For this fall, I am considering entering either the Duke Blue Devil or the Great Floridian Full as my first foray into the world of Iron distance racing. I was wondering if anyone has done both or one of these races and could offer a comparison between the two races or share their thoughts on either race if they have only done one.
Just in case it matters, I am a better rider than runner and a better runner than swimmer.
Thanks -DB
I haven’t done the Duke race, but I have done the GF half. It is a fun, low key, fairly well run race. The roads are not great. You will be surprised at the hills. The major item to note is that it can be really hot on race day. Late October in Florida will have temperatures somewhere between moderate and boiling. Which one you get is a crap shoot, but the odds favor boiling.
One thing about GF is that the race doesn’t fill up, so you can make your choice at your leisure.
I’ve done GFT x2, GFT 1/2 once. Reasonable to expect a wetsuit swim, warm-hot humid bike with winds picking up around noon. There have been a number of bike courses over the years. Traditionally a NE loop first with 3 granny gear hills – steep short, some rollers – not what one would expect. The second loop, western, is mostly flat but some stiff headwinds provide a tough challenge. In 01 the last 12 miles there were headwinds in the 25-30 mph range. Rumor has it this year might be a double loop of the NE loop…you would be approaching LP like numbers in altitude gain.
The first 5-6 miles of the run has some hills to climb, after that its 3 relatively flat trips around the lake. It can get cool at night. Aide stations around the lake are party-like and well stocked. I’ve had a good time at the event each year. Worth the trip.
Last year the GFT full was indeed 2 laps of the first loop. Many folks got toasted on the bike; LOTS of short steep climbs.
I used the bike portion of the GFT relay last year as a volume day for IMFL and I enjoyed the day. That said, I would probably not do this race as a high priority race, despite the fact that it is almost in my backyard (2 hours).
One comment in general about races produced by Summer Sports (like GFT). I’ve done about a dozen of their races and I continue to be astounded by the lack of reasonable support in some important saftey areas. Specific examples:
Last year the temps during the Great Clermont Oly were about 95. A clyde friend of mine was the last guy out on the course. Literally. Yes he was slow, but by the time he got halfway thru the run, all the aid stations were un-manned and un-stocked. I went out to find him on my bike and had to relay water back to him so that he didn’t have a serious problem on the course.
Last year during the GFT full, my brother flatted 4 times and did not see any sag support for the last 3 hours that it took him to ride in the final 40 miles on a flat tire and a rim.
After completing the GFT in just over 17 hours, my brother crossed the finish line, puked a few times and announced that things were “fuzzy”. No surprise give what he went thru on the bike and considering that he didn’t do a good job with nutrition. No medical support around (you would think that the 17 hour finishers would be MOST in need of medical) so I went off to find someone. When I indicated to the Dr. that my brother was having some problems, he looked at his watch and announced that the race was over and there wasn’t much that he could do other than send him to the hospital. I prevailed on him to at least check my brother out and he kinda sighed like I was a huge pain in the ass for trying to see if my brother was checking out…
General comment on Summer Sports races, the post-race food sucks and is in short supply.
In the spirit of a customer trying to communicate some issues to the supplier, I have send emails to Fred Summer and/or completed their post-race feedback form for each and every one of these items and I never received a response from anyone.
This race does have a very nice, very low key, neighborhood feel. The St. Pete Mad Dogs water station during the run is supposed to be a hoot (usual theme is a haunted house) and you can sign up the week before.
Just my 2 cents. There is a very active discussion board and lots of race reports from several years. start at www.triflorida.com and you can find your way from there.
Ironstevie, I am sorry about your brother’s situation. But, I feel the need to support Sommer Sports.
I live in St. Pete and most of the races I compete in are by Sommer Sports. For a while, there races were all I knew of how to put on a triathlon. Now that I can compare them to other companies, I have to say I found Fred Sommers and his staff to be top notch.
They easily have the best Sprint Series in Florida. The GFT 1/2 last year was a tough race, but the volunteers and supplies made the event the best experience I had all year. All of their aid stations were filled, SAG was prevalent and the medical tent I visited briefly was over cautious about my health.
Once again, it sounds like your brother had a crappy experience but his sounds like an anomoly in a long dependable record of Sommers Sports.
I encourage all triathletes on this forum to try at least one of their races (whether through their Tri-America Series or, if your in FL, their local races).
I live near, train on, and have bike relayed the DBD. Last year I co-coordinated the the bike course. I’ll be racing it this year as my first non-relayed IM. Tough but not impossible course, lots of volunteers, rural venue, and really a ‘people’s race’.
