My First Triathlon Harrison Mills

Yeah, these guys have a horrible reputation.  I did their 'My First Triathlon' in Parksville, and it was a complete gong show too. 

Sorry you had to experience such a crappy race - trust me, it only gets better from here. 

I'm sure Tri BC just loves Brent Kamenka.  He even registered http://www.tribc.com and he has it redirecting to his own website.   (the real Tri BC website is http://www.tribc.org/ 

Maybe first (before we shut it down) we should go out and volunteer, to help those poor souls who signed up for his Full Ironman next weekend.

OMG, that's terrible   It;s too bad that this guy charges soooo much for a "my first tri" race.  It's supposed to be a fun experience for your first tri.  Not a dangerous experience.  That really pi$$es me off.

As for favorites...I haven't done any of the races on the mainland yet, but here are some good ones on Vancouver Island:

Qualicum Beach Sprint

Comox Valley Tri K (sprint)

Cowichan Challenge (short and long course)

Self Transendence (oly)

triathlon of Compassion (sprint)

New Balance Half Iron

XTC off road triathlon (Campbell River has short, long, du, and trail runs)

I hope that your next race is an adventure that will put a huge smile on your face

I have to weigh in here because I'm still somewhat traumatized about my first triathalon experience...  The water was indeed wicked cold. Now that I wikipedia how I was feeling, I think I had level 1 hypothermia. The swim was a terrible experience. Not only was I colder than I've ever been in my life, I was having a hard time changing at the transition because I couldn't feel my fingers very well and lacked tactile dexterity. I think they should have told everyone what to expect and instead of maybe ten out of over hundred folks in wetsuits, many more people would probrably have rented one. I think you should tell people, because its their desicion to make... about what they should wear or if they should do it at all.

The organizer made a joke, about hey .. if i told yall you wouldnt do it. Well.. yeah thats the point. That is so NOT cool.

 After the swim, was a very rocky drive thru area, from the camp site to the main road. I walked my bike up there as I didnt think it was safe, riding on large stones, with thin road bike tires. Not the best location.

Speaking to several other triathaloners there that day, there seemed to be an overall confusion as to where the route was. The map was not very clear and people were asking eachother for clarification. The run/ride wasnt pancake flat, athought it wasnt super hilly.. I'd say it was a gradual incline with slightly hilly areas, still that is different than the perception that its as flat as the sidewalk outside your door or " pancake flat". Including a statment of perhaps: The hill is x many dregress at its highest point and this many degrees on average, would have been a nice gesture to people seeking more information.

I think my first tri was a good experince but after such a terrible swim, I felt like It was really hard to hit my stride on other events as I was still thawing out and regaining the ability to breath deply and feel comfortable. I spent the whole event trying to assess how I felt and what I should do about it.

but maybe I'm just a sissy. It was my first tri.

Does anyone know how to find out the water temperature by Squawkum Campground ? I'd really like to know how cold the water was that I was swimming in.

Thanks in advance,

K

Bummer!! This isn't great news considering I'm scheduled to race next weekend. I wish I would've saved the money and just entered the Vancouver Oly on Sept 1!! It's my first triathlon and this is some of the sketchiest stuff I have ever heard. I hope that this guy gets some of his "s" together before next weekend! (Not likely by the sound of it but here's to hoping.)

 I guess part of it was I was a little apprehensive about doing my first triathlon let alone jumping straight into an Olympic length one. (Especially the swim part)

I'm really glad to hear that everyone is ok, espcially Zaipha. I'll try to report on my experience to let everyone know how it was.

As for the temp, not sure.

GD

Thanks! I'm just going to go out and enjoy the day. I think I'm already miles ahead on this one since I've had such great feedback. The experience will be good because a) I don't have anything to compare to and b) my expectations will be bang on so it'll only be what I make it.  But thanks again for the well wishing and the feedback. it will help! Luckily I'm familiar with the area and I've been checking things out on google maps to see how things look. I also have a wetsuit to use. It is a little big in the neck and let's a little water in but it'll be better than nothing.

 Hopefully there will be signs left over from the IM that will be run the day before the Sprint event. Either way i'll make sure to be extra cautious on the road section.

Quick question, would it be alright to wear my cycling shorts under the wetsuit and use it for the run. I haven't been able to find a pair of tri shorts so I'm wondering if the padding will be too much. I've tried to run in them once and it wasn't too bad. But any feedback would be really helpful.

 Thanks again and to be honest, I'm getting  pretty excited about the race even though it's a little disorganized!!

 GD