The June 8th, 2008 Dunedin Sprint Triathlon
The June 8th, 2008 Dunedin Sprint Triathlon was a 1/4-Mile Swim, 12-Mile Bike, and 3.1-Mile Run at Honeymoon Island State Park, a beautiful place to spend the day. See map; See pictures
This is a great race for first-timers and there was a good showing of triathlon newbies at this years race. The swim course ran South to North along the beach and was shallow so if you needed to stop and rest you could stand up along the entire course. The white sand beach had the typical West coast of Florida gentle slope but did have a few fist-sized rocks scattered throughout the shore so being ready to side-step a rock or two on your way out into the surf was advisable. The Gulf was calm and made for a relatively easy swim compared to the 2007 race which had the swim portion canceled due to high surf.
The bike portion was a 2-loop ride through the park and out along the Dunedin causeway so you had to climb the bridge (not very steep) a total of 4 times. Returning to ride inside the park, bikers were greeted with some technical turns on the winding roads but were able to pick up speed and get a boost of motivation from the crowd as they circled back by transition to head out for the second lap.
The 3-mile run was along the beach trails and paved roads inside the park. As the Florida sun continued to rise the course became extremely hot and humid especially for the later start waves and the triathletes that were not "in it to win it" but there for their own personal goals and accomplishments.
The race announcer was Brian Harrington, the Director of the USAT FL region, who announces for many races in the area including the St. Anthony's triathlon in St. Petersburg.
Elite Male Results:
1) Andrew Canning 58:16
2) Glen Moore 1:01:32
Glen Moore led into T2 and had a slight :18 second lead heading for the run but it was Andrew Canning with a fast 19:17 run split that took the win.
Elite Female Results:
1) Stephanie Liles 1:00:51
2) Celia Dubrey 1:02:25
3) Alexandria Lechner 1:04:22
This was an exciting race. Alexandria had a nice lead out of the water with a scorching 5:15 swim split heading to T1. Celia had a :27 second lead on Stephanie heading out onto the run course but is was Stephanie with a 19:16 run that took the win for the elite females.
Sponsors for the race included Morton Plant Mease Dunedin Hospital, The American Running Company, and Simply Kayaking.
Thank you,
Jim White
http://www.triathlon-calendar.com
Swim - Get the low-down on wetsuits and swim suits, find info on safe water workouts and read tips for training and events.
Bike -Learn how to structure bike workouts, find safety tips and read recommendations on great bike gear.
Run - Get the ultimate skinny on running sneakers, running gear, safety tips and much more.
Transitions are the times between the swim and bike and the bike and run. Any time you are in the transition area, you need to know how to get through it without wasting time. Here are some suggestions:
- Setting Up Your Transition Spot
- Triathlon Swim Transition (T1)
- Triathlon Bike Transition (T2)
- Triathlon Run Transition - There is no Run Transition, just a Finish Line!
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