It is, indeed, a sweet race. I've done it 2 or 3 times, IIRC, and it's always a great race. One of my favorites, actually.

It's important, however, to hold your line in the swim, otherwise you'll end up 50 meters off-course (like I always do) because of the currents. Also, finishing on the sand super sucks. You spend 5 hours cruising and going fast and then all of a sudden your at max heart rate running 15 minute miles.

I did the first one they had (I'm usually doing Pac Grove that weekend and am not going to "double"). Overall it's a great scenic race. The swim is out and around the pier, so sighting is easy, and the water is not too choppy, but typically NorCal cold. The bike spends most of its time on Hwy1, so you constantly have great ocean views. It's windy and rolling, but reasonably fast. There are no serious sustained climbs (like in Wildflower). The run starts and finishes on the beach by the Boardwalk. There's a slight hill as you go from the beach to the bluffs (again, great views), but the course is generally quite flat. The year I did it, my two complaints were a mismeasured swim (about 1.75 mi., not 1.2...are we there yet?), and the lack of post race support. They had a band playing and a nice Luau theme, but no first aid/med, very little water, and the post race food was a 1/3 banana and orange wedge (limit one per finisher...no joke). I'm assuming/hoping these minor issues have been fixed.

The fact it's in Santa Cruz means family members have fun stuff to do while you're out on the course, and public showers and bathroom changing areas are nearby. You can also get a funnel cake and ride a wooden roller coaster if so inclined.

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ECMGN Therapy Silicon Valley:
Depression, Neurocognitive problems, Dementias (Testing and Evaluation), Trauma and PTSD, Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)

I did it the year the swim was long too. I've done it twice, but not for like 4 or 5 years now. I'm going back this October. One thing I remember is the headwind on the out of the bike, and the tailwind coming back in. Agreed the sand finish did suck. I always wished they'd at least put flags along the course in the sand, as I found myself running between beach goers and kids as I looked for the finish.

I've done or watched friends race it almost every year. I think its a good race - what do you want to know?

The swim the 1st year was long but not 1.75. I'd guess 1.4 if you swam straight.

Dave

nice race, but not flat and fast as is advertised. It is not super hilly, but there are a few out of your saddle climbs- and last year the wind sucked. The swim was long...but it was a beautiful course.

The swim, although sometimes long, is around the pier. Great for spectators. Be prepared for the cold water though, especially since the race is a month later than past years.

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Warning: Dates in Calendar are closer than they appear.

This year PG tri is Sept 12th-13th (Oly/Sprint) and the SC tri is Oct 25th. Kind of thinking of doing the SC tri, it's one month prior to IMAZ, might be a good time for final hard push before I start a taper. You doing PG tri?

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my triathlon/motorsports blog

Yeah, I noticed that they moved Big Kahuna this year, so no more conflict.

I'm still deciding if I'm going to do PG or not. Luckily these don't sell out the way they used to, so I can decide last minute. If I do it I'll be the guy on the yellow and black Titanflex beam bike with a rear disc and a 60mm up front (have a 90mm, but probably not best for the crosswinds coming off the Pacific).

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ECMGN Therapy Silicon Valley:
Depression, Neurocognitive problems, Dementias (Testing and Evaluation), Trauma and PTSD, Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)

Black C-dale Slice, and blue and black zoot tri suit. M35-39.

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my triathlon/motorsports blog

I rode the course up to the lighthouse today - the wind was absolutely ridiculous.

Just to add, swim to T1 is at least 1/3 of a mile running on sand then pavement/sidewalk. Not foot friendly; some folks left shoes to get to T1.

Cheers!

I think it is a great race, but I am sort of biased since I grew up there and I can stay with my mom for the race. The course is beautiful and relatively fast. Both the bike and the runs are out and backs and about 6 miles of the run are along ocean cliffs.

It is a smaller, low-key race so they can't afford the kinds of massive support that you would expect to see in the larger races (IIRC three aide stations on the bike and 5 on the run), but it also means the course isn't as crowded.

I am taking advantage of the fact that early bird price ended in March and am not going to sign up till the last minute.

Some tips I've gathered:

Don't get your hopes up for the expo the day before, and don't plan on buying anything you might need for the race.

