Sprint tri - 750 m swim, 18mi bike, 5k run.

If I survive the swim, I'll be OK. Swimming is hard. Trying my "borrowed" wetsuit for the first time this evening at my pool. This will be embarassing to say the least.

any last minute tips?
Swimming is my weak link. going to be very slow there. I have no idea how long it will take me. I'm banking on the wet suit helping to help keep my bouyant.
Bike - better than avg cyclist. not too worried about the ride. I figure 20mph, 54 minutes.
Run - probably 23 minutes.

that should place me at the back of the pack :)

...any last minute tips?

Well you are not going to get any faster in any of the three disciplines this week. You can dial in your transition times by practicing them. How quickly can you get out of that wetsuit? Is it quicker for you to have your bikes shoes clipped in or put them on before mounting the bike? What gear should your bike be shifted into for fastest acceleration? How do you want your laces set up for quick entry? Plenty more to think about, look to the TriGuys for more guidance.

any last minute tips?Try to get in an open water swim this week. It's very different from pool swimming. There is no black line to follow, so every tenth stroke or so you need to sight for the buoy.

Agree with the above posts, but I will add a few more. If you have not done many bricks, then you might want to consider these:

1.) Have your bike in a mid gear, a cruising gear, so as to get your RPM going quickly. Coming out of the water, there is a good possibility that you will feel groggy. If its too low, you might fall over. Too high, and you torque and turn it sideways. If you have a "best feel" mid-gear, start with that.

2.) Compose yourself after the swim. Immediately try to regulate your airflow. Again, if you have not done many bricks, then you may not want to expect averaging 20 mph. Try to get into rhythm immediately out of the water.

3.) Agree with open water swim. If you can, swim the actual place you will swim. It makes all the difference in the world. Also, if you have not swam around other people, expect to get hit while swimming. Everyone is going for the same basic line. You may want to try to stay slightly behind everyone else to make sure you are not trampled in the water. I have been kicked, hit, smacked, and even slashed with an engagement ring. (killed my 2XU skinsuit)

4.) When coming off the bike, you may want to get your legs moving at a higher rpm. I try to do this to get my legs ready for the run. If I don't I don't run well for the first km or so.

5.) HAVE A BALL! Its a great sport to participate in.

Good luck!

Arrive at the place a couple hours early, set up your transition, make sure you know where it is, and where all your stuff is in your area. Take some time to talk to some guys who have done the specific tri before, check out the bike route maps. Anti-fog your goggles (rub toothpaste in them and rub it around then wash it off).

When I use my wetsuit in a tri (rarely) I unzip it in the water right before I start running to the shore. This helps get it off easier, which can be troublesome when your disoriented, have a high heart rate and lots of adrenalin, it also gets you wet, if its cold don't do it, if its warm it'll be nice and cool for the first part of the bike.

Don't try to win, or do good, set your standards low and surprise yourself, but thats kinda universal advice.

Anti-fog your goggles (rub toothpaste in them and rub it around then wash it off).Don't do anything you haven't tried in training.

I've never had luck with anti fog stuff. My best luck has been with simple swedish clear goggles. Putting some saliva on inside of them seems fairly benign, but is more of a nervous habit than anything.

Don't do anything you haven't tried in training.

I've never had luck with anti fog stuff. My best luck has been with simple swedish clear goggles. Putting some saliva on inside of them seems fairly benign, but is more of a nervous habit than anything.
How would rubbing toothpaste on your goggles alter anything that you've done in training?

I use swedes too, generally for distances less than 400m, and generally indoors, I've also done open water swims without goggles because I couldn't see due to fog, and it's kind of hard to stop, spit in your goggles and wash it out when you're surrounded by people flailing in water/swimming.

How would rubbing toothpaste on your goggles alter anything that you've done in training?

I use swedes too, generally for distances less than 400m, and generally indoors, I've also done open water swims without goggles because I couldn't see due to fog, and it's kind of hard to stop, spit in your goggles and wash it out when you're surrounded by people flailing in water/swimming.

Spit in your eyes doesn't hurt....toothpaste in your eyes can cause death....or something close to it....:eek6:

How would rubbing toothpaste on your goggles alter anything that you've done in training?Just because your cute little toothpaste trick works on your goggles, doesn't mean it will work on his.

What part of Don't do anything you haven't tried in training don't you understand?

Swedish goggles work on distances longer than 400m.

Spit in your eyes doesn't hurt....toothpaste in your eyes can cause death....or something close to it....
Not if you rub it in and wash it off thoroughly, at least it's worked for me, and I swim 20+ hours a week from late fall-early spring.

Swedish goggles work on distances longer than 400m.
Almost any goggles that creates a seal (fits) will work for any distance, that doesn't mean that it will be comfortable.

