TriDot Podcast .110

PODCAST TAKEOVER: ANDREW HARLEY, YOU ARE AN IRONMAN!

Intro: This is the TriDot podcast. TriDot uses your training data and genetic profile, combined with predictive analytics and artificial intelligence to optimize your training, giving you better results in less time with fewer injuries. Our podcast is here to educate, inspire, and entertain. We’ll talk all things triathlon with expert coaches and special guests. Join the conversation and let’s improve together.

John Mayfield: This is a mutiny, and I am the captain now! You will recognize the voice of today's guest, and we know you're going to be excited to hear from him. Who is it? Andrew the NOT-So-Average Triathlete, Voice of the People, and FORMER Captain of the Middle of the Pack. And as of just a few hours ago, an Ironman finisher. Andrew, welcome to MY show!

Andrew Harley: Uh, this is a little weird. I'm still wrapping my head around being on this side of the podcast recording, but John, you're doing a great job so far hosting the show.

John: My co‑mutineer today is Coach Elizabeth James. Elizabeth is a USAT Level II and Ironman U certified coach who quickly rose through the triathlon ranks using TriDot, from a beginner, to top age grouper, to a professional triathlete. She is a Kona and Boston Marathon qualifier who has coached triathletes with TriDot since 2014. Elizabeth, thanks for joining us! How fun is this?

Elizabeth James: Wow, this is so much fun. I'm really excited to take part in this takeover show!

John: Who am I? I'm John Mayfield. I am a USAT Level II and Ironman U certified coach who leads TriDot's athletes services, ambassador, and coaching programs. I've coached hundreds of athletes ranging from first-timers including Andrew Harley, to Kona qualifiers and professional triathletes. As always, we'll roll through a warmup question, settle in for the main set topic, and then wind things down with our cooldown.

Andrew: Before we get too far into talking about my race at Ironman Waco, I wanted to invite all of you to race against me at my next race. The inaugural USA Triathlon Remote National Championship is coming soon, and YOU need to join in the action. Listen, this is the very first remote race and I, for one, want to be able to say that I was there for it. Remote racing is an innovative new way to race. It's a triathlon where participants from all over the world race the same course from wherever they are in the world. The technology of RaceX will take your performance from your location, and localize it to the race site so that the results are fair, practical, and comparable, so we can truly see who had the faster, normalized time: me racing from Dallas, or you racing from wherever you are. The very first remote race will put all of us against each other on the USA Triathlon Age Group Nationals course in Milwaukee. As a bonus, you'll be able to see what your time could be if you were to qualify and race in person in Milwaukee next year. The race window opens on November 11 and closes on November 21, so you have those 11 days, including two weekends, to complete your remote swim, bike and run. Head to remoteracing.com for more information and to get yourself registered for the very first remote triathlon.

Warm up theme: Time to warm up! Let’s get moving.

John: A unique feature of the Ironman Waco weekend was the full-distance race was held on Saturday, and the 70.3 was held the following day on Sunday. Believe it or not, there were a few athletes who entered both races, and made an attempt to finish the 70.3 the day after racing 140.6. Some folks probably think that sounds like a fun challenge, but most of us would probably say no thanks. So this leads me to ask, if you were in full control of your schedule the day after a race, how would you want to spend that day? Andrew, we'll start with you.

Andrew: Sure, yeah.

John: Recording a podcast, is that the thing you want to do the day after a race?

Andrew: You know, I would rather record a podcast than have to edit and work on a podcast. I mean, the recording part's the fun part, right? We just get to sit down and talk about triathlon, and there's nothing more that we enjoy doing more than that, right? We just love sitting down and talking shop. So if I'm in full control of my schedule the day after a race – I think my wife and I nailed it in New Zealand. That's where I did my first 70.3, and the day after we had prescheduled, prepaid for an hour or two of stand-up paddleboarding on Lake Taupo. So it was kind of a nice, active recovery activity to get out of the hotel, grab a quick breakfast, and enjoy a morning on the lake. We were stand-up paddleboarding right where I had done the swim the day before. So that was something that was active, it was on my feet, but it wasn't super physically demanding. It got us back outside in nature enjoying the scenery. So we did that and then went back to the hotel, ate some lunch, drove back to Auckland, and then flew home the next day. So that was a nice recovery day, to be honest; we had a nice activity mixed with some light travel in there.

Honestly, I do have to say, here in Waco it was kind of cool going back on course the next day, like having already raced, and getting to watch some fellow TriDotters do the 70.3. I thought we were going to be exhausted, I thought, "Oh man." We all knew we were going out there, we have TriDotters out there racing. We will be there, we were amped for it. But we were tired, right? Because I raced an Ironman, and you all spectated an Ironman past midnight. That was more enjoyable and energizing for me than I thought it would be. And it was really cool standing on course watching TriDotters go by, giving them high fives, knowing that they are taking on the same hills I took on the day before, they battled the same heat and winds that I had battled the day before. It was actually kind of cool getting to do that.

John: It was kind of mean when you said, "What are these people in for, they're only doing a half, like they act like it's hard."

Andrew: I did not say that! I did not say that! YOU said that, and I laughed.

John: Well, if you laughed, that means you agreed with it. Elizabeth, how about you?

Elizabeth: Hm, well I'm probably first in that camp that thinks like, "Ooh, that does kind of sounds like a fun challenge."

Andrew: Of course you are.

Elizabeth: Crazy, but gosh, that's something that I would love to do someday: do a full and then the half the next day.

Andrew: Now Elizabeth, if there had been a pro field in Waco, would you have been racing with me?

Elizabeth: Yes, 100%.

Andrew: I thought so.

Elizabeth: 100%. Love Waco, and was a little sad that there wasn't a pro field. But in the end it's still great to be out there, and it's good to be on the other side of it with coaching and volunteering and supporting, so good weekend all around. But yeah, shout out to the people that did the full and then the half the next day. That's incredible. Really, really cool. I've done a couple crazy events the day after racing, like in Colorado: it wasn't an Ironman that we did, but we ran a marathon and then went and hiked a 14-miler the next day. So maybe something that doesn’t have time limits is good, but just being outside. There's a lot of ways that that could go.

Andrew: Yeah, so with Elizabeth, it's the day after racing she wants to race more. And for me, it's the day after racing, I want to do something somewhat active but not super grueling. What about you, John?

John: Hey, this is my podcast, so I'm asking the questions here! For me, I think back on the races that I've done, and two in particular: one was on the Gulf Coast side of Florida, and the other was on the Atlantic side. One was my first Ironman, Ironman Florida. We were there on those gorgeous emerald-shore beaches, my kids were little at the time, and I remember just having some really special memories of being down there, kind of like you mentioned, the same swim venue that I had swam the day before. The water was a little chilly but felt great, almost like some cryo on the legs, and I remember my kids just playing there in the surf, and that was really special. Then last year after Challenge Daytona, you and I spent some time there just chilling out by the pool. We took that day. Oftentimes I, and I think most people tend to travel that following day, so it's nice to actually have –

Andrew: Time to relax. Yeah.

John: – a day not to. So thinking back, some of my two favorite days were just relaxing on the beach. I'm not particularly a beach person, but going with the theme of being outdoors, somewhat reliving a little bit of the experience, going back to the scene of the crime. I think so. Just chilling on the beach, hanging out by the pool on a lovely day, I think that's how I would want to spend the day after.

