#128: Race ranger data, PTO updates, and race news
One last guest newsletter.
issue #128: March 19, 2025
All-sporters, Tim Heming is pinch-hitting again this week — which means there’s actual reporting (!) in today’s newsletter. Wild. And then I’ll be back from maternity leave in two weeks with all my stored up thoughts on the State of Triathlon-Related Things. Thanks for hanging in there with us in the meantime!
And now, from Tim…
- Kelly
Cheaters gonna cheat (unless you catch them in the act, present them with the data-backed proof, and penalize them repeatedly)
Range-finding start-up company Race Ranger rolled out its anti-drafting tech to age-groupers at Challenge Wanaka in February, and for the first time co-founder James Elvery has now been able to publicly share the data that Ironman and the PTO were poring over for the pros during the 2024 season.
The baying mob might be disappointed that names were changed to stop a social media pile-on, but Elvery’s spreadsheets still make for some interesting insight. Chiefly, they show that we have a handful of cheats and pretty much everyone else trying to play fair—and, in the case of Wanaka, at least, largely succeeding.
The beauty of the data lies in the detail. So, for example, it doesn’t just say Sal Smith* was riding illegally, but says where on the course, when, for how long, how it happened (ie. yo-yo’ing when they enter the draft zone but then pulling back, taking too long to complete a pass, or being passed and not dropping back), and even which rider they were following.
Sal was our biggest perpetrator in Wanaka with 24 minutes, 42 seconds of illegal time (sucking Lorna Cardenas’** wheel, on one occasion for 2 minutes, 11 seconds continuously). And no one else in the field totaled over 11 minutes of rule breaching. Only 29 riders of the 255 age-groupers who started spent more than 5 minutes cumulative time in the draft zone when they shouldn’t have, and it’s mainly made up of a few seconds here and there rather than long stints. Not too egregious for a bike leg that took the best part of three hours or longer.
Asked whether illegal riding lined up with cards given on course — remember: Race Ranger is still only being used as a visual guide to aid on-course officials — perhaps unsurprisingly, the answer was no. It’s no sleight on the TOs, but they can’t be everywhere. The brazen cheaters do it away from the eyes of the referees (which also often means they are not towards the front of the bike leg) and it further supports Race Ranger’s case for wider implementation: Cheats don’t stop until they’re caught.
Is 255 athletes in Challenge Wanaka equivalent to 3,000 athletes at Ironman Texas? No, and it’d be interesting to see the data from a larger event (and I’m sure many readers have an entrenched view of how that would play out in Texas) but it might have to wait for next year.
Why? Well, the concept has been proven with the pros, and it’ll be used in all the big ticket pro races this year. But creating thousands of units to roll out to age-group Ironman competition isn’t seen as priority investment right now. The product is still hand-made and still needs some refinement.
As such, Elvery, who has spent much of the past few years on the road with his boxes of tricks, will devote more time with the engineers in New Zealand. A chief aim is to reduce the system from two units down to one — currently it requires front and rear sensors on every bike — and sharpening the accuracy, making it multi-functional so it can also be a race tracker (with all the benefits that brings) but also designing other supporting elements, such as reusable fasteners so each race isn’t disposing of several thousand cable ties.
Bigger picture: The objective remains to get buy-in from organizers and athletes to find a price point that works for everyone. Getting this far has been some achievement, but that final bit might prove the toughest task of the lot.
* Not their real name
** Really not their real name
Our bi-monthly ‘news from the PTO’
The Professional Triathletes Organization has been rattling off a few more press releases of late, with hires in the form of a new chief marketing officer (Kerry Taylor, previous experience at Paramount, LIV Golf, and F1 Arcade) and new chief commercial officer (Stuart Ramsey, formerly of the rugby football union). Plus another $10 million injection from investment management firm Cordillera Investment Partners, who specialize in “niche and non-correlated assets” (which is an interesting way to say ‘non-mainstream sports’).
