Clemson Triathlon : Official Thread

didn't see a 9yo, tonight :/

i don't think they offer a longer distance. there is an oly down in greenwood a month later which i hear also has a HIM on the same course later in the year.

There definitely is only a Sprint at Clemson but you can run more after the race.

The Olympic race in Greenwood is Festival of Flowers. It is a well run race but tends to be very warm and not wetsuit legal. They used to do the South Carolina Half at the same venue later in the year and it was a great race that consistently sold out fairly   early. Due to Augusta 70.3, Rev 3 and MB half the attendance at the Half really fell off and they won't be doing the Half this year.  

Both the bike and run map are posted on the SetUo web site. The run is fairly straight forward. You run out of Y beach, take a right at the road then right into the rowing club, up the steep hill, to the right at the split and then out to the end of the dike and then back.

I will ride the course several times over the next few weeks if anyone wants to join me. I know the course fairly well but occasional may end up tacking on a few extra miles due to a wrong turn. The streets are fairly safe for riding unlike a few other courses that require closing off major roads.

thanks for the heads up on the course info, guess i just overlooked it. seems like the run will be pretty flat.

bummer about the SC Half... was kinda wanting to do it, oh well will have to pick another if i feel up to it i guess

If you were considering the SC half you should definitely do REV 3 in Anderson. It is much closer and very well run. Decent expo. The organizers go out of their way to make sure it is a good experience for the athletes and the spectators.

I don't want to give you the impression that the run at Clemson is flat. It is mostly flat but the hill up to the dike is a killer.

yea i'll have to check out REV 3; im not familiar yet with all the regular events in the area since im new at this whole triathlon thing.

i remember that hill from driving up it every wednesday, is pretty steep.  im not too worried about it though because i get some big hills in my training.  i run up roper mountain in greenville almost every run. might not be quite as steep, but it is much much longer.  im also signed up for the bearwallow beast 5k in gerton nc the weekend before; 1300ft of elevation gain over 3.1 miles.  its going to be brutal.

I am very excited about the race again this year. The bike and run courses both have some short but steep hills with the hill up to the rowing facility being a potential game changer. If you're going to ride the course, be careful going over the Cherry Road bridge as cars move pretty quick on that section of road and there is not much shoulder.

I wish I had seen this thread a little earlier as I was at the OWS on Wednesday, but didn't really talk to much. I was kind of anxious since it was my first time back in open water since last July.

I was out early....actually got in the water before anyone else and we headed straight out when I got done.  I am going to try to be there this week....but I am traveling in from out of town wednesday so not sure I am going to feel like driving out there as soon as I land.  I will probably force myself to go out there though if the weather is good.

The police do a really good job of manning the intersections. There is one tough turn after you pass the airport and go downhill to a T. The road was wet a couple of years ago and this was a site for a couple of crashes.  The turn as you you go up Cherry hill also seems to give people problems with their chains.  My guess is that they go from their highest gear to lowest gear too quickly with too much or too little chain tension and end up throwing the chain off.

The other thing to look out for is "Stoned " football players coming home from late night partying. My understanding is the Campus police have been looking for them 

Good luck to everyone.

This too will be my first race.  Actually for me and my girlfriend.  We're both excited, anxious, and all the other emotions that go along with it...

I had a question about the waves and how many people per wave and amount of time between waves.

I assume when I pick up my packet on Friday it'll have a lot more details but just trying to nail some stuff down...

water has been too warm for me for the past week or so to use mine, you will feel fine in the water.  

everyone get the email about pizza afterwards? wooo

The wet suit is for speed not warmth. Most people will swim faster and more efficiently in a wet suit than without. For me it is 20"/100 which saves over 2' over the race distance plus it takes much less effort.

If by technical, you mean crowded course with tight turns, the answer is no. The course has a lot rolling hills but no real "out of the saddle" climbs. If I remember correctly Cherry road and the road going up to the airport are the steepest points. There is a fairly tight turn after you pass the airport where you go downhill to a T and have to turn. If it is wet it can be a little rough.  Some people also complain about the bridge because of cross winds and it tends to be rutty with a lot of road trash

i get that, i have just been too uncomfortable wearing it lately.  feels like i'm cooking a few hundred meters in.