I run an SEO firm, and we just launched a little side project creating niche business directories. We just launched two at TriathlonShopDirectory.com and TriathlonStoreDirectory.com. These are national directories where any triathlon shop can go and create a listing for free. So if you own a triathlon shop or store, or if you’re a bike or running store that sells some triathlon gear, or you don’t even really have a physical shop but sell triathlon stuff online, go and create your free listing today.

Is the 2010 Panama City Florida Ironman going to be canceled due to the oil spill in the gulf? That’s the big question on my mind, since I’m signed up for it, it’s my first full Ironman event, and if they cancel it what do I do about an Ironman this year, when all my training is geared towards this one event? It’s way too late to sign up for another event this year, and would they give out full refunds? Probably not. They’d probably skip the swim and have the rest of the race, but that would just stink. I’m sorry, but in my mind I’m not an Ironman if I do the bike and run but skip the swim.

But I think I have a solution to keep everyone happy. If they have to cancel the Florida Ironman, or even just cancel the swim, give all the participants in the Florida Ironman the option to switch to the Kona Ironman Championships in Hawaii. It’s just a month earlier, so most people could modify their training plans if informed of the change in the next month or two. How about it Ironman Corp?

PowerTri, an online triathlon retailer (with a physical store in Utah) is just about to launch their new blog at PowerTri-Blog.com. A little bit of content is up there, but they’ll be adding about 50 new posts today or tomorrow, and many more in the days to come. Check it out.

Sounds controversial, doesn’t it? But it’s nothing of the sort, really. It’s just that generally speaking, Mormons don’t do Ironman races on Sundays, and I would guess that hardcore Orthodox Jews don’t do Ironman races on Saturdays. Some people might be surprised to find out Mormons do Ironman races at all, especially the people who confuse Mormons and the Amish. But I’m Mormon, and I know at least three other Mormons who have done an Ironman, so there. There are some Mormons who do Ironman races on Sundays, but we won’t talk about them or where they’re going after they die. Do I have to put in the obligatory “just kidding” here? I mean, you know I’m kidding, right? Of course you do. I’m never going to say I’m kidding again, because you’ll just know I am, right? Great, that’s settled then.

So I’ve comprised a list here of all the Ironman races that are on Saturdays, and therefore kosher for Mormons to participate in. Now you don’t have to sort through all the races yourself.

Lotto Ironman Langkawi Malaysia Triathlon. February 27, 2010 – Langkawi, Malaysia

Bonita Ironman New Zealand. March 6, 2010 – Taupo, New Zealand

Ford Ironman St. George. May 1, 2010 – St. George, Utah – New Ironman, 2010 will the first time this event is held.

Ironman Lanzarote Canarias Triathlon. May 22, 2010 – Lanzarote, Canary Islands, Spain

Ford Ironman World Championship. October 9, 2010 – Kona, Hawaii

Ford Ironman Florida. November 6, 2010 – Panama City Beach, Florida – Not positive about the date on this since I couldn’t find an official announcement, but based on past dates, I’m pretty sure this will be the date.

Ironman Western Australia Triathlon. December 4, 2010 – Busselton, Australia – Ditto on the date.

If you’re an Orthodox Jew, just subtract the above races from your list.

Yeah, what is the difference between a triathlon and an Ironman anyway? The question doesn’t really make sense, because an Ironman is a triathlon, the same way a square is a rectangle but a rectangle is not necessarily a square, you know?

There are four standard distances when it comes to triathlons, and an Ironman is the name for the longest one. Here are all four and their distances:

Sprint Triathlon Distances. It’s called “sprint” because it’s short. It may not feel very short the first time you do one (I thought I was going to die during both the swim and the run–the bike was easy), but just wait until you do a half or full Ironman, then a sprint triathlon will feel like an easy workout.

Swim: 750 meters

Bike: approx. 15 miles (this tends to vary a lot due to course constraints so you’ll see both shorter and longer distances on the bike)

Run: 5K (3.25 miles)

Olympic Triathlon Distances. I don’t know why it’s called “Olympic”. There are no podiums, no fancy medals, no drug tests, etc.

Swim: 1500 meters

Bike: approx. 30 miles (again, it may vary depending on the course)

Run: 10K (6.5 miles)

Half-Ironman Triathlon Distances. They call it an “Ironman 70.3″ officially, but everyone other than the Ironman trademark holders call it a “half Ironman”.

Swim: 1.2 miles (where’d that metric system go?)

Bike: 56 miles (they get a bit more strict about the exact distance when it comes to the Ironman races)

Run: 13.1 miles (half marathon)

Ironman Triathlon Distances.

Swim: 2.4 miles

Bike: 112 miles

Run: 26.2 miles (full marathon)

Can you call yourself an Ironman if you’ve done an Ironman 70.3? Some people dance around this and wimp out by saying “Not in my book” as though “Hey, someone else may find that harmless, just don’t blame me if you get in trouble and look like a fool.” But I’m not a wimp, so I’m going to just say it–no, nobody calls themselves an Ironman if they’ve only done a half-Ironman. Sorry. But you can call yourself a half-Ironman all you want, which is what I do since that’s as far as I’ve gone so far.

