Kirkland Tri -9/11

PS.  it's the 18th, not the 11th. 

Done it twice, and as Lauralynne said, the bike leg is HILLY! The first couple miles is flat, then you hit the uphills.

There is one downhill about 2/3 of the way through where it's kind of tricky -- you have a steep downhill with a hard compression as you transition onto the sidewalk ramp to take the footbridge over the highway, then an off-camber hard left turn on the other side. I guess a lot of people bite it coming through that section. Be careful.

Otherwise the course is nice, it's a HUGE but well-run event, and the area is great to stick around after the race.

I'm registered for this one as well. I drove the bike course today during lunch and it is hilly. Couldn't quite make the pedistrian bridge though in my truck. The last steep incline is just after the right turn from Slater to NE 120th, then bends right, turning into 132nd Ave NE, and goes by Lake Washington Technical College. From there it levels off a bit and is just slightly uphill most of the way to NE 85th. After a few blocks east of NE 85th, it's 95% flat or downhill. There are some screaming downhills on this course too.
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Do or do not, there is no try.....Yoda

For anybody who's familiar with the Mercer Island loop, is it any more or less rolling than that terrain?

I consider the hills on the Kirkland route to be steeper and less rolling.

I wouldn't call the Kirkland course "rolling" at all. And the hills are generally much steeper.

Also, a lot of the longer straight sections are coned off to be pretty narrow. If you're not in the first wave, expect to be doing a lot of "ON YOUR LEFT"... And maybe even dodge outside the cones when emergencies arise.

First year I did it, on that bridge I caught some sweet air in aero. Napoleon Dynamite approved air, scared me doing that on the Tri bike and then having to hit the brakes and make that turn. Guess that is why there was large signs about slowing down and stuff...

lol, yeah, I noticed that last night when I actually looked at my race calendar. Doh! Guess it gives me another week to get swimming again. :-)

Thanks everyone for the comments, sounds like the bike course should be interesting, to say the least! If you see me, say hi! I'm 6'4, built more like a rugby player than a triathlete and ride a blue Cervelo P2 (yeah, that cuts it down a lot!) and will probably be driving a red Dodge ram quad cab with blacked out windows.

OK, the waves they have make absolutely no sense. I hate it when there are arbitrary wave assignments... M40-44 and 29 and under go after Clydesdale/Athena, and various women's waves? Ugh. 

Does it have to do with even distribution of racers?!?!?  Just a guess...??

I thought about this one but decided to pass. A tad pricey for a sprint and the forecast is not looking good. Be careful on the bike course if its raining.

I'm sure you're right, I just like to complain about things averse to my interests.

So looks like there are 14 waves, and about 850 competitors. So about 60 per wave, if they are trying to balance them out. Is that right? I didn't count them though.

Fair enough :-) 

I've had a major cold this week - been sleeping most of the week - this should be interesting....and I've never ridden my bike in the rain.  Oh well!

Race was lots of fun! Based on how sore I am, I'm glad I didn't do the Plutonium Man... I'd be fetal positioned on a hotel room floor right now if I did. 

Agree, I had a great time out there yesterday.  Lots of fun, despite the weather.  Ended up 2nd in AG, plus got an awesome bloddy knee with a fall on the run (go figure...).

Here's my complete race report with tons of pics:
http://www.dcrainmaker.com/2010/09/kirkland-triathlon-2010-race-report.html

I was the tall dude you passed shortly before that parking lot... looked like a pretty nasty spill you took. Tried to hold onto you for the second half of the 5k but my legs had nothing left going up that hill. Bike route was brutal, and my bike caught enough grime that it wasn't switching into the small ring, definitely hard on the legs. Really fun course though, best of the 4 sprints I've done this summer.

Figured I should probably comment since I started this thread. lol

Race was a lot of fun. The hills were as advertised, pretty freaking steep. Got some good downhill speed but almost wiped out when a rider pulled at to pass despite my "ON YOUR LEFT" at top volume. Wet gritty roads are not fun to try and brake hard on.

The run was......interesting, I guess. Not a big fan of doing tons of switchbacks in a parking lot. Plus the knee that I had tweeked the week before started hurting again right about there. Finished strong but I haven't been able to do much since due to the knee. In fact, today is the first day I've gotten back on the bike since then.

I stuck my bike in the garage afterwards, it was caked in mud and grit. Hmmm, might need to clean it up soon. :-)

Overall, a very fun race though and really enjoyed it. :-)