The new bike course was just released. Now athletes will be riding on Highway 36 -- where an athlete died by way of collision with a vehicle last year -- for three loops. Was anyone at the pre-ride on Saturday? Is this highway going to be closed to vehicular traffic?

I think the 36 complaint because someone died is unrealistic to be honest. It is incredibly sad and unfortunate but you're not riding anywhere north of Boulder without getting on 36. It is a road that any local likely rides on in some capacity, on every ride in the area, every weekend. So to consider it off limits just doesn't make sense and to expect to get the road closed to traffic as the only real thoroughfare to the mountains/Estes Park, etc. is not something that would happen.

That being said, 3 loops squished into there is rough. I don't know anyone complaining about not being able to see their family on the bike. In fact, I preferred the one loop course from 2014. Now the whole eastern part of the course might as well be a criterium with all of the turning not to mention the odd zig-zag to T2 on a closed bike bath and some back roads. The old way of just dropping us straight down was excellent in past years.

As for safety, laps 2 and 3 are going to be very crowded. I know the front of the race was catching people on the second of 2 laps last year, I can only imagine what this year will bring.

Sorry to be a downer here, but I was pretty bummed to see the 3 loops and all of the turns. Seems a shame when there are so many roads to get out and cruise on either north or east. I know that is harder to manage from a directorial perspective but is much better as an athlete.

I disagree. There is a huge difference between a weekend rider training solo on Hwy. 36 and an Ironman of 1,000-3,000 athletes -- of vastly different speeds, abilities, and handling skills -- racing inches away from traffic traveling at 60 mph on an undulating, curving highway that often has gusty side winds. Add to that the three-loop factor where athletes will be passing and being passed all day long. It simply is not safe.

I ride self-supported centuries heading north out of the Rez and I never travel on Hwy 36. So yes, it can be done.

quote] I ride self-supported centuries heading north out of the Rez and I never travel on Hwy 36. So yes, it can be done.[/quote]
I'm curious - do your self-supported centuries riding north of the Rez never go north of St. Vrain?

Can you provide a link to the new bike course? The Iron Man Boulder site just says map coming soon .

Anyone have a link to the new course? its not up on the website, just says updated bike course coming soon.

Thanks!

In typical Boulder-elite fashion, it was released at a group ride on Saturday. Someone posted it on the IMB Facebook page.

@GLindy, yes, when I ride 100+, I travel north of St. Vrain, as did the IMB race course since its inaugural year.

Here is a link.

http://303triathlon.com/2017-ironman-boulder-bike-course-revealed/

I've done the race all three years myself. My point is that the race directors are getting less and less room to work with (like not crossing 66 any more) so it is going to be pretty hard to come up with a bike course in this constrained area that does not incorporate 36 at least at some point. That's all.

I don't love the new design either and would love to see a way to avoid 36. But for an IM around here, there's not much more room to be creative.

Thank you. So just seems that they eliminated the first 20 mile loop south of the diagonal highway, travel a little further east before turning back on Nelson Road, the turn on St Vrsin instead of going up to the Ute Hwy.

Last years fatal accident site is still in there. Now 3 times vs twice. Traffic on the diagonal wil still be jammed up at the intersection of 63rd as well as Jay road with I assume allowing all the spectators to park at the reservoir unlike last year where it was supposed to be buses only.

Sounds like it is still only shuttles from listening to the podcast. Not said explicitly but mentions the shuttles running all day several times.

Thank you for posting this. I was going to sign up for the race pending the disclosure of the new bike course. After looking at the course only one word came to mind.... GROSS.

This is a tough spot for the new race director but I think that this bike course just sealed the fate for IM Boulder. Done. I don't want to wish it ill, but It will be a mess.

I think the article at 303triathlon describes the reasoning perfectly for going by the Reservoir so many times: "There, family and friends will be able to cheer and hang out at the beer garden, listen to music, swim in the lake and enjoy the time (and amazing views!) while waiting for their athlete to pass through......Food trucks will be there along with other entertainment and features still being planned."

