Just Signed Up for My Fist IM. Now What? (Page 2)

I am in the same circumstance as you. Signed up for IMLOU as my first IM and as part of the deal I promised the wife I would find a "group" to train with. I was thinking about doing Chicago Endurance Sports (same group i did for Chicago Marathon training), but would rather just train with a group of people from here. Let me know if you have made any progress on getting a group together. I am in Lakeview.

With IMWI, it's the bike course that will make or break you.  For the swim, the lake is usually pretty calm and wetsuit legal.  Not too bad except for the initial contact you get with the mass start.  The run is about as flat as a marathon gets, with one big exception on Observatory Drive (which you'll do twice). That hill is a doozy.  Relax and take it easy tackling that hill and the rest of the run will be alright.  

But the bike course is up and down the entire way.  You get a little of everything.  Short and steep, rollers, a long climb in to Mt. Horeb and another one on Old Sauk Road.  If you're needing a break, there's really only two downhill sections where you'll have a chance to just sit back and coast.  Like someone else already mentioned, ride the course.  Experience the loop early.  Do it in the spring so that you can see what all the hype is about and then spend the summer training for it. You don't need to fear the bike course, but you do need to plan for it.

Good luck, it's the greatest race.  The crowd for the last two miles of the run will carry you through to the finish.  And if you do get to a point in the run where it feels like you're hitting the wall, Coke and chicken broth are worth their weight in gold.

ETA: Just realized you're new to BT.  So bookmark this page.  Read through it often.  Any question you can possibly come up with will be answered here.  http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/discussion/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=461155&posts=165&start=1