MAKE YOUR EVENT EXPERIENCE THE BEST POSSIBLE!
Please read carefully the following information
SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
Friday, July 24th
3:00pm-7:00pm Expo set up- Volunteers Needed
Saturday, July 25th
7:30am-10: 00am Race setup-Volunteers Needed
PACKET PICKUP & EXPO
11:00am-6:00 pm PACKET PICKUP* & EXPO
*Saturday Packet pick up is mandatory for all Entrants unless participant has paid for Race Day VIP Packet pick up (See Below)!
Location: Reef Point Parking Lot (Transition Area), Crystal Cove State Park - across the Pacific Coast Highway from The Crystal Cove Promenade Shopping Center. - Located on Pacific Coast Highway between Corona del Mar and Laguna Beach
USAT Licenses: Photo ID and Proof of USAT license are required for packet pickup. If you do not have an annual license or did not purchase a one-day license when you registered on-line, you must purchase a one-day license for $10.00 (cash only) and sign a waiver when you pick up your packet. Parent signature for minors is a must!!!
*Please note: Race Day VIP Packet Pickup, similar to other events in our area, is available for those who prefer not to do so in person on Saturday. For the price of $25, we will package your items (T-shirt, Race Number, poster, cap, etc) and have them waiting for you Sunday morning. You will still need to present a photo ID and show your USAT card or obtain a one-day license and sign a waiver.
VIP Booth will be in the Reef Point Parking Lot (transition area) and will be open 5:00 - 6:00am Race Day morning. (It will close at 6:00 sharp) Contact Bill Leach at billleach@sbcglobal.net for details, or sign up for the program at our site thru Active.com. We strongly suggest that you pickup your packet on Saturday to avoid any race day issues. Sorry, race number pickup is not available after 6:00am on race morning – there are no exceptions. No race number = you cannot participate in the event.
Sunday, July 26th
RACE DAY
Location: Crystal Cove State Park - on Pacific Coast Highway between Corona del Mar and Laguna Beach - Race Site Entrance at Reef Point Gate
Participant Drop-Off: Particpants may be dropped off on the south side only of the Reef Point/PCH intersection (at the bus stop east of the intersection) -- directly adjacent to the race site entrance. IMPORTANT - Cars must not be left unattended! Drivers must then proceed south, 1/4 mile, to the El Morro school entrance, before returning north on PCH to the State Park parking lots.
Parking: IMPORTANT CHANGE! for 2008-- Race Parking is no longer allowed at The Crystal Cove Promenade (The shopping center directly across PCH from the race site). The Promenade is now fully developed and the limited number of parking spaces (which the Promenade has graciously shared in the past) is, unfortunately, now reserved for Promenade customers only. Please respect this private property! Violators will be subject to having their cars towed.
Participant and spectator parking will be in the following State Park parking lots. The state charges $10 per car. HINT: carpool and save. This is a revenue source requirement for the state.
The race site’s Reef Point Lot (adjacent to the transition area) is limited to 150 spots and will be reserved for carpools of three or more only. There are no exceptions! This lot will be free of charge. Please arrive early! as this lot usually fills by 5:30am. This Lot will close at 6:30am sharp and will remain closed until the roads are officially reopened (at approximately 11:00am) IMPORTANT! -- If you need to leave before 11:00am, DO NOT PARK IN THIS LOT. Park in the Los Trancos lot which will have open road access throughout the race.
There are 400 spaces available at the Los Trancos Lot (north side of Intersection of PCH and Los Trancos, approximately 1 mile west of the race site and connected by pedestrian tunnel under PCH). IMPORTANT! If you need to leave the race before 11:00am, NOTE! this is the only lot that will allow you to leave while the race is still in progress. ALSO NOTE! the new Beachcomber Cafe will validate your $10 parking fee, at this Trancos lot only, for a minumum purchase at the cafe
There are 350 spaces available at the Pelican Coast Lot (enter south side of Intersection of PCH and Newport Coast, approximately 1.4 mile west of the race site. The park service this year will allow us to park on the sholder of the access road. Park partially off the road to leave plenty of room for emergency vehicles.
