I did my first 1/2 IM last season at Buffalo Springs Lake in Lubbock TX. The race was well run and a lot of fun good support everywhere.

The course was interesting, long flat sections broken by a few ridiculously steep but short hills (both bike and run). Sometimes quite a bit of wind. The only problem was that it was hotter than snot. Coming from Chicago you may have problems adjusting to the heat. The heat caused me problems and I live in Houston!

Other than heat, its a great race.

The Pigman in Palo, Iowa, is a super race, pretty flat, and very well run. It's in August.
Go there. See farm animals. Smell the farm air. Marvel at the corn.

Big EE

I went to school in South Bend, Indiana. Although there are a number of 1/2 IMs in the Midwest, I'd recommend doing Muncie (you'll need to sign up early). It is raced in July.

From Chicago, it will be a relatively painless drive.

Muncie is flat, fairly fast, and well-run. It has been the LC Nationals venue twice and has been raced for 23 years (if memory serves correctly). There is camping at the venue. The post-race meal has historically been excellent (ribs, chicken, potato salad, etc.). My only complaint is that they have used some iteration of the same ugly T-shirt design for a long time...At least it's a long sleeve though;-)

I've also heard rumors that there will be a 1/2 IM in Michigan next summer...I don't know the details.

I did NOT hear good things about the 1/2 IM race in Wisconsin.

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"If you are gonna charge... CHARGE HARD!"

Consider the inaugural Dairyland Tri in Racine, WI on July 27th:

www.dairylandtri.com

This will be my first 1/2...

michael

the ironhorse is down in springfield in mid june. really well run, has been around for a long time. the run course is beautifully shaded, and the bike is flat, but in an intersting "h" shape that keeps ya going.

I did the Pigman last year. Its a well run, pretty flat race. It's also an easy drive, all highway.

IronHorse is not a true 1/2, but pretty close. It's also very well run. Not a good choice if you feel the need to draft to succeed.

Dairyland is still open, I'm trying that this year. I think there is one more Wisconsin 1/2 in Sept as well.

We are pretty lucky in Chicago, there are tri's popping up everywhere. You can go to www.chicagoaa.com and check out their calendar.

     I'm also going to do my first 1/2 this summer and am planning on the Wisconsin Dells Tin Man in late June. I don't know if this is a first-time event or not, but the people putting it on do a great job. Here's a link to their site: http://www.witriseries.com/ There's not a lot of course info yet, but I would imagine it will be up soon.

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Dave in WI
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"What you once were isn't what you want to be anymore" - Wilco

 Muncie is a great race - not too far from Chicago. Also, there already is a 1/2 in Michigan - The Paul Bunyon - its run in late august (I believe its the same weekend as the Chicago Triathlon) and I've heard the course is spectacular, but that is at least a five hour haul from chitown.

The Peterborough or Collingwood races in Ontario are both well organized and have good courses. The bike rides are somewhat challenging for both (mostly rolling in Peterborough and one big climb in Collingwood) and the Peterborough race usually has a much bigger field (as well as Ironman Canada qualifying spots ...probably not an issue if it is your first one though). Both races will take around 8 hours of driving from Chicago. Both races are in July. For info on Peterborough see the www.trisportcanada.com web site.

There will be a 1/2 in St. Louis in July (I think), put on by the Ultramax folks. They did a fabulous job with Ultramax. www.ultramax.com

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

There's a new 1/2 IM in Benton Harbor Michigan on Sunday, September 14th. It's less than 2 hours from Chicago. Their site is here:

http://www.steelheadtriathlon.com/

I did the Paul Bunyon in Oscoda Michigan last year (my first 1/2 IM) and thought it was good. This year it's Aug. 23 Their site is:

http://www.3disciplines.com/

Richard

After keeping us in suspense, the Ultramax folks announced via email tonight that their 1/2Max will be staged June 8 just west of Saint Louis. Given the quality of all of their other races, this one can't help but be a great race as well (there may be some faulty logic there, but the odds are still in our favor). Also, the Ultramax folks will be staging a 1/4Max--1/4 of Ironman distance, which is generally a little over Olympic distance in everything but the swim.

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Ben H

Christian, Husband, Father, Ranger, Triathlete