Participants will get a taste of the history while getting some exercise in an upcoming race along the pathway of the Erie Canal.
The Mohawk Towpath National Scenic Byway is holding its eighth annual duathlon on Sunday, Oct. 17, starting at 9 a.m. at Krause’s Grove located on 2 Beach Road in Halfmoon. The duathlon is a 2.2-mile run followed by a 16-mile bike stretch and ending with a 2.2-mile run to the finish line. A youth race will begin at 8:30 a.m.
It is a good community event that will introduce people to the scenic byway, said Larry Syzdek, chairman of the Mohawk Towpath Scenic Byway Coalition. `Most the people that live in the area don’t understand the great history the area has.`
The full towpath stretches along the route of the Erie Canal from Waterford and Cohoes to Schenectady, so the duathlon gives people a change to see a stretch of the pathway route. This year is also the five-year anniversary of the byway being designated as one of America’s Byways through the National Scenic Byways Program.
So far there are more 130 people registered for the event, said Eric Hamilton, executive director of the coalition and organizer of the race. This is already an increase from last year’s numbers, which totaled 110 participants. The total number of people allowed in the race is 200 for this year, Hamilton said, because if they went over that number, the race might get `unwieldy` from a public safety standpoint.
Hamilton said part of the reason for the rise in participants this year is due to the race being sanctioned by the USA Triathlon association.
`It will be interesting to see if these USA Triathlon members are more serious,` said Hamilton. `The loops that we have are on the short side, so it is more of a sprint type of a event than normal triathlon legs. These guys are used to a longer running and some of them do a longer biking leg in triathlon events.`
The duathlon was sanctioned by a different organization in previous years.
`It is a great event because it is not a full marathon,` said Syzdek.
A normal triathlon, said Hamilton, would be swimming to biking and finishing off with running, but swimming in October isn’t something most people would look forward to doing. Also, the less strenuous course offers families an opportunity to sign up for the event together.
`You get the family group to sign up for a team, which makes for good team spirit and family spirit,` said Syzdek. `We have a lot of father-son and mother-daughter team combinations.`
There are three different categories people can sign up for, which is youth, individual and team. Then within those categories there are groups to further divide participants into fair categories. Teams can also split up the race, so one person does the running and the other does the biking portion.
There will be `prime` prizes for the first, second and third place finishers of the race, said Syzdek, but the first three finishers in each age group and the first place male, female and team will get a custom cast Mohawk Towpath Byway medal. There will also be drawings for various gift certificates from local communities. In order to get a medal or prize, participants need to stay for the awards ceremony at 11 a.m.
`The duathlon is really reaching the people that I would associate more with athletic events,` said Hamilton. `The reason why I got interested in the Mohawk Towpath Byway is because of all the recreational assets along the byway.`
While pre-registration period for the race has expired, registrations can be made the day of the race before 8:30 a.m. with an entry fee of $30. All participants are required to be USA Triathlon members, but a one-day membership is available for $10. The membership covers cost of insurance and other expenses.
`This allows us to promote the scenic byway and maintain a scenic conservation area and have people appreciate their own backyard,` said Syzdek.“