dstu wrote:
devashish_paul wrote:
Your dilemma sounds similar to what we had for Tremblant. At the time (in 2010) there was a full 140.6 bid in for Ottawa. Many of us got prettty excited, but we also took a step back objectively. It would be great to have it on our town, but several contacted WTC and encouraged them to go with the Tremblant bid. Tremblant was the perfect spot. We could make something work in Ottawa and it would be amazing having the run going right in front of Parliament and so on, making it iconic in its own way, but logistically it would have been tough, and we'd have to close down parts of the core of the city of effectively 24 hours. In the end, many of us backed Tremblant, and supported WTC to go that way. Who knows if it makes a difference, but if the triathlon leaders in a community are telling WTC to do something that is not in the favour of their own community, amazingly they listen because they know that there is something compelling elsewhere or those same athlete-leaders would be lobbying WTC like heck to pull the event in the direction of their own community.
So you can make a difference if you want. AND YES, I am biased towards Whistler over Kelowna, so if there are those of you from Kelowna, who would rather see this go to Whistler for objective reasons, then you should make your voice heard.
And as much as you guys think that WTC would exclusively put a race in Kelowna only to hurt Challenge Penticton, you don't have the entire picture. Look, an IMC in Whistler will also hurt Challenge Penticton to some degree, but I think we can all agree that the two can co exist and both parties can make money and athletes have more choices. Put an IM in Kelowna the same day Penticton and you have a gong show in the making. Can the valley really support 2 events on the same weekend of this magnitude?
Anyway, Kelowna athletes, if you think objectively you still have Challenge Penticon to go to and you will have IM Whistler...best of both worlds....which is exactly what we have here in Ottawa...IMLP and IMTremblant...both 2-3 hours away. You can have the same deal. Almost all the benefits, without the headache, because when it is in your town, you really have to step up in a massive way to pull it off and make it happen.
Gong Show is right. The two events (Kelowna & Penticton) would almost be bumping into each other. The Kelowna event would be marginally successfull for one year only and that's only because so many people have already signed up. After the first year the politics would be forgotten about and everyone would go back to Penticton simply because the course and atmosphere are better.
Of course the Kelowna bid is economically motivated. With apologies to West Kelowna the city grew way too quickly in the 80's and 90's and turned into a giant strip mall with suburbs scattered all over the place. They got way behind on things like municipal services etc.
The biggest difference for me between Whistler & Kelowna is atmosphere. Whistler is a resort town that knows how to throw a party. All of the hotels are in a condensed area and the lake is a 10 minute bike ride. Just look at the Crankworx mountain bike festival and you would realize how Whistler would become Ironman City for a week. Obvious bios here but no, I don't live in Whistler.
if IMC is in Kelowna, and on the same day as Challenge, i look forward to starting the Challenge race, and crossing the IMC finish... ya know, just to make it even more ridiculous... GONG!!! :D
~sarcasm saves lives