What the WTC (or IMNA) can AFFORD TO DO (I love your bolding!) is have a special "VIP" club, where you pay $99 a year and get things like a T-shirt, a DVD of the championship race, discounts on purchases, emails with race updates. And...wait for it...you get a password to sign up for certain races the day before the rift-raft.

"Duh, I'm not talking about IM Hawaii in Kona and I'm talking about Ironman M-Dot races..."



Aren't you confusing WTC with IMNA then?

I bet that 31min 5k stranger trains supa hard and stomps you and allot of other floks out there! After all it is all about the bike!

t~

Do you honestly think someone who runs a 31 minute 5K should be entitled a spot to IM Florida over a someone who goes under 5 hours in a Half IM?

It really sounds to me that you should move to Australia. I think you would be very happy there.

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Behold the turtle! He makes progess only when he sticks his neck out. (James Bryant Conant)
GET OFF THE F*%KING WALL!!!!!!! (Doug Stern)
Brevity is the soul of wit. (William Shakespeare)

They have the Passport club - you get a few more lottery chances for Hawaii, a free DVD of the previous year's race, discounts on merchandise, e-mails with race updates...just no special early sign-ups.

"Through our "Adopt-A-Pro" program, you can opt to spend $25 (for
one night) or $50 (for two nights) toward accommodations for a lucky
yet cash-strapped professional triathlete. You will be paired with an ITU
Pan American Cup competitor who has agreed to stay with you at the Athlete
Village, and you can ask all the questions they can handle on what
makes them go so darn fast. Your adopted pro is not required to stencil your
name on his tri-top, though of course he is welcome to do so."


My point exactly. Reed, Kemper, Stadler, etc. walk around looking like NASCAR drivers with all or their sponsorships and we want to put restrictions on races so a MOPer can live the dream! Please.....

>>I like the discussion, however, how come whenever this topic comes up people keep bringing up the "it's a business" stuff. Yes, it is a business - I think we all "get" that!

Let's talk about solutions and not "it's a business". <<

Solutions to what? I didn't see the WTC or IMNA asking for solutions. The races sell out. What problem is there?

Like someone said, if you don't like the (1) entry requirements; (2) rules; (3) course; (4) location; (5) t-shirt; (6) whatever else there is to bitch about......take your checkbook or credit card and go elsewhere.

clm

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clm
Nashville, TN
https://twitter.com/ironclm | http://ironclm.typepad.com

Bingo!

When I signed up for my first IM I had never done a half and was not in shape to do the full, but a year later I finished. About 13:30at LP, which put me far from the end. I am getting ready to do IMFL and it will be IM # 8 and hope to go close to 10 hours flat. So Why should some one be kept from competing based on what they have done? It is about what you can do, not what you have done. How is it any different than a local 5k with a cap? If you want to be part of a qualifing race sign up and race for it.

Cathy, too easy, what would some folks complain about? :o)



Dave

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Dave Campbell | Facebook | @DaveECampbell | h2ofun@h2ofun.net

Boom Nutrition code 19F4Y3 $5 off 24 pack box | Bionic Runner | PowerCranks | Velotron | Spruzzamist

Lions don't lose sleep worrying about the sheep

No way it would be that cheap. They would charge more like $299/yr. Why? Because they can. Also, let's assume that they have only a limited amount of VIP slots per year. Those would fill up pretty quickly because it would get to a point where the only way to get into a race would be to pay the extra $299/yr to give you the ability to sign up the day before. Quickly, you would have races that fill up before registration opens. And by doing this, the race entry would increase to $800 instead of $500.

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http://trainingoferic.blogspot.com/

But Martin, it would be no fun if we didnt have something to disagree about. :o)

Hows the shoulder doing?



Dave

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Dave Campbell | Facebook | @DaveECampbell | h2ofun@h2ofun.net

Boom Nutrition code 19F4Y3 $5 off 24 pack box | Bionic Runner | PowerCranks | Velotron | Spruzzamist

Lions don't lose sleep worrying about the sheep

One of the things that catches my eye with USAT is their AG nationals. Its a race, now, that you have to meet certain criteria to compete in. I know I have set that for a goal to see if I can meet the standards.

