[Closed] First triathlon...triathletes advice please? Pretty please?

Is wetsuit lubricant a must?

Have you bought a bike that cost at least 5 billion pounds and can't go round corners yet?

Number belt is fine and saves faffing

Wetsuit lube can help to get the thing on, but you have plenty of time for that. Use KY its cheaper, especially around your neck to lessen any chaffing! Just practice getting the wetsuit off in a hurry, and get used to swimming in it with the tri suit underneath, you may fing it less restrictive to swim with the top rolled down to you waist under the suit......

Arse off you two! 😡

(@geoffers and Munro)

Use KY its cheaper, especially around your neck to lessen any chaffing! Just practice getting the wetsuit off in a hurry...

Sounds like Darcy will be fine. As he usually has no problems taking clothes off in a hurry, when in the vicinity of KY Jelly.

😆

If you're short of money, this looks a cheaper option.
Less lube required.
[img] [/img]

thm, help a "friend" out?

Hmmm!!! Well in the spirit of tri....!!!

Go for trisuit - only go for tri top and shorts if you have great abs!! Never had PI stuff personally but good make by all accounts. And black shorts (a must) to save the post swim adjustments/modesty!!

Race belts are actually a good idea IMO. Pin 2 numbers back to back to stop flapping. Remember to swivvel so that they are back for ride and front (again save the need for personal adjustments!) for the run. Stop you snagging your nice new trisuit as well.

[b]Some kind of lubricant is a must IMO.[/b] Buy bodyglide if you must but vaseline (well washed after) and or Boots KY gel work pretty well. I think the worry about oil based lubricants is overdone and just a ploy to get you to buy bodyglide type stuff (which smells awful IMO). Lube you neck ( v well), your arms and your legs - i[b]t will make getting wettie off so much easier and stop painful rubbing.[/b] Another tip for getting wettie on before you start, put arms and legs in a plastic bag and they slip through easily. Much easier that struggling to get (hopefully) v tight, dry wettie on. Oh and have a pee early and before you put your wettie on. The next one wont be before you get in the water - and then look for all the weird smiles on everyone's faces!!!

Forget socks for the ride or the run - vaseline round the edges of the shoe and lots of talc to absorb the moisture. I would recommend elastic laces/lace ties - all about a few quid and will save you as much time (sorry needed to edit this) as a few £k on the TT/aero bike BS (again IMO!!!).

Practice getting your wettie on and off and other aspects of transition beforehand. Have a bright towel or mat (easy to see in transition melee - i use an old karrimat as it stands out a mile) and lay stuff out carefully (your HR will be up and you will be a little panicked first time out). Keep it all simple laid out and in order - helmet and glasses (?) ready on the bike etc.

Oh and dont forget to "accidently" spill some of you talc (from the shoes) around your place in transition. Makes is much easy to see when you are rushing around transition!!

Above all - enjoy "my friend" !!!

p.s. ignore the abuse and cat calls when you try your tri suit on your local ride for the first time!!!!

Cheers thm. Excellent advice. Much appreciated. 🙂

If you're short of money, this looks a cheaper option.

I would suggest that this is more DD's look

[img] [/img]

Lots of good advice already, but I would disagree with Hurtmore regarding the socks. Unless you have trainers which you have used without socks and had no issues with, a few seconds putting some socks on in T2 can avoid this:

[img] [/img]

That was after my first ever tri, in shoes which were supposed to be fine sockless, but I hadn't used much prior.

If your tri uses transition bags all hung up in a rack, they look very anonymous, so a bit of electrical insulation tape stuck on the drawstring can make yours much easier to spot.

Chamois cream will most likely wash out of the tri-suit during the swim, so use a vaseline/bodyglide type lubricant instead. Don't be sparing either, running with a chamois can chafe in lots of places, so make sure the plums and inner thighs get a good coating. Better be a bit liberal with the application than walk like John Wayne for a few days after!

