Navigating Penalties: The Fine Line Between Passion and Professionalism in Triathlon
The principal focus of this discourse centers on the recent triathlon events, particularly the T100 race that transpired in Spain and the implications of athlete interactions with race officials. We delve into the outcomes of these competitions, highlighting the noteworthy performances of athletes such as Hayden Wilde, who continues to assert his dominance in the series amidst considerable scrutiny. Additionally, we address the contentious exchanges between athletes and officials, emphasizing the need for decorum and respect within the sport. Our analysis further extends to the upcoming Augusta 70.3 race, where we anticipate fierce competition among prominent triathletes. Lastly, we examine the newly released start list for the Kona race, projecting an exhilarating showdown among elite competitors.
Links to topics discussed:
The TriDoc Podcast
Matt's Instagram
Jeff's Instagram
Email Jeff: tri_doc@icloud.com
Email Matt: Matt@thetemponews.com
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Signup for The TriDoc Podcast Supplement form
Transcript
Welcome to Tempo Talks, a show that brings you analysis of the biggest stories in triathlon training, tips to make you a better athlete and breakdowns of the latest science and performance.
Speaker A:I'm Matthew Sharp, an Olympian in triathlon 70.3 Champion & Co founder of the Tempo News.
Speaker B:And I'm Jeff Sankoff, the Tridoc medical contributor for Triathlete Magazine, age group winner and coach at LifeSport coaching.
Speaker B:Our goal inform and entertain two perspectives.
Speaker B:One sport all things triathlon.
Speaker B:Now let's get into it.
Speaker B:Hello.
Speaker B:Hello everybody and welcome back to another episode of Tempo Talks.
Speaker B:My name is Jeff Sankoff, the Tridoc and I'm joined by the better half.
Speaker B:No of the duo.
Speaker B:His name is Matthew Sharp.
Speaker B:He's up the road from me in Boulder, Colorado.
Speaker B:Matt, how are you doing today?
Speaker A:I'm doing well.
Speaker A:I actually not long ago got off the bike.
Speaker A:I had a really nice ride up in the mountains, riding up to Ward.
Speaker A:I actually thought I might see you out there maybe trying to do some hills with Marbella on the horizon.
Speaker B:Yeah, it's gonna happen.
Speaker B:It's gonna happen.
Speaker B:But of course I'm just recovering from a race and back to my day job.
Speaker B:So I'm working.
Speaker B:But I definitely, once I get a day off, I will be back out there riding the TT bike up the mountain roads.
Speaker B:That is definitely to come in the coming weeks.
Speaker A:Definitely.
Speaker A:And your race this weekend, I want to go through it, maybe tell us or tell the folks what is on tap for today's episode and then we can get it.
Speaker B:Yeah, we got a few things and we'll include the the race in Richland just because I think it's a great event and I want to just promote it a little bit.
Speaker B:I had a great second time around there and I also just think it's such a great event.
Speaker B:So we are going to cover the excitement at the T100 that took place in Spain this past weekend.
Speaker B:For lovers of the T100 and haters of the athlete who won, we're going to cover it all.
Speaker B:We are going to touch on something that you and I chatted about online together.
Speaker B:But basically we are going to talk about some of the interactions between athletes and officials that made it onto the feeds that came out of that T100 that I wasn't too excited to see and I think you agree is maybe not the standard we want to see from pros.
Speaker B:We're going to very briefly just talk about the fact that Augusta 70.3 is this coming weekend and we just want to highlight a few people that are going to be racing there.
Speaker B:We're going to turn our attention to the race just passed in Richland this past weekend.
Speaker B:And then we're going to talk about the scoop, the scoop that I was able to pick up in my undercover reporting that I did while in Richland talking to some folks from Ironman.
Speaker B:And finally, we will dedicate just a little bit of time at the end of the program.
Speaker B:It's a very busy list today.
Speaker B:We are going to talk about the names that were released for the official start list.
Speaker B:We're not going to do a full in depth preview today.
Speaker B:We're going to wait till we get a little closer.
Speaker B:But the start list was announced for the Kona race so we're going to get to that.
Speaker B:But let's begin first with the T100 that took place on the weekend in Spain.
Speaker B:I got a chance to follow along as the Instagram reels were coming fast and furious.
Speaker B:Matt, how did that race play out?
Speaker A:It was funny, basically.
Speaker A:I wrote it in my newsletter.
Speaker A:It was.
Speaker A:This race was just.
Speaker A:It was the hangover race.
Speaker A:It was like the nice hangover race a week after the world championships and obviously one of the finest world championships we've ever seen.
Speaker A:There was just a lot of hype, a lot of energy and I said it was like you've had a huge night out and then the next day people are trying to rally you to go out again.
Speaker A:And I'm just like I'm 30 plus now.
Speaker A:That just isn't happening now.
Speaker A:So it just felt like it was a bit much for T100 to ask us to get fired up for this race.
Speaker A:No discredit to the athletes and to everyone who put on the race because there is commendable efforts for sure.
Speaker A:It just, it was hard to get fired up for this race but some good performances for sure out there.
Speaker A:I think we can start with the men's race which I think the big storyline in this one was the Hayden wild, the fallout from the Hayden Wilde shoegate fiasco.
Speaker B:Shoegate?
Speaker A:Yeah, shoegate.
Speaker B:And I was commenting to you, I think in the lead up to this that I was astonished that there were just so many haters of poor Hayden.
Speaker B:I think he's just.
Speaker B:I just think this comes down to people disliking success when success is so consistent like that people are always looking to take people down a peg.
Speaker B:And I was seeing how people were harping on his water bottle set up and just going on and on and he felt the need to somehow defend himself against all comers.
Speaker B:Which that was interesting.
Speaker A:I felt like a bit of a nitpick as things went on.
Speaker A:Like, obviously, in my opinion, the whole shoe thing, he crossed the line, he broke the rules.
Speaker A:Seemed like it wasn't an honest mistake because of the hot mic issue after the race where he talked about having to take off the shoes and put them away or something.
Speaker A:So that was a bit troublesome.
Speaker A:But then I think evolved in the week after, so weeks or so after where he was getting just picked on.
Speaker A:But that's the world we live in with social media, all that kind of stuff.