Dave

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Dave Campbell | Facebook | @DaveECampbell | h2ofun@h2ofun.net

Boom Nutrition code 19F4Y3 $5 off 24 pack box | Bionic Runner | PowerCranks | Velotron | Spruzzamist

Lions don't lose sleep worrying about the sheep

"Otherwise, they would have done this years ago"

There was some talk that IMC was going to go to a model that had 50% qualifiers a few years ago - all hell broke loose online and else where. People went completeley ballistic!! Needless to say they did not go that route.

Fleck

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Steve Fleck @stevefleck | Blog

Why does this bother you? You've mentioned it multiple times in the past.

Thank you - we have a winner!
Ditto to what Cathy said...
~~~

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- Matt

It's first come first serve and why shouldn't it be?

True. Isn't an IM race just a consumer product? IM is in a position to impose time/experience requirements, but why would they?

Here we are again, treating IM as some "holy grail" of triathlon, but then out of the other side of our mouths we'll say that "it's just another distance, no better/worse than any other".

Once again, I have this feeling that these sentiments are started by the same group that is overly concerned that friends of the family and/or co-workers aren't as impressed with "their" IM performance as the finisher thinks they should be. These threads just seem to scream "Strangers aren't as impressed with me as they were 20 years ago?" (Am I the only one that gets this impression?)

The original IM race didn't have a time cutoff, now we have a 17h cutoff. Was the IM suppossed to be something that people could accomplish if they set their mind to it, or something that only highly-trained, talented athletes could do?

Why don't these folks take on a more difficult challenge like a double IM or an ultraman?

It is an unnecessary business move to impose a time/experience requirement for IM participation. They make money by the VOLUME of participants, not the QUALITY. Isn't that obvious?

You can't assume the same number of entrants with a time requirement as without.

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-- Every morning brings opportunity;
Each evening offers judgement. --

Suit yourself. Don't forget your cup.

I know this dead horse has been beat over and over, but the best thing they could do to raise the quality of racers, and still fill the races, would be to lower the final cutoff to 15hrs like some of the non-US races. People might think twice before pulling the trigger...might even try a half before the full.

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________________________________________________________________________
"that which does not destroy me will only make me stronger" Frederick Nietzsche
andrew peabody
http://BREAKAWAYMULTISPORT.COM

just no special early sign-ups.

Does anyone really believe there are quite a few of these ultra-talented, high-performing AG'ers that either have ultra-s-l-o-w internet connections and/or can't be bothered to logon to sign up when it opens.

I mean these races sell out in a matter of hours, not minutes, right?

Is this a complaint about a situation that doesn't even occur? Are there high-performing AG people that can't get into a race because it sells out before they get a chance to sign up (within reason).

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-- Every morning brings opportunity;
Each evening offers judgement. --

Martin is the ST god of making sure his opinion of who can call themselves an IM is ONLY his opinion. So, he loves to beat me up since he says my californiaman 140.6 race I completed last year with 6.11 hours of training per week at 12:16 doesnt allow me to call myself and IM. :o)

I keep asking him what he calls Frank Day who completed the first Hawaii Ironman race, but is was not owned by WTC back then, so I ask does this mean Frank, and all those folks can not call themselves ironman's?

Martin, I love ya, but for the life of me, dont know why you enjoy beating me up on this issue since not everyone agrees with your opinion, as you have seen posted many times by others.

Dave

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Dave Campbell | Facebook | @DaveECampbell | h2ofun@h2ofun.net

Boom Nutrition code 19F4Y3 $5 off 24 pack box | Bionic Runner | PowerCranks | Velotron | Spruzzamist

Lions don't lose sleep worrying about the sheep

"A friend of mine knows a guy who runs a 31 minute 5K and has never done a Half Ironman is planning on registering for IM FL 2007."

_____

This has to be some kind of troll-type of statement. I know that a lot of people sign up for an Ironman to prove to themselves that they can finish, but I REALLY doubt that someone that runs a 31 min 5k would sign up. The only people that run a 31 min 5k are 1)really overweight or 2)sedentary couch potatoes. I doubt that anyone in those two categories would sign up for an IM...