Interesting move by USAT to hold College Club Nationals in Mission Viejo, CA… I’m sure the venue will be beautiful but this is very far away for most teams in the US. There is also much less housing/hotels available than at Lake Lanier (last year’s location). I wonder if participation will be down or if some teams will skip it entirely because of the distance/cost/etc
I feel like somewhere in Texas, Florida, or Georgia would’ve been better.
Agree. Anything north of Atlanta in April may be too chilly for the swim. Lake Lanier was very cold in 2022! Everyone is looking forward to this year’s Nationals in California and are hard at work fundraising. Go Texas State!
I am only popping in on this conversation regarding the comments on Housing and Weather. I know nothing about College Triathlon or funding at the university level.
Mission Viejo is in Orange County CA which is suburban Los Angeles sprawl half way to San Diego. It will have plenty of hotel options at all pricing levels. This area is next Irvine which is a business center and will have lots of corporate housing and hotels with have plenty of rooms for a weekend. Weather should be a non factor. Mission Viejo is very stable and let’s just say sunny and 75 is the norm for this time of year. The morning will probably be cool, and by late morning comfortable temps for fast running. I have raced on this course many times. It should be a very good venue for racing. Not so good for spectating other than the transitions though. I cannot speak for transportation cost, but flying into OC should not be to difficult for a NCAA team.
I would assume flying into LAX is cheaper than flying into smaller regional airports, or atleast better options. This is also collegiate club level teams, which 80% of them are student run organizations, not NCAA level teams (that are all coach led programs).
I remember when as the head coach for a club team we went to Tempe for Nationals. At that particular college, the coach was only allowed to coach the workouts, we couldn’t do leadership responsibilities like travel plans. Our club president did red eye flights but put the wrong date for one of the athletes, so while everyone else flew out togehter…one athlete’s flight was basically 24 hours later…oh yeah and he was a French foreign exchange student…I dont think he minded an extra 24 hours in Tempe on the campus of ASU even with his “limited” English vocabulary, and yes he made it back to campus safely.
Ahhh yes the joys of collegiate club triathlon. Collegiate Nats truly is a special event.
2015-2016 was Clemson, SC and 2017-2018 was Tuscaloosa, AL. Both very proximal to many collegiate clubs and great venues.
I would argue that even the mid-atlantic should be fair game when it comes to water temps. Believe it or not, wetsuits in triathlon exist to keep swimmers warm, not turn them into rafts. 10% sarcasm
Go Bobcats!
My daughter just started at TXST and is enjoying the tri club there.
Maybe I can swing a trip with the wife out to CA to cheer her on.
My son is the club president and we have gone to Nationals the last two years. You and your wife should come and promise you will have a great time. The draft legal races are very exciting and the pumped up crowds of college spectators really adds to the event!
I would encourage any triathlon fan who lives in the area to come watch the first day. Even though it’s a club event (men’s triathlon isn’t recognized by the NCAA) you will get to see many of the best U24 in the nation.
he has really made my daughter feel welcomed to the club - and dang he can run (she was up at the Disco tri a couple of weeks ago that he won).
Trip to CA would be fun
he has really made my daughter feel welcomed to the club - and dang he can run (she was up at the Disco tri a couple of weeks ago that he won).
Trip to CA would be fun
Thanks! I’ll tell him : )
Hopefully get to meet you both at one of their races