More St. Anthony's wrap-up

We had to get up at 4am that morning, as you had to get to the transition area and setup all your stuff by 6:50am. This made for a long wait afterwards, as our swim waves didn't leave until 9am. I took a nap on the beach, after which I felt much better.

Here's Binni's transition setup, which was alot more organized than mine. The transitions are pretty hectic and you're not really thinking too much, so my strategy was to put everything I needed for the bike in my bike shoes (gels, sunglasses, etc..) and put everything I needed for the run in my running shoes (race number, sunblock, etc...). That way I wouldn't get out on the course and realize I forgot my sunblock or was naked or whatever...

With 4,000+ people, it took quite a few waves to get everyone in the water. The pros were off first, then it was by age group and gender. Team in Training were the last waves to go and I think I may have literally been the last person in the water. I saw no point in tiring myself out at the beginning by elbowing and jostling to start the swim. You move to a holding pen of sorts with your wave, wait a few tense minutes, there's a blast of the airhorn, and then you're off!

Here's what the water looked like. Those buoys seemed awfully far away!