You’re getting this as part of our Kona Week daily newsletters. We’ll go back to your nice simple 1x/week emails after the race.
Don’t forget to enter our podium predictions contest to win a pair of Roka’s R2 goggles + triathlon bragging rights for the rest of your life. You have until race start to get your picks in.
Vibe check: 2016 v. 2026
The one and only time I raced Kona was a decade ago. Do you remember that far back? Does anyone in triathlon remember that far back?
One of the questions going around has been if we really remember what a combined men’s & women’s one-day race here looks like. It hasn’t happened in seven years. Do we remember how the race dynamics work? How the crowds flow? Do you even remember how many pros are invited to the press conference, did they do the men & women at the same time? It’s so hard to think back that far.
In some ways, this year actually feels very similar (for better and worse) to a decade ago. About the same number of dudes. About the same types of debates. Different people talking, but about the same things.
It’s bigger, but not that much bigger. Despite promises of up to 3,000 athletes, it’s really just under 2,600 — only about 100-150 more than the last one of these. It doesn’t seem like more people on the ground. Not really, not yet. What happened? Why isn’t it as different as we were told it would be?
My guess: Turns out many of those supposedly new ideas to innovate the race were actually just old ideas that were rejected a decade ago because they didn’t work. And now here we are.
LISTEN: In our pre-race podcast episode, we covered all the questions everyone’s been asking that aren’t about who is going to win: jellyfish, female participation, why Ironman is trying to ban athletes from biking on certain roads, and unfounded rumors of race cancellations.
Listen and follow Triathlonish on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or watch the show with clips from Kona on Youtube (if it finished uploading overnight).
💵 Do you think someone really spent $4,200 at the Ironman merch tent? I actually sorta do believe it. Went to check the tent out today and Ironman merch has legitimately upgraded over the last few years — ever since that first all-women’s race; they even sell clothes from Marine Layer now. So trendy, so high-touch.
🚲 Do you also think the 20m draft rule will dramatically alter the outcome of the pro race? Triathlete said yes; I say probably not really. Not with Race Ranger already working at 12m.
📸 Do you know who the pros take selfies with? Courtney Dauwalter. Especially the female pros.
❤️ And what if the Norwegian secret is just having fun and training hard. Oh, and 40km runs the weekend before race day.
A fun fact
Sam Laidlow will donate €23,000 to 23 upcoming young athletes.
Thanks to our sponsors
Salomon - Come to Kona Heaven from 2-4pm to meet Courtney Dauwalter and Jessie Diggins. I asked them if being here made them want to do the race and they said yes 😉
Roka - And don’t forget to come to the pier to demo a new Viper X.3 Ghost swimskin today or tomorrow morning; it’s made from Roka’s fastest material, which repels water on contact and has a seamless, laser-bonded constructon