The transition area of the Niantic Bay Triathlon at the bottom of McCook Point Park.

The Niantic Bay Triathlon is a popular summer event put on by the Hartford Marathon Foundation that takes place at McCook Point Park in Niantic. While I have enjoyed watching the event for the past few years, I’ve never actually participated myself. However, a couple friends did take part in the triathlon last Sunday, and they’ve kindly shared their thoughts about the race.

Here’s what Meghan had to say:

The Niantic Bay Triathlon sponsored by Amica and run by the Hartford Marathon Foundation has been run annually since 2000. It’s a sprint distance tri with a ½ mile swim, an 11.5 mile bike and an advertised 3.5 mile run. It’s a well-advertised race and the short distance encourages a lot of first-timers to participate.

This was actually my 4th triathlon this year. It seemed to be pretty well organized in general. They did little things, like having packet pick up before race day. This was great for me so that it was one less thing to be anxious about come race morning. The transition area was organized in rows by racer number. So each row had an assigned series of numbers, but there was not a specific spot for each person. This was a bit of a problem since there were so many first time racers, who did not know proper transition area etiquette. Once that was sorted out, everyone walked over to Hole in the Wall beach where the swim start was taking place.

The water was pretty calm early on, but the chop seemed to quickly pick up. If you are thinking about doing this race next year, I strongly suggest you do a couple of open water ocean swims to practice. The start was in the water, which at low tide made for a slightly slow start, but we made it. The swim out into the tide was definitely challenging, but that same tide coming back in to McCook’s beach was very helpful.

The bike started at the bottom of a short but steep hill. Being in a small gear was definitely good advice. After this hill though, the bike course was pretty flat, which made for some great racing. There were a couple of hills, but just enough so you didn’t get bored. By far the most challenging part of the bike was trying to run your bike down the steep hill back into transition. The race director recommends taking the bike shoes off. I was skeptical of this at first, but I quickly changed my mind after taking 2 steps and almost falling down the hill. Next year I will not be wearing socks on the bike so I’m not putting wet socks into my running shoes … yuck!

The run was also pretty flat, fast course that wove through the streets of black point. While the race directors claim it’s a 3.5 mile run, I’m pretty sure it’s only a 5k, or at least it seems that way based on my run split. There was only 1 turn around point at the second mile. You didn’t have to retrace steps for too long, before you were instructed to follow a narrow path up over the bluff along the shore. It’s a beautiful part of the run, despite it also being the steepest hill. There were 2 water stops along the run, plus one right at the beginning of the run, as you exit transition. The water stops were strategically placed so you can hit them on the way out and back, smart planning. The finish of the race is a short run on the beach. This made it awfully difficult to have a strong kick with tired legs in the soft sand. It was a great feeling to see everyone hanging out on the beach cheering you all the way in, with people handing you water and Popsicles to enjoy post race!

Overall it was a really fun day, and I know my triathlon buddy and I are excited to compete again next year!

Shawn added:

It was one of the more efficiently-run events that I’ve done. I’ve been to this event as a relay member so many times, and they’ve really streamlined the check-in process. Also, the Niantic Bay Triathlon is one of the most well-supported events I’ve done – so much fan support that it was truly amazing. It was a great first-time triathlon experience, and I just might do another soon because of that.

(Thank you Meghan and Shawn for your reports, and congratulations for having great races!)