Ironman U.S. Championship - This Weekend in NYC/NJ

UPDATE, 8/11: Track Ironman U.S. Championship participants here.

UPDATE, 8/10 p.m.: The swim is ON! The sewage problem in the Hudson River has cleared up enough for people to go back on the water, so the the U.S. Ironman Championship will indeed include the swim as well as the run and bike. At 4:30 Friday afternoon the Ironman folks announced on Twitter, "We are excited to announce that we will proceed with the 2.4-mile swim in the Hudson River during tomorrow's inaugural #IMNYC."

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The Ironman U.S. Championship takes place this Saturday, August 11th in New York City and adjacent New Jersey (and, for the swim portion, in the Hudson River separating them). See below for links and details on the event.

The inaugural U.S. Ironman Championship comes to NYC this Saturday.

This inaugural Ironman U.S. Championship is also the first time an Ironman event has been held in the nation's largest city, and is the most urban area to ever host an Ironman. The Ironman U.S. Championship includes: a 2.4-mile swim in the Hudson River, a 112-mile bike ride on the Palisades Interstate Parkway in Bergen County (NJ) and Rockland County (NY), and a 26.2-mile run that starts in New Jersey and goes over the George Washington Bridge to conclude in Riverside Park on the west side of Manhattan.

Here is specific information on the Ironman U.S. Championship course and other details about the event:

• swim course (with map)
• bike course (with map)
• run course (with detail maps)
• Ironman U.S. Championship transition map (PDF file)
• rules and regulations
• athlete's FAQ (frequently asked questions)
• athlete guide (link to PDF file)
• event schedule (PDF file)

Spectator information: See the Ironman site's comprehensive guide to watching this Saturday's triathlon (PDF file), which is several pages long and gives a number of maps, and suggests a number of viewing locations on both sides of the Hudson.

Let's hope the weather is good for the first-ever U.S. Ironman Championship in the New York City region. Best of luck to all participants!

New York City/New Jersey Ironman is a Go for 2012 - Registration Info

[UPDATE: See links and information on the Aug. 11th U.S. Ironman Championship in NYC/NJ.]

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There has long been discussion about having an Ironman in New York City, and today it has officially become a reality. An announcement on Ironman.com revealed that the inaugural NYC/NJ triathlon will take place next summer, and that it will be the 2010 Ironman U.S. Championship. The statement said in part:

"World Triathlon Corporation and New York City Triathlon announced today that the 2012 Ironman U.S. Championship will take place on August 11, 2012. This race will be the first-ever Ironman competition to be held in the New York City/New Jersey metropolitan region."

According to the race's site, www.ironmanuschampionship.com, online registration begins June 15th at 12 p.m. Eastern time (see the General Entry page). You'll find maps and descriptions of the 2012 Ironman U.S. Championship course here.

The race will cover 140.6 miles in New York City and nearby areas of New Jersey and NY State. Along with a 2.4-mile swim in the Hudson River, the course will feature a 112-mile bike ride on the scenic Palisades Parkway through Bergen (NJ) and Rockland (NY) Counties and a full marathon that will begin in Fort Lee, NJ and finish in Riverside Park on Manhattan's Upper West Side.

The entry fee for the NYC/NJ Ironman has not yet been set, according to an article from Bloomberg News, but it says that "A typical Ironman race costs $575 to take part in." (The General Entry page above says today that entry fee details are "coming soon.")

This should be an exciting event for the tri-state area, and I'm looking forward to watching or volunteering at the inaugural NYC Ironman. Congrats to all who worked hard to make this event happen.