Speaker A:People have always, you know, the price of success in a lot of ways is this kind of blowback, this kind of attention, unwanted.
Speaker A:It was definitely, I think the major storyline going into it.
Speaker A:But it didn't seem to slow him down too much.
Speaker B:No, nothing really does seem to slow him down.
Speaker B:And yet again, a real battle with Rico Bogan on the bike until Rico had a little bit of a.
Speaker B:Interesting altercation with the officials.
Speaker B:And then a.
Speaker B:A real slug fest with yellow gains on the run.
Speaker A:Yeah, basically they came into T2 together and you think maybe, okay, this is yellow's opportunity.
Speaker A:Maybe Hayden's feeling a little flat after all that online flack and they went a little bit back and forth.
Speaker A:I think Yella had a bit of a lead leading out of T2.
Speaker A:So Wild had to chase him down.
Speaker A:But then after about halfway, Hayden just kind of turned on the Hayden jets and just slowly pulled away from Yella and he just.
Speaker A:He didn't have a response.
Speaker A:That was it.
Speaker A:And Hayden took his fourth win in four starts in the T100 this year.
Speaker A:Just running away with this whole thing, really.
Speaker A:There's nothing else to say about that.
Speaker B:Is that unassailable now?
Speaker B:Has he basically just guaranteed himself a win for the series?
Speaker A:I would say it's just so hard.
Speaker A:Like given the adversity he had with that collision, as you would say, collision with the truck.
Speaker B:Yes.
Speaker A:And him coming back and continuing to dominate like he didn't even have any issues.
Speaker A:I just don't see how anybody in the series anyways can come back and take him down.
Speaker A:Maybe as the season goes on, he'll get a little fatigued.
Speaker A:I think that's gonna happen.
Speaker B:But maybe he said if he intends.
Speaker A:To raise in Marbella, he has not.
Speaker A:I think the Marbella race it might be in quite close proximity to Dubai.
Speaker A:But he.
Speaker A:It makes sense.
Speaker A:It would make sense for him to do it, I think because really if he is in this kind of form, there's no reason why he shouldn't do the World Championship 70.3 and then a T100 the next weekend.
Speaker A:A guy's racing double races in his World Triathlon T100 race weekend.
Speaker A:So, you know, a weak recovery, that's nothing for him, apparently.
Speaker B:Yeah, yeah.
Speaker B:And it's true for a lot of these guys too.
Speaker B:And I just, I find myself thinking about his trajectory and he clearly has great success on the short course circuit.
Speaker B:But in the Olympics kind of lasted in the last, what, couple of hundred meters?
Speaker B:Right.
Speaker B:And then.
Speaker A:And he went on a flyer in Paris.
Speaker A:Like he just, he attacked.
Speaker A:Yeah, 3k in and just went for it.
Speaker A:Which, like against Alex Yee, I don't know.
Speaker A:To me it just didn't make sense.
Speaker A:But he obviously felt good enough and confident enough to go for it.
Speaker B:And then in the 70.3 world also out ahead and then cracked at the end.
Speaker B:Right.
Speaker B:And this T100 which is like an intermediate distance almost, he seems to be thriving at.
Speaker B:So is there something about the 8k more on the run and the 3k less?
Speaker B:It's just a sweet spot.
Speaker B:It's just interesting to me.
Speaker A:No doubt, all the guys really.
Speaker A:Alex Yee is like the only guy in a lot of ways other than Yella last year who's been beating him consistently.
Speaker A:And he doesn't do these T100 races because I think he knows that they don't suit his skill set.
Speaker A:I think he could run the table for the next, whatever three or four races that he has for the rest of the year.
Speaker A:It just.
Speaker A:Who's going to step up and take him down?
Speaker A:Yella, he's clearly is showing like he's coming off the bike with this guy.
Speaker A:He's got a little bit of a lead going on to the run and he still can't get rid of him.
Speaker A:Still can't even just hold on to frustrating first print finish.
Speaker A:Yeah, it's super frustrating.
Speaker A:And I wonder if the folks at the T100 are a little.
Speaker A:Oh, I mean, it was a great story when Hayden came back and won.
Speaker A:That was incredible.
Speaker A:And now you're like, oh, he's too good.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker A:The season long narrative is like shutting down a little bit.
Speaker B:We saw a good race on the women's side but a little bit of frustration at least.
Speaker B:I don't know if she actually felt frustrated.
Speaker B:I felt frustrated for her in the form of Ashley Gentle who when again, she's facing a real tough competition, she is not able to come through.
Speaker B:But it was an amazing race up front between two Brits.
Speaker A:Another battle between Lucy Charles, Barclay and Kate Wolf.
Speaker A:I think those two were basically out of the water together with Jessica Learmouth, who was also on the podium.
Speaker A:So they.
Speaker A:Those three basically just rode away.
Speaker A:Had a little trio off the front racing together for the 80k.
Speaker A:And Jess actually.
Speaker A:Wow.
Speaker A:Do you want to get into her little.
Speaker B:We'll get to that in a second.
Speaker B:Let's finish up with the race and then we'll get to that.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:Jessica Learmouth, she.
Speaker A:She wasn't there after bit on the bike.
Speaker A:Not necessarily her fault, but who knows?
Speaker A:The two of them, Lucy Charles, Kate Woff coming off the bike together, you know, a rematch of that T100 London, where Lucy Charles eventually took the win, her first T100 win.
Speaker A:And she ran it back again, just they were going toe to toe.
Speaker A:And then Lucy Charles eventually dispatched her.
Speaker A:I think it was about 6k or so from the finish.
Speaker A:So not too, too close.
Speaker A:Not as close as last time.
Speaker B:It's pretty interesting.
Speaker B:Lucy's really obviously focused a lot on her run because in the past, that's been a little bit of her Achilles heel.
Speaker B:She's led through the water, led off the bike and then been caught on the run.
Speaker B:She, obviously, that was not the script in Kona, but even there, there were stronger runners coming from behind.
Speaker B:She just had a big gap.
Speaker B:And this year on the T100, we're seeing her really distinguish herself with a strong run against other very strong women who are great runners.
Speaker B:So that really bodes well for her heading into Hawaii.
Speaker A:Yes, definitely.
Speaker A:And yet, like you said, her run is typically where she would suffer versus her peers.
