At least you get a cool story out of it all! Sounds like a ripper, even with the bike issues. Hope the body is working today!
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great effort considering your bike problem and grinding the run out 
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Nice one @joex - enjoyed tracking you
What did you think of the bike course?
Run course doesn’t look that inspiring but nice views of the Atlantic
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Although I didn’t want the elevation gain, I though it was a nice run route. Gradients are mostly gentle. I’m comparing it to Barca and Lanza beachside runs that are flat as a pancake but at the end of the day they’re just plain beaches.
The Sintra Hills are nice, then the bike course reminded me of Barca. Windy, coastal, tough even when flat. Speed bumps at the bottom of descents are not welcome. Signage wasn’t great, but no problems.
Getting the bike up several sets of tight staircase was a mother last night, I’m enjoying the Ironman limp today.
EDIT
Went to the awards, lots of British women on the podiums 
Basically for AG men it’s sub 9 to win. Iirc 8:59 for M45 and 8:28(!) for M30. I’m not looking at splits cos it’ll scare me but 8:28 is cracking on any course surely for an amateur.
EDIT 2
Just had an American tourist stop chat and have his wife take a photo with me - I’m famous
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Thanks for the report @joex and well raced. The videos make it look like the run out the marina is pretty steep, but might have just been the camera angles. How were the climbs on the bike course? Tougher than they would otherwise have been obviously with the brake issue I appreciate 
And did you find it overcrowded with both events running on the same day?
The logistics of this one make it quite attractive, as it sits in the October hols, but I don’t like all the spikey bits on the course elevation maps…
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Yes exactly. You can fly in pretty easy/cheaply and it’s an easy train journey with a bike box, no need for an airport transfer.
Weather was Mediterranean yesterday but rain forecast tomorrow so maybe a little uncertain. Sea was calm but the wind and waves really picked up later in the day - worth checking if the swim has ever been cancelled in the last five years.
The town is hilly but Sintra hills are the only serious climb, and it’s something like 6 or 7 % I’d guess and there’s a few short metres where to need to get out of your seat but that’s it. You can also see the triathletes winding up the hills and trees ahead in places which is nice. I will say that I felt dicey on some of the descents because I wasn’t sure when a speed bump would greet me, there were none of the SLOW DOWN signs or RED FLAGS or any of that elf n safety nonsense out here, so ride with caution as you probably do anyway. And the Estoril Race Circuit is a nice touch. Otherwise it’s basically town hills/Sintra hill, coast. Coast is broken up with two slow out n back climbs on the way out.
70.3 on the same day means there’s a lot more going on in the first lap, more people to look at or exchange a passing word. Also means you see some pelotons. Although ‘crowded’ coming out of T1 I think I stayed within drafting rules fairly easily. Not just because I had my brakes on 
I think it’s a lovely jazzy bohemian kind of place. Wish I could live here.
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Absolutely cracking swim @joex shame about brake rub on bike. Those perfect races are very uncommon, but your time will come. As a triathlete you are making great progress
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Cotswold Duathlon at the weekend for me. I was tentative about doing this due to my groin strain still niggling me but it felt like it was almost there. 2hrs sleep the night before as I’ve picked up a cold.
2x 5km trail runs which were all off road and pretty lumpy! I hate running in my trail shoes and decided I’d stick with my 800km worn Next% Tempos and take the risk on the course. 1st run I took it somewhat steady as I really have no idea where my run fitness is at currently, consistent training on that front has been VERY injury strewn.
Jumped on the bike, nice crisp morning, but it had rained the night before and sun was glaring up off the wet road alot! It was a punchy 22km course with 240m elevation. I was doing my best not to overcook it. Into T2 with frozen hands and struggling to get my shoes on and do up the laces, while getting abused by the marshalls ‘Does he know transitions are timed?’ 
I will buy some elastic laces!
Second run felt more comfortable, ran down a couple of people, but some more appropriate off road shoes would have been slightly better.
Finished 12th out of 110.
I was chatting with some other guys in the finish chute, we were talking about the hills on the bike course and said he thought how good some womens form was who was flying up one of the hills ahead of him and then said he later realised it was me The locks were in full flow
Groin has survived 
So will tentaviely start putting some runs in this week I think.
