spoke with a guy the other day while on a training ride. Says he’s training for ironman. I ask “is it your first?” He says, “yea, its my first triathlon period”…WTF!!!
This is a growing problem and no wonder its so hard to get into an IM these days. I have no problem with people chasing their dreams, but Ironman is not like runing a “marathon” . There are 100’s of marathons in the country. There are only what 5-6 IM’s. People are just signing up on a whim. Its Fu&king insane Is it too much to ask to have at least done a sprint.
what’s the problem? Did his training program concern you? were you afraid he wouldn’t finish?
I signed up for an IM without being able to swim 100 yards continuously, nor had I done a triathlon. I somehow managed to beat a lot of more experienced people that day. I’ve since done 7 IM’s and taken 90 minutes off my time - but have still done very few tri’s other than IM, only two oly’s, a sprint and one HIM. I like the distance, not the “mystique” of an IM or even triathlon all that much.
couldn’t the same logic be applied to the people signing up for the the same IM for their 5th, 6th, 7th time…you’ve done it already, make some room for the rest of us. Either way it is a screwy system for actually getting into these races…supply and demand you know.
I say more power to em! David Goggins’ first tri was Ultraman and he finished second. Who is to say that they wont do fine. Their money is as green as yours and if they dont finish then it is on them.
I know people that have done an IM as their one and only triathlon. Just wanted another accomplishment to add to the list before moving on to another challenge.
I’d rather them sign up than sit on the coach growing fat and contributing Americas very serious obesity problem. Some people require a bigger initial challenge to give them motivation.
Why not profit from all this and start a company called checklist.com where you offer a discount rate for: Doing an IM, climbing Everest, dogsledding in Antarctica, etc etc if you pre-pay for all items in advance. You would of course have IMNA’s refund policy, which would make things pretty profitable.
IM Louisville was my first IM and my first Triathlon.
I don’t really understand your point. Are you suggesting that there should be some qualification criteria to get in an IM? Are you frustrated that it takes planning to get in? If so most sprint triathlons can be entered that day
Everyone is motivated by different things. That is the beauty of Triathlon. It is inherently an individual sport. How many people are really racing to win the event? Less than a dozen … 1/2 of 1 percent. That means that most of the people are motivated by other goals - win/place highly in an age group, qualify for Kona, honor the memory of Blaise, team in training … You almost certainly fall into one of the groups who is motivated by something other than winning. So dont be so critical of everyone elses motives.
There are times when after reading my training plan for the week that I feel like sitting on my coach.
Nice!! Yeah, I have seen that typo many times before in emails, it can be pretty funny in that context.
Hard to get into an Ironman? Why will you only do Mdot races? Vineman, Silverman and a host of others are not good enough? Same distance. Well supported.
Ironman CDA 2007 was my first triathlon. I trained hard, dedicated myself to learning how to swim, and proceeded to have a heck of a time. There’s no sense in listening to the people who love to tell you, “you cant”.
My second triathlon will be Lake Placid 2008. Thats right, the internet Gods smiled upon my registration while many other more experienced triathletes were denied entry. Do you feel that I’ve somehow robbed them of their spot? We can’t possibly reserve placement for the ol’ crew when the sport’s booming popularity is generating so many eager newbs willing to give it a shot. Let 'em try! Besides, seniority is no guarantee of a good effort. The newbies may not generally be able to perform as well as some of the seasoned athletes, but they’re definately hungrier.
I think it is great to start off with a bang. Like Nascar and the first race of the year being Daytona 500-for you rednecks. My first organized run was a 26.2 and IML was #3 for me. Sprint, olympic, IML. Had a great day. I was slow but I wasn’t trying to win it. Just make sure I finished under 17 hrs. More power to you guys who reach high. All Endurance events are just as popular as IM-it is not unique. Just try getting into Western states 100 or wasatch 100 etc…, and you have to qualify for these. In addition to doing 8 hours of volunteer work at a race or trail work-Now that would be a good idea for IM-Require you to volunteer at a race before your race day.
My significant other will be making his triathlon debut at IM CDA next year. He doesn’t have any particular interest in racing shorter distances, but the challenge of tackling an Ironman motivated him to get involved in the sport. He’s putting in adequate training time and should be able to finish in a respectable time. So I don’t see why anyone would object to this.
Personally, I never would have had the guts to sign up for an IM without first doing a sprint, then an Olympic distance, and then a half IM. However, for those who are willing to take on the challenge, I say more power to you!
My friend John weighed over 300 pounds when he signed up for IM Florida. Never ran before, never did much cycling (obviously) or much swimming. Didn’t enter another tri either.
Shows up at IMF a year later, 100 pounds lighter, and breaks 13 hours.
You can shut the fvck up now. (not you IA girl, the OP)
Good troll. Simple and well devised. I wish I had thought of it, in fact. Congrats!
Simple I think you can do. Well devised takes brains, keep flippin’ those chickens.
