Don't let your kids bring it to school, though. They'll be suspended for bringing a toy gun on school property.

I did everything except race - unfortunately I got ill the morning of race day. However, I have a few observations too:

1. Agree with the other observers over the 2-transition setup - I have done plenty of split transition races in the past but they did not manage this one well. Having to drop run kit the morning of the race is just needlessly complex and means everyones morning is made that much longer and more stressful.

2. I didn't know why I heard a lot of grumbling about the swim course but the explanation above makes sense. Silly to orient the long leg of the swim upstream. Additionally, athletes were left with the uncertainty about final water temperature until the morning of the race which again just seems needlessly vague. Perhaps this is necessary (maybe I am ignorant about water temperature variations locally) but it seemed very unlikely that the water temperature would change by more than 2 degrees overnight.

3. The transition bags were low quality - very easy to split and tear. Given how much some people spend on race entry and their race kit it doesn't seem like much to ask to make sure the bags are a little sturdier so that people don't lose e.g. prescription sun-glasses from race bags.

4. Williamsburg is a very pretty little town, but you would never know it from the run course. It seemed a real shame that the course didn't take in more of the town as it would have encouraged a lot more spectator participation.

5. Concur with the comment about sports drinks at the expo - its shocking that due to the gatorade agreement no other calorific sports drinks were available.

6. There were several times that communication I felt could have been clearer - e.g. transport back to T2 from T1 for spectators, setting up of T2 for athletes, order of refreshments at aid stations, drafting rules.

7. Although I didn't race, I rode the bike course two days before. I thought that the Half distance course chose a particularly sketchy patch of road along Jolly Pond Rd that was needlessly dangerous and chosen only because it was quiet and wouldn't offend locals. Riding it I felt the visibility was low (due to lots of trees), the width narrow and surface terrible. WTC, for all their faults, usually do a great job in my experience of ensuring road surfaces are improved before new races are brought to town - in particular, this patch should have had work done in advance.

8. The bike course was weak from a spectator perspective too. Of course this is true of many courses but for a more family-friendly event in a location like this I would have thought it possible to make the course a little more spectator friendly.

This was my first Rev3 event and I wasn't disappointed per se, but I was left a bit ambivalent about whether I would rush to do another Rev3 event. I have done many inaugural events in the past and know that often first year events have a few kinks to be ironed out but nonetheless I left with a general feeling that Rev3 had under-cooked this one.

One suggestion on this. I recently did a big road race in Taipei while visiting Taiwan for work. The organizers (http://www.sportsnet.org.tw/en/) apparently put on a bunch of road races in the Taipei area, and they have a standard procedure for bag checks. Anybody using the bag check has to purchase one of their branded holdalls, which they can reuse for any of their races. You pay NT$100 (3-4 USD) for the bag, which is a fairly large canvas bag, with a zipper, though it packs down small. And the holdall has a see-through pocket on the side where athletes slide in a tear-off portion of their race number for identification. I was initially miffed that I had to pay for bag check, but when I saw how it worked in practice, it was great -- smoothest process I've ever encountered in a race bag check.

+1

LOL! Heaven help us! There's a hill! :)

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Pete Githens
Reading, PA

A lot of good points have been made already about the course, the race, etc. Being that organizers may see all of these posts, hopefully in an attempt to improve next year's race, I would like to add my input.

First; I was expecting more from the swag bag and expo based purely on this being Rev3. Didn't expect to have the entire sign-in/expo/chute/etc. area fit into about 50 parking spots, but I am sure part of that is Rev3 keeping costs low.

Second; I was ready to go and get on a bus for T1 at 0520, and I waited. Got 2/3 of the way up the line before they began pulling out HIM competitors so they could get head-of-line, and finally made it to T1 at round 0645ish. They should have had 2 lines, one for HIM and one for Oly. Once they began pulling HIM out of line in an attempt to make it on time, they should not have allowed family members. These are big things that would have helped, but even the simple small things would have made a small difference. Have a volunteer at the front of the line directing people to the bus and having them sit back to front, instead of everyone trying to get into the first 2 seats and then taking up the aisle.

Third; T1 was nice and I had no problem about the change in path, although I would have read out the license plate numbers that parked on the route. Heck, county police were ticketing anyone parking in the lot across from T1 on Saturday during drop-off, I am sure they would have proudly ticketed or towed these cars too. I just wish a rug or mat was put over the small asphalt path we ran over just before entering T1 because it was hell on my feet.

Fourth; swim sucked because I suck at swimming, but I now know I wasn't the only one having issues. I did wonder where all the new colored caps came from on the Olympic course....now I know it was from those who decided to mix-and-match their distances by the discipline. I was disappointed to hear how many people were pulled-out from the last few Oly groups because they strayed too close to the ferry lanes. Should have had more kayaks/paddle-boarders there to maintain the integrity of the gap between the race area and the intake on a ferry boat engine.

