The IRONMAN Indian Wells-La Quinta stormed into the Coachella Valley on Sunday, December 3rd, blocking traffic, filling up hotel rooms and jamming local restaurants. But not to worry, the influx of tourism is projected to bring $10 million – $12 million to the area, according to IRONMAN officials.
Major events like the IRONMAN Indian Wells-La Quinta 70.3 can ring the cash registers of a range of businesses, including airlines, hotels, restaurants, cafes and local transportation.
La Quinta hosted the swim and bike portions of this year’s race. The 13.1-mile run weaved through Indian Wells. This year’s route is the same as the 2022 course. While in its inaugural year, community members faced challenges with road closures, the city has since established a viable plan for implementing them. La Quinta residents collaborated to create the new route.
This year’s IRONMAN had the highest number of registered participants since its inception in 2018. More than 3,200 triathletes signed up in advance for the half IRONMAN – a 30% increase from the prior year.
Seems like lots of people want to be in California in December, or maybe just keen to get one last kick at some prize money to round out the season.
The season-ending race of the professional North American triathlon season also offered up some very interesting action this year – the competitive pro field put on quite a show that saw a pair of Norwegians top the podium, while their coach dominated the age group race.
The top 10 in the men’s race included four Americans, three Norwegians, two Canadians and a Kiwi. The women’s top 10 wasn’t quite as international with six Americans, two Canadians along with one Norwegian and one Brit. That still means out of the top 10 men and women, half were from outside the United States.
