I think that IM make that same statement about any of it's reces base on how they word their polls

That being said... Chattanooga is a good course. The town get's behind the race and usually very competitive. Especially the 70.3. Almost all the fulls that also have 70.3's are just double the 70.3 course.

I think the city makes the experience for me. I love Chattanooga and Tennessee in general. The easy swim and the challenging run suit me. The bike is somewhat boring IMO but Wisconsin was way worse in my opinion due to road quality.

I’ll only do races I can drive to so I’m limited on the east coast. Hence Chattanooga 140.6 and Sandusky 70.3 because I have family in these areas. Why Sandusky has a race and Raleigh doesn’t is beyond me. I seriously doubt there is more demand in Sandusky Ohio. They need to bring back Raleigh 70.3.

Finished 13 IM's. Chattanooga x 4, Florida x 5, Boulder, Tahoe, Tulsa and Des Moines.
Out of all of them, Florida was my favorite for family and location of the condos to the transition area.
Chattanooga was a favorite for the area and event. Downriver swim besting my OW IM time by 45 minutes was nice. Rolling bike course doesn't kill you, but keeps it mixed up. 1 transition minus the bus ride to swim start. Lodging close to transition is affordable, plentiful and accessible. I parked at the hotel 1 year and didn't have to drive anywhere for 5 days. Walked to everything I needed. I could also drive with all my gear or fly, Nice to have options. When it's a high of 75, it's a GREAT course... when it's 100+... that sucks.

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Ryan
http://www.SetThePaceTriathlon.com
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I have enjoyed Florida the best. The last couple of years, running is my strength but I'm a good swimmer too. Bike is my weakness so Chatt doesn't make sense from that stand point, but I have a buddy trying to convince me to race with him. I guess the first comment is the truth. IM can make any race seem like the top race in their polls.

Thanks for those comments.

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http://www.sfuelsgolonger.com

AMEN! (from a 4x Raleigh 70.3 finisher)

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Pink? Maybe. Maybe not. You decide.

Right?!?! I’m from here but I was never able to race Raleigh as I was in CO for 6 years. But I wont complain. I was able to do Boulder and Mont Tremblant while I was out there. 2 favorites by far!

And then removing the Beach 2 Battleship Full as well. COME ONE!!!! It’s hard to travel with young kids Ironman!

I've done IM Choo twice (32 total IMs), 70.3 Choo twice (many, many 70.3s), and the Choo 1/2 marathon once. That venue is definitely one of my favorites. Easy to stay close to race, very good restaurants, lots of other outdoor activities close, many nice neighborhoods, etc. All in all it is just a very nice place to visit.

Nice little story - On one trip I noticed a low tire just as we were getting ready to drive home. I stopped at that first little service center to ask for help. The owner actually took my car back, repaired the tire, and brought it back to me. I asked him how much I owed him and he replied "Thanks for visiting our city."

I like going different places to race but I will always treasure my experiences in Choo.

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David
* Ironman for Life! (Blog) * IM Everyday Hero Video * Daggett Shuler Law *
Disclaimer: I have personal and professional relationships with many athletes, vendors, and organizations in the triathlon world.

I did Raleigh 70.3. I remember running barefoot on 150°f pavement off the bike, uphill, to rack my bike, lol, then running twice through orange construction zones while the road was being repaired. It was pretty miserable, haha. I enjoyed the area though and got to visit my brother who lives there. I'm guessing the logistics hurt that race since it was a long bus ride to swim start.

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http://www.sfuelsgolonger.com

Don’t take Chattanooga race for granted. I’ve done several 70.3 races and Chattanooga is most reliable and consistent race. I’ve had so many cancellations, delays, thunderstorms, sad weather, terrible road conditions…etc and Chattanooga comes on top. Always good weather, nice course and amazing crowd.

Always good weather? I think there a has been several times where the heat index was around the century neighborhood. There has been at least one time that the swim was cancelled due to weather causing the waterflow to be at an unsafe level with debris.

The race has it's history in chaos. The first Chatt was 112 miles before they changed it to 116 miles, 2.5 weeks before the race. I did that one. I also did the one 2 years ago where I think I spent 50 miles in the rain during the bike.

Having said that, it's my favorite race course. Fast swim, fast bike, and the run has some good crowd support.

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My marathon PR is "under three, high twos. I had a two hour and fifty-something."

Nice city and didn’t hate the course overall. That said, I choose to never do it again only because I hate down river swims.

I didn’t spend half a year training to challenge myself to just float down a river. Just my opinion. Everyone would question the legitimacy of a course with a 100% downhill bike but do the same thing to the swim and everyone loves it.