The inaugural PTO Dallas will be the final PTO organised event of the year and takes place across 17th and 18th September. The athletes will compete over the 100km distance which is now standard across PTO events.

Swim

The swim course is a two lap rectangular swim covering the 2km distance, with an Australian exit between the laps. At first glance this looks like a simpler course than PTO Edmonton, which was 3 laps with multiple turns and an Australian exit between each lap. This created big gaps between some of the top contenders, with Lionel Sanders coming out 3:48 behind the leaders and Laura Phillip dropping 3:42 to the front pack. With two rectangles to complete this could provide a quicker swim for all, although the turns could create some separation. As with PTO Edmonton this will likely be a non-wetsuit swim which will hurt the weaker swims such as Lionel Sanders and Sam Long, even with wetsuits at the Collins Cup we saw the pair come out 4:17 behind Sam Laidlow. It also looks like it will be a pontoon start. This is not the norm for long course races and will favour short course athletes or athletes with a swim background.

Bike

The bike course covers the 80km distance across 7 laps. The course is flat and fast across smooth roads. With so many laps and the course going up and down the same stretch of road the athletes will be able to keep tabs on their competitors throughout the ride.

This is a typical middle distance bike course that will favour the athletes that are aero and used to holding their position for longer periods of time. This could give Lucy Charles-Barclay the advantage over Flora Duffy if they come out together after the swim, we saw Duffy drop significant time at Collins Cup to the traditional long course athletes. 

All PTO run events have a 20m draft rule which aims to reduce the benefits of drafting compared to 12m seen in Ironman events. On a smaller course with multiple laps there could be large trains of riders which will impact how groups work together on the road.

The forecast is going to be hot with the temperature around 34 degrees. A northerly wind of 10mph will provided a tailwind on the way out and headwind back. Smarter athletes can use this to their advantage if part of a bike pack. Even sitting at 20m back there is a drafting benefit and this increases in a headwind.

Run

The 18km run course consists of 5 laps, twisty in places, the course follows a canal path away from transition before rejoining the road and then turning back towards transition. As with the bike course this looks flat and fast. 

By this point in the race the toll of being out in the heat for three hours will start to add up. If athletes have pushed too hard on the bike or not fuelled properly, then we could see a repeat of PTO Edmonton and Clash Miami where numerous athletes were pulling up with cramps. Athletes should be prepared for the heat and have a dialled nutrition strategy, especially those athletes heading to St. George and Kona in October.

Athletes who can pace themselves well could be running through the field on the final laps of the run course.