IronKids National Championship

HOST HOTEL:

The Hampton Inn and Suites will be the host hotel for the IronKids St. Petersburg race and the IronKids National championship.  They are offering special rates to all IronKids athletes and families. 

Room rates are $119 for a standard (2 queen beds or 1 king bed) and $139 for the suites.

To book your rooms, please call (727) 892-9900 or visit their website at http://www.stpetehamptonsuites.com/ 

The Courtyard Marriot will offer a rate of $109.00 + tax (1 king bed with a sleeper sofa) per night including a continental breakfast or $5.95 additional per person for a full breakfast buffet.

To book your room at the special IronKids rate please visit the website by clicking here or calling (727) 450-6200 .

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED!

We are recruiting a team of dedicated volunteers to assist in helping each participant reach their goal of finishing!  Are you part of a charitable organization? We have opportunities for groups such as schools, clubs, churches and other not-for-profit organizations to volunteer at the event.  Individuals are also welcome and needed to help with the event.  Please click the button below to sign-up for the event! 

IRONKIDS NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP SCHEDULE:

This schedule had details pending however we will have more details in the coming weeks:

Saturday 

2:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m. - Registration

2:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m. - Free Transition Clinic

3:00 p.m. - 3:45 p.m. - Course Talk

3:45 p.m. - 4:45 p.m. - Team 'Meet & Greet'

5:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m. - Coach 'Meet & Greet' and open forum

Sunday

7:00 a.m.- 8:15 a.m.- Senior IronKids St Petersburg Race

8:15 a.m. - 9:00 a.m.- Intermediate IronKids St Petersburg Race 

9:15 a.m.- 9:45 a.m.-  Junior IronKids St Petersburg Race

10:00 a.m.- 10:45 a.m. - IronKids St Petersburg Awards and National Qualifier Listing

11:00 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. - IronKids National Championship Course Talk (Mandatory)

12:00 p.m. - 1:00 p.m. - Senior IronKids National Championship

1:00 p.m. - 1:45 p.m. - Intermediate IronKids National Championship

2:00 p.m. - 2:30 p.m. - Junior IronKids National Championship

3:00 p.m. - 3:45 p.m. - IronKids National Championship Awards Ceremony

3:45 p.m. - 6:00 p.m. - IronKids pool party and BBQ with DJ! 

REGISTRATION AND PACKET PICK-UP:

Athlete registration, packet pick-up and expo hours are as follows:  Saturday, October 2 , from 2:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. and on Sunday, October 3, (race day!) from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. 

EXPO HOURS:

Saturday, October 2, from 2:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. and on Sunday, (race day!) from 5:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. 

REGISTRATION AND PACKET PICK-UP FORMAT

The National Championship is for qualified athletes ONLY.  There will be a race before the National Championship - the IronKids St Petersburg which is open for anyone to register. 

When you arrive at North Shore Park there is a large tented area where registration and packet pick-up is located.  There will be numbered tables under the tents (with volunteers to help guide you).  You will need to visit many of these tables to ensure you are properly registered and ready to race!   A parent or a legal guardian must be present during athlete check-in to sign waivers.  There will be a number of tables in the tent (with volunteers to help guide you), many of which you will need to visit to ensure you are properly registered and ready to race! A parent or legal guardian and the athletes must be present during athlete check-in to sign waivers.

The tables will be as follows:

Athlete Check-in and New Registrations – Everyone must complete a waiver to start the registration process, even if you accepted it during your on-line registration. New registrations will need to complete a registration form, Waiver and USAT Membership form.

USAT Membership - It is mandatory that ALL PARTICIPANTS have a current USAT Youth Membership. A one-year membership is $5. If you already have a membership or have registered online with your membership number, you must show your USAT card at this point.

Waivers - Parents/guardians must sign all waivers in order for their child/children to participate. Athlete Check-in – Parent/guardian and participant must go to this table. We will cross reference your online registration and you will be asked to sign the waivers and will be given their racer number. PLEASE NOTE: IF YOU ALREADY HAVE A USAT MEMBERSHIP THAT YOU DID NOT PURCHASE ON-SITE OR WHEN REGISTERING ONLINE THROUGH ACTIVE.COM/IRONKIDS YOU WILL BE REQUIRED TO SHOW YOUR USAT YOUTH MEMBERSHIP CARD. IF YOU DO NOT SHOW THIS ID YOU WILL BE REQUIRED TO PURCHASE A MEMBERSHIP ON-SITE. NO EXCEPTIONS

You will then proceed to another table where you will pick up the following:

1. Goodie Bag – Pick up a cool K-Swiss IronKids goodie bag

2. Aqua Sphere swim cap. IT IS MANDATORY TO WEAR THE SWIM CAP THAT IS PROVIDED FOR YOU. The swim caps are color-coded for each age group (Yellow 6-8, red 9-11, and blue 12-15). Participants cannot trade for another color.

