This is a fun course that will do a good job testing your off-season training. If you are doing a full iron distance race, it is a good test of nutritional strategies, bike set up, and racing gear.
Swim: the 2km swim is rectangular in a clockwise direction held in the calm waters of the Welland Canal. It used to be a mass start, but this year it will be run in waves to avoid drafting on the bike. Depending on the size of the waves, you'll get congestion at the first turn. After that it opens up. You get to swim under bridges, which is pretty cool because spectators will line up along the rail to cheer you on. It's not often you get to feed off the crowd in the middle of your swim. The run to tranisition is good. It's a blend of grass and pavement and about 300m.
Bike: FLAT AND FAST! You will be pedalling the whole time, so it is a good opportunity to work on bike strategy if this is a test race for a full iron distance race (do you go all out, or stay in a comfort zone to get ready for the run...your choice!). There are no hills, but then you don't get to rest your legs on any downhills either (except once, there is a small hill of about 20m). There are aid stations every 30km where you will get a water bottle exchange (last year it was a reusable plastic water bottle, not a little bottle of store bought water). The nutrition was Hammer last year, but I can't verify what it will be in 2013. IMPORTANT: the pavement is rough, especially right away. You WILL launch water bottles if your cages are not tight. (last year I lost a bottle in the first 3km, and after every aid station. It was good though, because it meant that I had to fix my cages to avoid that happening in future races. I simply added thick rubber bands to make my cages tighter). Expect a fast bike time, probably a PB, because it is literally flat. Not even false flat. FLAT!
Run: you run along the canal with an aid station every 2km. You will start off doing a little out and back on a road before joining the trail along the canal. You will run to the end of the trail, turn around, run back a bit, turn around, and run to the end again. It is relatively flat with some false flats, except for one down and up section where you will be running under a bridge. Since it is a Half Iron, you will probably be running in the afternoon, and depending on the weather it could get really hot. Since you are on a walking/running trail, there is a lot of tree coverage. There are sections where you will be out in the sun, but you can get a reprieve by taking a couple of steps off the trail and running in the shade of the trees. In 2012, the aid stations had water, flat pepsi, Hammer gels, and fruit (I think). They may have had Hammer drink as well, but I only drank water and pepsi, so I don't know what else was offered.
Last year the Rose Parade was going by near the finish, and I literally had to run through a marching band (Welland is the Rose capital of Ontario, so the Rose Parade is a big deal). Also, the parade blocked the exit to the parking area so I had to wait to leave. It was nice though. Nothing like getting a PB at a Half Iron distance race, eating a free burger, and then watching a parade!!
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