I am glad you had a good time in our state. Keep coming back!!!

Don't forget the pie shop in veyo,absolutely fantastic.
It's a shame the full IM was cancelled,i travelled from the UK for that race & would love to go back again but its a bit far for a half.
The town & people were just fantastic.

Thanks for the info. I plan on doing St. George for the first time in 2016 (opted for Wildflower this year).

Completely agree - this is becoming one of my favorite 70.3s (my others are Hawaii and Vineman). The town and volunteers are great, and the course is honest. A little bunching up in spots on the bike, but I only saw one blatant drafting incident - a woman jumped on a guy's wheel on the descent after Snow Canyon (couldn't believe how unabashed it was!).

I did the last full in 2012 and then the half last year and this year. The half is definitely more enjoyable. :-)

My restaurant find this time was the Cliffside Restarant on the bluffs to the west of downtown - great food and views.

Pretty sure I'll be back next year, even though Wildflower's a lot closer for me.

Ian

Cool, I hope it helps. How was Wildflower? I'm thinking of giving it a go next year.

Scott

I love posts like this! Thank you for the insight and the pictures. As a husband and father of three, who also has a personality flaw of enjoying Ironman triathlons, it is nice to see you and the family had a great time.

Thanks! It's always a bit scary putting yourself out there on the internet, but ST has been a great resource for me and I hope this helps folks get a feel for St. George. We had a great time!

Funny that Wildflower and Vineman both come up so quickly. Both are on our to-do list.

I can't imagine how hard the full would be in St. George. Did the old course cover the same ground as the 70.3?

Scott

It similarly connected from Sand Hollow to town and then did 2 loops. The loops passed Snow Canyon but went up another climb, which included a section called the Veyo Wall. Here's my Strava file: https://www.strava.com/activities/12771703

We had pretty strong winds in 2012, which affected both the swim and the bike, contributing to a high DNF rate. It was my slowest IM by far (out of 15), but the proudest finish.

Check out this video of the swim:

Ian

I think my greatest athletic achievement was finishing the IMSG swim in 2012. The second greatest was crossing the finishing line before midnight. It was EPIC!

I have done Vineman Full (last year) and St. Geroge 70.3 (3 times) and these are two of my favorite races. Vineman is an awesome venue and the race is very well organized. I will be doing it again in 2016.

The 2012 St. George Full course was not the same course as the 70.3. The Bike loops were different and the run did not climb up the hill to Pioneer Park, instead it stayed closer to downtown and involved a whole bunch of loops. I do think that at some point it included two loops of a similar course as the 70.3 but I'm not sure whenthis was. I have no idea how anyone could do two loops of the bike and run of the current 70.3 course. That would be inhuman. I really hope they bring back the full some day.

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Same here! Though I would consider finishing the swim my greatest mental achievement, and the bike my greatest achievement from a combined mental + physical perspective. The run (haha, what a funny word!) included some running, lots of walking and some lying down on the side of the road questioning my sanity. 14h 57' finish, I was embarrassed about it at first, took me a few days to understand it was just an epic day.

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THe run course was changed in 2012, when it would only go up Diagonal and no longer up Red Cliffs Parkway. No more steep hills but lots of false flat going either up or down. THe bike course was much harder than the 70.3 course, going on much rougher chipseal roads towards Gunlock and Veyo via a canyon that was funneling the 40mph right into your face just to make you more miserable. Definitely a much more difficult ride than the 70.3.

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I can't imagine that. Just thinking of doing the current bike course twice is nightmarish. I would love to do it. I'm sure I'm not alone in my desire to bring back a tough, epic full as part of the IM circuit.

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This was my third time racing STG 70.3, great course and very well run. I live in SoCal and raced or volunteered at Oside the last 9yrs but gotta admit STG is my favorite 70.3. I've also raced Vineman 70.3/full/ wife did Barbs and Wildflower all fun races, very well run. The new race is Silverman, very similar to SGT, same general area and again very well run.

