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TRANSITION AREA
What is the Transition Area and What Happens There?

In the sport of triathlon the Transition Area is like the hub in the center of a wheel with the swim, bike, and run like wheel spokes. The athlete passes through the Transition Area twice in the event. In the Transition Area the athlete moves from swimming to biking and then from biking to running.

Every athlete has a spot in the Transition Area (by age-group) where his/her bike, helmet, shoes/sox, shirt, shorts, towel and other needed stuff is located. The triathlon begins at the pool. Following the swim the athlete moves to the Swim In entrance of the Transition Area. The athlete will find his/her spot, and he/she will remove any swim equipment such as goggles, and quickly dries off and puts on what is needed for the bike ride. Bathing suit removal is not permitted!

Athletes may put on shorts and a shirt over their bathing suits with their race number pinned on in advance. Some athletes just put on a shirt (with number) and ride with bathing suits instead of shorts-over-suits. The athlete takes his/her bike and (walking the bike) exits the Transition Area following the sign that says Bike Out. The bike can not be mounted until the athlete passes the Bike Mount Line, which will be clearly marked. Bike helmets must be worn at all times while the athlete is in contact with the bike, even when dismounted.

After their bike ride the athlete returns to the Bike In entrance of the Transition Area. The athlete must dismount the bike prior to crossing the Bike Dismount Line. Then (walking the bike) goes back to where his/her equipment is located. The bike is placed in the rack, helmet and other riding equipment is removed, and the athlete prepares for the run. Generally young athletes ride their bikes in their running shoes so after removing the bike stuff, they are ready for the run. Runners may jog to the Run Out sign in the Transition Area, watching for bikes and other runners. The triathlon finishes at the end of the run near the transition area.

A few notes on the Transition Area:

Get to the race early so your young athlete can set up his/her Transition Area location. Look for signs designating the age-group of your athlete. Locations are not reserved but there will be enough for all athletes, they will be grouped by age. The race starts with the oldest and progresses to the youngest. Set-up
early and keep clear of the Transition Area when the race is in progress. Please be courteous to our athletes and stay clear of them.
Bring two towels, one of which should be old. Put the old towel
on the ground beside the bike at your child's location and place his/her race stuff on it. The other towel is for drying after the swim. It is recommended that you have a full water bottle there
so your athlete can grab a quick drink before exiting the Transition Area.
The time spent in the Transition Area counts on the overall time
so it should be as fast as is reasonable, but not so fast that your athlete forgets to put on the helmet or ties his/her shoes. We
will have volunteers in the Transition Area to assist athletes so
we ask that parents stay out for the safety of the participants.
An exception to this is for the 5-8 age-group where ONE parent may assist the athlete if needed, FOR SET-UP ONLY!