Race Profile: Tri the Midlands Triathlon

I raced the Tri the Midlands Triathlon last weekend and had a blast. It looked like rain the whole morning, but we never got a drop. It was cloudy and cool the entire race. No winds to contend with, and the water temp was 84 degrees.

This is race #7 in the SC Tri Series, which is probably why it hit max capacity (400) a week before. Not bad for a first time event. The race was in north Columbia in an upscale planned community called Lake Carolina. Leaving from Mt. Pleasant, you can get there in 2hrs 15min.

Setup Events reported that they had over 70 novices registered, which are typically first time racers. That's incredible, and probably why this race had such a positive vibe. When you take the unique setting of this race, add in all the first timers and high number of spectators, it makes for a good race.

The Swim
The 500 mtr swim is in Lake Carolina – a good looking lake that isn’t funky and nasty like some of the other lake swims I’ve done this year. It’s a wet start, so you’ll wade in and tread water until your wave comes up. You swim counter clockwise around three buoys, and head back toward the beach. Once you exit the water, you have about 150 yards or so to transition, which is a little longer than most runs back to transition.

On these short swims, you should plan for some bumping, especially when it bottlenecks at turn buoys. I stayed in a pack of about eight swimmers the entire race. This is about as short a swim as you’ll see in a triathlon, so if the swim leg is something that causes you concern, you should check out this race.

The Bike
The 12 mile bike is another short distance, even by sprint standards. The first and last mile are inside the neighborhood. The course has a lot of turns, which I like. It just makes it go by faster to me. For the most part, there isn’t much elevation change. A few rolling hills, but nothing drastic. The longest straightaway on the course is slightly uphill and will keep even the stronger cyclists below 20 MPH, but this stretch of road is only about 2.5 miles long.

The Run
The 5k run is entirely in the Lake Carolina neighborhood. Leaving the transition area, you’ll have a nice ½ mile or so uphill, then it’s onto the bike path. Once on the path, you have another ½ mile of rolling hills, then it’s a long, big climb to the turn around point. At the turn around, you go back the same way you came and get to see everyone struggling on that hill. It’s approximately 1.25 miles back to the finish line.

I liked this run. You stay in close proximity to the field at all times, literally passing shoulder to shoulder. The hills make it interesting because they pack a punch for sure. And, as is the case with most Setup races, the finish chute was lined with spectators and adoring fans.

So overall, I really, really liked this race. I know I say that about every event I do, but I’m going to score this one slightly higher than the Lake Murray Triathlon (also in Columbia). The more urban setting makes the scenery much better, and I like doing a shorter course every once in a while. Two thumbs up. And I would highly recommend this event for first timers.

The History of Triathlon

I thought this was a cool chronology of triathlon's history. There are two things that amaze me about this list. First, triathlon, in the modern sense, is a very young sport. About 35 years old. Second, that Julie Moss crawl to the finish on ABC's Wide World of Sports was a huge catalyst to the sport's popularity. Up to this point, the only mainstream endurance event was a marathon. When people saw this, they were asking what this race was all about.

Of course, for most people a triathlon is still the Ironman. They don't see it as a sport, they think it's just a race. But that's changing. Triathlon is still very young and has a long way to go. It's already surpassed other niche sports like squash and water polo -- and lacrosse better watch out!!!

History of Triathlon
1904 – An event in the Olympic Games was called triathlon, consisting of the long jump, shot put and 100-yard dash.

1921 – The Petit Perillon swim club in Marseilles, France, held an event called Course Des Trois Sports: The Race of Three Sports. The race consisted of a bicycle leg of about 7K, a run of 5K, and finished with a 200m out-and-back swim.

1974 – While advertising its new race, the San Diego Track Club Newsletter headline read, “Run, Cycle, Swim – Triathlon set for 25th,” using the word “triathlon” for the first time in the modern sense.

1977 – John Collins challenged those gathered at the Oahu Perimeter Relay Run awards ceremony to compete in the first Iron Man Triathlon, a 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike and 26.2-mile run.

1978 – Fifteen men started and 12 men finished the first Iron Man Triathlon, won by Gordon Haller in 11 hours 46 minutes 58 seconds.

1979 – A Sports Illustrated article by Barry McDermott features the Hawaii Iron Man Triathlon. Entries increased to 108 the following year.

1982 – The unforgettable crawl to the Ironman finish line by second-place finisher Julie Moss shown on ABC Wide World of Sports inspires many to take up triathlon.

Julie Moss 1982 Ironman


1982 – The United States Triathlon Association (USTA) and the American Triathlon Association, both founded earlier that year, decided to merge into one unified national governing body called the United States Triathlon Association.

1982 – The first triathlon offering prize money, the Torrey Pines Triathlon, is also the first United States Triathlon Series event, won by Dave Scott.

1983 – The word “triathlon” was added to the Ninth Edition of Webster’s New Collegiate dictionary.

1983 – A spin-off of the San Diego Track Club News called Triathlon, as well as Tri-Athlete founded by William Katovsky, were the first triathlon publications.

1983 – The United States Triathlon Association changes its name to Triathlon Federation/USA.

1984 – Timex Corporation creates the “Triathlon” watch, and then joins with Ironman organizers to use the name “Ironman.” It is now the top-selling watch in the world.

1985 – Triathlon sparks the cross-training fitness boom. Nike features Pro-triathlete Joann Ernst, in national ad campaigns, later made famous by Bo Jackson and Deion Sanders.

1989 – The International Triathlon Union (ITU) was founded at its initial Congress in Avignon, France. Les McDonald was elected president.

1989 – The first triathlon world championship is held in Avignon, France, using the Olympic distance of 1.5k swim, 40k bike and a 10k run.

