Pick my 2016 Ironman!
A way too early look at the 2016 season...but I want to plan ahead since many popular races sell out quickly.
Background (skip if you know my back story)
I completed my first Ironman in 2014 at IMAZ. However, this year I had to promise the wife no full Ironmans since I accepted a new job in the Salt Lake City area. It was a major move relocating form Monrovia, CA (world-famous home of Coach Rich!). There was just no way I could have done IM training on top of uprooting my family, buying a house, and starting a new job. Ultimately, triathlons are a hobby.
This year I am (1) focusing on getting faster at the HIM distance and (2) maximizing my running ability. I just completed St George, and Boulder 70.3 is next on tap in June, where I am targeting sub-5:30, which would be a PR. Then I'll spend the rest of the season being a runner, culminating in St George Marathon, where I am shooting for breaking 3:30.
The Contenders
I would ideally like a destination that will be a tri-cation. That is, someplace where my family can enjoy the venue and then we can do touristy stuff after the event. Otherwise, I'd have to fly solo. My wife said she wants to pick the location for my next IM.
A bonus is that the race would fit my strengths: BOP open water swimmer (hopefully MOP next season), slightly above average cyclist (better on flatter courses), and strong runner.
In no particular order, here are some of the locations I'm considering. I'd prefer something early season, like June or July. I want to do a non-tri adventure, such as an ultra marathon or double century, in the later part of the season.
| Race | Pros | Cons | SAU Factor |
| IM Florida | Flat and fast course, family friendly (Disneyworld!), reasonable flights | Course looks boring, Disneyworld!, late season, sells out fast (probably have to pony up for Foundation slot) | Wife really wants to go to Disneyworld |
| IM Canada (Whistler) | Beautiful location, family friendly, could road trip it | Tough course | Wife wants to visit friends in the area |
| IM Coure D'Alene | Highly recommended by many ENers, ideal timing to come right after St George | Tough course with cold swim | Coure D'What? |
| IM Lake Tahoe | Beautiful location, lots of friends and family in the area, driving distance | Race is cursed, late season | She loves Tahoe |
| IM Australia | Always wanted to go to the Land Down Under, fast course | Flights are $1600+ per person | Would bank major SAUs |
| Vineman Full | I grew up in NorCal and love this area, recovery wine tasting!, flat-ish course, easy swim, good timing in July | Can be brutally hot (100F last year), "You're a Vineman!" doesn't have the same shiny ring to it | Can't go wrong with a trip to Cali |
Alright EN'ers, I'd love to hear your recommendations. What races would be on your short list? And why?
Thanks in advance for your help!
Comments
I did IMCdA last year and it is beautiful but not much to do around the town for the family.
The IMLT bike has some long climbs and descents on poor roads (due to the damage from the snow plows) and the altitude can effect your run. But since you're a good runner, it might affect you less than others. It is beautiful but not much to do around the town since the race is on the north shore. But if you have friends and family there, can save money by driving compared to flying, and your wife LOVES Tahoe, then .... and it does not sell out early so you don't have to commit the day after the race. But, something to consider: Last year was the first time IM was going to race a full and half on the same day in North America. I was in transition last year getting ready to race the 70.3 when both races were cancelled. There was a lot of talk from people that after two years of, as you say, a "curse" (freezing temps the first year and cancellation due to the smoke from the forest fires the next) that IM may decide to make it a 70.3 only race like they did to St. George. So there are questions about if Tahoe will remain a full distance or not in the coming years. Good luck with your decision and building up those SAU!
IM CDA - Drivable from Utah, on your way back, you can hit up Glacier and/or Yellowstone. Weather and water temp are totally unpredictable I've done it ten times, in temps from 48 F to 98 F, water has been 58 >> 68. But the bike is fun, and the run is enjoyable, along the lake and into the old, rich downtown neighborhood and finish downhill in downtown CDA. Very convenient transition area, smallish town locale makes for easy spectating. Comes after school is out. Water park near some of the motels. Locals have the support thing wired.
In general, ALL IMs are hard. there are no "easier" courses, simply slower or faster ones. Best way to pick is (a) time of year for your needs (b) travel issues (c) Family friendly
Don't forget Challenge in Penticton on the old IM Canada course. The locals have been hosting the race for 30+ years, its a small resort town, and a foreign country to boot!
After Paul's suggestion, I did some research on Europe. It looks like it would be more expensive than Australia. My wife would probably be excited about Switzerland or Sweden since we have friends in those countries.
My preference would probably be Australia if I'm going to dig that far into my wallet. The timing of IM Australia is a little early (May 1). I would get maybe 3-4 outdoor rides on my tri bike. I could use Oceanside as my jumping off point. But that means lots of hours on the trainer. The course has a very fast swim with an average finish around 1:10 (looks like a long stretch down river), fast bike with average finish just over 6:00, and flat run course. This would be a very PR friendly course for me.
Tahoe seems like a crap shoot. It's late in the season. If the race gets cancelled again, the only other options (IMAZ and IMFL) are sold out. We did get a few refugees from Tahoe last year at IMAZ, but they were the lucky ones. The altitude shouldn't be a factor since I live and train at ~4800ft, although I do enjoy the pop of racing at lower altitudes.
@Al, IMCDA would probably be my top choice for the reasons you outlined -- I can drive to it, sounds like a great venue, perfect timing (mid-June) and can use St George as a jumping off point and bump up to IM training. The variability of the conditions is a little worrying -- I recall you guys had a tough time out there last year with the wind.
