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Ironman Western Australia course announced

World Triathlon Corporation has officially announced the new course for Ironman Western Australia 2010, to be held in Busselton on Sunday, December 5.

• One-lap swim east to west around Busselton Jetty
• Three-lap bike using Forest Beach Road and Tuart Drive
• Four-lap run incorporating the foreshore and Busselton CBD
• New finish line on Queen Street in the heart of Busselton township
• New transition area in Signal Park
• Improved spectating and race atmosphere

The one-lap, 3.8km swim will still round the iconic Busselton Jetty. However, swimmers will start on the jetty’s eastern side outside the Goose Hotel, round the jetty to their left and finish on its western side, the opposite way to which the leg has been conducted in recent years.

WTC general manager Shane Smith said this allowed the swim exit to be closer to the new transition area in the waterfront Signal Park. “We decided to move the transition area closer to town,” Smith said. “We have created a defined race precinct in Queen Street, where the swim finish, the transition area, the turnaround point and the finish line are all now located within 300 metres.

“We are expecting a much bigger crowd now that we have moved the race precinct into town near all the coffee shops and other businesses; it will be a much nicer environment in which to watch the event.”

The new three-lap, 180.2-kilometre bike course avoids using the Bussell Highway by taking riders out of town on Layman Road to Forest Beach Road, where the first turning mark will be located. “We have replaced Geographe Bay Road with Forest Beach Road, which is a beautiful coastal road that passes through farmland on one side and the beach on the other,” Smith said. “Cutting out Geographe Bay Road on the bike course will allow the runners to run freely, which is an important part of the marathon. We don’t want runners and bikes on the same course.”

The second section of the bike course takes riders out to the 33-kilometre mark on Tuart Drive just before the Busselton Bypass. Here they will make a 180-degree turn and ride 12 kilometres to the intersection of Tuart Drive and Rushleigh Road. From here riders return to Layman Road and follow it back into town for the lap turnaround.

After three laps riders dismount their bikes at Signal Park to prepare for the run leg. Athletes will leave the transition area and head back into Queen Street where they will run up the right hand side of the road to the turnaround point on the corner of Duchess and Queen Streets. They will then head back through the transition area and onto Geographe Bay Road, on which they follow the coastline between the King Street car park and Morgan Street, before returning to Signal Park.

“The run course is now four laps to allow for spectator participation and to help build up the excitement,” Smith said. “The run will be a better experience for the athletes because they will get to run into town and enjoy the atmosphere. We have also tried to incorporate more loops than out-and-backs, so we will only have runners heading in one direction on the narrow path on Geographe Bay Road.”

The finish chute will no longer be located in Barnard Park. Instead the finish chute will be moved to Queen Street, in the heart of Busselton’s CBD, to provide for an incredible race finish atmosphere.