Triathlon - Best races east vs west?

Ok so another post got me thinking what are the must do 5 races east coast vs west coast? List distance....tell us just cool races to do....

I'll have a go at Southern California based on experience as well as folklore...

Wildflower - 1/2 IM or Olympic
Escape from Alcatraz - Olympic-ish
Pacific Coast Triathlon - Sprint
Ralph's Half - 1/2 IM
Malibu - Sprint +

WORST - Long Beach - Sprint - Avoid at all costs.

The Escape from Alcatraz sounds so cool (and hard) what make the Long Beach - Sprint so bad?

Last year the field at Long Beach must have been 50% first timers. This alone wouldn't necessarily make it bad but the race director never mentioned bike etiquette & safety (stay to the right) in the pre-race briefings. I discussed this with him after the event and he told me that it doesn't do any good.

The bike course is two laps so on your second lap you are mixed in with lots of slower riders who are all over the road. Someone ran into me on a downhill while I was doing over 30 mph and I ended up with a concussion and a broken shoulder (clavicle AND scapula). Could I have avoided it by slowing down? Probably. Could it have been avoided if people kept to the right and allowed faster riders to go by on the left? In my opinion...definitely. I think that the combination of a fast course, lots of beginners, and a race director who is unwilling to include proper safety information in the pre-race briefings is a formula for disaster.

Again, I personally spoke to the race director (Jack Caress from Pacific Sports, LLC) about my concersn. I found him to be arrogant and set in his ways. I will never race in another event run by this group (which includes the Los Angeles Tri & Cleveland Tri).

I know that all races can be dangerous but I personally have participated in other races where I found them to be much safer. Your mileage may vary.

Half Vineman (1/2 IM in Napa Valley)--scenic course; EASY river swim (you can even stand if you swim on the outside lane--great reassurance for beginners); bike is relatively flat (only one hill worth noting); great race support

Sunset Sprint (somewhere in NJ)--nice flat course in the middle of summer for those looking for a first-time race or a mid-season tune-up.

Avoid Thundergust Sprint (also somewhere in NJ)--all distances were off by at least 20%; poorly designed swim course (sharp turn 100 ft from the start assures a lot of bump 'n grind); very muddy water; poor race support (almost found out the hard way that an intersection was not monitored by race support).

Anyone know anything about the Delaware Diamondman (half IM) or the Texax Iron (half IM in Houston)?

I have done DiamondMan twice. Good race. Flat except for one huge bridge.

Columbia and Eagleman in MD are huge sell out races. Usually a few pros at each.

IMLP sold out in 10 hours for 2006.

Liberty-to-Liberty had bad support. Crazy logistics as well. Statue of Liberty to Liberty Bell. You need a support crew to drop you off.

Duke Devilman is supposed to be very popular.

Sorry to hear about Liberty to Liberty...sounds like it could be a fun event...of course in the end it really is more of an event than a race...isn't it?

American Triple T and Mountaineer Triathlon.

Both at www.hfpracing.com