Raleigh 70.3 Course Notes
I had a chance to do one of the organized recon rides yesterday (it was freezing, but worth it). Anyway, I thought I'd share the course file with you all as well as a few of my own notes about the course.
- The course is going to be slightly different (and a bit more hilly) this year- it's still being finalized by race organizers, but we got to ride the currently proposed new course which was great
- If you have a chance to do one of the pre-course rides I recommend it. Really well organized and a great group of people. You finish at a pub just in time for lunch which was pretty cool too.
- The second half of the course is much hillier than the first half and where most of the bigger climbs are, so pacing is really important- save your legs for the second half!
- There is a long gradual climb right out of transition that doesn't look like much at first- but it's long and you'll burn a lot of matches here if you don't gear right. I recommend either being in the small ring right away or moving into that small ring right away as you head out of T1
- There are some really nice paved sections, but a good bit of this course is on roads with tons of really bad pot holes, especially the middle section of the ride. So stay alert and be safe!
- The good news though, is that those pot holes don't seem to be on any of the major descents. Additionally, all the descents were safe with no real blind corners to worry about and you can carry that speed into the next hill on most of them. So again- recommend you pre-ride if you can, but have confidence on those downhills because there isn't anything too bad coming up (except another hill).
I hope those notes help folks out. If I remember anything else I'll be happy to share. Just staying warm yesterday was enough of a challenge for me yesterday!
- The course is going to be slightly different (and a bit more hilly) this year- it's still being finalized by race organizers, but we got to ride the currently proposed new course which was great
- If you have a chance to do one of the pre-course rides I recommend it. Really well organized and a great group of people. You finish at a pub just in time for lunch which was pretty cool too.
- The second half of the course is much hillier than the first half and where most of the bigger climbs are, so pacing is really important- save your legs for the second half!
- There is a long gradual climb right out of transition that doesn't look like much at first- but it's long and you'll burn a lot of matches here if you don't gear right. I recommend either being in the small ring right away or moving into that small ring right away as you head out of T1
- There are some really nice paved sections, but a good bit of this course is on roads with tons of really bad pot holes, especially the middle section of the ride. So stay alert and be safe!
- The good news though, is that those pot holes don't seem to be on any of the major descents. Additionally, all the descents were safe with no real blind corners to worry about and you can carry that speed into the next hill on most of them. So again- recommend you pre-ride if you can, but have confidence on those downhills because there isn't anything too bad coming up (except another hill).
I hope those notes help folks out. If I remember anything else I'll be happy to share. Just staying warm yesterday was enough of a challenge for me yesterday!
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I went back and compared your route to the route two years ago (it was my first triathlon ever and I was on a road bike), and it looks like the change is between about mile 31 and mile 43. For what it's worth, here is the route from two years ago if anyone has done the race and wants to compare: https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/322545319.
I wonder if the organizers will be able to get potholes filed, or at least mark them with bright orange paint or something. I hope so!