6:50. I wanted in the water and a clean start and got an awful lot of 500 yard heroes. Once I made it to the first turn buoy things got significantly better.

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Editor-in-Chief, Slowtwitch.com | Twitter

This was basically my experience as well. I started up at the front (race tracker says I got in the water at 6:50:16) and was anticipating a high-20s swim time. There was so much kicking and shoving. I swam over a few people who clearly shouldn't have started that early. A few who started off strong and faded within 200 yards and I went right over top of them. I purposely rolled over a few people who were veering way off course and forcing me off course with them. Ended up with a disappointing 31 minutes.

The bike course was FANTASTIC... for one lap. Raced that first lap strong, but right away on the second lap I started getting jammed up. It was difficult to try to ride 24-25mph when people next to me were moving more like 17 or 18 and being passed by people doing 20. I lost time on that second lap. Then the third was an epic clusterfuck. People everywhere. I hit the very back of the first lap traffic (literally saw people entering the highway from the connector bridge while I was starting my third lap). People on their second were now passing people on their first, and I was passing all of them. By the time I got off the expressway I breathed a massive sigh of relief that I didn't crash into anyone. That course had TOO many people on it for the three lap concept, and the amount of available roadway was just too narrow to accommodate.

Rain started a little when I hit mile 50 or so, and was actually raining by the time I finished the bike.

I had a killer run though and won't complain about that. Maybe mostly because I ended up 20 watts off-plan because I simply had no ability to keep pushing the goal watts on the second and third lap of the bike.

Also I am not sure I liked the idea that he never actually fixed the bike course. Last year it was 57 miles because it included the half mile on Bader Field. So he ended up moving the "exit" of transition to the exit of Bader field to make it a 56 mile course, but then we added that distance to transition. I analyzed my transition files and saw that both times I spent about 2:15 riding my bike which was part of my transition time. Had I been able to remove that 4:30 of total extra transition time I would have had a solid 60-90 second 70.3 PR. Not really a complaint, but just a bummer to realize that I missed out on a PR due to the bike course being a mile long.

You got in the water about 10 seconds behind me and came out about 45 seconds in front.

Loop 2 wasn't too bad just because there was still a steady stream of people just getting on for the first loop. I got a little nervous on the way back out the ACE when I saw the huge wreck on the other side of the highway (ambulance hadn't shown up yet). But that's when I should've hopped on with a couple of people who went by me there and navigated with them - they put 4+ minutes into me in that last 15 or so of the bike. Think it was just mental fatigue of trying to bushwhack your way through that many people for that long period of time.

I said this elsewhere, but I stand by it: I would pay an extra $100-$150 to have 800 fewer people on course and make up the revenue.

I too missed my PR by about 4 mins, which is about the length of time I spent in Bader. And that PR was on a slightly short course. Whatever. I still need to figure out why I was so completely messed up by the end of that race.

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Editor-in-Chief, Slowtwitch.com | Twitter

In the end this is the biggest issue with this race. The swim venue is pretty good. The bike course itself isn't that bad. And I really do love the boardwalk run. But the crowding on the three loop course is just not appropriate. Either he needs to cut the race off at 2000 (instead of 2800), or figure out a different bike course that doesn't do 3 loops and put fast cyclists on the road with medium-speed cyclists AND slower cyclists all at once on a narrow road with a bunch of turns and some rough pavement.

I am not sure what happened with that big crash but I went by it not long after it happened and then when I had come around from the AC turnaround I saw the ambulance was there.

I mean, at the end of the day, I don't know whether the participant cap is a DelMo thing or a WTC thing. And I don't know what his agreement is with the licensing deal, whether it's predicated on a percentage of participants versus revenue, etc. In theory, there are two lanes open - the breakdown lane and the lane of travel, with the rumble strip separating them.

Honestly the worst section of the course for "oh shit" moments for me was the residential road without painted lines on it just before the left-right chicane. People riding four across sitting up chatting with one another on loop 3.

I think 2000 people would work on the existing course. I think we can get close on the revenue side of the equation. But then it's a matter of whether the contracts/caps deal with that kind of thing.

