I just finished my first 70.3 this year in June (Lubbock), took a week off and am now slowly building some running mileage to do some road races in the fall. Rough plan is to build mileage up to 50-60 MPW, start to incorporate 2 swim sessions a week in August and then after my road season is over in November take a short break then begin training for another tri season this time with the idea of doing one 70.3 tri in early summer (Chatanooga or Eagleman) and then another in August/September (Possibly Worlds if I end up qualifying)
Which half would you recommend? Worlds isnt the main goal, I just want to do another half and the better run race/better course is what I would rather do and if that means having a more competitive field than im all for it. These two were selected based on location but could be open to traveling as long as it is in the states and is around this time of year (Mid May to Early July)
Would Haines City or Galveston be too early in the year?
You should swim more than 2x/week if you want to qualify, even during the “off-season”
Anyway, if running is your relative strength (as mine sometimes is) I would go with Chatt. You don’t do the full length of barton but it is still relatively more difficult than other races around your timeframe, except for Hawai’i 70.3 but that involves heat mgmt and a whole lot of disposable money. Not sure how your bike strength is but 70.3 CT (aka Quassy) is also relatively tougher (for a WTC half!) but the competition there is also loaded with both speed and money, as in, slots to NZ may not roll much.
IMO, best shot at qualifying for NZ is Des Moines which will have 75 slots (more than the 30-40 other US races will have) and will likely roll deeper than 10th place in most large AGs.
You should swim more than 2x/week if you want to qualify, even during the “off-season”
Yeah I will be upping this to 3-4 during regular tri racing season. I used to be a competitive swimmer (~7 years ago) and am just now getting back into it and am starting at 2 and then going to up it as I go while keeping the running constant.
Anyway, if running is your relative strength (as mine sometimes is) I would go with Chatt.
Yeah running is definitely my strength by far. I have been a competitive runner for the past 8 years and while I haven’t raced a half marathon I should be able to hit around a 1:15 depending on the course. In my last half I spent the whole run portion passing people while I was more often being passed on the bike.
Biking is currently my weakest but I barely trained on it for my first half and intend on making it a priority in training this coming year (for example i’m actually getting a power meter this time).
Ill definitely look into Des Moines though and see if i’ll shoot for that one or Chat. Worlds is probably a reach for me this year but if training goes well then I think I have the potential. Thanks for the advice!
Would Haines City or Galveston be too early in the year?
Likely, as I am currently a graduate student and will be graduating mid-may. For me to done before mid may id need it to be closer to me (I go to school at Virginia Tech)
You should swim more than 2x/week if you want to qualify, even during the “off-season”
Yeah I will be upping this to 3-4 during regular tri racing season. I used to be a competitive swimmer (~7 years ago) and am just now getting back into it and am starting at 2 and then going to up it as I go while keeping the running constant.
Ah, a real swimmer! Excuse me while I get my foot out of my mouth
Ill definitely look into Des Moines though and see if i’ll shoot for that one or Chat. Worlds is probably a reach for me this year but if training goes well then I think I have the potential. Thanks for the advice!
If you can run a 1:15 in a 70.3 run, you won’t need a roll-down slot! In editing my advice: Please pick any race I am not doing 
Ill definitely look into Des Moines though and see if i’ll shoot for that one or Chat. Worlds is probably a reach for me this year but if training goes well then I think I have the potential. Thanks for the advice!
If you can run a 1:15 in a 70.3 run, you won’t need a roll-down slot! In editing my advice: Please pick any race I am not doing
Oh that time is only for a straight up half marathon not at the end of a tri. A half split with real training id be shooting for something in the ~1:25 range but ill be testing that pace out during training to see how accurate that is. My biking needs a lot of work still but I seemed to do better on the hills than others at Lubbock