Wind at AZ vs Kona?

Triathlon Forum
1

This question has been on my mind since April. I have watched the Kona coverage for years and always wondered how much it would suck to ride in the winds there. Since I’ll never get there to find out first hand, how would some one compare the winds at IM AZ this year to the winds at Kona? Would AZ be like the easiest day at Kona, Middle of the road, or ,… I know they are two entirely different courses and climates, so forget about the heat/humidity and just give me an opinion on how much worse/better the winds have been at Kona. Thanks in advance.

Tim

2

that’s a good question… I would like to know that too:-)

3

Faris Al sultan said that the wind in AZ was worse than 2004 hawaii.

4

Wind @ AZ was consistent and from the same direction and mostly predictable. At Hawaii you could have that same wind form just north of the airport (off the mountains like last year) to the end of the Queen K and then riding into Hawi (plus un-predictable gusts). You can get a push of wind from the turn @ Hawi for a few miles but then you get big gusty crosswinds coming back down. Quite often when you get back to the Queen K (around Waikaloa) those headwinds on the way out have turned and now become trade winds off the water coming back at your right temple. (1995, 2001(?), and 2004 were really tough wind years … 2002 was more tame but it was still windy)

Simply, @ Kona i’d expect wind off the Mountains (at your rt. temple) on the way north and then really windy in your face the last few miles into Hawi, big crosswind gusts on the descent from Hawi, then a head wind on the Queen K back to the airport … once back by the airport the wind seems to lesson a little.

MY OPINION … if you had IM AZ winds it wouldn’t be that bad a day … again, my opinion!

Best wishes & hope that helps!

5

Faris has a different opinion … the pros start 15min. earlier, get on the Queen K earlier (less wind), get to Hawi earlier, get back to the Queen K earlier, therefore CAN get more tailwind back to town. Wind in AZ was going straight form the start. From a pro perspective i might agree … for an age grouper getting to the Queen K & Hawi 45min-1+hr later it can be a completely different story! I have always agrred that the sooner you get to Hawi the better and the difference of 15-20min in the swim makes a big difference!

6

Seemed to me that the wind in Kona was much worse.

Maybe it was gustier there, or maybe it was the 3x loop of AZ where the wind was only a factor on the “back” part of one part of the loop (and therefore a small problem that was only around for 30 minutes at a time?

7

The two years I’ve done Kona, 2001 and 2004, were both brutal as far as winds were concerned, though in different manners. 2001 we were first met with a wall of wind just before Waikoloa, and then from one side, the other, head, tail, quarter, blow-you-off-the-bike, make-sure-you-lean-into-the-wind-but-not-too-much-because-the-wind direction-would-change kind of side gust for good measure…my calculations were about 70 miles or so of this. It did let up from the airport back into town.

2004 the winds were more steady, more of a headwind, and a strong headwind where you would not expect it to be—from the airport on into Kona. Not quite as gusty at any one point like 2001 but much more in your face.

Many folks have discussed the swim being a factor in that as the island heats up, so does the strength of the wind. Someone wrote that 1 minute on the swim translated to 5 minutes extra on your overall time because of this.

In our area (Nor Cal) it does get windy, and the Altamont Pass area is about the only thing I can compare to Kona in terms of wind strength and consistency, but it’s not always like that.

As “they” say, the Hawaii winds are legendary…it would be interesting to see how they compare to other venues.

8

no way, just look at the splits.

did he say this to you, or are you misinterpreting a quote you saw somewhere else?

9

did he say this to you, or are you misinterpreting a quote you saw somewhere else?

FROM IRONMANLIVE.COM

Al-Sultan and Major win in Arizona
By Kevin Mackinnon for Ironmanlive.com on Sat, Apr 9th 2005 (9:22 PM).

On a day that defied expectations in terms of weather, Faris Al-Sultan and Kate Major managed to follow through with many pre-race predictions in winning the inaugural Ironman Arizona Triathlon. http://vnews.ironmanlive.com/pictures/1113099727.jpg
Click to see a picture of the two Ironman Arizona Champs.

Who would have thought that an Ironman race in Arizona would have spectators looking for extra clothes, and athletes saying that the temperatures weren’t too bad – **it was the “Hawaii-like” winds that made the day so difficult. **

On a day that defied expectations in terms of weather, Faris Al-Sultan and Kate Major managed to follow through with many of our predictions in winning the inaugural Ironman Arizona Triathlon.

Al-Sultan’s win was a show of pure dominance. The third place finisher at the Ironman World Championship in Kona last October rode away from Tom Evans, one of the sports best cyclists, and then managed to run away from everyone else in this talented field as he cruised to his first Ironman win.

It was the wind that made the day tough for the German.

“These winds were just like the ones in Hawaii,” he said after he came across the line. His winning time was 8:25:42.

Michael Lovato, the 2003 Ironman USA Coeur d’Alene champion, finished second overall with a time of 8:42:48, while Portugal’s Sergio Marques finished third in 8:46:47. Petr Vabrousek, from the Czech Republic, finished fourth in 8:49:46 and Canada’s Jasper Blake was fifth in 8:50:54.

Major patiently worked her way through the women’s field after a relatively slow swim, finishing the bike course just a few seconds behind Desiree Ficker. Major managed to pass Ficker early in the run, but then had to hold the determined Texan off over the closing miles of the run.

The Australian, who won the 2004 Ironman USA Lake Placid Triathlon and also finished third in Hawaii last year, finished in 9:44:26.

Ficker was second in 9:48:26, with Germany’s Ute Mueckel third in 9:51:43, Ukraine’s Tamara Kozulina fourth in 9:58:46 and Switzerland’s Lisabeth Kristensen fifth in 10:05:17.

There were 1,830 athletes from 25 countries at the start line, competing for 80 qualifying spots to the 2005 Ironman World Championship, in addition to the $75,000 pro prize purse.

To check out the complete, live coverage of Ironman Arizona, click on the banner at the top of the page

10

right, i had seen that. he says they were “like” hawaii, not “worse.” he also doesn’t reference which year. were they like hawaii in 2002 or 2003? sure. like 2004? i don’t think so.

11

thats what he said when i had a chance to chat with him just after the race. obviously the last race always seem a bit more difficult than reality :wink:

splits worth almost 0… hawaii is/was hot and humid, AZ wasn’t for example, we cannot compare splits on diferent conditions/course.

12

the wind in kona come from all directions - and the course is much more challenging.

the wind in Az this year was strong all day - and a challenge most of the time - and a lot stronger than in Hawaii last year.

13

Did the Az winds effect your race at IMAZ? Did you feel that riding down the Beeline was as difficult on race day as some of the roads in Kona?

14

the winds in AZ for some reason gave me the fortitude to ride my best ride. The courses are incomparable - Kona has hills and such - AZ is truly flat as a board - except for a few overpasses.

And it is true that in AZ you were blown one direction at least. In Kona seemed like the wind was always against you - just not as nasty as AZ wind - which also blew every sand and dirt particle from miles around right into the eyes, nose, mouth etc.

I have never be so thankful to finish a race - arizona was a challenge at every turn. Even the swim was windy.

15

I’ve only done AZ, but asked my friend who has done both. He told me that the AZ winds were constant, where the Kona winds were big gusts and somewhat unpredictable.

16

true

AZ was mostly a constant wind
.