What kind of storylines/profiles would you like to see showcased instead?

Watched a couple while indoor training so I appreciate you posting, thanks.

I haven't seen any of the Quest for Kona series, but my reference to (Bad thing happens) -> (Overcome adversity) plotline is the bread and butter of the age group part of the Kona broadcast.

Not that that's bad, but its a small sliver of Kona, and an even smaller sliver of our sport. I'd love it if they simply told more stories about our sport. This is a start, obviously.

They are enjoyable to watch. It makes me want to attempt an IM again, can't lie.

It's clearly a great marketing package for WTC. The "everyman" can always have this dream of Kona, no matter how realistic (with some of these it is NOT realistic) or how much adversity they have to plow through to get to the IM.

Y'know, I kinda disagree with the "everyman" idea

My take away is always that unless you have already had to overcome some insane diversity in your life, and you have to struggle everyday just to get along with some semblance or normalcy, you simply don't have the strength within you to complete an Ironman, so just give up now ... this message brought to you by Ford Trucks

YMMV

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"What's your claim?" - Ben Gravy
"Your best work is the work you're excited about" - Rick Rubin

Anyone know if they are making it available to stream online in the U.S.?

They are interesting and I like seeing the different venues but they are 1 for 4 right now which I wasn't suspecting and none of them have been close. But that is Ironman in a nutshell as they might have good results behind them but that day they just didn't have it...

I wonder what viewership they are getting.

Forgot about this, looks like it would be good to watch while on the trainer.

Can you stream it?

It’s on red bull tv (Europe - or was, I haven’t checked in the last week or so).

so like who are they following? Are these just random AG'ers, or actually have some athletic ability? IE is it just some cancer mom of 4 soccer kids waking up and saying "i'm going to do Kona", or is it the guy going 10:41 in 1st attempt and realizing he has a chance? Like who are the athletes they are showcasing?

eta: I've clicked on links and starting the episodes...looks like it's random people and in first episode said "some do it and some dont make it"....teaser....pretty cool quick 20 min videos.

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Brooks Doughtie, M.S.
Exercise Physiology
-USAT Level II

I've seen two of the episodes and both of them were a bit of a joke. One was a guy from Brazil I think who ended up like 131st in his age group. The other was a middle aged woman - I forget her placing but she missed qualifying by 2.5 hours. And I looked up both of their prior results and for both of them this was about typical. And the whole show they talked about how they knew it was going to be tough, and they were going to have to have a great day to have a shot, etc. When in fact neither one had any shot whatsoever to ever get anywhere near qualifying, and I'm sure they knew this. Yes I'm cynical, but it was obvious all of the interviews were scripted and the whole show just seems like a complete phony hoax and basically a 30 minute ad.

The one last week was a random age group athlete Mom. She kept saying convincingly on camera that she was going to qualify for Kona. Shes in the 30-34 group and looking up her times, her best Ironman coming into the show was 14hrs. Then she did 12hrs 38 on the show. She was either delusional or just trying to be on tv. Here are her times:
https://www.obstri.com/...rch=Heather%20Jenson

I did enjoy watching this though, especially since I did the same race, well produced.

First episode I saw was on a parathletic. He was racing one other Parathletic at a 70.3 Cairns. He made it. The second episode was a mother of 3 racing IM Santa Rosa. When I saw her on the bike, I knew she was not going to make it and did not. Finished around 12:20 and second slot in her age group was 10:41.
The sad part is that this series is leading up to the highlight show not the actual event that happened nearly a month ago now. At least that is what I am assuming from the timing.

So that's good tv and about what I expected. The guy doing the training 2 times a day to go 9:30 and qualify...that's boring as hell....that guy knows he is fast, but also understands it takes a great day to make it, etc. So yeah i get it now and about what i expected. Dramatize the hell out of it, because actual blood sweat and tears of grinding your way to Kona....BOOORING.

1st athlete I'm watching now- "eating" disorder in younger life, 10th or so IM race going for Kona.

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Brooks Doughtie, M.S.
Exercise Physiology
-USAT Level II

Well they did a good job of fooling me into thinking she had a chance. Then look up her splits and see a 6:38 bike and a 4:29 run, and shes saying shes a good runner. Maybe among her group of friends but this is nowhere near KQ level. Production is well done enough that Ill keep watching.