So as always, we're going to throw this out to the I AM TriDot Facebook group. Tell us how you would want to spend the day after your next big race?

Main set theme: On to the main set. Going in 3…2…1…

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Today we are in Waco, Texas, site of the inaugural Ironman Waco. After two years of rescheduling, cancellations, and venue changes, we are all thrilled that this event is now in the books. If you listen back to the past two years of podcasts, you'll know that Andrew Harley has been along for the whole ride. "Andrew Harley, you are an Ironman!"

Andrew: Thank God.

John: We heard those hallowed words Saturday evening, and the podcast faithful are aware of your Ironman journey. But take us back to the beginning, and give us the Cliff's Notes version of the past two years.

Andrew: Man, it's been wild. I mean, there's several TriDotters that know, there's a lot of triathletes that listen that I'm sure have been through the ringer in the same way that I have. To look back on the journey of where I was then to who I am as an athlete now, I'm thankful I actually had those two years to prepare. I'm thankful that I know so much more, I was so much better prepared. I've been to so many on staff for TriDot, us as a team, traveling to races and cheering athletes. I've seen so many TriDot athletes on course, sometimes in hot conditions, chilly conditions, tough conditions, some easier than others, some harder than others. And just to watch and learn while so many other TriDotters are out there taking on Ironman courses, I was able to take a lot of lessons into my own race day, spending so much time with you guys on the podcasts just soaking up like a sponge everything that you guys say. There's a lot that I learned that I was able to apply to my race, so I'm thankful for the time that passed. Obviously when you're in the thick of it, training for two years for a race of this distance you get restless, you get ready to get it on, you're thinking, "When's my turn?" after watching all these other people. So it's been a journey, but it's one that I wouldn't trade for the world. There's no doubt that this race, Ironman Waco, was the one I was supposed to do, and I enjoyed it. It was better for me to have done it now as opposed to two years ago. It was a huge moment of relief to put my name into the tracker, the Ironman tracker, and have my name be there. It's like, "Oh my God, I'm on the roster. I'm actually doing this race." It was a huge moment of relief.

John: And some of the first lists of athletes didn't have you on it, right?

Andrew: That's a great point, John. I have to give a very hearty shout-out to Randy Hancock, TriDot ambassador. He's from Waco, lives in the Dallas suburbs now. So I did this race, I am an Ironman, because of Randy Hancock. And Randy, congrats to him, he finished Ironman Waco as well, it was his first Ironman. He had a good day out there, I saw him on the bike course and gave him a quick shout. But Randy sent me a Facebook message, months ago now, right when they had published the participant list, and he was like, "Hey, I looked at the participant list, and I didn't see your name on there." Thankfully, his last name is close to my last name, so he noticed, and he was like, "I just want to make sure that you can make sure that you're registered." And I'm like, "I registered," because we'd all been sent the deferral email. You pick which race you want, and then you select that race and they send you the link to register. I could swear to you, John, that I took every step, and immediately responded to every email Ironman sent to register for the race. So I was like, "Oh yeah, I'm sure I'm fine." But I checked my email, and I did not have confirmation that I was registered for this race. I had every other email. I had the deferral option, I had the confirmation that I had selected Ironman Waco. I did not have a QR code in an email saying, "Yes Andrew Harley, you are in for Ironman Waco." And I was like, "Oh no." So thankfully, I clicked the deferral link, it took me to the registration page, and it let me register for free with the deferral code. They never updated the participant list for me to see my name on there, but at that point I did have the confirmation email, I did have the QR code. So when I saw my name on the Ironman tracker app, it was such a relief. I got to race because of Randy Hancock, so huge shout out to him, I would not have even been on the start line. I would have turned up at Waco and tried to check in and not been able to, and it would have been absolutely the worst thing ever. So super thankful for that. But the other thing I'm thankful for, in talking about the tracker app: so my name's on the tracker app, and it has the wrong club, and I'm like, "Oh no!" I have all these TriDotters, all these people that listen to the podcast, and they're going to put my name into this tracker app, and it's not going to say TriDot Triathlon Training, it's going to say something else.

John: Did you defect??

Andrew: I was like, "That is a terrible look, right, for the host of the TriDot podcast to have the wrong club affiliation." So I emailed Ironman, talked to Ironman athlete services on site, there wasn't a whole lot they could do. But I was determined, John. I was determined to have that club affiliation be right. So found the customer service line for the company that does Ironman's tracking services and manages the app basically, and I sent an email to them. I forget exactly what the company's called. And within hours I had a response and they're like, "Yep, all good, we've updated it," and I was, "Oh my God, thank you so much." But it meant so much to have that. You train for this thing for two years, you're so ingrained to TriDot, I love the TriDot community, I love the TriDot athletes, and it meant so much to me to have that be right, so I was so thankful. I was with my wife when I got the email, and I was just like, "Oh my gosh, they fixed it. They got it right. I'm a TriDot athlete on race day." Anyway, it's been a long journey, and every step on the race course you felt the gravity of, "Oh my God, I'm finally here. It's finally my turn, it's finally my race week."

John: I will say I was there for all of that, and there was a righteous indignation. There was a holy anger that Andrew had around this, and even now, to hear you tell that story and explain it. Because honestly, a couple days ago, I didn't get it. It was like, his club affiliation isn't TriDot, but whatever, no big deal. But it's cool to hear that now, and get some of that context. And I get that, you are a part of this, and you want to be part of it, you want to identify with the group. That's super cool, that was so cool to see. I've seen few things – other than perhaps Ironman – Andrew Harley go after with such tenacity, that he was going to get that done. The guy just gets stuff done.

Elizabeth: Andrew, yes, it's certainly been a longer journey than maybe you anticipated, but think back a couple years ago, and I know that you've mentioned Mike Reilly's book as something that was a little bit of an inspiration for you in really getting started. But if you could, just share with us your motivation, or your "why". What was it that really made you want to take on the Ironman race?

Andrew: Yeah, that's a great question. I still remember vividly when I had done a bunch of sprints and Olympics, and I was talking to Morgan, and I was like, "Hey, I think I want to try a half-Ironman." Because at the time, I thought that was insane. I think my longest bike ride to date was like in the 20s. To bike 56 miles and run a half marathon, I thought that was crazy. And her response was, "Okay that's great, I support you. But pick one really cool so that we get to travel somewhere really cool, and while you're out there racing for six hours plus, I can sit on a beach somewhere really cool." That's how we ended up in New Zealand for our first, and at the time I thought that was the ceiling. I thought that was the ultimate, that's the goal. I didn't even consider Ironman as a realistic possibility for me. I had never run a marathon, I had never considered doing a century ride, I just had no interest. Honestly, if it had not been for finding TriDot, and having TriDot training take me longer in swim sessions that I thought I could go – because before TriDot, my normal pool session was 1,500 meters, and I'd call it a day and go back to work. Then all of a sudden you get on TriDot, and your normal session is 3,000 yards, and it's like, "Okay, that's actually not far off from an Ironman swim." It was the training, it was doing multiple half-Ironmans, that kind of showed me that this could be possible. So I started getting the idea in my head, I don't remember when, but it was kind of like, "I've done the half, I've done the sprint, I've done the Olympic." I never wanted to be, and I still don't want to be that guy who does an Ironman every year and ends up as a 10‑time, 20‑time Ironman finisher. I have no desire to be that guy. Those people are incredible, they're absolutely amazing, they're inspiring. I'm truly good with just having one on the résumé. But I did have that feeling that I just want to round out the résumé. I want to be able to say I've done an Ironman. I want to be able to say I've finished that distance and that race. There's so many times you're at these events and you're talking to athletes, and it comes up, "Have you done a full? Have you done an Ironman?" Or when people are meeting you and they find out you're a triathlete the question is, "Oh, have you done an Ironman?" Well I've done a half-Ironman. It's great saying that; it's a huge accomplishment to finish a half-Ironman, and I've got some half-Ironman finish times I'm very proud of. But not being able to say, "Yes, I've done an Ironman", it just gives you that feeling of you want to do it, you want to get that challenge.

