Ironman 70.3 Raleigh : Official Thread (Page 5)

Originally posted by slaterson19 5:19. I blew up on the second run loop. The out was pretty much all uphill. My legs started locking up and I wanted to walk or pass out in a ditch so badly.

Originally posted by fgump

Nice. 5:23:53 and I blew up when I hit the headwind on 64. And everywhere thereafter. But I took my wetsuit this year 75.4 temp called about 4:20 Sunday morning.

Also, is everyone aware of position rules in triathlon? As in:
Position Rules:
a. Absolutely NO DRAFTING of another bike or any other vehicle is allowed.
b. Athletes must keep 7 meters (4 bike lengths) distance between bikes except when passing. Failure to do so will result in a drafting violation.
c. A pass occurs when the overtaking athlete’s front wheel passes the leading edge of the athlete being overtaken.
d. Overtaking Athletes may pass on the left for up to 20 seconds, but must move back to the right side of the road, after passing. Failure to complete a pass within 20 seconds will result in a drafting violation. Athletes may not back out of the 7 meter draft zone once it is entered (drafting violation).
e. Overtaken athletes must immediately fall back 7 meters (4 bike lengths) before attempting to regain the lead from a front running bike. Immediately re-passing prior to falling back 7 meters will result in an overtaken violation.
f. Overtaken Athletes who remain within 7 meters (4 bike lengths) for more than 20 seconds will be given a drafting violation.
g. Athletes must ride single file on the far right side of the road except when passing another rider, or for reasons of safety. Side-by-side riding is not allowed and will result in a position violation.
h. Athletes who impede the forward progress of other athletes will be given a blocking violation.


Originally from: http://www.ironman.com/triathlon/events/americas/ironman-70.3/world...

It appears not based on what I saw yesterday. It was ridiculous.

Originally posted by fgump

Nice. 5:23:53 and I blew up when I hit the headwind on 64. And everywhere thereafter. But I took my wetsuit this year 75.4 temp called about 4:20 Sunday morning.

Also, is everyone aware of position rules in triathlon? As in:
Position Rules:
a. Absolutely NO DRAFTING of another bike or any other vehicle is allowed.
b. Athletes must keep 7 meters (4 bike lengths) distance between bikes except when passing. Failure to do so will result in a drafting violation.
c. A pass occurs when the overtaking athlete’s front wheel passes the leading edge of the athlete being overtaken.
d. Overtaking Athletes may pass on the left for up to 20 seconds, but must move back to the right side of the road, after passing. Failure to complete a pass within 20 seconds will result in a drafting violation. Athletes may not back out of the 7 meter draft zone once it is entered (drafting violation).
e. Overtaken athletes must immediately fall back 7 meters (4 bike lengths) before attempting to regain the lead from a front running bike. Immediately re-passing prior to falling back 7 meters will result in an overtaken violation.
f. Overtaken Athletes who remain within 7 meters (4 bike lengths) for more than 20 seconds will be given a drafting violation.
g. Athletes must ride single file on the far right side of the road except when passing another rider, or for reasons of safety. Side-by-side riding is not allowed and will result in a position violation.
h. Athletes who impede the forward progress of other athletes will be given a blocking violation.


Originally from: http://www.ironman.com/triathlon/events/americas/ironman-70.3/world...

It appears not based on what I saw yesterday. It was ridiculous.

Originally posted by Wthore




I do triathlons for me.....I am not fast enough to worry about being on the podium or anything of the sort, so honestly, if someone is drafting, it doesnt bother me as much as someone who is actaully competing for a podium spot. That being said, I got passed on Old US 1 by a 4 man pace line. I thought there may have been a local crit going on I just didnt know about.

Originally posted by fgump

Some (vague) info on the finishers' hats (I sent an email to Ironman):

Email body:

Just prior to this year’s race, Ironman sent an email indicating the
finishers’ hats would not be available at the finish line. The email
indicated the problem was an issue with customs.

The race was over 2 weeks ago, and there’s been no followup response from
Ironman (nor a response from Brian Myrick, the race director, whom I
contacted directly).

Can you advise when the hats will be shipped?

By the way, the race shirts ran small compared to last year, and the
graphics leave a lot to be desired. I’m planning to give the race one more
try next year, but that will probably be it for me.

Thank you,

Bill Bass

Reply:

Hi Bill,

Thank you for reaching out regarding this. We are currently working with a mailing house to finalize the details of this shipment. Your patience is greatly appreciated. Please let me know if you have additional questions or concerns.

Best wishes,

Erin Erickson
Coordinator, Athlete Services
World Triathlon Corporation

Originally posted by Iwannarunlikeforrest



Planning to give the race one more try? If you're seriously considering not doing a race because of the T-Shirt, you're insane. Raleigh was a great race, well organized, and with great support from the community. I'll take that over a t shirt and a crappy finishers hat I'll never wear. Enjoy the day...not the gear.

Originally posted by bhmyrick

I love when you guys throw me under the bus! How did you contact me about the Finishers Hats? On Facebook? If you sent me a personal message I assure you I don't respond to them. If you sent a message to the official page, then you got a response. I check those and my staff gets back to everyone (even though it might take a few days since everyone is on the road). If you tagged me on some unofficial FB page, I don't check those anymore either. I used to try and respond to every thread, provide some insight as to why I make the decisions that I do, try and offer some personal input but the continuous bashing wasn't worth it for me! If you have questions, email the address on the website and you will get a response...

Brian Myrick

Originally posted by fgump

No, planning one more try because, after two times of forking out over $225 for a 70.3 I can do on my own terms, and with mediocre community support except for Holly Springs (even many folks HATING us being on THEIR roads, an athlete getting hit by a car during the race), and the desire to "do something different", I might choose to spend my money elsewhere. I think the "great" community support was families and friends of the racers on Hillsborough Street, but the rest of the 99% of Raleigh and Wake County took offense at not being able to get anywhere with all the road closures (although it was better this year with the turnaround at Gorman, thank you RD). I have to live with the "cyclists think they own the roads" stigma the other 364 days of the year when I ride my bike on the rural roadways in SW Wake County, following the rules of the road and sharing it with motorists.

I don't have any unfinished business on this course. I've done it twice, finished if faster this year than last, and executed a good swim (for me), good transitions, a good bike for me given my training and the weather conditions, and hit my planned run pace even with some slowing near the end. A 5:23 is good enough for me, being a BOP swimmer, FOMOP (front of middle of pack) cyclist, and BOFOP (back of front of pack) runner

But the shirt being cheapened (the volunteer shirts were nicer/more colorful), and not having a simple detail like a hat figured out, make me appreciate the smaller races where those details ARE worked out (FS Series comes to mind)

Originally posted by fgump

Nah, I'm good Louis. Just a little peeved at folks lobbing shrouded (and not-so) insults to my motives/thoughts.

Swinging back over to run mode from here on out I believe. As much as I like the camaraderie of our local group, I'd rather just run and not have to listen to all this noise.

Originally posted by Iwannarunlikeforrest



I don't think anything I said was an insult, and it wasn't meant to be even if it came across that way, but I've done a decent amount of these things(not implying you haven't) and Raleigh was definitely one of the better organized and better supported (by volunteers) races I've done. I just don't think it's right to have hostility towards the RD when he put on a great logistical race. You're the first person I've talked to who seems like they had a negative experience. No one's forcing you to do the race, so don't. I'll be back next year to support it though.