Hello All -
I am going to do my first triathlon this summer. It’ll be in Branbury State Park, Vermont. (A second one is planned for later, in Philly). I’m curious if anyone on this list has raced there, and have any tips/advice regarding the course and/or the park. Or really, anything else you think might be useful.
Thanks,
Charles
Charles-
I raced a sprint (?) there a few years ago. The swim portion is in a crystal clear shallow lake. It was warm enough that many did not wear wetsuits. It was a wave start, which minimizes your chances of getting tangled. The bike course is a loop around the lake. The pavement is nice but the front and back portions are on very narrow roads and the middle portion is on a “main road,” so cars/traffic are an issue. It is consistently rolling. No tough hills but no flat portions either. The run is an out-and-back on the beginning of the bike course, so again on a very narrow road.
Overall, this was a great small-town event. Sun City Sports put it on and did a nice job with organization, safety, course marking, etc. It’s not a big race but, in my mind, a good one for your first race. The biggest challenge for me was the rolling bike course. If you are from VT and are used to riding there, no problemo. If you’re not, find some time to train on some hills.
We camped at the state park. Nice little campground and it was nice to wake up and walk to the race. Make your reservations early (now) if you are interested in that option.
Good luck and have fun!
Todd
Charles … i use to live up that way! Beautiful little park/lake etc. … clear cool water for the swim / bike is a loop, with flats & rolling hills plus one short, steeper little pitch near the end of the ride. Run is an out and back … not sure what direction they are doing this anymore (either flat or with a couple little rollers) (i assume you will be doing a sprint distance?) Transition area used to be on a nice grassy area.
Nice little event … i miss that area and race like that!
Enjoy the countryside up there!
Hi Charles,
I also did the sprint race there, last year. It’s a beautiful course and well organized. The lake is crystal clear as mentioned, which I actually found distracting, as I could see all of the seaweed and various abandoned debris on the bottom of the lake. If you’re into the camping thing, you can stay in the same campground which is very convenient. You’ll have a great time!
Michelle
I did an almost 1/2 Ironman (1-mile / 41-miles /9-miles) there three years ago. The bike course is basically a 14-mile loop. The beginning of the loop is very fast. Then there are some short climbs with one pretty tough 1/2 mile climb if I remember correctly. It’s Vermont, but there are no really long climbs or mountains. The water was very clear and shallow with a rocky bottom. The run course was very tough in the race I did because it was extremely hot and humid and there was a short off-road section that was rough.
Keep on pushing through the race. The race I did had a very small field, and I thought I was doing terribly, so I kind of gave up on the race and walked a lot during the run. Because the field was so small, and because they did not give duplicate age group awards (example top 3 overall did not get awards in their age groups), I ended up 3rd in my age group.
Thanks for all of the feedback.
The distance is olympic-esque (1500m swim, 10k run; I think the bike is a little longer than the official distance). Judging by the info on the web, they do a whole bunch up there, mostly sprints. I guess they’re doing a 1/2 IM at the end of the summer.
I’m trying to decide about the camping. Mom lives 1.5-2 hours away, which is one of the main reasons I signed up for it. The original plan was to wake up at 5 and head out, but when I did the math it looks like maybe that’d be 4:30. OTOH, it’s been a while since I saw my tent.
Oh, and I’m not surprised that the ride is hilly, pretty much everything up there is, that’s why I love riding up there.
-Charles