Sure, the newest round of more $$$ is the big news, but the most eye-catching hire is Ramsey, given the current predicament of the Rugby Football Union in the UK. Ramsey was the commercial head of the RFU from September 2023, and wasn’t in post for long, but the organization has been in a media storm due to its handling of the game, including record losses in the last financial year, clubs allowed to go bust, and bonus payments to the chief executive. Triathlon might seem a safer haven for Ramsey. For now.
READ: Athlete ownership, investor rounds, and the PTO
Paying to be a pro?
The Ironman pro license fee has now been hiked by 20% to $1,500. Though many an age-grouper will point out that’s still a deal compared to paying entry fees on multiple Ironman-brand races in a season, only 40% of pros actually made money last year.
Of course, along with those at the top, a pro or “elite” license is taken for myriad reasons, including athletes who want to race multiple Ironmans and swerve those entry fees, and — although not troubling the podium — might pick up a few local sponsors. Plus, if a pro is looking to make serious money from the sport anyway, then a $1.5K outlay for a license is small beer. But, given the expenses and barriers to getting into the sport (and staying), it might be worth Ironman looking to support up-and-coming young professionals so they don’t push that already high barrier completely out of reach.
Let Taylor be Taylor
Good news for Taylor Knibb fans. [Kelly note: Of which we are definitely one.] Contracted to T100 as defending champion, she’s also just announced she'll be heading to Ironman Texas followed by a second stab at conquering Kona.
The video announcement is a few minutes of Taylor type fun, with the only gripe being that, because of the divide between the PTO and Ironman, it doesn't give a whole picture of her plans. Anyone dropping in on this video afresh would think her year is only about Ironman. The more interesting question is how she pieces both goals together and what she will prioritize. Is it really Kona, as she seems to suggest?
The organizations don’t have to actively promote one another, but just some acknowledgement from time to time that the other races exist would help new fans understand a very complicated landscape and might keep those fans engaged for longer. (Kelly note: And, as Taylor has pointed out to me before: Would be good for both the PTO and Ironman, right? RIGHT?)
From the races…
Geelong 70.3: The Ironman Pro Series kicks off in Geelong this weekend, a sensible step from 2024 where Pro Series races Down Under were far fewer and the series started weeks later in Oceanside. Belgium’s Jelle Geens, the current Ironman 70.3 world champion, leads the men’s roster. Geens, the nearly man of short-course racing for years, has had a dream start to non-draft racing. As it’s a post-Olympic year, we’re seeing more “ITU” athletes step up in distance or step out to new events. (I’m sure they’ll still be called ITU athletes despite the ITU having been World Triathlon for the best part of a decade.) Matt Hauser and Jake Birtwhistle, the Aussie duo, also jump out. And on the women’s side, it’s Hannah Berry and Grace Thek heading the list and a chance to get points on the board. Once again, Every Second Matters. (Kelly note: I’m not going to admit how long it took me to realize that slogan wasn’t just metaphorical, but literally meant *every second* counts for additional points.)
WATCH: Saturday at 1 p.m. PT/4 p.m. ET on all the places Ironman broadcasts things
IM South Africa takes place the following weekend (Sunday, March 30) and there are plenty of big names heading south for this one, too. It’s also a reminder of how outside the U.S., the Europeans have a chokehold on the Ironman circuit. The women’s race could be a ding-dong battle between Spain’s Marta Sanchez, Denmark’s Maja Stage Nielsen, Netherlands’ prolific racing Els Visser and Germany’s uber biking Anne Reischmann. Four names that fly somewhat under the radar, but only just below the biggest hitters. The men could also see another all Euro battle as Sweden’s Rasmus Svenningsson, Denmark’s Magnus Ditlev, Belgium’s Marten Van Riel (yes, back again for a try at the World Champs spot) and France’s Leon Chevalier go head-to-head. For a race beset with swim adjustments and cancellations in past years, the organizers will just be hoping to get a safe and complete 2.4-mile first leg out of the way.
