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Re: Ironman Princeton: my thoughts [urbantriathlete] [ In reply to ]
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Pasta and pizza will be relayed to race directors and to the outside vendor:0). I do Remember they had pizza one year at the NJ state tri for athletes. That can or should be doable. Maybe a cold pasta salad of some sort ? Only not sure of perishabitity issue with Pasta salad.

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Re: Ironman Princeton: my thoughts [mderidd] [ In reply to ]
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I think they will update the results to the 57.5 eventually :0)

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Re: Ironman Princeton: my thoughts [Bmanners] [ In reply to ]
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Bmanners wrote:
Pasta and pizza will be relayed to race directors and to the outside vendor:0). I do Remember they had pizza one year at the NJ state tri for athletes. That can or should be doable. Maybe a cold pasta salad of some sort ? Only not sure of perishabitity issue with Pasta salad.

I have yet to be at any but the very smallest race where pizza was successful. The challenge of keeping it hot (and getting delivery on an ongoing basis) seems too much to overcome. The pizza at NJ Triathlon in the past was "meh" at best. I thought this year's food was reasonable (grilled chicken w/veggies, watermelon, cold pasta salad). I suggested to the Redrows that they try to use the deli down the street (which was inconvenienced on the Saturday of the Sprint Tri, but they won't be hassled by a Sunday race): throw them a bone.

The best post-race food I've had is Stephen Del Monte's breakfast buffet after his races: sterno trays of scrambled eggs, sausage, bacon; muffins, juice, pastries, etc. Since the race usually ends before 10am, a breakfast buffet seems reasonable, but not for a half ironman.

Stuff like hot trays of pasta in tomato sauce (with cheese available), chicken fried rice (carbs, you know), chicken franchise (hey, a guy can dream), hot dogs and buns and fixin's, rolls with butter available, cold soda/water, tons of cut watermelon,pastries, and Italian water ice. What's not to love?

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Re: Ironman Princeton: my thoughts [klehner] [ In reply to ]
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Ken I like the way you think. Western Omellettes for everyone;0).
I will suggest to them some of this. I like the idea of hot trays also but wonder about how well steve is would be with so many people. Should be ok. I do know they have to stay within a budget.

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Re: Ironman Princeton: my thoughts [afurlong] [ In reply to ]
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afurlong wrote:
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Food was pretty weak.

I forgot about this, and I'm only going to voice a complaint in case anyone with the ear of Ironman reads this, but having only chicken sandwiches (or wraps, or whatever they were) at the finish was a dumb idea. I'm a vegetarian and I can't imagine I'm the only ironman vegetarian, especially on the east coast. In a group of people with higher incomes and a super strong healthy lifestyle and diet on their mind, you'd think there'd have been another option. But whatever, I somehow managed to live.

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Re: Ironman Princeton: my thoughts [sacca] [ In reply to ]
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Food: There will always be complaints about what was served. I liked the food, although somewhat surprised that you had no choice but chicken in the wraps. If it was bagels, it would be like any other locally run 5k. If it's breakfast foods, not sure those finishing at 4pm would appreciate that.

Roads: Yes, the miles at the end were rough. But the rest of the way was not a problem...it's NJ, not Tremblant. Yeah, there were lots of turns, and yeah, it was long by a mile or two. But, anyone who followed the Facebook group or attended the meeting would have known all that. And they did a phenomenal job of controlling traffic.

Lake: I had no issues with it. It's a lake. I've been in much worse.

Run: I heard of a number of people getting lost starting lap 2. And as mentioned, the tight path with 2-way traffic (especially where that stupid giant bush was hanging over) was a little too tight. I'll agree that the Red Bull truck was annoyingly loud.

Finish LIne / Parking / Transition: After doing NYC Tri, this setup was like heaven. Just a 5-10 minute walk. As for the traffic, I got there 5:30 and barely had a car in front of me. Same thing when I left at 2pm. There are 2 entrances...sounds like the entrance/exit that crossed the run course was the bad exit.

Weather: The nights haven't been as cold as they could be in September. And it was more humid than I expected.

