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Asia Ironman 70.3 Head to Head : Singapore Vs. China
In 2009 the 70.3 China and Singapore
Ironman races will be held within 4 weeks of each other in April and
March. Doing a long triathlon in the Asian heat is hard but to do
two events so close together is also going to hurt your pocket.
To help you decide, in an entirely
subjective comparison, I put the two races head to head. One point
per question, mostly.
|
Category |
Singapore |
Score |
China |
Score |
|
Location |
If you like shopping malls
its heaven, otherwise you’re struggling. |
˝ |
Haikou doesn’t win many
beauty contests unlike its pretty sister Sanya. |
0 |
|
Transport |
Airports and taxis do not get
easier than this. |
1 |
Taxis are cheap and clean.
The airport can need a stopover for some locations to get
there. |
˝ |
|
Organization |
It’s run by corporate, so its
well organized but combined with Singaporean mentality makes
it bordering on anal. |
˝ |
A great mix of US corporate
professionalism and can do local cheerful enthusiasm. Based
out of the one hotel had a good feel too |
1 |
|
Swim |
The water quality is
questionable
Course – the first turn after
100m is a mess and the 2nd lap the good swimmers
hit the turtles (slow swimmers) which is bad for both. |
0 |
The water quality is not blue
lagoon but better than Singapore. Course was good for these
that can read a rip. |
1 |
|
Bike |
One long flat time trial with
compulsory drafting. Good for your PBs but 3 motorway laps
is pretty dull. |
˝ |
Wide, open and very varied.
No one forgets the villagers screaming on the hill or the
descent back to town. |
2 |
|
Run |
Shady and flat. The multiple
loops past the supporters keep you motivated. |
1˝ |
Its point to point along a
lot of beach however its pretty open in the sun and the run
up the bridge tests everyone’s legs |
1 |
|
Food |
Singapore prides itself on
its food. There is a good variety but none of it reaches
greet heights. |
˝ |
Plenty of fresh fruit in town
and the hotel was good. Good Chinese in town. |
˝ |
|
Volunteers |
Always smiling around the
course |
1 |
Friendly and always trying to
help. Jia You! |
1 |
|
Local Support |
Pretty sparse apart from
athletes supporters. Seeing a local guy abuse a volunteer
as he could not do his Saturday roller blade though the bike
compound took the shine off. |
˝ |
It feels like it is the big
event in town. Great crowds and help from the support from
the local government really shows. |
1 |
|
Babes |
Daisy duke denim shorts and
greyhound skirts 1 can be seen all around town |
1 |
They are out there but they
suffer from a lack of the shopping mall heritage of their
Singapore sisters. |
˝ |
|
Final Score |
|
6˝ |
|
8 |
The Wrap
- Both races are very new and will get more of the bugs out in
2009. Singapore plays to its strengths; great infrastructure and
administration which also makes it a bit sterile. Haikou has more
room and less traffic and can offer a more interesting course. The
other problem is in September Singapore has one race in town and
unfortunately for Triathletes that is F1. For Haikou this feels
like it is a big event and adds the something to the tropical race
day atmosphere.
Footnotes:
1. One inch from the hair.
Additional Information
There are a few points I need to add here that are critical.
Ironman China will have a new course and location. We are told
it will be on Hainan Island but possibly on the West coast. Check
back here for the latest on that.
The other point is we, people living in China will be coming out of
a Winter. For me in 2007/08 Winter training outside was a
challenge in itself. Snow covered ground for over a month made
it very difficult training outside, however I managed to get some
cycling and runs in but it was very difficult. The extra month
training for Ironman China will be very helpful. I couldn't
imagine losing even a few more weeks coming out of Winter so for me
China will be my choice. - KP
Presented with
pleasure by Paul Toohey |