Lievin Triathlon: Not everyone loves the long stuff and Olympic and world champion Cassandre Beuagrand is on the start-list for the indoor Lievin triathlon this weekend. If you’ve never watched it, it’s blink-and-you-miss-it style racing — and worth watching without blinking.
Challenge Roth does fanfare over its start list better than any race in the world with an MO that tends towards a few stellar names and then setting them up for record-breaking performances (think Patrick Lange being allowed to run in ‘banned’ high stack shoes). This year it’s reigning Ironman world champion Laura Philipp who is the biggest coup, presumably with Anne Haug’s best-ever mark of 8:02:38 in the crosshairs. And yes, that time is starting to look VERY close to 8 hours. For the men, it’s a Tricolore feast with Sam Laidlow v. debutant Vincent Luis as the headline act. Luis drove from France to Roth 20 years ago with his family to support his father, and this year his parents will make the same trip to support their son. For Laidlow, it could be a repeat of the race program in 2023, when he pulled up with a calf issue in Bavaria and the prognosis looked grim, then grimmer, and then bounced back to win the Ironman Worlds in Nice. Given the health and injury record of both, race owner Felix Walchshoefer might want to invest as much in cotton wool to wrap the athletes in as he does in appearance fees.
The -ish
Stuff from around our sports worth knowing about this week.
There’s inevitable injury news. “I’ve no good vibes to give,” opined Fenella Langridge, who had to park her trademark effervescence after the worst year of her pro career in 2024. What she thought might be neural issues has resulted in a diagnosis for iliac artery endofibrosis. She explains her emotions on her YouTube channel. And, if you’d like to dive deeper on the topic, here’s a 2016 case study of an elite triathlete with the same condition. If it sounds familiar, yes, it’s a common injury among elite female cyclists. (Youtube/PubMed/Cycling Weekly)
Kirsten Kasper also announced that she’s “managed a hip labral tear for years,” and, as it has stopped responding to conservative treatment, has now had surgery. (Instagram)
Happier news (though perhaps injury adjacent): Emma Pallant-Browne is pregnant with her first child. Announcing the news, the 35-year-old Brit also thanked the PTO for its maternity policy. (Tri247/PTO)
This study shows that cursing can improve your physical performance, so next time you're swearing at your PT for giving you that hated compound drop set, you can tell them it’s all part of the process. Or try it in a triathlon. (Muscle and Fitness)
From white powder to white powder, the tale of Olympic snowboarder Ryan Wedding isn’t new, but hit the news headlines again recently as he made the FBI’s top 10 most-wanted list, and it is a story that is still a wild ride. (Youtube/YNetNews)
Are Garmins continuing to crash and restart and crash etc? Former triathlete-turned-ultra-runner Lucy Gossage thinks so. (Kelly note: I agree.) (Instagram)
Speaking of ultra running, somewhere in Tennessee, the madness of the Barkley Marathons has now commenced. Live coverage via Keith on X whose typical updates include: ‘Nondescript guy with cool accent has begun Loop 2’ #BM100 — though he has added that this year seems particularly brutal, perhaps as retaliation for last year. (Twitter)
Britain is currently without a WTCS race, which isn’t a great look for the most successful Olympic nation in the sport, but the brothers who brought in five of those medals have launched their own race in Leeds at the venue where the WTCS used to take place. It’s almost like the real thing. (Tri247)
Are the friendships of women in triathlon unique? (Triathlete)
One of those women, Kat Matthews, reminded us why we shouldn't be shocked when she chews through the field on the run with a 16:04 5K. (Tri247)
And finally, On — started as a dedicated triathlon brand and has now gone all Roger Federer and Iga Swiatek — is launching a new Triathlon Academy, so I’m filing this from sunny Mallorca. Although I can’t give you too many details because I’ve only just landed. All should be unveiled over the next couple of days…
One last thing
Don’t judge. You don’t know. Maybe they’re an Olympian.
