Ironman Louisville was my second full Ironman, first was Ironman Mont Tremblant 2016. This race had many similarities and lessons learned. Seven racers from Pasadena Triathlon Club flew out for this race. Bob, Lynda, Steve, GT, Danny, Alvin, and me (Joe). This was Steve and Bob’s first Ironman full distance. Very exciting. We had been all training together for this race and very excited about the big day. Also, in our gang was Laurie, Steve’s wife, who was a terrific sherpa and fan. Also, Coach Scott came to cheer and sherpa. He arrived on Saturday. Bob flew in separately from a trip on the East Coast.

Pre-Race

Tuesday before Race: We shipped out our bikes on Tribike Transport from local Bicycle Johns. 9 days before the race. They are great. They truck your bike and gear bag to the race site and set up adjacent to the transition area. You just pick it up a day before the race, then after the race, you drop the bike and gear bag off and it shows up back in Burbank in 9 days. It forces you to pack early and shove all your stuff on the truck. With iffy weather, I stuffed all kinds of riding options: vest, jackets, gloves, cycling kits, etc. Highly recommend sending bike with TBT, cuz a lot less hassles at the airport, and can rent smaller car.

Thursday:

We flew out at the crack of dawn on Thursday. We landed and rented a big passenger van for the 8 of us. We scooted directly to Residence Inn, which was strategically located walking distance from Ironman Village. Then, we ran over to Tribike right away to pick up our bike and gear bags. We ended getting there an hour early. So, the Ironman Village wasn’t too crowded, so we went through registration and then over to Tribike. We went on a quick 3 mile run along the river edge to check out the swim start. The water was brown. The river area is very cool for strolling, parks, playground, and boating. There was a strong breeze that was adding some chop to the water. Louisville, Kentucky is located on the Ohio River. The other side of the river is Indiana. Bob arrived and went for his 3 mile run quickly.

Friday:

Bob went to pick up his bike and gear bag. We started filling the different Transition Bags for Ironman: Bike Bag (T1), Run Bag (T2), Special needs bag Bike, Special needs bag Run, and Morning Clothes bag. After lunch, we went on a bike ride to check out the run route. Louisville is a cool town. The neighborhoods changes along the main streets. We took some pictures at Churchill Downs, home of the Kentucky Derby. We went to dinner at a great Italian place DiFabio’s for dinner. The drinks were great, and the filet mignon was terrific too.

Saturday:

Morning was pack and re-pack bags. When we got together, we checked the weather and obsessed over what to wear and what to pack in all he bags.  The weather was deteriorating hour by hour. By lunch time, we were resigned to a full rainy day and packed up for cold and rainy day. GT and I went for a tasty lunch nearby at Harvest. It was so tasty. We dropped off the bikes at transition and dropped off Bike Bag and Run Bag too. We went for an early dinner and off to bed early. For dinner we drove across the bridge to Indiana! Then, night night for the big day.

Ironman Louisville Race Report. Here.