Speaker A:But I'm wondering if maybe her swim and bike aren't where they typically are in Kona.
Speaker A:If she's coming off the bike close to a Kat Matthews, a Laura Phillip, hey, maybe she can hang with them.
Speaker A:Like, maybe this is just a new athlete.
Speaker A:And it's super exciting because it brings a whole new dimension to the race, her having this run weapon to access now.
Speaker A:Apparently, it's wild.
Speaker B:Just maturity of an athlete.
Speaker B:Right.
Speaker B:Just as they get older and they round out their skill set.
Speaker B:So it's pretty interesting to see.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:And I certainly don't expect her to struggle in the swimming, biking, Kona.
Speaker B:No, definitely not.
Speaker B:Definitely not.
Speaker B:Okay, so let's talk about the interactions between the officials and the athletes.
Speaker B:And I do want to point out that while the 70.3 did reduce their penalties for drafting to two minutes, and we talked about that earlier this year, we talked about how we thought that was maybe, I don't know, a little Lenient.
Speaker B:I was surprised to see that the T100 draft penalty is all of one minute, which strikes me as not a whole lot.
Speaker A:It's not, but it brings a little bit of intrigue to the race.
Speaker A:What was it like two plus minutes before or even four minutes?
Speaker A:Something like that?
Speaker B:Yeah, yeah, something like that.
Speaker A:So when it's like that, like their day is done, but with a one minute penalty, if obviously you're a good enough rider, you're still going to be in the race.
Speaker A:It's sometimes it's a nice little break, a little breather on the side of the road and then you get back into it.
Speaker A:It definitely keeps them in the game, I'd say, which it just makes it more interesting at the end of the day and that's what we want in a lot.
Speaker B:It can be a breather if you're not taking out all of your energy and all of your time.
Speaker B:Minute that you're sitting there beefing and yelling and being completely unreasonable with somebody who had nothing to do with your getting the penalty, as Jess Lermoth was doing.
Speaker A:Yes.
Speaker A:So this was a real.
Speaker A:Like, this is a.
Speaker A:This is.
Speaker A:Did you see this live this.
Speaker B:I did not see it.
Speaker A:Incident.
Speaker B:No, I saw.
Speaker A:No, you just saw it on Instagram or whatever.
Speaker A:It's interesting.
Speaker A:What was your thought when you first saw it?
Speaker A:What was your reaction?
Speaker B:When I first saw it, I just thought it was like, listen.
Speaker B:Okay, so for people who haven't seen it, Jess Larimeth is basically in the penalty tent and she is just teeing off on this poor guy who's standing there holding a stopwatch and his only job is to time a minute and then tell her when to go.
Speaker B:And she's just yelling at him about how she didn't do anything.
Speaker B:She wants to see the evidence and this is a crock.
Speaker B:And on it went.
Speaker B:And he like says to her.
Speaker B:He's just like.
Speaker B:He's just like ignoring her and just counting.
Speaker A:I'm just timing here.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:At one point he says eight and she's eight minutes.
Speaker B:And he's no eight seconds before you can go.
Speaker B:And as if to be like, listen, lady, get your head together.
Speaker B:And it was pretty ridiculous.
Speaker B:And this was also.
Speaker B:There was another penalty.
Speaker B:Two penalties given out to Kyle Smith and Rico Bogan on the bike.
Speaker B:And they too really teed off on the official in a way that was.
Speaker B:Honestly, if they were age groupers, they would have been DQ'd.
Speaker B:I get it.
Speaker B:In a sense, I get it.
Speaker B:Because it's their livelihood.
Speaker B:And I mean, the Funny part is like the race ranger's right there.
Speaker B:So it's not like there's any question as to what's going on.
Speaker B:So I don't really understand why they're making such a big fuss.
Speaker B:But at the same time, I'm not sure they're setting the best example.
Speaker B:And even in the heat of the moment, perhaps they need to calm themselves.
Speaker B:But the bigger thing is, should the organizations T100 and Ironman, should they be stepping up to protect their officials?
Speaker A:I think at the end of the day, these officials, you know, they're not making big money being out there officiating, right?
Speaker A:Like they're a huge part of this race.
Speaker A:They're taking flack like that from the athletes.
Speaker A:Like it, it's.
Speaker A:I'm torn in some ways because yes, the officials, they're making the call on the field.
Speaker A:That's it.
Speaker A:Like you can't argue it.
Speaker A:That's how it is.
Speaker A:But at the same time, I enjoy the passion, I enjoy the energy from these athletes.
Speaker A:Like maybe triathletes, not the most extroverted or.
Speaker A:Yeah, I'm trying to think of a respectful word.
Speaker A:But these people are like typically quiet.
Speaker A:But then you see this whole other side and it's interesting, it's engaging, it drives attention really.
Speaker A:Like these.
Speaker A:Both these clips got a lot of views and whatnot.
Speaker A:So I like that.
Speaker A:But then at the same time, it's just like these officials are doing their job.
Speaker A:We know officials aren't perfect, but it's not like these are professional.
Speaker A:Like this isn't their full time job.
Speaker A:None of these officials, they're not like NBA or NFL officials who are paid full time to do this.
Speaker A:So it's too bad because there's a human on the other side.
Speaker A:But it's fun to see people fume a little bit.
Speaker A:I don't know.
Speaker B:I know what you're saying, but I feel.
Speaker B:Listen, the officials already don't.
Speaker B:There's a lot of us as age groupers feel like the officials don't call enough penalties as there is.
Speaker B:Like we get frustrated by all the drafting we see and we want them to call more.
Speaker B:So then we can't really get pissed off if they call one on us.
Speaker B:I think that is not okay.
Speaker B:Now, I've raced for over 20 something years.
Speaker B:I've had a couple of penalties over that time.
Speaker B:I didn't like it when I got them, but I didn't say boo because I have spent many years as a referee, a hockey referee, and I hated when.
Speaker B:I hated when people treated me Badly.
Speaker B:And look, you never want to be part of the game.
Speaker B:A good referee is someone that nobody remembers, and you never want to make the sport about yourself.
Speaker B:The problem with these triathlon referees is that the only time they're going to be seen is when they're handing out a blue card.
Speaker B:That's the only time you're going to see them automatically they're going to become part of the spectacle at that point.
