ETCC also confirmed the dates for the popular Multisport Weekend, which is now set to take place in its traditional January timeslot following the latest February edition.
The club advised that its season is now likely to begin Wednesday, October 26, while the showpiece weekend event will go ahead over the weekend of January 22 and 23.
Changes to the New South Wales roadmap will allow fully vaccinated community sport participants in an outdoor setting (with capacity limits applicable) once the 80 per cent double-dose target is met in the state.
With that target rapidly approaching, the result is an earlier season start than previously expected, and club president Steve Loader said it was an exciting prospect for Triathletes yearning for a return to normal.
“It’s good to get started,” Loader said.
“Everyone wants a bit of normality back don’t they - Wednesday nights over spring and summer are generally 50-200 people training down at Winbi.
“Changes in the roadmap now allow us to operate with up to 200 double vaccinated people.
“I spoke to Triathlon NSW and they confirmed providing we follow everything under the current public health order we’ll be right to go.”
The Multisport Weekend will also run under the same provisos, with Loader confirming the event will run much the same as it did last time.
“We’ve got experience in what to do in this environment,” he said.
“It will be the junior event over in Moama, and then our tri on the Saturday night and the swim on Sunday.
“I guess what happens over the summer will determine how big the event will be.
“The fact we’ve moved into our traditional timeslot - the third week in January - really suits us better.”
The ETCC season will start under COVID-safe settings for fully vaccinated participants, and while the club has lost a month due to restrictions, Loader said ramifications to the calendar would be minimal.
“It’ll be a bit condensed, we normally start when daylight savings starts, which was about three weeks ago,” he said.
“We’re going to miss roughly a month which is a good result, because everyone was thinking it was going to be two months.”
While members would love nothing more than to launch head first into the Murray River for a Triathlon tune-up, Loader said the club would favour a run-ride-run to cut the ribbon on the new season.
“We normally start slowly with a run-ride-run, or other seasons we start at the Echuca pool and just do a swim and a run,” Loader said.
“While we would love to start with a tri, given the height of the river we just don’t think it’s safe to to put our members in the river.
“Even though a percentage would be happy to do it, we don’t think it’s the safest option right now.
“Especially with our juniors; you’re trying to nurture their safety around water.”
“We’ll probably do a run-ride run the first week. A 1km run, 12km ride and then a 2.4km run.”