Tagaman racers ready for road race

With only a week and a half to go before the off-road sensation that is the XTERRA Saipan Championship gives way to the endurance-testing Tagaman Triathlon, racers and organizers are paying special attention to the final details that will make the local challenge the best ever.

While triathletes are tinkering in their garages and heading down to Saipan Bike Pro in Garapan for last minute tune-ups for their two-wheeled machines, organizers are making sure that they will have a safe and exciting event when the rubber meets the road on April 8.

Some of the professional athletes are already back on island to face this weekend’s XTERRA Saipan Championship, and more multi-sport mavens are arriving daily. With that in mind, race planners are asking the community to be on the lookout for runners and bikers training along the roads. The Department of Public Safety will be on hand to ensure that all racers are well protected, but events like the XTERRA and Tagaman would not be successful without the support from the public.

In addition to the extra care taken by the drivers, organizers are asking dog owners to tie up their furry family members to avoid a mishap like the one suffered by Aussie Jason Chaulker in 2004 when he was thrown from his bike after colliding with a dog.

After testing the 2-kilometer swim behind the Pacific Islands Club, hours spent in the water, on the roads, and in the gym will soon prove their importance to the endurance aficionados expected to compete, and organizers have added a little distance to the bike course to reunite the riders with the Grotto Loop.

Two-time defending champion Olympian Olivier Marceau is back and ready to strive for a third straight PIC Double. Though he hopes to improve on his time on the lengthy bike course from PIC to Bird Island Lookout, Banzai Cliff, and back to the Hyatt Regency Saipan, this time around he will get to visit the newly reshaped Grotto Loop.

Organizers agree that the best place to view the race is on the shore at the PIC in the morning for the start of the race, but spectators will get a bird’s eye view of the triathletes in transition as well as the finish at Micro Beach about an hour and a half later.

Once the transition to the run at Micro Beach, the triathletes will run south to the Microl- Toyota turnaround and back to the American Memorial Park. Last year they had to run out to the pier’s outermost finger and to the horn in Puerto Rico, but this year the finger portion has been omitted from the course.

For more information about the 19th Tagaman Triathlon, or to obtain an application form for this April’s race, contact Frank Tudela at the MVA by calling 664-3210.