Cheers, Rich

Yes, but turbo aren't you an ironman? I do put socks on for a HIM and above.

DD, it's a choice, if you go for socks as turbo suggests lay a towel down by your shoes so that you can dry your feet speedily. Plus still put loads of talc in your socks. Putting anything dry on wet skin is always a challenge IMO.

Agree with turbo - be generous with the lubcricant whatever you use. Forgot the undercarriage - but that's also great advice!

Are you "eventing" or "racing"

You don't need loads of expensive kit for the former if you're just competing against yourself...

Must be something in the air. Outlaw entries opened this morning (gulp).

@nickc, just eventing. I swim like something what doesn't swim. But I'm sure I'll do more, hence wanting a suit. I have everything else I need - but a few quid here and there for bits that will save faffing is not a problem.

@thm, I have unusually wide feet with bunions, which blister during normal running so it'll have to be socks I'm afraid. Good tip about the talc though. I wouldn't have thought of that.

Thanks for the advice everyone.

@thm, DD made no reference to the length of his tri, so he could be going for an IM 🙂

My first tri was a 70.3, and I'm sure others are even more foolish than me 😆

DD - the most important thing is pacing, no point coming out of the water with an HR through the roof gasping for breath, or coming off the bike ready to puke hardly able to stand up. However, if you do feel like you've got something left in your legs towards the end of the run, it would be rude not to try and wring everything out of them with a fast finish!

Cheers, Rich

This is merely a sprint: 750/20k/5k Hoping to do a limpic distance next year. Then who knows. 😮

@turboferret, I understand what you say about pacing though. I won't be going crazy. Just getting through the swim will be fine for me - the bike and run don't pose me any worries (I think anyway). I reckon I'll be breast stroking/doggie paddling some of the swim. 🙁

Only the wetsuit is a "must" really, you don't need any of the other stuff, I only bought a tri suitable once I knew I'd do a few, and it was sh.

There were guys racing in baggy shorts in my first Ironman 2 weeks ago.

Whatever you do, don't become one of the tri-commuters one sees around That London. Clearly only ever done one tri in their lives, but still felt compelled to buy ALL the gear.

That gear then gets used to commute...Tri shoes, aero bars, top tube food boxes and mincing tri-suits all to bimble along the Etape du Embankment in the wrong gear.

Possibly turbo (IM for starters) but then he would be chatting with the pirates on RimmersWorld (especially with all the lubricant talk!).

Agree in pacing - you can't win a tri in the swim but you can certainly lose it (and that's coming from a swimmer!!). First time out and assuming an Olympic distance, think about a nice steady swim and bike ride to a 10k running race. Pacing made simple.

Assume you have thought about drink and food on the bike DD. Take the chance to be refuelled well before T2.

(edit for x-post as took a call. With a sprint don't need to worry too much about pacing and/or fuelling. )

Number belt already ordered thm. 🙂 With space for gels.

Good thinking. Just check the gels fit the belt. First time I tried gels in a belt I mixed the brands (belt brand v gel brand) and the gels just kept slipping out. No one told me that! That was in a half marathon and a real pain. At least you have the pockets in the tri suit if necessary.

There's a debate about whether to wear belt under wettie right from the start. I do simply because the less to think about in transition the better IMO and the race numbers should be waterproof.

CFH - funny to see mention of top tube (bento) boxes. Never sure why they haven't caught on more in MTB. When I did my first MTB endurance race, I slipped mine on my MTB with jelly babies, Kendal mint came etc and the route map JIC. Seems much less pfaff than reaching round to the back pocket/into hydration pack. Odd that I was the only one!!!!! Sorry for digressing!!

This is merely a sprint: 750/20k/5k Hoping to do a limpic distance next year. Then who knows.

Next year's Ben Nevis Tri?

Sorry for digressing!!

🙂

No worries at all, Munro, Jamie and geoffj saw to that before you arrived.

