No qualifing needed, pay the entry fee, show up and race. Registration opens the first week of January. Last year it was hot but the race course was beatiful and fun.
Can the same be said about Long Course Tri at Redman. Just pay, show up, race and qualify for Worlds?
You heading to Blackwater and Eagleman next year? I’m thinking of doing both as well.
The Blackwater bike is two loops, not one loop as it was in the past.
Bob
I’m not sure, but I’m definitely intrigued. I’m not sure how many duathlons I can handle-I’m already doing Doylestown DU and Zofingen.
Another issue is recovery-two 10k’s might be a bit much a week before Eagleman-we’ll see what the coach says.
Definitely doing NJ Devilman-I want to give that race another shot, see if I can do it right.
I’ve raced three duathlon national races - one long course and two oly distance. The competitiveness is very good. Last one I did was in 2009, Richmond, and the competition compared to the 2008 AG championships in Portland, in my opinion. I plan on being in Tucson this year.
I’d love to see more.
Sprint and MTBing Du’s would be nice too.
Having to sign up a year in advance for any race is just straight up stupid. I’m glad they have a 4 month window and hope they never change. Having to sign up for an IM a year in advance sucks. Sucks.
it has to be better than it was in 2007, when it was in july. ms. dawhead got a bee sting walking to the bathrooms overnight (we camped), and the race itself was hot, brutal and boring. i swore i’d never, ever go back. and yet … somehow … could it be any worse?
Short Course Nationals will be 28 April in Oro Valley Just North of Tucson, AZ the website is http://www.usatriathlon.org/...al-championship.aspx
Long Course Duathlon Nationals will be 3 June in Cambridge, MD the website is http://www.tricolumbia.org/events/?eid=13
Regarding More Cowbell “The dates and promotion of the sport is weak compared to triathlon, especially for the long-course duathlon National Championship (hosted by Powerman Alabama). I have been hesitant to get into duathlons because the dates aren’t available when I am putting my race calendar together by 12/31 and the depth of competition/field of athletes is relatively small.”
We are working on the promotion with USAT. What is weak about the dates? The dates have for the National Championship have been out for about two weeks. The depth of the competition is stronger than you believe. The National Duathlon Champ came from your Age Group, he also was 4th in 40-44 at USAT Tri Nationals. Dan Stephens won his Age group at Duathlon Nationals and was 2nd in his age group at 70.3 World Championship. I could go on with the depth, just come to Oro Valley and experience the field of athletes that show up. I agree the numbers are not as large as tri’s but the competition is very tough.
I so agree with toughness of the competition. The field may not be as deep as Tri’s but when the competition comes from across the nation for nationals, they are very serious and tough.
Off-road Du's have gotten pretty popular in the Atlanta area, I can think of 7 off the top of my head, that take place between Feb and Oct. They use varying courses, and formats; RB, RBR, and BRB. I don't think there are as many road du's, but I don't follow them as closely.
Not sure where you are in the NE, but if you’re anywhere near South Jersey, there are several tri/du options during the summer. Check these sites:
http://www.citytri.com/ (Also includes some Duathlons in Prospect Park, Brooklyn)
They were going to have an mtn bie du at Nationals last year, but <25 people signed up for it iirc. Ended up canceling it.
You’d think duathlon would have broader appeal since you eliminate the leg that most triathletes dislike the most and struggle with the most. The problem is that it doesn’t have the same cache and doesn’t sound as cool around the water cooler. My sense is that in terms of speed, most duathlons simply chop off the bottom end of triathlons results sheet.
That could be. I help put on a 10-40-5 (and a shorter 4-15-4) duathlon. Local sprint tris will get 300-500 people, we work our tail off and offer huge value, and have a hard time getting 150 people to show up. For some reason the tide is against Duathlons. I kinda blame the entire Ironman phenomenon. I think a lot of people are drawn into multisport because of the allure of Ironman. Many who graduate from that local sprint Tri want to go directly to 1/2 Irons or Full Irons without tasting any of the other offerings, then they get too wrapped up doing that 5 hour ride their “coach” told them to do to actually participate.
The offroad du's here are generally in the 1.5 - 2hr range for the front guys, and they hedge thir bets by having two person classes, which are pretty popular. Generally the races get 100 - 200 people. The other thing that is nice is that the promoters come from the MTB side, so there are real awards for the top finishers (merchandise, or gift certificates), instead of plaques/trophy/ribbon type stuff.
"My sense is that in terms of speed, most duathlons simply chop off the bottom end of triathlons results sheet. "
Not sure what you mean in that statement, and I’d say the “average” duathlete is faster over the BR than the average tri guy…which is kind of wht you’d expect.
We’re working on it (promotion and getting things set earlier. We’re open to your thoughts on how to make duathlon a stronger sport (instead of its current perception as triathlon’s ugly and smelly step-cousin).
PM me or post here if you have serious thoughts or suggestions. I’ll take them up.
As for Nationals: I haven’t heard if we’re going to attempt the off-road version again. Fewer than 20 signed up last year even though we had a solid (tough) course and a venue right next to the on-road version. If you want the off-road back, tell me and I’ll see what I can do.
Brian Grasky
USAT Duathlon National Committee
Richmond Multi-sports have two du’s ran in conjuction with olympic distance tris. The duathletes run two miles instead of swimming and then compete head to head with the triathletes on the bike portion as well as the final 10k run. I have not competed in either but am trying to do both this year. I am recovering from shoulder surgery and want to do something a little different than tris. I have competed in two of their triathlons and both were well directed. Find them online @Richmondmultisports.com
Any word on how many qualify per AG for worlds?
I am thinking of making the jump because I can’t swim this season…but I will likely get slaughtered!
thanks for the info!
Any word on how many qualify per AG for worlds?
It goes deeper then it should imo. The USAT website should tell you how many.
Maybe I suck at their website, but I couldn’t find it there - hence the post here…