Updated (March 24, 2016)- http://woodlandstx.swagit.com/play/03232016-1038/#28 Topic #11.
3 options for proposed bike course, Below is a picture of the bike course from the live video. Also a link to the course I made on MapMyRide. Yes I know it is 12 miles short, but that is the best I can do off of what they posted. I am missing a couple miles longer on each turn around. http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/1022024833
[Updated– The Montgomery County Commissioners Court deffered the topic of Ironman Texas bike course on county roads during the March 8th meeting. The next meeting is scheduled for March 22nd, 2016. Stay tuned as TRSTriathlon.com will follow the issue of the IMTX bike course.]
Last year, 2015, was the 5th and final year of the initial contract with The Woodlands Township and WTC. In March 2015, the contract was renewed for an additional five years. The new contract stated the date would remain in May for 2016, and then change to April for competitions through 2020. However, another change may be on the horizon for the Ironman course.
As many know, Ironman Texas is the North American Championship again this year. However, the bike course that is published online may not be the course athletes will be biking in less than 10 weeks.
Tomorrow morning, Tuesday March 8th, at 9:30am CT, the Montgomery County Commissioners Court will be holding a meeting regarding the Ironman Texas bike course. The current bike course for Ironman Texas not only rides through The Woodlands, but several surrounding communities. Many of those community members have voiced strong oppositions to hosting the Ironman Texas bike course on their roads. Many bikers can be seen riding the course throughout the year, and weeks leading up to the race. Signs declaring “No Shoulder No Bikes” can be seen on the northern portion of the course.
Many athletes may not notice the change in the actual bike course, since the general profile and race conditions will be the same as years past. However, The Woodlands is a prime location for coaching camps year round, allowing athletes to experience the run and bike course first hand. Professional and amateur athletes alike, travel to The Woodlands to better prepare for the upcoming race. Endurance Nation & Team Marsh will each be hosting a camp March 17-20, while Outrival Racing (now a part of QT2 Systems) will be hosting a camp April 15-17th, to name a few.
To stay up to date with this late breaking development for Ironman Texas 2016, viewers can watch a live stream of the Montgomery Country Commissioners Court tomorrow, 9:30am CT, from home and see first hand development of the new bike course or the further unknown.
Click Here for Live Stream Link
Below is the link to the agenda for March 8th, 2016. You can see the Ironman agenda item at 19.C.1.
Stay tuned, as TRS Triathlon will be providing further updates as the story develops.
