It looks like 2024 is the last running of the current course involving the Indian Wells Tennis Center and Indian Wells golf course. It looks like the run portion of the 2025 event will take place at the Silver Rock Resort, and that 2026 and 2027 are up in the air.
I have been seeing the signs up for over a month now about this race. And seems if the city of La Quinta is willing to host it, not much is going to change in the way of athlete experience. Now the economies of who makes what money and pays certain bills, well left to be seen afterwards I suppose. Good luck everyone this weekend that is racing, weather is going to be perfect for this type of race, cool in the morning with a light warming trend, all in full sunshine!!
La Quinta the town, or as a sponsor?
There’s a Motel 6 joke in there someplace, but I’ll not look for it
I’ll keep the light on for ya
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Just heard about this at the race the other day. Overall, it was a fantastic venue just not happy about that type of run course–hard on the knees after 2 knee surgeries this year–would have liked a straighter course so “braking” before turns at bottom of the hills wasn’t needed as I’m still not full strength…but here are the +'s.
- It was beautiful there, fully impressed & didn’t know it was a World Class Tennis facility (not a big tennis watcher/fan for a good 10 years now)
- Lots of places to stay/eat.
- Never saw a parking lot on acres of what looked like perfectly manicured grass tennis courts…no weeds in the lots, painted spots on the grass…security guard told me to pick a lemon just outside of Stadium 1 and take it home…most perfect lemon I’d ever seen!
- Super nice people all the way around.
- Expo, finish area, transition 2, parking, all well organized and felt like a high class resort made for the race (until you get to the run–too much zig-zagging).
Cons… - 2 transition areas & having to be bused to the swim
- Some huge bike packs not broken up by marshals
- lots of cracks on some not so great dog-legs of the bike–saw many, many broken bottle cage systems and lost bottles, nutrition all over the roads from others hitting the cracks in the road.
Certainly a race I would do again though. Maybe not next year but another year if they keep having it.
Agree with pretty much all the points above. Overall it was a great experience and the volunteers and organizers were super friendly and helpful.
Definitely a very rough first 15 miles on the bike. My wife was one who lost a cage and bottle. Lots of BIG packs of riders and drafting. Otherwise I thought the bike was fine (although a few less 180s would be nice).
Agree the golf course was challenging. It was such a narrow, punchy and twisty set up to run on. Definitely made it hard to get into a rhythm.
But overall…I’d give the event a solid 8/10.
I’ve done this race 3 years in a row and agree with everything, BUT my biggest gripe and the reason I’m probably not coming back is it’s logistically a nightmare for spectating. My wife normally enjoys races even with hauling around our 1 year old, but this race is a nightmare for her. We even paid for the “VIP” spectator pass and it made little difference. The change in swim course direction made viewing the start area impossible and created issues seeing swim exit/T1. It was basically pointless for her to even go to the lake in the morning. Once she was able to get to the tennis garden it was okay, but it’s a lot of moving parts for someone pushing around a small child.
Agree with the spectating side of it. I went to watch my wife last year and really only got to see her a couple times. Once flying by on the first bike section and then a couple times on the run. Not a spectator friendly race at all.