Capital of Texas Triathlon: 2012

The Capital of Texas Triathlon took over downtown Austin on the morning of Memorial Day. Over 3,000 triathletes participated.

The swim portion was in Lady Bird Lake in front of Auditorium Shores. The bike route went over the First Street Bridge and along west Cesar Chavez and Congress Avenue. The running loop went across the Congress Avenue Bridge and along east Cesar Chavez. So if you were trying to drive through downtown on Monday morning, you were in big trouble.

Those pro triathletes still looked fresh even as they finished the Olympic distance: a 1.5K (.93 mile) swim, a 40K (25 mile) bike ride and a 10K (6.2 mile) run. Hunter Kemper and Andy Potts placed first and second for the men, in the opposite order of last year’s race. Sarah Haskins was the women’s winner.

For the first time, the CapTexTri was combined with the USA Paratriathlon National Championship. About 70 paratriathletes entered under different classifications such as Visually Impaired:Legally Blind, Severe Leg Impairment or Arm Impairment. The logistics for paratriathlons are interesting. For example, in the Paraplegic, Quadriplegic, Polio, Double Leg Amputee category, the athlete must use a long-seat handcycle for the bike section and a racing wheelchair for the run.

Vision-impaired/blind athletes are tethered to a guide for the swim and run routes. For the bike portion, the paratriathlete pedals on the back of a tandem bike with a guide pedaling and steering in front. 

The determination and tenacity of the paratriathletes is impressive. Anyone who can finish a triathlon is a winner, no matter what their time!

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