Next year's Ben Nevis Tri?

To be honest mol, that seems an awful long way to go just to partake in a sufferfest type thing. I'd be happy with just getting through the Bristol Triathlon (limpic) in one piece.

DD, from the wettie chat, I assume this is an OW swim. Have you practiced this? Does the wetsuit fit? Have you read/asked/thought about sighting in OW (sorry open water!). I would def recommend a few trials especially if this is your weakest discipline. From your "robust" debating skills I assume that you will have no difficulty looking after yourself in the initial melee!!!! 😉

On the number under wetty point, for Zurich we were specifically told not to put our numbers under our suits (not that suits were allowed on the day anyway) as they wouldn't last the distance if they were soaked for an hour to begin with.

Will depend on the numbers though of course.

If you don't use a bento box, taping your gels to yout top tube works a treat.

Cheers, Rich

thm, yes, it's an OW swim - in a flooded quarry type affair for divers (sunken boats, cars etc). It's advertised as "wetsuit not compulsory" but there's not a chance I'd be doing it without one. I really am beyond useless at swimming. I'll need the WS to keep me horizontal so I can concentrate on swimming calmly instead of killing myself thrashing around as my feet sink. There's an OW lake in N Brizzle where I can practise a few times a week over the next few weeks. I am bricking (pun intended) the swim. :S

Any sighting tips then?

From your "robust" debating skills I assume that you will have no difficulty looking after yourself in the initial melee!!!!

Big pussy in real life. 😆

Loads of great advice up there.

From personal experience you may well be more disorientated than you think after the swim, so practice the transition routine a few times and as realistically as you can. Second sprint race I didn't put my race belt on and was made to go back and get it by a marshall!

Let's call that a 3 minute penalty and feeling like a complete pratt.

Matt

Basic tips on sighting:

1. Try to find an object[b] in the distance [/b]to focus on eg, a post on the shore or a tree etc. do this before the swim and while waiting for the start in the water. Stay focused here. FInd you place in the crowd, pick your spot in the distance (have a pee) and be ready.

2. Resist the temptation (assuming front crawl here) to get the perfect sight in one go. It's not possible. Build the sight up over 2-3 stokes gradually doing water polo FC. Then head down for 10-20 then another 2-3 to check you sighting etc. Stopping to get your bearings really eats up your time and let's your legs drop 🙁 Glad you "get" the bouyancy thing with the WS, worth at least 10% in time saved for the average male swimmer IMO.

Avoid numpty mistake of getting Vaseline on your goggles by mistake if you are chatting on the way to the swim. Makes the swim blind and quite challenging IME (my fist tri at Blenheim!!!)

I have the strangest............ 😛

I have the strangest............

If you come and watch, so will I! And we don't need any of that in a trisuit Piggie. 😉

Thanks again thm. I shall keep referring back to this over the next few weeks.

I swim like something what doesn't swim.

Remove the wellies before entering the water.

Any sighting tips then?

I try to look where I'm going and then go where I'm looking.

DD I swam 1km in 35 mins yesterday, started swimming again regularly 3 weeks ago, first couple of times I thought I was going to drown.
I am sure you can really improve the swimming side of things.

Good luck with the Triathalon

only tip I have is get some good goggles

Tip for someone coming to this event from a cycling forum - this is not a cycling race! Most cyclists I know who have dipped thier toe have pushed way too hard on the bike and spoilt their potential to run well and get a good overall time. The skill is to push as hard as you can without adding more than 5-10% to your standalone run pb for the distance.

And the swim - unless you are downplaying yourself and you really are that bad in the water please start right at the back. If it's an in the water start everyone treads water with a much smaller 'footprint' than they will take up when swimming so when the gun goes it gets very congested. You don't want to be that dipstick (there is always at least one) who starts right up the front but in reality is just one evolutionary step on from doggy paddle. Competitive twunts like me who are pretty handy in the water will just climb all over you and push you under to get you out of the way. Sorry!