1991 – The IOC recognized the ITU as the sole international governing body for the sport of triathlon at its 97th session in Birmingham, England.

1993 – The Pan American Games approved triathlon for competition at the 1995 Pan Am Games in Mar del Plata, Argentina.

1994 – The first Goodwill Games triathlon was held in St. Petersburg, Russia.

1994 – At the IOC’s 103rd session in Paris, France, triathlon was named to the Olympic program as a medal sport at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia.

1995 – The first Pan American Games triathlon is held in Mar del Plata, Argentina.

1996 – Triathlon Federation/USA changed its name to the present USA Triathlon.

1997 – The USOC officially recognizes USA Triathlon as an Olympic Sport Organization.

1998 – Justin Ward competes in his first triathlon. The sport will never be the same.

2000 – Triathlon debuts as an Olympic sport. The women’s event was the first medal awarded at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia.

Blog Dump

Hmmm. Maybe that isn't an appropriate title. Blog dump kind of sounds like something you need to clean off your computer with baby wipes, or perhaps the name of some futuristic port-o-john company. What I'm trying to convey is that this blog post will contain a lot of information on various topics. Sort of like I'm 'dumping' info into the post....let's just move on.

First CSTS Race

The first race in the CSTS was last Sunday, and I'm already looking forward to the next one on July 6. I bumped up an age group this year to 35-39 and picked up right where I left off last year with a 3rd place finish (34th overall). That works for me, especially since it's the first race of the series. My goal is to break 1hr 5min in August, so by my calculations, I need to cut 2 minutes off my time. Very doable.

While we're on the topic, I want to point out a couple things I noticed this weekend that aren't cool.

1. Blocking is a USAT rules violation. Slower bikes need to stay on the right. When you pass, you have 15 seconds to do so. If you sit out in the middle of the lane next to your buddy, you are blocking. It's a rule because it can cause accidents, so just be aware.

2. When you check in on race morning, pick up your chip, and get body marking, please don't bring your bike through all the lines with you. It kind of gets in the way.

I hate sounding like a jerk, so here's what I'll do. I'm going to give you a couple tips in return.

1. Right when you arrive on site, immediately rack your bike. Don't check in, or worry about all your crap. Just rack your bike. At races with no rack assignments, you can get a premium spot, then take your time checking in, grabbing all your gear, and using the 'blog dump.' Your bike will still be there when you return 15 minutes later. Let all the guys in line with their bikes get the crummy spots.

2. This one is for James Island County Park specifically. When you rack your bike, look for ant hills. The transition area is on grass, and every year, especially after it rains, there are ant hills galore. And obviously, you do not want to set up on an ant hill.

New Savannah Triathlon

The Savtriteam recently announced a new triathlon called the Rock of the Marne Sprint Triathlon. It's scheduled for September 7, 2008 at Hunter Army Airfield in Savannah, GA.

The distances are:

Swim - 500 yards in the Forest River

Bike - 12 miles around Perimeter Road

Run - 5K - Rio Road biking path

Proceeds will benefit the Hunter Army Airfield Spouse's Club. It's a USAT sanctioned race. Cost is $45 person; $85 relay; $35 military; $75 military relay. You can register on Active.com.

Tri The Midlands Triathlon

This Saturday is the Tri the Midlands race in Columbia, SC. It's the new addition to the SC Triathlon Series put on by Setup Events. I'm looking forward to a new race, especially one within driving distance on race morning.

The distances are:

Swim - 500 meter lake swim

Bike - 11 miles

Run - 5K

I plan on profiling this event next week. Since this is a first year event, there should be plenty of good info to share.

CSTS Race Weekend

The first race in the Charleston Triathlon Sprint Series (CSTS) is this Sunday. I love these races at James Island County Park. They’ve sort of become the cornerstone of the Charleston triathlon scene. Every summer (for 18 years now) we have a four-race tri series to look forward to and plan our summer season around. Runners have the Cooper River Bridge Run, triathletes have James Island. That’s just the way it is.

As I wrote in an earlier post, this was my first triathlon ever, but that’s not the only reason I’m so big on these races. In no particular order, here are a few of my favorite things (sorry, just watched Mary Poppins with the kids) about the CSTS...

Race director Paul King is my neighbor and I know first hand how hard he works to produce the series. As an ex-triathlete himself, he knows how to put on race, and he's been doing it so long, it's safe to say he's worked out the kinks -- although, he'll be the first to tell you that every race is different and has it's own challenges.

I love that this is a fast race -- short swim, short bike, 5k, you're done. You can go all out the entire race and not risk bonking. It also makes it really doable for beginners, so there are always first-timers. With a good mix of newbies and seasoned vets, plus a max capacity field, it's a big race with a good vibe.

And I like Sunday races. Don't ask me why. The first race usually falls on Father's Day which is fun. My wife will typically do at least one of the races with me, or sometimes just opt to bring the kids out to watch.

If you are a competitor in your age group or division, you can try for the series championship by racing in 3 or more races. That makes for some lively competition. Everyone wants to do well at these races.

And how can you not love the swim?! I'm not sure if it's actually a lake or a pond, or a tidal lake? Supposedly, it has 'moving' water in that the incoming tides do affect the water levels, but it's not moving much. Two years ago we had to sign a waiver stating that we understood that DHEC checked the bacteria levels in the water and deemed it unfit for swimming. Why that is funny to me, I don't know.

I've also been told there is an alligator that's been spotted a number of times out there, but I've never seen it. The bottom line is that for local triathletes, this is our home course. We know every inch of the course and wouldn't change a thing.

So for everyone racing this Sunday morning, good luck -- and watch out for that gator!