Columbia Triathlon : Official Thread (Page 2)

I rode part of the bike course Saturday morning and there were a lot of people out, so I guess some people are ready.  Unfortunately I'm not one of them...

x2!! My goal is now simply to finish the race, ambulatory, before it closes, and without exacerbating the injuries that have kept me from training much the last few months. I'm trying to internalize the concept of racing with the body I have, and not the one I'd planned on.

Training is going well, I'll see ya out there Fred.

Swimming in the lake ahead of time will land you in the clink, and our own Trishie will have to prosecute you. 

Generally it's in the mid 60's I think, and can be chilly in the morning.  I'd definitely bring a wetsuit if you've got one!

I agree with Josh, this question comes up every year.  NO SWIMMING IN THE LAKE!  I used to help with this event when I was in high school and you will get either arrested as Josh mentioned or DQ'd if swimming before the event.

Typical temp is around 65-68 degrees so you'll need the wetsuit.

Im already losing sleep. I am doing my second open water swim this weekend with my coach and I already miss my "black line" and walls. Really nervous about the swim and petrified every time I read how "challenging" and "tough" the course is. Its my first Tri ever and I am a big dude so this is really gonna be something! Still not sure how to change a bike tire, going to get a trisuit tomorrow, rented my wetsuit (XXL!!). "Just finish" is my motto!!

Columbia was my first race and I had no idea what I was in for. My advice is just have fun!! The goal after finishing is to be sure that you'll want to do another race. Get this one under your belt and then you'll have plenty of other races to stress over your fitness, times, etc.

Good luck and welcome to BT

Someone from TriColumbia spoke at our last tri club meeting; distances will NOT be marked, but I think they said they would be trying to place them about every 200m.

They most likely wont be marked. They will also be about 1/4 the size of the buoys at Nations.

Guess I'll just follow the crowds.  I'm in wave 8 so there should be plenty of people in front of me and even more starting after me to catch me so if I'm by myself I'm obviously off course!  On second thought, I should probably learn how to sight and pace myself...

I believe they also put out signs of how far you have gone if I remember correctly 

I don't have a Garmin but this will be year 4 or 5 for me so I have this course pretty much memorized.

I was wondering about that! I was running (er, rather, strolling) it last weekend, and it was often barely legible, if there at all...then again, I was running without my bifocals.....

Turns for what?  The bike or the run?  Bike is pretty well marked and people will be there.  The run course is small enough that you won't be too lost.