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| - I've done four Ironman length races (three branded, one "generic") and so far, Ironman Arizona was the BEST. First, in comparison to a non-Ironman full, you get what you paid for here. I did Vineman full, which cost half the price at around $300, cheaper, actually, because I did the "buy two get the third free" with two friends and split the difference. I can truly see where all that money goes: the organization is seamless, the volunteers amazing, and absolutely EVERYTHING is taken care of. No guess work at all, and anything you might need is gonna be there for you-- wetsuit strippers, people applying sunscreen, special needs bags called ahead and handed to you, so on and so forth. (At Vineman, you have to find your own bag and stow your own gear at T1-- not as convenient!) In comparison to the other two Ironman races I did, which were Ironman Los Cabos and Ironman Cozumel, this was the best in terms of support and preparedness. Maybe it's just because the other two were in Mexico, so it was a little harder to get information, but regardless, Arizona's been running for a while now, making it a well-oiled machine. As it's popular and people want to volunteer to be guaranteed an entry slot, there are an abundance of volunteers, making it one of the most well supported races you can do. Ironman village and the expo are awesome, you will find no better course for spectating, as everything revolves around the same transition area. This is extremely important, because getting your family to follow you around is a huge source of stress if the course isn't intuitive. There's plenty of room on the bleachers for watching the finish, which I encourage everyone to do until midnight-- seeing the last people hobble through is unbelievably inspirational.
It's a very fast course, with a flat bike leg (windy yes, but it's always something, and headwind one way generally means tailwind the other-- in my experience we didn't have much crosswind) so it's a nice choice for a first Ironman-- it's also still my fastest Ironman time to date. The fact that it sells out in SECONDS every year is proof of this!! The swim is kind of gross and crowded-- it's like water polo in a dirty puddle-- but it's still worth it. Just survive the first mile of getting punched in the head by aggro tri men and you'll be ok.
Again, not all brand name Ironman races are created equal-- IMAZ cost the same as the other two I did, and they were far inferior, with worse support and organization. This is definitely the one to do if you're in this part of the country-- but I'd suggest signing up to volunteer and spectate the year before, or most likely it will sell out before you get a chance to pay your giant entry fee, and will be stuck paying twice as much for a foundation slot.
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