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Editor-in-Chief, Slowtwitch.com | Twitter

I thought the race was great yesterday. It was my first AC 70.3, and my only annoyance was, as others have said, the crowded bike course. I was fairly FOP for the bike, and that last loop was tough.

It would have been less tough if people actually said “on your left” but that’s a different post.

I thought the first half of the run was kind of boring, but the back half was really entertaining. I can’t imagine doing that course when it’s sunny.

I’m surprised so many people are saying the swim was bad. I went in with the 26-35 min save, and had minimal contact and sighting issues. Just one guy who wouldn’t get the fuck off me. I tried to swim away from him several time and and he kept right on top of me. I finally gave his face/neck a solid scratch and was able to lose him. If that was you, sorry not sorry.

Don't get me wrong or get the wrong impressions from my couple of posts above. I had a fantastic race yesterday. But for the long transition ride, that was a PR day for me. This is a great place to put on a race, but a few things should be addressed to make it perfect. Mostly the issue is crowding on the bike course.

The run is a total hoot all day when it's a nice day out. The boardwalk is full of clueless people who have no idea what's going on. The ones that figure it out end up cheering for you even though they have nothing to do with the race. The section near the casinos is always filled with the typical Jersey Shore characters. It's a fun place to race for sure. And the boardwalk invites fast running as it's such a forgiving surface to run on.

I think part of my mistake was attempting to start middle-left and cut that initial run into water short. Should've gone right hand side as it seems like it was more open (and with the way the current shook out, shorter). That said, I was one more ankle grab to get pulled backwards by somebody I kept repassing from quitting. It wasn't fun. This is supposed to be fun.

I think I yelled on your left about 400 times. 90% of the time, this resulted in the person moving even further to their left -- especially the last time through.

Having been on the boardwalk when it's 85+ and sunny...nope. No. Never again.

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Editor-in-Chief, Slowtwitch.com | Twitter

Man, I'm glad to hear other people had slow swims -- I would have started in the first 20-30 seconds but couldn't get to the front of the corral and ended up starting about 6:53, but was still surprised that I was some 2m over my usual time.

Didn't find the bike course too bad, but it was getting there by loop 3 -- I didn't encounter any social groups, but there were a number of people hanging out on the left side of the lane (and some who were all over at the AC turnaround and some of the turns on the loop).

Would definitely do more races in cool drizzle.

I'm not sure if it was that crash or another one, but I was talking to a guy from ?Peru who crashed when someone didn't hold their line and went right into him and he went into multiple cones and went down. He said he usually averages 26-27 mph and wasn't happy with the skill level he saw on the course. DNF with an ambulance ride/stitches/AB etc but not seriously injured, fortunately for him.

I had a lady just bump right into me because she couldn't control her bike, just turned into me as I passed, when she had no one in front of her. We bumped shoulders which wasn't a big deal for me other than startling me, but she wobbled a bit and almost went down.

My plan was to be super defensive at EVERY turn and expect that someone would drift off their line or generally not control their bike. And then push past them at the earliest possible moment.

Those matches were worth it.

i did it last year and it did get hot on the boardwalk, very hot. and it was an entertaining run. in Ventnor/Margate, there were families out cheering us on. on the boardwalk were a lot of senior citizens walking or with their bikes, despite the signs telling them otherwise. then when you get back to AC, there's the toothless people cheering us, a few folks just walking through the course was annoying, especially with their cigars. and definitely some Jersey shore characters along the way. almost expecting Snookie and the Situation to pop out from a casino.

did the race last year and liked it. some of the same comments as mentioned before, i'm a BOPer and found the bike to be a bit rough. part of the AC expressway is closed, we have our own lane, but maybe another would be helpful. i was averaging about 18-19 mph overall and was definitely passing a lot of people as people we passing me. with choppy roads, people were definitely not holding a line well. especially at the hairpin turn on the highway, a guy actually went too wide and tried to come back and came right in front of me and a few others. pretty stupid and selfish.

