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Best value grass roots tri
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i'll leave it up to you what constitutes grass roots tri, but i consider it anything other than "premium" tri. premium tri = a race where the brand commands and the opportunity to charge a premium is taken. what comes to mind? Ironman obviously. Escape to Alcatraz at $750.

large or well known races are, for the purpose here, eligible. i'm just looking for the best value in racing in an "affordable" race and by affordable i don't mean that you can afford it, rather that the great majority of people who want to race it can afford it. you might think ironman is the best value in triathlon and it may well be, considering what you get versus what you pay. a mercedes SLK 350 may well be the best value in a car, but it's not a "value" car by the definition here.

i think you all get it, right? in consideration of this extremely worthwhile thread, i'd like to know is what each of you consider the best value "value" race currently ongoing that you've recently participated in or spectated or volunteered at, in your own region or elsewhere.

LATE ADD: can you tell me where the race is along with its name? and anything else about the race, such as the race distance and the entry fee. also, you might want to take the poll at the right.

Dan Empfield
aka Slowman
Last edited by: Slowman: Oct 5, 15 8:33
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Re: Best value grass roots tri [Slowman] [ In reply to ]
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Soloman

No coasting in running and no crying in baseball
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Re: Best value grass roots tri [Slowman] [ In reply to ]
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American Triple-T
Last edited by: Mark Lemmon: Oct 5, 15 8:28
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Re: Best value grass roots tri [Slowman] [ In reply to ]
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Pumpkinman:
* Great course
* Great location
* Great organization
* Great volunteers
* Great food
* Great atmosphere

Sprint and half distances, totally affordable.
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Re: Best value grass roots tri [Slowman] [ In reply to ]
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American Zoffingen Duathlon
New Patz, NY

LC: 5mi/89mi/15mi

Middle 5/ 29/ 5/ 29/ 5

Canadian Woman's Division 5/ 29/ 5

All the pain you can ask for for $125, with beer and burgers and bagpipes!

---------------------------
''Sweeney - you can both crush your AG *and* cruise in dead last!! đŸ˜‚ '' Murphy's Law
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Re: Best value grass roots tri [Slowman] [ In reply to ]
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Best value for me also doubles as my definition of "grassroots", that is why I support race production companies whose focus is local market, with races that cover the spectrum from elite through beginners. Here in CO two race companies I think nail value and grassroots perfectly. Racing Under Ground and Without Limits Productions. While they'll never field a 2000+ athlete field, yet they do very well attracting competitive fields and beginners. Plus they create an atmosphere that is very spectator friendly.

For absolute dollar value, I raced 6 local tri's produced by those two companies for about the same if not less than Boulder 70.3 cost me.

--------------------------
The secret of a long life is you try not to shorten it.
-Nobody
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Re: Best value grass roots tri [Mark Lemmon] [ In reply to ]
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+1 for Triple-T

Also, in the Midwest, Pigman in IA.

I would have voted for the Endurathon in Muncie, IN. But, WTC took this over <sad face>.
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Re: Best value grass roots tri [Slowman] [ In reply to ]
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I'll throw a vote behind Barrelman Half-Iron in Niagara Falls, Ontario, http://niagarafallstriathlon.com/. Registration for the September 18th, 2016 race is currently at $207 (CDN) and goes to a high of $264 if you wait. The price actually went down this year because processing fees dropped!


The race has a lot going for it.
  • Fun run beside the falls
  • Brilliant swim course at a rowing facility
  • Exchange rate means Americans get a great deal
  • Well supported bike course. Though not 100% closed, police do a good job keeping drivers off the roads.
  • Wonderful atmosphere at the finish line
  • Multisport Canada, the event producer, runs a well organized series.
  • Good competition

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Re: Best value grass roots tri [Slowman] [ In reply to ]
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Hands down, Triple T and/or little smokies half.
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Re: Best value grass roots tri [mck414] [ In reply to ]
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can you give me names of the best races each produce?

Dan Empfield
aka Slowman
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Re: Best value grass roots tri [Slowman] [ In reply to ]
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Depends on what you are looking for in the grassroot triathlon. If it is a tough course than Mohican, American Triple T, or Savageman. If it is a good company that runs a smooth operation from start to finish than I would go with Toughman Series, not saying that Toughman races are not hard just the other three have a ton of climbing and American Triple t is three days long and Savageman 100 is two days different animals.

http://www.toughmantri.com

https://robinsonsstrengthandendurancecoaching.wordpress.com/

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Re: Best value grass roots tri [Slowman] [ In reply to ]
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HFP racing in Ohio does a great job of putting on a whole series of events across the whole state. For the most part, they are very well done events (I have a few nitpicks, like not enough timing mats, but overall they do a good job). In some ways, they do a better job than bigger tris...their transition set up is top notch, with individual bike "racks" that you put your rear tire into. No more rickety pipes! The venues aren't spectacular, but there isn't a whole lot to work with in some parts of Ohio. Prices for Olympic distance races are right around $100.

