Daniela Ryf

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DFRU - Detta Family Racing Unit...the kids like it and we all get out and after it...gotta keep the fam involved!

There’s a ton of Euros and internationals on that start list!

How about Bart Aernouts?
He is a very strong cyclist.
And he can race well in the heat.

7:56 at Kona!
Also his win at 70.3 in Haines City is faster than it appears. It was pretty dam hot that day.

I would not put Long on the podium in that field.

He could win - sure - he could finish 6-8 with a decent race as well. It's a solid field.

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DFRU - Detta Family Racing Unit...the kids like it and we all get out and after it...gotta keep the fam involved!

For me:

1. Baekkegard
2. Long
3. Aernouts

Super stacked field.
But only 4 weeks between St. George and this is cutting it a bit close for some isn't it (st. george contestants)?
I would say favorites would be those more focused on the full distance. 2x Patrik will probably do well.

David McNamee's name stood for me as someone who could win it.

I would of had Skipper down as one of the main contenders a few months ago, but he had very average performances in Dubai & Galveston (or he would have if he finished). Nilsson is definitely a chance, he's put in good performances in big races before.

Loving having stacked fields of late. Hope IM does the same as ITU and limits the races for top tier pro's, maybe to just the championship races, so we see more battles between the big guns.

was thinking the same thing. maybe he's not had a good block of training, or just some bad luck, but it feels like he's under-performed a bit lately.

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____________________________________
https://lshtm.academia.edu/MikeCallaghan

http://howtobeswiss.blogspot.ch/

Gotta go with Potts for no other reason than he's one of the "older guys" in the field.

Agree - his race in Cancun was impressive. Have to wonder if the flat killed his motivation to push hard on the run.

 
1. Baekkegard

2. Long
3. Lange

Do we know how many Kona slots they are giving out for this race? A lot of perennial Kona guys on this start list with not too many full distance pro fields left.

The podium in no particular order:
Lange
Long
and the only non-long person: McNamee

The Scot may be a bit of a punt, but he didn’t do well at St. George, which in addition to that bike course may have been a matter of prepping for the long (and Long, and Lange) Tulsa.

Plus, I just like him.

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"FTP is a bit 2015, don't you think?" - Gustav Iden

Lange
Long
Whoever

Tulsa with 4900ish feet of climbing is a stronger mans course. That means Long. If Lange can deal with that he will be hard to beat on the run. If Long can run its his to lose.

My pick as No1 is Rasmus Svenningsson. He did a sub 8 solo in training last summer and seems to be in good shape.

I see rasmus as a dark horse too. Had a stellar run in Dubai as well and I believe he is even stronger on the LC.

Baekkegard
Long
Svenningson

This is a good pick. Didn’t he win that crazy sprint finish in Dubai? I think they all ran like 1:09 there too.

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https://twitter.com/mungub

I also hear there are a lot of cracks in the road there, making it even more of a strong man’s race: maintaining momentum over those cracks is something Sam is used to after two months of training down in Tucson. If his 2:38 marathon which was in 49+ mph insane winds is any indicator, I’d say he can run… if his 1:11 last week in StG wasn’t proof

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wovebike.com | Wove on instagram

Rasmus is a former high level nordic skier. My pick for the win. ;-)

I think it's Patrick Lange, Sam Long, or Joe Skipper. However, it's a crap shoot because the field is soooo good. It will be interesting to see what kind of form Lange is in to start the season. He is usually not at his best form coming out of winter but he is who he is. It should be a good race.

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http://dontletitdefeatyou.blogspot.com

wait a sec ... I'm starting to think you're a fan of Sam.

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____________________________________
https://lshtm.academia.edu/MikeCallaghan

http://howtobeswiss.blogspot.ch/

Lange’s Challenge Canaria race was OK.. we’ll see!

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wovebike.com | Wove on instagram

*and Rudy

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wovebike.com | Wove on instagram