Street parking is available in the neighborhoods of Corona del Mar and on Pelican Hills Road (2 mi. north). You will need to ride your bike to the start. It is recommended that you use a backpack. Please use the bike trail inside of the park and not the highway while riding to and from the race. PLEASE CARPOOL!!!…and be considerate of the private parking areas.
PLEASE NOTE -- Crossing of PCH is only allowed in crosswalks under police control or by utilizing the Los Trancos tunnel. Violators will be issued tickets by the NBPD ($150 fine). This is a safety issue and violations of this policy will jeopardize our permit process with the City.
Transition Area: You must present your bib number, with a race number on the left side of your bike's top tube, in order to enter the transition area. Rack your bike and look for body markers within the transition area. You must have your timing transponder with your race number and hand marked to re-enter the transition area after your initial gear drop off. Only participants are allowed in the transition area, no spectators or guests (grounds for disqualification!!). This is for you and your gear’s security.
SCHEDULE OF EVENTS RACE DAY
Sunday July 26th
5:00am TRANSITION AREA ENTRY, FIRST thing-take your bike WITH A RACE NUMBER ON THE LEFT SIDE OF THE TOP TUB and gear, showing your race number to the volunteer, into the transition area and set up. Look for the racks associated with your swim cap color. You will not be allowed to remove gear from this area again or reenter until you have your transponder on and your hand marked with your number. You may then, and only then, re-enter the transition area from the run exit area. Volunteers will guide you. No transponder=no split times.
6:45am TRANSITION AREA CLOSES TO ALL ENTRANTS You will not be able to access the transition area again until you are racing. HEAD TO THE START LINE 1/3 MILE DOWN THE BEACH! Final race instructions and national anthem at swim start. USE THE RESTROOMS IN THE TRANSITION AREA FIRST! ---- THERE ARE NO RESTROOMS AT THE SWIM START !!!
7:00am Pro/Elite Start, Junior Nationals
7:03am USAT Age Group
8:00 am Kids Race Start(Short Course)
Racers will enter the swim in waves: three waves spaced THREE minutes apart- then a fifteen minute break (to clear the bike course) followed by the remaining waves. Exact start times will be posted at the expo, as detailed below (this timing is tentative). You may have to wait awhile so bring an old sweatshirt and something to eat. Know the water temp. We recommend wearing a wetsuit. We will start the short kids race near the swim finish line once the lifeguards regroup after the final adult wave. NOTE: Again, everyone must clear transition area by 6:45am!!
10:15am Awards Presentation & Trader Joe’s Breakfast Buffet Party
Transition area opens for bike/gear removal
Please note: The Reef Point Intersection and ALL of Coast Hwy will be closed to all pedestrians and exiting participants, until the roads are officially reopened at approx. 11:00am. Do not expect to cross here, or anywhere else, besides the Los Trancos tunnel; it is very dangerous to the bikers still on the course and will result in traffic congestion. You will be allowed early exit at ~10:30~ via the northbound bike path/run course only and will cross under the highway at the Los Trancos Pedestrian Tunnel. Be careful not to interfere with the runners still on the course!! Please be considerate; follow directions of the volunteers.
12:00noon Transition area closes for cleanup - all bikes and gear should have been removed. NOTE: Please mark all of your gear and be careful to pick up only yours. THANKS-HOPE EVERYONE HAD THE BEST DAY POSSIBLE!
TO CONFIRM YOU ARE REGISTERED FOR THE EVENT:
Go to Confirmation page (see left column) to verify your entry. If any information is incorrect, contact Bill at billleach@sbcglobal.net to make the change prior to the event.
Sprint Race
SWIM: The half-mile swim leg enters the protected waters of El Moro Cove approximately one third of a mile south of the swim finish. It’s a hike, so plan ahead. Swimmers round buoys one eighth of a mile off the beach and swim northwest, paralleling the shore until abeam of the exit point. Do not swim into shore between the sandy start and finish areas as there are rocky reefs! After exiting the water and crossing the timing pad, competitors climb a ramp up to the transition area in the Reef Point Parking Lot. Please note: the short course Kid’s Race (ages 9-13) will start approx. 200 yards south of the start, at the Swim Finish area. Kids start in the last wave.
