The course description

Run- 15km

This is an undulating, rugged out and back course on 4WD Alpine National Park road with 2 creek crossings (that's 4 if you make it back). It starts near the Lake William Hovell boat ramp and heads around the lake and then alongside the King river. The turn around point is Sandy Flats where the King river crosses the road, then it's back to the lake as fast as you can.

If the 2nd river crossing is flowing too high on race day, e.g. flooding, we will extend the course on another 4WD track that has more climbing but a mountain view of the lake to make sure you get your 15kms worth of running. This has only happened once in 2022.

Kayak- 12km

Enter Lake William Hovell from the boat ramp and start your 4 laps on one of the cleanest lakes you'll ever see. The lake is well protected with mountains surrounding it, but like any lake it can get a little choppy if windy, the only other chop to deal with will be your competitors and safety boats. Those proficient in the K1 will be fine, as with all kayak events, choose a boat you don't feel tippy in as you won't enjoy your paddle.

You must wear an approved PFD, and appropriate clothing to keep you warm e.g. thermals, not cotton. If you would like to hire a kayak, paddle and/or PFD for the event contact liam@vigor.net.au

Cycle- 39km

The bike transition is next to the boat ramp, you head out onto the bitumen road (taking care on the speed humps), riding along side the King river to Cheshunt for 17kms and turn left. A further 4kms you turn left again at the Mountain View Hotel in Whitfield, and head towards the mountains. Expect a 10km hill climb with great views, the road then undulates on the Whitlands plateau. You will finish with a left into the Powers Lookout turn off onto gravel, dismount, rack your bike on the bike racks and get ready to run or cheer your team mate home. The final 3.6km run is a bonus, any or all team members can do the final run.

The course profiles

3km / 6km / 15km

The 3km course gets the first hill in the above elevation graph, you turn at Slaters Creek. There is plenty of time to walk with the family and the surface is good.

The 6km course gets the biggest hill out and back straight after Slaters Creek where the 3km run/walk turns. This is a tough 6km but you have time to walk and the views around the lake are excellent. Turning at Echo Point you can see the full length of the lake.

The 15km run as you can see in the elevation graph is undulating. The fit and strong can run it all using the downhill momentum to get up the hills. Those not at their best can walk the uphills and enjoy this stunning track in the Alpine National Park.

12km

The length of the straight is 1.5km so 4 x 3km laps gets you 12km, the perfect distance for this event.

The kayak leg often makes or break the Multi-sport event for the competitive solo athlete. This is as easy a paddle course as you would get, so for the weaker paddlers if you can get the training in and select a stable kayak you will be able to push hard and minimise the damage.

That said the strong paddlers can really nail this in a K1, over the years we’ve had world class paddlers post some really impressive times. If you like paddling fast or want to have a crack at an achievable Multi-sport event this is the event for you.

39km

Although we are biased this road course makes the best Time Trial course you will ever ride, especially if you can climb!

You can break this course in 2, first half definitely suits the strong cyclist on a Time Trial bike. But the 2nd half is all about the climb where a road bike would be best, there’s a few nasty pinches but generally it’s a 5-7% gradient.

A recent tactic in pro cycling is to swap bikes over at the bottom of the hill, don’t do that for safety reasons and keeping perspective on this small event. But for everyone who’s wondering which is the best bike, which ever bike you are most comfortable on will be your best bike for this course.