Spot

___________________________________________________
Taco cat spelled backwards is....taco cat.
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Re: Best value grass roots tri [mck414] [ In reply to ]
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mck414 wrote:
Best value for me also doubles as my definition of "grassroots", that is why I support race production companies whose focus is local market, with races that cover the spectrum from elite through beginners. Here in CO two race companies I think nail value and grassroots perfectly. Racing Under Ground and Without Limits Productions. While they'll never field a 2000+ athlete field, yet they do very well attracting competitive fields and beginners. Plus they create an atmosphere that is very spectator friendly.

For absolute dollar value, I raced 6 local tri's produced by those two companies for about the same if not less than Boulder 70.3 cost me.

X2

Here in the Pacific NW, that would be BuDu Racing.

http://www.buduracing.com
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Re: Best value grass roots tri [Slowman] [ In reply to ]
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Putting in a plug here for the Pat Griskus Sprint and Olympic distance races. (well, I haven't done the Olympic, but thoroughly enjoyed the sprint when I was tri-touring in New England a couple of years ago), but ST's twilkas puts on these long-standing races and I believe completely understands grass roots triathlon.

Would also have put in the Black Fly Tri festival, but, alas, that weekend is gone. KJ put on some of the best races I've been to, in the pre-WTC days.

If you "really" want grass roots, the Southern Hills Triathlon in South Dakota was awesome. Local, small, affordable.

I find that more and more I don't like the huge production races. Crowded, hassles, expensive.
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Re: Best value grass roots tri [Slowman] [ In reply to ]
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Racing Underground
-Crescent Moon Sprint and Oly (you can race the double too!)
*Front Range Series consisting of:
-My Way or the Tri Way (can race any order you want but for series points must be s/b/r)
-Evergreen Sprint (sprint racing at 8000', what could be better?)
-Littlefoot Sprint (doubled the last couple of years as the USAT Rocky Mountain Region Talent ID Champs for juniors, some seriously fast teens here)

Without Limits Productions
-Harvest Moon Half (they've got your long course fix on a tough course)
-Summer Open (first race of the CO season, prepare to be cold)
-Oktoberfest (also doubles as the Rocky Mountain Collegiate Conference Race)
-Steamboat Lake sprint and Oly (possibly some of the best views when racing)

--------------------------
The secret of a long life is you try not to shorten it.
-Nobody
Last edited by: mck414: Oct 5, 15 9:21
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Re: Best value grass roots tri [wprobinson] [ In reply to ]
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to you and spot: don't overthink this. you guys are thinking really hard, while not answering the question.

Dan Empfield
aka Slowman
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Re: Best value grass roots tri [Slowman] [ In reply to ]
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I'm obviously a bit biased, but there are some gems in the Toughman series (current prices):

Toughman Minnesota - $100 for the half. I've done this one, and it's a great course with great support.

Toughman Wisconsin is also $100 for the half.

Travis Rassat
Vector Cycle Works
Noblesville, IN
BikeFit Instructor | FMS | F.I.S.T. | IBFI
Toughman Triathlon Series Ambassador
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Re: Best value grass roots tri [Slowman] [ In reply to ]
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High Peaks Cyclery has a tri series in Lake Placid NY every Monday night. Cost is $15 per race. You get a great course, some great competition, and a really good time. It is like the way triathlons used to be 20+ years ago. Racers raced HARD, and afterwards we all got together to talk, eat, bs. Kind of like a hard track workout. One thing that probably contributes to the good nature of the even is that everyone knows most everyone else, and therefore it stays pretty friendly as is the case with many 'low key' or weekly club races (no one cheats, dopes, or anything like that) . Im not sure why when you have people coming in as strangers that this comradery or 'fun feeling' is oftentimes lost. I would figure that people would put their best foot forward...but this drifts from the original question. Is this kind of event series more along what you were looking for?

Stephen J

I believe my local reality has been violated.
____________________________________________
Happiness = Results / (Expectations)^2
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Re: Best value grass roots tri [Slowman] [ In reply to ]
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Beaches 2 Battleship - Wilmington, NC. 70.3/140.6

Ocean sound swim, closed highway bike, and a well spectated run. It's relatively low key, but a great community and run course that brings quite a few people out which makes the atmosphere lively.

Pigman Triathlon - Central Iowa 70.3/Olympic

The most grass roots, probably. It's been going on for quite awhile, and brings out most of the midwest pros.

