Since they homestayed with Laura’s family it was probably pretty cost effective although that airfare from Phoenix is $$
1 Like
Ah ok, that makes sense and smarter “investment”. I was thinking he was spending roughly $2k per month on that type of accomodation. So basically the flights were the biggest investment.
I’d assume without this “free” accommodation there likely wouldn’t have been a 2+ month investment likely and problay the more normal 1 month out staycation similiar to what most do for Kona.
2 Likes
I found it pretty hard to watch. I’m curious as to why he felt a top 10 or top 5 was in the cards? He referenced last years early T100 results and a 2nd place a 70.3 worlds in 2021 (!). But what has he done this year against the same competitors to legitimately say he’s a top 5-10 athlete on that course against those competitors? Nice was his first Ironman this year and he qualified last year at Chattanooga when the swim the cancelled. IMO he hasn’t done anything this year to show he was a top 10 threat, let alone was even close to peaking for Nice.
He really needs someone on his side to keep him grounded I think, but who knows, I’m just your average stupid AG’er with a keyboard.
Not to crap on his too much, because I love Sam and what he brings to the sport, but it seems like he went in to Nice overestimating his ability. If he has gone in thinking “top 15”, the tone of that video would have been totally different.
1 Like
Probably, staying in Europe for over two months made the most sense. Instead of paying for multiple transatlantic flights, he only needed the one trip he was already planning for Nice. From there, he raced Worlds and the T100 with cheap local flights, built YouTube content, and gave his sponsors more exposure. Having family there made Europe as affordable as the US if not cheaper.
As we all know, in most races, who shows up makes a big difference. When you look at team sports that have a bracketing/playoff system, the path you take through the brackets has a huge effect on who comes out in the end. Often the best will still win, but those 2-4 spots can really fluctuate based on who they play (race in this scenario).
So Sam has benefited from who he raced in the fitness he raced them in. He’s a better than ever Sam, but now he’s racing against more athletes who were consistently better than he ever was. He’s not in the same funk, but in some ways Ben Kanute is facing similar issues, and he was a short course guy.
I imagine their thought process is they just need to train harder, but is it really? Are we seeing the long term effects of Sam abandoning a coach? Short term, he benefited, but now that the competition is fiercer than ever, he’s lost out on that structured, big picture strategic approach to coaching across a season. I’m sure he’s tried to do that in his training, but has he really? There’s something to be said to letting someone else make the call, otherwise you just consistently go with what feels good… until it doesn’t and then you adjust and suddenly you’re taking a very reactionary approach to your training and your goals are no longer in the drivers seat.
A coach may move him inside the top ten but, as long as the starting list is as stacked as it was in Nice, SL is not getting on the podium or even the top 5. If he feels financial pressure, is investment in a coach or team of coaches worth it to finish 8th? I don’t know, perhaps.
Maybe a less well known coach trying to build his name and business, like Greg Harper, is the way to go. It’d be good for Greg’s business if he could be the one who says “I got SL into the 3rd chase pack”. Maybe for that reason GH doesn’t charge much, and Sam could find a similar version for his overall coaching program.
Maybe someone can come up with a name…but who was the last American bike racer who was labelled an incredible descender. I am sure there are a bunch that are “good enough” but I would surmise that going to Europe and being in those types of descents is the only way to get better at them. There’s lots of video of pros descending Left Hand Canyon in Boulder and going fast but that’s my kind of descent lol…lacking the ability to ride fast on really technical descents.
I know income on this forum likely trends high, but him constantly stressing about making 200k+ doing what he loves while his wife stays home is getting pretty old. The guy talks like he’s a poor couchsurfing new pro while the majority of america is griding to clear 60.
4 Likes
Yeah from the outside looking in, there’s absolutely zero chance he’s beating the Norwegians, Laidlow, Van Riel, Ditlev, Lange, Schomburg, and maybe one or two others.
Very true. Misconception based on a one-off (or two) top performance in a not-that-competitive field is the reason for the harsh reality check here (hope SL is ok, that last video is not reassuring about his mental state).
