Before I forget; that was one of the very best sung Star Spangled Banner before the race. Only Nashville could compete with that ;)

My Garmin shows 6,797 feet of elevation gain (up only) for the bike. (It actually shows the bike course a little short so it may not be dead on)......

Here's what I remember about the race. Maybe I'll come back to consciousness later today and remember mroe, but for now...
- Riding the Ducks to the swim start. 5am, going 70mph in a WWII amphibious machine, and the drive prattling on and on about Micky Gilley this, and Mell Tillis that.
- Dark in T1. Better bring a flashlight next yearl.
- Clean and clear water. Not like Madison last week (yep, did IMWI last week and then strpped on Branson. People thought I was nuts, expecially the two AG I ran down for a podium spot (and Clearwater slot).
- Downhill at 45mph in the fog and mist. Glad I rode the course on Saturday and knew the road was flat and smooth.
- Helicopter on the bike course. The guy hovered over me twice at about 150AGL and it reminded me of Vietnam all over again. Funny what low blood sugar does...
- Catch 'em on the descent, give it back on the climb. Everyone rides a different race and it was interesting to catch guys on the downhill and give it back on the uphill. We laughed about that afterwards.
- Walking on the bike course. You don't see this much at a HIM.
- Then it got hot. Just about 10:40 it cooked up a classic fall Branson heatwave and people started falling apart. I remember what Rich Strauss said last week about the race starting at mile 9. So true, and everyone started going backwards. It was a struggle to run to the next aid station.
- Great first year organization. Two words, Tom Ziebart. Quiet, unassuming, great organization. How he pulled this off in Branson and got them to commit such resources and suppport; amazing!

temps were 10-15 degrees above average, and that was the straw that broke most of us on the run. should be much easier most years.

top notch race production in a fantastic, family friendly location. if people don't get scared off by the bike course (i loved it), this will be a popular race.

i had much higher elevation figures than what's been posted and so have some of my friends. not sure what's the deal. here's the date from my 310xt:

Elevation Gain: 7,238 ft
Elevation Loss: 7,503 ft
Min Elevation: 714 ft
Max Elevation: 1,350 ft

I'm sure your 301xt is correct. It certainly felt like we climbed a lot. Thanks for sharing your data.

Just for fun, would it be accurate to say that the course was basically downhill from start to finish, since the elevation lost was a bit more than the gain? LMAO!

pretty sure the run course was dead on, my garmin had it right over 13mi.

On a second note, i think if we paced the bike correctly we would have been fine on the run. When i say correctly paced, i think you need to substantially decreased your overall pace to ensure a strong run.

Well that was the problem! I was going as slow as I could up those hills and they were still killing me! The only reason my bike split was half-way decent was because I hammered it hard at the crest of the hills to gain as much momentum and speed going into the next downhill (and man was I flying past people on those downhills!). I think I'm just going to have to get much much stronger at climbing and on the bike in general, otherwise I don't think there is a way I can even finish that bike course and still run a decent half-marathon afterwards.

---

-Bryan Journey
Travel Blog | Training Blog | Facebook Page

I feel worst than after the Redman Full Iron last year, but I am happy I raced. That bike course was AMAZING! I fell apart on the run like most people, but that finisher medal actually means something.

From Michael Lovato's Twitter:
"Reflecting on the race yesterday: this Branson course really should be a world championship event. Fair, tough, and fun."

I got into t2 and was just 6 min down on you, running strong and then blew up around mile 6, finished 17ag. Great job in the race.

Agree with the small mountains, hardest one I have done! Needs to be world championship course!! Great race!

Like everyone else here, I had a tough race. I would have been OK, (by OK, I mean somewhere under 6 hrs.), but about mi.36, had severe lower GI cramping...same pain I had at a race last year, which was my only DNF ever. At the time I was wondering if it was a bug from lake water. I still am. Alot of people I was "running" with were complaining of cramping. Is there precedent for this, e-coli, or some other water-borne issue causing the field to crack? I realize this was one of the toughest courses, under withering heat, we'll likely ever race, it was just frustrating knowing I had more left in my legs, but couldn't run because of gut pain.
FWiW, I was talking to a guy from Florida, he's completed 9 Ironman's, and does St. Croix every year. He told me Brason was as hard, if not harder, than St. Croix.
And yes, that finisher medal from yesterday does mean something to me.

---

It's simple, but it isn't easy.

one of the race organizers told me just now the bike ride had about 6,000 feet of climbing.

I have gotten cryptosporenia, a bug that is in many lakes before, but it takes a few days before you feel the effects, and the effects are severe. I don't think you can get ecoli from lake water? From what i have heard it takes at least a 12 hours or so for the effects of water born bugs to attack your system.

