That's cool. Could be rather chilly and nasty (rain) that time of year but I'm sure there will be alot of interest from the NW and western Canada for a 'local' race. They could make it a challenging bike if they head towards Mt. Rainier, too!

I might be in although my schedule for september 2020 is up in the air at the moment.

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Next races on the schedule: none at the moment

Like a week after Black Diamond race....hmm.

Yeah, I can see how Ironman was super concerned about another half iron race that had 176 finishers.

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Favorite Gear: Dimond | Cadex | Desoto Sport | Hoka One One

They moved black Diamond to August 1st

hmmmmm - late september weekends are so hit or miss
it can either be cold and raining or beautiful - this one is almost gauranteed to have a bunch of bad weather races

Very true... but also guaranteed to never be scorching hot. But even the middle of summer is a mixed bag in Seattle, 3 of my races this summer were in pouring rain.

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Team Zoot

I'm excited for this, I assume/hope that it will head towards the hills as I think it is being trialed to be part of the challenging 3 race rotation for western IMs

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808 > NYC > PDX > YVR
2024 Races: Taupo

I did the Black Diamond Half race about 8 times, for some reason - weather was almost always perfect. The conflict out here in Western Canada is that the Maple Valley event falls on the same weekend as the Cultus Lake Triathlons (all distances). Mind you, the kind of Canuck who does a branded 70.3 event, is probably not the same as many who show up at Cultus. They want a different sort of race experience.

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http://www.fitspeek.com the Fraser Valley's fitness, wellness, and endurance sports podcast

This is solidly a low land race venue, similar to Lake Stevens or Victoria. There are a couple of rivers that have steep descents and climbs but they are short. Could end up with a sizable cumulative elevation but no mountain pass climbs. Could be a fun race but probably not going to be in the spectacular category.

I Was thinking More along the lines of Ironman putting an end to a long time running triathlon but okay

This race should be awesome. Born and raised in Vancouver BC and for the most part I would say Septembers are usually pretty warm and dry. This year was a strange year by being wet and cold but wouldn't expect next year to be the same.

Oh!! this is cool -- did they just take the Black Diamond long course and M-Dot it?

Does anyone remember Lake Stevens? That was a really fun race.

E

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Let me rephrase for you...

Yeah, I can see how Ironman is super concerned about putting an end to a long time running triathlon with 176 finishers in the half iron distance event.

Better? 😁

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Favorite Gear: Dimond | Cadex | Desoto Sport | Hoka One One

I heard Lake Stevens was shit and the locals hated hosting it.

Either way, Maple Valley could be cool but it will be cold that time of year.

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Tough Times Don't Last, Tough People Do.

That was my first HIM back in 2005. Still trying to better that time!

The course was awesome, but yeah, the locals seemed to hate it. Not many friendly drivers when out pre-riding the course

The earlier thread and meeting notes indicated they were thinking of using Lake Wilderness for the swim. If that is the case they will need every foot of that lake to get in the distance (the Oly there in June is pretty much the entire lake.) I know the Lake Wilderness course does use part of the Black Diamond 1/2 bike course (part of the loop you do twice) so highly likely the IM race heads out on the same roads.

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Team Zoot

Grew up in Western Washington...
Septembers are generally better than June, weather wise.
This year was not so great, but it is usually one of the best months to be here.
FWIW, we've done Black Diamond twice. Both times it was sunny and cool. Perfect for us.
Hope this comes through...

Any updates on this?

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Dominic Pollizzi

Haven't seen anything (and I am local.) RTB Black Diamond Tri (which has been our local 70.3 dist race in early Sept) did officially move their 2020 date forward by 5 weeks which was done to make sure they didn't conflict with this IM race (if it happens.) So clearly it has a chance but I would think the clock is ticking if they want people to plan their race season with this one in mind. I am sure they could always wait a bit longer and then highly advertise it (with special deals) at Victoria, Canada and CdA to get the local crowd signed up. I guess that is the advantage of it being late in the summer season. I think it has the potential to be a great race... weather should be mild or cool (very little risk of hot or freezing) and the bike course should be a good challenge and hilly enough to stop any major draft packs, etc but not crazy challenging (it wont be flat!) If they do use Lake Wilderness the run will likely utilize the urban trail that is nearby which is a constant slight grade (no hills.. it think it is an old rail road corridor) so one direction you are running slightly uphill and then after the turn around you are running slightly down. For the race they have there in the spring you also get about 1.5 miles of running on some local roads before you get back to the park and that section is crazy hilly. Here is a link to the Lake Wilderness Tri (Spring/Oly) which will give you some idea of the area and potential roads. https://www.lakewildernesstriathlon.com/ You can see how a 1600yard loop on the lake is 80% of it... so 1.2 miles is going to pretty much be the shoreline but I think it is doable. The further loop on the bike is the same road the Black Diamond Long/half course uses. In general these are great roads to ride on. The park is a decent size but parking will be an issue since everyone will need to drive in (no hotels within walking distance.) There is some parking at the park and arboretum but not much in the way of overflow other than streets so I would guess they would need to bus people in from a remote parking location. Most of the hotels will be in in Kent and Renton (so a bit of a drive) but people could easily stay up in the Bellevue area and drive down race morning (it's maybe 30-40min drive with no traffic.)