It is just as if Bart Aernouts was still milking today that second place in Kona, thinking he has a chance at top 5/10. And there are many more examples; LS at worlds is one of them.
It goes to show how great athletes like Lange or Haug are, podiuming world champs year after year.
Plus he was able to escape the Arizona heat during the worst time of the year. I could see him making this a yearly occurrence.
1 Like
Long’s best bet next year, financially, is to take the T100 contract he’ll be offered. Race most of the tour and do the best he can, enjoying catching athletes on the road and on the run, judging every top 8 a ‘win’. And race some domestic 70.3s with the chance of the odd win in a silver tier event. Stop trying to race long: it is distracting him from what he’s best at (MD).
Since he seems to find a successful coaching relationship difficult to sustain, maybe a way ahead is to find someone who has appropriate knowledge and wisdom he recognises/trusts, not to coach him but to provide a sounding board for strategy and tactics wrt season structure and specific race choices.
2 Likes
Yeah but he’s already saying he’s targeting Kona, so next year is most likely going to look exactly like this year. Financially he’ll do great, but performance-wise he’ll be left scratching his head as to why he just can’t perform at the biggest races this time of the year.
Sanders should coach Long.
Then we can merge the all encompassing threads.
/Pink
3 Likes
The American Method. Sam Long, Lionel Sanders, Trevor Foley. Just not sure who would write the swim workouts.
4 Likes
To be fair Kona is a “much” better race on paper for him than Nice was. It really plays to all of his strengths and none of his weakness. And the biggest factor is going to be the heat. If he has one of his usual great heat days and he can deliver his aero power on that relatively flat/rolling course, then a sub 2;40 run at the end could put him in top 5 contention. I mean look at Wurf, out of the water with Sam now, just a good bike ride with an ok run and he gets 7th. The attrition on that island is legendary and consistent, just have to not be one of those that goes backwards in the last couple hours..So I think if he can get his T100 contract again and then do the odd 70.3 for fill ins, Kona could be a nice cap on his season(well before the T100 final of course)..
In other words, next season could look a lot better than this one given all the same dynamics. Get a good coach and make some improvements, well could be an exceptional one with some of his early season consistency stretching to end of season too…
1 Like
Foley realized very quickly he can’t write his own programs and continue to improve.
He’s coached by Holly Lawrence’s husband now and is making pretty great strides in his swim.
This is what Sam hasn’t realized yet. How must extra stress he’s putting on himself by having to design and assess not just his racing, but his everyday. I don’t think he realizes how much that is weighing on his performance.
1 Like
It’s probably also a good move for him to do that as I wouldn’t be surprised if MVR and Wilde decide to target Ironman. There’s a reasonable chance some of the T100 firepower defects.
1 Like
What I’m curious about is all this talk/suggestions by people in the industry (they may or may not have “insider” info), as to what they T100 is going to do in the future. Most seem to suggest they get rid of contracts. Which may turn into more of a behind the scenes appearance fees like old school races have done, but within Long it would be interesting if suddenly the guranteed money amount changes. He obviously has a massive following within triathlon; but he’s also not sorta too far back to actually capitalize on the broadcast, so I wonder what “value” he actually can bring.
If you look at the YT numbers, T100’s not necessarily lighting it on fire. Their YT Spain race has 57k views; so that’s obviously with an * as that’s not the only way to view the race. But just to show what kind of numbers they are pulling from a viewership angle.
So for Long, it would seem like a “no-brainer” to have him under contract with his following, but if the contracts change in value, is it then worth it for him? Also knowing his “best” is essentially limited to the T8 type of finish barring some every top athlete skips race scenario, but that will be rare that occurs, men are way too deep at T100 currently.
I’m just thinking, getting his ass pummeled every time he races a T100 (or a major IM [70.3]) must be really difficult for Sam. He knows the taste of winning and podiuming. And he has presumably been raised like most American kids (if you believe the stereotype) - only winning counts and the 2nd place finisher is the first loser.
So counting the money and sponsor deals and monetizing his popularity is one thing, but controlling the bad wolf screaming in his ear is another…