Comments on: Ironman Drafting: A Proposed Solution…

By: Andrew Prokopetz

Andrew Prokopetz — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 20:39:54 +0000

Yes I agree there are rules now that need enforcing but I also agree that the rules need to be changed. Not only with the proposed approach but let’s take a look at the rules in place now and ask are they the best for the sport. I think given the terrain at IMFL it is very easy to get a technical penalty for drafting even though the person is not really drafting. For example, I bet most women have this problem when trying to pass a guy who doesn’t want to be passed. Yes, I know that male ego issue. All the guy has to do is speed up right before the pass is completed and bam the window shuts down on the time to pass and the person is hit with a penalty. I think that this is a misuse of the rules if enforced but I have seen it happen. The person speeding up is the “guilty party” but is not assessed a penalty. Any suggestions?

By: admin

admin — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 12:45:11 +0000

In a devil’s advocate question and answer w/ a local athlete, it occurred to me that most triathletes don’t actually know how to draft. IOW, if you took 10 trigeeks and told them to ride togehter as a pack for 20 miles, after 10′ people would be all over the map (I have tried!!!). I think it’s funny that so many people who CAN’T draft in daily training rides get so fired up when they believe everyone around them on race day is actually drafting. I think we need to have an actual test. Someone does an IM solo and another group of say 3-5 riders work together…how does it all shake out by the finish line?

By: NavyTriGuy

NavyTriGuy — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 18:26:25 +0000

Very complex issue. A “competitive sticker” won’t work…what if you DON’T have the sticker and win a Kona slot? Guess you don’t get to go? And how can you then enforce drafting for some, but not for others…
In a 2-loop ride (IMLP is my only IM so use it for comparison) if you spread out all 2300 competitors exactly 21′ (7m) apart, that equates to a pace line roughly 9.1 miles long. That’s a pretty ridiculous construct clearly. Yes, triathlon is an individual event, but the incidence rate of drafting (and actually getting much benefit from it) seems pretty low.

Drafting rules are pretty ridiculous though…it can be so easy to get caught in a “no draft” zone…say you are passing someone and then someone moves to pass you…how do you fall back? Things like that happen all the time and cause the appearance of drafting and athlete frustration.

So I vote: drafting is OK for AGers in IM and HIM, but anyone who desires to be eligible for a a Kona/podium slot has to be in the NON DRAFTING category ID by a pink sticker. Olys and sprints are all draft legal races.

By: Helen

Helen — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 16:17:57 +0000

Who are the worst drafting offenders? Does anyone know who gets the most drafting penalties is it Pros/Top AGers/MOPs/BOPs?

If you are swimming around 1.10 and come out of the water with 300+ other people who have swim 1.09, 1.10 or 1.11 how can you not be guilty of drafting at the start of the bike leg? I would have thought it’s almost impossible to give drafting penalties to people who are in a huge pack like this – far easier to give penalties to BOP people who are sitting up and having a quick chat as a friend goes past. Technically they might be drafting but they aren’t gaining any competitive advantage by doing it.

Would love to know who actually gets the penalties, my guess would be that the female pros get the most. Not because they are trying to cheat but because they get boxed in by top male Age Groupers and are going to end up having to choose between drafting and slowing down.

By: admin

admin — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 10:00:59 +0000

@Dan – I agree; enforcing the rules for the sport they run isn’t good for business. Can’t think of too many other places where that’s the case…

@John – Just riding your race is important. There isn’t a lot of craziness @ IMFL if only b/c the course is so flat…so folks just ride like 24mph instead of 20, like they should be riding, so you have to be patient early and stick to your numbers. Do your best to avoid “surging” around huge packs unless they are truly going way slower than you.

@Leigh – I hear you! They are better about these penalties, but there is always the story of some overzealous volunteer enforcing the rules to the letter.

@Cat – I think in my example you could just check the “I’m competing” box to be included the the “race”…not saying it’s then legal to draft, just that the marshals won’t stalk you if you aren’t in the hunt, as it were.

@Chris – It would be really interesting to see what a “draft legal” IM race would look like vs a non-draft legal one. On most courses, the terrain is so varied that not a lot of people would benefit (IMFL and IMAZ are obvious exceptions), and most triathletes can’t hold a paceline in a workout (from my experience) anyway! I think folks might go 10-20′ faster on the bike…but a marathon is still a marathon and I think we’d all suffer.

By: chris

chris — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 01:29:14 +0000

well, at the risk of being flamed, it is ok to draft in the swim and the run, so help me understand the reasoning behind no drafting on the bike? The only thing I can figure out is because most tri folks don’t know how to ride a paceline

By: Cat

Cat — Sun, 26 Oct 2008 16:31:03 +0000

Even though I do not think I will ever be a Kona qualified type I am still in the race to RACE so NO I do not want to see drafting become ‘legal’ for AGers.

By: Leigh

Leigh — Sun, 26 Oct 2008 15:35:56 +0000

As a drafting offender….well not really but I do still laugh about it. I got a penalty at my first ever tri. Sneakers, toe clips and a sprint venue at a tiny race in New Hampshire. I had no idea until after the race and had to look up what drafting even was. If it weren’t for those 3 minutes (and the other 35 that I was behind- did I mention the sprint distance part? oy..) I could have taken my AG! Good thing the marshalls were watching.

By: John Culberson

John Culberson — Sun, 26 Oct 2008 13:16:06 +0000

I have been concerned about IM Florida since the day I signed up. I have a time goal and am not racing for hardware or Kona. I have dialed in my power and know exactly how to execute on race day. I do not want to have to continually slow down or speed up to avoid a drafting penalty. My experience tells me that a large number of the people that I am needing to maneuver around on the bike will ride away from me, only to be walking during the marathon. My solution… the watch on my wrist tells me whether I have met my time goal. Cheating intentionally makes absolutely no sense for me. I guess I will just pause my watch if I end up in the drafting tent.

By: Dan

Dan — Sun, 26 Oct 2008 13:12:22 +0000

They don’t currently enforce the drafting rules they have in place now. So changing the rules doesn’t solve the problem.

Enforcing rules is bad for business.