Never did Hawaii but it's on my list :)

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Bob

I was wearing the finisher's shirt after some race, and a guy came up to me and said, "I did that race. Anytime I see someone with that shirt, they have my immediate respect."

I probably had hundreds of mini-conversations with myself that day to keep going. It was my 11th IM, and to that point I'd never gone over 12 hours. When I finally got off the bike, I saw that unless I ran 3:34 (which seemed unlikely), I was going over 12. I asked myself what I wanted more: 10 sub 12s and a DNF, or 11 finishes.

I took 11 finishes. :-)

Ian

I passed a woman on the bike up one of the hills this year and she was wearing a bike jersey from 2012. She had a large 'DNF' printed diagonally across the back - I thought it was awesome. Gave her kudos for the humor.

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I have friends that raced IM STG 2012 and Lake Tahoe 2013 all said SGT was the hardest day of the two....and LT was a tough day.

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Bob

I crashed at about mile 19? Still unsure as I don't remember crash. I was lucky, concussion, no head bleed, nothing broken, terrible road rash especially on my face! And a separated right shoulder which ER Dr thinks is grade 1, see ortho next week. The EMS crew as well as Dixie Medical center ER were outstanding and I can't thank them enough.This would have been my first SG 70.3. I had a strong swim for me and was loving the bike and the beauty. I also was having a wonderful experience in St George and the race was so well organized. Unfortunately it was not my day to finish. I will be back next year to complete the course as I wanted the challenge of snow canyon and the tough run. I agree with everything said in your post, the race vibe is incredible and all the pros certainly bring an excitement to the day.

I crashed at about mile 19? Still unsure as I don't remember crash. I was lucky, concussion, no head bleed, nothing broken, terrible road rash especially on my face! And a separated right shoulder which ER Dr thinks is grade 1, see ortho next week. The EMS crew as well as Dixie Medical center ER were outstanding and I can't thank them enough.This would have been my first SG 70.3. I had a strong swim for me and was loving the bike and the beauty. I also was having a wonderful experience in St George and the race was so well organized. Unfortunately it was not my day to finish. I will be back next year to complete the course as I wanted the challenge of snow canyon and the tough run. I agree with everything said in your post, the race vibe is incredible and all the pros certainly bring an excitement to the day.
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At the bottom of the hill? If so I passes you as the EMS pulled up. Glad you're KIND OF ok, at the time it didn't look good. There's posts on other threads about you.

I hope you heal quickly and good luck next year.

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Bob

I saw a woman being put into the ambulance around that point with a collar around the neck. It definitely looked a bit scary! Hopefully that was indeed you and and it 's great news to hear you're on your way to recovery already. Sorry to have your day ruined like that - hopefully you can come back next year!

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Yes that would have been me. Yes it was pretty bad. I wish I could tell you more about it. I would love to hear from a witness. All I remember is crashing into a large orange cone. I believe I was in aero and probably at about 20 mph. But this is guesswork. It was pretty traumatic for me as it was my first crash of my life. ( Cyclist 10+years, triathlete for 3) Thank you for the enouragement and to Longboarder too. I love the sport so I will have to somehow move past this and get back out there!

great attitude, all the best and good luck in SG next year!

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Great video! I've heard the Legend of 2012, but being there this year and watching that video really tells the story. Congrats on your finish!

Scott

I'll second that!

I'm sorry you crashed, but love your attitude. Best of luck with your recovery!

Scott

Yes that would have been me. Yes it was pretty bad. I wish I could tell you more about it. I would love to hear from a witness. All I remember is crashing into a large orange cone. I believe I was in aero and probably at about 20 mph. But this is guesswork. It was pretty traumatic for me as it was my first crash of my life. ( Cyclist 10+years, triathlete for 3) Thank you for the enouragement and to Longboarder too. I love the sport so I will have to somehow move past this and get back out there!
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I've almost been taken out by the cones a few times both on the bike and run. They get moved and if you just look away at the wrong time boom down you go...scary.
Again good luck.