Lots of talk trashing Delmo. he's a good guy. met him at a few races and the guy is dedicated to making the race better and cares about all 2800 equally, from the top finisher to the last across the line. its a very welcoming race and given its flat, makes beginner friendly. it used to be a 1 loop course but the residents shut that down as it interfered with people getting to the airport. id love it if he could find a way to make it two laps, with that, there'd be a lot less congestion. lots of that is because it takes a long time to get people in the water. He definitely has a fan club and are very dedicated to him, as he does put on good and welcoming races.

i'm planning on going back in 2019

My first 70.3 experience yesterday. Led out of the water by a considerable margin (I'm not expert on the matter but that didn't seem like the safest way to start a race, and I got in the water first). Soloed the first lap of the bike before the slowdown with the 2nd and 3rd loops started. I know all of the difficulties of finding a 56 mile bike course with two or less loops, but if you can only have one lane of a highway to handle 2800 bikers on a 3 loop course, I don't think you should be hosting a half-ironman. Passing on the left became super dangerous with (as other people have mentioned) riders chatting three across and then a Ford F-150 speeding by at 80 mph a few feet from me on my left. A couple groups of riders passed me and I always lost them after a couple of miles with them willing to take extra risks on passing slower cyclists and turns, but I'm happy to have stayed upright all race without any mechanical issues. I was not crazy about some of those roads on the back stretch either with pot holes/terrible pavement. Again, this is my first 70.3 so not sure about what the typical rate of crashes is, but it seemed like there were a lot of riders down out there with serious injuries. I came off the bike in around 6th and just slogged through the run at a slow pace. I'm sure the boardwalk run would be great on a nice day, but with the rain I just felt heavy shoes and wanted it to be over. I appreciate all of the volunteers that were out there despite the weather and every aid station along the run gave me a little boost.
Overall, it was a learning experience for me, but don't think I'll be heading back next year. Time for an offseason filled with long bricks to make sure I have the legs for that half-marathon.

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The Gram: @agyenis
My latest story on Swimswam: More than a title

My 2 cents on yesterday. Bottom line ienjoyed it and glad I did it. I think this was my 29th half, many of them IM branded. This was better than many, although not the best on the planet. Specifically:

- I’m a big Delmonte fan. He knows his stuff, is a very experienced triathlete and race director. Many elements of his race are high value. The camp option is great. The live tracking amp was the best mrs c ever used...he is very accessible, cares and is open to feedback. He is one of the best RDs I’ve ever met.

-The bike course is a problem, that many have detailed here. The 2nd/3rd laps with high Newbie concentration. Some Uber cyclists (Zwifties playing outside?j were taking too many risks in my view. The rain made some of the pavement/man hole covers sketchy, etc. Steve knows this area very well having lived down here all his life and having staged an IM on the same venue. I’m sure he is aware of the issues and given it continues his options may be limited. That said, if you were careful, backed off here and there, and played defense you could go fast and be safe. That was my experience and at one level, my legs felt a bit better in T2 and the bike seemed to go by fast due to all the “problem solving”.

-I found the swim to be just fine. I was slower than I expected. I’d like to think it was the current, but it probably was me needed to swim harder than I did.

-the transitions are big. I thought allowing us to ride through it was a workable solution. I know PR seekers might not like it, but at 61 it’s not much of an issue for me. I do think maybe you could take the bike out the run out exit and shorten Transitions by 2-3 minutes. Not sure how that affects the other logistics though.

-run is awesome (not mine, it always sucks, but the course) and I loved the rain.

-all in all I liked it a lot. I appreciate still being able to do these things. Thanks to Steve, my fellow competitors, and all the volunteers and spectators. You certainly made my day!

rc

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Randy Christofferson(http://www.rcmioga.blogspot.com

Insert Doubt. Erase Hope. Crush Dreams.

Also seeing a conversation about how many flats there were. I'm going to guess that it just felt like the frequency was high because of the multiloop bike course - it just feels like you have a bunch more incidents despite them not actually increasing relative to your average bike course.

