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Classics and New Locations Highlight Ironman Race Calendar
Plus: three simple tips for faster swimming, and triathlon's field of dreams
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In today’s edition:
Ironman announces full slate of North American races 🏁
Three simple tips to make you a faster swimmer 🦈
Will the Triterium become Triathlon’s Field of Dreams? 🌽
Thank you for being here.
-Matt Sharpe, newsletter editor
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ONE BIG THING
Classics and New Locations Highlight Release of Full Ironman North America Race Calendar
What is it: Ironman has finally released the full race schedule for its United States and Canada events. As reported by Endurance Sportwire Starting in April in Oceanside, California, athletes will have 12 full Ironman’s available, and 37 Ironman 70.3 events which will run through the final event, in Haines City, Florida in early December.
Iconic returning races include:
Ironman Lake Placid - in its 24th iteration.
Ironman Canada - Firmly returned to its legendary roots in Penticton, B.C.
Ironman Wisconsin - Beautiful spot, hopefully with better weather this year.
Why it matters: With the release of the full schedule, athletes will now have the opportunity to see if the Ironman-branded events will fit into their race calendars.
There are a few new race locations this year including:
IM 70.3 Western Massachusetts
IM 70.3 Morro Bay, California
IM 70.3 New York - Jones Beach
Tempo’s take: For the grief that Ironman often gets, they have done a great job with providing a diversity of race locations spread out amongst most of Canada, and the U.S. Minus the disappointing cancellation of Ironman Alaska.
We noticed there are also a few opportunities for some CAD to USD race entry arbitrage:
IM Lake Placed is currently listed at $849.00 (USD) for an individual entry. IM Mt. Tremblant, located 189 miles north is “on-sale” for only $789.00.
Looking for a cheaper island race getaway? Individual entry for IM 70.3 Hawai’i is listed at $470.00 while IM 70.3 Victoria can be had for $338.66.
With the exchange rate currently at 0.74 CAD to 1.00 USD, all the races in the great white north are on sale* for those athletes from the US.
*The Tempo is not paid by Tourism Canada…yet.
TEMPO EXCLUSIVE
Field of Triathlon Dreams: The Story Behind the Triterium
Triterium
“If you build it, they will come.” Was the famous refrain that led Kevin Costner to build a baseball field in the middle of an Iowa cornfield. Now, Bo Lebastchi wants athletes to train, race, and stay at his self-built, triathlon field of dreams.
Describe the Triterium for those who haven’t seen it yet.
TRITERIUM was a passion project of mine designed to be a private getaway for myself or any other tri freaks that wanted to escape to the sun and immerse themselves in everything triathlon. It consists of a 5-lane, 25-yard lap pool, and a .3-mile asphalt running and cycling track. It also has other goodies like a permanent start/finish line and transition area.
Additionally, for larger groups -this is an Airbnb property - there is both a cute 3 bedroom/2 bath house and two (100 sq ft) casitas (each with triple bunk beds), located in the "Athlete's Village" just behind the house. The "Athlete's Village" also has two outdoor showers, a porta-potty, a fire pit, and a sweet fountain sitting area.
Where is it located?
It is in Indio Hills, California which is 18 miles from Palm Springs.
Why build Triterium? What was the genesis for this development?
I've always been a tri freak. I competed as an age grouper from the early 80s until around 2004. Then I started producing races. I loved it but, shockingly, it did not produce the money I'd hoped it would. Unfortunately, I also stopped competing during this time. So now, almost 20 years later and semi-retired. I wanted to enjoy my obsession with swimming, biking, and running the way I used to. So in purchasing this run-down property I did so with the idea of creating this triathlon oasis in mind. A “Field of Dreams” for triathletes. Additionally, I had become a fan of the Super League Triathlon. This gave me the idea of a smaller self-contained cycling track that emphasized bike handling skills and power out of corners.
How Bo funded the Triterium development.
What kind of events will be held there?
Bo’s plans for future Triterium expansion.
RACE WEEKEND
Arena Games Triathlon Series Montreal
The first of four Arena Games races has the athletes competing in snowy Montreal at the hallowed Parc Olympique, the site of many of the events at the 1976 Olympic Games.
Here’s everything you need to know about Arena Games Triathlon.
Men: An intriguing battle of short-course VS long-course highlighted by appearances from Lionel Sanders (CAN) and Jackson Laundry (CAN). Look for Schoeman (RSA), McQueen (USA), and Raphael (FRA) to easily make the final and fight for the podium.
Canadian fans may get a surprise from the speedy Mathis Beaulieu (CAN) who has the run legs to take an unlikely win.
Women: Sophie Linn (AUS) and Gina Sereno (USA) are the class runners of the field and should be battling for the win. Canadians Dominika Jamnicky and Noemie Beaulieu will be looking to podium in front of the home crowd.
A nice surprise is the 2021 Ironman 70.3 World Championship silver-medalist Jeanni Metzler (RSA) making her short course debut.
World Triathlon Oceania Cup - Taupo, New Zealand
Heavy hitters will hit the shores of beautiful Lake Taupo, which also happens to be the host of the 2024 Ironman 70.3 World Championships.
Women: Ainsley Thorpe (NZL), Nicole Van Der Kaay (NZL) and Emma Jeffcoat (AUS) should be together heading out onto the run, with VDK most likely taking a second win in a row after her victory in Wanaka.
This race has a massive injection of intrigue with the racing return of 2016 Triathlon Olympic Gold-Medalist, Gwen Jorgensen.
Men: Olympian Tayler Reid (NZL), Luke Willian (AUS), Callum McClusky (AUS), and David Castro-Fajardo (ESP) will all be tipped for a podium. But with upstarts such as Junior World Championship Medalist, Toby Powers, and long-course convert Kyle Smith (NZL), the winner is anyone’s guess 🤪
LOL
After a tough 2022 of minimal racing due to injury, Olympic gold-medalist and multiple Ironman World Champion, Jan Frodeno jokingly took to Instagram to ask current “Gods of Triathlon” Kristian Blummenfelt, and Gustav Iden to help him get a start at the Professional Triathletes Organization’s European Open. Something tells us his prayers will be answered.
FAVOURITES
🏊♀️ Swim gains: A great video from the crew at the Global Triathlon Network that highlights three key, but overlooked areas that athletes can miss when they’re trying to level up their swim! [Global Triathlon Network]
🤝 Supporting diversity: The sport of Triathlon could certainly be more diverse, and thanks to the Coaches of Color Initiative, it is getting a helping hand. The initiative finances and mentors diverse coaching businesses and they have already seen tangible success. [Triathlete]
🦅 Team USA 2023: USA Triathlon has announced its 2023 Elite National Team. The squad includes Olympians, veteran members, and next-generation talent who will be battling it out for Olympic selection and World Triathlon Series glory. [Team USA]
🌲 Squamjam: After a three-year hiatus the Squamish Off-Road Triathlon will be returning. The event, which began in honor of the late Squamish triathlete, Bob McIntosh is set for Father’s Day, June 18th, 2023. Athletes will have the option of the Championship course of 1500m swim, 25km bike, and 10km run, or the sport version which is roughly half the distance. [Squamish Chief]
EXCLUSIVE TEMPO EXPERT ANALYSIS
Scott Tindal on eating properly for Ironman training.
Simple strength training for a breakthrough Ironman.
The four most common nutrition mistakes with Registered Dietician Meghan Stock.
Performance psychologist Alex Auerbach on why you should celebrate the small wins.
Are you an expert and would like your thoughts to be featured in The Tempo? Fill out this form and we will be in touch shortly!
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