And the clincher for me is what you mentioned, reading that book. Actually, we were flying to Greece for 70.3 Greece, we were going to vacation there for two weeks. My wife always wanted to go to Greece. She wanted to honeymoon in Greece, but we couldn't afford it then as newlyweds, so we settled for something cheaper. But we finally had saved up, and it was on the plane flight there that I read on my Kindle Mike Reilly's book. What I like about Mike so much is that you can tell he's very humble; he cares very little for talking about himself or writing about his own story. So his book, it's supposed to be his autobiography, but what he does in his book is he tells his story through the lens of people that he's called across the finish line. That's how passionate the guy is about telling other people's stories. In telling his own story, he tells it through the stories of other people that he's encountered along the way. The whole book is him recounting memorable finish line calls. He talks about calling his son across the finish line, calling challenged athletes across the finish line, and you read these stories of these people that finished Ironman and you're like, "If they can do one of these, I can do one of these." That was just the clincher for me, was reading that book and knowing there are so many inspiring people who have done it. Now I've traveled with John, I've traveled with you, Elizabeth, to so many of these, and I see it with my own eyes. I see our TriDot athletes, I see other people, I see them cross that finish line, and it's like, "Man, if they can do this, if they can step up to the plate and get this done, I want to be a part of that group that can say that, that I've done that and I've accomplished that." Yeah, that book was the clincher for me. Then after reading it two years ago and signing up two years ago, seeing so many other TriDotters along the way finish their Ironman journey, I was excited to get to do mine too.

John: So you effectively trained for this race three times. What did Andrew Harley's TriDot training look like, and did anything vary from year to year, or once you switched from the Woodlands to Waco?

Andrew: That's a great question, because it did change each time a little bit. Again, I know there's other athletes that are listening that went through the same. It kind of became a fun question this year, John, when we've been at the races. Normally, you ask an athlete, "Why did you pick Waco?" "Why did you pick California?" "Why did you pick Coeur D'Alene?" And it became, "Which race did you ACTUALLY pick, and how did you end up here?" because most athletes ended up in a different race than they actually signed up for, right? I know a ton a people who have gone through differences in expectation, differences in which race they're actually taking on in the end. For me, Ironman Texas was the one I signed up for. Honestly it was between Texas and Florida. I wanted a fast and flat bike course because I'm not a strong cyclist; I wanted to get off the bike as fast as possible, I did not have the confidence in my bike ability to take on a difficulty course. So I was between Texas and Florida, and I picked Texas just because it's close to home, it's in the backyard, I can go recon the course a lot easier. And John, you and I had a conversation along the way, like the second time I was going through the deferral options, about should I do Texas versus Waco. And the more we talked about Waco, the more I got excited about it. My wife went to Baylor, so I'd spent a lot of time in Waco. I had seen Cameron Park, I had swam in the Brazos, and I was like, "Man, I have fond memories of Waco, good memories."

So to get back to the question, each training cycle was different. The first two were probably more similar because I was determined, John, I was going to do every TriDot session to the "T", because I wanted to be as ready as possible. I wanted to be fully prepped and ready to go, and both of those training cycles were for the Woodlands, Ironman Texas, which happens in April traditionally. So that was the great thing as well, is January to April, when I was in the race prep phase of training, there's much fewer interruptions for us as TriDot staff. There's less trips. The only trip we take between January and Ironman Texas is 70.3 Galveston, where we're able to train while we're there. So honestly, we almost didn't switch me to Waco for this reason. You and I talked about it a long time, and Elizabeth and I as well talked about it a little bit, that there was concern with if I picked Waco, or any of them that were in the fall, what it would it do to my training, because of how often we travel in the summer and in the fall to cheer on other people for their races. It takes a lot out of you. We try on these trips to do our training as well as we can; we try to get in bike rides, find a pool, go get a swim in. But your energy's just not there, so it was difficult. My training wasn't perfect. I didn't get to nail every session, for sure. There were times I came off of those trips and was just too tired to do my Monday Tuesday Wednesday sessions the way they were supposed to, so some things got shortened. The other thing that was a little bit of a hindrance in the training this most recent time, and I've talked about it on the podcast as well, was I had some foot pain under my metatarsal. I could not run on my right foot for about three weeks leading into Alcatraz, and actually the race in Alcatraz was my first run in three weeks at the time that we were there. So the first two times I trained for this race my longest runs were 2½ hours, and it boosts your confidence quite a bit when you can run for 2½ hours in the heat of Texas. My longest one for this race was an hour and 50 minutes. So there was some question in the back of my mind, "Am I going to fade on that run course? Am I going to be able to run the whole thing?" Because I didn't build the stamina to the extent that I thought I could. But as a stronger runner, it was also like, "If I can nail the bike training, I know I can do that swim, and I know I can walk-run myself through that marathon. " So it was a challenge.

John: Well that said, you had concerns about the run, and having ran an hour-fifty was your longest, I'm guessing somewhere in the neighborhood of 13 miles, something like that, so effectively a half marathon. You've got to do double that. Your strongest run was lap three, so effectively that shows, it's just a demonstration. We get that question a lot from athletes: "I'm going to race a marathon, or I'm going to race a half marathon, don't I need to do that distance?" And I think you just epitomized the fact that it's not necessarily all about those long sessions. Your longest session headed into this race was effectively half of what you had to do on race day, yet you really found your legs on that third loop, and ran stronger on that last loop. I think that's just a great example of that: it's that consistency of training, it's the day-in, the day-out, it's not just all about those long sessions. And no, you don't have to do the full distance, you don't even have to get close. You mentioned 95 miles was your longest ride, that's almost 20 miles shy of the 112 that you did on race day. So it's not just all about those long sessions. Rather it's that consistency of getting in as much of the training as you can on a day-to-day basis.

So as part of your job working for TriDot you've attended Ironman races all over the country. Tell us about race week, and what was different this time as you headed into your first race?

Andrew: That was the weirdest thing for me, John. I don't know if I said it to my wife or if I said it to you guys, but the weirdest thing in this whole experience was having been to so many of these and packing for these, traveling for these, going through the motions. When you spectate an Ironman, you go through the motions just like the athletes preparing. We show up on site, we do a Wednesday shakeout run for athletes, we do a Thursday bike ride for athletes, if available, we do a Friday swim venue recon and get a little dip in the swim venue. You and I and Elizabeth and Coach Jeff Raines, when we're on site for these races, we go through those motions as well as athletes, and we're there for all of them. So in that sense, it was no different what I was doing.