As an MTBer xterra might appeal - xterra is coming back to the UK for the first time in a while in a couple of weeks - [url= http://xterra-england.co.uk/ ]here[/url]

Competitive twunts like me who are pretty handy in the water

😆

Don't worry, I have no intention other than starting right at the back. I know that the swim bit can get a bit rough so I won't be trying to hold anyone up there. It'll be bad enough being one of the slowest, let alone getting the shit beaten out of me to be thrown to the back anyway. I'd find that a bit scary to be honest. And I find joggers who do the same in 10Ks and HMs as annoying, though running past someone isn't as frustrating as trying to swim over him. If anything, for me, it'll be the running that's the best event out of the three, so while it'll be frustrating to be behind everybody after the swim, I'm hoping to achieve respectability by the time the run is done. Or I could just facebook your mate from the tri club and get some tips from him. (what was the outcome of all that anyway?)

If anything, for me, it'll be the running that's the best event out of the three, so while it'll be frustrating to be behind everybody after the swim, I'm hoping to achieve respectability by the time the run is done.

I used to be a bit like that - against triathletes I was an ok swimmer, a pretty good cyclist and a good runner so just spent the entire land based part of the race passing people which always feels good. In 4 seasons the only person to overtake me was Chris Lillywhite when he switched to triathlon after retiring and I'll forgive myself that one! These days its a bit more depressing as I've slowed on land but probably got faster in the water so I spend most of the event getting past!

Or I could just facebook your mate from the tri club and get some tips from him. (what was the outcome of all that anyway?)

🙂 I've been away for a couple of weeks so not sure where we are at now. Words were exchanged, some micky has been taken but he is adamant he did nothing wrong. I suspect he might not have deliberately cheated but took an acidental short cut, knows he did but is keeping to his story. Lost his garmin file somehow.... Anyway - he's got a bloody big tat now saying how marvellously he did which could be a bit painful to remove if we bang on about any more 😈

he's got a bloody big tat now

Oh no... 🙄

As an MTBer xterra might appeal

It does to me, that sounds cool.

T1 is fine, T2 was torture, like trying to run on someone else's legs, someone who had [u]never ran before[/u] 😯

NBIF, don't worry in a few weeks DD will stop talking about bricking it in the swim and begin taking about bricking it in training for T2!!!!

Not being a triathlete but I would have thought in the interests of keeping costs down could you not just wear a pair of jammers under the wetsuit! Then just put a cycling top on for the other 2 sections, surely 20km on a bike wouldn't be that bad with no padding, or would it?

You make a very good point giant_scum. Depending on budget over the next few weeks, I may just go for budgie smugglers underneath the wetsuit. I always wear padded shorts for a bike ride though so I do suffer if I ride without - not sure how badly this would impact my run (which is my best discipline of the three...and when I say "best", I mean [i]my[/i] best, not "best" by any other reasonable standard).

Here is how to sight:

http://www.feelforthewater.com/2011/06/how-to-sight-correctly-in-open-water.html

Essentially, lift head to crocodile eyes, drop head and turn to breathe at the side as normal. So you do it just before a breath. Head has to go higher than crocodile eyes if there is chop or people in the way.

There is a knack to it. When you get good at it, you can sight pretty much without slowing down in flat water.

It is easier to sight on high up things directly above wherever you're headed to get a general direction, but as you're getting closer to whatever you're actually headed for, you do really need to sight on that.

Don't follow people in front without sighting too, as they may be zigzagging idiots.

If you're rubbish and not in a hurry, you can just breaststroke a stroke or two to sight, although breaststroke is harder in a suit.

Oh, and one random useless sighting tip from last night's swim, if you're swimming at night, and you put a light to mark where you left your clothes so you can see where to stop, don't put it in flashing mode, as it will only be visible if you sight just as the flash goes, I was seeing my light only on about every 5th sight!

