CHALLENGE ROTH
IT’S ONE OF TRI’S MOST ICONIC RACES, WITH RAUCOUS CROWDS FROM START TO FINISH. BUT YOU’LL HAVE TO BE QUICK TO GET A PLACE…
Roth is the jewel in the Challenge crown and is, quite simply, unlike any other triathlon experience thanks to the all-singing crowd of 250,000, hollering support from the 6am gun until the 11pm firework display. It’s also a race course with plenty of beginner friendliness. Over to our columnist Martyn Brunt for his take…
“Roth is the best Iron race I’ve ever done. It’s superbly organised with a calm canal swim, a rolling bike course, a flat and fast run, and an astounding atmosphere thanks to thousands of tri-mad Germans. Plus there are enormous glasses of beer and unisex showers at the finish. Beware the bike course, which is harder than Jan Frodeno and Chrissie Wellington’s record finishing times suggest, and prepare to have beer sloshed on you by the Tour de France style crowds as you climb the iconic Solarer Berg.”
The big issues for beginners are likely to be the 15hr cut-off time and how hot Roth can get in July, with 2014 just one date to experience a heatwave. There’s also how darn hard it is to get a race spot, with the 6,000 places usually selling faster than the pilsner on the race’s famous ‘bier mile’. If that’s the case for you, Challenges Poznan and Regensberg are recommended Challenge alternatives…