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Tampa group rides and swims
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Hi

I am staying in the Carrollwood area of Tampa for the whole month and would be interested in my group rides or swims in the area.

Appreciate any feedback

Thanks
David
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Re: Tampa group rides and swims [cell1122] [ In reply to ]
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Really? Is this a joke?
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Re: Tampa group rides and swims [Tri.Tony] [ In reply to ]
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Nope. Is it funny?
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Re: Tampa group rides and swims [cell1122] [ In reply to ]
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I'm in St Pete about 50 min from Carrollwood - For riding I would suggest the Suncoast Trail which is not far from you (NW corner of State Rd 54 and the Suncoast Parkway 589) You'll see a number of triathletes and road bikers start their rides from there. Head north on the trail, there's a nice uninterrupted stretch of 10 miles to State Rd 52. Good enough to do a 20 min FTP if you want.

St Pete Mad Dog Triathlon Club has a semi organized swim starting at Pass a Grille Beach starting at 6 pm on Wednesdays. We meet up at Hurley Park 1600 Gulf Way, usually walk up the beach to the Don Cesar Hotel and swim back. Another good place for OWS is to start from Caddy's (9000 W Gulf Blvd, Treasure Island) at Sunset Beach, there's a few of us doing that on Tuesdays and Fridays. We usually swim at 8:00 am. Weather permitting I will be there tomorrow.

"They know f_ck-all over at Slowtwitch"
- Lionel Sanders
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Re: Tampa group rides and swims [Fuller] [ In reply to ]
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Awesome very helpful, I might try the sun coast trail tomm...anything with a bike lane for a decent amount of time is good enough...all the street by me are either side streets or have no shoulder from what i have seen. I saw something about the pass a grille Wed swim as well on an other site and will try and do that this coming week. Dumb question but does anyone where wetsuits? Im assuming the water is pretty warm
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Re: Tampa group rides and swims [cell1122] [ In reply to ]
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suncoast is good for long rides. when I used to ride there, they had coolers for water but they were drained quickly and just didn't get filled frequently enough given how hot it is there. you might consider flatwoods park as well depending on your tolerance for doing loops. That park has water every 2 miles and usually cold and filled frequently. It's a 7 mile inner loop. I used to ride there frequently. it was very good for doing brick workouts.
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Re: Tampa group rides and swims [mickison] [ In reply to ]
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Great thank, will prob do both at some point. What would be the best place to park at suncoast to get the most mileage, I guess meaning what would be a place to park near the beginning of the trail
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Re: Tampa group rides and swims [cell1122] [ In reply to ]
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cell1122 wrote:
Great thank, will prob do both at some point. What would be the best place to park at suncoast to get the most mileage, I guess meaning what would be a place to park near the beginning of the trail

There is a lot for the trail off of Lutz Fern Road. So suncoast parkway crosses over lutz road. I haven’t lived there for a like 5 years but I thought they built a new nicer parking area there but not sure. But starting at lutz fern there is like 42 miles just one way so plenty of distance for long rides.
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Re: Tampa group rides and swims [cell1122] [ In reply to ]
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Search for the Swim Clearwater group on Facebook. There is a group swimming several mornings a week from lifeguard tower 7 on Clearwater Beach. Other groups swimming at other locations. Here is a pretty comprehensive list of all the OWS opportunities in the area https://www.sunshineopenwater.com/weeklyows
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Re: Tampa group rides and swims [cell1122] [ In reply to ]
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Also there is Flatwoods wilderness park about 15 miles or so.
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Re: Tampa group rides and swims [cell1122] [ In reply to ]
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There is a parking lot at Lutz Lake Fern off the Suncoast Highway and another about 3 miles north at State Road 54/ Suncoast Highway (SR 54 has a Starbucks, McD, and gas station). Starting at LLF and heading north the trail is paved for 42 miles. There is also a nice off-shoot 7 miles from the LLF trailhead that goes into Starkey park (the offshoot is 6.5 miles long on a paved road thru the woods). Beware that because of COVID, the water coolers are not being stocked. If you’re not wanting a huge ride, I suggest parking at 54, ride the 10 miles to 52, then come back and take the out and back through Starkey park. There is a water station at the Starkey park entrance to refill bottles.
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Re: Tampa group rides and swims [cell1122] [ In reply to ]
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If you park at the SR 54 trailhead there's a porta potty and not much else other than the fast food places on the south side of SR54. But no worries, if you are doing a longish ride you can take the trail north (about 26 miles) up to SR50 (Brooksville). There's a real bathroom there, covered picnic tables and a chilled water fountain which I hope would still be in operation. Go early, it's brutal after about 10:30.

I don't think you need to worry about the wetsuit when swimming in the Gulf. Water temps are in the high 80's and you will be sweating when you get out. Early is good for the swim too - calmer conditions and cooler.

"They know f_ck-all over at Slowtwitch"
- Lionel Sanders
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Re: Tampa group rides and swims [cell1122] [ In reply to ]
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There are group swims daily at Clearwater Beach. As noted check the Swim Clearwater Facebook group. Also check OWS Leo Brecino on FB. He's tied closely to Swim Clearwater but has his own events. On Sat Aug 15, there will be the next iteration of the Rainbow River Swim at KP Hole Park in Dunnelon. This is #3 for this summer and WILL happen. Anticipate anywhere from 50 to over 100 swimmers. It's 3.6 miles down river - crystal clear and 72 degree water - but with the current you will end up taking about the same time as your 2.4 mile IM swim. Cost is $5 to KP Hole and $20 to Leo. They will shuttle you back to your car. Check his site for deets. This is a must do Florida swim for anyone. The 4th event of the series is Sun 6 Sep and will be a race.

Lots of groups riding out of San Antonio, FL on Sat/Sun mornings starting between 7-8am. I'm not sure if they are organized though.

See this link for other group rides: https://www.chainwheeldrive.com/...ts-calendar-pg35.htm

Also check "Aeropro Endurance & Event Prep Rides" on Facebook. They ride in San Antonio and in Town. They also hold criterium races in Woodland Industrial Park off Waters Ave just south of Carollwood.

Good luck.
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