How To Host a Triathlon

Hosting a triathlon takes quite a lot of planning and organization because of the complexity of the event. If you were planning to host a marathon, at least you know you are dealing with one event and it makes the organization of the event much less difficult.

With a triathlon, you must have a body of water for the swim. It must have a large enough beach-front to accommodate all the athletes that will be taking part.

The swim will also have to be closely monitored for safety purposes and sufficient life-guard support must be available out on the water during the course of the swim portion of the race. often canoes and kayaks are the best option because of their maneuverability. Some races will even have scuba divers out on the course. The course itself must be properly marked so the contestants know where the turns are.

The bike course will also have to be clearly marked and often the course will be marked in 5 km intervals, and the length of the bike leg will determine how many aid stations you will set up to supply food and water to the bikers as they reach each station.

The run course is marking is quite similar to the bike course and as a rule there is an aid station at regular intervals through-out the course. Of course the amount of aid stations will depend on how long the race is. A 10 km run for instance, might have only a few aid stations. On the other hand an Ironman triathlon will have aid stations at every mile on the course.

There will have to be an area set aside to hold the bikes, and for longer races, you might also need to supply change tents and a medical tent. It might also be necessary to have an ambulance out on the bike and run courses, especially in longer races. Even in shorter races, an ambulance should be at the race site in case of emergency.

It will also be necessary to have a race timing system and finish line clock in place.

Hosting a triathlon means getting things started long before race day. There are entry forms to get out and process when they are received. You will also need plenty of volunteers to help out on all parts of the course and that might be the most important aspect of the organizing. Often, it is the volunteers who will determine if the race if a success or not.

Once all the entries are received, it will be necessary to have a registration venue where the athletes can pick up this race packets. Often these packets will include their numbered swim cap, timing chip, race numbers, and pertinent race information.

Sponsors should also be approached for such things as drink and food donations for the race. Many companies will be glad to do this as it is great advertising for their business. Often races will have a pre-race dinner a night or two before the race. After the race there is normally an opportunity for the athletes to have something to eat and drink while the awards ceremony is taking place. Don't forget to buy the medals, trophies, or any other prizes you hope to award the winners.

It will be necessary to have all the proper legal paperwork in order to hold your event. This is especially true if you plan on closing off any roadways. In that case you might also have to pay for a police presence to make sure everything goes smoothly and the contestants are safe out on the roadways.

Once the race is over, be sure you have enough volunteers staying around to help take down and clean up the race area. You might also want to inform the local media so they can enter the results in the local papers the next day, or perhaps a T.V. station might want to come out and do a story on the event.