Andrea Brayman wins Half Ironman

Andrea Brayman competes in the second of three events in the Half Ironman triathlon. Photo by Barbara Lundy Islander Andrea Brayman was the top female in the FirmMan Rhode Island Half Ironman held on Sunday in Narragansett.

Brayman easily won the race consisting of a 1.2 mile swim, 56 mile bike and 13.1 mile run (or half marathon). Her time of 4:57.55 beat the next closest woman by more than 15 minutes and Brayman was thrilled with her performance.

The annual event was originally scheduled for Sept. 7, but due to Hurricane Hannah, it was postponed for two weeks. As expected many competitors were disappointed as their timing and training was based on the date of the race. Brayman thinks the delay may have helped her. "I think it helped in that I did the right thing once I knew the race was postponed. I had tapered and was ready for the race, then I turned it back on for a week, and then I tapered again. So I think I was well rested, and mentally it was nice knowing there was no hurricane."

More than 300 athletes participated, some of whom were part of a relay team that divided up the legs of the race. The team of Jean Lambert of Jamestown and Sean Connell-Clarkson of Portsmouth took second place in the all-female category with a total time of 5:36.54.

According to Brayman the conditions were good and there was a great turnout considering the postponement. Brayman competed in the elite women category and entered the water with the elite men. "It was hard to get in that water with the waves crashing but once I got going it was fine. I had a great day," said Brayman.