3. Athlete and Guardian wristband

4. Race Bib (to wear on the front of shirt or race belt), bike frame sticker, helmet sticker and number sticker for your personal belongings bag. There will be safety pins with your race bib.

5. Timing Chip – Pick-up your assigned timing chip

6. T-shirt - Pick up your groovy IronKids T-shirt!　

AGE GROUPS:

Distances for the IronKids Triathlon will vary depending on the age of participants:

• Junior (ages 6 to 8): 50-yard swim, 2-mile bike and 500-yard run
• Intermediate (ages 9 to 11): 150-yard swim, 4-mile bike and 1-mile run
• Senior (ages 12 to 15): 300-yard swim, 8-mile bike and 2-mile run

In accordance with USA Triathlon rules, an athlete’s racing age is his/her age on December 31^st of the competition year. IronKids will assign athletes to their respective age division according to their age on December 31^st per USAT rules.

TRANSITION AND BIKE CHECK-IN:

Transition and bike check-in is ONLY ON RACE DAY.  The transition will open to all age divisions at 10:30 a.m. and will close at 11:45 a.m.  Transition will open from 12:45 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. for the Intermediate Division and from 1:45 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. for the Junior Division.  Once transition closes, participants and parents must exit the transition and make their way to the swim start (which is close).  Parents are allowed in transition to help rack bikes and help set up participant transition area.  PARENTS ARE NOT ALLOWED IN THE TRANSITION DURING THE RACE.  We will have volunteers in the transition to help kids find their way to their bikes and ensure participants have their helmets on before starting the race.  Two participants will be able to share a bike if they are in SEPARATE DIVISIONS (Junior, Intermediate, Senior).

BODY MARKING:

Participants will have race numbers marked on their arms and legs.  Each participant will have his/her age on the back of his/her leg in marker.

RACE BRIEFING:

There will be a race briefings on Sunday at 11:00 a.m. - 11:45 a.m.

SWIM START:

The swim start will be one participant at a time with approximately 3-seconds intervals.  The Senior Division will start at 12:00 p.m.  The Intermediate Division will start at approximately 1:00 p.m. (when the last Senior has completed the bike course).  The Junior Division will start at 2:00 p.m. (when the last Intermediate has completed the bike course).  The swim order will be announced closer to the event.

SWIM COURSE AND WATER SAFETY:

Wetsuits are NOT allowed.  We will have a large team of Lifeguards and Water Safety Marshals that will be on the pool edge. 

TRANSITION:

Transition and bike check-in is ONLY ON RACE DAY.  Transition will only be open from 10:30 - 11:30 a.m.  Once transition closes, participants and parents must exit the transition and make their way to the swim start (which is close). Parents are allowed in transition to help rack bikes and help set up participant transition area. PARENTS ARE NOT ALLOWED IN THE TRANSITION DURING THE RACE. We will have volunteers in the transition to help kids find their way to their bikes and ensure participants have their helmets on before starting the race. If you have one bike to be used by two different athletes in SEPARATE DIVISIONS, they will be able to share a bike. Please make sure that they are in separate divisions (Junior, Intermediate and Senior).

The swim-to-bike transition and the bike-to-run transition are in the same place.  Each participant will have a spot to rack his/her bike and set up necessary equipment. 

Athletes will be assigned designated spots, unlike other IronKids races.  You will be assigned a specific spot that will coorespond with your race number.  Moving bikes will result in disqualification.

BIKE COURSE:

The bike course will be on roads closed to motor traffic.  Each division will be on the same two-mile, out-and-back course, with loops of the course for the Senior and Intermediate Divisions.  We will have volunteers and signs directing participants, however please make sure your child knows what division he/she is in, as we will be referring to the course based on division (Junior, Intermediate, Senior).  Mile markers (large signs) will be along the course. 

