IM Mont Tremblant, Quebec added to the calendar

Nemo Brauch

It's official.  Another North America IM is on the calendar.  This one looks very interesting for folks on the east coast (especially in the northeast).  Held it August it fits nicely into a slot when folks will be able to train outside in daylight, and its not to far for travel.  This might even give a little relief to the Lake Placid registration (OK that might be a stretch, but you can always hope!).

http://ironmanmonttremblant.com/

Anyone familiar with the area?  I looked at the course descriptions and while the profiles look scary, if I'm reading them right, there may be a few steep climbs but it doesn't look like there's really all that much elevation gain.  Just lots of short climbs on the bike and run.

Dave Tallo

In!

Gordon Cherwoniak

Not familar with the site but there is a ski hill there so I assume it can't be flat. 

I plan on doing Lake Placid 2012 but this race and LP are both long way from Saskatoon.  IMCDA and IMC, and IMWI are much closer for me.

Gordon

Paul Hough

Awesome. This addition caught me by surprise. I'm still waiting on official announcements for NYC and South Carolina. Until they have enough races to get the starting fields down to 2000 max there is plenty of room for more. But where will the Kona slots come from unless they are going to increase the size of that race??

tuckerm

People say they can't add more people to Kona due to size constraints on the pier so maybe it looks like qualifying just got a lot more competitive?
@Gordon, take a look at the run course. 2 loops and has sections with grades of 8, 10, 13%.... And the bike course is no joke. Doesn't look like much in the way of flat out there. Looks like a Coach Rich course.
Looks like it could be a cool race. Very European here in the 51st state.
If they do add the NYC race, along with this one, I still think they will try to sell as many entries as possible. Do we really think they will limit the entries?

robin sarner

Thanks for the info.

Though I too am miffed about the decreasing kona spots per race. 

I imagine this race too has the potential to be hot and humid.

mancona

With Ben Fertic's job now being to buy and create more races I have a funny feeling this is only the tip of the iceburg. Ironman is changing rapidly and it will be interesting to see what they do about Kona.

They have changed the way Pros qualified... will they change how AGers qualify next? They have already created a mutiple tier system for points and pay out for pro races with a few regional championships, why not do the same for AGers?

My guess is that at some point either not all Ironman will have Kona spots or there will be a different system used to qualify.

I don't agree with any of this, but like Paul said unless they grow Kona they are going to run out of spots. Personally I thought after the damage in Kona eariler this year, WTC had a great opportunity to invest some money in helping rebuilding Kona and at the same time made the pier 100 feet longer so that they could fit a few hundred more bikes.

Christian Rabbat

I didn't even see this coming.  WTC politics aside, this should be a spectacular race.  The ski hill was developped by Intrawest, so, while not as quaint as Lake Placid, it is a nice layout and vibrant.   The roads in the region are always rolling.  It has been a few years since I was up there, but I can't imagine the bike or the run being easy.

I will be trying to sign up June 15th!

ebe4zippy

A training partner of mine, who finished 4th AG at IMWI last year, and I were talking about the kona slots. Here is the business issue at hand. 10-15% of the attendees of an IM race right now are going for slots. That gives you 85%+ who are just participants. I applaud the effort of those who give all they have to get a Kona slot, but I plan on being a participant and not a competitor in the IM scene. I think WTC is more concerned with filling the race up with the 85% crowed, knowing that the 15% will show no matter what, to get that golden ticket to Kona. I think WTC is a savy business, and I think they are seeing that pro's are going for the prize purse to pay the bills (look who was at the rev 3 race this weekend vs 2 IM 70.3 races in the pro field). If they can fill races even without the pro's at the races, they will fill them and increase the value of that Kona slot above the absurred amount paid recently at the charity auctions. Triathlon has moved from "fringe" sport to big money sport. Just like facebook, all who want to play, get to play. Unlike facebook, you have to pay to play. Bring on the races, big, little, world wide, and local. I just want somewhere to swimbikerun every summer that is well run and fun to attend. Just the opinion of the 85%er who is out there having a good time at the races.

mancona

@Ebe, I agree. WTC makes significantly more money on majority of people that are out there to compete against themselves or just finish. I'm not sure about you 10-15% number but it feels about right based on the small number of races I have seen. They make the most profit on the one and done crowd that does jsut one IM and spends a ton at the expo/dinners/store/etc while they are there. The Kona qualifying crowd is smaller and typically spends way less money at a single event however most of them do 2+ IM and 1 or more 70.3 races a year, year after year for many years.

I'm definitely a supporter of more races both WTC and non-WTC, I was just pointing out that at some point they are going to be forced to change the Kona qualifying system or they will be down to 1 slot per AG per race.

ebe4zippy

I totally agree with you Matt. I think the conquest of all things 70.3 miles and longer by the WTC will go on for some time. I think Kona is in for major changes, as the "tradition" becomes outweighed by the profit motives of the business side. One way for them to break tradition and find slots for a new IM or two is to get rid of lottery slots. May not be popular, but I am sure the race will fill just the same. I applaud those of you in the 15% that make it happen each year, and I hope they have enough slots for the AG'ers who go to the races to earn them. Triathlon is changing, but so is everything else :-)

Kevin Walter

I suspect if they went to a wave start at Kona they could accomodate more athletes pretty easily. In the past WTC was vehemently against wave starts (they took the IM away from Roth because it used a wave start.) The new WTC seems to be embracing it more and more (witness the new NYC race). It would require some traffic flow of who could have their bike where and when on the pier, as well as maybe a different T1 and T2 location (or a bike drop off zone). Who knows. I agree though, they will definitely increase the racers in Kona somehow as there is money to be made by doing so.

tuckerm

I just looked at the next new race, Ironman New Jersey, and it has 75 kona slots and says that Kona will have 2500 people. Is that a typo?

robin sarner

N.Y.    cool.     I may do it!   Mom lives in Atlantic City.  Pretty close.  

Nemo Brauch

I started a new thread on the US Championship race (aka NYC) over here:

http://members.endurancenation.us/Training/TrainingForums/tabid/101/aft/6177/Default.aspx

Let's keep this thread on topic for the Quebec race.

Tom Glynn

I've never been to Mont-Tremblant, but lived for many years in Ottawa, one of the two nearby cities (Montreal being the other). I've only heard great things about the town and my guess is the race will have the look and feel of the IM Lake Placid course; a Northern New York State lake country atmosphere. If it was in June, I'd be there!

Paul Hough

@ Tucker - The press release says they expect 2500 at the Ironman US Championships...aka IMNYC or IMNJ if you will. I could not find anywhere that said they expect 2500 at Kona.

mgraffeo

Giving this race serious consideration...

tuckerm

@Paul, I hear you. It is just a poorly formed sentence.

The inaugural Ironman U.S. Championship is slated for August 11, 2012 and will offer 75 Age Group qualifying slots for the 2012 Ford Ironman World Championship in Kailua-Kona, Hawai’i with more than 2,500 participants from around the world.

This sentence could be taken a few ways. The way I see it they are referring to Kona with the 2500 participants. That is not how I would have written the sentence if I meant there would be 2500 in NY. Sentence starts as NY - KONA- KONA- then back to NY? Just doesn't seem like proper grammar to me.

Paul Hough

@ Tucker - concur! WTC needs remedial grammar. It will be big news if the do grow Kona to 2500...perhaps better opportunity for those on the bubble.