Tri the Parks - Don Carter State Park Sprint

TRIATHLON, DUATHLON, AQUABIKE: SPRINT DISTANCE EVENT 

RACE INFORMATION

• Registration cutoff is August 16 or when field limit is reached if earlier
• Field limit is 300
• T-shirts are NOT guaranteed if you sign up after August 3
• Transition Area:  Bike racks are coordinated to match with your assigned race number.  Place your bike in the rack corresponding with your number
• Body Marking:  All athletes will be marked with race number and age
• Swim Caps: Swim caps are provided in your race packet and must be worn.  Your cap color identifies your swim start position

EVENT TIMELINE

• 6:00 a.m. Park opens
• 6:00 a.m. - 7:30 a.m.  Check-in
• 7:30 a.m.  Report to the beach for the swim seed positioning and duathlon course start 
• 7:45 a.m.  Start sequence information and last minute course updates
• 8:00 a.m.  Race starts
• 11:00 a.m.  Awards ceremony begins

TRIATHLON COURSE:

Swim Course: The 600 m swim starts off of the dock and finishes at the boat ramp and is marked by large START and FINISH signs.. Swimmers will swim 200 m out to the 1st buoy, make a left turn, swim parallel the shore for 200 m, then make a left turn for the final 200 m. The wetsuit ruling will be made when the USAT Official takes the race day water temperature reading on the morning of the race. Wetsuits are legal when the water temperature is below 78 degrees. The swim portion of the race will be conducted in a time trial start with athletes lining up in race number sequence and starting every 5 seconds.

Bike Course: The 10.9 mile bike course follows the beautiful roads of northern Hall County. Riders will turn right out of the park and follow North Browning Bridge Road north for approximately 2.5 miles. Turn right to head north on Clarks Bridge Road for an additional 2 miles. Turning left on Bogus Road, riders enter a 4 mile loop with rolling hills and green pastures on either side. The left turn at Napone Rd. brings the course back to Clarks Bridge Road. Turn right on to Clarks Bridge Road and follow for a half mile. Turn left onto North Browning Bridge Road and follow it back to the park. 

The course is marked with directional signs and mile markers every two miles. All turns will be staffed with Tri the Parks personnel and uniformed Sheriff officers, but it is the racer’s responsibility to know the course. This course is open to traffic, so in addition to course turns, Sheriff personnel will be stationed at other significant intersections. Please do not turn just because a patrol car is at the intersection, look for signage and Tri the Parks personnel.

Run Course: The run is a 5k course consists of two laps around the paved walking path. Portions of this course will have runners traveling in both directions please stay to the right. 

DUATHLON COURSE:

The duathlon run leg starts in the vicinity of the swim start. The run then follows the route described above (please note the duathlon run is not reversed at Don Carter State Park). The bike leg and second run leg are the same as the triathlon course.

AQUABIKE COURSE:

All Aquabikers start in the time trial swim start and complete the same swim and bike course as the triathletes. After completing the bike course, athletes should rack their bike and exit transition with the runners (opposite the bike in and out) and go around transition to the finish line. Aquabikers will find a green wristband in their packets to be worn during the race to help distinguish you.

COURSE MAP:

Course maps are available HERE and will also be included in your race packet.

PARKING:

Parking opens at 6:00 AM will be on a first-come, first serve basis and volunteer attendants will direct you to a space.  Parking will begin in the primitive camping area. Overflow parking will be at the beach and then the horse-trailer parking area.  Please remember to bring your photo ID (and USAT card if you have one) with you as it is a long walk to race check-in/transition.