BIKE: THIS IS A 2-LAP COURSE!
A sharp right turn and a ride past the Park Entrance hut leads to a right turn onto the Pacific Coast Highway (US 1). MERGE WITH EXTREME CAUTION!! Riding southeast, competitors will experience the first of several undulating ‘hills’ that define this ride as challenging, even for experienced triathletes. After about a mile, near the city limits of Laguna Beach, the first turn to the opposite direction occurs. Now riding northwest back down the hill, riders pass El Moro trailer park and then El Moro school and then pass the entry to Reef Point parking. The ride northwest continues past Los Trancos parking and approaches the city limits of Newport Beach/Corona del Mar. From the turn at Laguna Beach to the CDM turn is a leg approximately three miles in distance. After a turn south, the first lap is complete two miles later when you pass the Reef Point entrance and start up the hill to the Laguna Beach turn for the second time. Another three miles to the final CDM turn and two miles later you turn right back into the Reef Point parking lot transition area. Time to SLOW DOWN. A sharp right turn followed by a sharper left turn brings you back to the dismount line. Dismount and walk/run your bikes across the timing pad to start your second transition. Please note: The Kid’s Short Course will be one lap only! Everyone else – two (2) laps!!!
RUN: The three-mile run begins in a northerly direction. It passes the transition area and opens up to a meandering bike path that is easy to follow. BEWARE: There is a crossover point just north of the transition area where returning runners will be crossing the path of outgoing runners. It is well marked and course marshals will assist you there. You continue north and run past the famous yellow “Shake Shack” on your way to the top of the hill. The running course has some of the same undulations that the bike ride had. It is gently up and down and will challenge you after the swim and bike. After you pass the guard station, cross the road and continue onto the bike path for a short distance and make an immediate left onto the earth path. You will begin running through the historic, restored cottages of Crystal Cove then make a left and follow the "S" turn down to the road leading to the Beachcomer restaurant and on to the sand. For the next half mile, you will be running on sand, with the surf crashing to your right and the cliffs of the state park on your left. After about a half mile you will approach the second ramp of the course (the first was just after the swim). This ramp has been described in many ways – none of which sound like “easy” or “fun.” Be forewarned: Save something for the final ramp. After running back up to the top of the cliffs you will be in sight of the arch of flags atop the finish gantry, approximately a third of a mile away. Please note: The Kid’s short course will be out and back to the first water station - approx. 1 mile in length.
Adults…do not turn around early!!
Time to celebrate! You’ve done it. You finished the Pacific Coast Triathlon. The winners will do it in about one hour. How about you??
SWIM CLINICS: Need help, scared of the swim? See the web site for info on our swim clinics.
RULES 101: A must read!!!!
Here’s a simplified version of the rules of the road that will suffice for the first timers; it’s the competitive age-groupers responsibility to understand and follow complete USAT regulations:
1. You must have your ANSI helmet on and strapped before mounting your bike.
2. You must walk or run in the transition area - no riding until the mount line.
3. You must have your race number pinned on and visible, as well as numbers on your bike and helmet.
4. Do not follow the biker in front of you closely. Be at least 3 bike lengths behind them. It’s dangerous and you cheat the wind and your opponents. This is a position violation, called drafting.
5. Ride your bike as far to the right side of the lane as possible. Pass only on the left (within the lane) and then immediately return to the right. Violation of this rule is blocking. Let the faster riders go through; they’re going for the gold (and crystal).
6. Read rule #5 three more times.
7. Rack your bike properly and respect your fellow competitor’s equipment.
8. Follow the directions of the Race Officials and Marshals without question.
9. No head phones--be alert and aware. Know the course.
10. You must wear your ankle transponder throughout the race. Hand it to a Race Officials after crossing the finish line to receive a time. You will be charged $20 if you don’t.
HAVE FUN!!! And thank a Volunteer.
VOLUNTEERS NEEDED!
Contact: Bill Leach at (949) 701-5590 Remeber if you’re bringing family or friends with you, this is a great opportunity for them to be a part of this great event on both Saturday and Sunday! Remember to carpool.
We’ll see you Saturday, July 25th at the expo!