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Bob

Resurrecting an old thread to see if anyone has any recommendations based on recent St. George racing experiences. I just signed up for next year's 140.6, and will be looking at places to stay soon. Curious if anyone who raced the 70.3 this year stayed somewhere that was great (or terrible--it's good to know what to avoid too!). I'd also love to know peoples' opinions about staying closer to the start or to the finish, since they're in different places. Thanks!

I have raced the full twice, the 70.3 once, and have stayed out towards the reservoir each time, but would not necessarily say its the better choice. It was more due to the condo I found and each time that worked out to be farther from the town centre.

Getting around is really easy, so either way you will have a fair amount of driving as half of the time, you will be out at the reservoir or in the town centre.

Cheers,
Jack

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"Only those who risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go." T.S. Elliot | Cycle2Tri.com
Sponsors: SciCon | | Every Man Jack

Las Palmas. Everyone stayed there. Lap pool and lots of other pools and things for kids. Not too far away. Staying there again for worlds.

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Awesome, thanks. Good to know it's fairly easy to get around, considering as you said, that there will be driving one way or another, no matter where we stay. Thanks for sharing your experience!

Good to know, thanks! I'll check it out. Hoping to avoid bringing the kids, but good to have kid-friendly options just in case.

If solo, I’d stay close to shuttle for race morning. If have SAG, it’s great

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Hopefully going to make it out for the Worlds in September, and was planning on hiring an RV and travelling around ahead of and after the race. Are there decent RV sports near the swim start or in St George itself? Is this a decent plan, or one that will be a PITA?

Yep. U can camp at swim start. Then go Zion after race. And Vegas. Always fun to recover at a pool party lol

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Does the shuttle leave from town? I hope to have my wife travelling with me, but not 100% sure yet.

Side note--my wife was booking some on-the-way campsites for a road trip we're taking this summer, and ended up booking one in Hurricane. I thought for a second she had coincidentally booked us for the campground where the swim is for the race. Turns out it's a different (but nearby) one. But I may drive over and check it out anyway.

Hi everyone...I am going to St George for the WC in September and had a reservation at a nice B&B, but they recently closed, so I am starting the process over. Any recommendations that you can offer? I saw Las Palmas mentioned in one of the earlier posts and I suppose that would be fine, but we would generally prefer to stay in town, closer to T2 and Town Square Park, if possible.

Also, any dining recommendations? And finally, is swim training in the few days leading up to the race best done at the reservoir?

Many thanks in advance.

Here is a dining recommendation, do not order from Chef Alfredo’s! What a cluster the day before the race a few weeks ago. Put in an online order before 6pm and it was not ready until 8pm because their ordering service was letting too many orders through and they were late to confirming orders. Specifically asked twice on the order and told the hostess when she called about withholding a sauce but the cook lathered on some other concoction that looked like my dog’s vomit. An Italian establishment in a town with a famous race should be well aware of the business coming their way on race weekend. And don’t even get me started on the lasagna we also ordered. It looked like it had been through the dishwasher. 👎🏾

VERY good to know, thanks!! Last thing you want the day before a race is a late dinner of questionable quality. Will not be visiting Chef Alfredo's in September (or any other time for that matter)!

I find posts like this so helpful- thanks for sharing.

Thanks for resurrecting this thread. Brings back great memories of a simpler time. St. George remains a family favorite race destination and among my best race day experiences.

Kudos to you for having the courage to tackle 140.6 on that course. That will be a day to remember as you look back on your racing career. Enjoy your preparation and best of luck along the way!

This will be my first 140.6, so although I know it's regarded as a difficult course, I don't have anything to compare it to! :) The first one was always going to be hard no matter what, so I figured I'd rather suffer on a scenic course.

Does anyone know how many slots there will be for the full in 2022? More than usual or same as other events?

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mikew

That’s the spirit our sport needs. I’ll be pulling for you!