Austin Triathalon | Austin Downtown Diary

Downtown Austin was bustling before dawn this morning for the AVIA Austin Triathlon. Participants had dropped off their bikes at Auditorium Shores yesterday during race check-in. From our apartment Bill and I could see the bikes glistening under the streetlights last night.

Triathletes registered for either the Olympic or Sprint distance. The Olympic distance course was a 1500 meter swim, 40K bike ride, and a 10K run. The Sprint course was a 700 meter swim, 27K bike ride, and 5K run.

Swimmers were grouped to leave every four minutes starting at 7:00 AM. The last group was scheduled to start at 9:02 AM but I’m pretty sure their start was closer to 9:30 AM. According to the organizers, the “official” water temperature in Lady Bird Lake was a balmy 83 degrees. Lots of boats, kyaks, and paddleboards were ready to give assistance.

After swimming, the triathletes ran up the dock to their bikes. The bike course went across the Congress Avenue Bridge, up to the Texas State Capitol and back, west on Cesar Chavez and back across Lady Bird Lake on the First Street Bridge. The riders really had to slow down to negotiate some of the tight turns. But I didn’t see any accidents.

The running loop wound through Auditorium Shores, nearby Butler Park, across the First Street Bridge and back across the river. It was getting hot by this time. Volunteers dosed the runners with Super Soakers…after asking permission first.

I watched at the finish line as the top men and women finished the Olympic distance. James Bonney from Austin led the men with 01:56:14 and D’Ann Arthur from Dallas was the top woman with 02:06:02.

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