DBD Swim might be in the upper 60 to low 70’s. Two lap swim with short beach jog over a timing mat between laps. Swim is in a protected cove at a state park on Falls Lake. Air temp can be from lower 50’s to lower 70’s. Bike is an out-and-back affair with a double loop at the end of the ‘out’ leg. Rolling hills. Really no flats, but nothing as steep as the GFT (I haven’t raced in Clermont, but drove some of the course a few weeks back). I use a 39/23 and have no problems. The DBD run is a 5-lap course inside the state park. Part on gravel roads and part on asphalt. Hilly run, but not terribly steep stuff. With a lap course there’s tons of spectator and volunteer support throughout the run. The first year was a point to point run, but last year the course was changed to the 5-lap. IMHO - much better. Parking at DBD is in the state park and can be a bit of a hike from the finish/TA. Medical support has always been top notch - right there at the finish. Medics were giving each finisher a visual once-over as they stumbled thru the chute last year. Finish line food the last two years has been a real meal in a shelter with tables and chairs, not just Gatorade and bananas.
DBD is produced by Set-Up, Inc. - they do a great job with this venue and with races in general. Check-out the TriMyCoach.com forum also - there’s an ongoing forum with DBD questions. A comparison between the GFT and DBD has been going on there also. http://trimycoach.com/ipw-web/bulletin/bb/index.php
You could consider The Grand Columbian Sept 18th Grand Coulee WA. None of the issues mentioned in the posts. Moderate temps, exceptional course and food. A great destination race for your first Iron Distance. www.thegrandcolumbian.com
I did the Duke Blue Devil last year. Everything the other guy said is true except for the run. The run has one really good hill in it plus other ones you do notice. I walked up it every single time. The weather was pretty good for this time of year. It was my first ironman race. I’m trying to get a group to go relay it this year. I’d say it was worth looking into. And the proceeds go to a good cause. Can you say Tax deduction! it is April 15th.
DB,
Check out Marty Gaal’s website and drop him a post on the forum for his comparative insights. He placed second at Duke a couple of years ago and is racing GFT this year. He has a great write up on the Duke course. He, like me, lives in Orlando and does most of the Clermont races. I have not done Duke, but can tell you that GFT is very challenging. It ain’t flat. Short, but very steep hills, coupled with the typical heat and wind, makes this a tough bike course. I like the course alot, but you will need to train some hills and use at least a 12-25 cassette. The swim is easy, some years short, in a flat, cool temperatute lake. The run has some hills at the beginning, then flattens for the last 20 miles. The run is 3 laps around the lake, so it can get a bit boring and the road camber can start to get on your nerve. You are not running on a flat surface. I think the support is generally quite good. Yes, there are some lapses from time to time, but for a non-MDot event, think the production is solid. I don’t think GFT has ever closed, and doubt Duke has, so perhaps you can go check out the courses over the next several months and then base your decision on your own insights. Good luck.
Robert Alfert
Thanks to all for the input. I will have to check a little further into the races. Its good (for me that is) that neither of these seem to be threats to close out their fields anytime soon.
I did the Florida Challenge (1/2IM) in '99 and the Great Floridian in ‘00. Thoroughly enjoyed both events. Although at GFT, the Mad Dogs water station blastin’ “Who Let the Dogs Out” got a bit old the third time around the lake 
Loved the “nude” water station, though!
One thing I really liked about GFT is the food/water/etc. they had inside the change tent. I had kinda screwed up my nutrition on the bike and I sat in there for ~15 minutes chowing down.
That said, my next ultra will probably be Duke Blue Devil next year.
I am not denying Ironstevie comments but my experience at the Half GFT and Full were completely opposite. I did the full last year and it was simply an OUTSTANDING race from start to finish. Tough bike and run course specially if you are expecting Florida to be flat. Aid stations were awesome and I mean awesome. I preferred this race over any of the M Dot races, atmosphere is great, weather was perfect and support was outstanding. The free massage with a 10 minute wait, Dominos pizza and cheeseburgers and soda they had at the fininsh line were not bad either.
I also did the GFT full last year as my first Iron-distance event, and had no problems with support at all. I finished about an hour and change behind target, but at 14hrs there were tons of people around, lots of food etc. The only thing that I wish they had at the finish was a nice shower to rinse all the salt, sweat and bugspray off my body.
The swim was good, even though the tannin in the water makes it impossible to see your hand in front of your face. It was on the edge of wetsuit temps, and I almost regretted wearing one because I had to slow down a bit to keep cool. The bike was on generally good roads with a few rough spots (nothing unmanageable) but with the muggy high temps and 15-30mph crosswinds it was pretty bad. I had to walk up Sugarloaf the 2nd time because I cramped my left groin muscle at mile 80ish on the flats (therefore my slow result), but the hills are a lot of fun if you are used to them. The run was a great course, and I never found a food station unmanned or unstocked.
Since I only live 45 mins away from Clermont, I’d be doing that race again this year if I hadn’t signed up for IMFL so I could compete against my brother. Or…more accurately…get stomped by my brother.