Ironman 70.3 Zell am See
Time of year: August
Value for money: 4
Location: 5
Crowd support: 4
Organisation: 5
PB potential: 3
Course: 1-lap swim, hilly 1-lap bike course and a flat 2-lap run
Competitors: Approximately 2000
Locality: Zell am See is near Salzburg, and a fabulous place to be. It’s a beautiful area and a lovely place to race and take a holiday!
Getting there: The best way to get there if you’re travelling from abroad is to fly to Salzburg and then rent a car. From Europe, it is well connected by train and road.
Webpage: http://eu.ironman.com/triathlon/events/emea/ironman-70.3/zell-am-see-kaprun.aspx#axzz5EqPKnZQt
My experience (2017): This was one of my favourite triathlon experiences. The weather was a bit crazy, with a really powerful storm the night before the race and another after the race as we were collecting our bikes. I think the race was actually stopped for a while. I feel sorry for anyone caught in that weather!
I loved every minute of my time here, not only due to the race, but the fabulous setting and also because I met some friends there (by chance, I found out a couple of weeks before I went that they were also staying in Kaprun!).
So to cut a long story short: I got to the start early and as this was the first time I’d experienced a rolling start I was a bit more apprehensive than usual but it was actually great, I liked it very much. The water was beautiful and the crowds were out in force! The bike course was amazing. I have ridden quite a lot of triathlons now and I think this was the most beautiful I have seen (maybe even better than Klagenfurt?!), even if it is challenging, with a long climb and a steep descent. I am sure I lost time going down there and when I saw the results and that I was only 2 minutes from 3rd position in my category, I kicked myself for being a coward!
The run around the lake was also beautiful, there is nothing else I can say about it, watch the race video or do it yourself and you will see!
