It was my first ows with people and it was tough to get used to. My breathing was very bad because of my cold. I was passing people while doing the breast stroke between markers 2 and 3, though.

In better health I should start closer to the front of group so I wasn't swimming over people. I would try to take better advantage of drafting effect. I need to work on sighting more effectively.

T1 was awful, but unavoidably long because of health and hygiene issues.

Again, T1 improperly recorded because I forgot to hit the button on my watch when I got out of the water. It was actually longer than recorded (and race stats include it with swim time).

I took some time to recover and had a long drink of Powerade - throat was sore and mouth was very dry.

I believe I could have had the wetsuit, goggles, and cap off very quickly if I hadn't intentionally slowed down to recover.

Biking in a tri suit or swimsuit would be an option because putting on bike shorts was a little tough while damp.

I took it extremely easy on the bike. My breathing was a little shallow early on due to my cough - a puff of the asthma inhaler helped.

The run is the most difficult part for me and I wanted to make sure I didn't expend all of my energy doing something as easy as biking. The entire bike ride was a long recovery and prep for the run.

Bike includes T2 time also - I AGAIN forgot to hit my split button when I stopped biking. (My record was 57:35 for the bike and 3:06 T, but the T was closer to 5 min).

I did not hydrate enough and I did not consume enough calories to sustain me for the run. I should have had a gel or 2 on the bike ride. My nutrient intake was not what it should have been. My appetite was screwed up because of the cold and cramps.

Next time I'll make sure I hydrate and consume at least one gel before or during bike. A better breakfast would have helped also.

Someone (my boyfriend, actually). Racked his bike in my spot, which was at the end of the rack. Because my ride was so leisurely everyone else had already racked their bikes. I had to move two bikes to make enough room for my bike. Some of my stuff had also been knocked over.

Hopefully won't have menstrual issues or racking problems to deal with in the future, which really slowed down the transition.

I had practiced this transition some so my legs, etc. didn't feel too horrible and I knew what to expect.

Painfully slow for the first half. I'm not a great runner normally and it was tough to stay motivated. My breathing was shallow and not great. I took a couple of hits of my asthma inhaler and that helped. I had some cramping that forced me to walk for appx 30 seconds (I think it was menstrual more than anything else).

Hydrate and consumer gels during bike to prepare and keep energy level up.

Concentrate on maintaining form.

Some yoga stretches.


Illness and period.


It is my only race so I don't have much to compare it to. Tons of volunteers given the size of the event. Seemed very well organized.