John: Yeah. Very familiar.

Andrew: Very familiar, that's a great way to put it. But on the other hand, I was actually racing on Saturday, so that pressure is there, and that realness is in the back of your mind. The whole week building up to it, it was really cool. It was really weird, just thinking, "Oh my God, it's finally my turn." Again, I don't think if I had raced this in April of 2020 when I was supposed to the first time, I don't think I would have had nearly as much appreciation for that finish line, nearly as much appreciation to just be on the starting line, frankly, as I did. Because I would have trained a couple months development phase, I would have trained four months in a race prep phase, and I would have raced an Ironman. To go through it for so many years, and to be on site for so many races now, and to see so many athletes cross their own Ironman finish line, and to see what that moment meant to them, it made it that much more meaningful for me, to come in and have it be my turn.

A really cool thing for me, while we were here in Waco: often when we travel for these, especially when we have a lot of staff, we'll rent a house. It's just more economical for us to rent a house and have all of us staying in the same house as opposed to a bunch of hotel rooms. So we had a house here in Waco, it's where we're recording this podcast right now. In the house it's myself, my wife, Coach John Mayfield, an eight-time Ironman finisher. It is pro triathlete Elizabeth James, and TriDot coach Joanna Nami has been staying with us. She was racing Waco; for her she was at 15, so this was going to be her Sweet Sixteen Ironman. So to be in a house with so much experience, people that know how to go through this process, that know how to get the job done, that have coached so many other athletes to the finish line. All week long I was watching Joanna. When Joanna was on her yoga mat stretching, and kicking back and relaxing, I made sure: "Well Jo's kicking back and relaxing, so let me get off my feet and kick back and relax." All the restaurants we were choosing: "Okay, what's Joanna eating tonight, and how can I mimic that?" It really gave me a template for what race week looks like as an athlete, because I've been there so many times before as a spectator, and I'm not having to judge everything I'm putting in my body that week, and everything I'm doing, and when am I off my feet, when am I on it. So to have that was invaluable. To go through the motions, to wake up on race morning and come down for breakfast at 4:00 a.m. and be standing here, in silence, with Joanna, both making and eating our breakfast at 4 o'clock in the morning, it was really special and cool.

Elizabeth: Alright, so moving into the race itself. We'd love to hear all of it, but we also know that our podcasts are limited on time. Andrew, as your job is to edit this later, make your editing job easier on yourself: walk us through some of the highlights of race day.

Andrew: Sure. That was tough, y'all. Ironman is not easy. You can't fake Ironman. You gotta be ready to finish it, or you're not going to finish it. Man, what a rewarding experience though. What a rewarding day. I think I meant to say this on the last question, but I'll say it now, just talking about getting ready for a race like this. When it comes to even playing games, my wife really likes quick, fast-thinking, speed-kind of card games. I cannot beat her at games that are snappy and quick. I love settling in for a one-hour game of chess, or a five-hour game of Risk, or any of those board games that take a long time to play and strategize and develop. Because in the end, whether you win or lose, there's just more that happened out there. If you win it's more rewarding; if you lose, you at least went through this process as opposed to just losing so quickly. So I've always liked things that take a long time to develop, and Ironman is the ultimate in that, right? It's months and months of building your stamina up to be ready for race day, and then once you're out there on the course, it's hours and hours of swimming, biking, and running. So with all of that, much like a board game, it was way more rewarding crossing that finish line.

Not even just the finish line, just the process of coming out of the swim after swimming 2.4 miles instead of 1.2. It was so cool to reach those stairs and to look up and see the volunteer there, grab his hand, and he pulls me out, and it's just like, "Oh my God, I just swam 2.4 miles!" And I feel good, I feel ready to keep pressing on. I was excited to be out, and I had a nice swim, I thought the swim was great. It's the Brazos River. All the people we know that we know that live in Waco, when they heard we were swimming in the Brazos River, they're like, "Ah, you're gonna swim in the Brazos?" I thought it was fine. It was a nice swim, easy swim course. So we jumped in the water and went upstream a little ways, and then turned around and went back downstream a long ways. I just stayed in a rhythm, it was really cool. I'll say this: so race morning, I was more nervous heading into this race than any other. Part of that is you build up two years, so this thing is so built up in your mind. You've been training two years for this day, and so you don't want to waste it. You want it to go well. So I was so nervous on race morning, I was probably the quietest y'all have probably ever seen me. I usually internalize my nervousness, so I just don't talk a lot. So once I jumped in the water and started swimming, it was just that reminder that I know how to do this. I know how to swim. I've swam thousands of yards, even just this week. I know how to swim. You settle into that rhythm, and you look up and find where your first buoy is, and you know what to do from there. Sure, you're about to go through a 12, 13‑hour day, but it's like okay, in this moment that I'm in right now, I know what to do: swim to the next buoy. It was a little dark when we first started, and by the time we made the U‑turn and started heading back down the Brazos towards the swim exit, the sun was starting to come up above the trees, and it was so cool just swimming down the Brazos, just staying in a nice, steady rhythm, staying within myself, watching the sun rise over downtown Waco as I swam towards it. It was a nice – almost peaceful if that's possible – swim morning. I really appreciate the kayakers that were out there; it made you feel safe the whole time just knowing there were people out there keeping an eye on you. One of our athletes, Caleb Chapman, was volunteering in a kayak. I looked for him. Every time I passed by a kayak and could see him I was like, "Is that Caleb?" I never saw him, I don't know which one he was in. So great swim, came out of the water. It was nice to see you guys as I was transitioning, saw my wife while I was transitioning. Got on the bike, went out on the bike course, and it was a tough day on the bike. It was windy, it was hot, we had a lot of direct sun out there, a lot of rough roads out there. I'm not gonna lie to you, it was not the most amazing, easiest, smoothest, fastest bike course. But I was surprised how comfortable I felt. My butt was comfortable in my saddle –

John: We had been thinking about those –

Elizabeth: Dainty sit bones!

Andrew: And I was worried about that! But the right saddle, you've done the training, you've built up to it. And shout out to my TriRig scoops, I stayed in it. If I wasn't going uphill, I was in aero, and I was comfortable. My bike fit felt great, and my training leading up to it, and those stamina sessions. I was talking to Coach Jo at the house about this. I did three rides outside before this race. I did a four-hour stamina ride, a 5½‑hour race rehearsal, and then a 4½‑hour shortened race rehearsal. You talk about that fight-or-flight response: I'm a flighter. My wife's a fighter, I'm 100% a flighter. Like, there's a loud bang, I'm turning and flinching. In those long sessions in the saddle, I would go through moments where that flight instinct would kick in, because I was restless, I was sick of pedaling, sick of being on a bike, sick of the winds blowing me all sorts of different directions. In those race rehearsals, fighting through those moments of I want to flight and call it a day and get the heck out of here, just proving to myself that I can stay on the bike and keep riding, that gave me such much more confidence heading onto that bike course, knowing that if I encounter that again, I could fight through it again. Thankfully, I never had that. The course had a ton of turns; it was very mentally engaging, it was cool. It was a two‑loop course, so you go through the first loop, then come up to personal needs. Personal needs was amazing, I had the best volunteer. My bib number was 252, and so anytime I came up the personal needs bags – they had them in a row from 250 to 300 – my bag was the second one there every single time. So my volunteer grabbed my bag, she opened it, and she just stood there with my bag and handed me bottles, handed me my gels, all my refills and nutrition. I was in and out like a NASCAR pit crew, she was amazing. So I got through personal needs station, and from there, on the second loop, it was like mentally just checking off sections of road. "Okay, went through that neighborhood. Went through that." It was so cool to be on that second loop, knowing once I went through a section of road, that I didn't have to see that section of road again. I had it behind me, it was done. Because on the first loop, you're like, "In 53 miles I'll be going through all this again." So checking that off mentally was just so rewarding, just kept the course moving and kept it flowing. And even though it was windy and hot, and even though it wasn't fast conditions, I stayed settled. I never had that flight response kick in. I will say this: mile 100 to mile 105 took freaking forever. Maybe not on paper, maybe not in speed, but in my mind, I was in mile 103 for an eternity.

