Last year my brother, dad and I ran the Hartford Half Marathon together and my brother, a big tri guy, said he was going to try a half Ironman in a year or so. Despite having no bike or triathlon experience I said I’d try to do it with him. My dad also signed up so it was a lot of fun planning to do it together. We settled on Edisto (not an Ironman branded event) and I really started training in April of 2026.
Training:
I followed the Ironfit Secrets “Just Finish” training plan with some slight modifications and averaged 8 hours a week training with a peak of around 11 hours. I am a bigger girl (5’8 and 180) but felt pretty healthy all through training. I averaged around 10:30s on my training runs and biked most of my rides around 15.8 MPH. During the process the bike was my nemesis. I never really felt comfortable on it or enjoyed it. I swam a few times but knew the swim would be slightly current-assisted and didn’t really feel like driving a hour round trip to the pool twice a week. I swam in highschool and college so felt weirdly confident about it and didn’t sweat it too much. In late September I developed plantar fasciitis and so my last 2-3 weeks of training were done on the bike and elliptical. I flew down the Thursday before the race and tried to focus on staying hydrated, resting, and eating carbs.
The Day Before:
I shared a AirBnB with my family which was the right choice for hanging out with my family but possibly the wrong choice for an optimal pre-race environment. I didn’t sleep very well Thursday or Friday night and the busy atmosphere in the house made naps difficult. We walked on the beach, ate spaghetti, and played with the kids. The night before I was very nervous and woke up every 30-45 minutes but there was nothing to be done about it!
The Race:
We all woke up at 5 am and had some coffee and bagels before my mom drove us to the transition area so we could set up our stuff. The race is relatively small (300 participants) so the transition and finish areas were super easy to navigate. Parking surprisingly wasn’t an issue! The swim was point to point so after we dropped our stuff my
Mom drove us to the swim start.
The water was a little chilly- 65 according to the announcer- but I didn’t bring a wetsuit so was devoted to the trisuit lifestyle. At the pre-race meeting the announcer mentioned we wouldn’t get as much of a boost from the current as years prior but it didn’t worry me. The water WAS a bit cold but within a few seconds it felt fine and I ended up swimming 33:22. I was only about a minute slower than my brother who swims several times a week so I was pleased that my gamble not to train swimming much paid off, lol. My transition time was nice and quick as well- 1:55 during which I took a gel, donned my shoes and helmet, and took off on the bike.
Edisto was an almost completely flat course which was so nice compared to my area of CT which was quite hilly. I opted to use a spare road bike of my brother’s instead of flying my bike down. I think the seat position must have been slightly different from my bike, however, because by mile 25 the sides of my butt were killing me. I spent most of the ride trying to adjust myself to a comfortable position on the bike and was yearning to get it over with so I could start running. I used Precision Fuel gels and took one every thirty minutes. In addition I had two 24 oz bottles of Gatorade and sipped them throughout the course. Ultimately I think I did pretty well on the fueling front. Despite the pain I averaged 16.4 MPH (good for me!) and finished the bike in 3:24:24. All I could think as I got off the bike was that I could not imagine this being the halfway point like it would be in a full Ironman, lol! I have a whole new level of respect for athletes who can complete that distance! The only other thing to say about the bike was that it was quite windy in portions which made it feel like you weren’t moving at all. Everyone was super friendly- I was passed MANY times and everyone encouraged me or told me “great job!”
My second transition took me 2:24 and then I was back at it running. The run course was clearly marked and very flat which was super nice. My only gripe with it was that most of it was unshaded and I got a nice sunburn. The temperature around this time was 78 degrees which was a little brutal (can you tell I’m spoiled by the northeast?). I walked through every aid station and drank a cup of water (every 1.5 mile or so) plus took gels at miles 3, 6, 9, and 11). The first eight miles felt fine and fairly comfortable but the last five were brutal. Only the vision of my dad threatening to overtake me at sixty years old kept me from walking. Ultimately I averaged 10:54 min/miles and finished the run in 2:22:47. I teetered over the finish line and then wobbled my way to a can of Coke. A very friendly fellow participant offered me a beer and my family ushered me to some nearby benches to sit down. Overall, I finished in 6:24 which was just under my goal time of 6:30.
I am super pleased I was able to successfully complete the race. My brother finished in around 5:30 and my dad in around 7. The craziest part was that I could hardly move after the race but my dad opted to ride his bike back from the race to our AirBnB…AFTER completing the Half Ironman! Absolute maniac. I think, however, that I am one and done. I think Edisto was the perfect choice for a newbie. The current-assisted swim and flat course took a lot of stress out of the training and made for a smooth race day. The organizers were very friendly and did everything they could to set everyone up for success. My fellow competitors were extremely kind and supportive.
Thank you, as well, to this subreddit which I read obsessively. If you are training for a half Ironman (or, well, any race) then you are in good hands here!
