Scott Swanson
The ninth annual Best in the West Triathlon series will take place this weekend, Sept. 6-8, at Lewis Creek Park.
Bigger and better than ever, says founder and Director Blair Bronson.
This year’s festival is on track to exceed last year’s record crowd of participants, who numbered 1,002.
“This year we’re on track for about 1,100,” Bronson said late last week. “It’s grown every year. It’s awesome.”
This year’s festival will feature a revised schedule, intended to cut down on traffic and congestion around the park, where the swim is held and where the running and biking events start and end.
“This year we’ve made some changes in order to accommodate the growing size of race,” he said. “We’re trying to minimize the impact on the community.”
The sprint triathlon, the largest of the events, participant-wise, has been moved from Saturday to 9 a.m. Sunday morning, because it accounts for more than half of the participants in the entire event. The Olympic event has been moved from Sunday to Saturday, alongside the Half Ironman, to reduce road and parking congestion, Bronson said.
“That way we’re only using Pleasant Valley and Berlin one day.”
He said the street and park closures from Foster Dam to Quartzville will be the same as in recent years (see table).
The Half-Ironman begins at 8 a.m. Saturday with a 1.2-mile swim, followed by 56-mile bike ride and a 13.1-mile run – half the distances of a full Ironman. Half-Ironman runners will follow Quartzville Road from Lewis Creek Park to Green Peter Lake, then return.
The Olympic even begins at 8 a.m. Sunday, Sept. 10, with a 1500-meter swim in the lake, followed by a 40K (just under 25 miles) bike ride along North River, Pleasant Valley and McDowell Creek roads to a turnaround point a couple of miles south of Waterloo, then back to the park, where contestants will finish with a 10K (6.2 miles) run following portions of the 5K and Half-Ironman courses.
The sprint triathlon, on Sunday morning, is composed of a 500-meter swim in Foster Lake, 12-mile bike ride on North River Road and a 5K (3.1-mile) run on North River and Quartzville roads.
In addition to the Sprint, Olympic and Half-Ironman, the festival also offers Super Sprint Triathlon, Try a Tri and Splash and Dash events for beginners and youths to give people a chance to give the sport a shot. There are also various relay competitions and duathlon variations offered.
The Splash and Dash event for children has been moved from Sunday morning to 5 p.m. on Saturday. “There are so many local families in the area with kids that we’d love to get out,” Bronson said. “Running it on Sunday morning was tough.”
The short course involves a 100-meter swim in the lake and a 1K run. The longer version is a 200-meter swim and a 2K run. Cost is $25, which includes lots of goodies, but Bronson said the biggest emphasis is getting kids to participate.
“If a local kid wants to do it, but the parents balk at $25, I’ll cover the cost as long as the kid wants to race,” he said.
This year, Best in the West will also serve as the West Coast Regional Championships for about 15 triathlon associations, including the Northwest Collegiate Conference Championship, featuring teams from schools throughout Oregon and the Northwest, including, possibly, British Columbia, he said.
Also, this year, it will include the Paralympic Triathlon Regional Championship, which will include local athlete Geritt Schaffer (see accompanying story).
“It’s a big production,” Bronson said. “It’s a lot of work.”
Volunteers are still needed, he said, and there are opportunities for local groups to fundraise in that capacity through Monday morning, Sept. 9.
Help is needed for everything from water safety support (non-propeller craft needed) to barbecue to course marshals.
Volunteers will receive free gear and breakfast and/or a barbecue lunch.
Those interested should visit bestinthewesttriathlon.com and click on the “Volunteers” tab or contact Staci at (541) 231-3661.
Admission for spectators is free and food will be available. A free shuttle bus runs between the parks all day Saturday and Sunday except for when the biggest group of runners are on the road.
For more information on nearly every aspect of the triathlon series, visit http://www.bestinthewesttriathlon.com.