I think I told somebody on my final loop on that stretch of pavement that I needed a new ass. There was a single line on the back side there that was the middle third of the lane that worked. Sadly, it appeared everybody who was blocking/not passing was also in that stretch of the lane at that point of time.


A 1:40 run still isn't "slow." It's slow relative to the front of the field (I feel your pain, I had a whole host of people blow my doors off on the run) but it's certainly not truly "slow." I honestly don't see a ton of utility in long bricks (you lose the physiological benefit after a while) and so I would instead just look at run frequency/volume.

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Agree.

Andrew, this being your first half it was your first taste of running LONG off the bike. That's a hard skill to learn, and mostly just comes from experience. Long bricks have their place for certain, like 3hr bike + 50 minute run. But I wouldn't concentrate on sessions like that, or do more than one or two in prep for a 70.3. That brick run is not usually of good quality after a ride, and you are better off building your run fitness as run fitness. The vast majority of your ability to run well off the bike comes from just being able to run well in the first place coupled with strong cycling fitness.

Just looking at timing data from SportStats, it looks like I passed you on that last leg after the far turnaround at mile 10.5. Your swim obviously lead the pack, and you threw down a solid bike split. What is your bike fitness like? And what is your run fitness like? What is your half marathon PR? It's one thing to throw down a 2:19 split, and another to back that up with an equally strong run. Doing both requires strong fitness in both areas

This was my first 70.3. I just want to make a few comments for those reading this thread and considering this race for next year.

Despite the descriptions of the swim for the front runners on this thread, some who are describing kicking, pulling and swimming over people, I found the swimmers at the back to be the most polite group I've ever swam with. If ever someone even gently brushed up against me they apologized to me. At one point I saw two swimmers just in front of me bump each other and they both stopped to apologize to each other. It made me smile. Also if you don't want to be knocked into at all, it was easy to stay just a little wide. Finally the swim went clockwise this year and that eliminated the "treadmill" buoy that was described in other years.

Since I was a slow swimmer I had the opposite experience of the front runners on the bike too. The first half lap was a little crowded and then it got less crowded as my bike went on. I completely get that it would be frustrating for those that are in it to win it - but for the rest of us, just staying to the right is easy enough and I passed when I looked back and saw I had an opening. I'm a decent bike handler and was on my road bike so maybe that made a difference but I didn't have any trouble.

The run is mostly on the boardwalk and I liked that the second half was in the area that had more activity. The runs around the piers were especially enjoyable. It rained on me for almost the entire bike and run but I finished with a smile on my face.

As for those blasting Stephen Delmonte, I can't be accused of being a fan boy as this is my first DelMoSports event. I got the impression that he and his crew worked hard to create the best event they could and overall I thought the event was well run. Sure there are little things that could be improved upon (spreading out the swim start times signs to give everyone one more room at the start is an easy fix for example). Yes the bike course would be even better if it only had 2 loops instead of 2.5 loops or had fewer people. But the swim course in the back bay was great and if you like running on a boardwalk this could be the event for you.

Congratulations on your first 70.3!!!


I for one found the 26 and under sign fun. I was talking to everyone in the corral about there being 200 people under that sign and that only 5-10 people would actually do it. A total of 7 people did...the 7th place person was a NCAA Division II swimmer and was about 80 seconds behind you.

My swim ended up at 35:02 a couple mins slower than I had hope. Only one dunk exchange along the way. (if you dunk me...I will dunk you back)

Bike course was fun! Shout out to the kids for BCYC that manned the aid station. If you want to learn more about the organization and donate click HERE. The kids work hard and deserve the support. Heck, they came all the way from Inner City Philadelphia to help us! (ST could honestly profile the work these kids, and this club are doing)


Note on the bike course. Yes there were unsafe passing conditions on the third lap, I was almost 1 mph slower on this lap. I also lost a bottle cage (The bolts rattled off and I had just tightened them the day before). The locking mechanism of my aerovault popped off from the rough vibrations on the course, and my straw came out of my aerovault (giant trinity advance pro 2 if you want to know what I am talking about). I spent the last 8 or so miles holding my aerovault in place so it would not contact my front tire and cause any issues. I know that contributed to my slower final lap. 2:30:01 for the bike. (Side note: bike computer had 57.2 miles, so a little over a half mile in and out of transition from the mount and dismount lines.)