RUN COURSE:

The run course will be on paved walkway and grass.  Please make sure your child knows what division he/she is in, as we will be referring to division to help direct participants along the course.  On the run course, the directional signs will be color-coded: yellow for Junior, orange for Intermediate and light blue for Senior.   

AID STATIONS:

There will be one aid station in the transition, no aid stations on the bike course and one aid station on the run course.  Aid stations will have water. 

TIMING:

Our race will be chip-timed.  EACH PARTICIPANT MUST WEAR A TIMING CHIP AT ALL TIMES DURING THE RACE OR HE/SHE WILL NOT RECEIVE A TIME RESULT AND WILL NOT BE ELIGIBLE TO QUALIFY FOR THE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP OR FOR THE SENIOR DIVISION AWARDS.  Once the participant has crossed the finish line there will be volunteers retrieving the timing chip.  ALL TIMING CHIPS MUST BE RETURNED.  Timing results will be posted on the IronKids website.  Timing will be done by Ironman Timing.

MEDALS AND AWARDS:

The primary mission of IronKids is to deliver a high quality youth triathlon experience for the entire family that is focused on fitness, fun and safety. In keeping with this mission, all finishers will receive commemorative medals.

Trophies will be awarded to the Top 5 finishers in each individual age group per gender (i.e. Top 5 Boys age 6, Top 5 Girls age 6). 

PHOTOGRAPHY:

The IronKids race course has been designed to make the race safe, fun and easy for parents to photograph.  Even though our start, transition and finish line are close together, it may be hard to get every shot you want. ASI will be our designated race photography company that will be on the course and at the finish line to get you the best shots possible.  Click here to view and purchase all race photos!

GENERAL RULES

IronKids follows all USAT rules and regulations.  For a complete list of rules, please visit the USAT Website listed below

 http://www.usatriathlon.org/resources/about-events/rules

• Designated swim caps must be worn
• No nudity in the transition
• Upper torso must be covered during the bike and run portion (shirt or full swim suit)
• Bike helmets must be worn at all times on the bike with the chinstrap buckled
• No riding bikes in the transition area
• Timing chip must be worn at all times during the race to receive race times
• Race numbers (bibs) must be worn at all times during the bike and run portion
• Parents are not allowed in the transition during the race (except during open set-up times)
• Cyclists must stay two bike lengths behind the participant in front, except when passing
• Pass on the left, slower cyclists stay on right

WHAT TO BRING (EQUIPMENT):

• Swim suit
• Goggles
• Towel
• Bike
• Helmet
• Sunscreen
• Shirt
• Shorts
• Running shoes
• Hat

TEAMS:

New to the 2010 series is the Teams Division. A Team is defined as a sport club, sports team, school or shop that have a youth triathletes that will be represented as a “Team”. A trophy will be awarded to the coach of the top finishing team. If you are on a triathlon team and did not register as part of a team, please let our registration team know. If you are part of a team, please identify yourself at registration so that we can make sure that we have your on our Teams list.

The Top 3 overall teams will be awarded with a trophy 

Team Points are as follows:

First place – 10 points

Second place – 8 points

Third place – 6 points

Fourth place – 4 points

Fifth place – 2 points

Per participating team member – 1 point

MILITARY DIVISION    

Children in the Military Division will race in their age category however will have separate awards category.  The Top finisher in each age group (in the Military Division) will receive a trophy.

The IronKids environment is a safe and fun place for kids to participate in the great sport of triathlon. In order to ensure that our children walk away with the best experience, we need to uphold a positive and supportive atmosphere at all times. Parents are asked to be supportive of all the children that are out there trying their best to achieve their goals.

Bad conduct from a parent can result in a disqualification of their own child and ultimately a ban from all IronKids races. Bad conduct constitutes the following (but not limited to): Negative comments to your own child or another child; yelling at volunteers, race officials, other parents or participants; interference with participants or race officials, etc.,

Any disputes must be taken up with a race official (not a volunteer). The protocol for a dispute is to go to the registration booth and ask to have a race official be notified. Once the race official is with you, please calmly explain your dispute. It is our goal to have everyone walk away with a great experience so we will do our best to resolve all issues in a timely and pleasant manner.

IronKids is sponsored nationally by: K-Swiss, Aqua Sphere, Foster Grant and Timex.  The IronKids St. Petersburg Triathlon is sponsored by the City of St. Petersburg and the Visit St. Petersburg/Clearwater Conventions & Visitors Bureau.