Good production but the title of the show is misleading because one might think that all of the athletes featured (a few actually do) have a KQ level.

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Love the Pain!

Quito-Ecuador

I watched this episode and I think the women was a paid actor. Beyond delusional.

I know going into each race I pretty much have no chance of qualifying and I've done 20 IMs. I know I have to break 11 and run under 4 hours _ I'm an old dude. In reality I know that is not likely going to happen given my training and half IM times leading into the race. No way I could do a TV show and say I was going to qualify. Who am I kidding.

Would you turn it down if got offered? That's probaly the bigger decision. Would you actually say "thanks but no thanks" knowing you arent actually ready for it. I'd wager the producers would come back and tell you they'll make it look good (like they did the Brazilian guy who finished 130th....they didn't really humilate him, more of it wasn't his "day").

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Brooks Doughtie, M.S.
Exercise Physiology
-USAT Level II

This show is no BS kind of depressing....
I think as I'm watching come on show a legit contender not an 'average Joe' with some unrealistic goal.

Who TF is producing the show? It HAS to be someone in the know.

I watched the one guy in Brazil. It had the similar production feel as the IM highlight show they do every year. They tried to build it up like he had a chance, but more times than not you can tell if someone has a chance just by looking at them. Not every time, but most of the time I can usually tell who's fast and who's slow. They showed this guy running and biking leading up to the race and I told my wife, no way in hell he finishes before the sun goes down. And I was right.

It was also funny to see him get emotional about getting a Clif Bar the day before the race. I'm thinking doesn't everyone get a Clif Bar in their bag. Some pro gave it to him, but it was comical to watch. I'm sure it was cool to people who don't have a clue about the sport.

I wonder where they get these guys? I want a show. I'm going to do Choo next year. Can I get a show?

I would do the show but at the same time I would say, "I'm going to need a sub 11 to have a chance at qualifying and I'm likely going 11:30" I can predict my IM times within 15 minutes based on my half times leading into the race.

The women had no chance of qualifying based on her half times. You need to be doing 5 hour halfs, maybe a little under, to have a realistic chance at qualifying for Kona in the women's age group, especially 30-40. range. Even 40-49 you better be doing 5 hours because most of the top women are ex pros or ran in college. If you are well over 5 for a half or running half marathons at 1:45+ you don't have a prayer.

The aussie eating disorder model is close. 10:37 in Santa rosa.

In a much bigger pool of athletes then show up on race day and actually have a shot of IM KQ. I'm at work so I have it on in background, and so far 1 out of 4 made it, and only 1 had a real shot (the para guy who was most prepared for it, and was very realistic going into race). What they are actually doing from an actual show standpoint is really almost impossible. Pick random AG'ers who actually qualify for the race. That's loooooow odds.

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Brooks Doughtie, M.S.
Exercise Physiology
-USAT Level II

Hahahahaha, this particular episode was bizarre. Super cheesy.
"Ironman is my life. Ironman is my life!" [cries].

Gimme me a break...

They had to submit a 60 seconds video on YouTube titled Quest for Kona. You could probably YouTube the title and see all the entries. I am sure they are still available.

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http://www.sfuelsgolonger.com

I haven't watched any episodes, and while this particular lady really didn't have a chance, she did make a hell of an improvement between 2016 and 2017.

This lady has a huge social media following which might have played into why she was picked.

I binge watched them on redbull TV the night before Kona as prep (lol) and I skipped 1 or 2. They could have picked better people I think, some had realistic chance of making it but others you knew when the episode started it was gonna be a joke. I mean I appreciated the variety of stories but at some point the one guy was in danger of missing the cut off and he carried a fuel belt on the bike but not the run... I think one of my favorite episode was the older british man who realistically had a shot and Flaca was another pretty good one!

I was pretty delusional about what I could do before I did my first IM as well. :)

word on the street is this girl is awesome smart fast kind super nice and got 1500 on her SATs and hand raises orphaned peruvian cockatiels for charity. Make sure you tune in the weds 11/22 while stuffing the bird and watch her episode. Wonder whether she'll KQ, I'm on tenterhooks. *backsslowlyawayintoanonymity*

https://www.redbull.tv/video/AP-1T9MJT8HS2111/susanne-vanzijl?playlist=AP-1TBMB352W1W11:season:1

I watched the first three episodes and in each one, there was a clip of a pro giving their advice to the kona hopeful... and that advice was none other than "eat this cliff bar the morning before the race," haha. I wonder if off camera the pro amended their advice to "do not trying new nutrition products race morning and race on the food you trained on."