The run course was great, support was never too far away, the squishy boards saved the knees, and the rain made overheating nearly impossible. I checked your run splits, it looks like you went out fine and faded on the run (I also suggest run volume increase to help with this...but it could have been anything). You were by no means slow on the run...just slow in relation to your strong swim and bike splits. I took it easy on the run as I knew I was going to attain my personal goal, so long as I didn't blow up. 1:35:48 while walking the aid stations.

4:49:51 - I know the weather and course probably made this one of the easiest 70.3's ever...but I couldn't be happier.

I race on the Cadence team, and had my obnoxiously bright blue Cadence Racing kit on yesterday. Those kids were SO AWESOME for recognizing the kit and shouting out to me for it every time I went through. I love what BCYC does to help these kids find a healthy activity and teach them about how awesome cycling is.

I think it's a little dishonest to call that a "closed bike course", like he does in his marketing of the race, when you have cars zooming by at 80 mph 3 feet away. He also calls it a "sheltered swim", leaving the impression that it's easy. So people sign up thinking it's an easy swim to only find out later about the crazy currents.

And that silly "get to ride the Atlantic City Expressway toll free", really annoys me. Maybe I just getting too old.

Can you DM me with some more information on that group?

They also kept recognizing me from my kit each time through and were super loud. Great group there.

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Editor-in-Chief, Slowtwitch.com | Twitter

Don’t disagree with that. We do have our own lanes but doesn’t mean cars aren’t out there on the expressway. Closed is tough to pull off because it absolutely shuts down the road. Maybe they could do what they do arc IMMT, shit down one side completely and have two way traffic on one side? That said, it’s only ~5 miles of road. IMMT has a transnational highest shut down for 16 miles in one direction.

The swim - it’s open water, sheltered is easier than an ocean swim. Definitely need to be stronger than you’d think on that course

I appreciate the feedback. I did the whole ITU junior circuit in high school and this is my first year back after a 6-year hiatus where I focused on swimming exclusively. I was a 15:30 5k guy in high school so I know I have the speed, but you are correct in that I need to build up my run fitness. I'm self-coached right now (it's always been difficult to find a good coach that has a strong knowledge of swim training IMO, as I want to maintain that as my weapon) and I would say I trained this summer more for an olympic race with long runs of 8-10 miles and 40-50 mile rides in the DC area. With taking 6 years off of running and being a bit on the larger size (I'm 6'3 and 190 right now), I was also super cautious about my run mileage, and I'm proud of not missing a single day of training this year do to any injuries.
In terms of numbers, I can put out 392 watts for 20 min and I'm in form to go around 4:34 for a 500 yard free right now. In my biggest volume week I was at 5 sessions in the pool of 4,000-4,500 yards each, four rides for a total of 8.5 hours in the saddle, and four run sessions for a total of 35 miles.

Congrats to you on a solid all-around race; it looks like you closed really well on the run based on your splits. If anyone is ever in the DC area and looking to get a workout in, let me know!

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The Gram: @agyenis
My latest story on Swimswam: More than a title

I was right behind that crash. I was almost a part of it myself. From what I saw a guy tried to pass a slower group of 2 wide and hit the cones. Space was way too tight to pass in my opinion. He took out about 3-4 others, and one poor girl had blood pouring out of her mouth. She may have lost a few teeth. The guy that caused the crash could barley move. I stopped to help clean up the bikes and move them to the side of the road so no-one else hit them. Was pretty gnarly.

I agree , that bike course needs to be adjusted or limit participants. Too many riders and not enough space. And good bike handling skills are pretty much non existent in that race.

So it was the stronger rider making the pass that caused the accident by attempting a pass where there was no space?

I was right there and saw the blue quintana roo go down hard but I don't know if I could assign blame.