Memorial Hermann Ironman Texas : Official Thread (Page 30)

Thanks for the reply.  Really just trying to get the lay of the land.  At Austin 70.3 last October, my goggles leaked the entire swim.  Had to stop every 100 meters or so to let water out.  Not anticipating anything like that happening again but it's good to know all the options.

I have a buddy who did IMTX last year and said the swim start was basically 2,000 people competing for the same space of water.  Embrace the chaos?  

I waited a minute to start after the canon sounded and only got hit like 3 times the entire swim. Now the canal gets crowded and I started walking faster than I could swim. Was walking past people for about 25 meters.

I've had the same thought.  What's 30-60 seconds added to your time when you can save more in energy just trying to avoid people?  The only negative I can think of is the waves or choppy water you are now swimming through left by the mass start.  Or was it not that bad?

Thanks! This is great info. Glad they aren't changing up the IMTX swim start last minute! :-)

The lake hardly ever varies in depth. Heavy rains will cause it to rise a little until the spillway corrects it, but that only takes a few hours. Can't remember ever seeing the lake noticeably low.

Because of the expected non wetsuit swim, they get to split the field at the start, so it takes some of the edge off the mass start for the non wetsuit people.

I would say 100-200 people at most did the wetsuit last year from a video I saw. So a SMALL number didnt do the mass start. There wasnt a lot of chop or waves but just people everywhere. You have to find a pocket of straight swimmer and stay in there. Though the markers are big they can be hard to see with some many people. However, there is the occasional horizontal swimmer you have to avoid :-) Only one person constantly "attacked" me and it was a very fast wetsuit guy. After hitting me 5 times on the head he got a nasty elbow to the ribs. Nobody touches you on purpose or wants to be touched. Just expect it and go with it. However, this guy wasnt backing down or moving over so had to make him aware. It happens.

If the sun is out that morning, will there be a need for tinted goggles?  Which section will this come mostly into play (assuming one can breathe to whichever side is opposite the sun)?  I assume sighting during the canal portion since it heads east?  Or is this somewhat unecessary since there are walls on both sides so a little hard to get going in the wrong direction...

Let's be honest, it's about money. Ironman is a corporation. They make $$$ by providing a service and if they can make more $$$ by making a few changes then that is what they will do - and as a lover of the free market I support them.  If I ever decide not to support them then I will take my $$$ elsewhere...of course I won't ever get a corporation's symbol tattooed on my body.  Could you imagine if Enron was creating and producing long distance triathlons and people got that E tatooed on them.  LOL there would be a lot of pissed off people running around.

Watched that a week or two ago whenever first posted on here...guess I should have taken notes...

As I told some of my friends I don't like it, BUT I'm not the one having to deal with the liability of someone dying on me during a mass start swim.  It's a business decision and they have every right to do it.

I totally agree dude.  Maybe the small changes lower their risk slightly and thus their liability insurance.  I'd like to think a lower insurance rate for them equals a slightly smaller entry fee.

most of the video was filmed on an overcast day but at the end of the video there is a 30 second clip from a sunny day showing the sunrise in 30 seconds from 7am - 9:20am... if there are no clouds when you're headed back after the turnaround and into the canal the sun may make you want some tinted goggles. 

Why should we expect them to pass on this savings?  As long as we keep signing up for the races and they sell out (in some cases within minutes of registration opening), they should keep raising the prices as a for-profit venture.  As a participant, I wish it didn't work that way, but if I were an investor (in this case a private-equity firm that bought WTC), I would demand changes that increase profitability at least until my customers showed me with their money (by going to a competitor or my races not selling out) that they disagree with the changes.

The cost is definitely one of the reasons (albeit, not the biggest) I expect this to be my one IM....but so far history has shown that someone will take my place next year just I took someone else's place from last year.

Sorry for adding to this thread hijack

TJ: Have you seen a list of speakers/events for the village? Last year they had a number of speakers presenting and pros signing.

Have the trucks rolled into town yet?

TJ: work your powers! This is terrible. At least get your mind right before head out there. They HAVE TO CLEAN all the loose gravel though.

I cant find this post on their facebook page. Where was it?

LOL...hahahaha...dude I freakin' knew it.  It is what it is, and it's going to be a suck fest for about six miles. It starts right after crossing into Montgomery county from Grimes county along FM 1486.  It goes until about a mile or so before 105.