Everybody wants to do an Ironman, it seems. The number of people trying to compete enter and finish this race keeps growing, making it harder to simply enter a race, let alone train and finish one.

We thought it would be illustrative to our readers to single out one or two Southern Hemisphere races that represent an alternative to Northern Hemisphere prospective entrants. In particular, we're zeroing in on Ironman South Africa.

This is an exotic race in an exotic environment. This is perhaps the most technologically advanced race in all the world -- in any endurance venue -- especially in the field of Sports Medicine.

South Africa is also an extremely attractive place to travel financially. Racing in Ironman South Africa would probably be no more of an expense for an athlete living in Washington DC than racing, say, Ironman California.

As we build this site out -- complete with a training schedule for those of you who want to compete in a February or March event -- we hope you'll view this race as an attractive alternative to pining and waiting for the opportunity to race in a North American Ironman.

Happy reading...