I had higher hopes for the show, but I am not sure what I expected. I was surprised to see the slow finish times and surprised that all the coverage was basically race morning > athlete repeating the same soundbites > Cliff product placement > disappointing race performance

Videos are linked under peoples descriptions, e.g. this guy from PL
http://eu.ironman.com/...spx#Krzysztof%20Krol
I've watched part of his race report from some Qujing 70.3 - I was astounded by how hard he was training for it.... over 5 trainings a week.
I had an impression they were given some additional slot opportunities, but as far as I can understand now they need to simply qualify.
That's good because when I listen to this guy blabbing about how motivated he is and how successfully he is etc I thought that some day my children may stumble upon and get fascinated by someone like that. Or even get impression you can do things without dedicating yourself. Or maybe I'm allergic to personal coaches.
Nevertheless it's good they go through normal KQ as many people I know sacrifice years of their life to get there.

They could do a really good series of shows if they picked some people about 1 hour from qualifying and then follow them for a year. They would be knowledgeable racers with realistic chances and it would offer great insight into what it takes on a daily basis to qualify. It would never sell though. There's only so much of the 1 hour swim, 2-3 hour bike rides and 1 hour runs that people can take...

I couldn't find it at first because I was searching "Road To .." vs. "Quest For .."

"Road To ..." implies they made it

If you think about it a little, the title doesn't mislead at all

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"What's your claim?" - Ben Gravy
"Your best work is the work you're excited about" - Rick Rubin

Is it just me or are the episodes not available anymore?

Some people either are delusional or just like to say "I'm trying to qualify for Kona". Or maybe they feel they have to say it - per Pube's post.

I personally know guys who talked about KQ who had no shot. One talked about KQ'ing in his next IM after being 90 minutes out of a slot at his last IM.

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Proud Member of Chris McDonald's 2018 Big Sexy Race Team "That which doesn't kill me, will only make me stronger"
Blog-Twitter-Instagram-Race Reports - 2018 Races: IM Florida 70.3, IM Raleigh 70.3, IM 70.3 World Championships - South Africa, IM North Carolina 70.3

these shows are geared towards slowtwitchers.

Ironman wants the moms and office dads to believe they have a shot. They have no need to sell the product to people who care about optimized chains.

Its smart marketing to focus on the people they did

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Yellowfin Endurance Coaching and Bike Fits
USAT Level 1, USAC Level 3

The older guy from England had a top 3 AG finish at his last Ironman. He was certainly in the hunt. I would assume it wasn't random and they were looking at people that at least had a shot.

where are you finding these to watch? Assuming its not at the actual showtime on the NBC Sports channel. Are they posted anywhere after the fact for streaming/on-demand? I have some treadmill time these would be nice for but cannot seem to find them anywhere on NBCSN or Redbull.

I can see them on Redbull tv, but can't seem to get them to play....

I'm old school DVR'ing them as they air. Not even sure what day, time or network (NBCSN?) they are coming from. I did a search after I read about the series here.

Yeah I thought he had a chance after watching his training run pace and then in IM Austria seeing his clips of running and immediately knew he didn't have a chance. The other thing for him was IM Wales being super close but looking at his age group in IM Austria the same year were like 45 minutes faster. My assumption is IM Wales must be hard but perhaps it's just who decided to show up to that race and give him a LOT of hope.

I have hope when the segment starts especially as it seems everyone's training pace is LIGHTENING FAST compared to their IM race pace but then it all goes south when you see there swim time, bike time and then see their run pace. KQ is so competitive all around the world it seems like we go 1 for 10 on these shows.

Saw the latest episode on NBC SN yesterday. All I can say is that was a 30 min. M Dot commercial for sure. I realize what I was going to see in each episode but I was surprised I did not see M Dot wallpaper through out the house.

Any know how to watch season 2? The IM website says that you can get it on Facebook on the Ironman Now page, but I dont see it.

Last year we Canadians were able to get it on Redbull.tv but it looks like they've moved season 1 off that site.