2nd @ Quelle Challenge Roth

hi again everyone,
well the race has been run and won by Patrick Vernay. He has won Aust. IM the last 2 years as well as WA IM so he is good. But no excuses, i was not good enough.
 
The swim was crap. Kieran Doe swam on my shoulder which was frustrating. Swimming side by side is slower, so i tried to get in front of him when he drifted a metre away but he would jump right back onto my hip and i would feel him like lead weight slow me down. I had no choice but to take it at his pace. He sprinted for the finish but i had the inside line at the last bouy and beat him out.
 
I got a lead onto the bike and kieran caught me after while but wasn’t going real fast. Then super biker Tjorbjorn Sindballe caught us and i went around kieran and follwed tjorbjorn for a while. i was riding well and he drifted away slowly. while he was still in sight a big pack of 8 caught me, which soon dropped to 4, of me, patrick vernay, some nobody, and lead by super biker thomas hellriegle. I rode with them until i  slowed to piss with 30km to go, and rode my own pace into finish.
 
Vernay was close and i had quick transition to follow him by 2 seconds. ii went hard and gapped him but stopped to stretch my tight back until he caught me. We swapped 2nd place many times until i felt real good and put the gas down at 21km. I had a handy gap, and passed Tjorbjorn but my legs blew up too early and vernay caught me with about 9km to go.
 
I am very happy with my result. the times don’t show it but i had a great bike ride, and my lack of strength of the run was unavoidable due to the bike work i did with little running until 6 weeks ago.
 
To go one better than last year,and come second by just 2 minutes – i finshed in 8:12  (very wet and cold on the bike), gives me good confidence, some good money to support my goals, and a great insight into what my training did and did not do. I am sure i can improve for Hawaii.
 
cheers
pete