Big Ed

Davem definitely seems overpriced for the sprint at Sun City. Personally not holding my breath for the BSG replacement sprint series - would have expected to have heard a lot more on the event by now......

With the high entry fees and the 2 races only a week apart, I decided to only do 1 of these races. I have done the 5150 Bela Bela as well as 11 Global for the last 3 editions and would rate them both very highly. For 11 Global - Cheaper $55 (R600) vs R820 for 5150 if I enter tomorrow, cleaner dam & generally more pleasant surroundings For 5150 - Guaranteed to be a quality event (probably better than 11 Global), closer to home Think I am leaning towards 11 Global.....what do you think?

Haven't decided yet, will be my 3rd if I do. Just want to see how training goes in January before entering.

Nice report ibruegge, glad you enjoyed it :-)

Great race again!! The vibe and support were just awesome. I would also prefer an earlier start (perhaps 10am for the elites), not necessarily for the heat (this year was just very hot on the day - unusually hot for August), but to allow more time to make use of the swimming facilities after the race with the family and to ensure the waterbottles remain fairly cold. Areas I think the race can improve on: - Areas out of transition should really be covered if there are thorns - I always exit barefoot and had to change my routine to cater for the thorns. - The swim start (I was in wave 3) just got a bit too crowded this year. I tried to swim but had to stop a few times as many were walking (maybe I should improve my swimming to ensure I get out in front of the walkers). Perhaps smaller groups starting every 10 min with an exit and back in the water with a timing mat for control could take care of that.

I would bet on the Kenyans beating the Bushmen over the marathon :-)

Having experimented with different diets through 20 years of endurance sport, I have always felt very weak after a day or so of high fat/protein with low carbs. Definitely doesn't work for me + I love carbs!!! I also cannot imagine the top Kenyan/Ethiopian runners would perform as well using Tim Noakes' new diet plan....

Crazy, the race has been around for many years. Safety has never been an issue for me at Prestige Ultra. The same organisers have been putting together a quality event for years. TSA seems to be trying to cash out on triathlon becoming bigger and bigger. I would certainly not attribute the huge growth over the past 3/4 years to the effort of TSA but rather Ironman/70.3 and local shops (Troisport etc). Maybe time to get a controlling body that are sensible and actually cares about the sport (road running seems to be doing much better) to run our sport in SA?

I did the race last year. I think it was a bit shorter than 90km - my time was 10 minutes faster than I would normally have done. Definitely tougher than the Vanderbijl route (if you have done the Prestige Ultra) but I wouldn't say it is difficult.

Surely you cannot expect any race organiser to guarantee that wetsuits will be allowed - they cannot control the temperature. My understanding with the upper limit is that it gets dangerously hot in the wetsuits, so don't think it can ever be a guarantee. All you can ask is that they are more lenient and approach TSA to get triathletes in SA a consistent rule (the rules Ironman races apply). Will you do the same with other triathlons (threaten not to enter if they don't allow wetsuits) - this mean you will do no further races...

See below link for US ironman races www.trijuice.com/2010/04/ironman_announces_us_rule_changes_for_2011_season.htm "Wetsuits may be worn in water temperatures up to and including 24.5 degrees Celsius/76.1 degrees Fahrenheit. Athletes who choose to wear a wetsuit in water temperatures exceeding 24.5 degrees C /76.1 degrees F will not be eligible for awards, including World Championship slots. Wetsuits will be prohibited in water temperatures greater than 28.8 degrees C/84 degrees F." Seems like Ironman SA is applying the same rules. With Ironman and Triathlon SA friends again you would have thought having consistent rules in SA would make sense. Personally I wouldn't want to wear a wetsuit in 24 degree temperatures. Also I am not convinced that non wetsuit swims for longer distance events scare that many people of, but I guess a consistent rule would be great.

Interesting days racing, started with a tannie in a seriously bad mood at registration telling the queue of 15 or so that we are late (more than an hour before the race started - I guess she wanted us all to make the trip to Pta West the day before). When one guy wanted to enter, she mumbled that this is the last year they will allow this...whatever. The race itself was not bad at all - great swim and run. Traffic on the cycle was not a problem at all and the route was well marshalled. Only problem with the cycle was taking us through an unnecessary out and back section up and down a hill with some nasty speedbumps. I enjoyed watching the pros race later on in the African cup ITU race. I did think we could have given the international competitors a better venue (perhaps at the coast somewhere?).

Really was an awesome event. Was thrilled to see the marshals stopping one of the big buses after flying past me, just when I was wondering how they could get away with it. Had a great swim & cycle, but I hope they lose the results, don't want my run/walk time to go public

Well done - looking forward to doing both Ultras. Certainly one of the best venues!!

I also did both races (Midlands Ultra and 5150). I thought the Midmar race was actually very well organised - If it wasn't for the extreme heat at Midmar I think it would have been a great race. Everyone out there took way more water sachets than they would normally have done (me included) and I would have been surprised if any race would cater for athletes taking 3 times the normal quantities. I also suffered badly on the day and had to dig deep to make it to the finish. I still thought entries were well managed, the swim was excellent, the cycle route avoided traffic to a large degree and there was a quality waterpoint on each lap of the cycle, the run took place on a beautiful route and there were enough marshals everywhere. The 5150 race was definitely a top quality race, marshals were at their stations many hours before the race start, cars were not allowed to drive inside the resort and the venue was an excellent choice. The major issue for me on the day was that the day was planned in a way that kept you near the start for longer periods than I would have liked - check in for the bikes closed at 11:20am and my race only started at 1:15, check out for bikes were only possible after 5pm. I hope that as the numbers pick up over the years, the race becomes cheaper. Having said that, I am sure I will be back next year (with the family again - they really enjoyed the weekend). Value for money I would rate the Midlands Ultra higher and hope the organisers will keep this event going as it was a trip well worth taking.

Same reason you don't see the world's top runners (Kenyans & Ethiopeans) wearing them during big city marathons. They have no benefit during races, just adds weight. They also look very silly!!!!

I will start wearing them the day I either (1) see all the Kenyan and Ethiopean runners wear them or (2) I develop deep vein thrombosis I think you can sell almost anything to triathletes and they will be prepared to pay whatever you ask - I am thinking powerbalance and compression gear here.

I seem to remember when Global 11 started they were also priced a bit heavier than they are currently - they had very few starters in their 1st year. The numbers have picked up over the years and I am sure I will be one of the starters in November. 5150 is starting the same way, I very much doubt whether they will attract more than 200/250 people in their 1st year. The professionals will no doubt be there - their entry fees are most likely sponsored and the prize money is very attractive, but an event can't survive without the maseses. With 95% of the expenses (road closure, refreshments, staff etc) and 95% of the competitors from South Africa why is the entry fees priced in dollars. Can you charge more for a race when you add a $ sign???? Like most triathletes I appreciate organisers adding events to the triathlon calender but will probably not enter. We can't expect them to run at a loss, but charging R800 an entry is not the way to do it.