I am making my first visit to Lubbock next weekend and am looking for any thoughts or comments on the race, bike and run course, etc… How does the bike course compare to Ralph’s or Timberman?
The run course has 3 pretty good hills on it and the bike has about 5. Lake swim is cool but as soon as you get out of the water it gets hot quick. There is always a wind of about 15 mph. I do not think the bike section is as tough as Ralph’s. Have a great race.
A friend sent me this last year about the hills on the bike course. There are two immediately out of transition so be prepared to have you HR up immediately.
The Hills -
#1 - Right out of transition. Steep, with no way to get momentum. Have your chain in the easiest gear.
#2 - Mile 1, after the downhill from #1. Not quite as steep, but still a bear, you’ll have some momentum.
#3 - Mile 13 - a little more gradual, but longer. You can see it coming and gear accordingly.
#4 - Mile 20 - similar to #3, you’ll probably have a tailwind, which helps
#5 - Mile 30 - Twisty, turny, tough. Bad thing is coming down has to be slow and cautious. Be careful both ways.
#6 - Mile 35ish - Spiral staircase. As the name suggests, winds around with a false top. Don’t mentally check out too early.
#7 - Mile 43 - Gradual, with a tailwind, easiest of the bunch.
#8 - Mile 55 - This is tough on the legs. Try to spin as easy as possible and get ready for the run. You go downhill on the other side into T2.
Good luck! It’s a super-fun race, albeit not an easy one.
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Coming down the spiral staircase, there can be slick oily spots on the road so ride the brakes. Last year both the front men crashed here.
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Roads are pretty rough in many places, it definitely made the entire ride a lot tougher for me and is the number one reason that I’m not going back this year.
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Can be hotter’n’hell and windy as well, in fact, count on it. Bring salt and plenty of fluids or whatever is appropriate for you. A run hat is crucial.
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Excellent support and a well run race. Crowd and volunteer support on the run is great.
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If you can handle the heat, you can get a pretty fast time here but it is easy to get cooked on the hills. Bring a couple different gearing options and try them out on Sat. The 2 hills coming out of transition should be just fine for judging the gearing you will need, just remember you are going to hit the other hills when you are hot and tired.
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Drink more than you think you need on the bike. The low humidity really sucks the water out of you more than you realize. This got me on my first year there, and I tried to make up for it at the end of the bike and screwed my run.