Start saving your pennies because Specialized has a carbon treat for you an upgrade to their popular Transition bike line. After many months in development Specialized is ready to show us they mean business with their all new 2008 FACT (Functional Advanced Composite Technology) carbon chassis bike frames for their Transition bike line. Not only have they designed a sweet looking aero dynamic frame they have enhanced it with some distinctive components. All of the bikes will have the Specialized FACT N'Aero fork, with alloy 1" steerer, the new S-Works Integrated Brake System and a Body Geometry TriTip saddle.

The S-Works Integrated Brake System has the rear brake tucked under the bottom bracket and both brakes use a center-pull brake component. The TriTip saddle uses the same medically tested design as the Toupe saddle but with more appropriate shaping and padding for comfort while riding in an aerodynamic position.

Specialized will have four versions of the Transition: S-Works, Pro, Expert, and Comp. All versions will have the same frame design but with different component packages. They will offer 4 frame sizes from Small to XL and each version will have a unique color scheme.

Specialized 2008 Transition S-Works

Key Features:
• S-Works FACT 9R N'Aero tube shape frame, compact aero geometry, vertical seat adjustment
• Zipp Vuka Aero carbon aero bar combo
• SRAM 10-speed drivetrain with SRAM Force aero shifters
• S-Works FACT carbon crankset, integrated oversize design
• Zipp 404 Carbon wheelset
• Two carbon posts: one with zero offset, one with layback

Ironman South Africa which takes place in Port Elizabeth, South Africa has moved the date of their race out one month. The triathlon which has taken place in the month of March since 2005 has possibly been moved permanently to the month of April based on their reasoning. The race date for the 2008 Spec-Savers Ironman South Africa will Sunday, April 13, 2008. According to the statement on the race website, the reasoning for the move is to give everyone an extra month to train and to reduce the risk of strong winds on race day. The rumor is that the extra month to train is intended to attract more international triathletes from the Northern Hemisphere to the race.

Registration is currently open for the 2008 Ironman South Africa triathlon, check the race website for details. The cost for International athletes until the end of December 2007 will be €350 Euros. After that the cost will increase to € 400 Euros. Registration will close on March 10th, 2008. The 2008 race will have a total of 30 qualifying slots to the Ford Ironman World Championships race in Kona, Hawaii.

Endurance Sports Travel which provides travel packages to many Ironman races around the world currently has a chance for you to win an all expense paid trip to Ironman South Africa 2008. The package includes airfare, 6 nights accommodation, an entry into the race, transportation, daily breakfast and many more things. Visit their website to fill out an entry form for your chance to win.

David Thompson and Leanda Cave have done it again, this time in Lakeport, CA in the 2nd race of the Triathlon One O One series. For their victory they each pick up another nice $10,000 check for their effort. Both David and Leanda raced a week ago at the Escape From Alcatraz triathlon, Leanda picked up the win on the women's side and David was 6th and again had the fastest bike split.

This race in Lakeport, CA wasn't anything like the race in Bradenton, FL, this course was a challenge to the athletes out there and you can see that by looking at the finishing times. The weather was perfect with temps in the mid 70's, cloudy skies and hardly any wind.

Leanda Cave was the first woman to exit the swim and held off Karen Holloway on the bike all day. Kim Loeffler who was 9:45 minutes back on the bike at mile 65 (6th place) surged on the run to get 2nd place behind Leanda, she finished 5 minutes back. This time David Thompson wasn't 3 minutes back on the swim exit like he was in Florida; this time he was the second male to exit the swim right behind Brian Lavelle. David took the lead on the bike while Brian Lavelle and second year pro Jordan Rapp battled for 2nd. In Florida, David took a 5 minute lead in to T2 but in Lakeport the gap was down to under 2 minutes. Once David was on the run he was able to build up a 6 minute lead and hold on for the victory finishing 4 minutes ahead of 2nd place Jordan Rapp who had a DNF in Florida. WAY TO GO DKT!!!

Triathlon One O One - Clear Lake Race Results:

For more results and coverage of the race in Clear Lake check the Triathlon One O One website (link).

Race coverage from the Slowtwitch.com website (link).

On Sunday, June 17, 2007 elite triathletes from around the world will gather in Des Moines, Iowa to compete in the only BG Triathlon World Cup race in the U.S. in 2007 for the largest prize purse in triathlon history at the inaugural Hy-Vee BG World Cup. The Olympic distance (1.5km Swim, 40km Bike, 10km Run) triathlon will feature an amazing purse prize of $700,000 dollars. The 1st place winners in the men’s and women’s divisions will each leave with a prize of $200,000 dollars and a Hummer H3 vehicle. The stellar international field of athletes will have the who's who of triathlon and will include 16 Americans, 8 women and 8 men. The triathlon is a qualifying event for the 2008 Olympics so athletes from all over the world will be there competing.

