With a three loop course its wont be that bad for you and the loop through the park behind the resort will have lots of energy.

As for the swim question, the mass start ship has sailed.

Coeur d'Alene always has awesome spectator support on the run, so don't worry about that.

Also because when in the past they did have a mass start, there is a wall to the left of the beach and the water entry used to be right by the wall. That created a natural funnel/bottleneck causing a lot of grief during the start.
But yeah- mass starts are ancient now-- in keeping up with participant safety everything is a rolling start now.

I've done both mass start and rolling start at CdA and both were fine, prefer the rolling start. I'm also guessing it leads to less congestion in T1 and in the early miles of the bike.

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Sharon McN
@IronCharo
#TeamZoot
Clif Bar Pace Team 2003-2018

Because TinMan wants to treat everybody like water babies.

Yup, this was my experience when I did it in 2004. I'm all for mass starts but that one was tough logistically for the reason you pointed out with that wall/jetty. Having that where it was in conjunction with the start did not allow for people to spread out as they normally would, so it got much more chaotic in those first 100 yards or so than normal.

Other than that, I thought it was a great race and and excellent location (I also agree with the comment above about the crowd support in town during the run), am sad to see it go.

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"You can never win or lose if you don't run the race." - Richard Butler

Ironman seems to be turing into a participation event rather than racing.

If you think participation is low now it would be worse with a mass start.

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2x Deca-Ironman World Cup (10 Ironmans in 10 days), 2x Quintuple Ironman World Cup (5 Ironmans in 5 days), Ultraman, Ultra Marathoner, and I once did an Ironman.

Don't worry, I'll be out there late with you!

I've had just about the worst luck possible coming into this race. Horrible plantar fasciitis since February has meant almost not running. Found out last week I've torn the supraspinatous tendon in my shoulder, so ditto on the swimming.

Then last Sunday, someone backed into my bike on the rack and crushed the carbon frame.

On second thought, you might want to stay far, far away from me :)

Wow Elsa, that is a string of bad luck. Hopefully it has all passed and you will have a great day next Sunday. What is your number? If we cross paths I want to make sure I send some positive vibes your way!

Thanks, it's almost comical at this point. It's either laugh or cry.

I'm number 348. What's your number? I'll cheer for you too!

 I am 933. See you in CDA!

Without any inference at you, I would suggest that the drafters have been most vocal about eliminating the mass start. We certainly wouldn't want to stretch out the field coming out of the water and reduce the opportunities for peloton riding would we?

I've done both too. The mass start from the beach was crazy. I did the first rolling start in 2013.

Also have done mass start at IM Wisconsin. That definately not as crazy at the run from the beach on CDA used to be.

My first IM in 2012. Swim start got real crowded and compressed in a hurry but I'm glad I did it and got the "real" IM experience. I've done other mass starts but this one was the most difficult for me. I loved this race, though. Crowd support was phenomenal and the whole town was supportive throughout the five days we were there. Felt like a rockstar walking around with that bracelet in CDA - waiters/waitresses and retail employees always noticed and seemed excited for me as a participant. I've done 4 fulls since and never had nearly the same experience anywhere else. Surprised this one has run its course and sad to see it go.