Road closures
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IRONMAN Schedule
Today at Ross's Landing - 9 a.m.-5 p.m.: Athlete check-in - 9 a.m.-5 p.m.: VIP credential pickup - 9 a.m.-5 p.m.: Onsite registration for Ironman Chattanooga 2017 (2016 athletes only) - 9 a.m.-5 p.m.: Ironman Village, store and bike/tech service center open - 9 a.m.-5:30 p.m.: Ironkids Chattanooga FunRun registration - 11 a.m.: Athlete briefing - 2 p.m.: Athlete briefing - 6 p.m.: Ironkids Chattanooga FunRun presented by Sunbelt Bakery Friday at Ross's Landing - 9 a.m.-5 p.m.: Athlete check-in - 9 a.m.-5 p.m.: VIP credential pickup - 9 a.m.-5 p.m.: Onsite registration for Ironman Chattanooga 2017 (2016 athletes only) - 9 a.m.-5 p.m.: Ironman Village, store and bike/tech service center open - 11 a.m. Athlete briefing - Noon: Pro athlete panel - 2 p.m.: Athlete briefing - 5-6 p.m.: Live music - 6-7 p.m.: Opening ceremony Saturday - 9 a.m.-5 p.m.: VIP credential pickup - 9 a.m.-5 p.m.: Ironman Village, store and bike/tech service center open - 10 a.m.-3 p.m.: Mandatory athlete bike and gear check-in - 11 a.m.: Athlete briefing - 2 p.m.: Athlete briefing Sunday (race day) - 4:30-6:30 a.m.: Transition area open and body marking - 4:30-7 a.m.: Athlete and spectator shuttle from Ross's Landing to swim start at Curtain Pole entrance to Tennessee Riverpark - 7:20 a.m.: Pro start - 7:30 a.m.: Age group start - Midnight: Race ends Monday (post-race) at Chattanooga Convention Center - 8 a.m.-noon: Athlete celebration day - 9:30 a.m.: Awards ceremony - 11 a.m.: 2017 Ironman World Championships slot allocation/rolldown ceremony - 5:30-7:30 p.m.: Volunteer appreciation party
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Chattanooga forges ironclad relationship with Ironman
Chattanooga's first full Ironman event in 2014 received an unprecedented 97 percent competitor approval rating.
The city followed up last year by hosting the closest finish in Ironman history.
And this weekend, the Ironman's short but action-packed relationship with the Scenic City will have its next chapter written.
"The athletes will decide that for themselves," Chattanooga Sports Committee President Tim Morgan said.
More than 2,700 of them are registered to plunge into the Tennessee River at sunrise Sunday to begin the third local rendition of this intense 144.6-mile triathlon.
Competitors from 47 states and 28 countries will swim 2.4 miles, then bike 116 miles during two loops through Walker County, Ga. They conclude with a 26.2-mile run through the heart of Chattanooga.
It's a remarkable feat for anyone who finishes, and it's a monumental undertaking for a small city hosting a world-renowned event.
The Chattanooga Convention and Visitors Bureau is projecting the city will receive a $13.26 million economic impact from the event.
That expected boost - generated through nights spent in hotels, meals and myriad other means - is more than the combined projected revenue of the other 27 visitors bureau-registered events for the entire month of September.
But it requires a substantial commitment from the community.
More volunteers than competitors are expected to be a part of Sunday's action, and close to a dozen public safety departments are involved in some fashion.
"It takes a lot of planning, a lot of time and a lot of resources," Chattanooga police Sgt. Austin Garrett said. "But we do it as a partnership and as a team, and that's what makes it successful."
Currently, Ironman is the Chattanooga special event requiring the most police coordination, Garrett said.
"Riverbend is a little bit different in nature because it's confined," Garrett said. "Ironman spreads out from here to Chickamauga, so you're looking at a lot of additional resources."
The same goes at Los Potros Mexican Restaurant in downtown Chickamauga, where hundreds of spectators gather to watch cyclists come through the town square.
Los Potros manager Refugio Zorogoza said there will be five to six servers working during the Ironman, as opposed to the two to three who typically work a Sunday.
"There's no complaints," Zorogoza said. "It's typically a good crowd at lunch, but on Sunday, it will be like that all day."
Back at Ross's Landing, a pair of Erlanger hospital officials will have a long day overseeing a team of 150 medical professionals ready to offer care to athletes facing a range of ailments.
Sunday is shaping up to be the hottest Ironman Chattanooga yet, according to the event's medical director, David Bruce said.
On Wednesday afternoon, the National Weather Service said Sunday's forecast will be sunny and hot with a high near 91.
"I think dehydration is going to be a higher risk this time than any other Ironman we've gone through, so I'm prepared for that, as well as heat exhaustion," said Bruce, an orthopedic surgeon at Erlanger. "We've not had to deal with tremendous heat exhaustion thus far, but I see that as an issue that could arise with the forecast we've got on Sunday."
The team of doctors, nurses, EMTs, paramedics and athletic trainers from across the city's medical community will also tend to cuts, bruises and blisters.
Some athletes won't finish, and even some of those who do will need medical attention. Finishers are a focus, said Erlanger's Jerry McDonald, who will head up an emergency medical team.
"Being part of such an extraordinary event, you see people doing extraordinary things," McDonald said. "It's amazing to be a part of that. I feel like, as a community we come together and provide the best possible care they can get."
Bruce said that with Ironman now in year three, he's had to work a little bit harder to recruit the number of volunteers needed to properly staff his operation.
But, he said, the level of volunteerism in Chattanooga is "unbelievable."
"This is the Volunteer State," he said. "But to see these same volunteers come out every year, it's amazing.
"It's for the love of the city, and that's the part that's so cool about it. At the end of the day, it's really for Chattanooga, and that's the part I like the most about it."
Contact staff writer David Cobb at dcobb@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6249.