This was a destination race for me. I'm from Northern Cal and started in Wave 10. Previous 70.3 races include Vineman, Oceanside, Donner Lake, Challenge Rancho Cordova, and Wildflower. Here are my thoughts?

• Registration/Parking: Non-issue. Earlier posts warned about traffic and parking...non-event compared to Vineman which has horrible access and limited parking (I'm a native of Sonoma so it hurts saying this)
  
• Swim. It was a PW for me. We saw three people get pulled out of the water before our wave even got in the water. Never seen that before. Very choppy and the sun after the first turn was tough.
• Ride. Wind was the factor. The roads conditions weren't great - comparable to Jolen Road at Wildflower. I had no issues with riders not moving over. That was an issue at Vineman but that could because I was wave 17. I had to slow down for cars. Did I mention the wind? Wow. Overall impression was that the Austin scenery is beautiful and different but it's hard to beat the vineyards and mountains of California.
  
• Run Course. I read people's complaints about three loops but as I progressed and knew what to expect my splits got faster. Optimal run conditions. Disappointed that the run course was not 13.1 - I thought that I had PR'd but didn't.
  
• Volunteers - Great
• Spectators - Great
• Two Transitions - more manageable than Vineman and IMLT Full 2013 where T1 and T2 are/were separated by more than just 1.5 miles.
• Nightlife/lodging in Austin - Superior to any other race I've done for my intentions of the weekend. The bars and restaurants and vibe of Austin helped me understand why so many Californians are moving down there.
  

Would I do it again? Yes but I'd like to make it a couples trip - leave the kids with the grandparents.