I am thinking about doing the oly distance tri in Sunriver OR on June 26, 2005 Does anyone have any experience or opinions about the race and how well it is run. What about the location, is it beautiful, in other words is it worth a five hundred mile drive from SF. Thanks a lot for any input.
Although I will be doing the race for the first time this year, I have heard good things about it from several people. However, I have spent a lot of time in Bend and it is one of my favorite places. Good restaurants, scenic beauty, easy access to wilderness, good cycling/ running/skiing.
The swim and bike should be very scenic. The run is through Sunriver (paved bike path), a very large, well planned vacation community. You can rent condos/houses at Sunriver close to the run course.
There are a number of pro’s living/training in Bend these days, think of it as Oregon’s version of Boulder.
I’ve done the HIM version the previous day and I thought it was a good event, very well run. I have some friends who did the oly and enjoyed it. The bike ride for the half is a really nice ride but I think the oly race misses out on the 2000 foot climb to mt. bachelor. the swim venue has a nice mountain background. the water was 64F last year so just right with a full suit. the run is on a meandering bike bath and with no real hills with lots of water stations.
I’ve done the 1/2 IM a couple of times. To answer your questions regarding the location: yes, it’s a beautiful area. A clean swim with the peak of Mt. Bachelor in the back drop. Great views on the bike on good roads without a lot of traffic. The run is in the resort community of Sunriver on paved bike paths.
You’ll be up over 4,000 feet and it can get hot there. Upper 80’s to 90’s are normal (if the oly starts early enough this may not be much of an issue). A great place for a family vacation. Lots of recreational activities in and around Sunriver / Bend.
It’s basically two days of endurance events with a 1/2, a long course du, a marathon, 1/2 marathon, the oly and I think a kids race. Point to point race so you’ve got to be prepared to deal with the logistics of dual transition areas and day before bike check-in.
scott
Thanks a lot for the feedback. I think I will go ahead and give it a “tri”. ha-ha
Man I miss Oregon.