Speaker B:And I think it's really not okay to allow them to be abused the way they are or the way they have been.
Speaker B:And I think it's up to T100 and to Ironman to say, look, we understand you're passionate about this.
Speaker B:We understand that this is important to you.
Speaker B:It is completely not okay to yell at the officials in any way.
Speaker B:And because if you're doing it, the age groupers are going to start to do it.
Speaker B:And that is going to be a problem for those officials.
Speaker B:And that's really what I'm concerned about.
Speaker A:I think these athletes, like, they know that they can't really argue these penalties.
Speaker A:So to see them, I guess, getting upset at the officials, like they can be upset, but it's like they can't argue it.
Speaker A:This is the ruling on the field.
Speaker A:That's it.
Speaker A:I think, like, I wonder, if you were the head of the T100, what would you be doing in this situation?
Speaker B:I think that I would address it head on.
Speaker B:I would say to all the athletes, I would just message that, look, that kind of behavior is just not acceptable.
Speaker B:We stand by our officials.
Speaker B:If you have a problem with a call, there's a mechanism to protest a call, and we will adjudicate.
Speaker B:And if we recognize that there's been an error, we will handle it.
Speaker B:But it is not for you to try and handle it in the moment.
Speaker B:We also recognize that getting a penalty is not fun and it's emotional and that you're going to potentially have a reaction, but it's up to you to control those emotions and not be as.
Speaker B:As demonstrative and certainly not for as long.
Speaker B:I think it's totally fine to ask an official what did I do?
Speaker B:And ask for an explanation.
Speaker B:But where it becomes problematic is when they start arguing, I didn't do that.
Speaker B:I didn't.
Speaker B:That's not true.
Speaker B:That's not what I did.
Speaker B:Or you're nuts.
Speaker B:Or whenever it becomes somewhat contentious, personal.
Speaker B:It's just not okay.
Speaker B:It's not.
Speaker B:And like I said, my main concern is that is now going to be parroted by age groupers who see the pros doing that and also aren't going to be.
Speaker B:And listen, we all know there are plenty of age groupers out there who go about their business and live through their results and get just as passionate.
Speaker A:Yeah, for sure.
Speaker A:Like, the refs need to be respected at the end of the day.
Speaker A:Got to respect the ruling.
Speaker A:But I wonder, like, in the past T100, I feel like, has a rap for not calling penalties.
Speaker A:That was always a thing.
Speaker A:I remember last year or so.
Speaker B:Yeah, we're even up early this year.
Speaker A:These.
Speaker A:They need to.
Speaker A:These guys are drafting, blah, blah, blah.
Speaker A:And I wonder if now the T100 brass are like, hey, we need to start calling more penalties.
Speaker A:And maybe this is just like an adjustment period where they've given these refs, like the call to say, hey, if you see some, like, just go for it.
Speaker A:Don't even mess around.
Speaker A:And now these athletes, it's almost like an adjustment period for these athletes where they need to adjust their expectations of what is going to be called.
Speaker B:Could be, maybe.
Speaker B:I would just hate for T100 to now see the way the referees are being treated and then say, okay, back off, because that will reward the behavior.
Speaker B:So I think that's why it's important for T100.
Speaker B:And they don't have to do it publicly, although I'd love it if they did.
Speaker B:But I think that they should address it.
Speaker B:And I think, honestly, I think Ironman should address it too, because it bleeds over from one organization to the other.
Speaker B:And I don't know this for a fact.
Speaker B:Our friend Jay can comment in the Facebook group, but I would be interested to know if the referees for one series also officiate the other.
Speaker B:I don't know if T100 has their own independent group of officials.
Speaker A:I feel like there's crossover.
Speaker A:I think they're all on the same rules or they're not the same governing bodies, but I think they're, I think, definitely think there's crossover.
Speaker A:For sure.
Speaker B:Yeah, I wouldn't be surprised.
Speaker B:Anyways, what do you guys think?
Speaker B:We're always interested in hearing your thoughts and opinions.
Speaker B:Are the athletes behaving in a way that you think should be reined in, or do you think it's just part of the sport?
Speaker B:Do you think the officials are doing a good job or do you think the officials are maybe getting what they deserve?
Speaker B:We'd love to hear what you think.
Speaker B:Put a note in the Talk Tempo Talks Facebook group.
Speaker B:If you're not a member already, please do look for it on that platform.
Speaker B:Answer the easy questions.
Speaker B:We'll gain you admittance and join the conversation.
Speaker B:We'd love to to have you involved, ask your questions there and of course leave your comments.
Speaker B:All right, we're going to move very quickly to the Augusta 70.3 race that's coming up this weekend.
Speaker B:We're not going to do a full in depth review, but I do want to mention a couple of things.
Speaker B:The women's race is going to feature a couple of heavy hitters in the form of Paula Finley and Jackie Herring.
Speaker B:What do you think about.
Speaker B:It's a downriver swim which is unusual for a pro field.
Speaker B:Not seeing that much anymore.
Speaker A:I feel like in North America they love the downriver swims for sure.
Speaker A:Like Louisville.
Speaker B:Age groupers do.
Speaker B:Age groupers do.
Speaker B:Did they have a pro field there in Louisville?
Speaker A:Louisville, yeah.
Speaker A:Yeah, they did.
Speaker A:But yeah, Paula, I think this is just a close to home race.
Speaker A:I don't think she's going to be tapering too heavy for this.
Speaker A:You got Jackie Herring who's actually getting ready to compete in Kona.
Speaker A:So this is like a tune up race for her.
Speaker A:It should be pretty humid there, I think.
Speaker A:So maybe trying to dial in some fueling or hydration or whatnot, getting ready for the Big island.
Speaker A:But this is a race that there's a, I think a good contingent of North American athletes in terms of the grand scheme of things.
Speaker A:It's not like a pro series race, so there's no points on the line that way.
Speaker A:A few different storylines for sure going.
Speaker B:Into it and the reason we wanted to really bring it up is because there are a couple of personal friends of ours that are racing, one of whom is making her professional debut in the form of Maya Watson.
Speaker B:Maya was the overall winner for the women at Oregon and Victoria 70.3s last year, but she has been beset by injuries this year and has not had a chance to make her professional debut as she had originally hoped much earlier.
