Sandusky Ironman close to maxing out

SANDUSKY -- About 2,000 athletes are registered for the Ironman 70.3 Ohio, event organizers said, and the first-time triathlon is expected to reach its capacity. The Ironman event scheduled for Sunday, July 24, in Sandusky and surrounding areas will be capped at 2,400 competitors, a number that could grow in subsequent years. Ironman and the city agreed to a three-year deal for the triathlon that will include a 1.2-mile swim, a 56-mile bike and a 13.1-mile run. "I think we'll have all we can handle this year," Ironman regional director Eric Atnip said. "We'll determine if we can take more entries after we've successfully executed the event and make sure things work. We want to work within our capacities and put on a good event. "This is in line with other events. We don't want to bring in 3,500 competitors and overwhelm the community." Atnip and other Ironmen representatives were in town Monday to talk about the race, which is one of three Ironmans being held on July 24. The others are in Malaysia and Lake Placid, N.Y. The Ironman in Lake Placid will be a full Ironman, twice the distance of the 70.3 version. The Sandusky race will begin at 6 a.m. on July 24 with competitors diving into Sandusky Bay from the Jackson Street Pier. After that, athletes will bike almost to Fremont and back before running a half marathon. The entry fee is $349. The finish line for the race will be on Columbus Avenue near Water Street. The race should end about 4 p.m. Atnip said one of the main attractions for holding the triathlon in Sandusky is a centralized transition area. Athletes will switch from swimming to biking to running all near the Paper Street District Marina. "It presented an ideal venue for us. We wanted to be in this area and needed to find a location that was good for athletes," Atnip said. "It's a centralized location and it's a single transition area and is close to our athlete village, it's close to our finish line and it's in a downtown area. It's convenient for our athletes and will create a good experience." The Ironman event will be the only one in Ohio in 2022. Delaware, Ohio, has hosted the triathlon in recent years. Competitors will bike in Erie and Sandusky counties. Atnip said the course has been more than a year in the making. "We try to find a course that looks like it works functionally well for the athletes, then we have to work with each municipality and jurisdiction and first responders to let them tell us what their concerns are," he said. "It's a year-long process to figure out where we can successfully go and find that nice mix that shows off the area." The Ironman 70.3 relies heavily on volunteers to work multiple stations. Atnip estimated that 800 to 1,000 volunteers will be needed. Volunteers can register at Ironman.com. Operations manager Alyssa Updegrave said volunteers groups can apply for grants from the Ironman Foundation. The first of more than 170 Ironman triathlons worldwide this year is scheduled for Saturday at The Woodlands, Texas. Atnip and the other Ironman representatives said they were surprised by all the things to do in the Sandusky area and hope to build on this summer's event. "At its base it's a good race with a good swim, a good bike and a good run," Atnip said. "On top of that, it has a good city with good community support. When I first came here I found out there are a lot of fun things to do outside the triathlon. "We're trying to create an event that can be sustainable longterm. It's about getting a good race under our belt and then coming back and doing it year over year. It's been a very refreshing city to work with."