• Olympic Distance
• Finish Time: 1:57.23
• Place: 1st overall
• New Course Record

The start was a little confusing. There was no loud air-horn, gun, or anything to follow up take your mark. I spent the first 20 – 30 meters swimming head-up, water polo style, making sure everyone else was going.

Swim: 19:11

2 lap swim. First lap I was all alone, smooth sailing and feeling good.  Had a 9 minute flat first lap.  I dove in for the second lap on the inside of hundreds of athletes that were just starting their race I was trapped by a constant wall to my left and the rope on the right; of which several people stopped to grab for refuge.

There is only so much you can do where there are that many people swimming at once. So, I just relaxed and manoeuvred as best I could without being a complete jerk. Once I got to the first buoy I was able to swing out wide for some clear water. I’ll take clear water (no traffic) and swimming a few extra meters over crowded water and shorter distances any day.

T1: (2:26)  500 meters away from the swim exit, down about 40 stairs. No problems to report.

Bike: 56:01 

2 Lap, flap course. I had a pair of private motorbike escorts. There was just a little bit of a tail wind on the way out, and it just put me in a positive state of mind to start the bike.  Half way through the first lap, I realized my race belt had come un-thread (It was still buckled). So I quickly shoved it down in my race shorts, doing anything to not loose it. My new Ritte bike ran smooth and fast. All worries or questions I may have had with the new ride went away within the first 5k and I was able to attack the bike leg with confidence… it helped that the bike looked really, really good too! My Garmin had me at 56 minutes flat, for 39.9 K.m, 42.7kmh average speed.  

T2: ? missed the split on my watch becasue I was dealing with my race belt.  

Shoes went on smooth then I dug my number out of my pants and tied the belt as I ran through transition. Lost little to no time over a small mishap.

Run: 39:55  

There is nothing like 40 stairs to greet you at the beginning of a run, after spending an hour on the bike. The run was a 5 lap loop around the lake of the swim.  The run was a bit of a  love/hate.  About 1/3 of each lap was blissfully shaded with a tailwind. The other 2/3 of each lap was miserably HOT with gusts of dirt flying in your face.  

Post race there was a lot of media attention.  I enjoyed the opportunity to thank the race organizers and tell everyone about the importance of family.  

The day was not all about me.  After the race we were able to enjoy some good family fun at an airlplane cafe and children's theme park.