Speaker B:But she is set to take the start this coming weekend in Augusta and we are very excited to see how she does.
Speaker B:We wish her all the best.
Speaker B:Maya, of course, the daughter of the great Lance Watson, who is involved with both Matt and I on a coaching level.
Speaker B:The other person I want to say hi to is Joe Wilson, Triathlon Joe.
Speaker B:He's an outsized personality and triathlon amongst age groupers.
Speaker B:If you know anything about social media and triathlon, you will of course know triathlon.
Speaker B:Joe is a buddy of mine.
Speaker B:He lives not far from Augusta.
Speaker B:He tends to do this race frequently because let's face it Joe, you suck at swimming.
Speaker B:And so you need that downriver.
Speaker B:You need that downriver.
Speaker A:Joe's got the best mustache in the sport.
Speaker A:No handstand.
Speaker B:He really does.
Speaker B:Yeah, he really does.
Speaker B:And when he's not racing, he gets the best wigs as well.
Speaker B:Well, wish good luck to all of those folks as well as some other life sport athletes.
Speaker B:I've got three of the athletes I'm coaching raising there, so I'm hoping that they are all going to have a great day and I wish them all well as anybody else who's racing in Augusta this weekend.
Speaker B:With that said, we're going to turn our attention to the race that just took place in Richland at Tri Cities.
Speaker B:70 points.
Speaker A:The real.
Speaker B:What can I tell you?
Speaker A:The real economy.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker A:Can I tell you, Matt, Jeff, what, like, I feel like your whole season, you've really been building through the year.
Speaker B:Would you say that it was a trajectory?
Speaker B:Yes, I, as I've said many times, I started a new job and so it was a real, it was a real struggle to find my footing in terms of how to adjust to the new demands of this new job with its fixed hours, early to early hours, so that I was tended to be fairly fatigued in the evenings and then how to find my footing in terms of finding when and how to do my training.
Speaker B:And it took some time.
Speaker B:So Boulder, I was very undercooked.
Speaker B:Oregon.
Speaker B:I was definitely starting to feel better and Richland, finally things really came together for me.
Speaker B:So felt pretty good.
Speaker A:Did you like, did anything change in your training leading into this race or was it just Teddy?
Speaker A:She goes.
Speaker B:I felt like I definitely was swimming a lot smarter and a lot better.
Speaker B:I was making the most of my swim sets and really I think I got into a habit of going to do my swim sets and being lazy and not putting in the hardest effort I could for those sets.
Speaker B:And I think that kind of was biting me.
Speaker B:So I definitely was very intentional about my swimming.
Speaker B:The biking has always been my strength and I just needed to get more volume.
Speaker B:And by the time Richland came around, I had enough volume, so that was helpful.
Speaker B:And then running was just a matter of, I think, restoring my confidence and having enough good long runs where I felt really good.
Speaker B:And it was again an issue of volume and also just confidence.
Speaker A:That little momentum going into this song.
Speaker B:Yeah, absolutely.
Speaker B:And it felt real good.
Speaker A:So how did it play out on race day?
Speaker A:What was the course like too, actually, I want to know what the course is like.
Speaker B:So Richland is a really fun place to go.
Speaker B:It's nice for us in Denver because we have a direct flight to Pasco airport which is amazing because it's really not that big of a place.
Speaker B:But United has direct service with that good sized plane at 737.
Speaker B:So it's nice.
Speaker B:So you could fly straight in there.
Speaker B:It's like a two and a half hour, three hour flight.
Speaker B:Get right there.
Speaker B:It's nice.
Speaker B:You could bring your bike in a box, it's no problem.
Speaker B:And it's a small town, like 60,000 people, but the community is quite welcoming to the race.
Speaker B:I did hear maybe a little bit of noise about.
Speaker B:Maybe some grumbling about I couldn't drive my car on Sunday.
Speaker B:But that was really the minority.
Speaker B:I have to say the amount of support out on the race course all up and down the bike and run was incredible.
Speaker A:Awesome.
Speaker B:Really great.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:The swims down river in the Columbia river water temperature was delicious, like 70 degrees.
Speaker B:Really nice.
Speaker B:You basically set up in transition.
Speaker B:You take the 1.2 mile walk to the start, you get in the water and you are whisked down river.
Speaker B:Very.
Speaker A:I was going to say, I think I saw your swim split.
Speaker A:What was.
Speaker A:What'd you hold for your per hundred?
Speaker A:It looked pretty.
Speaker B:Yeah, I don't know.
Speaker B:But it was 23 minutes for the swim.
Speaker B:So I don't know what that turns into.
Speaker B:It's a lot faster than I would normally be.
Speaker A:Perfect.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:So that's nice.
Speaker B:And for context, I swam Oregon, which is a very fast swim.
Speaker B:I Swam Oregon in 21, so pretty similar times.
Speaker B:The.
Speaker B:The race organizer said that last year it was like 2,300 people did the race and everybody finished in 37 minutes, which is pretty cool, right?
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:I didn't see what the deal was this year.
Speaker B:This year they did have a drop off in registrations, but not significant finishers.
Speaker B: , a little over: Speaker B:But that doesn't take into account everybody who registered.
Speaker B:And I'll get into a little bit of that in a second.
Speaker B:The bike course is.
Speaker B:They altered it slightly this year, but not in a way that.
Speaker B:In a way that made it better.
Speaker B:I think it, it starts out pretty flat and then you have a couple of pretty significant kind of steepish hills that if you're like me, a strong cyclist, it's nice because what it does is it takes me about 15 miles most of the time to get out of the traffic.
Speaker B:But those hills really separate the stronger cyclists from the weaker cyclists.
Speaker B:And so by the time I get off the backside of those hills I'm into the rolling sort of wine country and I'm basically by myself and don't have to worry about drafting, don't have to worry about any kind of cyclists in the way.
Speaker B:It's nice and it's just a real pretty bike course through the vineyards.
Speaker B:It's super nice and it's just rolling now.
Speaker B:The problem this weekend was we had really ferocious winds last year.
Speaker A:I definitely saw something about this.
Speaker B:Yeah, last year, beautiful day, no wind at all.
Speaker B:This year, overcast actually rained on the run, which was nice, but overcast during the bike and like 25 mile an hour gusts with continuous 15 mile an hour across winds.
