Okay, just got back from the race. All I can say is it should be renamed back to the worlds toughest half!!
Weather was perfect!! Cant imagine doing the race if it was hot like a few days ago. Swim temp was perfect.
I meet my goals. First to finish. Second to not walk the bike. And third, to not walk the run which was really hard to do towards the end with the killer hills.
It was great seeing all the ST folks at the race.
So, what did others think of the race?
Dave
The sprint was a ton of fun. Hard, fast with some hills in it. Swim was a tad long, but a good time.
Missed you guys. You were home relaxing and I was still killing myself on the hills.
Dave
You are wrong. I finished the sprint and then went to mile 6 of the run to volunteer for the long course. I stayed until ~2:20pm.
Sorry about that. Guess I grabbed water. Thanks for helping.
Dave
I had cytomax and hammer gels. I think I saw you go by, but I was unsure and we were all having a good time. Great race, it was perfect weather for racing, not warm enough for spectacting though.
Fishman and JohnA were out racing I saw. I have raced with them before, so I said howdy.
I am off to shower and sleep. I am nasty and I only raced for an hour today.
John was racing? He told me he was not.
I was running with my white long tailed hat.
Dave
swim was more like 700m not 500m
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missed you but saw the flower - good way to remember where your stuff is
sounds like you had a good race - anyone who finishes that thing is a stud
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That was Hinds57 - people confuse us all the time since we are both 6’ tall with blond hair and pretty much do the same races, train together, live a few hundred feet from each other, at one point owned identical bikes, and are married to sisters.
I was training around Livermore today, but heard the race was tough as hell - so pretty much normal. Besides Hinds, there were two of my other training partners up there - anxious to see how they did and if either of them beat my run time from 2004.
John, not sure, but I think I beat your buddies. :o) Only because I would not walk up the hills. Now, my “running” up the hills was the slowest foot shuffle I have ever done in my life. I know you told me at Napa you would not be at the race since your IM is what 4 weeks out?
I just got up from a 2 hour nap. I am just dead.
This race again was by far the toughest half I have EVER done!!! Should make the races the rest of the season feel “easy”.
Dave L., thanks for coming up and bringing your vineman experience with you. Your announcing was fantastic. Thanks for getting the race started. I was also serious when I told you as I was leaving I look forward to your vineman race since it will be FLAT!!
Dave
I totally agree about the name - that race was SUPER hard. Didn’t help that I blew my legs out the week before and they are not back, and that I forgot to pack my trail shoes and had to run in Nike Frees (ouch, my feet are not happy). But the weather was great, the venue beautiful, and a terrificly well put on race!
Man, you really added extra difficulity. Can you image what this race would have been like if we had not had a few weeks of warm weather? I have raced in the canyon for the auburn resolution run on Jan 1st. The trails were so muddy that it was really scary. I even ran in the canyon a few weeks ago training with some ST folks and it again was super muddy. So, we were lucky on all fronts. It was still dry even though it rained pretty hard last night. And, the heat spell broke 3 days ago… When I did my lasting training ride on the upper section last tuesday, it was 95 degrees and I was dying.
I agree the swim was great. Nice and long with few turns. Could not ask for a nicer bike course with so few cars. And as you know, about as tough as they get. The run was real real tough. Had to be super careful with your footing. Glad a good amount of it was in the trees.
So, going to do again next year?
Dave
…
So, going to do again next year?
…
Of course! I am a glutton for punishment 
That was the hardest half I have ever done. 2 flats in the first 12 miles didn’t help my already slow time. But I think the road bike was the right choice foe me. The middle of the 1st lap of the run just killed me 2nd lap was much nicer and the run along the canal was great. Jay, that was me you talked to at the aid station in the TSR gear.
Dave
I fell on a trail segment of the first loop and fortunately had only superficial abrasions. At the next aid station one guy was cleaning up my arm as I was refilling my water bottle. The volunteers were awesome today. It looked like a nasty crash for some guy on the descent to Bear Creek. I hope he’s OK.
Tom
Sorry to hear about a crash. That 1 mile section was really dangerous. They had lots of signs up saying danger, go slow, so it is not like they did not tell the racers be careful.
So, for folks who did the race in the past, how did this compare? Harder or easier?
It is now pouring outside and will be all day. Boy did we get lucky with the weather!! Doing this race in the race would have been real unsafe with all the speed on the hills, and any mud on the run.
Dave
Was the run course the same? That’s a great run!
The run course was identical to last year. The bike was equally as difficult as last year but I think it was more scenic, especially in the Bear Creek area. Tom
Sounds like a great day. Sorry I missed it!
clm