By Athlete Ray Moran
I was looking forward to this day, having seen pictures and heard stories of past World’s Parades, and also getting another chance for a reconnaissance bike ride and getting comfortable with the course. My 2nd day in Townsville, many more athletes had arrived, and I was struck at how welcoming everyone is, happy to meet and engage, and very willing to answer every newbie question. This carries over to athletes from other countries: we’re everywhere in Townsville now, and it’s fun to make friends, discuss the event and share stories on finding the best pubs, coffee, and restaurants, in that order.
I haven’t seen any uniform swapping yet, but it’s fun to see the variety and colors, from the Aussie’s bright lime green, to Great Britain’s traditional blue, and Canada’s bright red. It’s not a competitive spirit, yet, although I’m sure that changes on race day. The other big takeaway is how many older athletes are racing in the more senior age groups. We’re everywhere, sharing stories, rocking our team kits, learning courses, and very at-ease with everything. And they’re fast! From the group runs and bikes I’ve been on, they’re quick, looking to go quicker, and always eager to meet and share stories.
This is Chester, my AG buddy and wife from Florida, who’s helped with missing gear and laughs. I have pace targets for these training outings, and I need to get into the upper portions of those zones to keep up with the pack, needing to follow to learn the course. We also have recon videos of each course to study and review them in meetings and online for tips and suggestions from our leaders. Highly organized and efficient, it certainly makes the first-time experience easier, freeing up time for other fun stuff, like writing these blogs.
I was much happier after the second ride through the twisty parts of the bike course, and turn markers are now going up, a big help. The roundabouts will be fascinating, especially for the elites on race-day, to see how disciplined the racers are traversing them. I may have to settle into an outside seat at one of the course-side restaurants, coffee, and bakery in hand, watching them stream through The Strand. There were final Q&A and instructions for the sprint-distance duathlon racers, which should be fun to watch as draft legal.
One of the more interesting rules is the riders aren’t allowed to draft behind the opposite sex, risking time penalties and possibly DQ’s for repeated infractions. Considering we’re all in padded triathlon race kits, wearing helmets and usually in full aero, how is the trailing rider supposed to know if they’re behind a man or a woman? We come in all shapes and sizes, and not easy to tell if you don’t see battle braids under helmets. Team officials have been asking the organizers for clarification for weeks, still no definitive answer, but there are many stories of riders getting time penalties, including elite athletes, for these infractions. The joking comment making the rounds is instead of shouting “On Your Right” approaching riders from behind, we’ll shout “Boy Or Girl?”
After all that, it was time to get ready for the Athletes Parade. We donned our USA parade kits, meeting at the designated spot on The Strand. Team photos were organized by race type, as different athletes arrived on different days depending on when their races were. The Aussie’s were everywhere, resplendent in their green parade kits and host nation status, and having fun. Off we went, marching along The Strand past the pubs and restaurants full of cheering supporters.
The announcer was having fun playing with the crowd, announcing each nation as they passed the review stand, with the never-ending chant of “Aussie! Aussie! Aussie! Oi! Oi! Oi!” booming across the parade ground and expo area. We countered with “USA! USA! USA!” by now fully engaged in the decibel contest. The clever Aussie’s countered with a variation of our chant, changing it to “AU-S! AU-S! AU-S!” We couldn’t counter their numerical advantage in making noise, and their home-field status in capturing the affection of the crowds.
Once assembled in the Expo, it was time for welcoming speeches. We were greeted with a traditional Aboriginal smoke welcome, where a recognized Elder from the local community welcomes people to their land. This smoking ceremony is undertaken in Aboriginal communities in order to cleanse a space in which the ceremony takes place, so as to allow peace and recognize the importance of the occasion.
That was followed by Aboriginal dances, then the Government and organization speeches. We had the local MP, Mayor, and heads of AUS Triathlon, Ironman Oceania, and World Triathlon welcome us, an athlete’s code delivered by two Australian Athletes of the Year, a Coaches code, and the games were pronounced open. The food trucks and bar were open, and many took advantage of enjoying the moment in brilliant sunshine. It was a great day, tomorrow will be less hectic as I need to get my race packet, and enjoy the sprint duathlons, which will carry on for most of the day. The sun is rising as I finish this blog, a magnificent glow of pink, orange, red and then yellow as it rises. That’s my usual call for breakfast, and start the routine again.