Quad Cities Triathlon - Davenport, IA Sprint (600yd, 15mi, 5k)

A little biased here - because this was my first race 11 years ago.

It has a decent prize purse for elites, a fun, secluded course. The organization is incredible, very well run. The swim is out and back with lots of buoys to sight off of, practically like swimming with lane lines. The bike is an out and back on a challenging, rolling course where wind is always high on some leg. The run is roughly 1 mi off road (nice gravel), then a challenging rolling course back to the park where you pass all other participants and loads of spectators.

For a race with roughly 500 participants each year, it has an exciting finishing shoot that makes you feel like you're at a much much larger race. The race director a former pro (I believe), and stroke survivor, uses the race for a good but not over the top method of stroke advocacy. Can't really say enough good things about this race.
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Re: Best value grass roots tri [Slowman] [ In reply to ]
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Bayou City Tri Series - specifically "Kemah Tri" (this is in the Houston area).
Sprint ($90) and Olympic ($140) distance - with the Olympic swim starting with a jump off a paddleboat out in the bay (a la Alcatraz).

There are cheaper events but for the experience I would say this is a good value.
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Re: Best value grass roots tri [Slowman] [ In reply to ]
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Wildman Duathlon. 10k run. 22.3 mile point to point bike. 3 mile uphill run.



http://wildmanbiathlon.com/


$55 this past year. Gorham, New Hampshire.

Great race, great location, finish line on top of a mountain, and after race meal. It's an epic race. Bike course is harder than Savageman and the final "run" is as hard as it gets as it goes straight up Wildcat Mountain.

Race is getting close to dying, let's inundate Wildman with registrations for next year.

-----------------------------------
team website: http://snappletriteam.com/

team blog: http://snappletriteam.com/?page_id=10
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Re: Best value grass roots tri [Slowman] [ In reply to ]
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My response is from a recent thread about the possibility of an Ironman event in Asheville, NC region, which didn't work out (awarded to Chattanooga instead). I live in the region and race most of these events every year, so this is my bias. But I think you'd have a hard time topping the beauty of these events and cost ($60-75 for sprint, about $100 international and $150 for the half distance). Food is great at each event, I recall free massage after Lake Lure event too.

"If you are looking for open water swims that compare to the beauty of Lake Placid, rolling bike courses with great mountain views and some forested run courses, I have some races to put on your 2016 calendar. Go to North Carolina Triathlon Series through Setup Events. Enka Sprint Triathlon, Lake Logan (sprint, international, half distance), and Lake Lure are great events. Another sleeper event is MTA Lake James Triathlon (not through Setup): awesome 750m swim in a state park, rolling 22 mile bike and a 5k trail run."

-----------------------------------------------------------------
Blog: https://swimbikerunrinserepeat.wordpress.com
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Re: Best value grass roots tri [Slowman] [ In reply to ]
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It is good to hear that so many people like the Triple-T/Little Smokies. I was planning on doing the Little Smokies next year.

Somebody has to say it, and because it is so close to me, I will, Savageman. Even if you don't want to do the 70, the 30 is a really nice course and a lot of fun.
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Re: Best value grass roots tri [Sweeney] [ In reply to ]
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Sweeney wrote:
American Zoffingen Duathlon
New Patz, NY

LC: 5mi/89mi/15mi

Middle 5/ 29/ 5/ 29/ 5

Canadian Woman's Division 5/ 29/ 5

All the pain you can ask for for $125, with beer and burgers and bagpipes!

this

The entire event (IM) is like "death by 1000 cuts" and the best race is minimizing all those cuts and losing less blood than the other guy. - Dev
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Re: Best value grass roots tri [pnewhook] [ In reply to ]
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pnewhook wrote:
I'll throw a vote behind Barrelman Half-Iron in Niagara Falls, Ontario, http://niagarafallstriathlon.com/. Registration for the September 18th, 2016 race is currently at $207 (CDN) and goes to a high of $264 if you wait. The price actually went down this year because processing fees dropped!


The race has a lot going for it.
  • Fun run beside the falls
  • Brilliant swim course at a rowing facility
  • Exchange rate means Americans get a great deal
  • Well supported bike course. Though not 100% closed, police do a good job keeping drivers off the roads.
  • Wonderful atmosphere at the finish line
  • Multisport Canada, the event producer, runs a well organized series.
  • Good competition

I like John Salt and the Barrelman, but I've always thought that his race was on the premium side of things. His price point competes with the WTC as do the amenities.

When I think of grassroots, I think of the Pain in the Alleganies (in Salamanca, NY), the Peasantman (in Penn Yann, NY), or the recently posted America's Half (Richmond, IN).






Take a short break from ST and read my blog:
http://tri-banter.blogspot.com/
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