Race Review | Calgary 70.3 Ironman

The worst race of the century (even with the best performance). 

I gave a pretty tough rating to the 70.3 Victoria Ironman, but that feels like a 5-Star hotel compared to Calgary. So let's dive in. 

The Calgary 70.3 Ironman has everything it needs to be a phenomenal race. An awesome location, long flat roads, beautiful lakes and nice warm July weather. But my god was this the worst race I've ever done (despite being one of my top performances). 

If penny-pinching was a sport, the Calgary Ironman 70.3 would be an Olympian. Everything about this race felt cheap - including the drawstring backpack and paper wristband they give you. I sound bougie, I know. But when you spend $500 to race, it's the little things that represent the Ironman brand that matter so much. 

Similar to Victoria, there was no Athlete Village. We walked into a silent room, grabbed my bib and left. There was no music, no announcer, and the most chaotic parking arrangement I've ever seen. I can't speak too much to the location, as I know they've moved. But they chose an undeveloped suburb during a rainy weekend, so everything was covered in slippery mud (yay warmup bike crash!) 

The cherry on top, was after winning 2ND, I was soaked and rushing to drive 8HRS home. We went to get my plaque, only to be denied because the Awards ceremony hadn't taken place (3 hours later...). Although explaining the situation to them, they continued to deny, so we left without it. Is it a huge deal? Probably not. But another way they made the athletes feel like they were just a paycheque to them. 

I speak out about crappy races, not to bash anyone, but to protect the experience and investment of the athlete. The average triathlete will drop $25,000 a year on the sport, and in my opinion, that deserves a phenomenal race to celebrate. All that to say, I'm glad Calgary changed the location, I just hope they've also changed their management as well.