The 2007 edition of the Ford Ironman 70.3 Whirlpool Steelhead Triathlon cememted the status of the race as a true classic. With nearly 2000 finishers and near perfect conditions the event was as perfect as a race can possibly get. A truly remarkable aspect of the event is the ease with which it has grown from a medium sized regional race to a truly world class 70.3 triathlon.
Conditions including a glassy lake and comfortable water temps for an excellent swim, a moderate wind late in the bike and mercifully high overcast on the run. Temps in the low 80s made conditions more comfortable than previous days when the mercury flirted with 90 degrees.
Excellent. I am glad the conditions were good today. I agree with your assessment of the race and how it has grown. Unfortunately I was unable to race there today because of prior commitments. I really hope to make it back there next summer.
I have to agree. That was one, if not the best, run events ever. Just first class. Lot of good people out there and it seemed like everyone was really having a blast.
For that many people on a course, they sure the hell managed it well. Well done.
Tom - thanks for coming out to the race. I need to have you come to all my races, as when you attend the weather is always great! Today it is raining cats and dogs in Benton Harbor!!!
I’d also like to thank you and your volunteers. What a great crew. The volunteers at the aid stations were amazing. And I was always happy when I took a drink of gatorade and it was always cold!
The only down side to having that many people was the transition was overpacked. Seemed like we had more room last year when it was in the parking lot. Also last year they allowed us to put our bags along the fence but this year they said it was against the rules. Other than that the race was run perfect. Im a slow swimmer and started in one of the last waves so I had a clean swim and the bike from what I could see was cleaner than last year but with a fast cousre and 2000 people there is going to be drafting.
Great race I will be back next year and I love Saturday races so I can lay on the couch all day today.
Positive – Great venue, perfect weather, awesome volunteers, good aid stations, swim in Lake Michigan was awesome – beach start was a good idea, thinned it out before we hit the water, I had a pretty clean swim, lots of shade on the bike/run, good Pizza hut food.
Negatives – too many people for that bike course, super crowded transition area with lots of sand that got stuck in my speedplays (I don’t like to ride without socks or try to get in my shoes on the bike, so I guess that’s what I get), more rack space, more porta johns, later bike check out post race – I left my bike in transition to stick around for a Clearwater slot, was told it would be secure until 5 pm when they would start taking down transition, when I got to transition at 5 pm my bike was on the ground, all the racks were torn down and no security – not cool…
I’ve done a lot of races, it was good, but not perfect. I think this race is pushing the envelope in terms of number of people for that course (bike and transition area).
gotta agree with you on the number of people. earlier in the year i had heard they were entertaining ideas of up to 3000 people, but it looked like it was close to capacity to me (1800 finished. not sure how many started). looked like they also had trouble handling all the people trying to park before the race (the wife and i left the car in benton harbor and walked the mile or so to the park. we got there way faster than people in cars).
the other thing that really surprised me was hearing at the pre race talk that there was no pro prize purse. you get over 2000 people dishing out $200 each and can’t scrape together a few bucks for the winners? c’mon.
all in all though, we were both pretty happy with the race and venue. the swim waves went off more smoothly than i thought they would. drafting/ packs on the bike weren’t as prevalent as i thought they would be (blocking was a bigger problem). and i only saw 2 i-pods on the run. they were impecably organized and the aid stations and volunteers were well prepared.
Great job again Tom, yet another well run steelhead race. Even though it was fairly crowded in the transition area the layout and finisher shoot setup was far superior than previous years, please keep it this way.
I heard some complaints about the final run through the dunes, as it was a bit uneven. Didn’t bother me as I’d been throwing up for the last mile and just wanted to finish
Very little drafting on the bike, no large packs like last year so the wave format worked a lot better.
Run was perfect, I loved the 2 loop format through the whirlpool center, very nice.
Having parking up in St. Joseph might be a good idea, the walk is short.
I agree, the race was great, but I think there was just way too many people in this race.
Biggest concerns with myself and some other friends that did the race was that of the congestion on the bike portion of the race. Our waves were 12, 13, and 14 (30-34, 35-39), and people already on the bike portion of the race were all over the road, some people were even just sitting in the middle of the lane blocking. I don’t think I saw but one official the whole bike leg and some people just don’t understand what it means to pass and get over to the right. In some cases, I simply think that because there were so many people out on the course, you couldn’t get over as quickly as you’d like for faster cyclists coming from behind, therefore, causing a lot “going over the center yellow line” to pass groups of slower cyclists. As for drafting, I had heard about it before the race and definitely saw a lot of it during. I just think when it gets too big, you’re asking for accidents to happen and I hope yesterday there were none!
As for the arrival in the morning, I must say, it was out of control with all the traffic and some of the workers were getting frustrated and one particular gentleman used some pretty foul language to vent his frustration. Though I was surprised, I don’t know if I could blame the guy, it was out of control…and that was around 5 a.m.