This minimizes the impact on the city during the full day and allows them to isolate families out at the reservoir and charge IM prices for all their amenities. Maybe I am the anomaly, but in all the races that I have done my family has not shown an interest in seeing me wiz by at 20+ mph (ok, maybe not that fast). They want to see me come into and out of transition and then on the run. Families (children) are not going to run up from the lake to watch Mom/Dad wiz by when they have no way of accurately knowing when it will happen.... NEWSFLASH Ironman tracker is not reliable enough to predict when Mom/Dad will be coming. Maybe people using LiveTracking with their Garmins (with phones in their flat kit will be able to take advantage of it. Adjusting the run course to more than 2 loops would probably give families more time to see their athlete and help motivate them during the time they really need it. Mile 40 & 80 of bike course... NOPE.... Mile 14, 18, 22 of the run ... YEAH.

While the 2014 course did not receive great marks for it scenery, especially east of I-25, it provided changes in scenery and a challenge (other than being trying to pass and being pinned between slower/unsure/ cyclists on their first loop and 60+ mph traffic). Yes it takes a lot to get the permits, manpower, and coordination to race in 3 counties with multiple different law enforcement/ first responders over the 112 bike course. That is why I would pay 800 for the race. This 3 loop course with (14+) 90* turns per loop and who knows how many slow areas due to congestion on 36, then the 4 mile bike path at the end (which will probably be a no pass zone depending on width and whether or not it is closed to the public) seems like it will definitely not be faster unless it is because of all the drafting.

Count me out.

It seems that the Pro, Chris Leiferman, is not in love with it either. Instead of saying how beautiful it is, or the quality of the roads, or the safety of the chosen route he could only really point out that you will get to relax the last 4 miles on a bike path. Not really a vote of confidence.

Whats up my fellow twitchers!

DC here - who I guess is now the "Old Race Director". I am still here and still managing the event but from a new position now. A little background, is that Race Directors at IRONMAN all report up into what we call Regional Directors or what some of us call Operations Managers for IRONMAN. Why do you need to know that....because I used to be the Race Director and am now an Ops Manager for this race so what I share is still as legit as what I shared for 6+ years as the Boulder RD.

Great points listed in the comments here guys. As always you know I will be as honest and as pointed as I can be here to not leave room for ambiguity. So let me add some details on 3 topics.

1) Why change it?
2) Congestion on the course
3) Spectator Experience

Why change it? Well......because I like to change things. Boulder has never had the same bike course and I am not sure why anyone would have come to expect that anyway. I like to tinker. I never think one year is perfect and cant be improved upon. 2014 course was single loop and was awesome in my opinion. Athletes wanted to stay closer to Boulder and we did that in 2015. 2015's course was a double loop plus a bonus loop and was really fun to ride. Athletes wanted the climbing to be more consolidated on the front end of the course and not in the last 30 miles. So in 2016 we reversed the order of 2015's course and climbed early and flat and fast in the end, I loved that new format and it made sense to me and others. Athletes in 2016 felt alone and disconnected from their loved ones. So why change it?.... because the athletes wanted change each year. This change was rooted in the fact that athletes don't train in isolation. They sacrifice time and resources of their family and friends to accomplish their goal. The "Village" that it takes to make and IRONMAN athlete is large and this course was built to bring the course to the family and loved ones.

Each year we are limited to how we can get people in and out of the reservoir for reasons I have explained in these forums at length. So since that cant change right now, we wanted to bring the course into the reservoir as many times as we thought was safe for the athletes and loved ones to be able to enjoy the journey together. No, neither money nor permits forced this change. As someone who sees the budget to put this race on I can tell you that our bike course direct costs have not decreased since the first year of this race. And since home prices in Boulder have only climbed you can imagine what the cost of police time and traffic control did over the same period.

So why change it....its because an IRONMAN is not just about an IRONMAN. Its about and IRONFAM....see what i did there? IRON-Fam....Family...get it! Punning around aside, IRONMAN Arizona is wildly popular because you get to enjoy the day with your family from one location. We cant do ONE location, but we are working hard to provide a new one this year.

Congestion on the course.....I am going to copy and paste my comments from a Facebook thread today....
Its actually interesting when you look at the numbers. A little background, but when I was not race directing over the past 6 years in Boulder I worked as a bike course director for IRONMAN at countless IRONMAN events. I have worked over 100 bike courses for IRONMAN and with that have become intimately in tune with how the athletes flow on our courses. I also have access to killer data from out timers that we use to crunch and dissect.

