Ok, Much in the same was as the men results posted yesterday I applied the same 4 race average and number of wins correlation and got the top 10 greatest Hawaii Ironmen of all time as:
Since a lot of these have retired this is unlikely to shuffle for a while although Reid and Bowden could ascend.
Bear in mind this is purely mathematical what do you think ?
PNB definately the best of the best! Do you think Badmann will get 8? She is in mid 30s right now, her time may run out. I agree that TDB should be on there somewhere, I think we will see more wins from him in the future. This year could of been an Ironwar if he didnt have kidney stones, but maybe we will have PR vs TDB showdown next year? Cant wait til October.
Going on scores TDB and smyers are about even although as of now Karens track record at Kona is marginally more consistent (even though TDB has 2 wins). I imagine at this years race he’ll podium at least.
Tinley just has an amazing carrer with a list of results that go on and on. I wonder if Van Lierde will ever get it back ?
Paula is an outstanding athlete, but a very poor sport. I was a spectator at Kona '95 and was so disappointed with her. Please rebuff me on this if I’m wrong - I knew nothing about triathlon at the time - watching Kona was my first experience, which is why I’m addicted today.
But…as news crews surrounded her, the group of them blocked other runners (who were coming in at a very respectable time) from getting through the course. Many of us were yelling at the cameramen to get out of the way, and Paula seemed to love the attention (since she no longer had the race) and not care that she was blocking other athletes from their finishes. And I swear I saw her take aid from people on the course - someone helped her up and she took some water. My memory could have faded a bit and/or I could have misunderstood, but I walked away with a bad taste in my mouth for Paula, and a lot of respect for Karen, who blew by one of the sports legends to win, only to listen to the loudspeaker go on and on and on about what a bad day Paula had, and “oh by the way, our winner today is Karen Smyers, but poor Paula…”
Feel free to tell me to shut up - I just feel better getting that out of my system!
Why a 4 race average? Once again, Hellriegel has been overlooked. IMO he should be number 4 on your list. Consistency, longevity, and race spirit should count for something. When he decides to pack it up, “Hell on Wheels” will have one of the most admirable careers in recent Ironman history.
irongeek
I agree with you ie her personality and I have noticed some problems as you mentioned. I attended a triathlon camp which had several pors as staff her, rob mackle, paul huddle, john howard and a couple of others. During the camp she answered very few questions had minimal participation and a funny personality. That being said I do admire her for her accomplishments and he is talking ie results not personal issues. I agree it was a shame the anouncer and cameras focused on her instead of other deserving racers be it pro or age group. Just my .2cents