back after 20 year layoff....things have changed

Well here I am after almost a 20 year layoff. I started competing in triathlons in 1986 after having seen the Ironman on TV. You remember the video of the women competitor (can't remember her name) (maybe Julie?) that fell just before the finish line and she was so wobbly she crawled across. I participated till about 1990 but gradually moved back to just running which i have done consistently for 30 years. I will be participating in a sprint tri in Jacksonville FL in July but would like to do a half ironman this fall. I am running 6 to 10 miles a day now but having to retrain my self in swimming and biking. My bike is a 23 year old Battaglin with a campy groupo on it designed around serious cycling. I bought it used back then cause they didn't have tri bikes. I just spent $250 fixing it so i could ride again. Not sure if I will invest in a new bike or not but certainly not before the sprint. Oh well I guess my biggest concern is having a flat 20 miles out and riding tubular tires. Anybody got any suggestions on riding tubulars. I never flatted in any races or training so I never had to change. I just purchased new tires about every 6 months and the bike shop fixed it. I had more money than sence back then. Thinking about hitting Craigs list for used "newer" bikes with clinchers.