The St. Marks Duathlon will be held on March 5, 2023. We hope you can come out and enjoy this fun, yet competitive, event. Proceeds from the event go to support the Gulf Winds Triathletes. Donations benefit SportsAbility Alliance Tallahassee.
The Duathlon will be a single wave start at 8:00 AM at the south end of Mock Street just west of transition.
Arrive early for best parking. Parking will be along the edge of transition. Volunteers will be there to direct you for parking as early as 6:15 AM!
Bib and t-shirt will be available on March 5, 2023, at the race site. Registrants after February 7, 2023 are not guaranteed a t-shirt. We hope to have enough t-shirts for new registrants based on prior year estimates. But if you register after February 7 we may not have your size.
The race consists of a 5K (3.1 miles) run, 20K (12.4 miles) bike, and 2.5K (1.6 miles) run in that order.
Run #1 Route Bike Route Run #2 Route
There is no Fat Tire category in USAT racing, however, the St. Marks Duathlon has elected to have such a division in an effort to allow individuals who don’t own a road or tri type bike the ability to compete with other athletes racing on similar equipment. The decision as to what is considered a “Fat Tire” bike is up to the race director. Our race committee has reviewed the issue as to what will constitute a Fat Tire bike for the race and will apply the following criteria:
· Tires – Knobby or heavily grooved tires with a width of 1.5 inches or greater. Absolutely no slick surfaced tire.
· Handlebars – Clip-on aero bars are allowed. Handlebars and stem must be fashioned to prevent danger and all handlebar ends must be plugged.
· Brakes – Consistent with USAT rules, there must be one working brake on each of the two wheels.
· Gravel bikes are acceptable as long as they have knobby or heavily grooved tires.
All other USAT rules will apply. The Race Director will make the final determination. If you have any questions, please email the Race Director
There will be three sets of markings: Yellow and White for the runs and Red for the bike. The Yellow markings are for the 5K (first run) and the White markings are for the 2.5K run. There will be mileage signs up at miles 1, 2 and 3 on the 5K. There will not be any mileage markers for the 2.5K run. The aid station (the same station for both runs) will be around the 2-mile mark on the 5k and less than a full mile on the 2.5K.
You should bring any preferred nutrition that you need for the race. We will have a water station on the run course, please discard any garbage in an appropriate receptacle and not on the course. The City of St. Marks has also been a good host to us. Let's strive to be courteous guests.
There will be 4 porta-potties on site.
If there are any last minute announcements, we will try an update the RunSignUp page (although internet is a little sketchy at the race site) and we will post on the Gulf Winds Triathletes Facebook page. You can also try and email the race director at FleetFoot@GulfWinds.org. No guarantees on prompt response but we will try and keep an eye on it.
We will do our best to have check-in open by 6:30, however, remember unlike the races many of us are used to there is no need to beat the other racers to check-in to get the best bike rack spot as your bike rack location will be pre-assigned. All racers will have to check-in with volunteer staff prior to being allowed into transition. Transition will close at 7:45 and racers should be at the race start no later than 7:50.
An email will be sent out with your bib number. We plan to start all the racers together in one wave; however, we reserve the right to have a wave start depending on the number of racers. If there is a wave start, we will notify you in advance.
We would like for you to body mark yourself prior to the race with your Bib Number and other information. Please write your Bib Number on both arms so that it is visible. Please mark your age (as of 12/31/23) on the back of your left calf. We will have body marking available at the race, however, check-in will go faster if you have pre-marked.
We will have volunteers on both the run courses and the bike courses. We plan to pre-mark the course with spray chalk, however, in the event of rain the markings could wash away. Please review the course maps on the RunSignUp site (the 2nd run link has been repaired). It is your responsibility to know the race course.
On the bike course please remember that the course is OPEN to traffic. You are required to adhere to all traffic laws, even if doing so causes you to stop or slow down. Our number one goal on the bike is getting everyone out and back safely. There will be law enforcement at the major turns and at the turn around. We also hope to have two motorcycles on the course to monitor for safety. These motorcycles are not officials; they will be looking for unsafe conduct.
You will have a race bib for timing. You must wear your bib on your front entering transition and finishing the race. If volunteer timers cannot see your bib your race or splits may not be timed correctly.
At the finish line, volunteers will need to retrieve your bib number for timing purposes. Please listen for their instruction and help them out the best you can.
Once you have completed the race, we will be allowing you to retrieve your bike and gear so that you are not required to remain at the race site any longer than you want. You will exit through the designated exit point monitored by a volunteer. Please cooperate with the volunteer as they are doing their best to make sure that your bike goes home with you and not someone else.
The event cut-off to receive an official finish time is 2 hours.
You can use this time as you like; this cut-off is for your safety. This cutoff gives you 45 minutes to complete the 5K, an hour to bike 20K and 15 minutes to run 2K.
Biking 20K within an hour is 12.4 MPH. Although we have arranged for FHP officers and volunteers at each intersection the course is open to traffic. If you can't ride your bike faster than 12.4 MPH, you don't want to be out on HWY 98 with traffic.
The award ceremony is expected to begin at 10:00 am.
There will be fluids and food post-race.
As a USAT sanctioned event the St. Marks Duathlon has a NO REFUND policy. There is a $15 fee for ANY changes to your registration.
The St. Marks Duathlon reserves the right in the event of inclement weather, emergency, or natural disaster to cancel the race or move to a later time that day. Additionally, the St. Marks Duathlon reserves the right to cancel this event due a local, state and/or federal declaration of emergency including, but not limited to COVID-19.
If you have any questions about this race, click the button below.
25 Riverside Drive, St. Marks, Florida
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