QR in Kona: The 2022 Hawaii Ironman World Championships

The week in Kona was everything we’d waited for since 2019. The 2022 Ironman World Championships was finally…the HAWAII Ironman World Championships. All the heat. All the big players. All the drama. Queen K. Ali’I Drive. Kailua Bay.

Not only were we there for it, but so were several thousand eager pro and age group triathletes, taking on two days of action no less. Thursday for the women (and a few male age groups) and Saturday for the remainder of the men. It was a crazy, busy, fun week, full of bustling grocery stores, the famed Underpants Run, pre-race meetings, pre-race nerves and race day action! We look back at the week that was in Kona. 

QR PRO-SERVICE

In Kona, our athletes are the stars, and we made sure to give them star treatment!  QR was there with complimentary mechanical service for athletes racing their Quintana Roo that weekend. We saw travel maladies such as bent derailleur hangers and lost bolts, and took care of simple gear adjustments and safety checks. Our team of pro mechanics looked after not only our pros but all age groupers racing. There’s nothing more reassuring than having the team that builds your bikes make sure they’re tip-top for the biggest race of your year… and for many, of their life. It was our pleasure to invite our athletes to the booth, and provide the best mechanical service on their QR. As always, all services were on us. 

QR KONA COLLECTIVE BREAKFAST & LUNCH

We have the BEST teams! To say thanks, we invited our teams and partners—the QR Kona Collective—to breakfast and lunch! Our huge pre-race breakfast and lunch were a massive hit (who would turn down a free meal?) and a chance for our teams—Cupcake Cartel, Zoot Triathlon Team, Base Nutrition Team, CBCG and QT2 Systems to name a few - to fuel up. We loved seeing our athletes together. Everyone was a little nervous, but excited to get their race on!

QR ICE CREAM SOCIAL

Island-made ice cream? On a hot Hawaii Day? Yes, please! We invited all to our inaugural QR Ice Cream Social a few days before the race, with Matt Hanson joining fans and friends alike for an hour cooling off out of the Kona sun. We had all the favorites; Tahitian Vanilla, Mint Chocolate Chip, Lychee Sorbet and more. 

BIKE CHECK-IN THANK YOU

As an exclusive to our athletes, we were on the famed red carpet during bike check-in for a small gift for all our athletes. The Hawaii Ironman is a special race, and we had special tees and hats created to celebrate their accomplishment in making it to the start. It was a pleasure for us to hand off a gift, but also take the opportunity to thank those athletes for being part of the QR family. During check-in, our QR athletes ran the gamut. From the new V-PR and X-PR to legacy models like the TiPhoon (during our short stint making titanium tri bikes), hundreds of triathletes racked their QRs on Kailua Pier for race day. As triathlon’s sole brand dedicated strictly to multisport, we couldn't have been more proud of our athletes. We made sure to be out on the course—from Ali’I Drive to Waikoloa on the Queen K—to cheer them on.

QR PROS FLY

We were thrilled to have three American pros take the start in Kona this year. Super swimmer Haley Chura led them all with an impressive (and lucky) 13th-place result including fourth out of the water. U.S. National Champ Matt Hanson notched a 15th-place result, and Kelly Fillnow assembled a balanced day to cross the finish on Ali’i Drive to a 25th-place finish.

With another Kona in the rearview mirror, what’s next? Our team will be in St. George, Utah just a few weeks from now for the Ironman 70.3 World Championships. And yep, expect the same pro-level care and service if you’re bringing your QR to race. We look forward to seeing you there!