Lakefront Days Triathlon To Be Held August 3
Prior Lake, Minn. – The Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community, along with the Three Rivers Park District and the City of Prior Lake, will co-sponsor the eighth annual Dakotah! Sport and Fitness Lakefront Days Triathlon. The event will be held Saturday, August 3, at Cleary Lake Regional Park in Prior Lake, in conjunction with events surrounding Prior Lake’s annual Lakefront Days celebration held the following week.
New this year for the field of up to 360 participants is a time-trial start in which swimmers line up on the beach in order of their estimated swim time with two swimmers entering the water every three seconds. This type of start helps to spread out the participants along the whole route and prevent congestion. Also new this year is a team event in which three participants each complete one leg of the triathlon.
The triathlon will start at 8:00 a.m. with a 1/4-mile swim at Cleary Lake Beach. The swim is followed by a 14-mile bicycle loop through county roads. The third component is a 3.3-mile run through Cleary Lake Regional Park. This year, for the first time, an awards ceremony will follow the event, with awards going to the top three male and top three female finishers and the first place finisher in each of the men’s and women’s age group categories. All participants will receive a t-shirt and race bag in addition to a participation medal.
Age categories are 19 and younger, 20-24, 25-29, 30-34, 35-39, 40-44, 45-49, 50-54, 55-59, 60-64, 65-69, and 70+ years of age. There are also team and elite categories.
“This is a very exciting event, and it grows better every year. Cleary Lake is a great place to hold this event,” said Dakotah! Sport and Fitness Director Tad Dunsworth. “The triathlon requires the cooperation of a number of entities including the City of Prior Lake, the Prior Lake Police Department, the Scott County Sheriff’s Department, the Prior Lake Chamber of Commerce, and 75-100 volunteers along the routes, and timing is by Front Runner Events.”
Registration and more info
The individual registration fee is $70, and the registration fee for the team event is $90. Registration closes July 28 or when the event fills. Participants may register online at www.active.com. Mail-in registration forms and additional information are available at www.dakotahsport.com. To volunteer, contact Dakotah! Assistant Director and Race Director Renee Engeman at 952-496-6875.
Cleary Lake Regional Park is located at 18106 Texas Avenue in Prior Lake.
For more information about the 30th annual Prior Lake Lakefront Days celebration on August 8-10, visit http://pllakefrontdays.blogspot.com.
About Dakotah! Sport and Fitness
The area’s premier fitness facility, Dakotah! Sport and Fitness offers a vast array of amenities with something for everyone in its 305,331-square-foot facility. Amenities include an indoor track, aquatic center, a 24-hour fitness facility, two indoor ice arenas, a double gymnasium, a cardio studio, a cycling studio, group fitness classes, free weights, circuit training equipment, and much more.
About the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community
The Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community is a federally recognized, sovereign Indian tribe located southwest of Minneapolis/St. Paul. With a focus on being a good neighbor, good steward of the earth, and good employer, the SMSC is committed to community partnerships, charitable donations, a healthy environment, and a strong economy. The SMSC and the SMSC Gaming Enterprise (Mystic Lake Casino Hotel and Little Six Casino) are the largest employer in Scott County. Out of a Dakota tradition to help others, the SMSC has also donated nearly $272 million to organizations and causes and paid more than $7.6 million for shared local road projects since 1992, in addition to funding its own infrastructure and contributing generously to regional governments and infrastructure.