Sunday’s Boston Triathlon is being postponed due to high temperatures.
Josh Brogader has the details.
“The heat wave just kept building and building and building, and it wasn’t clearing at all.”
It’ll be a banner beach day on Sunday at Carson Beach in South Boston. What will be day six of this heat wave and a chance to cool off in Dorchester Bay.
But it wouldn’t be a great one to be on roads around the beach, running and biking two legs of the Columbia Thread Needle Investments Boston Triathlon in high nineties temps plus humidity, not to mention thousands of spectators
along the route.
And so the 14th annual race is postponed until next month due to the heat.
“EMS said, you know, this is just not a safe event for anybody. If you’re dedicating emergency resources to this race and the air conditioning goes home in an elderly home, somewhere in the city, and you don’t have the resources to support those people. That’s not right as well.”
Race Director Mike O’Neal said they worked with several city and state agencies to coordinate a year in advance, but somehow they were able to move the kids’ race to Saturday, August 20th and the Triathlon with thousands of participants to Sunday, August 21st.
“I think the athletes’ safety, um, is important, but also the volunteer safety and all the people that, that come together to, to make the event happen.”
“But I always say that, um, it’s harder to support a triathlon than to race a triathlon from a hydration standpoint, ’cause you’re out in the sun, you’re forgetting to hydrate. You’re, you’re just caught up in the excitement of it all. And by the end of the day, you’re just absolutely wiped out. That’s in, that’s under normal summer conditions not what we’re experiencing in Boston right now.”
