HyVee Triathlon Status: It's Officially moved to West Des Moines (Moments of Clarity)

It's official. The Hy-Vee Triathlon is moving to West Des Moines with a new format of 10k run / 40k bike / 5k run. Or a "Dry - Tri". I know some people probably had a sigh of relief considering the serious mental trauma that a long open water swim can put on the athlete. I must admit there's a part of me that didn't want to confront the demon but I'm not a fast runner and I have a bum knee...so 15k doesn't sound appealing (repulsive?).

The official statement is below.

The flooding around town is VERY bad and getting worse. Creeks along the Clive Greenbelt trail are nearing the bridge tops. The aquatic center parking lot is 1/2 flooded and obviously the trails are closed. I know in downtown and other places across the state it's MUCH worse. May God bless the families of those boy scouts killed in Northwest Iowa last night as a tornado ripped through their leadership camp. Four were killed, 48 injured, etc. This all made national news. What tragedy.

From www.hy-veetriathlon.com

HyVee Triathlon Moves to West Des Moines

With flood waters rising and predictions of more rain on the way, the June 21-22 Hy-Vee Triathlon will be moved to the campus of Valley Southwoods Freshmen High School in West Des Moines.

"Once again we realize how fortunate we are to live in a city with multiple sites capable of hosting an event of this magnitude," said Randy Edeker, Hy-Vee senior vice president of retail operations and co-chair of the event. "We are grateful to everyone who has stepped forward to ensure the success of our triathlon, from the elite races down to the kids events. It's going to be a great weekend for the thousands of people who have spent months training for the triathlon as well as spectators who come out to cheer them on."

The age-group race will be a dry tri--a 10k run, a 40k bike and a 5k run. Race officials have not yet eliminated the swim for the elite athletes.

"We know the athletes are looking forward to the Des Moines race," said Bill Burke, the race director. "The well-being of all competitors is paramount, but this is an important race for American elites. If we can find a safe and available body of water, we'd like to use it."

The six members of Team USA headed to the Summer Olympic Games in Beijing will be introduced to the world at the conclusion of the Hy-Vee World Cup Triathlon.

All activities will take place as scheduled; only the race location will change to the WDM city-school campus area. Course maps are expected to be approved and released by Friday.

The event was moved out of Des Moines so that city officials could devote their full attention and resources to flood-related issues. "We appreciate Des Moines' commitment to our event and all the support they have given us in regard to the triathlon," said Edeker. "We needed to get out of the way so they could address more critical issues."

Hy-Vee and race officials began looking for an alternate swim venue as soon as it looked like Gray's Lake might flood. But when unrelenting rains increased the bacteria levels of even those bodies of water not prone to flooding, discussions turned to a dry-tri event.

Set-up for the triathlon will begin next Monday. Information about parking and other details will be released as soon as it is finalized and will be communicated through a variety of media outlets and at www.hy-veetriathlon.com.