I'm now normally a middle-of-pack swimmer so I was surprised how freakishly slow this swim was. I felt like it was a very average swim, and I was in a group of about 4-5 other girls for most of this swim. Felt comfortable but a little dull throughout. We started to pass some men from the earlier waves before the middle of my first loop, and then occasionally throughout the rest of the swim.

Swim much faster! People that wore their watches got about 1.4 miles for the course, so maybe it was a long swim. The fastest winners were around 35 minutes, which I believe is fairly slow for a HIM race. I also need to be hitting the pool waaaaay more than I do. 87 out of 124 is pretty dismal.

It's a HIM, so I didn't even try to rush here. Took extra time to apply sunscreen, eat a gel and get comfortable. Did not leave shoes clipped in, so mounted the old-fashioned way.

I could rush, but I wasn't trying to be super competitive here. My A race was 2 weeks ago so this was more for fun.

I was pretty happy with my bike. It's always tough to start with a big climb. I hit the nutrition just right. Took one gel before the ride, and then snacked on a total of 3 Honey Stinger waffles throughout the ride. Drank GU brew, probably only 50-60 oz. I had a hard time with a water bottle at one of the aid stations, and only got about half of it in my drink holder but I ended up hydrating more than enough. Also, my groin (hip adductor muscles) went completely numb and strained the last 5 miles. I've never had that happen before! My bike split ended up being fastest of the women by about 7minutes.

I need to figure out what caused my groin to strain on both sides. I physically could not have made it another 5 miles- it was that unbearable.

Slow and boring transition.

I have never had a great run in a HIM, but I have to say I was pleased with this. I started out laboring and tight, and the first 3 miles were my slowest. That may have been due to the huge climb that started out. The guy next to me said, "Is this some sick joke?" as we headed up it. Began feeling good about mile 4 or 5. Aid stations were about every mile. I would take a sip of Gatorade at one, and then pour water on my back at the next. Alternated like that the whole way. Tried to take a gel at one point but just didn't feel like swallowing it. Anyway, the finish was downhill and felt great. HIM PR by 5 minutes!

I should really do more bricks. Legs had a hard time adjusting. And run faster- missed being the fastest chick by 20 seconds, lol!

Felt pretty good. Ate some food, stood in the water, and collected my award for 2nd overall female.


That darn swim.


This was a fun, well-organized event in a pretty venue with a challenging course. Only complaints are that the swim may have been inaccurate, and there were a couple confusing turns on the bike course. A couple guys did make the wrong turns. Other than that, it was well run with wonderful volunteers and a great race director. Oh- wish someone had been taking finisher photos, too!