USAT Youth Elite and Junior Elite Participant Instructions



 

2006 Bridgeport CT. Youth/Junior National Championship:

    

  

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pre-race information:

  1. Please review all rules at: http://www.triathlon.org/docs/downloads-athletescompetition-rules-2005.pdf
  2. Race check-in is from 2-4pm on Friday August 4th, 2006.
  3. Athletes should have their bikes during check in for a preliminary bike check. THIS WILL NOT BE THE FINAL BIKE CHECK. This will be to help identify any bike problems prior to the event so there can be enough time to correct the problem before the race. The final and official bike check will be done by the official on race morning in transition. For this and all rules please review the following:
  4. Mandatory Pre-race meeting will take place at 5:15pm on Friday August 4th, 2006 at the Holiday Inn, Bridgeport.
  5. If you are doing any pre-race riding the week before the race your helmet must be worn and strapped. You may be disqualified from the race if you are riding your bike at the race site without your helmet securely fastened at any time the week before the race.
  6. The race distances have changed slightly from the original posted distances. The race distances will be:

13-15yos   400meter swim, 12.5k bike, 2.5k run

16-19yos   750meter swim, 19k bike, 5k run

      7.   This is the World Championship qualifier for the Juniors (16-19yos). There will be 3 spots awarded from this event. A possible 4th spot could be awarded for each gender.

            For information on the World Championships click here

      8.   Please remember your age is determined by your age as of December 31, 2006.

      9.   Team awards will be given for the top 3 teams. Teams must register their roster with Sean Wendt at the pre-race meeting. The scoring will be the top ten USA finishers getting the following points: 1st – 15, 2nd – 13, 12,11,9,7,5,3,2,1.

     10.  The park will be open for competitors on Thursday and Friday. Swimming is permitted on both days. Race buoys and transition area will be set up during Friday.

Race day:

  1. The transition area will open up at 5.15am. PARENTS are not allowed in the transition area at any time.
  2. Please remember that you will be allowed a 2x3 foot area. Towels are allowed but if they become spread out more than your 2x3 area you may be assessed a violation.
  3. Athletes will be required to rack their bike in the age appropriate area. They will also be racking them in the spot designated to them based upon their national ranking. Athletes without a national ranking will be randomly placed on the bike racks. The racks will be set up so that each athlete will travel the same distance through the transition area.
  4. The first wave to go will be the Youth males (13-15) at 6:20am, followed by youth females at 6:25am. The Junior males (16-19) will go at 7:15am, and the Junior females will go at 7:20am.
  5. Athletes will need to be on the beach, in the staging area, with all of their swim equipment and ready to go 10minutes before their wave start time.

 Swim:

  1. Athletes must wear the swim caps provided to them by the race director. Swim caps will be handed out in the transition area by the race official. This will be the race officials, official bike check. You will be given a cap upon approval of your bike.
  2. Athletes will be called to their starting position based upon their “National Ranking”. We will be calling down the top 10 nationally ranked athletes and they will get to choose their position first on the beach. After the top 10 athletes the remainder will be asked to take a position. This will be the first athlete to that position gets it. There will not be 2 athletes allowed in one starting spot.
  3. Be on the beach in the designated staging area 10 minutes prior to your wave start time. Have all your swim equipment with you and be preparing to start exactly on time. There will be a designated swimming warm up area but athletes MUST be done and in staging on time.
  4. Wetsuits will be allowed if the water is 68.99degrees or less. If the water is 69degrees or greater then wetsuits will not be allowed. Please remember that if this is not a wetsuit swim you must wear your ITU approved uniform. You may wear a 2nd swim uniform but it must be worn underneath your ITU uniform and may not be removed.
  5. Athletes must have their torso covered. This means you may not swim without your torso covered then run up to transition and put on a singlet (top). It also means that if you have a wetsuit you may NOT have a bare torso underneath and put on a jersey when you take off your wetsuit.

 Transition 1:

  1. Athletes must be racked in their designated area.
  2. Athletes may only have items that will be used during the competition in the transition area. This means they can’t put balloons or other items out to help identify their transition area.
  3. All athletes must have their helmet securely fastened before moving their bike from the bike rack.
  4. Pleas pay attention to the other athletes in the transition area and do not impede another athletes progress. This is especially important due to the large size of the field.

 Bike:

  1. THERE ARE SOME VERY SPECIFIC BICYCLE REQUIREMENTS. YOU WILL NOT BE ALLOWED TO RACE WITH AN ILLEGAL BIKE OR ILLEGAL EQUIPMENT ON YOUR BIKE. You may not have a mountain bike, cyclocross bike, aero bars that extend straight out, aero bars that extend beyond the foremost point of the brake levers, or disk wheels. These are some of the rules that apply but please read all rules carefully at: http://www.triathlon.org/docs/downloads-athletescompetition-rules-2005.pdf
  2. Road bikes have to be the traditional triangular shape. They may not have suspended seats (like Softride bikes) or have non traditional triangular shapes.
  3. This is a draft legal event. Drafting is legal but “Blocking” is illegal.
  4. There may be some times that there will be males and females on the bike course at the same time. Usually this would be the slower athletes finishing on the bike course while the faster athletes of the next group are catching them. Under this scenario there probably would not be males drafting on females or vise-versa. However, this is just a reminder that you may only draft your gender and age group.
  5. There will be a “Wheels In and Wheels Out” section. You must have your wheels marked with your name and put directly in the designated area. You also must do the wheels change yourself and may not receive outside assistance.

 Transition 2:

  1. You must remove and discard all of your equipment in your designated transition area. You may receive a penalty if you do not keep your equipment in your designated 2x3 area.
  2. You must re-rack your bike in your designated racking spot, and your bike must be racked and not laid down.
  3. You must dismount at the transition dismount line and may not ride your bike in the transition area.

 Run:

  1. Please remember that you may not run with a bare torso.
  2. Race belts are not allowed in ITU events and there will not be any race bibs either. Without race bibs there is no need for race belts.
  3. Do not discard cups, gu packets, etc. outside of the feed zones.

 

There are many rules and some of them are obscure. It is your responsibility to know the rules. This is a NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP and the rules will be enforced.

 http://www.triathlon.org/docs/downloads-athletescompetition-rules-2005.pdf