It was a decent swim. I had some difficulty getting my breathing just right. But about midway through the first leg, I was good to go. My strategy was to go slow for first leg, pick it up the second, and go strong during the third. I kept running into people and had difficulty sighting in the morning sun. On the 2nd leg, I couldn't make out anything and just followed everyone else. Was never really able to draft - people seemed just too fast (or two slow). I felt really good during the third leg and pushed the pace a little bit.

A few things: 1) Work on bilateral breathing to help stay in a straight line. 2) Swim a few hundred yards the morning of with the hopes of getting into a rhythm sooner. I wonder if I could partner up with someone and we could take turns drafting with each other (maybe through BT)

Not gonna lie - I took my time in T1. I wanted to make sure I got my bike shirt on more easily than at the season opener so I hopped out of wet suit and dried off with a towel then put on bike shirt. loaded up with my food for the bike and got going.

I should swim in my tri shift Next time will be easier with the new race belt that Charles so kindly gave me.... but I still need to practice more. I need the entire process to become automatic so I should try to do it before long rides.

Think about putting on socks - I didn't have any blisters on the bike but I wonder if that made my feet more painful on the run.

Coming out of T1, I felt good and there were plenty of downhills to warm up on... I know I was going fast, and I constantly kept having to pull back knowing that a fast start would make for a grueling finish. The hills were legit and never ended. One was seven miles long. While there were 4 ranked hills - the course kept going up and down. I followed Mike's advice of seeing how slowly I could go on the uphills and tending to hammer the downhills so it didn't take so much energy to go up. There were times when I was averaging 25-30 mph. Going into the big ring on the down hills helped but I think it tired me out. Nutrition was good and I felt that having the protein bar early in the bike worked out well.. I was tuckered out by the time I got back to T2 but I still felt good. The ride itself was beautiful - the views were amazing and being in rural CT was almost idyllic in a Norman Rockwell kind of way.

Depending on how I'm doing, I might choose to not pedal the downhills in IMMT for the first half as long as I am maintaining my pace with the hope of being fresher for the second half of the ride and for the run. I also need to change the set up on my watch to track speed and not pace - as that will let me really focus in on the pacing. Also, I really need to dial in my hydration. I ended up going to the bathroom at the 3rd aid station.

Again - I didn't push it. I sat down to take off bike shoes and put on fresh socks and my running shoes.

Practice Practice Practice. Also put raffy in my back pocket as I came to T2.

I followed my plan and walked the first mile (with the goal of getting back to IMMT training ASAP) and then followed a 5 run, 5 walk throughout. I also tended to save the gu and eat the banana and pretzels they were giving out at the aid stations. I also discovered the joy of putting a cup of ice into my hat which was huge since it seemed a lot warmer than the predicted 74.

I did everything during the first half of the run to not push the pace. I walked up all the hills. I made a lot of friends back there in the pack. Met a guy who will be volunteering at IMMT and even chatted with a nice Yankees fan. During miles 3 and 4 I stopped to pick up garbage to do a good deed but also to slow myself down. It really paid off because with about 4 to go I was done. Having not completed a longer training run than 9 miles - I was in uncharted territory. My left hip and glute hurt, my feet were developing blisters. And my stomach was a bit upset despite following my nutrition plan. But I slowed down my pace during my "runs (more like a shuffle) and didn't push my walks either.
With 7 to go - I turned on the NASCAR race - and it was a wonderful distraction. I didn't feel the same boost from the coke as had during a couple of my long rides - wished I had. The last mile and a half was rough - a Cat 5 hill that never seemed to end. But I jogged up it wanting to finish strong.

Play around more on training runs with bananas and pretzels to really dial those in. It might help to have a nutrition card just to make sure that I get everything I can out of the 4th discupline. In order to make Mike Reilly while having as good a day as possible - I really want to hit my marks.

Drink less - I peed 5x during the run. That is way too much! I should change drinking on the 5s to drinking on the 10s.

Better socks

Did very little. I ate a burger and sucked down a gatorade and hopped in the car and went home.


This race wasn't about speed. It was about getting ready for IMMT - so I never pushed it. I was also coming down with a cold and felt tired the day before.


This was a good race but I felt like Rev3 was tightening their belts financially. We got very little in terms of bling (the only thing we got in our athlete packet was a head rag. Post race food wasn't fresh by the time I get there and there was no beer (seriously - they had it at MD - but only served soft drinks here). Aid stations were good and volunteers were really friendly. The course was just what I wanted - something that would really challenge me and boost my confidence. It was beautiful - and the weather was PERFECT!