What is really interesting is that when you look at the numbers and where the bell curve is through out the race, you can see that, by the time the bell curve starts its second lap, the course is actually going to begin emptying onto the run course.

The undulations on the course will also do some work on the spreading out of the athletes. If you look at where the climbs are, they actually sit right at where the bell curve would bump up against another large cross section of the race. Translation, the climbs up Nelson are in the right rhythm to combat the notion of congestion.

Last small thing to consider, but huge in terms of how this works, is the rolling start. I have tweaked this year after year and with Boulder having good light in the AM we have the ability to start people earlier than other races. So what we will do is spread the rolling start out much longer. We have historically started everyone in around 15 minutes. We will spread that out significantly this year because our sunrise allows for that.

Last thing is spectator experience at the reservoir. Free shuttles, free adult liquid refreshments, free access to the reservoir and the swim beach. Your loved ones will get a chance to not worry about parking at the reservoir, paid for access to the reservoir, see one of the top 10 best swim courses in the world, see you get out on your bike, park themselves along the beachfront, relax and take a few sips for an hour and 30 mins, turn around and ring a hole right through their cowbell for you, send you off and go back to relaxing.....do that 2 more times. Then they can take a free (and safe) ride to the run course and do the exact same thing and enjoy the countless times they can cheer for you there....

The point listed above, about the village it takes, is that our goal was to take care of the village this year. Trust me, it will be fun. We are going to have a blast. Athletes will love it, families will love it, the general public will love it. One other thing to note, is we will get as close to the professional action on a bike course as we can get. We will see the worlds fastest pass through the reservoir on each lap. Not too many courses have that feature.

I have also been thinking we should put the penalty tent right next to the beer tent. Might as well get some entertainment out of it, right?

I hope this background helps. Sorry it got so long.....if you have ever seen my event briefings on our Facebook page it would not surprise you. I always say "Better to have too much info, than not enough".....

Love you guys! I hope to see you in Boulder. I promise you, Tim and I have everyone's interest set out before our own.

DC
The Old IRONMAN Boulder Race Director

---

DC
Dave Christen
IRONMAN Race Director and Operations Manager
dave.christen@ironman.com

This will be my 3rd time. The 3x loop is going to be boring. One reason I won't do Arizona again. Boulder has so much to offer the racers than 3 loops and congestion. The family viewing/entertainment--they know it's going to be boring to watch period. Personally, I hate watching Ironman races, but love racing them. Ironman races are races for the athletes, not meant as a real spectator sport like ITU racing. The days are long and slow moving. I can't really agree with Dave that this was a better change.

As an athlete, I would like to at least compare times from one year to the next on the same course. Moving targets like this don't allow that. You can't have a winner with a course record either, because the course isn't the same. Conditions change, sure, but it should be the same course. When I signed up last year, I was under the impression the new course would be the course. Had I known it was going to be 3 loops, I'd have opted out. My wife is racing also, so I'll just quote her upon letting her know today this is 3 loops on the bike..."Arg...painfull!!!" Just my .02 cents.

Very kind of you to come here and give reasoning. Thank you. I am sorry, but looking at your course, you just lost another athlete. I am not in favor of making that number of 90 degree turns that you have envisioned.
I am not against multi loop courses at all and I applaud your attempt to keep families and athletes in closer proximity with more opportunity for cheering. You are slowing the course down. That is just an outside observation. I also consider the above mentioned safety concerns credible. I would not want cars in my close proximity on a crowded bike course where passing of other athletes will be constant.
I have raced over 15 different 70.3 races, 3 IM races and have a bit of experience. Not a ton. I am not an RD and do not have understanding of what it takes to put this together. I did watch KS 70.3 demise in front of my eyes along with few other races. This just awfully resembles that. I am having hard time understanding issues you are coping with given the location is at our sport's mecca. Again, not local and not knowledgeable of circumstances.
I hope for the sake of your success that I am in minority and that show will go on. It would be not good for the sport to loose that race.

