My second Ironman 70.3, and the best. The swim was not as flat as everyone had said. So it was choppy with a big swell. The ride takes you to a dessert so its a bit lonely and can be windy at times. The run is at the Jameriah Beach so there is plenty support and the surface is turf so it has no impact on the body which is excellent. The opening ceremony was at the Jumeriah Beach and it was amazing. At the finish they provided clean showers and ablution facilities. We also got finishers caps and jackets instead of the usual tshirts which was great. I however felt the run could have had more water stations. I only saw 2 for the entire 21km and I was so dehydrated. All in all its a lovely race in Dubai. Go do it. Well organized

Fantastic, location for a Triathlon with the Burj in the distance! Only downfall I guess was swimming into the sunrise which meant difficulty sighting and resulted in me swallowing a shed load of sea water! Apart from that the bike was lovely, made a difference from the hills I'm used to riding in the Rhondda Valleys and the run was great just very hot! 

Its quite a low key event, very different to Europe I guess where the music is pumping and the sound system making itself heard, but all in all a great event and thoroughly enjoyed the fantastic location!

As one of the first years Ironman has run the 70.3 in Dubai, there were a number of teething problems. On the whole, the race was good and well organised - and boy how the UAE knows how to take things to the next level! 

Small touches such as the welcome and post-race awards banquets were like being at an exclusive wedding, very impressive and the food was amazing. Plus in Dubai, they don't do finisher's tee shirts - they do down gilets! It made for a luxurious feel to what is a pretty luxurious place.

Swim course was changed last minute due to winds and seemed slightly long, otherwise it was fine with a beach entry and exit. The bike course was not ideal - it went up a single lane on a busy highway, which meant that not only was it extremely congested, it was also pretty dangerous due to only being separated from fast flowing traffic by a few cones. 

The congestion caused major issues for the race organisers with somewthing like 75 disqualifications - the referees seemed a bit overhwelmed and not sure they knew how to deal with it - as the majority of people didn't serve their penalties there was massive ambuiguity about who had actually been given a penalty and where to serve them.

Run course was nice, on the promenade along the beach front, with a beach finish line.

Huge problems trying to get into transition after the race - athletes were made to wait for hours and many were getting very annoyed with the seeming lack of organisation.

Other than the pretty considerasble teething problems, it would have been a great race. The course is super fast and enjoyable and I'll probably be back to racer next year - hopefully Ironman will have sorted their stuff out by then!!

First time 70.3 for me so not much to compare with.  I thought the info beforehand and on the website was limited and poor in places...... I had no idea my entry included the dinner the night before and therefore missed it.  Really unique place for racing. Weather for triathlon in the region can be tricky with heat and wind but on this day it was near perfect. Well organised race overall I thought. A generally flat course which lends itself to fast times. See swim under the burj al Arab which is pretty cool in itself. Bike on good surface although slightly close to fast moving traffic at times, albeit in a coned off lane...... beware, sometimes locals in cars will ignore comes! Run is 3 lap run on lovely running surface.  A bit of support around the run course but much more "ex-pat" than "local". Finish line is a bit tucked away which is a shame for spectators and probably deliberate by ironman to get exclusivity on finish photos..... shame the pictures they take are such poor quality!  Overall I loved the dubai 70.3 experience, largely as it went well for me. I will certainly be back to dubai for more racing 

The race was set on the beautiful Jumeirah Beach next to the Burj Al Arab. An absolutely stunning back drop, with the swim start taking place off the Jumeirah Beach Hotel's private beach into the turquoise blue waters.

There was a swim recce organised by the race organisers the day before which was great as the course was fully marked and manned by safety officials.

The registration was an easy process with enough stations open to not have to be queueing long.

Racking and bag drop was also relatively stress-free with a volunteer taking each and every individual to their racking position and to their bag-hook, while also explaining entry and exit out of transition.

Race morning again was very well organised. A swim warm-up area and clear markings for the rolling start. My only issue here was people's honesty- many put themselves in the wrong wave causing a total grid lock getting out the harbour, causing me for one, to lose time.

The bike course headed out and back into the Arabian desert. There is generally not much to look which for some could be mentally tough. Also, the wind can be strong but this year was fine for race day. Not the same story for the previous 2 years!

At times the course became extremely busy with cyclists in a very narrow space (1 car lane wide). I was scared when I got hemmed in, stuck being able to make a safe overtake and then being able to leave enough space between me and the rider in front when there were others trying to overtake me as well. The draft - busters hit this hard but was extremely difficult to get away if caught up in it. I felt bad for anyone caught drafting in this situation as was just so hard to move out and leave space.

The run was 3 loops of 7km and was hot by this time of day. It also takes place on the boardwalk along the beach front. heading out is on a running track surface which is 'squishy', not bouncy, so quite hard to run on.

The volunteers at aid stations were fantastic, especially on the run. cheering with encouragement even after being there for several hours.

All in all this was the best race I've done. Not purely cause of the result I achieved, but swimming in the crystal water looking up at the Burj al Arab, cycling towards the city skyline of Dubai and and then running next to the beautiful Jumeriah beach. I'd recommend it to anyone!

my first middle distance Tri, well organised transition zone and easy to understand. Slightly lacking on water safety marshalls, very few and far between, first half of bike was tough, up hill and into a headwind, 2nd half lovely, but it's boring through the desert, nothing to look at... Run, laps spongy track but no shade, water stations were not adequately stocked and started to run out towards the end of my race (I wasn't near the cut off - finished in 6hrs 38mins) 

pre race communication was a bit poor for IM .. no athlete guide and only one briefing ( before I arrived in Dubai ), though it was replayed on Facebook.

location is hard to beat, transition on jumeirah beach. Swim in the Arabian gulf, starting through jumeirah marina. Bike course is basically 45km out in a straight line up a gradual hill then turn around and head back downhill.. nice! I had wind behind so second half of bike was super fast.  They close off one lane of a motorway so some cars and trucks do shoot by a bit, and early on because it was uphill and into the wind there were quite a few groups forming and drafting going on.. difficult to break up until the turn point.

run is 3 loops of the7k jumeirah beach run trail which is springy and along the beach.. lots of support and great views.  It's Dubai so it's hot but January is manageable.

aid stations all good.

finish is basically on the beach and instead of a t shirt you get a nice gilet .. nice touch.

all in all -- highly recommend it