Race Coverage

David's Blog...

Sunday, 11 September 2011 03:00

Hy-Vee 5150 Championship

By David Thompson (thompsontri.com)

This was probably the best championship event I've ever raced. Twenty-five of the best triathletes in world qualified to race the Hy-Vee 5150 Championship, and 5 more past champions were invited for a total of 30 athletes. Des Moines was a great city to hold the event - not too big, not too small, just right. Des Moines has great trails, roads, and water for a triathlon, and the people of Des Moines supported the event too. They spectated, volunteered, and put up with an invasion of triathletes. Hy-Vee also got behind the event fully. In addition to the 1.1 million dollar prize purse, the production of the was top notch: grandstands, Jumbo-tron, live video coverage, beer gardens, concerts, and more.

The swim was the defining discipline of the race. It took place in the Des Moines River right in downtown. We swam 3 laps around 4 bouys in a 2-3 knot current by my...