Hayden welcomes Ironman rerouting

Hayden officials are nearly certain that Ironman is coming to town, rerouting a large portion of the 112-mile bike route from Post Falls and redirecting it through Hayden and into the Rimrock area.

Ironman Coeur d’Alene race director Andy Emberton said a final decision isn’t expected for another week but the Hayden route is a good possibility – one that would alleviate traffic concerns and likely make the course safer.

“It’s premature to say we are going to move,” Emberton said. “But we are looking at it.”

Emberton, who lives near Hayden, will drive the proposed route this weekend with an Ironman staffer and then make a final report to race officials.

“We’ve hounded Ironman for the last two years,” said Hayden Councilwoman Nancy Taylor, who is training for her fourth Ironman. “I have busted my buns for them to come up here.”

For two years, Hayden has included about $10,000 in its budget to cover traffic control and other costs associated with the world-class triathlon where nearly 2,500 athletes attempt to finish the grueling 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike ride and 26.2-mile run.

Taylor said that was to prove that Hayden is serious about welcoming the event to town. There’s even talk that the annual Hayden Days celebration might change its date to coordinate with the June triathlon so even more people are attracted to Hayden to watch the event, which has drawn about 30,000 spectators since it came to Kootenai County in 2003.

Emberton said Ironman is considering the change to improve the route and disrupt less traffic and is not directly related to Post Falls’ annual requests for reimbursement to pay for city costs associated with the one-day event.

“If we do make a change it’s not for the economic advantage,” Emberton said.

But he added that in a larger context economics is always a factor and the more Ironman spends, the more cost athletes must defray. He also quickly noted that Post Falls has always had a good relationship with Ironman.

Post Falls Police Chief Cliff Hayes said he’s heard rumors for two years about a possible route change, but nobody from Ironman has consulted with him or the city.

Both Hayes and Emberton agree that if the bike route moves to Hayden, Post Falls will still benefit by filling its hotels with athletes who also will patronize River City businesses.

The Post Falls Chamber of Commerce has taken issue with Post Falls city officials demanding reimbursement for services.

In a January 2006 letter to the Post Falls mayor and City Council, the chamber wrote that billing Ironman is like “putting out a ‘not welcome’ sign to our largest event.”

“We fear that opportunities in attracting additional events and attractions, even possibly businesses, are being lost by sending this message,” reads the letter, signed by board Chairman Eric English and Tourism Committee Chairman Ron Ayers. The chamber’s executive director didn’t return phone calls Thursday.

Taylor said Post Falls has never embraced the race and that the western route has problems, especially from the perspective of an athlete. To get in enough miles, the bike route stretches into Washington and forces bicyclists to loop the former Greyhound dog track twice. Post Falls also must build a bridge each year over about 300 feet of railroad tracks so the route can cross over Seltice Way and not totally shut down traffic in downtown Post Falls. Then, she said, there is the wind from the Rathdrum Prairie and the lack of people cheering athletes along the route.

Nobody is willing to give specifics on a Hayden route other than to say bicyclists would head north on 15th Street and then hook into Government Way before heading up into the Rimrock area.