All in all, they did a great job.
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Re: Ironman Princeton: my thoughts [sacca] [ In reply to ]
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The pavement on its own was bad enough. But there were a few other factors that made the course not just bad, but dangerous.

I was in one of the middle waves (14? 15? I lost track), so like most people I had slow people to pass on the bike and was at the same time being overtaken by the faster waves behind me. Those faster waves included the M30-34 and M35-35, both pretty aggressive riders. The slower riders in front of me were moving toward the centre of the road to avoid the bad pavement in the first three feet off the curb. I can't blame them, since I wouldn't have wanted to ride in that section either. At the same time, the M30-34 and M35-39 were flying up the centre of the road trying to pass all of us. Trust me, I don't want to be in their way. But there was nowhere for me to go and I needed to keep enough room on either side of the bike to allow for sudden veering around a crack or a manhole.

So the congestion was one factor. The second was the sheer number of newbies at this race. I was surprised by how many people at my rack and around me at the wave start were new to triathlon or doing their first 70.3. Their racing and biking skills, particularly in congested circumstances, probably weren't the greatest. Add "poor bike handling" as a second factor. And at 2700 registered athletes, it was already a big field.

Then there was the weather. We were extremely lucky in that conditions were perfect for this race. No sun to cast shadows on the road and hide potholes, no wind to shove us around, no rain. Can you image doing those rough miles - with the fast men in the final waves trying to overtake slow cyclists up front, and newbies trying to control their bikes - in wet conditions? How many people would have hit a pothole and have had their hands slip on their handlebars, or slip on a corner and touch someone else's wheel? I was surprised that the race organizers even considered this part of the course.

Otherwise, the race organization was amazing. For a first time event it was downright miraculous. The traffic control on the course was great, the volunteers were the best ever, the site was gorgeous and well laid out. However, they either need to find a different route out to the country roads, or stagger the waves from fastest waves to slowest, or offer up their firstborn to get those roads repaved for next year.
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Re: Ironman Princeton: my thoughts [hyr00] [ In reply to ]
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First 70.3 race for me and I had a blast. I did suffer the last 3 miles, but kept on running.
Agree that volunteers were great!
Aside from the food, which was pretty bad, the morning traffic was horrendous.
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Re: Ironman Princeton: my thoughts [sacca] [ In reply to ]
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I had no issues with the swim. My Garmin 910xt read 1.27 miles leaving in wave 9 or 10. I rode the bike course two weeks prior to race day and felt it was going to be a tough course (road conditions,turns,wind,length etc) but to me it was fast. If my gears didn't brake at mile 40 I could have been a few minutes quicker but I PR'd non the less (2:26). I was stuck in 8th gear for the last 16 miles. I didn't see any drafting either. I thought athletes were making a conscious effort to keep their distance. I felt there was a lot of blocking but only because of the road conditions. I liked the run course but I also felt there were some areas that were narrow and actually brushed shoulders with a couple of people. The volunteers, the spectators, the music on the course and the athletes racing were all great. My only complaint is about the food. My chicken wrap was wet lol! Parking and leaving wasn't a problem for me. I'll definitely be back next year.
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Re: Ironman Princeton: my thoughts [homeloans365] [ In reply to ]
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I am an alumnus of Princeton University ('04) and was disappointed that the race didn't actually showcase the campus. Understandable given class is in session and the congestion may have been a problem, but I felt is they were going to market the race as Ironman Princeton 70.3, they could have found a way to incorporate the University a bit more. I hope those in attendance took the opportunity to walk the campus and enjoy the scenery and history.

As for the race itself, I felt it was well staged logistically. The swim was spot on and fast. The road conditions were brutal in sections and I'm sure many people left frustrated with mechanicals, but jersey back roads aren't renown for their upkeep. The run felt congested and given my level of mental fog at that stage of the race, I remember second guessing the direction markers in a few spots. The aid stations and support volunteers were top notch. The post race food was a joke; I hope a local clued you all in to the gloriousness that is Hoagie Haven on top of campus.

I'll be back again next year - hopefully the few gripes I had with the race will be ironed out in future iterations.
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