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Coffee Catch-up - Summer 2018....

Thursday, 18 October 2018 23:10

By Erin Klegstad (sweetsweatlife.cm)

And just like that, it’s OCTOBER(!). Since we really didn’t get spring this year – remember that blizzard on April 15 when two feet of snow fell?! – summer felt so short, but the good news: it was crammed with fantastic – from yard work to cruiser rides to dinners al fresco to weekend trips.

it’s been a while since I’ve done a life update, so I’m stealing this coffee date catch-up from a few other blogs. My favorite coffee lately: iced oat milk lattes at our neighborhood coffee shop, Angry Catfish. Anyone else love oat milk? What’s your go-to coffee drink? Grab it, and let’s cheers and chat!  Here’s what’s been up and on my mind…

1 – the AG Kona allocation system

Bummed is an understatement about my AG only having one Kona spot at IMMT. I was crushed – and then I was, and still am, angry. So I looked into it a little more to figure out why there was only one spot in my AG (35-39) when every race has had two spots since they dropped from 50 spots to 40. Turns out, I’m not the only one curious about the AG KQ allocation. Russell Cox has been analyzing AG races and the allocation for a while, and the Live Fiesty ladies have been asking questions, too. ...

Turns out, IM recently changed the formula – BUT NO ONE KNOWS WHAT IT IS. 

YOU GUYS. Why is this a secret?! Why isn’t IM transparent about it? Are they hiding something? The exact number of spots in each AG should be up front and center before the cannon fires at every single race. 

I totally get that fewer women race IM – and that under the new allocation math maybe it’s more proportional to the number of people in each AG. You know what that means, though? It means that men now get more spots (case in point: one of the men’s AGs at IMMT had FIVE spots and it rolled to 10th. Three women’s AGs had ONE each). But as Kebby from Coeur pointed out, more people in an AG doesn’t necessarily mean that AG is faster. It simply means more people are racing in that AG. 

My answer to IM’s new math: eff that, patriarchy. If we want more women to race, there has to be more opportunity. More – and equal – female pro spots at Kona = more elite AGers stepping up to take their pro card. More AG Kona spots = potentially more women racing IM in general. Maybe that means slots are split evenly – 20 for men and 20 for women. Maybe that means a tiered system of elite racers and AG racers (like at a lot of local races). Maybe that means men get fewer spots (gasp! And maybe understand what it’s like to be a woman!). And it surely means that IM share their formula with us. 

It’s time, IM. A rising tide lifts all boats.  READ MORE