So once I was off the bike, I was so ready and thankful to be off the bike. My wife told me afterwards, "Everybody we saw come into T2, they were cussing and swearing and dragging their bike, and they looked exhausted, and you looked happy." I was. I was so thrilled to be done with that bike. I was running into transition where she said everybody else was walking, because I was excited to get out on the run course. One of my favorite moments from the entire day was coming out of T2. I always like coming out of T2 anyway, because I like the run. Elizabeth, you were right, I loved starting the run. I'm running out of the chute, I'm getting onto the run course, and my wife and John were both right there. My wife yells to me, she's like, "Go! You're the cutest!" and John yells to me, "It's 90° outside. Staying on top of your cooling protocol is going to be absolutely important. Stay in control of your pace, don't overheat." And those two things, back-to-back, side-by-side, were exactly what I needed to hear. I needed to know that I was the cutest, and I needed to know that it was 90° and to stay on top of my cooling protocol. Because I've been there on courses, John, with you this year where we've seen our athletes struggle in the heat. We did a whole podcast episode because of it, talking about how to handle the heat, and I've talked before, I don't do well in the heat. That was my biggest concern on the day, was how would my body respond when it was 90° and I was still on a bike and out there running, because I know I don't do well then. So hearing those two things back-to-back, it reminded me to slow down, ease up. Every single aid station I went through while the sun was high in the sky, that first loop, I was dumping water, because you told me to stay wet. It's 90°, stay on top of your cooling protocol, stay wet. I was dumping ice in my kit, and I had ice just sitting on my back inside of my kit. My kit was soaking wet the entire run course. But it kept me cool, and it kept me moving. I don't remember feeling dizzy or overheated. I was taking my Precision Hydration electrolyte pills, every 20 minutes I was popping one of those bad boys. I had stayed on top of my nutrition on the bike and felt energetic on the bike. So that was helpful. Loop one of the run was hot. I had a plan going in, there are some major hills in Waco. I knew going in, I'm going to walk every hill. I don't care how I feel, I'm going to walk every hill, I'm going to try to run every flat. In the first loop, that's pretty much what I did.

The second loop, for anybody tracking me, I'm sure they saw some slow times in there. At that point, I was really gassy. That might be TMI, but I was really gassy, really farty, and so I had to make a couple port-a-potty stops just to get some gas out. I would try to run and my stomach would start cramping up. I think part of it was trying to stay cool on loop number one. Because I'd seen some of our athletes in Coeur D'Alene, in Texas get overheated and have to withdraw. And I was like, I don't want to go through all of this and have to pull out of this race. So at aid stations, if there was a liquid there that was cool, I was drinking it. I was drinking Coke, Gatorade, water. I think I probably just freaked my body out, I probably took more than I needed. So on loop two, I unfortunately had to walk a lot. The legs were there, the legs wanted to run, but just the gut wasn't there. Finally it started getting a little cooler outside, the sun started going behind the trees. So loop number three, at that point you're 8 miles away from home. You and I, as I came back around to start loop three, had a good little chat, and you just gave me those last little coaching tips for the last loop. I get out there, and loop three, the sun was going down, the gut started cooperating, I stopped drinking a ton of random stuff, and I was able to run most of loop three, and it was awesome. It was awesome. In a 70.3, or even a sprint or Olympic, you feel what it's like to run tired. In triathlon, we train to feel what it's like to run tired. In Ironman, that was running when your legs are destroyed. My legs were torched. I did not have the giddyap, I did not have the gas in my legs. My Achilles was driving me insane, I was feeling some hot spots in my feet from my socks being wet the entire run. But gosh darnit, between fueling properly all day, the TriDot training coming in, pacing myself correctly, staying wet in the early stages of the run, when that third loop and my gut started cooperating, I was running 8:20, 8:30, Zone 2 pace. That was probably the next most fun part for me, was actually being that late into the race, being that deep on the course and being able to run. It was really cool.

Then of course approaching the finish, just magical. I had seen several TriDotters out there throughout the day, I had seen Coach Jo, I had seen Coach Kurt Madden – how cool is that, to get to do your first Ironman with Coach Joanna Nami, Coach Kurt Madden, and several others. On the run course, I met a TriDot podcast listener named Meg, and she and I chitchatted for a little bit on the run course, saw her several times throughout the day. She ended up podiuming with I think second in her age group, so congrats to Meg from Fayetteville, Arkansas for a great day out there. It was great to meet you on course. She saw the TriDot logo and was like, "Are you Andrew?" I was like, "Yeah I am, who are you?" So it was really cool getting to meet her, but seeing familiar faces on course throughout the day was really cool. Then I just so happened to catch up to Coach Jo, literally right at the 26‑mile mark, and to have a familiar face there and to be able to come home with somebody that I knew, that was super cool. It's that moment where I'm catching her, I see her, and I'm wondering in my head like, "Should I ease up and finish with her? How should I play this moment?" And as soon as I catch her and as soon as she realizes that it's me, she goes, "You're kicking ass! You're hauling! Go, go! Keep going!" She just encouraged me to get that best finish time, finish strong, and it just surged me toward the finish. John, you were there, Elizabeth, you were there, it was great to high-five you all. It was great to get to hug my wife before I came across the line. Everybody talks about that moment, when you hear, "Andrew Harley, you are an Ironman!" and you're approaching those lights. It was super cool. And I'll say, having been on the race course as a spectator, once the sun goes down and the lights are up and people are giving it everything they have left, and you're cheering them on. I've witnessed that moment so much. Obviously, I would have loved to be fast enough to finish while the sun was up, but to be on course once the sun went down is an experience that I'll never forget. If you're privileged to be slow enough to be out there once the sun goes down, you'll never forget it. It was cool being under the lights, suffering with fellow triathletes, and gosh darnit, when it was done, I was so happy, John.

John: Yeah.

Andrew: So happy.

John: So Jo went on to finish right behind you, she got her podium spot and qualified for the World Championships.

Andrew: Yes she did.

John: We are incredibly proud of her, well done to her. What thing surprised you out on the Ironman course?

