What New Race Formats You Like
What new race format interests you? We asked this question of you all about 3 years ago, and we just asked it again last week.
Here is the word-for-word question we asked: If the right race were to show up, close to you, and you were able to enter, and the entry fee was fair, what is the likeliest you'd say yes to?
We gave you the following options: Xtreme Tri (the Norseman folks); Swim-Run (ÖTILLÖ and the räces sprüng from the förmät); Draft Legal Tri (the most popular non-IRONMAN age-group racing format in Spain, Mexico and a bunch of other countries); and Gravel Triathlon (a format that barely exists). We also allowed you to select “Not likely to enter any of them.”
Three years ago 84 percent of you selected one of the formats, the remaining 16 percent checking the radio button for “Not likely to enter any of them.” This time around more of you were less intrepid, with 23 percent of you saying that you aren’t likely to enter any of them. When we first polled this 771 of you answered, this time 801 answered.
A note on the chart below, for clarity. I wiped out the “uninterested” responses and elevated the remaining answers to total 100 percent. So, the chart below should be understood as, “Of those who expressed an interest in a new format,” here are the formats they selected as their favorites.
As you see, when we took this poll in January of 2019 (35 months ago) 32 percent of those willing to try one of these new formats chose Gravel Triathlon as the one, over Draft Legal and Swim-Run, at 24 and 23 percent respectively. Xtreme Tri was just behind at 21 percent.
What changed over the last 3 years? Gravel Triathlon gained a little ground on the others, now polling at 36 percent. Swim-Run and Xtreme Tri remained basically unchanged, and Draft Legal tri lost a tad, falling from 24 percent to 20 percent.
USA Triathlon has picked up on the interest in Gravel Tri, with a national championship scheduled in Fayetteville, Arkansas on June 3rd of 2022. I intend to race this, and I also intend to race the Draft Legal Nationals in Irving, Texas the last week in April. There is a USAT-empowered group now discussing what rules there ought to be for Gravel Tri and while I don’t feel the liberty to discuss what’s occurred inside this group, I am part of this group and I believe those who appreciate the gravel vibe will be happy with the outcome.
When I inquired of those who were polled, those who did not select gravel tri usually gave as their reasons: they couldn’t find one close to them; they didn’t own a gravel bike; or they had transitioned out of triathlon entirely and were just racing standalone gravel events (bike only). Perhaps if gravel triathlons become more prevalent lapsed triathletes who've decamped the sport for gravel-only will reconsider multisport.
