In his Ironman debut, Joshua Lewis started Ironman Cascais very strong: he recorded the second swim time (42:39) and the third bike time (4:20:19), but during the marathon (3:16:48) he got tough, lost a lot of time and positions. He looks back on his debut, in which he eventually finished 14th in 8:26:18.
“That was one hell of a day out. Believe it or not, I had a great time racing, and would almost consider it a fun day, despite things coming to blows on the run.
“Being at the front of the race for 75 percent of the day, with some of the best in the game in a stacked field, was epic. Now it’s time to spend some time working on that more important last 25 percent over winter.
“For now, it’s feet up after what’s been a great first season as a long course pro. I couldn’t have asked for any more. Lastly, it was amazing to support and have support from everyone out on the course! So many people were cheering me on and I tried to return the favour when I could… Friends, family, coached athletes, people who watch the vlog and Em, thank you.”