It’s been well documented that at IM Florida that drafting is an issue given the flat course. This being my first IM I was determined to not give in to the temptation while out on the bike…I wanted to be able to say to others and look myself in the mirror and say I had a clean race, whether it was 12 hours or 16:59:59. I was a MOP swimmer at this race, so for the first 10 miles or so I can see how it would be difficult to avoid the crowds. However near the special needs area (mile 56) I was passed by 3 guys clearly drafting off of each other as they flew by me. After they hit the turn around I overheard one of them say, “Yeah we’ve had a few comments, none of them good”. Clearly they were aware they were cheating, had been doing it for a good portion of the race, and weren’t planning on stopping anytime soon. Drafting as long as I am guessing they did gives them a huge advantage over the other competitors when it comes time to the run, especially as windy as it was on some portions of the course. I know that infractions happen, that’s why there are penalties, but for such a blatant disregard like these 3 were doing, in my opinion you should be booted out of the race.
I’ve never heard of that happening before…crazy…
Agree 100%!
is this the first IMFL drafting thread? and it’s pretty weak at that.
I tried my best to remember race numbers and I THINK I remember one of them, especially when I compare that to the split times that ST has provided. It really pissed me off that they were joking around about cheating, I do know that one guy was wearing a NY Mets jersey, but I don’t want to accidentally attack the innocent.
This is a huge problem because the punishment is not going to fit the crime. Even if you get caught and hit with a four minute penalty the gains outweigh the benefit. Not only will probably still be ahead of where you race clean. i laugh at the way it is justified. “You can’t let the race go up the road” That is just admitting to it. There is no way to rationalize this. Cheating is cheating. They need to do what was done in the 80’s and 90’ automatic dq. Do that a few times and that stops it. I agree race clean. I have done this sport for a long time and that is really the only solution. Unfortunately the reality is people are paying a lot of money to enter races and the brand or races will be reluctant to not allow a finish. My other thought would be to allow an official finish but dq from awards and qualifying spots.
It really starts with the officiating. They don’t want to give out penalties. I guarantee the first IMFL with 100 DQs where you dont get to start the run and 200 time penalties will be the last one with blatant drafting. It will also likely be the last one that sells out in 17 minutes.
I passed the penalty tent and noticed a woman who had passed me (drafting) in there, then I saw her about 20 minutes later when she passed me and was drafting again! I guess some people just take their chances.
Next year’s race sold out in 17 minutes. They’re not laughing with you, they’re laughing at you.
To paraphrase Mike McDermott from Rounders-if you can’t spot the sucker in the first half hour of IMFL, you ARE the sucker.
Was it Jose Reyes?
It really starts with the officiating. They don’t want to give out penalties. I guarantee the first IMFL with 100 DQs where you dont get to start the run and 200 time penalties will be the last one with blatant drafting. It will also likely be the last one that sells out in 17 minutes.
Nope, it is an integrity thing. Some people feel it is morally OK to draft, others don’t. And saying “it didn’t happen if I didn’t get caught” - aka - the referees didn’t enforce it is a cop out.
A similar situation occurs when driving and speeding. We pretty well all do it to one degree or other and are comfortable with our choice. And most people accept the consequences when caught.
But, unless you are aiming for the podium or a qualifying spot, it doesn’t really affect you.
Maybe not in the front of the pack, but my 6:44 bike split says the back of the pack was drafting plenty. Damn, I need to work on my bike. Anyway, I don’t think those people did it so much to get ahead as to actually finish. Then again, I was passed by a lot of packs and I was drafted off of for a while, too.
It affects you if they cause an accident or unsafe conditions on the course.
But, unless you are aiming for the podium or a qualifying spot, it doesn’t really affect you.
Sure it does. I’m wicked slow, but I judge my performance on, among other factors, how I performed relative to my AG. I’m not losing any sleep over it, but if others gain a relative advantage by cheating, it does affect my race experience.
This was my 9th IM Florida. This year was the least drafting I have seen. I had a couple of small groups go by but no large groups. There were a couple of places people bunched up but everyone seemed to spread out quickly. It also looked like the penalty tents were pretty active.
I really, really, really don’t intend to sound rude, so please don’t take it that way, but why do you care? It sounds from your post that you are a MOP participant (as am I) and you were not hoping to podium. Since these guys were around you halfway through the bike it is unlikely they were shooting for a Kona slot either (unless they were pretty darn old), so why should we care if they cheat? They are taking nothing away from us. And for what it’s worth, the area around the bike special needs was extremely congested since it was one lane each way and it made it very difficult to pass (people were riding three across trying to find a better riding surface since the road was so rough). I had a great time. Didn’t let others ruin my day.
It’s been well documented that at IM Florida that drafting is an issue given the flat course. This being my first IM I was determined to not give in to the temptation while out on the bike…I wanted to be able to say to others and look myself in the mirror and say I had a clean race, whether it was 12 hours or 16:59:59. I was a MOP swimmer at this race, so for the first 10 miles or so I can see how it would be difficult to avoid the crowds. However near the special needs area (mile 56) I was passed by 3 guys clearly drafting off of each other as they flew by me. After they hit the turn around I overheard one of them say, “Yeah we’ve had a few comments, none of them good”. Clearly they were aware they were cheating, had been doing it for a good portion of the race, and weren’t planning on stopping anytime soon. Drafting as long as I am guessing they did gives them a huge advantage over the other competitors when it comes time to the run, especially as windy as it was on some portions of the course. I know that infractions happen, that’s why there are penalties, but for such a blatant disregard like these 3 were doing, in my opinion you should be booted out of the race.
Actually it was Dwight Gooden.
I really, really, really don’t intend to sound rude, so please don’t take it that way, but why do you care? It sounds from your post that you are a MOP participant (as am I) and you were not hoping to podium. Since these guys were around you halfway through the bike it is unlikely they were shooting for a Kona slot either (unless they were pretty darn old), so why should we care if they cheat? They are taking nothing away from us. And for what it’s worth, the area around the bike special needs was extremely congested since it was one lane each way and it made it very difficult to pass (people were riding three across trying to find a better riding surface since the road was so rough). I had a great time. Didn’t let others ruin my day.
I care because I race to not only challenge myself against the clock, but also see how I come in compared to the rest of the field and my age group. When people blatantly cheat it does take away from the race experience. It may not bother you, but it does me. All in all I really did enjoy the race, I just wish that others respected the integrity of the sport.
This was my 9th IM Florida. This year was the least drafting I have seen. I had a couple of small groups go by but no large groups. There were a couple of places people bunched up but everyone seemed to spread out quickly. It also looked like the penalty tents were pretty active.
I agree, I saw very little drafting and when I did, they were penalized. Every tent was active when you passed it.
i agree, i can see how it happens with the huge groups. kinda sucked getting passed be them and dropping back cuz i didnt want to be a part of it. i spent a lot of time sitting up and coasting to drop out of draft zones. i still managed a 5:45 bike split though.
will i lose sleep over it? absolutely not.