Evergreen Sprint Triathlon Race Report

Racing Underground brought back the Evergreen Sprint Triathlon and it fit into my schedule so I thought I would give it a go. I thought racing at elevation would also make it a little more exciting and difficult.

The race takes place in the Evergreen Town Lake and is a great venue for a race. The parking is somewhat limited but there is plenty of grass and trees for after the event. The lake normally doesn't allow swimming but Racing Underground was able to get permission as long as everyone wore a wetsuit. The water temperature at the start was around 68 degrees which is warm for the lake. The shore of the lake wasn't conducive to swimming with the lake bottom being pretty soft and descending quickly. The swim start was in water so you have to either be up near the shore or out treading water. I had a very good start and was able to get near the front of my wave by the first buoy. I was caught by a two people at that point but I wasn't able to hold their feet so I had to continue on my own. I had a form break from about 250 meters to 350 meters. Once I got back on form, I was ok, but it took a little work.

The bike course was one of the most challenging courses I've ridden. After a flat mile, the climbing begins and it doesn't end until about mile eight. There are a couple false flats but that's what they are, false hope that the climbing is over. I know people think Old Stage at Boulder Peak is tough but Stagecoach at Evergreen is harder in my opinion. The average grade isn't as steep but it's averages eight percent and the climb is close to seven mile where Old Stage is less than one.

The descents at Evergreen are also a little more technical. Boulder Peak has nice long sweeping curves but the curves at Evergreen are shorter and sharper.

Just like Boulder Peak and Loveland, you have to be on the lookout for wild life. One the last descent coming back to transition, I saw three elk and one was right on the course. A little breaking and quick manuevering got me around the elk with no injuries to either one of us.

Before the race, I walked the first 200 - 300 meters of the run course. Most run courses go around the lake and Evergreen is no exception. It did go around the lake but it also took a little detour through a neighborhood which included a very long and steep hill. It also had two sets of stairs, one down and one up just in case your quads weren't sore yet.

Overall it's a very good course and as always, Racing Underground put on a great event. I continued to do well with second in my age group and top fifteen overall. The overall is slightly skewed since four of the people faster than me are professionals and one was a bronze medalist in Athens.