DC, your three detailed topics aside, you have eschewed the number one concern: safety. You failed to address athletes racing at grossly different speeds, passing and being passed on the twisting, undulating Highway 36, next to vehicles traveling at 60 mph, three times past the spot where Michelle Walters lost her life competing in Ironman Boulder's 2016 edition. You have publicly described this portion of the course as "proven safe"; what say you now? What will be done to insure athlete safety?

To answer that, NOTHING.....they've made it worse. I had the joy of riding pass that dead young lady last year. Sending 2000 Rides down shoulder next to "pissed off" divers doing 60, how could it be safe. Had three close calls myself out on course and the joy of running around the homeless and hippies on the run course put this race on my "never again" list....There are much safer IM with towns that supports......the whole time in Boudler I felt like the locals really didn't what it there.

There times down hwy 36.....3x more likely you'll lDIE. Just base on my experience, 100 percent someone will be gravely injured there again this year.

I'm sorry sbrrepeat, you are grossly incorrect here. 60 mph is not what most drive at on this section between Boulder & Lyons. That would be on the conservative side at bare minimum. The white bike lane lines going down that hill just north of town are all but gone right now in some spots due to all the cars clearly having no bones about driving IN the bike lane. Surprised the city isn't out there patching up the lines right now. Each day that passes without that fixed is another day the drivers think that is their turf.

Right, my bad...60 mph is just the posted speed limit, not the rate at which traffic actually travels. For those not familiar with Boulder, the fatality that occurred on Hwy. 36 during IM Boulder last year was not an isolated event; Hwy. 36 has had multiple vehicle vs. cyclist collisions over the years, some fatal, some not. Short of closing it to traffic, there is no making this stretch safe.

Whose bright idea was it to provide spectators with free alcoholic beverages throughout the swim and bike? Shuttles blah blah blah...some of those people are going to get behind the wheel at some point during the day, adding another hazard to the athletes....

I don't see an issue with the alcohol. It can be done smartly. First, many people that are traveling into the area will be staying within proximity to downtown/ finish line and not driving. Secondly, I would think that anyone within driving distance to the race will know what kind of day is in store at the reservoir and will avoid going out there at all.

I think that the 'free' stuff only works out at the reservoir. Trying to do this in Boulder proper would lead to all the homeless/beggars sitting right outside of the free zone. Not the atmosphere that many of the upscale IM clientele want. Why I put free in quotes is because the alcohol might be free up to a certain point (I cant see IM having an open bar from a liability standpoint) the people out at the lake will have somewhat limited other options out there that may or may not be a better options than around downtown.

I applaud them for wanting to create an area for families to hang out. Some of the IM in Europe have wine/beer areas for spectators. You give your family wrist bands and they can then hang out while they wait for you to get back from the bike. They can share stories with other families about their athletes dedication to sport. It allows them to bond to the sport and not just the athlete. The area is usually close to town so that you can come and go from the area as needed, but always have a refuge. Sometimes this spot is right on the run course and has live music. You run by and see them having a good time, they cheer for you, and you can relax on the run because you know that to them it is not just another long day where they are waiting for you to get done with your workout.

I think that the majority of the issues revolve around the bike course. Plain and simple. There is a perceived safety issue, whether the race organizers agree or not. There are some people that you could not pay to ride Hwy 36, and now you are asking them to pay to have the pleasure of riding it? Unless they can show some legitimate risk mitigation it will continue to deter people from participating.

There is inherent risk in ANY race that you will ever do. Ever. Also, I am sorry that you had to witness what happened in 2016. I ride by the white ghost bike in the spot where she passed away almost every day that I ride outside. It is horrible.

That being said, please don't plant this unnecessary fear about this race in peoples heads. HWY 36 is/has/will always be a big part of ANY event that happens in Boulder. Every single race or ride I have ever done includes this route. What happened last year was an accident. Please DO NOT make it sound like its the norm - because it's not.

---

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
New Training/Racing Log - http://www.earthdaykid.com/blog --- Old Training/Racing Log - http://colinlaughery.blogspot.com

Maybe don't put traffic cones on the road this time. Just a suggestion.

do you have a bike elevation map somewhere for the new course? or can I understand it from the old profile somehow?