Andrew: John, the biggest surprise I had the entire day, and this is a small surprise, but in the moment it was big deal. I was running on the run course, and I went to grab a cup of Coke, and I went to down that cup of Coke, and it was not a cup of Coke. I was expecting a chilly, cold cup of Coke, and it was warm cup of chicken broth. I know on Ironman courses, once the sun goes down, they put out chicken broth. There's a lot of sodium in there, that's life-giving for a lot of people once the sun goes down. But when you're expecting a chilly cup of Coke, and you go to down it shot-glass style and it's chicken broth, that was a surprise. I audibly made a noise and made a comment to an athlete going by me, "Oh, I thought that was gonna be Coke, and it's chicken broth!" and he laughed. That was a surprise. So when you're out there, be aware of what cup you're grabbing. There were a few things that were different from a 70.3 in a way that surprised me, I don't recall ever on a 70.3 or shorter. You're thankful for the volunteers, aware of the volunteers, aware of the spectators, but I owe portions of my soul to some of those volunteers and spectators that were out there. I'll say this. We've done volunteer shifts before: we're at a water station for three hours and then we move on, and they get a new shift in there for whatever reason logistically. The volunteers at every aid station on the run were the same, every single loop. I can't tell you how helpful that was, to know when I got to the top of this hill in Cameron Park, that aid station, that the guy running it was cracking the same jokes every single time. To know that joke was coming was life-giving, and to know when I get to this aid station on the other side of the Brazos where the sun's shining, that there's going to be the older lady sitting in a lawn chair ringing a cowbell, who's just cheering her brains out. They became familiar faces, they became friends almost. That surprised me, how helpful that was. There were some spectators out there that were in the same place every single loop. You guys were in the same place every single loop, so it was so great to know you were going to be there and have you be there. There was a guy and a girl cheering at the top of the highest hill in Cameron Park, again, saying the same jokes all day. When you reach the top of the hill, they were encouraging you: "Okay, you've walked enough, pick it back up!" Then when you were going down the hill, exiting the park, they're like, "Okay, come back and see us!" every time. I thanked them out loud, "Thank you guys so much for being here!" And they started recognizing athletes, as we do: you start recognizing kits, you start recognizing faces. So when I was going through there for the third time, they're pointing at me like, "This is lap three? Get outta here!" To have that familiarity, for whatever reason, and this surprised me because I'd never thought about this, but it was so helpful. It's like, "Am I gonna become one of those people that just parks it in the same spot all day from now on?" Because I normally run around with my camera. But it was so cool to have familiar faces along the way, particularly on the run course, and that was a surprise for me. The other thing I'll say, on the bike course, I used the same port-a-potty on both loops. I only stopped twice, and they were both pretty quick, manageable stops, but visiting that same port-a-potty on loop number two, it was like visiting an old friend. Because we had met, we'd had some good moments together, and it's like, "Hey, you're here, I'm here, so great to see you again!"

Elizabeth: Lots of great things that you've shared already, Andrew. As you mentioned, as you have been preparing, we have done our best to share our collective experience with you. But what lessons did you learn that you would pass on to another first-timer and implement on your next race?

Andrew: Yeah, one of the best lessons for me with the race I had, and I spoke to this just a moment ago. Watching our athletes in Coeur D'Alene – shout out to them – we had some brave finishers at a 100° day, and we had some brave DNFs. Both were equally brave. Watching them go through that, and watching athletes just do what they have to do to stay cool. It's like you go into these races and you have an idea of what you want to do. You have an idea of the times you want to hit, you have an idea of what you're capable of, you have an idea of how you want your nutrition to go, you have an idea of what you want to do on the run course to stay cool and comfortable. Spectating so many different races, I've watched our athletes suffer in St. George on the hills, I've watched athletes suffer in the heat of Coeur D'Alene, I've watched athletes suffer in the winds of Galveston. To see that no matter what the conditions were, no matter what the course gave them, everybody did what they had to do to get to their finish line in the conditions they were given with the fitness that they had. That's all you can do. I don't know if I said this in the podcast, I know I said it to you guys off, I wanted to go sub‑12:00. For whatever reason, that was the arbitrary number that I picked that I wanted to do. I knew going in if I didn't go sub‑12:00, that might be the thing that gives me the inkling to do this again, because I want to go sub‑12:00. And I had a moment about mile 4 on the run course – I knew doing the math coming off the swim, coming off the bike and knowing what the splits were, I knew I'd have to have around a four-hour run split. Fitness-wise, I'm very capable of that. That course, with my fitness, with the energy I had at that present moment, I believe I could have run a four-hour marathon, if my gut had cooperated, I truly do. Well, it didn't, and that's fine. All you can do is the best you can do with the fitness that you have, the conditions that you're given. Again, four or five miles in – after my first port-a-potty stop, because my stomach was starting to give me issues, it was hot – I realized, I'm not going sub‑12:00 today. And I was surprisingly fine with that, because it wasn't that I wasn't giving it my all, it wasn't that something had gone wrong that was frustratingly out of my control. I was doing the best I could with the heat that I had, with the wind that we had on the bike, with the road conditions we had on the bike, and whatever my finish time was, I was going to be thrilled with it. And I am thrilled with it. Actually, at this present moment, I can't even tell you what my finish time was. My Garmin watch died on loop three of the run course – so perhaps I need to visit Jeff Raines' TriDot online store and get a better Garmin watch – but I don't even know. I've seen it since then, but I've already forgotten it, and I'll go back and look at it closer after the trip. Anyway, that's my biggest lesson I would tell somebody. Especially for Ironman, but any triathlon, once you're out there on course, do what you have to do to get to the finish line. Do what you have to do to enjoy the day. Don't make yourself so miserable trying to achieve a certain result. What if I had told myself on the run course, "I'm only to take in this, this, and this." And I had stuck to that, and I was under-fueled because of it? What if I had told myself, "Oh, I don't want to get blisters on my feet, so I'm not going to stay wet, I'm just going to drink a lot of water and hope it goes well." What if I'd told myself, "Okay, at all costs I'm going to run those hills." A lot more could have gone wrong. I did what I could do with how my body was feeling in that moment, and I think regardless of your race or distance, that's all you can do, and in the end be happy with the result.

John: Yeah, that's great. We all have our best-laid plans. I've mentioned on the podcast before the Mike Tyson quote, "Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the mouth."

Andrew: John, I literally thought of that quote at some point on loop two or three of the run, I thought of that quote.

John: Inevitably, Ironman is going to punch you in the mouth, and that that point, it just basically becomes management, and adjusting, adapting, and overcoming and continuing to push on. What was the lowest moment out there on the Ironman course?

Andrew: Two of them, very specifically. On the bike – everybody who's out there who knows the course – the windiest portion, the most exposed portion when you're riding into a head/crosswind combo. On loop two, it was miles 100 to 106, 107. Really, the whole way home you were into a pretty good headwind, but that was the moment it was the most exposed, and so you're just putting out the watts you're supposed to be putting out, and you're looking down at your speed, and you're just like, "This is stupid." So again, shout out to my Precision Hydration electrolytes and gels, shout out to my UCAN that I was drinking every hour, shout out to my ΔG that I had in my UCAN bottle that I was drinking. Because I'd never ridden a century ride before. I'm 100 miles into a bike ride, and I felt fueled, I felt good, my energy was still there, but at miles 100 to probably 108 on the bike, that was dark moment number one, because by then, I had finally reached that threshold of "Get me the hell off this bike".

