Love the OLY distance. This course is a challenge(at least for me) but fair at the same time. Big fan of the lake swim in Mission Viejo Lake. Huge difference between that and jumping into 60 degree ocean water! The bike course is difficult because of the hills and wind. But you finish with a two mile descent which gives you plenty of time to get ready for the run. Its the best start to a run anywhere! You are running downhill for the first few miles. Then you kind of traverse through some wooded areas with nice scenary and trails(again easy on the legs). But towards the end you do hit a serious climb of about a 1/2 mile. Then you’re down…up…down again to the finish line. They could use a few more support/aid stations(especially if its hot). The SWAG and after race atmosphere is pretty average for such a well run event. But overall I think it’s a good race.
