National Triathlon Championship - Saturday - October 8, 2011

Nancy and I got up early and left the house by 6:15am to

go watch the triathlons in Myrtle Beach. 

There were 3 races,

The Sprint, The International and The Halfmax Championship

each consisting of a swim, bike and run leg.

 

The Halfmax Championship was the big draw and

consists of a 1.2 mile swim, a 56 mile bike, and a 13.1 miles run.

All three events shared the same course at the same time,

so it did get a little difficult to figure out who was where in their race.

All the events took place at a spectacular venue in Grande Dunes,

an elite development on the intercoastal waterway.

We arrived just as the sun was rising.

As we approached the course, you could see the transition area.  That is the area where each competitor has an assigned spot to store their bike, running shoes and necessary gear.   The first event of a triathlon is the swim, followed by the bike and ending with the run.

You must pass through the transition area to get your gear

for the next segment of your race.

We walked down past the finish line and found

Tim,  owner of Grand Strand Bicycles.

Mary and Tim of Grand Strand Bicycles have two Bicycle Shops in the area.  They provide all the bike support for this event.  Tim was getting ready to head out on the bike course to provide support for the cyclists, but took a minute for a photo ;o))  If you are ever in this area and need bikes or bike repairs or clothing or parts…these guys are the BEST!!

Nancy and I headed out toward the intercoastal waterway to see the start of the swim leg.  It was a chilly morning (mid to upper 50’s) with about a 20mph wind.  Nancy and I agreed that we were glad we were not jumping in the water in these conditions.

The competitors line up on the bridge along the marina.  They walk down the ramp and enter the water in groups (waves) of about 30 swimmers at a time.  This first group is the fastest group and probably will produce the winner.

They tread water until the horn sounds and then ...

THEIR OFF!!

It is a mad scramble down to the buoy and

out to the intercoastal waterway.

They head south for about 1/2 mile, turn around and swim

back towards the Grande Dunes Bridge.

At the bridge, they go around the last orange buoy.

Below is the first swimmer to arrive at that buoy. 

He will finish the course in about 35 minutes!!!

There are volunteers all along the course to provide

assistance and help if needed.

Once the swimmers reach the yellow buoys,

they exit the water and run up this ramp.

They go around the building, down the sidewalk

across the road and into the transition area

to ditch their wetsuits and get their bikes. 

Remember, they just spent 35 minutes swimming 1.2 miles and

they are running to get on their bikes!!!

These fellows were just too fast for us to see

them leave the transition area on their bikes. 

We couldn’t keep up and all we were doing was watching them ;o((

This is a very flat course. 

Except for the transition out onto the bike course. 

It is a difficult uphill transition and caused a few riders some trouble. 

This competitor is May from Grand Strand Bicycles.

 

Having some local knowledge of the course,

she decided she would run the bike to the top of the hill and

avoid any possible problems :o))

Smart Girl :o))

The bike course is a closed course which means

they have shut the roads to car traffic. 

Nancy and I walked up to Hwy 17 bypass to watch the cyclists.

These cyclist will average 20-25 mph for 56 miles!!!

After that, they will run a half marathon…YIKES!!

From our spot on the Cycling Course,

we still had a view of the swim and run course. 

There are still many waves of swimmers heading out on that course.

Here comes the first cyclist to finish

28 miles or lap 1 of the cycling segment.

Notice the second place rider is not far behind.

The riders make two sharp left turns

to get to the turn around circle.

Then a hard right into the circle…

All the way around the circle and back out

to the highway for another 28 mile lap… 

Whew...are you tired yet?!?!

I believe this spectator has worn himself out ;o))

There are lots of young families here supporting and

cheering on mom or dad. 

We love being around all this energy. 

If you have the chance to attend one of these events, don’t miss it.

You can’t help but come away with a special high!!

Speaking of high…

How about this spectator !!

Once the athletes finish their swim and bike segment,

they transition into the run. 

For the HalfMax, that is a half marathon or 13.1 miles…

Some of following runners are from Grand Strand Bicycles.

We watched for about 4 hours and decided to call it a day. 

As we crossed the highway to get to our car,

we still saw more and more cyclists. 

There will be athletes on the courses for many hours.

The Top 15 Finishers in each division qualify for the

 World Championship in Europe this spring—WOW!!

However, most of these athletes do this for the love of the sport. 

Some will be out there for many hours with no chance of winning,

but just trying to beat their last time!!

We love being around all these positive people!!!

Now we need to go home and get a nap :o))