Although the calendar may only say late July that does not mean it is not time to be planning and training for the 31st annual XTERRA Wetsuits Mission Bay Triathlon.
The USAT sanctioned event (sdtriseries.com) is slated for Sunday, Sept. 30. The race is put on by KOZ Events and the San Diego Triathlon Series.
With races for both adults and children (as young as 6 and as old as 85), triathlon organizers expect around 1,500 participants this time around. According to race director Carrie Panek, about 85 percent of the participants come from the San Diego area.
On Sept. 25, 1974, the first modern triathlon was held by the San Diego Track Club at Mission Bay as a run, cycle, and swim. While this race looked much different than the current version, it sparked the triathlon craze that is seen today, according to Panek. The XTERRA Wetsuits Mission Bay Triathlon is celebrating its 31st anniversary, as a race designed to honor San Diego as the birthplace of the sport.
The 2018 triathlon has events for every age and ability; old to young, hard-core to first timers. There are even relay categories for friends and families to participate together. Given many people have the perception that all triathlons are extremely difficult, long distance events that would be impossible to do, KOZ Events is out to change that.  At the Mission Bay event, there will be triathlons from The Kids Itsy Bitsy Triathlon (7-10 years old): 100m swim, 2 mile bike, .75 mile run; The Mini Sprint (200-yard swim, 6 mile bike, 1.5 mile run); The Sprint – the most popular distance (1/4 mile swim, 10 mile bike, 3 mile run), and The International Distance (1,000m swim, 30k bike, 9k run.)
The XTERRA Wetsuits Mission Bay Triathlon is part of the San Diego Triathlon Series Triple Crown. Award medals from three events come together to form triathlon art that racers can hang on their walls.
The last day to sign up online for the triathlon is Friday, Sept. 28. For locals who want to support and cheer on the participants on Sept. 30, the finish line is located at Bonita Cove Park near the Belmont Park rollercoaster. Have you always wanted to do a triathlon but you don’t know how? The series offers free triathlon training through their SD Tri Series Meetup group. The next training session is Sunday, Aug. 5. The San Diego Triathlon Series offers several categories within these races that include more than just swim, bike and run: the Duathlon, run, bike, run; and the Aqua Bike, swim, bike, done.