Sunday is Tropical Triathlon in the City of Lake Worth: Important information for spectators and athletes.

And note the Palm Beaches Marathon will be held on Sunday, December 2nd. At the end of this blog post is more information about this annual race the Town of Palm Beach rejected this year.

The Tropical Triathlon held in the City of Lake Worth is one of the top triathlons in Florida and a USA Triathlon (USAT) sanctioned event.

Below are the eleven most commonly violated rules from USAT that everyone should be looking out for to keep the race safe for race participants and spectators and course rules to avoid time penalties and disqualifications.

Also below is a video of what can go wrong when people are not paying attention.

Remember parking at the Casino and Beach Complex is $3/hour so plan accordingly. Parking is FREE in most areas of the Downtown.

The triathlon will begin at 6:45 at the Lake Worth Beach beginning with a ¼-mile swim in the ocean, thirteen mile bike race, and 5K foot race. To sign up for the race click on this link.

Following the swim participants in the race will ride their bikes over the Robert Harris Bridge into Downtown Lake Worth.

For contact information click on this link.

For the complete list of USAT rule violations use this link. The top eleven most common in brief:

• Helmets. Only helmets approved by the US Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) may be used in USAT sanctioned events. Helmets must be worn at all times while on your bike. This means before, during, and after the event. Penalty: Disqualification.
• Chin straps. Chin straps must be buckled at all times when on a bicycle.
• Outside assistance. No assistance other than that offered by race and medical officials may be used.
• Transition area. All equipment must be placed in the properly designated and individually assigned bike corral.
• Drafting. Keep at least three bike lengths of clear space between you and the cyclist in front. If you move into the zone, you must pass within 15 seconds.
• Course. All competitors are required to follow the prescribed course and to stay within all coned lanes. Cutting the course is an obvious violation and going outside the course is a safety issue.
• Conduct: Foul, harsh, argumentative or abusive language or other unsportsmanlike conduct directed at race officials, USA Triathlon officials, volunteers, spectators or fellow athletes is forbidden. Penalty: Disqualification.
• Headphones. Headphones, headsets, Walkman, iPods, mp3 players, or personal audio devices, etc., are not to be carried or worn at any time during the race.
• Race numbers. All athletes are required to wear race numbers at all times during the run. Numbers must face the front and be clearly visible at all times.
• Wetsuits. Each age group participant shall be permitted to wear a wetsuit without penalty in any event sanctioned by USA Triathlon up to and including a water temperature of 78°F.
• Abandonment. All personal equipment and belongings taken onto the course must stay on the athlete the entire time.

Below is a short video from the triathlon in 2015. To keep the course safe PBSO will have deputies at major intersections and along the race route there will be course officials and volunteers giving instructions and directions to all the race participants.

But something can always happen to create a potential hazard. Like what happens a little after the one minute mark in this video:




Luckily there was not an incident and no one got hurt. Except for a few seconds added to a few racers’ times.

So the lesson is stay alert at all times. And watch out for that old man on the bike!

Now to the Palm Beaches Marathon in December.

Organizers hope this annual event will some day rise to the level of the Boston and New York marathons.

However, this year the Town of Palm Beach rejected the Palm Beaches Marathon saying it wasn’t “town-serving”.

So the City of Lake Worth stepped up to complete the full 26.2 mile marathon. The course route in this City is east of Dixie Hwy. and the runners will not get one single glimpse of the Lake Worth Lagoon off our shore.

Runners will see a lot of the Intracoastal in West Palm Beach though. It’s not called the ‘West Palm Beach Lagoon’ for a reason. And West Palm Beach doesn’t have a beach.

The upcoming full Palm Beaches Marathon race in December will not make it to Lake Ave. in Downtown Lake Worth or go over the Robert Harris Bridge to the Lake Worth Casino.

But this year’s race will make it to just a few blocks north of Lake Ave. into the Parrot Cove neighborhood before the turnaround and back to WPB.

Other Neighborhood Assoc. Presidents’ Council (NAPC) neighborhoods included in the course this year are the College Park neighborhood just south of WPB, next is Eden Place and then Mango Groves.

The question oft-posed on this blog is. . .

Why not come up with better route to show off our Downtown and attract more visitors and tourists?

Fill up our restaurants and shops?

The Lake Worth Tropical Triathlon every year uses the Robert Harris Bridge and the Casino as part of the course for runners. So why can’t the organizers of the Palm Beaches Marathon find a route to include our world-class Casino and Beach Complex in this City?

How to make this happen? A good place to start would be contacting the Cultural Council of Palm Beach County located in Downtown Lake Worth. For all that information click on this link.