That was a very tough course. I have never experienced anything more difficult. However, it was also the most fun I have ever had at a race.
I knew I was falling apart around mile 35-40 on the bike so I just started cheering everyone else on, you might have heard me on some of the descents. I finished 50 min. slower than Kansas. Ended up walking in every aid station and running between each one.
I'm proud of everyone that was out there.
rob

X2 on the fun...as others have mentioned, having a four lane highway, (2 lanes each way), closed off to car traffic was an absolute gas...my max speed was 53.8 mph. That's the reason I ride bikes. I feel like I'm 12 years old again. I had an awesome feeling dropping into downtown Branson, hitting the 'round-about at 40 mph. I felt like a pro tour rider...then the run started.
I too am proud of everyone who gutted that out.

---

It's simple, but it isn't easy.

Amen.

I had a 53/39 front with an 11/23 rear for Kansas (as well as every other race I've done in the last 5 seasons), and didn't have any issues. I switched to a 12/25 rear for Branson, and didn't have nearly enough on the easy end. But, then again, I used that 12T a lot on the flats after the descents. So, I wouldn't want to give it up, either. In retrospect, I probably needed a compact front and wide range (11/28 or the like) rear. But, that's the first time (and likely the last) I've ever run into that situation.

---

Steve

"If you ain't first, you're last." Reese Bobby Talladega Nights

AWESOME!

1st proper tri since breaking my patella into 3 pieces, thought it would be a good race to see if the thing would hold.

1. The swim. GREAT! But waves too close together swam on 2-3 groups of the previous waves, but still great, no effort put forth as I knew the day was going to be long and fancied being fresh.

2. The bike. OMI-GOD! That was harsh. I would pass one person and be passed by 20-30 gear mashers. brought the wrong bike!! Next year my road bike with clip on tri bars, I needed the 3rd front ring...

3. The run. Ouch! Got into my steady slow PLOD! and only stopped to graze at every aid station there was. Met up again with a good few 'gear mashers!' The turtle plod was effective. The course was great especially sitting in the very cold fountain at the end.

It is meant to be difficult It is a 70.3 IM it's not meant to be a stroll in the park.. The difficulty of it all added to the sense of accomplishment for me.

I was hoping for a completion of the race rather than an injury, so to feel great today makes me feel like a winner.. I was hoping for a 5:45 but came in in 6:09 so very happy.

The event was well organised, a little confusing in the briefing for the loop descriptions on the run and bike but out on the field it was easier to understand.

The VOLUNTEERS were Excellent cannot thank them enough. They simply made a great event better.

Signing up for next year as soon as I can

I've got a problem with all the reported feet of climbing. Way too much variance. One poster is saying 7238ft, race organizers saying 6000ft, someone I talked with the day before the race swore it was 4800ft (said he rode it twice), and now I've just uploaded my Garmin and it says 5535. Did we all ride the same course? How come so many different readings from a device that is supposed to be accurate? What is the "real" number?

My garmin edge 500 said 4800 feet of elevation gain... there is a big difference from that and 7,000+... I'm going to believe my gps... I know it can be off but not by 2000 feet !

My Edge 500 was close to your data.

My wife and I both did the race. We both have edge 500's. She got 4687, I got 4667. But if you turn on the elevation correction you get some huge number like 7000-8000. I don't think that it needs to be turned on, per the edge 500 directions, since I think it has a barometric sensor in it.

I "only" had 3618 gain on my 305. I'm pretty sure I didn't take the easy route. That climb coming back up to the 76 side of the highroad was a beast! As somebody else said, a 3rd ring on the front would've been nice. ;-)

What a day. My comment for the day was that you deserved the medal just for finishing the bike, but then finishing the whole thing was an amazing accomplishment. I'm curious what the DNF number was?? I decided early on in the run to just go easy and enjoy (ok, maybe the cramps helped me decided). The run was terrible, but I couldn't be more proud of my 6:55.

Im showing 5401ft up and 5412ft down.My watch had gps acquired before I left transition.

Well I feel better now. This was my first HIM and I didn't know what to expect. My swim was terrible 58 min, bike 3:15 and run 2:09. Now that I've read everyone's comments I have a better feeling of what other HIM might be like.

Great race in Branson yesterday, some of the best race hospitality I have ever seen. Just took a look at the power file and it is pretty funny. Would do it again for sure...

Pros -
Swim - beautiful clear lake
Bike - nice and tough, no drafting at all, closed to all traffic, and super fun
run - 3 loops lots of fans, nice run course and finish line setting

cons -
food after the race was at 6 PM
logistics of two transitions 10 miles apart
rules to start/finish the bike without shoes on your bike???

---

Gavin