Speaker B:And it was tough.
Speaker B:I was riding a deep sectioned front wheel and I was definitely not comfortable.
Speaker A:A lot of it was that kind of the worst part of the race then was just dealing with that wind.
Speaker B:Yeah, it was just the wind and I was, I rode pretty similar power to what I did last year and I was six minutes slower and it was just purely because of the wind.
Speaker B:So everybody felt the wind and the wind caused, I think, a fair number of people to have some issues.
Speaker B:I think there was a reasonable amount of DNFs because of that.
Speaker B:And it just caused problems for people who were not as comfortable on the bike because there were some very fast downhills and if you weren't comfortable in those winds, those downhills were pretty sketchy.
Speaker B:But yeah, as far as I know, nobody came to grief.
Speaker B:And everybody who makes it to the run is treated to a very flat, fast out and back course along the river through a couple neighborhoods where people are out there sitting on their like outdoor lawn furniture just cheering you on.
Speaker B:It's just.
Speaker A:I love that.
Speaker B:Yeah, it's just super nice.
Speaker B:And it was just really nice.
Speaker B:I just really, anybody who's ever thought about this race, I think it's at a good time, kind of late September.
Speaker B:Good way to finish off your season.
Speaker B:If you live anywhere in the Midwest to the west.
Speaker B:Can't say enough about this race.
Speaker B:I think it's a really good one and I highly recommend it.
Speaker A:And other than the wine, it sounded like a fruitful endeavor for you.
Speaker B:Yes.
Speaker B:There was a big sign as coach Juliet and I were riding along.
Speaker B:It said huge watermelon sale.
Speaker B:And we couldn't decide were they selling huge watermelons or were they having a huge sale of watermelons because with the lack of punctuation we just couldn't tell.
Speaker A:Yeah, they didn't get the Grammarly on that.
Speaker A:But you, you did have some world Championship success.
Speaker B:Yes.
Speaker B:I was pleased to finally get myself back on a top five podium finishing fifth place in my age group and with the new age graded results I had the 22nd fastest male time.
Speaker B:I was 86th.
Speaker B: th overall out of the: Speaker B:And I will say I really like the new way of doing things.
Speaker B:I'm going to be giving a talk for LifeSport in October.
Speaker B:We will post a link to that because that's open to people who would like to join and I'm going to be giving a talk on the whole process and so I've done a lot more research to understand how the number the factor is derived for grading those results and it's really interesting.
Speaker B:I think it's a really smart way of doing it and I think it's a great system.
Speaker B:I think I love the way it just rewards performance as opposed to just rewarding people who happen to be in the most populous age groups.
Speaker B:I think it's great.
Speaker A:Was anyone talking about it there or is it like over now that whole hoopla?
Speaker B:I think people like it in general.
Speaker B:I think the one thing that is not clear to people is how far it's going to roll.
Speaker B:And the reason it's rolling quite frankly is because the cost the I had sticker shock.
Speaker B:The price for Nice is over €800 to sign up.
Speaker B:That is steep.
Speaker B:That is really steep.
Speaker B:And I think a lot of people.
Speaker A:Are passing those hills in Nice.
Speaker B:Oh yeah, I think a lot of people are passing because of that.
Speaker B:And I am not blind to the fact that is pricing things like that's just coming right out and saying this is really for those who can afford it and not what have you paid in the past?
Speaker A:That's unfortunate for 70.3 worlds I.
Speaker B:I don't want to make it up but not €800.
Speaker B:No, no.
Speaker B:I mean like probably that for an I full Ironman I probably paid that that price but now we're paying that for a half.
Speaker A:I I it was interesting actually.
Speaker A: nk and the price for Kona was: Speaker B:Yeah, that's crazy.
Speaker A:So this is the whole thing now we're seeing going back to Kona bringing Everybody back to Kona, which is, I think is great.
Speaker A:But this is the result.
Speaker A:They were always going to have to raise the prices to get the same revenue as a separate world championship.
Speaker A:So this is.
Speaker A:Yeah, now we're seeing the result of the return to Kona and it's stickers.
Speaker B:And look, I'm not dumb, right?
Speaker B:This is a sport already for the affluent.
Speaker B:It's not a cheap sport to get into.
Speaker B:It is a.
Speaker B:Listen, I'm coming from a background of privilege.
Speaker B:I'm privileged that I can do this sport.
Speaker B:I'm privileged that I can afford to travel to do it.
Speaker B:I don't want to sound like I am totally oblivious.
Speaker B:I'm not.
Speaker B:That being said, I'm still.
Speaker B:There's gonna be a point at which it is not going to make sense.
Speaker B:And I don't know when that's gonna happen.
Speaker B:And it certainly is happening for a lot of people because there were 30 men's slots and the last guy to take a slot was number 97.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker B:Wow.
Speaker B:There were 30 women's slots and the last woman to take it was in close to 70.
Speaker B:So it.
Speaker B:They both rolled quite a bit.
Speaker B:And I will say there were people who were ranked lower than that who were hopeful, who were waiting and hopeful to get a slot.
Speaker B:So clearly the market will bear this cost.
Speaker B:But I think that doesn't mean they should charge it now.
Speaker B:Again, I understand they're in it to make money.
Speaker B:I get it.
Speaker A:Anyways, there's some price discovery going on for Ironman.
Speaker A:No doubt.
Speaker B:And listen, and listen.
Speaker B:Now that we're talking about world championships, I have to give a mea culpa.
Speaker B:I knocked.
Speaker B:I spent a lot of time knocking Oman.
Speaker B:I did some research.
Speaker B:I did some reading.
Speaker B:I haven't actually spoken to anybody who has been.
Speaker B:I haven't done anything more than just do some reading on.
Speaker B:Does look pretty cool.
Speaker B:And of all of the countries in that area, Oman seems to be the most progressive or one of the most progressive.
Speaker B:It seems to be one of the more tourist friendly.
Speaker B:It seems to be quite remarkable in terms of what it offers, in terms of sightseeing.
Speaker B:And I take back my initial reaction.
Speaker A:And if you're listening, Jeff is ready to travel.
Speaker A:It's ready to be an Oman man.
Speaker B:It may be a place I'm willing to be an Oman man.
Speaker B:We'll see.
