Tri One O One World Championship to The Woodlands
Well, now, it's official!
The Woodlands, Texas - on November 11, 2007 - will host the World Championship event (part of a five-year commitment) of a new triathlon series, Tri One O One, covering 101.06 miles (1.86mi swim - 80.6mi bike - 18.6mi run) which will be in between the "standard" half and full Ironman distances. (The official web site is http://www.trioneoone.com/.)
I attended the press conference this morning at Town Green Park in The Woodlands, which is right next door to the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavillion and close to where the start/finish area is.
Duathlons and triathlons (or multi-sports), mind you, are not my world. The coverage of running, of course, as well as sports media and public relations, is.
The series creator, Executive Director Shannon Kurek, was understandably excitable -- and a bit over the top, I might add. (However, I've been reading off and on today that the triathlon community has great respect for Shannon and the job that he has done over the last 18 years in putting on events.)
Kurek was so exctiable that the only individuals that spoke to the group, which included some media, were himself and the two members of his Advisory Board -- Michael Folan, President of Infinit Nutrition, and Dan Empfield, the publisher of Slowtwitch.com.
While everyone had time afterward to ask questions individually, it would have been good to hear from some others involved, including an individual that is very, very well-respected in the multi-sport and local community, Dana Lyons, who will be the race director of the World Championship event. A question-and-answer session would also have played well for all to understand how the Series is being positioned.
I asked some questions privately to some thought processes that would seem to be obvious as well as doing a little research online.
It appears to me that the Series (while promising major prize money right now without a major sponsor) will exist for the following reasons:
1.) To bridge a gap between people doing a half Ironman and a full Ironman.
2.) Much like a half marathon is to a marathon, the distance will allow triathletes to race more frequently - as long as they can afford it (Tri 101 events are priced at $300 while full Ironmans, I believe I've seen, are priced at $499.) - and recover quicker.
3.) To compete against World Triathlon Corporation - the owner of the Ironman brands.
4.) To create a "world championship" since the International Triathlon Union (ITU) recently voted to lower its long distance championship distance down (to double the Olympic distance) from the length that Tri 101 is planning on competing at - otherwise known as the "Nice distance".
How will Tri 101 compete? Hmmm .... well, the World Championship that will be held in The Woodlands on November 11, 2007 will go head-to-head (on the same weekend) with Ford Ironman's 70.3 World Championship that was held last month in Clearwater, Florida.
Initially, the Series will allow 750 age-group athletes compete at The Woodlands event in November while the remaining 750 slots will come from athletes qualifying at the other three Tri 101 events on the calendar in Bradenton, Florida, Clear Lake, California and Halifax, Nova Scotia.
Like I said, multi-sports isn't really in my ballywick; however, I thought that I would pass along the information that hits us close to home.
The Woodlands, Texas - on November 11, 2007 - will host the World Championship event (part of a five-year commitment) of a new triathlon series, Tri One O One, covering 101.06 miles (1.86mi swim - 80.6mi bike - 18.6mi run) which will be in between the "standard" half and full Ironman distances. (The official web site is http://www.trioneoone.com/.)
I attended the press conference this morning at Town Green Park in The Woodlands, which is right next door to the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavillion and close to where the start/finish area is.
Duathlons and triathlons (or multi-sports), mind you, are not my world. The coverage of running, of course, as well as sports media and public relations, is.
The series creator, Executive Director Shannon Kurek, was understandably excitable -- and a bit over the top, I might add. (However, I've been reading off and on today that the triathlon community has great respect for Shannon and the job that he has done over the last 18 years in putting on events.)
Kurek was so exctiable that the only individuals that spoke to the group, which included some media, were himself and the two members of his Advisory Board -- Michael Folan, President of Infinit Nutrition, and Dan Empfield, the publisher of Slowtwitch.com.
While everyone had time afterward to ask questions individually, it would have been good to hear from some others involved, including an individual that is very, very well-respected in the multi-sport and local community, Dana Lyons, who will be the race director of the World Championship event. A question-and-answer session would also have played well for all to understand how the Series is being positioned.
I asked some questions privately to some thought processes that would seem to be obvious as well as doing a little research online.
It appears to me that the Series (while promising major prize money right now without a major sponsor) will exist for the following reasons:
1.) To bridge a gap between people doing a half Ironman and a full Ironman.
2.) Much like a half marathon is to a marathon, the distance will allow triathletes to race more frequently - as long as they can afford it (Tri 101 events are priced at $300 while full Ironmans, I believe I've seen, are priced at $499.) - and recover quicker.
3.) To compete against World Triathlon Corporation - the owner of the Ironman brands.
4.) To create a "world championship" since the International Triathlon Union (ITU) recently voted to lower its long distance championship distance down (to double the Olympic distance) from the length that Tri 101 is planning on competing at - otherwise known as the "Nice distance".
How will Tri 101 compete? Hmmm .... well, the World Championship that will be held in The Woodlands on November 11, 2007 will go head-to-head (on the same weekend) with Ford Ironman's 70.3 World Championship that was held last month in Clearwater, Florida.
Initially, the Series will allow 750 age-group athletes compete at The Woodlands event in November while the remaining 750 slots will come from athletes qualifying at the other three Tri 101 events on the calendar in Bradenton, Florida, Clear Lake, California and Halifax, Nova Scotia.
Like I said, multi-sports isn't really in my ballywick; however, I thought that I would pass along the information that hits us close to home.
posted by WalkSports.com | 5:35 PM
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