#1
LAWRENCE, KANSAS
Click the heels of your ruby red bike shoes three
times and you just might end up in Lawrence, Kan.,
triathlon’s best kept secret and our pick for 2010’s Top
Tri Town. As the U.S. home base to Aussie pro Pip Taylor,
and host of Ironman 70. 3 Kansas, Lawrence is as active
as it gets. Just ask Don “Red Dog” Gardner, who leads
twice daily year-round boot camp-style workouts, free
to the thousands who participate in the community.
Lawrence is also a fervently bike-friendly city, anchored
by historic downtown retailer Sunflower Outdoor
& Bike Shop, host to the annual Tour of Lawrence,
and boasting some of the nation’s most considerate
motorists on the area’s constantly rolling rides.
There’s no lack of swim and run opportunities
in Lawrence, either. Athletes train on the 10-mile
Lawrence Riverfront Trail and adjoining single-tracks.
“The Levee,” as it is known, “is the best maintained
and most amazing surface I’ve ever run on,” says
Taylor. Multiple city pools (including two 50-meter
facilities) support the swim crowd, and the enviably
low cost of living in Kansas equates to a $20 monthly
all-access pool pass.
For Taylor, who moonlights as a nutritionist, great
food is a must-have, and Lawrence’s vibrant downtown
restaurant scene does not disappoint. The Community
Mercantile, or The Merc as it’s known to locals, is a
much-revered co-op natural food grocery, and weekly
farmers’ markets keep local pantries stocked with the
freshest of seasonal produce.
You’re all about the
neighborly, down-home
vibe in a city rich with recreation,
arts and culture.
You thrive on a totally
tri geek-;lled social
scene. Aside from Lawrence’s Rock
Chalk Triathlon and Multisport Club,
triathlete-speci;c gatherings are
notably absent. Also, long winters
can hamper a triathlete who loves
training in the great outdoors.
