The inaugural U.S. Half Ironman Championship held in K.C. this weekend was top to bottom the best race I have ever attended.
First of all the organization was fantastic. Mark Livesay, the race director is a maestro among race directors. I have never attended an inaugural event that went so smoothly. Every aspect of the course seemed to have been thought through with meticulous attention to detail and first hand knowledge of what racers look for and appreciate in a race.
Mark exhibited great leadership in that his attitude and excitement for the event were mirrored in every one of the volunteers. I have never seen such a friendly, helpful group.
In my mind what truly separates Ultramax races, and this race in particular is philosophy. Mark is a revolutionary figure in the world of triathlon; struggling to return the power to the silent majority of age-group triathletes.
Every last division winner was awarded a $300 gift certificate from Trisports.com with overall winners receiving $1000 certificates. Fastest split winners, male and female, were also awarded free race entry into next years race. On top of this were great prize drawings for a compu-trainer, wetsuits, and the new “Revolution Hydration System” (I was so impressed with this I bought one with my gift certificate!).
The weather for the event was beautiful; clear sunny skies, a hardly noticeable breeze and temperatures ranging from the mid-fifties in the morning to low 80’s by the afternoon. The course was near perfect. The swim seemed to be perfectly measured. It was a triangular swim in a beautiful lake with plenty of big orange buoys to keep swimmers on course. The transition areas were well organized. It was a short jaunt of about 150 yards from swim exit to T1. One minor complaint on T1 is the bike mount line was at a slight incline that led to more than a few people doing the old “T1 Topple”.
The bike course was one of those rolling courses that is never flat but without any major ascents. It was an out-and-back and made for a fun, fast course. Here the only complaint, albeit one beyond the RD’s domain, was a section of new asphalt that was a little rough and loose. There were however, no major potholes, rumble strips, or railroad tracks anywhere on the course. The aid stations were never more than 8 or so miles apart. There were plenty of gels, water, and Gatorade in addition to volunteers that made their best efforts to get riders what they needed.
The run course was also hilly and mostly on a paved surface. About 2 of the 13.1 miles were on a single stretch of unpaved gravel/dirt road. This was a two loop out-and-back course with the only flat section being a half-mile or so across a dam. There was 1 large hill on the course at the turnaround; a half-mile or so at about 5% that had to be covered twice in the two-loop format.
The finish line volunteers were friendly and enthusiastic; eager to pamper weary competitors with refreshments, nice full-size Ultramax towels, and a large finishers’ medallion. The recovery tents were a godsend. There’s nothing worse than finishing a long race in the sun and not having a place to sit in the shade and recover.
Afterwards there was a nice awards ceremony and a live band that played into the night that created a pleasant atmosphere for all involved. From what I saw the expo and seminars were very good and also worthy of mention.
I’m eager to participate in this event in the future as the number of entrants will no doubt multiply like field mice.
First of all the organization was fantastic. Mark Livesay, the race director is a maestro among race directors. I have never attended an inaugural event that went so smoothly. Every aspect of the course seemed to have been thought through with meticulous attention to detail and first hand knowledge of what racers look for and appreciate in a race.
Mark exhibited great leadership in that his attitude and excitement for the event were mirrored in every one of the volunteers. I have never seen such a friendly, helpful group.
In my mind what truly separates Ultramax races, and this race in particular is philosophy. Mark is a revolutionary figure in the world of triathlon; struggling to return the power to the silent majority of age-group triathletes.
Every last division winner was awarded a $300 gift certificate from Trisports.com with overall winners receiving $1000 certificates. Fastest split winners, male and female, were also awarded free race entry into next years race. On top of this were great prize drawings for a compu-trainer, wetsuits, and the new “Revolution Hydration System” (I was so impressed with this I bought one with my gift certificate!).
The weather for the event was beautiful; clear sunny skies, a hardly noticeable breeze and temperatures ranging from the mid-fifties in the morning to low 80’s by the afternoon. The course was near perfect. The swim seemed to be perfectly measured. It was a triangular swim in a beautiful lake with plenty of big orange buoys to keep swimmers on course. The transition areas were well organized. It was a short jaunt of about 150 yards from swim exit to T1. One minor complaint on T1 is the bike mount line was at a slight incline that led to more than a few people doing the old “T1 Topple”.
The bike course was one of those rolling courses that is never flat but without any major ascents. It was an out-and-back and made for a fun, fast course. Here the only complaint, albeit one beyond the RD’s domain, was a section of new asphalt that was a little rough and loose. There were however, no major potholes, rumble strips, or railroad tracks anywhere on the course. The aid stations were never more than 8 or so miles apart. There were plenty of gels, water, and Gatorade in addition to volunteers that made their best efforts to get riders what they needed.
The run course was also hilly and mostly on a paved surface. About 2 of the 13.1 miles were on a single stretch of unpaved gravel/dirt road. This was a two loop out-and-back course with the only flat section being a half-mile or so across a dam. There was 1 large hill on the course at the turnaround; a half-mile or so at about 5% that had to be covered twice in the two-loop format.
The finish line volunteers were friendly and enthusiastic; eager to pamper weary competitors with refreshments, nice full-size Ultramax towels, and a large finishers’ medallion. The recovery tents were a godsend. There’s nothing worse than finishing a long race in the sun and not having a place to sit in the shade and recover.
Afterwards there was a nice awards ceremony and a live band that played into the night that created a pleasant atmosphere for all involved. From what I saw the expo and seminars were very good and also worthy of mention.
I’m eager to participate in this event in the future as the number of entrants will no doubt multiply like field mice.