To get into this race you have to register for the ballot around November. I missed a place on the first ballot but was offered a place after the second ballot in January. I think they like to encourage an international field so it is probably easier for overseas entrants to get a place.
If you are heading over to do this race then it is worth getting there a couple of days before to ride the bike course which is pretty technical and do a swim in the bay - the water is pretty cold so it is good to have a dip before the day - makes it less of a shock on race day. It is possible to arrange to do the entire swim from the prison to the swim exit with a guide.
On the day of the race you have to get up pretty early because you have to arrive in time to catch the ferry out to Alcatraz. The race organisers try to encourage everyone (particularly first timers) to get there about 2 hours before but this is overkill. A bus takes you to the ferry – don’t miss the bus because the ferry is a few miles from transition. The start time varies each year to take account of the tide but we left the dock around 6am for a 7 o’clock start. The fog in the bay can be pretty thick but it was OK on the day we did it and you could still see the mainland from the prison.
On the way out the organisers point out the landmarks for the swim – you are basically swimming across the tide so, much like swimming across a river, you have to aim quite a long way “upstream” in order to make it to the swim exit. The faster you are the more directly you can aim for the exit. On the way out they point out three landmarks for slow, medium and fast swimmers. This is why it is useful to do the swim before the race to get your race line right – if you are too cautious you can end up swimming further than you need or if you are too punchy you end up being swept past the exit.
The boat stops in the water with engines running against the fast running tide to hold it stationary off the island and everyone piles over to one side of the boat ready for the start. Before this the Americans all sing the national anthem which completely freaked me out (apparently they do this before most races) but seeing a couple of thousand people dressed in rubber clutching their hand to their heart and bellowing out the US anthem was a pretty strange experience for your average Brit!
The professionals go first and then the amateurs start throwing themselves into the water with no regard for age groups or start times (although you are meant to go in rough waves I think). It all happens pretty fast and before you know it you are being swept away from the boat in the fast running current. Good idea to hold onto your goggles when you jump since a few people lost theirs as they hit the water (you are jumping from around 6 feet up). You also want to get away from the start pretty quickly since there are people jumping in behind you. The water is pretty cold (around 52 degrees) and some people choose to wear a neoprene swim hat under their race hat.
The water in the bay was fairly choppy and you can easily lose sight of other competitors – a few times I felt I was swimming alone and if you are sighting in the trough of a wave it can be difficult to pick out the land marks. Generally, though, just follow the main pack and you won’t go far wrong. All in all it is a pretty awesome experience and if you feel you can spare the few seconds then roll over and take a look at the prison behind you – a rare sight. When you think about the prisoners trying to escape at night with no wetsuit then you will understand why not many (if any) made it to shore. The swim is 2400 metres and whilst you must cover more than this with curved route required by the tide it does not take long to complete – I am normally cover 1500 metres in around 22 minutes and yet I covered the 2400+ in just over 30 minutes. Times vary massively depending on the tide and an ex Fulontri member Alex Viall who was doing the race for the second time was in the water for 15 minutes less this year having been caught in a counter rip tide the previous year.
The swim exit is about half a mile from the transition and you have two choices – barefoot or in shoes. If you want to choose the shoe option then you have to put these in a bag and give them to the race organisers before the start. This seemed like a waste of time so I opted for the bare foot option. I was pretty happy with the choice since although the bags are laid out in race number order it is quite tricky to find your bag (especially if you are feeling a bit dizzy after half an hour in the water). The path to transition is a bit rough but it was OK since my feet were frozen anyway.
Pretty standard transition then out on the bike. The bike course goes out along the coast towards Golden Gate Bridge and then into Golden Gate Park before returning along the same route. It is hilly and has lots of sharp turns. You have got to be pretty careful – there were some nasty accidents. I was glad that I had ridden the route a couple of days before. The bike is pretty short at only 18 miles but it feels longer with all the hills and turns. After the practice ride I took off my tri bars since I realised there would be very few chances to get into them and preferred to save the weight.
Then on to the run. This is perhaps the best part of the whole race (and I hate running!). At first it is a pretty standard flat run out along the coast but then it turns inland off the road and up through the trees on steep rocky paths. The path is narrow and by this stage the pros are starting to come back along the route at you – often down hill and very fast. You even go through a small tunnel at one point – dark, and too low to stand upright.
Then after about 4 miles you head out onto Baker Beach. The sand is pretty soft so everyone heads over to the wave line for the firmer sand. Out and back for about a mile then to the notorious sand steps. This is basically a huge rope ladder going up a very large sand dune for about 400 metres at a pretty steep angle. The trick seems to be to take it very steadily. Go too fast and fresher legs will almost certainly overtake you once you hit the road again. Once at the top of the hill, the run back from there is then pretty straight forward and with only 3 miles to go you can start to enjoy yourself. On to the finish where some pretty impressive crowds will cheer you home. I finished in 2:57 – just under my 3 hour target so was very pleased.
This is without a doubt the best triathlon I have ever taken part in and nothing like any other – highly recommended. If you want to enter go to: http://www.tricalifornia.com/alcatraz/2007/