Speaker B:We'll see.
Speaker A:The one thing too about Oman is you never hear it in the news.
Speaker A:Like I've never, I don't think in the last, whatever, 10 years I've heard of Oman in the news.
Speaker A:So, you know, they got that going for him for sure.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:They also have going for them a fantastically named capital city, Muscat.
Speaker A:I mean, nice.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:That's awesome.
Speaker B:Okay.
Speaker B:I did, while I was at Richland, have a chance to get some scoop because I did some deep undercover reporting.
Speaker B:So we talked about the fact that Ironman Arizona is going away, and we had discussed.
Speaker B:Is it possible that Richland would potentially be converted to a full.
Speaker B:I can say without a doubt, after speaking to some higher ups in the Ironman world.
Speaker B:That is not in the cards.
Speaker B:Richland is going to remain a 70.3 for the foreseeable future.
Speaker B:There is no plans for Richland to be an Ironman.
Speaker B:It was never even something that was thought about or discussed.
Speaker B:That's number one.
Speaker A:Okay, good.
Speaker B:I thought you had thoughts.
Speaker B:Okay.
Speaker B:I also think that the community would not have been thrilled about that.
Speaker B:They.
Speaker B:They.
Speaker B:As I mentioned, there's been a little bit of rumblings, but not as much as you hear in other places.
Speaker B:They seem still very much on board, very happy to have the race.
Speaker B: est, but it's not coming till: Speaker B: d that is going to be set for: Speaker B:And I think that is pretty amazing.
Speaker B:So I hope that comes to pass.
Speaker B:We'll see.
Speaker B:I don't know what time of year it will be.
Speaker B:I don't.
Speaker A:This is 17.3 or this is.
Speaker B:This will be a full Ironman.
Speaker B:Full Iron Man.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:They're putting in a ton of infrastructure for the World Cup.
Speaker B:And once the city invests a lot of money for infrastructure like that, they generally want to have other events come in and fill the void once the big event leaves.
Speaker B: So after the World cup in: Speaker B:So look forward to that if you're in the Pacific Northwest.
Speaker B:But again, that's a couple years away.
Speaker B:I don't know what time of year it will be, but this is what I am hearing so interesting because if.
Speaker A:You think about the races in that region, like the Victoria 70.3s in the spring, this could be like a summer race, right?
Speaker B:I would think summer or fall.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:It's a good location for race.
Speaker A:Bellingham, obviously, close to Seattle, close to Vancouver.
Speaker A:These two major population centers.
Speaker A:I think maybe they realized that with the T100 going in and scooping up Vancouver that maybe they needed a bit of a presence in that region.
Speaker A:I'm stoked to hear that.
Speaker A:It's going to be in the cards for sure.
Speaker B:Yeah, we'll see.
Speaker B:The other thing I could tell you there's been a lot of chatter on the socials that Boulder would have been a replacement for Arizona.
Speaker B:I am told definitively that is not the case.
Speaker B:There will not be a fall Ironman race in Boulder.
Speaker B:Not.
Speaker B:Not happening.
Speaker A:Interesting.
Speaker A:They didn't give you an indication of if they're trying to get a replacement.
Speaker B:My understanding is that there is some plan afoot to try and replace Arizona somewhere in the Southwest, but that there is nothing specific.
Speaker B: I could tell you is that the: Speaker B:I don't think that's a surprise to anybody.
Speaker B:Apparently there are as many as eight cities that have submitted bids.
Speaker B:You and I can speculate till the cows come home on where those cities are.
Speaker B:I don't think it matters.
Speaker B:The fact is that we will know soon enough.
Speaker B: But the: Speaker B:I'm sure that will be a hard slot to get.
Speaker B:Although if Ironman goes ahead and charges over $1,000 entry, maybe it won't be that difficult after all.
Speaker A:I love it.
Speaker A:Good reporting.
Speaker A:Good reporting.
Speaker B:That's what I got for.
Speaker A:Yeah, no, those are great.
Speaker A:Those are great.
Speaker A:I do.
Speaker A:I was curious if that Tri Cities race could be a full distance.
Speaker A:It's interesting.
Speaker A:It really feels right now 70.3s like logistically they're just so much easier to put on because the footprint is smaller in terms of the race course.
Speaker A:Obviously less resources needed just to put it on.
Speaker A:Doesn't take as much time in the community's day.
Speaker A:Like I just.
Speaker A:It's got to be hard to pitch these full distance races.
Speaker B:I think that's the bigger.
Speaker B:I think that's the bigger issue.
Speaker B:Is that right?
Speaker B:It's not like the footprint is still pretty big 56 mile bike courses.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker B:And.
Speaker B:But I think it's the fact that you could sell it as look, we're going to be off the bike by 1pm and people on the run generally it's not a big deal because the run is usually easy to manage.
Speaker B:But we're going to be off your streets and we usually roll up the bike course.
Speaker B:We could tell you we're going to be rolling up the bike course and people will be Done by one o'.
Speaker B:Clock.
Speaker B:I think generally that's an easier sell.
Speaker B:I do want to speculate on 1:70.3 World Championship possible city, which I think would be really cool.
Speaker B:I don't know if it'll happen, but wouldn't Ottawa be cool?
Speaker A:Ottawa would be great.
Speaker A:It's a great city to travel to.
Speaker A:Yeah, it's a great place to be, for sure.
Speaker A:I like that.
Speaker A:I like Ottawa.
Speaker B:I'm just going to pause at that.
Speaker B:I have no idea.
Speaker B:I'm pulling that out of a hat just because I think it would be cool.
Speaker B:But anyways.
Speaker B:Okay.
Speaker A:Do you think it would be more likely to be in the US than in Canada or.
Speaker B:It's only been in Canada once, right?
Speaker B:It's only been in Canada that one time in Tromble and it was a huge success story when.
Speaker A:Yeah, great success.
Speaker B:It's been in the US multiple times.
Speaker B:I try to think of if it's going to be in the US you would think it would have to be in a city that has a race.
Speaker B:So we've already been time of year, right?
Speaker A:In September.
Speaker A:Yeah, September for sure.
Speaker B:Okay.
Speaker B:So that knocks out places like anywhere.
Speaker B:I think it.
Speaker B:I guess you could do Lake Placid, but man, it would be cold.