Now where this can get a bit confusing is that there are official and unofficial “Ironman” races. Anybody can set up a triathlon with the Ironman distances, but that doesn’t mean they can call it an “Ironman” race, because the term Ironman is trademarked, copyrighted, internationally trademarked, stamped, and frequently infringed on, although I don’t know anybody who would do such a thing. At least nobody who would admit it.

When somebody sets up a race that is Ironman or half-Ironman distance, they won’t call it an Ironman race due to the trademark issue, but everyone will still refer to it as an Ironman race, like this:

“Hey, are you going to do the such and such Ironman?”

“Well, it’s not really an Ironman…”

“Yeah, yeah, I know, but it’s the same distances, and you don’t really expect me to say ‘Are you going to do the such and such triathlon that is similar to an Ironman in that it’s the same distances, it just isn’t officially called an Ironman race?’ do you?”

“Well, no, I guess not, that would be pretty inefficient to have to say all that…”

So are you an Ironman if you complete an Ironman-distance race that isn’t an official Ironman race? Rrr…that’s a tough one, I mean, not in my book, but who knows.

I just found out about TriTalk, a podcast about triathlons and made for triathletes, and it’s great stuff. It’s the #1 podcast about triathlon stuff, and is hosted by David Warden, a free-lance journalist, with articles appearing in Triathlete and Inside Triathlon magazines. He is on the Regional Board of Directors for USAT and the Board of Advisors for Joe Friel’s TrainingBible Coaching, LLC. And he’s based right here in Utah.

I’ve only listened to two podcasts so far, but I’m already hooked. I already learned that training at altitude here in Utah doesn’t do a darn thing for me, but that caffeine (which I refuse to use) would boost my results dramatically. I guess most of what I’ve learned so far are things that burst my bubbles, but hey, it’s all good.

The “about” page on TriHive’s own website says it all, but I just want to give my own plug for the magazine, which only appears to be growing in popularity and which is a great resources for all things related to triathlons, triathletes, and Ironman events in Utah, Idaho, and Wyoming.

Established in the Fall of 2005, TriHive, LLC was established to unite the Utah triathlon community. A natural evolution began as TriHive began covering events both north and south of the Utah border. In the winter of ‘07-’08, TriHive began “official” coverage of triathlon in Idaho, Nevada, Utah and Wyoming. TriHive’s mission is to bring intermountain triathlon into the homes of multisport athletes, and to share the healthy lifestyle of triathlon to readers throughout the nation. We also aim to inform triathletes of one of the regions fastest growing sports and to share endurance event information throughout the sports community. TriHive offers race coverage, athlete profiles, product reviews and news to thousands of triathletes region wide.

Our staff of local triathletes maintains a personal connection to the sport and to TriHive readers. TriHive will present information to help athletes train and race for the demanding three-sport that make up triathlon. Finally, we hope to open the door to new athletes. TriHive hopes to show our regions triathlon community to residents throughout the west, and we hope to welcome beginners into the sport. We aim to arm them with valuable triathlon information specific to becoming endurance sport junkies.

Yep, so of course the big news in Utah lately is that we’re finally getting an official Ironman triathlon in St. George. WTC race official Paul Huddle says the run “is definitely the hardest of any [Ironman] North American run course.”

The first one will be May 1st, 2010. Think I can be ready by then? Maybe, if I can get someone to give me a bike and a gym pass so I can actually do something besides just running.

Even if you’re just getting started in triathlons you’re probably aware that there are triathlons, and there are Ironman triathlons. Ironman is nothing more than a brand name that manages various products and licenses its brand for certain triathlon events. Events sanctioned by the Ironman brand sell out fast and cost a lot more than other triathlons because they give participants the bragging rights to be able to say “I did an Ironman race the other day…” which sounds more impressive than just “I did a triathlon the other day.” It’s similar to the difference between going to college and going to Harvard.

Actually, there’s much less of a difference, because there’s arguably a difference between most colleges and Harvard, whereas there is virtually no difference between a normal triathlon and an Ironman triathlon other than the Ironman brand being slapped on everything. The Gatorade is the same, the Powerbars are the same, and the volunteers are just as good in either type of event. Running 26.2 miles in an Ironman is no different than running 26.2 miles in any other triathlon, or is it?

I did the Oceanside Ironman 70.3 in March of this year. There is no other triathlon that goes over the same terrain. And even if I had done another triathlon with the same distances in the same location, it would be kind of weird to say “I did a half-Ironman in Oceanside” as opposed to “I did the Oceanside half-Ironman.” Personally, that’s worth something to me, and evidently it is for a lot of other people as well.

Just the same, I’d like to see more triathlons, Ironman or not. If I had my druthers I’d be doing a triathlon every month. But there simply aren’t enough of them to fit my schedule. Hopefully, as the NY Times article I referenced says, triathlons are growing in popularity and that will result in more races.