Subject: RE: Pumpkinman Half Iron Triathlon : Official Threadeverlong - 2012-06-24 5:05 PM
So people who have done Patriot and Pumpkinman previously how would you compare the course difficulty for all three different disciplines?
I've raced both and would say they are similiar. Its been a couple years since I raced Patriot, but here is a quick rundown.
Swim - 2 loops in shallow water, so I would be ready for nonwetsuit. I would also recommend a pair of goggles that are tinted. The sun rises in direct line with the first row of bouys, so can be tough to sight.
BIG hill heading into transition from the water.
Bike - Patriot is flatter (ie;faster ) course, but Pman is a fast ride as well. Its rural and the roads are pretty smooth. Pretty much rollers the whole way. Aid stations are well supported. There is one hill that you go up twice, but nothing crazy. You can stay in your saddle and spin up. But other than that, you can stay in your aeros the whole ride. I believe Patriot is 58 miles, so your bike splits should be very similiar.
Run - Best part of the race. Quick track that has quite a few spectators to cheer you on. Its not quite 2 loops, but pretty close so you can see your family/firiends a bunch. There is decent hill at the end which hurts quite a bit. I found the run at Patriot to be very fast, but definitely boring without a lot of specatators. Like the bike, your run splits should be similiar.
The awards/dinner after the race is probably the best I've experienced.
Overall Pumpkinman is a great race. I've done 2 IMs and over 10 Half IMs and this is one of my favorite races to do.
Hope this helps!
Edited by pauljra 2012-07-04 9:39 AM
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