The transition area is first come / first to rack, so get there early if you want to good spot. That being said, it is a small race, so there really aren't bad spots.

The end of the swim to transition is a long run on sidewalk. Takes about two minutes, but I don't think shoes are worth it unless you have very sensitive feet.

Nine days out of ten you will see a headwind on the first half of the bike.

Watch out for the rail road tracks at about 12 miles on the bike (and the way back). They are at a pretty shallow angle to the road and someone always eats it there.

Kiss the tiki at the run turn around for good luck. Somewhere in the forums is the story of someone who went pee on the tiki and paid for it big time on the run back.

Sounds great, thanks for the info guys. Any ideas on places to stay?

I have done it about four times and really enjoy it. Might just be my favorite half IM course out there. Just can't do it this year due to schedule. I think having it later this year will result in less wind on the bike course. Typically coastal winds calm down in late Oct. Tons of hotels to stay at but I usually stay at place right across street from Depot Park which is transition area. I would try to find something near there so you can ride or walk to transition since parking can be a pain. Be prepared for expensive hotels in SC however. If you like ocean swims and scenic courses with killer views, you will like this race. Wish I could join you....

Great race, great scenery. Traffic on Highway 1 north of SC toward Pigeon Point can get a little dicey at times, but personally I have not had any issues. LIke another poster indicated you have to be careful with the railroad crossing at the paper plant north of Santa Cruz. I don't know what the weather will be like in late October as I have done the race 3 times in September. I think the air temp should be fine, maybe a little cool early on the ride. Water temp may be a degree or two cooler, but, hey, what's the difference between 58 and 56?

All in all a great half IM.

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Gary Clendenin (aka, "The Kid" or "G-man")

 
one of my favorite half ironmans!!!!! finish on the sunny beach in santa cruz!!!!!!! do it!!

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Isaiah 40:31 - Those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength, they will soar on wings like eagles, they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not grow faint.

Also, if you have behind the seat cages, be careful that you don't launch a bottle. Not uncommon to have race officials in the area pegging abandoned equipment penalties to those who don't notice that they've lost a bottle.

Any recommendations for using a disc on the course?

Does anyone know if the winds are still pretty bad with the new October date? I'm thinking of doing it with my tt bike, but if it there are gusts coming from the side I might do it in my road bike so I can ride back much faster.
On my tt bike I may have to stay in my hoods for the majority of the way back if there are strong gusts(I'm not too confident going over 35-40mph in the aerobars with big gusts as I'm only around 125 lbs and I haven't put that many miles on the tt bike).

You will be faster on a TT bike on that course. The windier the bigger the advantage.

I've never thought the winds were too bad re: gusts/handling. I'd ride a TT bike/disc without a worry.

When I lived in the SF area - seems like the winds were lighter from summer to fall, so on average I'd expect less winds with the new date.

October also = more chance of swell.

Dave

Never ran it but grew up in there, used to Surf pretty close to the pier, and worked at the Boardwalk. Great town, I've seen the route and its definately a scenic race, I have to get myself back there and do it.

Shameless plug for Norcal and of course my own business, I'll be out on Saturday at the expo providing free tech support and delivering rental/shipped bikes to out of town folks so stop by the booth and say hello. Will also be on course Sunday but hopefully I don't get to meet any of you there...unless you are stranded without a spare, then we'll likely meet.

Cool bike course, used to ride over there frequently pre-kids. It is actually less foggy later in the year so perhaps the calendar move means bright sunshine more likely.

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Cyclist turned multisport enthusiast. Human performance technologist and digital health expert in my day job.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/karletzel/
https://www.strava.com/athletes/karletzel

It is a cold swim(in Sept it was 55-56F). I didn't feel my feet running on the sidewalk to T1.
There was only 1 entrance/exit in transition and the racks were unassigned, you could save about 2 mins overall by getting there early and racking near that entrance.
The shoulder on PCH can be quite narrow, as a result some blocking is unavoidable(the road's busy).
Take food for the first 4 miles of the run. The year I did it there was none available in the first 3 aid stations. I was in one of the later waves.
The sun didn't appear until the last 3 miles(perfect !)
On the beach chose either dry soft sand and dodging sunbathers or wet hard sand and dodging waves.
Unique atmosphere, well worth doing.