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Key question: were there jellyfish on the swim 
I don’t believe so, certainly all I saw were medium sized fish. It’s a slightly murky harbour bay, I would guess that viz is about 8m. I imagined Jaws was having a wander about a few times.
Unfortunately someone passed away in the swim, but I don’t know the details. I didn’t get much biff, just a few bumps but another athlete was hospitalised with eye nerve damage.
Apart from being a bit cold at 18° and difficult to sight due to the sun, I thought it was a good swim course.
Sunrise was epic but it’s about this high at IM start
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Race week for me, feeling pretty meh about it, in holiday mode atm. That’ll probably change when I get to Sacramento. A first glance at the bike and it looks ok, the front mech works so I’ve got at least 2 gears!
Apparently it’s Mike Reilly’s last race as announcer as well so hopefully I’ll be done in time to get the call.
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Full then a half ( championships ) 7 days later.
I’m on nights so tired ATM but will be watching your exploits with interest !
Go Jeff good job… my American support cry.
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6 days later
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…spend the rest of your life trying to get home.
This isn’t the place for an EasyJet rant. Or maybe it is. “Fly cheap, fly twice”, or something. Got here at 1 early for a 16:45 flight - being replaced with one at 23:00 we ‘hope’.
It’s why I usually pay extra and fly BA, but there were no flights this time. When you’re thinking of racing abroad and prices (no sniping Poet) you need to price in the risk of fuck ups.
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Couldn’t have held on for one more week. Would have been nice to be called over the line by him
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Yeah, bit surprised by that given how close it is, unless it’s his last full? Although I think he’s from California so possibly why.
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TBF I’ve used KLM and paid extra and it’s been a complete nightmare, I’ve still no idea whether my flight from Amsterdam is going ahead or not, it’s reappeared on the app despite the message that said it had been cancelled 
They delay from LA is causing problems as well due to car hire return, if I can’t check in my luggage early I’m going to be waiting there for about 6 hours!
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Yesterday I went along and did Yorkshire Marathon having decided that 10 years of rejections holding out for London was enuff
Also, 5 weeks out from Zofingen with no Ill effects meant it was an opportunity to fit one in and Yorkshire fitted the bill nicely. Booked it, could not find a reasonable hotel , so went glamping instead. £40 to sleep in a fancy shed . Camp bed, sleeping bag, job was a good one !
I’d done 4.03 @ IM Barca & 4.13 at last years Outlaw, best half was earlier this year 1.34 - no previous standalone marathons so this was alien and I was only really guessing what I could do. My MP efforts had been 7:30 to 7:40 min mile pacing , and at great north I’d run that comfortably pacing a mate round so that was the plan. I’d be about 3 hr 20 with that and so that’s how I found myself at the start just a little bit behind the 3 hr15 pacer.
Started OK, pace very quick from the off but didn’t feel like I was over doing it. Consistent 7:10 to 7:15 mile pace and I expected that I’d drop into the usual MP interval pacing from pre event, but this didn’t happen until mile 15. In fact the first half marathon was just 15 seconds slower than my PB from earlier in the year so maybe it was a bit giddy 
From there I held on another couple of miles and then at the turn at Stamford Bridge it was block headwind and the next 6 miles did slip into that pre race pace.
Then at 21 legs started not to play ball. Whilst it wasn’t the wall as such, my legs just felt hollow and the bounce had gone out of them. I never thought about walking or anything , I just modified the pace a little to cope, those last four miles were a minute each slower than I had been going , and That was OK. I had expected that the wheels might come off late on, but I’d the damage is only a minute per mile this late on, I’d take that.
Last mile went on for ever (or 8:30 ) and then the finish line came before I expected it!
3:18:47 , just inside the target 
Great race, well organised , good value for money.
Today is a case of ‘let the legs see the sofa ‘ 
Tomorrow is looking like dom- ageddon
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Just inside?! That’s smashed the target. Nice one!
Probs not the nicest way to run a mara… but you went well regardless!
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fantastic effort mate, take a bow 