I will be there. It will be my first time there as well.

good luck. hear the swim is down stream. think a bag of Doritos did the swim in like 32 minutes lol!

Yep, my goal is to leverage the speedy swim and flat bike & run to break 5 hours.

Last year was epic with high temperatures. That was slow with a lot of DNF. At the moment, I am looking forward to a normal fall day.

I was told the bike course had changed somewhat and there are some pretty good hills, then a flat run. Not sure if that is accurate.

Bike was different last year due to construction. It added some hills. Also last year was first year was non wetsuit. The heat was great!

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Let food be thy medicine...

I am racing this year and last did it in 2009 ... too long ago to remember many specifics. Fast, current assisted swim (with or without wetsuit). Flat to rolling hills on the bike course...sorry, but this course cannot be described as hilly unless you've never done a tough one. Run was pancake flat and spectator friendly. I'm hoping for decent weather but whatever it is, it will be the same for everyone. Good luck.

So are they returning back to the original bike course, and if so, is there less elevation? Im hoping for some cool weather. Im in Louisiana and the heat and humidity are making it nearly impossible to train outside.

Augusta is not a flat bike course. It's not exceptionally hilly. But, it's nowhere near what I would call "flat".

Heat & humidity is exactly what you need for training in preparation for Augusta. Seriously. Not pink.

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Pink? Maybe. Maybe not. You decide.

Thats what ive been told as well. nothing too crazy, but definitely some hill to combat. Thanks

That's a bummer. For some reason, I had it in my mind that the Augusta bike was flat, like on par with Chattanooga. Oh well, I am down for whatever the roads bring. I just spent Labor Day weekend riding in the SC & NC. I can handle Augusta.

I did Augusta, last fall.....and Choo, in May.

Augusta isn't a punishing bike course (by any stretch). But, it ain't Choo, either. :) I found Augusta to be tougher than Choo. 94 deg. and high humidity probably didn't help in that eval., though.

Good luck. I liked both courses a lot.

I did chattanooga and augusta in 2015. I thought the swim and bike courses were pretty comparable. chattanooga run was more challenging

I've done this race for the past 3 years so I'm out this year as I've had enough of it for a while, but it's a good course.

The swim is great. There will be some plants and stuff you'll swim into, but nothing much. It won't really be overly bothersome as it's not much, but do be aware of it and just keep calm when you run into that stuff. Find some feet and enjoy the ride to the other end. It's an easy swim. Unless you do this course again, it'll probably be your fastest swim for a long long time.

The bike isn't flat, but it's not bad either. I enjoyed the bike. Last year was a bit tougher w/ the added hills, but the regular course is mostly good roads and mostly corners where you can hold your speed. There is a near u-turn around mile 28 where you pull off of one road and turn right back onto another that you need to watch. You will have to slow way down for this. Other than that, it's a nice fun and fast course.


If it's hot, the run is quite a grind as there's very little shade and the course aid can be up to 2 miles apart at times. I'd carry water with you if it's hot and you drink a lot. Some people are fine with 2 mile gaps. In the heat, I need a lot of water, so that doesn't cut it for me.

The town isn't much to look at and you'll want to eat early as everything fills up fast the night before the race. I've typically gone out around 4:30. By the time I finish, lines are out the door most everywhere.

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http://triathletelife.wordpress.com/

great info. thanks for the help!

The swim is very easy. Goes with a current. Last year it was not wetsuit legal. I made it 22 miles into the bike course when a group of women were riding all across the road. I attempted to pass yelling on your left and the women took it as move to left and moved into me and knocked me into a patch of gravel and I crashed and broke my derailleur and lost a lot of skin. I pulled out of the race after that. On my way back to transition we came across multiple crashes. The bike course has a lot of gravel and potholes. Keep your head up and watch out. It also a very large group of people racing so it is a very crowded race.

The run last year was brutal. It was 90-something degrees, humid, not a cloud in the sky, and next to zero shade on the run course. There were definitely a couple of aid stations that had close to 2 mile gaps, and that really sucked.

That run was almost pleasant compared to Cartagena though. That was stupid hot and humid to the point of being ridiculous.

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Favorite Gear: Dimond | Cadex | Desoto Sport | Hoka One One

Pretty much agree with what everyone else has said in the thread. I will say it was funny watching everyone freak out in transition last year when they announced no wetsuits.

I hope we have decent temps for a change. This is my fourth (and final time doing this race, so f**king sick of it) time doing the race, I'm in better shape every year, it has been hotter every year, and my time gets slower every year. >:I

Last year the heat, took me out back and had it's way with me. Slowest 13.1. Ever.

They need to get rid of the nearly two mile gap in the aid stations. It's Greene Street isnt it? I can't remember... those brain cells were fried that day.

BTW.. approach the bike course in thirds... first third, flat; second third, "hilly"; last third, net downhill, hammer if so desired.

See ya'll there... unfortunately.

Gonna be another hot one on Sunday...

Forecast high of 89 with around 55% humidity.

My wife is racing this year, how crowded is the bike and how bad is the drafting?

pretty crowded but not unbearable. Not much pack drafting. I've done three times. In 2015 they were pretty strict about handing out cards for drafting.

I like this race. Ditto those who said last year was an oven. Looks to be (a bit) cooler this year, but still pretty hot. Swim is a nonfactor because so fast. Bike is certainly not challenging. And run is super flat.

That would be known in Tampa as warm and dry.

Yeah... I do St. Anthony's every year. Even though it's not that hot, the humidity kills me that early in the season.

Bumping this one.

Looking forward to the race. Does anyone have an update on the current water temperature?