ShivDoinidis wrote:

Does anyone know what "controversial" comments Starky said on the pro board @ Wanaka?

Audio of the panel is here, Starky from 20:20:


https://www.fitter.co.nz/fitter-radio/2019/2/17/episode-251-hannah-wells

Are you willing to transcribe or summarize a bit for us?

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Eliot
blog thing - strava thing

Basically the same old "runners cheat" argument with a bit of how Ironman wants to silence him which I think was a joke (hopefully).
Starts with how he revolutionized the sport of triathlon with his riding but nowadays somehow everyone is biking so damn fast and still running 02:40. When asked about whether Ironman is a running race he says something like:
Then the panel host says he likes him for being a straight shooter and asks him if he is not worried about troubles with the community to which Starky replies:

Thank you very much!

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Eliot
blog thing - strava thing

This is incredible.

That dude is one of the most pompous asses I have ever met in the sport. Just full of excuses too.

Exactly

He was on the NZ national news a day or so before the race. He was handing out medals at a kids tri which is part of the festival. He ranted on about kids needing to be competitive and winning. The tone was really off for a junior kids event I thought. Braden Currie followed him and he was classy and you could tell he was uncomfortable about the earlier comments. Very odd guy.

Couldn't agree more.

Braden Currie is a true class act. his prize giving speech was focused on how the best part of the event for him was seeing all the kids competing the previous couple of days.

wanaka had a 20m draft zone, from what i saw of the pros coming back towards me they were pretty spread out beyond that anyway (small field and hilly course). starky still couldn't win, from memory Braden passed him quite early on the run. good to have a bit of colour and personality in the sport though

FastFreddy: That dude is one of the most pompous asses I have ever met in the sport. Just full of excuses too.

JMike: Exactly



With all due respect, I would have to disagree. Starky is a welcome relief from what has become a watered down, politically correct world in which athletes (not just triathletes) have to say the right things. He speaks his mind, which I welcome. I'm no snowflake that is going to be offended by others words if they don't reflect my beliefs or opinions.

You do know the dude is the first American male to go sub 8 at the iron distance and was very badly injured in a vehicle vs bicycle accident and came back to win an Ironman (IM Louisville).

Maybe I'm biased because not only have I finished Louisville 2x but I've also been hit by a car while riding my bike.

I don't know.....maybe we'll just have to agree to disagree.

ETA: The way I see it, Starky doesn't make excuses. He is not built to be a runner. His only hope to win in most races is to build a big lead on the bike and hold on for the run. That is his only card to play. Sometimes it works.....sometimes (most of the time) it doesn't.

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Pink? Maybe. Maybe not. You decide.

Agree, more people speaking there mind rather than being nice!

Triathlon is too nice in general, sport needs controversy to sell these days unfortunately.

He's irrelevant as a contender for any race with a respectable field, regardless if the draft zone is 5, 10, 20 or 100m. A big mouth with a small resume means nothing.

If you buy Starky for what he's worth and sell him for what he thinks he's worth you'd be making a very good deal.

Starky is great for the Game. Does he talk trash. . .err. . .not as much as Wurfy and Wurfy isn't a serious Kona contender. I'd say that Starky gives a shit about the sport and about the people that are using it to better themselves. See the relationship with Marcus Cook.

I like Wurf and all...but he's trying to be Conor or Floyd in a non-contact sport that's full of nice people. How many of these guys do we have? Macca? I bet if Wurf showed up to Wanaka his comments would have been harsher.

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Washed up footy player turned Triathlete.

Interesting, my opinion is the exact opposite.

I like the way Wurf "trash talks", the way I liked Macca trash talking. IMHO, these guys' comments are a lot smarter and more "true" than Starky's.
For instance, if you listen to Wurf's interview at the PouwerPlay podcast when he talks about Lange/Dreitz at Kona, he pokes the other guys but IMO he's 100% right and not crying around.

To each his own.

If you think he's not crying, then you're biased. I have respect for both Starky and Wurf because they are elite athletes. Starky has had to battle to get back even a fraction of who he could have been. One of the best come back stories out there in line with Russell and Don's stories. So if you can't take his frankness, then I have no idea how you can take Wurf's,

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Washed up footy player turned Triathlete.

Actually your answer demonstrates that you are the one who is biased. You seem to appreciate Starky's comments because he's had an awful accident and terrible issues with his family.

While I 110% admire Starky's comeback and hope for the best for him and his son, this has nothing to do with the way he cries abut drafting zones, legal packs on the bike, etc etc etc.

And again, his crying is stupid IMHO because even if they changed the rules far more than he asks for, he would still not win any race with a deep field. I don't see that kind of attitude (or at least not as much) from Wurf.

Like I said, to each his own.

Well, you would agree that we're both biased? I actually like Wurf in general. He's got a great story himself.

But Wurf cries just as loudly.

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Washed up footy player turned Triathlete.

Those guys can say whatever they want. And there is truth to the fact that there was some drafting going on at Kona. The most blatant that I saw on the FB feed was Gomez. I don't remember seeing Lange drafting and the proximity of his teammate to him is not an indication of cheating IMHO, as long as that proximity is not within the draft zone.

BUT... Wurf saying things like he was the only one out there putting himself in a position to win is obviously a complete joke. Maybe he believes that but no one else with eyes believes that. And Starky also comes off as someone who feels that it's unfair that an endurance sport does not manufacture rules to benefit dudes built like tanks. He wants rules to be changed to fit his physiology... and I don't think any rule change would suddenly make him a legit kona contender.

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Ed O'Malley
www.VeloVetta.com
Founder of VeloVetta Cycling Shoes
Instagram • Facebook

I would argue that most (not all) Pros tend to speak their minds. They just happen to be nice people.

I’d rather be in a sport like that than a controversial “more interesting” one filled with jerks.

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Adam Feigh
Pianko Law, Speed Hound, Castelli, Sailfish, Base
Feighathlon.com

Because he's not a contender at big races his opinions are irrelevant? Does this mean Daniela Ryf gets to make the rules for any race she's in because she'll be the run-away favourite?

Of course Starky is going to want the rules to favour his style of racing, this isn't unique to triathlon. Sure, it might not mean he wins, but it will give him the best opportunity to maximize his strength. And FWIW I don't think an athlete has ever come out against the 20m draft rule, but plenty have supported it.

lol... wurf has come out and said how disappointed he was at Kona when starky seemed to deliberately try to find the motodraft at the front of the pack.

Starky in the past has accused wurf of being guilty by association because he trains with team sky.

Of course not, that's not what I said at all. My argument is that he poses himself as one of the (very few) best and he simply isn't.

And again, I don't mind that he is open (or more open than others) about his opinions, but in my book if you are going to trash talk your fellow athletes, at least back it up with some results. Macca did it. Starky doesn't even come close of doing it.

Starky will have a good chance if we get a 5km draft zone with a 30 second pass rule, and he comes out of the water first.