Hy-Vee Triathlon and flooding
308
Member
216 days
diva_mom posted 17 weeks ago.
I failed to register in time, so I'm out. I was hoping to ride out to watch the elites go for the Olympic spot. Maybe not so much. Would suck if you qualified for Bejing, but couldn't compete due to giardia.
Don't be so easy on yourself 'cause this one might be all that you have left
236
Member
949 days
fpugsley posted 17 weeks ago.
We had flooding here in Texas last year. I was in a race that was changed to a Du because the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department closed the lake to swimming. We swam in it the weekend before as a warm up though.
6
Member
123 days
mitchgroup posted 17 weeks ago.
I'm registered for it and a newbie. It would just seem to be that logistically...it would be nearly impossible to move this thing somewhere else. With nearly 2500 participants and I'm guessing about 500 volunteers/personnel...and no real time to plan the switch, I don't know how they'd do it.
As the thunder rolls and rain begins coming down again today my hopes are fading. Heck the road running by the lake itself is closed I think and the parking area (from what my tri friends have described) is in Water Works park (also flooded).
1
Member
123 days
swimbike21 posted 17 weeks ago.
I am swimming on a team and I emailed the race director and go this response:
When I know then everybody will know. With a changing situation - will not place wrong information on the site until I have correct info. Nobody wants to know what's going on more then me and I'm working with state and city officials to figure this out so please just tell folks to site and pray that the rain stops.
BB
I guess it's wait and see....
6
Member
123 days
mitchgroup posted 17 weeks ago.
Don't take this as OFFICIAL. It was passed onto me by a reliable source. I've asked the PR folks for the tri to give me an official release and I'm waiting for that. There's quite a bit of detail in this and I've corroborated from another source so let's hope this is somewhat accurate.
Due to the flooding and high bacteria levels, the Hy-Vee Triathlon
will now be a Dry-Tri (Duathalon). ALL races will still go on at
their scheduled times (Kids, Jr Elite, Elite, Age group). For the
Elite and Age group, the distance will now be a 10K run / 40K Bike /
5K Run. I am not sure of the distances of the Kids or Jr. Elite yet.
Due to the floods and all of the issues and emergencies this is
creating, the City of Des Moines very much regrets not being able to
hold the Dry-Tri in Des Moines. They need all of their man power to
handle the flooding - which is VERY understandable. The City of West
Des Moines has kindly agreed to host the event there.
The location of the event will be at the corner of 35th Stree and
Fuller - at the South Woods Freshman Highschool.
The start, finish and transition areas will all be located near or in
the schools parking lot.
Race officials are still working on the courses for all of the
events. They are SPECULATING that on the Age Group bike course -
there will NOT be a bottle exchange this year - so make sure you have
plenty of water with you on the bike.
On my previous email, I had stated that the Elite have to swim for
this Olympic qualifier. Since this is a National State of Emergency,
this has been over-ruled by the governing bodies and they are
allowing a Dry-Tri (Duathlon) for the Elite to qualify for the
Olympics.
Everything else (for right now) remains the same -
* The Expo, Packet Pick-up, Race Briefings will still be handled at
the Hy-Vee Hall at the same times.
* You will still need to check your bike in to the transition area
on Saturday - June 21st between 2pm-8pm. There will be over night
security watching the bikes. Again, this transition area will be at
the South Woods Freshman Highschool.
* All new information on the race course, etc. will be covered at
the race briefings at the Hy-Vee Hall.
Bodymarking will be at the South Woods Freshman Highschool.
Due to this change occuring from a National State of Emergency, there
will not be any refunds, transfer of fees to next year, or transfers
to another person.
I have been told that the website will be updated (hopefully today -
but I do not have a date) with the new information, as well as the
new race courses - - once they are decided.
6
Member
123 days
mitchgroup posted 17 weeks ago.
OK this is official and now on the HyVee site it seems
Hy-Vee Triathlon Moves to West Des Moines
With flood waters rising and predictions of more rain on the way, the June 21-22 Hy-Vee Triathlon will be moved to the campus of Valley Southwoods Freshmen High School in West Des Moines.
"Once again we realize how fortunate we are to live in a city with multiple sites capable of hosting an event of this magnitude," said Randy Edeker, Hy-Vee senior vice president of retail operations and co-chair of the event. "We are grateful to everyone who has stepped forward to ensure the success of our triathlon, from the elite races down to the kids events. It's going to be a great weekend for the thousands of people who have spent months training for the triathlon as well as spectators who come out to cheer them on."
The age-group race will be a dry tri--a 10k run, a 40k bike and a 5k run. Race officials have not yet eliminated the swim for the elite athletes.
"We know the athletes are looking forward to the Des Moines race," said Bill Burke, the race director. "The well-being of all competitors is paramount, but this is an important race for American elites. If we can find a safe and available body of water, we'd like to use it."
The six members of Team USA headed to the Summer Olympic Games in Beijing will be introduced to the world at the conclusion of the Hy-Vee World Cup Triathlon.
All activities will take place as scheduled; only the race location will change to the WDM city-school campus area. Course maps are expected to be approved and released by Friday.
The event was moved out of Des Moines so that city officials could devote their full attention and resources to flood-related issues. "We appreciate Des Moines' commitment to our event and all the support they have given us in regard to the triathlon," said Edeker. "We needed to get out of the way so they could address more critical issues."
Hy-Vee and race officials began looking for an alternate swim venue as soon as it looked like Gray's Lake might flood. But when unrelenting rains increased the bacteria levels of even those bodies of water not prone to flooding, discussions turned to a dry-tri event.
Set-up for the triathlon will begin next Monday. Information about parking and other details will be released as soon as it is finalized and will be communicated through a variety of media outlets and at www.hy-veetriathlon.com.
Anyone doing the Hy-Vee triathlon this year? Gray's Lake, where the swim, T1, and T2 are located is completely flooded and we're expecting more rain this week. Even if the lake does subside, I think there will be issues with some serious bacteria and contamination. I've heard a posssible re-location to Easter Lake as well as maybe just a duathlon - I know the pros have to do a full triathlon for qualifying for the Olympics. anyone run into a similar situation or heard anything else? they are supposed to make an announcement in the next few days.