Yes. Correct. Here in Germany. All triathlons. All distances. All levels. All on closed roads.
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Embrunman in France is about half the price of Ironman and you won’t feel at all that you are in a discount race. Nice swim, Cycle in nice French countryside and run in small town supported by fans.
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Yeah. Did the Olympic distance when they had one in the 90s. The long is on my bucket-list. Maybe in 2026!
I also lived in France for 25 years. Have probably done at least 150 triathlons around the country.
Maybe the best country in the world to be a triathlete. IMO. Events, club structure, training facilities. Germany is very, very good too.
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The only one outside of the U.S. that I know of that has closed roads is Ironman Switzerland.
I’ve never heard of a European Ironman that doesn’t close the roads.
I’ve done Hamburg, Italy and Barcelona all on closed roads.
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Also. If you’re in France or Germany. Or travelling there. Look for the lesser known Olympic Distance events. Run by clubs, towns or small promotiions companies. Closed roads. Old school vibes. Do one every week. Gun to tape. Ironman is so 1978.
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Have said it before and again - the cost of hotel + air travel usually far exceeds the cost of the Ironman event. Even hotel alone with driving often far exceeds it. I drove to HIM Palm Springs 3 years ago, and stayed in a Best Western for 3 days and that bill alone was around $1100 just for the hotel. I didn’t even blink at the cost of the race.
I’m not that price conscious for HIM/IM races where I might do like 2 a year. I’m only slightly price conscious for local races, mainly because I can pick between several during fall/summer here, so I do tend to avoid the ones that are priced a lot higher since I don’t have a particularly better/fun experience at them. But if there were only one choice I wouldn’t care about the race fee either.
Triathlon is a kindy pricey sport once you’re into it.
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I love the Michigan Titanium. Sadly, 2026 will be the last year for the full distance triathlon.
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And you also qualify for your very own World Championship race.
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Joe McMahon, my new hero!
“I said, ‘the bottom line is, when the royalty gets out of control, the peasants revolt,'” McMahon says with a laugh. “And there it is: Peasantman.”
Nicely done Joe. 
Actually, Embrunman is in the mountains, rather than countryside: the total climb is around 5000 meters. Besides, France has, at least, 5 or 6 more independent Iron distance races
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I would include everything:
used bike - $300-500 + aerobars, pedals, accessories = $700
running shoes = $50
wetsuit = $150
goggles = $30
Race kit = $80
gym membership = $300 for the year
Nutrition = $50/mo = $450
(i would not include travel cost or entry fee, similar for everyone). Point was to highlight how it’s not about how much you can spend on training, but how much you train.
I also think buying a bunch of gear is a big barrier to getting more people into the sport.
I will be at MiTi for the full - indie races are a soapbox issue for me and although we’re clearly losing the war, if I’m going to take that stance, I gotta show up and race.
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Hate to say it but you make a huge error by omitting race hotel and travel fees. That’s the real killer. It’s definite not close to similar for everyone. One international race or even one flight domestic race and a lot of peoples budgets are busted.
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$700 for a used bike? But what kind of quality and reliability would that be?
And just curious what running shoes cost $50? I can’t remember the last time I paid under $100 for a pair of running shoes unless they were some big closeout sale
I’ve never seen a gym membership for $300 a year but it could just be the location. That sounds too good to be true and includes a lap pool?
I am not knocking this but these costs seem unrealistic for many people.
You can do triathlon on the cheap but if you want to be competitive, it’s realistically going to cost more. That’s just the sad reality. If I added up everything I paid for triathlon the last 11 years of doing 16x70.3 and 6xIMs I could have probably put two kids through ivy league schools (I don’t have kids). Crazy and maybe I could have done it cheaper but admittingly wanted good top end gear like most of us. ETA: I also paid a great deal in coaching fees over the years
No offence to Consultri but that is just a terrible list. If you’re that cash-strapped, it’s insane to spend money on nutrition other than salt and sugar. Better get a bike helmet for 1/3rd the amount, so you don’t get killed by a minor crash or prevented by officials from racking your bike in T1, and unless you’re super hot, a swimsuit/jammers so you don’t swim naked 
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There are definitely ways to save money, and I do think some people have a knack for finding good deals on equipment/gear/race clothing.
I will put in a plug for Team Zoot as I have gotten some really great deals being part of the team. While my Helix Blueseventy wetsuit cost me around $900 (no team discount), I was able to buy a sleeveless Zoot wetsuit for $137 through the team. And it turned out to be my favorite wetsuit. And I purchased a Garmin Edge 1050 for the cost of the cheapest one. There are definitely ways to save money in this sport.
But if money is a true limiting factor, marathon running or pure open water swimming will cost significantly less money.