What's In a Name?

[Sandy]

The names of races are bandied about easily by those who compete regularly, but if you are just becoming a racing regular it can be confusing.  If you are a triathlete you may encounter any of the following:

Try-a-tri: The perfect distance to give the sport a ?tri? without excessive training or expense.  Generally the distances are short; 250m swim (10 laps of a 25m pool), 10k bike and 2k run.  These can be done without wetsuits and on mountain bikes.  This is a good distance for any age from the very young to the very old.

Sprint: A little longer in distances but with slight variations.  The swim can be 500-750m, bike 20-30k, and the run 5-7.5k.  This can be a very competitive distance as the longer components provide a speed challenge for some and you will see everything from wetsuits, $6000 bikes and trim bodies to mountain bikes and less athletic bodies.  DO NOT be intimidated by this category.  Although the winners will cross the line in around 1 hour for shortest distance sprints, the times will extend over 2 hours.  This distance is good for older children and up.

Olympic: Generally a 1k swim, a 40k bike and a 10k run, the Olympic distance is a great distance for those who want to challenge their endurance.  Average finish time is 2 hours 30 minutes.

     As you get into the longer distances equipment becomes more critical.  The longer swim distances make wetsuits more appealing for warmth and buoyancy and the longer bike distances can seem shorter on lighter, more aerodynamic bikes built for speed and gearing.

 Half Ironman: An excellent race distance with cut off times around 6 1/2 hours.  This is a 2k swim, 90k bike and a 21k run.

Ironman: The king of triathlon is the Ironman distance.  Most recognizable in its Hawaii form, there are Ironman races all over North America and beyond.  One of the most coveted races because of its beautiful, challenging course and plentiful and friendly volunteers is Ironman Canada held the end of August in Penticton B.C.  All Ironman races consist of a 3.8k swim, a 180k bike and a 42k run.  Although winning times range between 8 and 9 hours, all competitors have 17hours to complete.  No one under 18 is permitted to race this distance.