My wife didn't seem excited about the idea of IMCDA. She said "first you take me to Tempe, AZ -- now you want to go to Idaho." Perhaps I can sell her on Yellowstone. I might just have to fly solo.
I'll check out Penticton. Thanks for the recommendation!
Bummer! I did Ironman Sweden a couple of years ago and it was magnificent...deep pile of SAUs! I checked out the IM Switzerland run course while in Zurich last year and it would be very scenic. The loops don't bother me and they are common in Europe. You just collect a scrunchy arm band on each one and get to finish when you have the four color collection.
That said, I did IMCDA before and my family loved that. We checked out the historic whore house down the interstate a bit, watched at least 3 first run movies so I could stay off my feet, took the lake cruise and played at Silverwood amusement park after the race. You just have to make sure you are doing things she likes. Heck, my wife enjoyed IM Arizona too. A nice hotel, good restaurants, some sight seeing and some shopping is a sure fire ticket for keeping the Sherpa happy!
I've always preferred the timing of CDA for western athletes. Very easy to schedule IMCA, IMSG, then IMCDA and you're done with your IM stuff by the end of June, leaving you the whole summer to do whatever. CDA would probably be an 8hr drive for you and you'd save thousands on airline fees that you could apply towards renting an RV somewhere and doing a Griswolds Vacation tour of Yellowstone and other areas?
I'm a road trip vacation kinda guy so I'm a little biased.
Variable weather: it's not that bad. I think there has only been one crazy hot day, in 2003. Otherwise the lake can be cold...but I don't think it's been bad in recent years, or it can be rainy in the AM...but it hasn't been in a few years. The wind last year was unusual, in my experience.
IMO, you want hills and wind on an IM bike course because everyone else will screw that up. But I prefer to not have people race in the heat, if it can be helped, and CDA has rarely been a hot race, so it gets my vote.
My kids are still pretty young for Australia. I shiver at the thought of an 18 hour flight. I may save that one for when the girls are older and can appreciate it (and survive an 18 hour flight). Road trips work out much better now.
Any chance of IMCDA being an EN key race next year? I think this is one of your favorite courses -- you could relive the glory.
So I as all set to do IMCDA next year...until the Furnaces of Hell opened up on the course. More importantly, the move to August makes it less attractive. I was looking forward to being done with my triathlon season in June. Then I could focus on running for the summer and enjoy extra time with the family.
Unless WTC introduces another west coast Ironman in June, I am looking at Ironman Boulder. I had a great time doing Boulder 70.3, stomach issues aside. I love the bike course, beautiful and fast. The run for IM Boulder is supposed to be about 60% shaded, which will be luxurious because I get zero coverage in Utah.
Here is my draft race schedule for 2016. Ideally I'd like more time between IM Boulder and the North Face Challenge 50 miler. I'll probably have to make sure to get about 40 MPW during my tri training to allow for a seamless transition into running.
I'm going to test the ultra waters with a 50k this year. Then I want to try a 50 miler next year. Perhaps a 100 miler the following year...
@Gabe - i can't comment on your running races, but from a triathlon perspective the combo of St. George, Boulder70.3 and IM Boulder play very nice together. I haven't set my schedule yet for next year, but chances are good i'll be doing at least 2 out of the 3, so it will be cool to race together again. One point of caution is that Boulder can be brutally hot that first week in August. Yes, the run is shaded, but you still could be in for a very hot day and know that the swim is always borderline wetsuit legal - (but history has shown they somehow find a way to take the temp to make it just barely wetsuit legal). Just depends.
For sure your 50miler represents a quick turn after Boulder, but at the same time you will be carrying a whole lot of fitness from your IM build. My sense is you should have enough time to recover for a week or two, get a couple big volume weeks under your belt and then start to taper. Overall, your 2016 schedule looks pretty bad ass! Nice Job!
@Robin, agreed, and surprised if WTC leaves this hole in the calendar for an early season IM and makes August fairly crowded. I'm guessing they have plans for a different June/July IM on the west coast. Or perhaps they've just done the research and folks prefer to do an IM later in the year.
@Mark, thanks for the awesome advice, as always! Stoked that we'll get to race together again next year!
I'm not too concerned about the heat on the run. SLC seems to have very similar weather to Boulder since we're at about the same latitude. We're getting a scorching June so far. I should be able to train in the heat to acclimatize.
The possibility of a non-wetsuit legal swim is a little scary -- it will motivate me to learn how to actually swim in case I don't have my wetsuit crutch. I'm thinking I'll do a swim camp in the outseason with some coaching and following your advice. Surprisingly, I'm already starting to miss swimming. It's an ideal lunchtime workout with a pool about 5 minutes away from work. I'm thinking I'll start swimming a day or two per week again during my run-focused training this season for cross training.
The good thing is that there are lots of ultras and they don't sell out, except for the most renowned races (e.g., Leadville). They are also reasonably priced compared to Ironman branded events, usually around $100. If I'm not up to a 50 miler by the end of September, there are other options later in the season, such as the Pony Express 50 here in Utah or the Northface Challenge near San Francisco.
My reservation is that it is very early in the season. I would probably get 2-3 outdoor rides before the race and zero open water swims. Additionally, this season will be ending late in November, making for a short outseason.
Should I pull the trigger on Oceanside?
I just reg'd for O-Side, though I saw elsewhere that Al advised you to ski in the winter
. That works too