Ironman peeps!

[trigal]

Thoughts on the article?

m.us.wsj.com/articles/ironman-or-iron-distance-a-triathlon-branding-battle-brews-1401750109?mobile=y

[Susie]

I have given this issue quite a bit of thought, personally as a consumer of WTC-branded and non-WTC-branded 70.3 race entries, and professionally as an IP attorney.  A few of those thoughts:

The data in the article are mostly about 140.6 distance races, but the same issue pops up at 70.3.  What do you call that race? If it's not a WTC race, it's not a "half ironman."  A non-WTC 140.6 isn't an "ironman."  I usually refer to the 70.3s that I do as being a half ironman for ease of speaking [with non-triathletes] even when it is not WTC-branded.  (If I'm talking to triathletes, I just say "half," and they know what I mean.)  However, the shirt I have says "Patriot Half."  I was always sort of annoyed by that.  Half what?  Half full glass?  Half marathon?  

Trademark rights are lost when a mark becomes generic.  I am guessing that for all its policing efforts, WTC probably has a finite period of time in the future before the term "ironman" becomes generic for the 2.4 mile / 112 mile / 26.2 mile triathlon distance, because people use ironman as a shorthand for that just like I do for HIMs.  WTC will delay that for as long as possible, but it seems inevitable to me.  They will probably retain trademark rights in the m-dot logo, and various logos that include the word Ironman, but I don't think they'll retain trademark rights in the actual word Ironman indefinitely.  When that eventually happens, other races can use the term Ironman, and I think that will really help their marketing and even the playing field.  Arguably, "ironman" already is kind of generic.  When you hear "ironman," do you think "strictly WTC race" or do you think 140.6?  I think 140.6.  (ETA:  and even before I was even a triathlete, I thought ironman referred to a race distance, I had no idea it was a registered TM of WTC.)

I am also curious about the seeming "exceptions" to the rule of non-WTC races struggling to attract entries.  The B2B and Vineman races are listed in the article, but they're not the only ones.  The 70.3 I did last year (and am doing again next week) is put on by a smaller event promoter, and is capped at 825.  Registration opens in October and sells out the 1st week of December for a June race.  Obviously it CAN be done.  I think some of the races that develop local and semi-local cult followings also do well.  Lots of them have ___man names, like Musselman, Tinman, etc. around here.  Branding, along with an associated reputation for a well run race, is so important to those races.

My 1st WTC race will be my 3rd 70.3.  I'm just kind of curious to have that experience.  Perhaps I will have more perspective after that.  I think if I ever do a 140.6, I will gravitate toward a WTC race, although partly out of course-recognition as much as brand recognition.  IMLP is my "local" IM race; people from my club volunteer there every year.  It's high on my race wish list.

[awick14]

I have never done an Ironman but I live in a town that is near where an Ironman used to be. After Ironman left the city they still put on a very similar race but under a different name and the enrollment numbers dropped dramatically once the Ironman title left the race.

I can see why people want to run in and complete an Ironman as appose to another race that isn't as well recognized or not recognized at all.

[reginaphalange72]

I've done both a WTC race (IMLP) and a non-branded IM (Beach2Battleship). The energy between the two different races was very different, but B2B did put on a great race. That said, I was rather disappointed with my finish line experience, since it was my first IM. There was basically no one there, other than the announcer, my family, and about ten other people. Compare that to IMLP (or any other WTC race) where the finish line atmosphere is just indescribable.

It sounds like I prefer WTC races, but that's not actually the case. While I enjoy the atmosphere quite a lot, I think it's important to also support the groups that are trying to bust their way into that market (HITS, Setup, Rev3, etc.), provided they are trying to produce a good event and are athlete-focused. It's not easy to go up against an organization like WTC, and the IM brand. But for now, I will continue to register for both WTC and non-WTC events.

I think Susie has a good point about trademarks and the Ironman name. It's hard to explain that to people outside the sport, since "ironman" really does have a rather generic meaning. When talking to non-triathletes, I just say I've done two ironmans. When I'm talking to triathletes, I say I did B2B and IMLP.

I feel like I didn't really articulate that properly. Will probably have to explain it better later. The short version: I really hope the non-WTC events gain traction. It would be nice for WTC to have some competition since their successful branding of the "Ironman" name has really given them a monopoly in the IM world.

[trigal]

Funny that many of the non-branded races offer more than the m-dots do. I've done both branded half-IMs and branded. The branded really don't offer any more than the others. Susie, I'm willing to bet that you'll get better swag at Patriotman than I will at Eagleman (which I'm currently driving to!). Last year, when this race was owned by TruColumbia, the athletes got some great stuff (still a branded race). It is now owned by WTC and we are not expecting much.

For me, this distance (70.3) is about trying to get a spot at the world championship, which is all a WTC thing, but a goal nonetheless. Same for the full. To get into Hawaii, you have to do m-dot races.