Overall I must say that the volunteers were fantastic and the weather was great, I definitely would consider coming back.
Parking: No problem because we anticipated a backup and got there at 4:50.
Great swim, but I still miss the pier start. The mile walk wasn’t that bad, but waiting for my wave to start (15) kinda sucked.
Transition: I agree with most that transition was crowded, and since I was a later wave, there was much congestion getting into and out of T1
Bike: Great course, but way too many people. There was a peloton of about 7 guys who were on each others wheel and kept clogging the road. I think they hammered too hard and they faded big time at about mile 37. Great volunteers on the bike course and ample aid stations.
T2 was the same as T1…much congestion getting into T2, but it thinned out getting onto the run.
Run: 8000x better than last year. The loops thru Whirlpool were fantastic. The best part was that the second loop was the dog miles of 8 thru 10 and the scenery was great, the lady with the giant hose spraying people, the cold sponges, music. It was soooo much better than last year.
Finish: Awesome. I loved finishing between the dunes and the cold spray tent with the giant fan was welcome relief.
Overall, great race. I’d do it next year but it falls on the wifes birthday and I have already been politely “told” that I will be doing a diff 70.3 next year.
Great job, Z. Great volunteers, well organized and a fun race. Thank god the race wasn’t today in torrential downpours.
Good race with too many people on the bike and a bad choice for a transition place. Sand??? I am home now and still trying to clean the sand (and ants). Road conditions were a big bummer because last year they were in a perfect condition. Lots of flats, I was lucky to survive although I flatted two of my tubulars the day before on the run course.
Saw Tom Demerly on the run while he was trying to hit on a girl
Just another note of Kudos to Tom for an extremely well run race. The swim was among my favorite swims ever (turns out I was pathetically slow in the swim, but I felt like I was flying ; ). The bike was fast and scenic and the volunteers at the aid stations were fantastic. There was zero pack riding observed on my section of the course and I was the last wave of women so saw the majority of the women on course. Based on what others are saying, I can believe drafting would have been more of an issue when the larger numbers of men hit the bike course. I also put the run course among one of my favorite courses. That’s a big compliment, as running 13.1 miles is pure torture for me at the moment, but I actually looked forward to the 2nd loop because the Whirlpool campus section was great! I also enjoyed the final stretch in the sand dunes…what a great crowd! Food was awesome as well! Thanks Tom for a first class event!
I’ve done this race 4 of 5 times it’s been run. I was pretty worried about the huge increase in people but I thought everything on race day went very well. The transition was no more crowded than most races, the waves spread everyone out, the new run course was great - much more shade, volunteer support was great - this was the first time I’ve ever had cold water at mile 12 of the run! A couple of negatives could not be helped: much of the bike route was chip seal (sp?) which is brutal on your back, and parking for packet pickup and race day was tough. Some things that could be improved: portajohns at the swim start, baby pools as you come into transition to rinse your feet of sand, better organized packet pickup with bike racks, further away from the expo crowds with better instructions.
Tom: Not being there, I can’t comment on the race itself. But I am wondering why, in the ChampionChip/wireless internet era, Steelhead can’t get results posted more quickly? When I directed a large running race here in Michigan (6000 finishers), we had the results up within two-three hours after the last finisher.
I’d have to echo some of the other posts here. This was a very enjoyable and well run race. The change in the run course was great (much more shade than previous years, loved the campus area), the volunteers were awesome (really wish I handled my suffering better and could express my gratitude more on the course) and the food post-race was tasty. Do miss the pier start which was always such a spectacle and truly unique part of the race. There were areas that could be improved in future editions though. The parking as has been noted was a bit of a nightmare race morning. Moving the transition from the parking lot to the sand/grass mixed area also was not the best choice IMO. Having some porta-johns at the swim start would be much appreciated (both for participants and residents whom I’m sure were less than enthusiastic about those making do in the dunes near the start). And finally, having some of the faster age groups start in the later waves was a little surprising and would appreciate seeing these waves moved up in start times. All said though, would like to pass on my thanks to the organizers and volunteers for putting on another great edition of the Steelhead race.
Lew - Good question - Mike Proctor is our timer/scorer and he did (as always) a wonderful job at the race. I’m not sure why they have not been posted, but I’m sure that he will have them up soon.
Psyched to hear that this was a great event…considering I plan on doing it next year (My first 70.3) surprisingly today was the day that I decided I would do it with the GF next year…strange coincidence considering I had never heard of this race…was just perusing through the ol 2007 Triathlete Magazine Qualifier Mag and this race works the best for my schedule…woohoo…I am jacked, uhmm now all I have to do is buy a bike, wetsuit, goggles, race wheels…ahh shit :)…should be fun though.