Speaker B:I don't know that you could do a Lake Placid and in any way.
Speaker B:Lake Placid.
Speaker B:They hate having the race, so.
Speaker A:They do hate it.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:The community is not stoked on that race.
Speaker A:Although.
Speaker A:70.3 maybe.
Speaker A:Maybe less.
Speaker A:I don't know.
Speaker B:Are you kidding?
Speaker B:They hate it.
Speaker B:I don't think.
Speaker B:I don't think you reward a cantankerous community with a race.
Speaker B:For sure.
Speaker A:For sure.
Speaker B:You have to think the Northeast.
Speaker B:Really.
Speaker B:You could, but you would.
Speaker B:Anyways.
Speaker B:You can't do the Southeast because it's hurricane season.
Speaker B:So you can't put anything in the Southeast for fear of that.
Speaker B:Southwest is possible.
Speaker B:You could look at places in California, so Oceanside, Santa Cruz.
Speaker B:Santa Cruz.
Speaker B:Yeah, maybe.
Speaker B:So then you start looking at places Northwest, not Richland.
Speaker B:I think Richland is.
Speaker B:As much as I love the race, I think it's not likely to be able to support that kind of influx of numbers of athletes.
Speaker B:I don't know.
Speaker A:So Boise, the race I went to this summer.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker A:It is going to be a pro series race next year.
Speaker A:Which to go from one year pro race to then pro series.
Speaker A:Obviously they think it's a great place to.
Speaker A:To put on a series race or whatever.
Speaker A:So they have a lot of confidence in it.
Speaker A:That's a place that could Actually host the World Championships because it's a big enough city, big enough infrastructure in terms of lodging, all that kind of stuff.
Speaker A:I could see that being on the list for sure.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:Beautiful place also.
Speaker B:They're always trying to get on the map.
Speaker B:Boise.
Speaker B:All right.
Speaker A:Okay, good scoops.
Speaker B:Let's finish up with the Kona start list.
Speaker B:And we are not going to go into a huge in depth review right now.
Speaker B:We're going to save that for a later show.
Speaker B:But let's just go over what came out today in terms of who's going to be there.
Speaker B:Who's going to be there to watch.
Speaker A:Yes.
Speaker A:The big hitters and everybody, it seems, who's tapped to potentially win is going to be there.
Speaker A:I would say start off with the big five.
Speaker A:Laura Phillip, Lucy Charles, Barclay, Cat Matthews, Taylor Nib and Julie Darren, I think are the big five in this race.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:And it's amazing to think that the names you left off could easily be.
Speaker A:Considered threats like a Chelsea Sadaro.
Speaker A:You've got Soldag Loveseth.
Speaker A:The Norwegian athlete who's really blown up this year come onto the scene with some great results.
Speaker A:Lisa Perder, Ship podium at Ironman, Texas and Lake Placid.
Speaker A:Jackie Herring has been having a great year.
Speaker A:Tamara Jewett, Canadian.
Speaker B:She's Tamara Jewett, winner of Santa Cruz, winner short weeks ago.
Speaker A:India Lee, Holly Lawrence, a French girl.
Speaker A:Marjolaine Pierre.
Speaker A:Yeah, I think that's it.
Speaker B:I think.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:So just a really stellar lineup.
Speaker B:And she finished what, third last year.
Speaker B:Marjolaine.
Speaker B:I think she or she was like top five.
Speaker A:Top five.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:Yep.
Speaker A:No.
Speaker A:And everybody just seems to be healthy and in great form like Lucy Charles, coming off these T100 victories, looks like she's in great form and bringing incredible run prowess now.
Speaker A:It just adds another element.
Speaker A:I'm after the men's race, which was obviously exceptional.
Speaker A:This race is also just going to deliver.
Speaker B:Now, some of these T100 names we know are not going to be there.
Speaker B:Right.
Speaker B:So like Paula Finley, Ashley Gentle, Kate Wolf, Jess Learmouth.
Speaker B:These women still have not made the jump to the longer course, right?
Speaker A:No.
Speaker A:And it's funny because I thought Paula was tapped to do an iron man at some point this year, but that.
Speaker A:I don't know if that seems to be happening.
Speaker A:I know she's actually gearing up for 70.3 worlds now, but.
Speaker B:And will we see those names besides Paula, those other women is Kate Wolf, Jess.
Speaker A:None of them.
Speaker A:They're all doing.
Speaker A:They're all coming from the short course background.
Speaker A:Not that long ago.
Speaker A:So I know most of them haven't stepped up to the full distance yet, but if they did, I'm sure they would be right at the front of that, too.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:Just exciting times because after that incredible men's race that we had, I think the women's race is going to be just as good, if not just as good.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:Because just so many amazing names to watch.
Speaker A:And in Kona, too.
Speaker A:So you have the Kona mystique and the aura.
Speaker A:So just a lot of.
Speaker A:A lot to look forward to.
Speaker A:Good time zone for us to watch.
Speaker A:So.
Speaker A:Yeah, perfect.
Speaker B:It's going to be awesome.
Speaker B:Before I insinuate that we are done, I have to make sure.
Speaker B:Is there anything else, Matt?
Speaker A:I think that's it.
Speaker B:Okay, good.
Speaker B:Because the last couple of times I've tried to wrap things up.
Speaker A:No surprise topics this time.
Speaker A:I think we did a good job.
Speaker A:And yeah, I love those scoops.
Speaker A:Really great reporting.
Speaker B:Thanks, man.
Speaker B:Thanks.
Speaker B:We got a lot in today, so hopefully you enjoyed it if you did.
Speaker B:We hope that you will leave us a rating and a review wherever you download this content and of course, share with a friend.
Speaker B:And don't forget to join the Talk Tempo Talks Facebook group because that way you can engage with us.
Speaker B:Leave your comments, leave your questions, and we'd love to hear from you, Matt.
Speaker B:It's been a great week, great show.
Speaker B:Look forward to chatting with you again next week when we can chat about Augusta and we could start thinking about that Kona start list.
Speaker A:Yes, it's coming.
Speaker A:It's coming.
Speaker B:All right, man, talk to you soon.
Speaker A:Good stuff.
Speaker A:Thanks.
Speaker A:J.
Speaker B:Sam.
