Sandestin/30A trip - training info?

Done early enough, biking on 98 is not that bad.  Same with 30A.  I hate being on 30A after 9/9:30 in the morning.  I assume you are staying in Sandestin and are then riding east to get to 30A?  There is a beachfront road that parallels 98 for most of actual Destin.  It may be called old 98 and it's right against the water.  I used to ride south over the mid bay bridge and go all the way to old 98...head east on old 98 which eventually runs into 98.  I then only had a very short section on 98 before I was able to ditch onto 30A.  There's one small spot on 98 where the bike lane disappears for about a quarter mile...the road widens to three lanes.  The bike lane comes back very quickly, but that can be a scary quarter mile.  Once on 30A you can head up one of several northbound roads that will take you back to 98.  83 is the one I used to take then I'd jig over on Chat Holley to 331 and go over the other bridge.  BUT, last fall Chat Holley was all torn up.  No idea if it's done yet. 331 is pretty heavily trafficked but it has a shoulder.  I'd go to 20 and then head back west towards Niceville.

But again, past 9/9:30 I wouldn't touch either of those roads.

Highway 20 that goes from Niceville to Freeport (and continues on to eventually become the IMFL course) is another great place to ride.  Nice shoulder.  Fast traffic, but much less than 98.

Google bull sharks in Pensacola Bay and you may not want to swim in the ocean.  That being said, IMFL is obviously held in the Gulf and they've never seen a shark.  Soo.....whatever. :D  I'm sure they are out there, but they are not sighted often.  You can definitely OWS in the Gulf.  Just pay attention to the flags and watch out for any rip currents.  It can get dangerous out there.

As for areas to avoid for swim/bike/run....already touched on it.  98 and 30A are downright dangerous in the afternoons.  And I already talked about the nice areas...98 and 30A are great, Hwy 20 east of Niceville...fabulous.  Old 98 has a bike path that I see people running on ALL THE TIME.  As does 30A.  And while you're at it you might as well take the short drive over to Panama City Beach to check out the IMFL venue.

Google Emerald Coast Triathlon Club.  They are a fairly new club in the area that sometimes does organized open water swims.  One of their standard locations for that is off white point road just over the bridge from Destin.

Restaurants...sheesh, what ISN'T good.  There are so many!  Anything on 30A is good.  If you're willing to drive to Destin proper you shouldn't miss McGuire's and Harbor Docks.  But there's so much on 30A too!  A rather nice place that doesn't look like much from the outside is called Vin'tij.  It's in a strip mall on 98 near Sandestin and as the name might imply concentrates on wine.  But EVERYTHING there is tasty.  There is a place I think called Camille's that is at the intersection of the mid bay bridge road and old 98...FABULOUS brunch.  Anything on the water is pretty good.

I'm sure I'm forgetting something.

On the marine wildlife front: Last Nov. at IMFL there were a number of pink meanies, a rather large and nasty jelly fish, in the water. There were some stings and such but no real incidents. The ones I saw and the one I ran over in my kayak, to chaseitoff, looked a lot like a tan/pinkish plastic bag floating in the water. I don't know how prevalent they really are but if you see any you are going to want to stay away from them.

woohoo, I'll be there the 19th - 26th.

Coyote's in 30A is a little hole in the wall, but the fish taco's there are better than anywhere else I've ever tried them (and I'm a fan of fish taco's) their breakfast burrito's are also awesome.

Watch out for some of the standing water area's around there... last year I was attacked by mosquito's that bit to the blood on some of my runs!

from Sandestin, 30a east to a restaurant called "Shades" (a good spot to eat) you will then go out to Hwy 98 for about three miles, cross a bridge into Bay county and get back on scenic 98 (Panama City Beach), the ride to "Pier Park" is nice; once you get past it, the traffic can be crazy. as mentioned, Hwy79 to Hwy20 east if part of the IMFL course. all the sections from Sandestin to PCB are good. I would not recommend riding west from Sandestin.

I love to swim in the Gulf, can be hit or miss with a few jellies this time of year, nothing too painful though.

a shameless plug a good local event (70.3)

http://gulfcoasttri.com/

Have fun!!

Oh, how did I forget about Helen Back????

Mellow Mushroom in Destin is another fabulous pizza place.  They also have one in PCB.

McGuires has a lot of good specials.  Look those up before picking a night!

I am from the Dothan area and go to Destin a lot.

You guys nailed the restaurants! Helen Back, Harbor Docks and McGuire's!

We stayed in Sandestin a few weeks ago and running in there is great!

Seriously, this is my favorite pizza of all time.  I gotta find a TDY to Eglin again just to go back.

30A is my preferred route.  I have always seen many fellow riders and the vehicle traffic seems to aware of us bikers on the road.  It can get a little tight in the different beach communities but nothing bad.   The vehicles on 30a are going to be going slower than on the other state routes.

The only problem I have with open water swimming is the current.  Make sure that you go out against the current.  Otherwise it can make your swim a lot longer than expected.  The water is crystal clear.