Well, this is what my bike looked like after last year's race, so I guess she's used to it.
We oughta share our good tips for guys like dev and the other out of towners
Swim - Bring an old pair of flip flops. Painful standing on that ashphalt for the 1/2 hour to hour you'll be waiting in the que
On the return leg, use the lifeguards on the boards as your buoys and swim as far right as possible.
Bike - There are huge industrial sized white road dots at the entrance to the base at the Del Mar gate (right out of T1) and the exit at Las Pulgas, about 13-15 miles in. Lots of bottles go flying there.
Just after exiting the base at the Las Pulgas turnaround, there is a sharp - i mean more than 90 degree - right turn at the bottom of the hill, likely to be gravel there. Careful at the turn, it's tricky.
The section from this turn to the campground sucks. the pavement for the most part is awful all over the road. It's a several lanes-wide section, the bike path sucks, the asphalt sucks. Rode it 2 weeks ago, seems to be a nice section of pavement in the middle I am going to try to ride. Then you get to the smoothest part, the old concrete runway. Then it gets shitty again. And this whole section seems like it should be flat but it's a gentle uphill grade.
If you need a bathroom on the front side, skip the portapotties if there's a line, there are tons of bathrooms in the campground section
The first no pass zone is just after the san onofre power plant (the two boobies) right when you get on the Trestles bike path. For later waves, try to see who is in front of you and if someone is clearly slower than you, maybe work a little harder to pass before entering the no pass zone. It's longer than you think it's gonna be, and it's a little steep, so people tend to slow waaaaaaaayyyyyy down. The second no pass zone, theoretically everyone is going 25 mph. The last no pass zone is along the strand near the end. Same deal, see who is ahead as you cross the bridge and act accordingly.
The second bottle hand off is right before the first big climb mile 32 ish. Consider not taking a full bottle here or getting rid of most f it before the climbing. You have to get to about mile 45-47 for the next station.
The section between the first big descent and the second climb is a mind fuck, especially if there is any wind. I always feel the worst here, as it's a steady false flat and elevation gain.
Hills are over at mile 42. It's very fast back to the turn on Vandegrift and you can make up time here, until you hit the headwind. The ability to still be in aero in the last 5-10 miles is huge. You will see lots of people sitting up.
After the strand no pass section there is a sharp little uphill to T2. May want to still be in your shoes for that.