Jan Frodeno
12%
Mark Allen
36%
Craig Alexander
22%
Chris McCormack
1%
Dave Scott
23%
Luc Van Lierde
3%
Freddy Van Lierde
0%
Normann Stadler
1%
Other
2%

I'm not surprised that this fantasy Kona race is a three-way contest between Crowie, Allen and Scott.
I don't think technology is diluting the effort of today's top pros, but I don't think we're seeing harder efforts either. Humans reach limits, and it typically takes a large change in technology, technique, or freak anatomy to beat this. Swimming is perhaps the clearest example of this: 2000s bodysuits and people with weird genetics broke/break records, while all the practice in the world doesn't help those trying to medal in a standardized sport (it would help most triathletes though).
Anyway, keen to hear why any of you voted for any of these people.

No Peter Reid in the poll?

No Peter Reid in the poll?

No Peter Reid in the poll?

it's worth noting that the draft zone when those guys raced was MUCH shorter, though the field was also smaller. Just saying that it's not clear that they would have gone any faster on today's equipment.
Because it's today's equipment AND today's drafting rules.
John Howard's 5:03, out-riding the field by 40min+ in 1981 is a great example. "Can you imagine how much faster he would have gone on today's equipment?"
Actually, can you imagine how much slower he would have gone if he hadn't been drafting off a media van with its doors open...
Rules are a huge part of records. As a swimmer, you should be especially aware of this. Breaststroke especially. Are guys faster? Or is it that they can dolphin kick off the wall now? Or, if you want to go really far back, is it because they can actually put their head under water.
I'm not saying Mark or Dave wouldn't have been faster. But it's not exactly apples:apples, for a variety of reasons.
It takes a lot of aerodynamic advancement to make up for being able to ride at say 5m or 7m instead of 12m...

I voted for MA. I'd have liked to have voted for Dave Scott (BTW, he had his nose in the wind all day in '89, same for the swim, and still went 8:10), but I doubt he would take full advantage of the aero gadgets we have today (he's not a "go to the wind tunnel (WT)" kinda guy....just gets some "good" equipment and trains/races hard).

John Howard's 5:03, outriding the field by 40min+ in 1981 is a great example. "Can you imagine how much faster he would have gone on today's equipment?"
Actually, can you imagine how much slower he would have gone if he hadn't been drafting off a media van with its doors open… //

You got a couple things mixed up here, I only know because i was actually out there in front of john for the first 60 miles or so. I think you are referring to they year before race where he went a 4;28 ride i believe. There was a camera van, but also people were able to have personal feed vehicles move along with them. John of course knew the benefits of drafting, while the rest of the field were pretty green in that respect. I think it is safe to say that a 4;28 on Ohau, with a road bike, spoked race wheels, open course where you were supposed to obey traffic lights and signs, was draft aided.
The 81 course where he went 5;03 was a pretty legit ride, except that it was even faster than that. A couple stops to weigh in and a longer than 112 mile
course, puts him in the mid 4;50+ range. He really had no van for the first 40% of the ride since he was so far back in the field, having swam a 1;12 or so. When he caught me at havi, he was all alone and picked up the van that was driving behind us, except to get the occasional shot. They only had a couple vans back then, so they really had to move around to get all their shots of leaders and special interests. Once they got those, they would just speed off and go get the next one. So I'm pretty confident that John did his own ride that day, probably cleaner than anyone does today, as he had "no" help from any other riders.
Keep in mind he was one of the best riders of that time in the world, and was just a hair away from his riding prime. He did not beat us by 40 minutes either, closer to 30 minutes. And if you saw what was on my bike, you would see that my cda would have been something like a 300lb guy, so not surprising he beat me by a half hour. I was certainly better than that, but given the "huge" equipment difference between us, kind of surprised it was not more really.
I remember him pulling his bottom bracket and wheel hubs apart just before the race and taking out the holders. He would put in loose bearings, then just a little sewing machine oil after polishing the surfaces. You could hear the clicking, just barley like a knob on a safe turning. He had radial laced wheels, something we never even dreamed about, and super light frame materials. My bike loaded up was probably 32 to 35 lbs, his was probably 19.
Hell, if you do all the math and plug in all the variables like you guys do today, I may have even out rode him!! But honestly, I did the course with him one day a few weeks out, and it was all i could do to stay on his wheel after the first 35 miles, then he popped me at about 95 or so. 3 years later we were both on relays where the 1st prize was $5k,(2nd was cheapie cameras) and I rode within 20 seconds of his 40k tt.(his runner was Tom Hunt, the WR holder in the 10k at the time at low 28, but my team won! Had Greg Meyer who just ran a 2;09 flat at Boston, epic run battle. Need to write that story some day) Gotta love those early days where you improved almost every day, and the learning curves were really curved!!

So, was the 4:28 in 1980 and the 5:03 in '81,//

It was this one. And Jordan was right in that the draft zones were smaller, but he was wrong about the fields being smaller. Back then any and all pros could just pitch up and do the race, usually over a 100 guys, i think 150+ one year. And they had to also race the fast AG'ers, as there was just the one start, but that really only affected the swim. Things got sorted our very quickly, and pros were at the front.

It could be he means the lead groups were smaller, and that was hit and miss. They certainly were huge early in the ride, but thinned out by havi, pretty much like they do today. I think Jordan has a kind of misrepresented view of what actually happened back then, I saw where he chimed in where Mark Allen was the last guy to win the swim/bike/run splits and win the race. I guess if you don't count the dozen guys that beat him in the swim, or on the bike(they of course were not top 10 overall, so you really have to look for those splits). Looking at the top 10 and their splits really does not tell you how crowded or competitive the race was because so many that were in the thick of it, just dropped out or fell to very low placings(me for example) (-;

Monty is slower. Monty is an avowed 650 rider. He hates all this new fangled stuff with big wheels.

No Kidding. 3 wins, 3x runner up, 1x third place. That's got to be up there!

Agreed, should definitely be considered before Macca

Ya Reid should be listed but i don't think he would be changing the overall results, i.e. cause Mark not to be first and Dave second:)

Personally, for me, it would go: Mark, Dave, Crowie, Peter (Only Crowie over Peter because he has the record... everyone else =). Where does Jan rank? Around with everyone else who has won it once. In a few years maybe we can see about moving him up a few spots!