Local triathlon schedule and race questions

KLM just came out with their 2008 schedule. There are many other triathlons in KS and MO though, KLM is just one race organization... if you go to www.trifind.com you can look at race schedules by state. I'm not sure if they are all decided and posted yet, but they should be by the first of the year. The 2007 schedule should give you a good idea of when annual races will be, they usually are all around the same time/week every year.

Here's KLM's 2008 races:

May 4th, 2008
2nd Annual The Big O Half Iron Distance Triathlon, Duathlon & Sprint Triathlon
Lake Olathe, Olathe, KS
REGISTRATION IS OPEN

June 14th, 2008
28th Topeka Tinman Triathlon & Duathlon
Lake Shawnee, Topeka, Kansas
REGISTRATION IS OPEN

July 20th, 2008
4th Annual Midwest Mayhem Triathlon
Lone Star Lake
Lawrence, Kansas
REGISTRATION IS OPEN

August 24th, 2008
26th Jackson County Triathlon & Duathlon
Longview Lake
Lee's Summit, Missouri
REGISTRATION IS OPEN

September 7th, 2008
5th Annual Midwest Meltdown Olympic Distance Triathlon & Duathlon
Wyandotte County Lake
Kansas City, Kansas
REGISTRATION IS OPEN

*ALL DATES AND VENUES ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE

Thanks, I got the schedule. Which two would you pick as the biggest and most important of the local races.

Others to add are the Heritage and Shawnee Mission Park tris. Shawnee Mission is July 17th. I have it tagged as my first long course attempt. I don't have the date for Heritage, but it is one of the first of the season. As such, I've heard a wetsuit is almost a requirement and I was going to skip it to avoid the hassel/cost.

It isn't exactly local, but I've heard people say very positive things about the Hyvee Triathlon in Des Moines. Their web site says the last spot on US Olympic team will be selected there this year, so it might be something to consider as a high profile event.

If I was going to pick the two biggest/best races in the area, I'd go with Shawnee Mission Park and Jackson County (Longview) but that is purely subjective!!!

Topeka is a good one, too, but the long bike course was a little rough for my taste and the run is quite a bit longer than the standard Oly at 7.5 miles this past year. Not sure if I'll be doing that one again or not....

The water at HP (around May 20) wasn't too bad really. I was on the fence about wearing a wetsuit, but decided to that day for the extra buoyancy. But that was my first race in it and it felt a little constricting, so while I was swimming, I wished I hadn't worn it! Now that I'm used to it more, I'd probably wear it, but honestly, it wasn't that bad. I think the water was 73* this year, and plenty of people didn't have wetsuits on. That water is more gross and stinky (from all the goose poop) than cold.

Thanks guys. Your suggestions help. I did Heritage Park and did wear wetsuit. I did Longview short course and will do it again. I will try to do all local tris. I am thinking about making Lawernce my first olyimpic distance event. As far as schedule for next year, all local races are up and scheduled. It starts with Big "O".

Just know that Lawrence (Midwest Mayhem) is a really small event. Last year they had about 150 participants total I think. The swim is also a deep water start, which was new to me last year. Personally I was disappointed in Mayhem. I didn't like the course or the venue or the size of the event... but if you like the smaller events you may enjoy it.