Jeremy Evans will dig into the Saranac River on March 2, 2024 on the second to second leg of the Saranac Lake 3P Multisport Race. Evans finished the 12.22 mile course at 1:19:35. (Enterprise Photo – Aaron Marborn)
Saranac Lake – Over 130 athletes were already registered on March 1st.
The contestants will ski, cross country ski, kayaking, bike, and ride 13.4 miles of courses, combining multiple sports into one big shoulder season event celebrating the many types of sports on Lake Saranac.
Saranac Lake 3P co-organizer Joe Williams said registrations are still open until next Wednesday. Competitors can race as individuals or as teams, with teammates taking on different feet in multisport racing.
“It’s a joy to see the core group of people who are involved in everything.” said Williams. “They were the first to sign up.”
He is also excited to see a bunch of new names. “Critical Mass” of the formation of Rochester.
Chelsea Hamilton of team “Butt Sweat and Beers” will run over Mount Pisga in the first leg of the Lake Saranac 3P Multisport Race on March 2, 2024. (Enterprise Photo – Aaron Marborn)
They expect 150 competitors by race day. Last year, 140 racers were brought to life at a temperature of 33 degrees.
Williams said the area is seeing the strongest winter ever in races.
He remembers last year worrying about enough snow in Dewey Mountain. Mount Pisga was not even Scickle a week before the race. This year, they are paying more attention to the ice buildings on the edge of the Saranac River.
“The spirit of lace is to do our best we can, with Mother Nature giving us.” said Williams.
The key is to go out and enjoy even if one or more sports have unwanted conditions.
Etta Neill from the team Pisgah Pixies smiles when he takes off on the bike section of his kids’ three-part multi-sport race on March 2, 2024.
The race begins at 9am at Pisgamount Ski Center. Racers skin or snowshoe to the top of the 274-foot ski area before installing bikes for skiing, attaching bikes and riding Dewey Mountain Recreation Center about 2.7 miles away. At Dewey, you will need two rounds of cross-country skiing or scramble (snowshoes) to Beaver Park and enter the Saranac River. After being placed in the cold waters, they paddle 2.4 miles downstream to the Fish and Game Club on Lake Saranac, then run uphill to the finish line at Mount Pisgah.
Three-P races are more common on the West Coast. Lake Saranac is one of the only officials east of the Rockies that local organizers know are currently active. Williams said there was a discussion on Facebook about a similarly styled multisport race in Vermont.
At each venue along the Saranac Lake 3P race course, dozens of spectators lined up along the route, standing between the trees, on sidewalk streets, on bridges above the river, shaking cowbells furiously, Blow the horns and cheer on the racers. Friends and teammates.
“The idea is to celebrate Lake Saranac here. You don’t have to be a racer to do that.” said Williams.
Williams said the racers usually finish with the two-hour mark. Last year, Keith Cogut, Scandinavian ski coach and band director at Saranac Lake High School, notched his second-place first-place finish at 1:13:20. He has wiped out all three-point races so far, “Defeat Kogut” His team of students gathered last year to beat his title.
“Defeat Kogut” Member Jordanna Sambara said that the group is not in college this year so they cannot attempt another takedown of their arch rival, but they will be rooting for the racers from afar.
Williams said he hit Cogut last year at Casa del Sol after the race, and Cogutt said “Cheers to the town.” His finish time was 2:17 faster than the next finisher – the state team of the Environmental Protection Agency’s Forest Rangers. Williams said the Rangers are back in threesome this year.
At noon, a child between 5-15 years old skis (downhill and cross-country), bikes, tubes, run, pushing the kicked red into the finish line, and there will be a child threesome on Mount Pisga. Last year’s race brought 35 young racers.
The awards ceremony follows the kids’ race, along with the community celebrating the outdoor venue at Saranac Lake, hosted by RiverTrail Beerworks.
Registrations for both races can be found at saranaclake3p.org/registration. Race maps can be found at Saranaclake3p.org.
As of Wednesday, 29 individual competitors were registered. There are two young adults individual registrations, a team of 10 people, a team of 4 of 24 people, a team of 5 of 10 people, and a team of 6 of 25 people. There is also a three-child 3P registry and a 27-child team.