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Team Zoot

Oof!! Using Lake Wilderness would be interesting. You hit the other issue -- there is no "race hotel" the course for both races is out in the middle of nowhere. For the original races thats not a problem, because people wake up in their own beds and drive down the morning of. For a IM70.3 with the amount of space they need for the setup, that is going to push the limits on how people will get in and out. There isnt a ton of parking at either of those two lakes and the roads are narrow and single lane. I guess much like the old Lake Stevens location.

Saw this today from USAT...says pending for 9/20/20...

https://www.teamusa.org/...thlon---302968109893

Makes sense, IM had a post on IG the other day with the locations of all the new races and an paper airplane over the state of Washington. The caption was something along the line of "where next"

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USAT Level II- Ironman U Certified Coach

FYI - looks like announcement is tomorrow:

"Can you guess where we're going next? Find out tomorrow!"

https://twitter.com/...793463428005888?s=20

Yep... there is a gathering at 5pm PST tonight for the official announcement. Very exciting to have an MDot race back to western Washington. 😬

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Team Zoot

https://www.endurancesportswire.com/...an-70-3-destination/

Looks like it's going to be a great race centered around Lake Wilderness Park. However, people are likely to be divided between choosing this and 70.3 Santa Cruz the week before

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Dominic Pollizzi

Does anyone know when they’re releasing more info on the course, accommodations, parking shuttles etc? Based on the other thread re accommodations it sounds like we are looking to stay 30+ min away. I am looking at either this race or the Best in the West 70.3 on Sept 12, which coming from Portland I have done as a day trip. But I would be interested in trying something new, especially if a full IM is hosted in Maple Valley in the next few years.

I've done Best in the West a couple of years and I would still target it versus Maple Valley simply because of the proximity to Portland as well as the fact that lodging for Maple Valley is limited. Staying 30+ minutes away from a race unless you live in the area is PIA hence my issue with Penticton (there is no where to stay close by). If WTC decides to host a full IM at a different time of year (i.e.) closer to August versus September then I would take another look at it. I've been asking for years why WTC doesn't do a race in Bend. Their answer is the lessons learned from the Leadmen events years ago (I think that the events were too much fun).

Best in the West is a great event. The only thing I dislike are the dogs that chase you when you are riding otherwise the course is super hilly and scenic. The run is really nice as it is mostly shaded.

I found an Airbnb for the weekend about 10 minutes away.... you might take a look at that vs. a hotel.

I just grabbed a room at the Garden in there in Renton. It's 10 miles from from Maple VAlley and where i've stayed to do black diamond before. It's not a bad drive.

Thanks for the reply- agree with you that Best in the West is a great event. Just seeing if there is some compelling reason to do Maple Valley instead this year :)

Interesting re Bend, I have always wondered why they didn’t have more tri events. Unfortunately I can’t make it to Pacific Crest in Sunriver this year, always enjoy getting over there.

Full disclosure about the answer to my question. After countless times of trying to corner one of the WTC guys at an event (Boulder 70.3, I believe) I finally managed to do it. The argument they used to not have a race in Bend was the Leadmen race, as proof that a race held in Bend would never sell out. It so happened that when Lifetime pulled its sponsorship from that race that year the weather was fairly miserable. It was raining in the morning and then hailing as you rode over the pass from Mt Bachelor. The only people smiling were Canadians. They thought it was warm outside. More than half the field DNF'ed. I did finish but had severe hypothermia and spent a few hours in the med tent at the finish line. My argument was to hold the race in early September. The weather has a chance of shifting to Fall in late September and early October in Bend. Anyway we argued back and forth but to no avail. The first couple of years of Leadmen Bend were magical. A non IM branded race with great scenery and interesting distances. The course favored strong swimmers and really strong cyclists. The run was short but hilly. When I eventually did Best in the West I thought it was pretty close to Leadmen Bend only without the magic of being in Bend. Sweet Home, OR is...an interesting place. I always do 70.3 CdA so haven't ever competed at Pacific Crest in Sunriver but have heard great things.

Slowman is always bringing up the subject of a gravel triathlon. That eastern side of OR would be an amazing venue. Eric has already highlighted some of those possibilities with Overland but still so many different options...yes..dreaming of warm sun and the smell of pine needles :)