Good luck on your race!

I did IMC last year. It was my one and only Ironman I've done. Here are some of my tips and things I wish I had done:

• Swim on the outside or the front to avoid the 2:00/100m crowd. It is very hard to pass or move once you are caught in this group.
• On the bike, the one section I wished I pushed harder was after the McLean Creek Road area to Osoyoos before the Richter climb. It's very flat here and I held back more than I wished, in retrospect.
• Do not stop at the port-o-johns at the base of Richter. I waited 5 minutes to pee here when I should have just climbed Richter and pee'd off the side of the road somewhere further ahead. Wait nevermind, I see you're a female. I guess pee on the bike to save time if you don't want to wait at port-o-johns.
• Somehow the Cawston out-and-back is where they cram 160kms of the bike leg. Seriously, it's not that long, but it felt like I was in there forever and started to lose focus during that time. Stay focused here and keep the pace up.
• Bring flat repair for a potential 2 flats or more. That's what I had that day.
• Make sure the rest of your bike is in perfect condition! This is the portion of the race where you could DNF because of equipment so make sure your gear doesn't fail you. I had an unknown damaged freehub body that cost me dearly, but thankfully, I only lost time and did not have to DNF.
• My run was executed perfect: I paced the entire first 27k, keeping my HR in high Z2-low Z3. Then, with 15k to go, I stopped looking at my HR watch and just ran. I managed a 3:45 run this way with a negative split.
• The last few kms of the race were the most painful thing I've ever experienced in my legs. Jens Voight quote 'Shut up Legs' was my mantra and I said it often. Know that your mind and heart is stronger than your legs. Keep mentally strong and after your legs have expired you run on heart.