No Passing Zone - Insight?
Greetings!
Any insight on the “no passing zone” including how to handle it, where it is, etc. Especially from those that have done the race before – what did you see? How did the marshals handle it? Was the second loop a total cluster or reasonable? FWIW I personally like to continue to apply pressure on the pedals and won’t spin out unless I absolutely have to but I imagine some will sit up/slow down, etc?
Thanks!0
Comments
Hi,
FYI I reached out to Ironman about the no passing zone and swim warm up and this is the response I received.
And, for the record I did not print this e-mail... in consideration of the environment and all.
Michelle Haustein, Jun 13 03:16 PM:
Mark,
Thank you for your email. To best answer you question, I encourage you to read the Athlete Guide (attached and on-line at www.ironmancda.com). I also encourage you to attend one of the Athlete Briefings that are scheduled twice a day on Thursday, June 26th and Friday June 27th at the IRONMAN Expo. We will go over the courses in detail and the Swim, Bike and Run Course directors will be on hand to address any questions or concerns in more detail. This would include your questions on the "No Passing Zones".
As far as the swim questions go, we will have a short warm-up opportunity for you between the Pro start at 6:05 am and the Age Group start at 6:40 am. There will be a small 30x20 yard area for athletes to use during this time. You will NOT be allowed on the swim course, only in the swim warm-up area. (We will have a kayak and 2 life-guards posted in this area for your safety).
Prior to the start of the age groupers, we will end the swim warm-up and have all age groupers self-seed themselves according to how fast your anticipate on finishing the swim course. (We will have large signs with times posted on the beach to assist with seeding.) We will start the age group athletes at 6:40, funneling all through a swim arch, and over the timing mat. We anticipate all athletes being in the water in 20 minutes.
Please let me know if you need anything further.
Michelle Haustein
Coordinator, Athlete Services
World Triathlon Corporation | 2701 North Rocky Point Drive
Suite 1250 | Tampa, FL 33607 (p) 727-430-6405 |
9 a.m. to 5 p.m. (EST) M-F
6 a.m. to 2 p.m. (PAC) M-F
www.ironman.com
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Please consider the environment before printing this e-mail
Attachment(s)
2014 im cda athlete guide.pdf
I talked to Mark Cardindale about the bike course (He raced last year) when we were in St. George. He said to be aware of where the no passing zones are on the course so that you can pass anyone who is not taking advantage of the downhill speed before the no pass zone. Otherwise you will be stuck going slower than you would like during that section. I didn't ask nor did he mention anything about the officials in those areas.
The no passing zone is mica grade descent at about miles 50 and 95, give or take. I didn't see marshals on either looped, but it's very well marked with a number of signs. I did see people passing, but it's pretty tight, maybe 4-6 feet wide and barrels on one side and i can't remember what on the other, but there's no room to stretch the width. My advice is to be aware of the zones and do your best to get ahead of any slower traffic before you get there. No guarantee you won't run into somebody on the decent, but to the extent that you pass anybody going slower than you that will help ensure you have a smooth fast decent. This is especially true on the second lap when faster and slow riders are sharing the same space.
Outside of the no passing zone i thought there was plenty of space even on the 2nd loop. The other thing about the course that stuck with me was just how long it took to get to the turn-around. It's a lot of rollers (maybe 20 miles) once you come down the back side of mica grade all the way to the turnaround, but it felt like a net uphill. When you finally get to the turn around its those same rollers back, but it feels more downhill. Be aware of the wind and check the direction in the morning. We were lucky in that we had little to no wind, but we did a slight headwind after the final turnaround that made the last 30 or so miles feel more difficult than it did on the first loop. I guess my point is, have something left in the tank for those last 30 miles or so after the 2nd turnaround.
There's really nothing technical and there is very little turning or cornering. It's pretty much just a hilly bike ride, and even the hills aren't crazy steep. I think mica grade is 6% and maybe there are a few short pitches of 8%, but nothing much beyond that. Special needs is around mile 63 in a cul de sac. Lots of room. I didn't need to stop but it seemed well layed out. Aid stations made sense. They were on slight uphills or flats, so no issues there. Overall It's a fair bike course although not terribly fast in my opinion.
Great info, thanks so much Teri!!!