Jumped in and found no feet to draft off, so I went at my pace. Took it way too easy.

Lap 1 (21:02)
Lap 2 (23:43)

Lost focus a bit in the second lap.

Determine, prior to race day, my intended pace. I could have and should have swum faster.

Good T1, taking into account that it was a long distance from the water to the bikes.

Learn that shoe on the bike thingy, but in longer races that doesn't really matter.

I started out the bike at a good pace and was riding along just fine until I got a flat at the beginning of the second lap. It took me nearly 10 minutes to fix it because I couldn't find the cause of the puncture, so I removed the tire liner, and once I found the culprit, a little piece of metal, I had a bit of difficulty reincorporating the tire liners. Inflating the tire with my hand pump also took some considerable time.

I got back on the bike and rode off at the intended pace, not trying to make up for lost time, thinking that if I did try, I would be fried for the run because it was so freaking hot.

Still, the heat/wind/hills felt right up my alley. I wasn't fast, but felt good.

Ride with a metal detector.

Seriously, however, I should get some CO2 cartridges. I also think I need to upgrade my bike.

The pace and effort were right on. It sucks to get a flat though; I hadn't gotten any flats so far this year in training!

A surprisingly fast transition. I knew that I was last in my AG by now (no other racked bikes!), so I wanted to try to pick off a couple of guys on the run.

Nothing much.

This is one hell of a difficult run course.

I felt good and strong for my standards. Passed a lot of people, yet only a couple in my AG. It was funny though for a change since I always get passed more than I actually do pass on the run.

Hit my target run pace for this race. It was important for me to have a good run, regardless of what may have happened in the other two disciplines.

For the time being, nothing much. I do, however, want to run a sub-2hr half mary in a tri...maybe in one not so hilly.

Swim: Lack of mental focus. I did the training and had improved my swim times this season, but took it too easy on race day. That 3min difference from my intended pace cost me three spots in my AG at the end of the day.

Bike: I think I'm getting better here. It's about time for an upgrade.

Run: Need to keep at it. It was great to feel strong throughout the run for a change.

Mayde also raced. She came in 4th in her AG, but most significantly, dropped nearly 10 minutes from last year's result and nearly caught me on the bike!


A top-notch event on hard course. I had never wanted to do a HIM before and now, after this experience, have learned to enjoy this distance.

There were talks of this event being preclassified for an M-DOT inspection next year. A few changes have to be made, some more significant than others, but it's definitely the best tri in Venezuela.