[Susie]

Jun 6, 2014 20:27:31 GMT -5 trigal said:

For me, this distance (70.3) is about trying to get a spot at the world championship, which is all a WTC thing, but a goal nonetheless. Same for the full. To get into Hawaii, you have to do m-dot races.

I think that is one of the most unique aspects of the IM brand issue - I'm struggling to think of another sport where the highest level of competition/world championship is put on by a private company, and for which you can only qualify by participating in events put on by said private company.  Even outside the "ironman" trademark rights issues, that is a tough nut to crack for other race promoters.

There are certainly plenty of racers (like me!) who are not contenders for spots at Kona/Mont Tremblant World Championships, who could just as well do a WTC race as a non-WTC race.  But there's something about racing in the presence of that upper echelon of people gunning for World Championship spots that is exciting.

On which note, good luck this weekend!!

[joenali]

There is also the Challenge Family brand. The prize money is bigger for pros, yet everyone wants to race IM brand races to get into Kona. But they are pretty big in Europe and are slowly making their way through North America. They also put on Challenge Roth, which has a pretty big pro draw, like Chrissy Wellington.

[kams]

This is all super interesting, and Susie's input is very informative. I've only raced 1 non-IM brand long course. It was itty bitty, and obviously not near the hype of the Ironman brand.

I'd be totally up for a hits, challenge, (looking at leadman right now), etc now that I've raced Ironman branded events. Maybe I'm a brand snob, but hearing Mike Reilly call me an ironman was one of the coolest things I have ever experienced, and was definitely something I wanted to experience for my first time. The intangibles are important, and they've done a stellar job of creating that climate (idk if that's really the word I'm looking for).

[joenali]

Challenge let's you fully refund your race entry fee up to a certain point. I signed up for Challenge Penticton and then IM Whistler was announced. All I had to do was send them an email. M-Dot is not that nice, although getting better . You can now transfer to a different race.

[trigal]

Jun 6, 2014 23:26:44 GMT -5 kams said:

This is all super interesting, and Susie's input is very informative. I've only raced 1 non-IM brand long course. It was itty bitty, and obviously not near the hype of the Ironman brand.

I'd be totally up for a hits, challenge, (looking at leadman right now), etc now that I've raced Ironman branded events. Maybe I'm a brand snob, but hearing Mike Reilly call me an ironman was one of the coolest things I have ever experienced, and was definitely something I wanted to experience for my first time. The intangibles are important, and they've done a stellar job of creating that climate (idk if that's really the word I'm looking for).

Mike Reilly has definitely become part of that history I was talking about, even though he doesn't announce EVERY Ironman race. There's nothing quite like hearing him call your name, is there?

[trigal]

Jun 6, 2014 23:39:05 GMT -5 joenali said:

Challenge let's you fully refund your race entry fee up to a certain point. I signed up for Challenge Penticton and then IM Whistler was announced. All I had to do was send them an email. M-Dot is not that nice, although getting better . You can now transfer to a different race.

But why did you switch races? Penticton puts on a great race, like LP. DH did IMC in 2007 and we loved it there. Was it the draw of the brand?

[trigal]

Jun 6, 2014 21:35:38 GMT -5 Susie said:

Jun 6, 2014 20:27:31 GMT -5 trigal said:

For me, this distance (70.3) is about trying to get a spot at the world championship, which is all a WTC thing, but a goal nonetheless. Same for the full. To get into Hawaii, you have to do m-dot races.

I think that is one of the most unique aspects of the IM brand issue - I'm struggling to think of another sport where the highest level of competition/world championship is put on by a private company, and for which you can only qualify by participating in events put on by said private company.  Even outside the "ironman" trademark rights issues, that is a tough nut to crack for other race promoters.

There are certainly plenty of racers (like me!) who are not contenders for spots at Kona/Mont Tremblant World Championships, who could just as well do a WTC race as a non-WTC race.  But there's something about racing in the presence of that upper echelon of people gunning for World Championship spots that is exciting.

On which note, good luck this weekend!!

Thanks! And everyone is a contender! Two years ago I got a spot that rolled waaaay down!

And USAT has national championships at the sprint, Oly, and half levels which can qualify you for world championships, just not WTC branded.

[joenali]

Jun 7, 2014 7:04:56 GMT -5 trigal said:

Jun 6, 2014 23:39:05 GMT -5 joenali said:

Challenge let's you fully refund your race entry fee up to a certain point. I signed up for Challenge Penticton and then IM Whistler was announced. All I had to do was send them an email. M-Dot is not that nice, although getting better . You can now transfer to a different race.

But why did you switch races? Penticton puts on a great race, like LP. DH did IMC in 2007 and we loved it there. Was it the draw of the brand?

About 8 of my team mates signed up for whistler..