American Women: Laura Bennett, Julie Swail, Sarah Haskins, Sara McLarty, Jasmine Oeinck, Margaret Shapiro, Sarah Groff, Joanna Zeiger

American Men: Andy Potts, Hunter Kemper, Matt Reed, Brian Fleischmann, Doug Friman, Joe Umphenour, Jarrod Shoemaker, Mark Fretta

Top Ranking Women: Erin Densham (AUS), Emma Snowsill (AUS), Kirsten Sweetland (CAN), Samantha Warriner (NZL), Michelle Dillon (GBR), Magali Di marco Messmer (SUI)

Top Ranking Men: Javier Gomez (ESP), Filip Ospaly (CZE), Kris Gemmell (NZL), Brad Kahlefeldt (AUS), Simon Whitfield (CAN), Bevan Docherty (NZL), Alexander Brukhankov (RUS), Shane Reed (NZL)

An ITU World Cup race is different than the normal triathlons we are accustomed to in the U.S. since the bike leg format is draft legal. The action is fast and furious all the way to the finish line. The world cup race in Des Moines will feature a 6 lap bike course and a 4 lap run course which will give spectators a great opportunity to see these triathletes in action.

Vista, CA (June 14, 2007) - Zoot Sports, a global leader in premium multisport apparel and wetsuits, introduces the first triathlon specific footwear line – the ULTRA Footwear Collection. Zoot Sports has a long tradition of creating innovative products for multisport athletes. This tradition began in 1983 when Christal Nylin created the first triathlon specific product - the Zoot Racesuit. In staying true to Zoot’s philosophy of “Finding Product Solutions for Multisport Athletes,” the Zoot Product Team reacted to consistent feedback from athletes about the problems with running footwear for triathlons.

After years of studying triathletes and further reinforced by athlete focus groups, Zoot Sports identified four inherent footwear problems specific to triathletes:

Speed of Entry - The need to get in and out of T2 as quickly as possible
Sockless Wear - Triathletes don’t want to take the time to put socks on
Water Retention - Studies have shown that traditional running shoes can gain an additional 30% of their weight during a race
Biomechanics - Athletes run differently after racing a bike

The solution to these problems is the ULTRA Line of Footwear. The initial ULTRA line of Zoot Footwear includes four models in both men’s and women’s styles: the ULTRA Race, an 8.4 ounce neutral racing shoe; the ULTRA TT, a 9.2 ounce neutral lightweight trainer; the ULTRA Tempo+, a 9.5 oz. dual-density midsole stability shoe; and the ULTRA Recovery Sandal, a fully customizable and cushioned sandal that helps reduce swelling and promotes a speedy recovery.

With the help of Craig Alexander, the 2006 Ironman 70.3 World Champion Orbea USA reveals the new Ordu aero frameset, it looks sharp! Using the same combination of high design and engineering that contributed to the creation of the Orca and Diva framesets, Orbea unveils their next step in aerodynamic triathlon bicycles, the new Ordu. Their engineers and industrial designers had one goal in mind and it was to make the fastest bike available. The new Ordu is a speed machine built from the ground up starting with 100% M30S High-Mod F1 Carbon Fiber.

Unique features of the new Ordu include:

· A completely new headtube concept: Rather than struggle with the classic headtube-diameter problem, Orbea has created an entirely new shape that is faster than traditional cylindrical headtubes. This unique "bird of prey" shape combines the airfoil with a new 2-point concept for the ultimate in airflow control.

· Complementary aerodynamic frame hardware: The new Ordu is paired with a proprietary seat-binder, aerodynamic bottom bracket shell, improved rear horizontal dropouts and internal cable-routing.

· Unique carbon shaping on every tube: every single tube and junction on the new Ordu has an individually considered shape, designed for the ultimate aero-benefit for its position within the frame design.

· Size Specific Nerve design: each size of the new Ordu has a unique carbon lay-up, meaning that the ride quality of the smallest size bike is as terrific as the ride quality felt in the medium and larger sizes.

The bike features many unique shapes throughout the frame for an aerodynamic advantage. Take the downtube, they found that a teardrop airfoil design was the perfect thing to maintain the aerodynamic benefit when it came time to work with the new headtube design. The headtube design on the new Ordu is an entirely new shape, it incorporates 2 cones and an airfoil which enabled them to reduce the width of the headtube to a slim 36mm.

American Laura Bennett and Rasmus Henning of Denmark each take the win at the inaugural Hy-Vee World Cup Triathlon today in Des Moines, Iowa. For the win these two triathletes each earn the record top prize of $200,000 plus a Hummer H3 vehicle. It wasn't an easy win for each as they battled the international field that was present and the 90 degree heat in the American Heartland.

Bennett pulled away from Australian Annabel Luxford and Canadian Kristen Sweetland in the final meters of the run to cross the finish line first. It was so hot in Iowa that Sweetland who was running in 3rd place failed to finish the race with only a few hundred meters to go due to extreme heat exhaustion. American Sarah Haskins finished 4th. Favorite Emma Snowsill dropped out during the bike leg, it was stated she was feeling ill before the race.

Henning was in the small lead pack of triathletes into T2 first. At the end of the first lap Henning was in front of Canadian Simon Whitfield by a few seconds. Javier Gomez of Spain and Bevan Docherty of New Zealand who were in the second pack of tri athletes into T2 urged during the first lap of the run to make up time on Henning. From here Henning held strong and began to run away with the race and eventually crossed the finish line 30 seconds in front of Docherty who ended up having the fastest men's run split of the day. The top American was Jarrod Shoemaker who finished in 8th place. It was a good day for the Bennett family as husband Greg placed 5th and grabbed a check for an additional $12,500.

Des Moines BG Triathlon World Cup Race Results: