Anyway done this or planning on doing it this September 10th?
Does anyone know of a Late August/early Sept HIM in the Chicago area?
Never heard any good comments about the Lake geneva half…poorly run from what I hear…never done it though. Not planning to…though it is very close.
hmph, well that sucks. Thanks for the info.
Ask around though…what I heard is that it is a good race as long as you expect nothing from the course. Meaning, bring ALL your own food and drink. A buddy did it last year - he left water bottles in a tree at about the 1/2 mark on the bike…and had his woman take care of run fluids…myself - that is why I pay to race.
I did the Lake Geneva Half IM the year before last (so I don’t remember every detail and it may have changed since then).
It wasn’t the best race I’ve done, but not that bad for a laid back weekend as long as you don’t expect IMNA organization or amenities. I did have to wait in line a long time for registration the night before, and I think they were scrambling for volunteers to put on the course (super rainy that year and some didn’t show from what I heard). Aid stations were very basic (gatorade & water) but as I recall, but there were enough to keep me going. I did not like the layout of the transition area, the entrance and exits were such that if you got on the wrong end of it, you were adding significant extra ground to cover; it was absolutely necessary to get there early to get a good spot. The give away was a long sleeved sweatshirt and they gave a finishers medal at the end (if you care about that sort of thing).
It’s actually a pretty tough course, MUCH tougher hills on the run than I expected. All in all, I had some minor complaints, but I enjoyed the race and If I still lived in Illinois, I’d probably do it again.
BK
About exactly what I heard from others…I like to be spoiled. Could not be worse than Tinman Minomonee though…that race sucked shit.
I haven’t done the race, but two guys who I used to train when I lived in Chicago did it last year. From what I have heard, the course is very very very poorly marked. Both of them went off course and got DQ’d. They weren’t even riding together. They were not the only people; apparently there were like 15 other people who did the same thing. The check-in takes hours. Security is not very good in the transition area, so if you value your bike that is never promising.
Since I can’t say something nice, I won’t say anything at all about that race or its director.
Nothing good to say either.
The course was challenging, but the organization sucked.
I have been looking into exactly the same thing. I joined the Chicago Tri Club and lots of guys have done LG1/2 and several other races by the same company. They all basically agree that the org is sloppy. SOme say they still like the race b/c the tough course and the convenience but if you don’t like problems, the 1/2 especially ain’t for you. Evidently last year there were 2 things that made the 1/2 particularly bad. A) They ran out of water at the end of the race so the middle and back of pack finishers of the 1/2 had to wait for 30 minutes while someone went to 7/11 to buy some more. B) They started the sprint, olympic and 1/2’s at different times but somehow entailed all three groups merger together at the same time for the last 400m of the swim so once you were nice and tired, you got to start the thrashing mass versus the other guys.
Alternatives (relatively) close to Chicago include (I list the drive times for you and whatever reviews I have found)
8/7 Steelhead (2 hours) solid reviews
8/14 Greater Cleveland (5.5 hours), haven’t seen any reviews
8/15 Lansing Legislator (3.5 hours) pretty bad reviews
8/21 Pigman (near Cedar Rapids, IA about 4 hours) great reviews- but tough
8/21 Buckeye Challenge (5.5 hours), solid reviews
9/17 Pineman (near Columbus, about 6 hours) solid reviews-flat
9/25 U.S. Half Champs (near KC, about 8 hours) great reviews, some hills
Not a well run race, I would do the shorter races because of location but never the half.
I did the Olympic distance race a couple of times and it was always pretty disorganized–the transition area was a mess and support on the course was poor. The year they did a full Ironman race, it was a disaster–aid stations with bottles of water and no volunteers, some riders doing 80+ miles and others doing 120+. I’d avoid doing a Half there.
Doesn’t say a lot for USAT certification.
Kelly - thanks for the nice comments on Steelhead. It is a very nice race.
You grew up in St. Joseph? So did I - St. Joe High School class of 1975. Will miss my 30 reunion next weekend as I’ll be doing Lake Placid. Hope to see you back in St. Joe for Steelhead in August. Z