I went that year to volunteer (race in 2013). The ST gathering was awesome. @Slowman had @Chris_Boardman there talking aero and world hour record. I think that was the best ST get together (between pros and industry people and smart people). 2006 ST gathering @paulthomas brought @NormanStadler’s bike that he was going to race on to the ST party. Everyone was joking about Normal throwing his previous bike into the Kona Lava fields because he could not get the glued on tubulars on, so we were razzing Paul if you put zero glue on in case Norman flats again, or if he had them glued on with cement again. As it turns out Stadler set the OLD Kona bike record 4:18 before it got wiped out by the likes of Wurf…now the women are getting close
I have done both 2022 and 2024… both different experiences. Hard? As we’ve seen… define hard. Coming from the southern part of Australia means leaving early Spring (temps in the low teens celsius) to warm humid Hawaii, that alone makes it challenging. Bike course, if you look at elevation gain, m’eh… not especially tough, but wind, can be. When I did 2022, not so windy, 2024, very strong and gusty out at Hawi, so a bit more challenging on the descent. The run, compared to many of my earlier IMs, yes, hard, mostly again, due to the heat, but also challenging for the elevation. Most runs in Aus are flat looped courses. But hey, it’s the WC so you would expect the competition to be the toughest part of the event! From being on or near the podium at my lead up events to MOP in Kona…
Watching results of muskoka 70.3 come in via the app and doesn’t look like any KS/adjusted times are populating in the app. Maybe they have a performance pool roll down list populating on site?
I just finished Muskoka 70.3 in 3rd in 60-64 (I got the crappy run I deserve in the heat) and got passed for second with 1.5km to go. That’s life. It was hot and windy and brutal humidity. I think I just did my personal worst run, but my 5:37 translates to 4:36 so heading to awards, but I doubt that puts me in the top 50 eyeballing some of the times in the younger age groups and roughly knowing the range of their weighting factors. I’ll need a fairly massive rolldown in the performance pool with a virtual 4:36.
Interesting that it’s divided between men and women on the app (duh this is 70.3). The “performance pool” is per gender for 70.3 and genderless for IM, after the AG AQ’s (top 3 only) either take the spot or rolls into the performance pool.
Looks to me, if the two tables were combined, as if no female non-class winner would get a slot. The best ‘age-graded’ woman is #2 F35-39 with 4:29. The first 200 men (age-graded time) beat that. Have I got that right?
Nope doesn’t work that way. They tuned the 70.3 balancing knowing they would be split. That’s why they have to have different metrics. If they were to ever combine to a 1 day format the multiplier would have to be adjusted accordingly.
Be interesting to see a virtual Roth comparison with new model. Say 50 slots. How would the slot allocation compare? Obviously this would be EU specific given the makeup of the field.
One downside to the new system is that it shows everyone exactly where they are, and someone’s bound to come DFL.
At least under the old system, the young guys could say ‘at least I wasn’t actually last’ and the old guys could say ‘but I’m 75!’. Now, someone is actually last.
Though I suppose if you don’t want to be ranked, we have an Open classification. And as always DFL > DNF > DNS
Actually now 2 people do, the actual DFL and the WCQ DFL. That person will rarely if ever be the same person so they now have someone to commiserate with.