John: I know where the extra 12 miles comes from, but it's like, "Do we really need these extra 12 miles?"

Andrew: I don't we think do.

John: That's just ridiculous. I get it, I know the original story, why it went from 100 to 112. But do we have to keep that? Isn't 100 enough? Yeah, so that is so natural that that's a dark stretch, I'm 100% with you.

Andrew: It was somewhat downhill to the finish, but it was a headwind. So that was a dark moment. The second dark moment was loop two on the run. Again, I'm a runner, I wanted to be running. I kept trying to run, and I just could not. My gut would not let me. It was still hot outside so it's a mixture of you're trying to stay cool, and you're trying to take in fuel, but that fuel is making your stomach upset. So do I stay fueled and have stomach cramps, or do I not have stomach cramps and not be fueled? The miles in particular that really seemed to go by very very slowly, was about 12 to 15. Then once I hit mile 15, it kind of flipped a switch where it was like, now there's only 11 miles left, 10 miles left, 9 miles left, that mentally was very helpful. But miles 12 to 15, I was probably farthest away from you guys at that point. I was the farthest away from starting loop number three at that point. You're only halfway through a marathon at that point. I was struggling to run, I was in the heat, and that was probably the other dark moment.

John: So besides the nice warm shot of chicken broth though, what made you laugh out on the course?

Andrew: Yeah, that chicken broth definitely made me gag and then laugh all at the same time, it was a weird moment. Two things. Once, when I came around for that first loop on the run and saw you guys for the first time, just the energy. Some of Coach Jo's Betty sisters were out there just cheering their heads off, and you guys were out there cheering your heads off, some of the TriDotters. And my wife had made a poster, and she's never made a poster for any of my races before. She's a huge supporter of me doing triathlon. She's missed I think two races ever and she hated missing those. She loves being there, but she's never made a poster before. That was cool to have her do that for the first time. And we love the show Ted Lasso, which if you watch it you know why. It's just an incredible show. If you know my personality, it just checks out that I would love Ted Lasso. It's just such a positive show. So anyway, she'd made a sign that said, "Be a goldfish," which is a reference to Ted Lasso, and it was perfect in that moment. And so for that, I laughed out loud audibly. The other one: I love music. I love pump-up music, I respond to music. You guys probably saw me walking around this rental house with my headphones in certain moments, particularly the night before the race and the morning of the race, and I was listening to some of my workout playlist, punk rock playlist, because I knew whatever I'm listening to right now, chances are one of these songs will be in my head once I get out there on the course.

John: You do not want the wrong song in there.

Andrew: I do not want the wrong song, so the moment where I was probably four or five miles into the bike, and I didn't intentionally try to think of a certain song. The song that came into my mind, I just naturally started noticing the song in my head. There is a rock band called Framing Henley. They're not really known for their own music – Elizabeth, you probably remember this as a punk fan – but back in the day there were those "punk goes pop" albums, where rock bands would cover Taylor Swift, Adele-like pop songs?

Elizabeth: Yes, okay.

Andrew: So it'd be a rock version of a pop song. They took the song Lollipop by Lil Wayne, which obviously is a rap/R&B song, and did a rock version of it. Guitars screaming, the works. The lyrics are very inappropriate, so if anybody goes and listens to it and is offended, I apologize.

Elizabeth: Don't Google that one at work.

Andrew: Yeah. But just in terms of music, that song is a straight banger. It just rocks out. So when that settled into my head and I was like, "Okay, this is the song that's gonna be in my head for the next six hours," that was a laugh for me. One, I was relieved that it was a song that is motivational to me, it's a good rock song. But I chuckled out loud at that particular moment.

Elizabeth: Alright, to finish up our main set here for today, we've covered so many topics that you have hosted in the last 100‑plus podcast episodes. So I'm sure that our listeners are curious to hear just some of the smaller details that you implemented. So what I want to do is just give you a bunch of quick questions. A yes/no answer is just fine, or answer in 15 seconds or less. Basically we're going to go rapid-fire here, and just get some of those finer details.

Andrew: This is Elizabeth's way of saying, "Andrew, you've been rambling about your race, and now we're gonna pound through some quick stuff."

Elizabeth: Now we're going to finish it out. Alright, you ready?

Andrew: Yeah.

Elizabeth: Okay. One-piece kit or two-piece kit?

Andrew: I was wearing the one-piece kit that has the separated two-piece in the front. And I will say this about my kit. When I got in the shower that night getting back to the house, I had no chafing anywhere. So that kit did it's frickin' job.

Elizabeth: Alright. Pre‑race breakfast?

Andrew: I had an English muffin with peanut butter. I had one and a half English muffins to be exact, with peanut butter spread on them, and a banana. And a serving of UCAN, and a serving of Precision Hydration with my UCAN. And one cup of coffee.

Elizabeth: Anything else?

Andrew: That's it!

Elizabeth: Alright. Pre‑race warmup?

Andrew: So at Waco, it's a one-mile walk from transition to the swim start, and that was my warmup. I didn't take it upon myself to do anything else beyond that.

Elizabeth: Fair enough. Full sleeve or sleeveless wetsuit?

Andrew: Full sleeve for me.

Elizabeth: Nutrition on the bike?

Andrew: I had a serving of UCAN every hour on the 30‑minute mark. I had a Precision Hydration gel every hour on the 00 mark, so one 1:00, 2:00, 3:00, 4:00. I had a serving of ΔG Tactical in my UCAN bottle, so every hour I was getting a little bit of that as well, and I was taking Precision Hydration electrolytes like it was my job.

Elizabeth: Alright. Socks on the bike, yes or no?

Andrew: Absolutely, yes.

Elizabeth: Okay. Best bike upgrade that you made in preparation for this race?

Andrew: That's a great question. I bought a ceramic speed chain two years ago when I first signed up for Ironman Texas, and it's been sitting in a drawer waiting for race day. So that chain was the last thing to go on my bike the week of the race. Best upgrade was definitely my TriRig scoops, because I held aero so much more than I would have been able to without those.

John: That was the answer I was anticipating, I thought that's what it was going to be.

Elizabeth: Yep. Alright, so you already talked about the latex tubes doing their job and making sure you didn't get a flat. How many extra tubes did you carry with you on the course?

Andrew: So I carried one with me on the course. John recommended two. I just didn't have space to store two with my setup, so I was just kind of hoping I didn't flat. I did have a spare flat repair kit in my personal needs bag, should I need it.

Elizabeth: Alright, and speaking of that personal needs bag, anything unique in that bike personal needs bag?

Andrew: It was pretty straightforward nutritionally for me, it was just a refill on what I was carrying on loop one. I had gone through all of my gels and UCAN, so it was just putting fresh bottles and fresh gels back in my pocket. So basically I started loop two with the same exact things I had in my pockets for loop one. The one unique thing, and this is something I got from Coach Jo, being in the same house with her. We knew it was going to be a hot day, and so she went to the grocery store and bought us some little cooler bags that keep ice cool, and we put our bottles for loop two in those cooler bags. So I'm sure for the volunteer picking up our bags, I'm sure they were surprisingly heavy, that's because inside of our personal needs bag there was a cooler bag full of ice with our bottles inside them, and sure enough, when I put those bottles on my bike and went to take a sip of them, they were so chilly, and it was very refreshing.