If you need padding you could always just get a cheap-ish pair of tri shorts and wear a cycling jersey over the top.

I'd say the main thing is not to do anything new - if you currently bike or run wearing socks, then take a little extra time in transition and put some socks on. Make sure you go for a bike and run in the kit you're planning to race in (e.g. padded-ish shorts, budgie smugglers, whatever) to make sure there's no unforeseen chafing... 😯

This is coming from someone who adjusted their saddle nose up about 5mm before my ride on Monday... and now has the worst saddle sores I've [i]ever[/i] experienced. This morning's run was not as pleasant as normal 🙁

i did my first sprint tri last year and loved it had to miss this years but will be back at it again next year
as for the suit i got mine new off ebay for £25 and did the job as it was a pool swim il check the make when i get home its not your usual brand just some chinese rip off but it worked lol
best advice i can offer is practice transitions and changing from ride to run as mentioned can feel wierd try skipping sideways to get everything moving in other directions and wake up your legs
wear socks on ride and run they help allot after being in the wet,stand on a towel while getting ready to rid most of the water

belts- i went for orca as it had a pouch for inhailers if needed and lots of gell loops was only aboyt £7
i ended up beating my aim of better than half the pack dont look to win as your first aim and get disheartend

most of all have fun 8)

Second Joe's comments about crocodile eyes. This and timing your sighting (not the same time!) is key. You only have to get your eyes to the surface. Avoid lifting your whole head.

My worst tri memory was [s]drafting[/s] following a bloke in budgies for a couple of miles in the bike leg of a half IM. From my aero position, my line of sight was.........horrible to say the least!!!!

Can't have been comfortable for him either?

dont look to win

Ok, I'll just go for top three then. 😆

Holy smoke he got a tat!! HE might not think he's done something wrong fact is he got DQ'd so I certainly wouldn't head out and get a tatt done .. gosh that makes me cringe!

well i'm entered for Ironman Wales 2014 ... eek scared face 😉

In my first tri I had to be pulled out of the swim, it was the first time I had swam in my wetsuit and I hadn't worked any slack up to the shoulders, so I was fighting the wetsuit as I moved my arms forward, after 800m I was burnt out and couldn't continue.

I also find the swim to bike transition much harder than the bike to run, which is where most advice seems to focus. The swim to bike really sends my heart rate rocketing and takes a long time to stabilise. So that's something I am working on at the moment.

I'm a bit worried about the possibility of being pulled from the swim too MSP. 😐

Have you bought a bike that cost at least 5 billion pounds and can't go round corners yet?

You just have to look at the first one as a learning experience, I did that one that I got pulled out of, then I did another olympic distance one where I had learned how to use a wetsuit 😳 then my next one was the Weisbaden half ironman which I managed to finish despite weighing 120kg*.

So just go out there and enjoy yourself.

*As hard as the day was the worst thing was seeing how fat I am in a trisuit in the official photographs(I didn't buy them).

Oh and as far as the bike goes I still can't get comfortable on tri bars, and still just use standard drop bars.

im looking at getting some tri bars myself but have to re route my cables to remove my sissy levers (have to do anyway and never really use them)
crc do basic bolt on token ones for about £30 so gonna give them a punt

just had a second baby deliverd so im not doing overly well with getting anything fitness orientated apart from some resistance training on the wii 😆

I'm not a fan on tri bars not that I've really tried them! probem is until I get my running quicker they are pointless. At the mo over an Olympic tri I can put 8-10 minutes into other girls and come out fastest in age group..then lose 2-3 mins a mile over 10k .. so pointless having tri bars until I get better 😉

just spent the entire land based part of the race passing people which always feels good

Good luck Deaddles !

no.1 daughter is planning on upping her swimming for a serious attempt at getting in the development squad. the recommendation is 9hrs a week! 3 is where she ll start..