything just to help her get moving. She said she was good and I went back on my way.

I was taking in water and salt tablets as much as I could. I LOVE that they have GU on course because I could just grab a GU with water and suck it down when I needed calories. The biggest problem with the aid stations was there were just so many people that you had to stop to and work around people to get anything from the station.

I was feeling fine until 2.5 miles to go where my pace really started to slow. It was hot and humid. In fact, I'd say it was hotter and more humid than Kona. I tried to take in more fluids but I had run out of salt tablets and I was having a hard time absorbing fluids. I got a bad side stitch and it slowed me down quite a bit.

My Garmin had messed up earlier so I thought I had different a different split from my bike. I thought coming in on the last couple miles I would be in at 4:48. Since my 1st goal was really just to be sub-5 but I really wanted to be in the 4:40's I figured I could coast in and still be happy with a 4:48. I was a little surprised to see the final results at 4:50 but I guess I'll know to go the entire run.

Well, had I not stopped and offered help to my teammate I guess I would have at least come in at 4:49. I have no problem with stopping and can live with my time knowing I helped one of the pro's finish stronger. She actually sent me an e-mail afterwards thanking me for the encouragement and the offer to help.

Lots and lots of coke. I really sucked them down as I wanted the calories and caffeine.


I just haven't had the bike miles I would have liked. This was a very early season test and a good start to the season. I'll look to Kansas 70.3 or Buffalo Springs 70.3 to really fine tune the race strategy and increase bike mileage now that Saturday's are free.