Elizabeth: Nice! Alright, did you pee on the bike?

Andrew: Absolutely. The two times at my best friend the port-a-potty at mile 30.

Elizabeth: So you didn't actually pee ON the bike.

Andrew: Oh, I didn't pee ON the bike, no.

Elizabeth: You peed DURING the bike segment.

John: That was a bit of a scare for me, because I got your bike out of transition, so I was like, "Wait what?? Did you pee?" No.

Elizabeth: The look on John's face like there, he's like, "Wait a second!" Alright. What shoes did you wear for the run?

Andrew: I wore my neon green Nike Vaporfly Next%s.

Elizabeth: Wonderful.

John: Elizabeth James approved.

Elizabeth: Yes. Two thumbs up here. Nutrition on the run?

Andrew: I actually switched from my Precision Hydration gels at that point to my Science in Sport gels, just because those are my favorite-tasting gels that I own.

Elizabeth: Lemon and mint?

Andrew: Lemon and mint, you know it. So I had those. The other one I had, and actually I had a UCAN Edge gel in T2 and in my personal needs bag on the run. So I had those two. That tart, blood orange UCAN gel, man that really perks you up when that tart orange hits your mouth, so those were a joy to take both times I took them. But the gels I was carrying while I was running were my Science in Sport lemon and mints.

Elizabeth: Nice. Alright, did you plan to run by pace or power for the run segment?

Andrew: I planned to run by power, which for me is about 220 watts, and when I came out at the point that John Mayfield yelled at me that it was 90° degrees, I was running 240 watts, so it made me slow down to the appropriate power. So it was by power, but then at the point four or five miles in when I was losing it in my gut and was just run-walking, I stopped referencing my watch, frankly, and I was just running by feel at that point. And eventually my watch died, so I was really running by RP at that point, too.

Elizabeth: Did you stop at run special needs?

Andrew: I did, loop two, and basically just grabbed two fresh gels, downed a UCAN Edge gel, and kept going. So not a lot there. Quick stop.

Elizabeth: Quick stop. Do you remember what song was playing when you crossed the finish line?

Andrew: I do not at all. No. Not even aware.

John: Got to do it again.

Elizabeth: Are you going to get an Ironman tattoo?

Andrew: No, not because I'm not interested in one, just because I don't know what I would put and where I would put it. If you're going to be committed to a tattoo, you need to know what you want and where you want to put it. So if I ever come with that maybe? But no plans at this time.

Elizabeth: Alright, I'm going to turn it over to our host today for our final question.

John: Where is Ironman Number Two going to be?

Andrew: Ironman Number Two is probably not gonna happen, John.

Elizabeth: We're going to keep asking, you know.

John: And I know that. I'm glad I did it. I don't feel the need to do it again. My resolve is doubled. And John, you even made the joke to our staff. I actually passed on the opportunity to take a World's slot to St. George. Now, if it had been Kona, if I had somehow in my 22nd age-group performance qualified for Kona, yes. I would have committed to doing another Ironman to race in Kona. St. George is amazing, an amazing destination, amazing course. It's beautiful, I've seen it with my eyes. But It's brutal, and I don't have any interest in racing an Ironman there.

Elizabeth: It's brutal, you've seen it with your eyes?

Andrew: Exactly. You know, if I had gotten like 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th in my age group and qualified – basically they were just giving a ton of slots out, and it rolled down far enough where they were basically at the awards ceremony saying, "Anybody men's 30 to 34 who finished the race that wants to go to St. George, come take a slot," and I was like, "I don't want it like this." So if they had called my name and said, "Andrew Harley, it just rolled to you, do you want this slot?" it would have been really hard to say no, particularly with all you guys sitting there. But thankfully for me they didn't do that, so I've already passed on opportunity number two to do an Ironman. I have zero plans at this time to do another.

Cool down theme: Great set everyone! Let’s cool down.

John: Friday evening I posted a picture of Andrew's freshly-shaved legs to the I AM TriDot Facebook group, and you guys did not disappoint. Andrew, you had a great bike split, once again confirming that clean-shaven is smoking fast. Learning from the Daytona experience from last year, where you kept us up until midnight with your multiple-hour ordeal, you got an earlier start this time. What else did you learn? Tell us more about your experience.

Andrew: My experience shaving my legs? That's what we're focusing on here? I did learn this. It's actually easier to shave your legs than to shave your arms. I did the arms too when we did the episode with Jesse Frank from Specialized. There are also aerodynamic gains from shaving your arms, so I did both. And the arms are actually more difficult. It actually took more time. Because leg hair for a guy, it's all flowing in one direction. But arm hair kind of swirls, and I'm a little guy so I have little tiny arms, so it took me a while to go against the grain and get all the arm hair taken care of. But anyway, several people on the Facebook post were making fun of me, because they didn't think that I committed enough to the shaving process, because you can see where I stopped.

Elizabeth: Oh yeah, we're gonna talk about that.

Andrew: I'm going to say, in my defense, I shaved to the point where the tri suit took over from there. So aerodynamically I shaved where I needed to shave, and left the rest. Now there's less that has to grow back.

Elizabeth: Yeah, but now there's also three very distinct funny lines, because you have where the hair ends, your tri kit tan lines, and then smooth.

Andrew: But I'm an Ironman now, and so I'm gonna say it was worth looking ridiculous here on the back end.

John: So we'll hit just a couple of those highlights on those comments from that picture. We'll start with Dan Hawkins, who noted that "you missed a spot."

Andrew: I missed a few spots, yeah.

Elizabeth: And then Joe Chew says, "Add this in the 'things you can't unsee' category."

Andrew: Joe's exactly right. For the record, I didn't post a picture of that, John Mayfield posted a picture of that. So he can blame John for seeing that picture.

John: I do not apologize. Dan Rice, "Business on the bottom, party on the top!"

Andrew: Yeah, Dan nailed it. Exactly.

Elizabeth: This one from Matt Ireson made me laugh. He said, "Does this mean you aren't sporting the Speedos?"

Andrew: No, I would have had to shave more if I was sporting a Speedo. Absolutely.

John: And Brian Ruscher: "I started that way. My wife made me get rid of the boxer-brief haircut."

Andrew: That one made me laugh, I think I actually commented on that one, because I'd never heard anybody call it a boxer brief haircut before. That was good.

John: That's it for today, folks! I want to thank Andrew Harley for sharing his Ironman story with us, and Elizabeth James for helping me keep him moving out on the race course. This concludes our mutiny. We will once again confirm Andrew as the Captain of the Middle of the Pack, and your host of the TriDot podcast. Shout out to UCAN for partnering with us on today's episode. Head to ucan.co and use promo code TriDot at checkout when placing your order for 10% off your SuperStarch energy order. Enjoying the podcast? Have any triathlon questions or topics you want to hear us talk about? Head to TriDot.com/podcast and click on "Submit Feedback" to let us know what you're thinking. We'll have a new show coming your way soon! Until then, happy training!

Outro: Thanks for joining us. Make sure to subscribe and share the TriDot podcast with your triathlon crew. For more great tri content and community, connect with us on Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram. Ready to optimize your training? Head to TriDot.com and start your free trial today! TriDot – the obvious and automatic choice for triathlon training.