Series Structure

The series consists of thirteen (13) independently-produced, owned and operated, short-course triathlons – referred to as “stages” – taking place between Memorial Day and Labor Day.  All stages are located in the Northeast Region of USA Triathlon, which includes Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island, and Vermont.  Although every state does not host a stage of the Series, efforts have been made to locate the highest quality events that are evenly dispersed across the region to maximize opportunities for participation and head-to-head competition.  If you are looking for the best junior competition in the Northeast, you’ll find it here.

Eligible Athletes

Male and Female athletes between the ages of 13 and 19 years old (as of December 31, 2012) are eligible to score points in the Series.  Minimum racing age is at the sole discretion of the race director. Because of lack of repeat participation among 13 to 15 year olds, there will be no separate division for these age groups.

Points System

Points will be awarded to Eligible Athletes finishing in 1st through 10th place in the male and female, Under 19  divisions of each stage.  Double points will be awarded at the season finale (excludes the Western Series for this season). Certain races will be designated with bonus points (approx 1 1/2 times the points) To calculate Series standings, an athlete’s best four (4) results will be used.  When calculating the final standings for the overall series championship, in the event of a tie between two or more athletes, each head-to-head match-up will be reviewed and the winner of the greater number of said match-ups will be recognized as the winner.  If athletes did not race head-to-head, the athlete who raced the finale will win.  Series ties will only be broken for the top 5 overall places in the Series.

POINTS
PLACE	POINTS
1st	100
2nd	75
3rd	55
4th	40
5th	25
6th	20
7th	15
8th	10
9th	5
10th	1
11th+	0

Point bonuses will be awarded to a U19 athlete that finishes on the overall podium. The points are as follows: 1st Overall gets an extra 20 points, 2nd gets 15 and 3rd gets 10.

Only the Mussleman and Cayuga races will be eligible for scoring in both series.

Awards

Series awards will be presented to the Top Three overall in the final standings at the season finale.

USAT Rules

Non-Drafting: Events will follow USA Triathlon age-group, non-drafting rules. Series participants will start together in the same wave, to be designated by the Event Director.  Athletes who do not start in the designated series or junior wave are not eligible to earn series points or series awards for that stage.

Bike Set-up: The optimal bicycle set-up for junior athletes is a traditional “road” bicycle with drop-style handlebars, as opposed to a “tri” bike with aerobars. There are two main justifications for this philosophy. First, junior athletes need to develop sound bike handling skills before focusing on riding extended periods in the aero position. This “road” position, with hands on the brake hoods or in the drops with fingertips on the brake levers, is the safest riding position for young athletes. Second, junior athletes may also want to participate in draft-legal Junior Elite Cup triathlons (including Junior National Championships) or attend a USAT junior development camp. Both events require a road bike with drop bars to participate. Therefore, setting up a junior on a road bike FIRST is the safest and most cost-effective way to introduce a young athlete to the sport of triathlon.

Bike Checks: Athletes should make every effort to conform to the junior bike set-up described above, however, bikes that are “legal” according to USAT age-group competition rules will be allowed. This will allow consistency of enforcement at all series events by USAT certified officials.

Protests

Protests involving USAT competition rules infractions must be made to the USAT Official in accordance with USAT rules. Protests involving series rules must be made to the Series Director by email to director@nejuniortriathlon.com, no later than 24 hours after the completion of the stage, or 24 hours after the posting of updated series standings on this website, whichever is later. The decision of the Series Director shall be final.

Field Limits

Series events are independently owned and operated by as many as eight different race organizers.  Event Directors reserve the right to limit the number of participants in their event for safety and logistics reasons.  Participation in previous stages of this series DOES NOT guaranty entry into subsequent stages.  It is in the athlete’s best interest to register in advance for ALL races in which they plan to participate.  We have selected only the highest-quality events for this series and many of them will sell out early. Please do not ask the Series Director to “pull strings” to get you into a series race…no exceptions will be made.

USAT Membership

All series races are sanctioned by USA Triathlon. In order to participate in a series race, you will need to purchase either (a) an Annual Membership in USA Triathlon (17 & Under = $5, 18-19 = $39) or (b) a One-Day License ($10) for each event in which you want to participate. Annual Memberships are highly recommended for the following reasons:

• a) Save time and money on race day – no extra lines to wait in and your license pays itself off after only two or three races.
  
• b) As an Annual Member you’ll earn both a National and Regional ranking in your ranking age division (15 & Under, 16-17, 18-19).
  
• c) Receive USAT’s news magazine and email bulletins throughout the year.

For a full list of benefits, visit www.usatriathlon.org.

You must present a valid USAT annual membership and photo identification at race check-in/registration.  We strongly recommend that you print out a receipt or temporary license when joining online and bring this paperwork to the race, as it may take a few weeks to receive your membership card in the mail.

To join USAT, visit www.usatriathlon.org.

Stage Cancellation

If a stage of the series is canceled due to weather or other circumstances, no points will be awarded for that stage.  If the stage is rescheduled on the same weekend (e.g. Saturday race moved to Sunday), points will be awarded.  A stage that is shortened to a duathlon or aquathlon (run/bike or run/bike/run or swim/run) will award points at the discretion of the RADC, however a stage shortened to a run-only event will not award points. Cancellation or shortening of the stage is at the sole discretion of the Event Director.

Relays

There is no relay division in this series.