Does anyone else find it to be highway robbery that it costs $475 just to enter an official Ironman. Add on top of that the ridiculous fee Active.com charges and one will pay $500 just to get into an Ironman.
Get real…
IMO, it’s totally worth every penny. You get:
- very safe well-marked course
- well run transition areas
- well run aide stations with everything you could possibly want
- excellent bike support in T1
- amazing volunteers
- carbo dinner
- awards brunch
- finisher’s shirt
- headsweats finisher’s hat
- medal
- finisher’s certificate
Lots of other races to choose from if you don’t think it’s worth it.
It is pretty spendy… my spouse and I just slapped down the credit card # for IMLP. $995. Then the $3500 for a condo for the week which was fairly difficult to find. This will be our first IM distance race, how much do non M-Dot IM distance races run?
We are used to paying $160 to $200 for 1/2 IM events.
We were at IMPL this year and thought that the race was very well run. No guesswork as a competitor. I have not heard any bad vibes about organization or support at an M-Dot race. It’s pricey but I think that you get a lot.
Wow…something that has never been discussed here before!
Yep…highway robbery. Spend the cash elsewhere. Pick a good non-WTC event and support someone else.
I’m betting you get a few responses being very Adam Smithian about it and making the valid point that it’s all market forces. Beyond that though I’m in a minority of apparently 1 in thinking it’s not actually that bad. The logistics of putting on one of these events are mind boggling and I have non difficulty in imagining where the money is spent. A better question in my opinion is if triathletes wouldn’t be better served with cheaper but less extravagant events where the price was tied to the cost of providing a safe, well supported course with no frills. Unfortunately I get the impression that if an RD was to put on an IM distance event with with no swag bag, no prize purse, no T shirt, no food other than basic aid station provisions and no eye of the tiger blaring PA system at the finish line they would catch a huge amount of flack for it.
People want the experience and are happy to pay for it - I may be wrong but I don’t see anyone making a fortune out of these races so the money must be getting spent. Don’t get me wrong I’m sure IMNA do well but they sell a great product that people want. In other industries high prices + 1 provider might lead to fears about abuse of a monopoly but as the 101 series showed there aren’t any real barriers to entry - more people just seem to prefer Ironman.
I used to be apalled by the price. But then I watched as IM Louisville unfolded. I live locally, in fact fact only .4 miles from where one of the bike aid stations was set up, and I also worked as a volunteer at the finish (had to pull out from competition thanks to several broken bones - yuk!). I am really impressed with all the stuff WTC did behind the scenes, with the communities involved, to pull off a realy first class event. It was just awesome to watch the local area get prepped for the event as the date grew nearer. If you didn’t live here, you would have never known. The whole show was really phenomenal.
Sure, somebody could organize a decent 140.6 race and have it cost a lot less (and they do), but in my opinion the WTC guys really went all the way to make the event special.
Tom
It is expensive, but if you’ve done an IM-branded race, you know that these races are run like a well-oiled machine. Everything, I mean EVERYTHING is done right! I finished IMC last night and they assigned one guy to help me with everything. He put my space blanket on me, got me a drink, set me up for my finisher’s photo, got my medal, tee and hat, and ushered me to the food and massage tents. They had a person assigned to every finisher. That’s just one small detail that you don’t get at other races. The bottom line is there are some great options if you don’t care about the “frills” of an IM race- Silverman, Chesapeakeman, Vineman, etc.
There are races out there that equal anything (aside from the big crowds) that the IM brand will give you for cheaper.
for instance, last year at Silverman I got to “race” and took my girlfriend to the pre and post race meal for $375. At Lake Placid it was over $500 and the post race meal was awful.
Mark
Another thing. If one registers and then gets injured, sick, etc and can’t compete, you are only eligible for a $150 refund. Where is the other $325?
I think WTC puts on very good Ironman events in terms of organization. But having to pay $475+ just to register for the event is ridiculous. I better be getting a whole lot of goodies for this price and not just a lousy t-shirt and maybe a water bottle or a pair of socks! And in today’s world of corporate sponsors, like Ford that just sponsored Ironman Louisville, how much of your entry fee is actually going into the race and not into the wallets of the big wigs at WTC? Sure it is a business, but at the same time, the athletes should not be screwed finacially just for the “honor” to compete in one of their events.
He put my space blanket on me, got me a drink, set me up for my finisher’s photo, got my medal, **tee **and hat, and ushered me to the food and massage tents.
Were you going out for a round of golf or something…? Or did u mean TEA, like in a cup of hot tea…?
So go somewhere else because it isn’t going to change
Here is what we got at Silverman
.
Plus the hundreds of workers, Tons of ice, water, gels, coke, chicken soup, Police, ambulance workers.
Were you going out for a round of golf or something..? Or did u mean TEA, like in a cup of hot tea..?
Ha, ha. No, I meant “tee” as in “tee shirt”. It is a pretty catered affair!
Most of the workers are volunteers meaning they receive no compensation for their time. I have paid $15 for local running races that have had great goodie bags and tons of drink / food choices for the athletes. How do they do it?
If WTC is going to charge $475 to enter one of their Ironman’s, how about giving some of it back to the athletes if terms of prize money? Don’t just give prize money to pros, give some to the amateur age-group winners. Give some prize money to the athletes, pro or amateur, with the fastest swim, bike and run splits or maybe even the top 3 in each.
Econ 101. Don’t make me post the graph again…
Keep your money in your pocket then,always an option too.
tfun~
it’s actually much much worse than that. I know for a fact that the Tourist Development Council in PCB pays IMFL $100,000 per year for the privilege to host the event.
Truth is, this is a strongly branded, for-profit business pal. New entrants (a la Tri101) ain’t doin so hot, because people WANT/NEED the Mdot. Therefore, you PAYS your money and you takes your chances.
The bottom line is there are some great options if you don’t care about the “frills” of an IM race- Silverman, Chesapeakeman, Vineman, etc.
not sure how that sentence made it through my BS radar, however, all i will say is the folks at Silverman went all out for the athletes. What do you folks get in your swag bags from the MDot folks, then take a look at what I got above.
As someone who did Silverman and Lake Placid the ONLY thing missing at Silverman was the crowds. Everything else was on par with the MDot folks or better.
the great thing is we all have a choice to participate or not too - this was Vineman’s sliding scale
Full Vineman
Prior to Feb. 1 - $295
Feb. 1 to April 30 - $320
May 1 to June 30 - $345
July 1 to July 21 - $370
July 22 to Aug. 3 - $405
If you want the glitter and glitz then you are gonna pay for it - supply and demand
The refund issue is plain and simple - the risk you take when signing up for such a big event and I think it’s a smart business decision on their part.
You can always go into road racing/crits held in BFE - most of the entry fees are less than $30 per race and you can win back some gas money too.
I suppose that in light of current events, at least one could say that once you pop for an IM entry, you know for sure there will be a race come race day.
Yes, they’re expensive, but I also see the $500 as an investment in a healthy lifestyle for a year. With that perspective, it’s well worth it.