Boulder Peak

So I finally had the race I've been waiting for and I caught a great day for 8th at Boulder Peak. I raced terribly here last year, finishing way back and wilting in the heat so I wanted to redeem myself and have a good one this year.
Race Day
Pros started at 9am and it was a 100 degree day so it was already hot. On the warm up swim I decided that it would be prudent to swim and bike hard where I'd be least affected by the heat. Then I could sacrifice 1min on the run if I had to since I figured I can always run fairly fast no matter what the conditions but that running extra fast around 5:25 pace could lead to a heat related breakdown.
Swim
I committed myself to going out very hard so got out well at the gun and was in decent position although I wasn't on anyone to draft off of. I caught my teammate Matt Balzer about halfway through which I knew was a good sign. I felt very good, very in control so swam hard to the finish and got out in 20th.
Velo
Took it easy the 1st minute to get the legs going then started going for it. Felt good and got into a rythme on the steady climb that leads to Old Stage. Worked well up the hill, I was cruising well without having to really crush it and at the top Will Kelsay told me I was in 17th place. Cranked down the hill and my favorite section to US36 where you can hold 35mph without really trying. Kept the effort very consistent and steadily passed guys until I rolled back to the res. Looked at my watch and it was just over 1:00. I was pumped! I've ridden 1:05 or so in the past at the Peak so this was a huge bike breakthrough. Got off with the 4th fastest bike of the day - 1:01:25 / 25.5mph.
Run
I felt very good going into the run but didn't want to push too early and risk blowing up with the heat. I threw all advice out the window and drank 2 full size water bottles on the bike since I've had dehydration issues in the past and I never seem to get a sloshing feeling in my stomach. As soon as I started running I knew this was a good decision as I really wasn't feeling the heat at all yet. Hit the 1st mile at 5:28 which was very good since I wasn't pushing very hard. From there I was able to basically hold that pace as it felt increasingly hard, mostly due to the heat. Passed some of the very fast swimmers then caught teammate Brandon Rakita. So I was in 8th and it was a ways up to 7th. I decided not to really hammer it since it felt like I may blow up if I did. Kept the effort going at just under 5:30 pace and was able to hold that to the end. Thanks to the Practical Coaching crew and many of the pros I know for cheering me on, it certainly helped. Finished with a run just under 34:00, 7th fastest for the day.

This race was a big confidence booster as it was a stacked field so 8th is a very solid result. I've had some good races this season but I didn't feel like any of them were great until this one. I've had good fitness all season and it felt good to get a race where I clicked on all 3 disciplines and was really able to show my fitness. This race was a big confidence booster for the bike so I'll be ready to push that hard with reckless abandon for my next race.