Fifth; bike was great.....except for the dude on the fold-up portable bike killing everyone! Definitely took a second to laugh with a few others about how he was passing $10k bikes with riders adorned with team kits. Liked the course, knew there would be some dodgy areas because I drove the course on Saturday, and accept that you will have some riders freaking out on rough patches and suddenly slowing to 5mph to ensure they don't wreck.

Sixth; run was not to bad. After the bike course, it was pretty boring. Would have loved to see Williamsburg, but for those not local, this would have required a huge sum of money before they would have ever thought to allow the race to go through the colonial area.

Only real issues were as follows:
The food at the end took way to long to be ready and then ran out. For the price, this should have included a wider selection (as many have mentioned, fruit would be nice), been prepared on time, and been able to feed everyone. IF you didn't want families eating, then let everyone know before the event so they have no excuses, and offer food for purchase in the finishing area also.

Get more buses for he morning.

The entrance into T2/finishing chute/2nd loop for HIM area was too compact and led to many people being confused. Watched several run past the entire area, then realized they missed the finishing chute.

The dry and wet bag issue is the obvious one. First, give the volunteers updates so they have a set answer for all of the questions they were being asked. Nothing worse as a volunteer then to have angry racers asking about the location of the bags and their possible ETA and not having been told anything. Second, if whoever you have driving doesn't know the area, then ask a local representative (I hear the William and Mary officials were actually helpful, as opposed to the county people who are notoriously bad) for a good route because anyone local knows the roads in the area around T1 are bad every Sunday due to multiple churches, and that the Colonial Parkway would be wide open and allow those bags to get back in under a day. Finally, don't react with snide or childish comments like one representative did. I know many of the racers were less than hospitable and some were, well, you could tell they were from DC or NYC. Don't lower yourself to their level, it isn't necessary.

The announcer was very enthusiastic....seriously....excessively so. Don't need to know all about California or your personal stories, just play the music and pass the info. At the finish chute, keep the banter to the participants and try to eliminate any comments or tangents that include quips like "that's what she said" at a family centered event. He started off funny, but after about 10 minutes, it was annoying.

Overall, a really good event that can definitely get better next year. For those not from the area, I am pretty sure Rev3 had their hands full dealing with county officials and I bet the Park Service was no fun either. Wish we could have used the Colonial Parkway because it would have been a great option and might have allowed a single transition, but I bet the Park Service won't let that happen. Would have loved to run through the colonial part of town, but I bet they wouldn't allow that to happen either (especially on Sunday morning by Bruton's Parish). I hope to be back in the country in time for next year to see how much better it can get.

Ugh, heck no. The Parkway is an awful bike and run surface.

For a bike surface, the weather would have a huge impact, but for the run, it is better than multiple curbs and a road that was so extremely angled for rain run-off. If it was wet, however, I completely agree.

I would be remiss if I didn't mention the old guy at the corner on the path by the library on the run route. He was absolutely outstanding! Calling out the name or number of every runner....and when I walked past them at 1230 on the way to get some food while waiting for my bags to arrive, he was still there. He definitely motivated me an extra little bit with his enthusiasm!

My first Rev 3 event. I actually was blown away by the positive and friendly experience. Well done. No problems with the announcer - he has a tough job filling about 5 hours of air time - actually called my name as I entered the finish so I was a fan. Yes, the current was a bit of a pain but in my case manageable - I was in a later wave. I missed the whole shuttle issue as I was dropped off at T1 but did see the line at T2 to board and knew that was going to be a problem for a bunch. My only real substantive criticism that can be readily addressed for next year is to pipe in the audio from the start to T1. It was such a long way away and I dawdled in T1 and missed the pro starts which I wanted to see. Bike course was fine - no problems with Jolly Pond Rd - we were warned about it so no worries there. The cold wet towel at the finish line made the whole day worthwhile - very nice. Waiting for the bags was a pain which can be improved w/ logistics. Shirts were fine - although no large ones available when I came through. My family really liked the medals. I will do it again.

I didnt know the name of the rodes i rode on however, there was one stretch where the floors were pretty bad and dim, so i assume its the same rode your referring to. On race day, the pot holes where circled with white chalk so that helped me navigate through it. Still felt bad for my wheels though.

Just checked timing results, appears I'm still in T2...luckily I have a kick-ass finisher's medal to keep me company. :o)

Official water temp has to be taken morning of the race. We knew what it was the day before and I assumed it would hold steady but no guarantee until race morning.

Look at the bright side. You shouldn't be too hard to improve on your T2 time next year (assuming there is a next year).

