I supported a local Triathlon 9 days ago. The Mighty Moraine Man 70.3. The course featured almost the exact terrain as Toughman, NY. But 9 days ago I didn't have an MDOT race in my backyard.
Pros of Toughman, NY: $250 registration fee is reasonable these days. Its a challenging course. Good competition shows up in the top 10 or so athletes.
Pros of Ironman (EDITED TITLE): All of the TANGIBLES that come with racing MDOT. Most people want to say they did an Ironman and they even get the hat with an MDOT on it to show that they did, even if its just 70.3. You can buy all of the gear you want and even have it customized. You are almost guaranteed a large field of 1,200+ athletes from around the world. The competition level allows you to compare/compete to/against others from bottom to top of the race. You can qualify for World Championship races and have an amazing race-cation. In some cases you can qualify for your pro card by getting top 3 age group when the race has a pro field. Ironman races are much better recognized and advertised. Timing is generally live tracked via app very well and your family/friends can easily find you. You can get All World Athlete status through a points system (yes I know you can buy it). Your triathlon club can get priority racking and other benefits and awards at these events. The list goes on.
Now, I could have registered for and raced Toughman, NY. But I chose to do Ironman 70.3 Atlantic City instead. Yes, it is about 90 mins closer for me to go to AC...but it also cost me about $125 more to sign up. Some of the reasons above apply.
I think the local 70.3 Tri's would do well to make sure their events are not scheduled within a 2 week time frame of other 70.3 races and just fill a niche. I, for one, raced the local triathlon to see what my performance would be like doing 70.3 races one week apart. The answer is...my performance at the second 70.3 was not ideal. I guess my point here is that most people don't look at the local 70.3 as their A race and it would be beneficial for local race directors to take that into consideration if they want to attack a larger crowd of more competitive triathletes. I am going to be email my local race director and seeing if they can put on the 70.3 again in early-mid May as in the Northeast it would be a great primer for Eagleman 70.3 and the other races Ironman puts on in end of May/June/July.
Pros of Toughman, NY: $250 registration fee is reasonable these days. Its a challenging course. Good competition shows up in the top 10 or so athletes.
Pros of Ironman (EDITED TITLE): All of the TANGIBLES that come with racing MDOT. Most people want to say they did an Ironman and they even get the hat with an MDOT on it to show that they did, even if its just 70.3. You can buy all of the gear you want and even have it customized. You are almost guaranteed a large field of 1,200+ athletes from around the world. The competition level allows you to compare/compete to/against others from bottom to top of the race. You can qualify for World Championship races and have an amazing race-cation. In some cases you can qualify for your pro card by getting top 3 age group when the race has a pro field. Ironman races are much better recognized and advertised. Timing is generally live tracked via app very well and your family/friends can easily find you. You can get All World Athlete status through a points system (yes I know you can buy it). Your triathlon club can get priority racking and other benefits and awards at these events. The list goes on.
Now, I could have registered for and raced Toughman, NY. But I chose to do Ironman 70.3 Atlantic City instead. Yes, it is about 90 mins closer for me to go to AC...but it also cost me about $125 more to sign up. Some of the reasons above apply.
I think the local 70.3 Tri's would do well to make sure their events are not scheduled within a 2 week time frame of other 70.3 races and just fill a niche. I, for one, raced the local triathlon to see what my performance would be like doing 70.3 races one week apart. The answer is...my performance at the second 70.3 was not ideal. I guess my point here is that most people don't look at the local 70.3 as their A race and it would be beneficial for local race directors to take that into consideration if they want to attack a larger crowd of more competitive triathletes. I am going to be email my local race director and seeing if they can put on the 70.3 again in early-mid May as in the Northeast it would be a great primer for Eagleman 70.3 and the other races Ironman puts on in end of May/June/July.