In case anyone was wondering what the locals thought of it all. Read this article from the Virginia Gazatte. "It was like living in New Jersey" He must be a "Damn yankee" in order to know. LOL

http://www.vagazette.com/...0625,0,7754733.story

Rev3 Williamsburg was my 12th Rev3 event since 2010 (and my 11th 70.3) and each and every event has had a slightly / moderately different feel and personality to it. This differs on the course difficulty, conditions, # of athletes, race day logistics, etc. My wife, family, and I continually race the series as family "race-cations" and have loved the experiences - including Rev3 Williamsburg! I've even done a couple of boys weekends to Knoxville and Portland.

I've also done the IM 70.3 series and I have to say that the mistakes made this past weekend were not entirely different and notable than the IM races that have been held for years. For example, I did IM Vineman 70.3 in 2012 and the race organizer moved everyone's shoes in T2 from the night before and it took me almost 3 minutes during the race to hunt them down in transition. Yeah, my time was slower but I don't discredit the entire race or race series for a logistical issue like that. My wife and I both had a blast at that race, in spite of the shoe issue.

It was obvious that there were some issues last weekend. Should have the T1 bags gotten there faster? Yes, of course. Should the food vendor had more food and water available? Of course. Should the timing have been better? Of course. All of this is true, but please don't discredit the race or race series for some minor issues. The folks who run Rev3 are passionate about their product and care deeply about their athletes. This is what makes them unique and encourage people like our family to travel and race their series nationwide. I am confident that Rev3 will make Williamsburg a first-class event in 2014.

You should try out Cedar Point or Quassy or Knoxville or another one of the events that have been run multiple times. They are an amazing experience. I've had more friends who have raced Rev3 as their first 70.3 and/or 140.6 and everyone raves about the total race experience.

You can stay upset or angry and leave the race series completely, but in the end it's only your loss.

Nope, I'm not giving up on them yet. I'm hoping they only get better by hearing this feedback. But there are certain things for me that are completely unacceptable.
1) safety in the water and not enough personnel, 2) logistical issues like having enough buses and adequate communications, 3) waiting six hours for MY stuff. 4) TIMING. The other stuff is just irritating,

General thread reply - we just posted this video of the event:

http://www.slowtwitch.com/...2013_Video_3726.html


Personally, I had a great time.

Awesome!! thanks for the vid :)

Many thoughtful suggestions have been made. I'd like to thank the event organizers, staff, and volunteers, who were all cheerful and tried to be helpful. I had a great time, as did my family and friends. No one, as far as I know, got seriously hurt. So I would count this as a success. Each year, I am responsible for running other (non-athletic) types of events, and I know that each one is a learning opportunity. This was my first Rev3 event, and I look forward to more!

Do you really measure success by "no one got seriously hurt"? At IM France last weekend, a gentleman died. Same thing with IM Louisville 2011. And the one and only IM NYC. There are others, obviously. I would suggest that a death is much worse than an injury. Were all those races failures?

Rev3 can boast about being "family friendly". They can boast about great swag. They can boast about awesome medals. Those are the things you can do when you get the basics right. From what I am reading, they didn't do a good job with the basics. The other stuff is just "fluff".

IMHO, they need to focus on the basics, then focus on the extras.

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Pink? Maybe. Maybe not. You decide.

They are full Of SHIT!!!!!
More like living in Newport News or Norfolk. Effing Jersey??? They are nuts.

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__________________________________________________
Official Polar Ambassador
http://www.google.com/...P7RiWyEVwpunlsc2JtQQ

Being from New Jersey originally (second time in this thread I've made this comment, first was about late night Wawa) and now living in Va Beach/Norfolk, I'll pick NJ drivers/roads any day of the week.

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IG: idking90

When people sign up to volunteer and don't show up - it makes it challenging. But the bags made it.

Can I have a AMEN my Brother ;0)
But I do say I love the the county grill :o) but also why do so many people do 35 in the passing lane here ? I give ya all a a+ on creative vanity plates that s for sure.

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__________________________________________________
Official Polar Ambassador
http://www.google.com/...P7RiWyEVwpunlsc2JtQQ

Because there's no "keep right, pass left" law here. I've tried explaining the idea of a keep right, pass left law as well as proper last-second zipper merging and how both of those concepts improve traffic flow for everybody. The local Virginians I've tried explaining this to usually end up with their heads exploding. What's weird though, is it's like they magically transform into ridiculously aggressive drivers at rush hour, ones that make the New Jerseyan in me turn bashful...though that could be because aggressive drivers without blinkers are absolutely terrifying.
County Grill=I'm disappointed, given that you're in the land of diners.
And the vanity plates...yea, I don't get that. Admittedly, I paid an extra $10 to get a semi-vanity plate in that it's the Coast Guard design in the hopes that it would help me avoid getting pulled over. While I can't prove a negative (so far, so good), I'm thinking in an area of 99.4% military, it doesn't really matter whether the cop thinks you are or aren't military when he decides to pull you over.

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IG: idking90