Some other things that helped me....

Vaseline on your shins and ankles so you can get the wetsuit off faster. You will be faster in the water because of the wetsuit, so don't sweat it.

Put your number on inside your shorts and wear it in the water inside your shorts. When you get on the bike, pull flip the number out and you're good.

Bucket of water in your transition area to get sand off your feet.

No socks on the bike. No shirt if you don't need one.

Stay in your aerobars. Relax on the bike and get your legs loose.

Save some for the run....don't blow out on the bike and have nothing left for the end.

great tips flash, some things I had never thought about such as the bucket of water and the number flip. I'll be competing in my first sprint this summer, and I've been reading all the tips for quick transitions. Your ideas were a welcome addition.

thanks all. I appreciate the feedback. I'll post my results, whatever they may be next week

thanks all. I appreciate the feedback. I'll post my results, whatever they may be next week

And remember, don't drown. :thumbsup:

If it is a large event, you could pick up a helium balloon and tie it up next to your bike to better guide you to your transition area after the swim......could be a bit disoriented. (Personally, I have not done this but it was suggested to me by a veteran tri guy....)

GL and have fun!

I have one season of sprint triathlons under my belt - came into it like you with swimming as my weak leg and much more experience on the bike.

If you know you're a slow swimmer then start in the back of the pack. You won't gain any time being up front, you'll just get pummelled as the pack overtakes you. There was a LOT more contact in tri swimming than I expected - it got rough at the start and around turns especially. The wet suit won't make you appreciably faster, just more bouyant and comfortable in the water so it's no reason to move up in the pack. Enjoy the extra float and focus on easing the swim and saving whatever gas you can for the bike and run.

It's true you want to save some energy for the run but do not underestimate how much time you can pick up on the bike leg with simple bike handling and aerodynamics. Especially in sprint tri's, you can find many unskilled bikers who don't know how to shift and keep a steady cadence, etc., and who just coast down hills. If you shift up and get aero on the descents, you can gain a lot of time without burning much energy.

I have one season of sprint triathlons under my belt - came into it like you with swimming as my weak leg and much more experience on the bike.

If you know you're a slow swimmer then start in the back of the pack. You won't gain any time being up front, you'll just get pummelled as the pack overtakes you. There was a LOT more contact in tri swimming than I expected - it got rough at the start and around turns especially. The wet suit won't make you appreciably faster, just more bouyant and comfortable in the water so it's no reason to move up in the pack. Enjoy the extra float and focus on easing the swim and saving whatever gas you can for the bike and run.

It's true you want to save some energy for the run but do not underestimate how much time you can pick up on the bike leg with simple bike handling and aerodynamics. Especially in sprint tri's, you can find many unskilled bikers who don't know how to shift and keep a steady cadence, etc., and who just coast down hills. If you shift up and get aero on the descents, you can gain a lot of time without burning much energy.

sage advice - thanks
swimming in a wetsuit last night was interesting. the extra flotation is nice, and will be appreciated. I plan on starting very near the back of the swim. I really have no idea what to expect during this swim. A co-worker and I are going to head out to the lake Sat and take an easy swim. Hopefully the course will be marked out already.

Done! - first tri (albeit a sprint) in the bag. Kinetic Sprint - Lake Anna, VA

Weather - horrible either raining or outright pouring during the entire event.

Swim - 750M. Water was around 60 degrees. This was my first open water swim. The hardest leg for me by far. Swam the first 250 just fine. But when I rounded the buoy and sighted down to the next buoy - it looked like it was miles away. That messed with my head. As a few of you warned me about - Open water swimming is definitely not like swimming in the pool. At one point a faster swimmer literally swam right over the top of me. That was a bit freaky, to say the least. I bet it took me 25 or more minutes to finish the swim. There were a few moments where I considered raising my hand and bailing on the event, but I stuck it out. I plan on taking lots of swim lessons.

Bike - 18mi - Nice ride through some rollers. Flew through this, averaging 22.5 mph before my bike computer quit because of all of the water, which was a pisser. The second half had a couple of nice climbs, so my avg will be lower than 22.5 mph, and there was a good 25 or so yards of walking the bike from the transition timing pads to the ride start. I'll know more when they post the times on the website.

Run - 5K - Should have been easy, but I screwed up my knees earlier in the week on a treadmill, so my knees were killing me during the run. Most of the run was in a downpour, so at least I wasn't over-heating. I'd be surprised if I managed 10-minute miles. If I wouldn't have screwed up my knees, I would have been running around 7:30's.

Lessons learned
Being a poor swimmer - I didn't give the swim its due respect. There's a huge difference between 800-1000 meters in a pool, and 750 meters in a lake. I plan on attending all of the open swim clinics in my tri-club.


Edit - But I'm hooked. I plan on doing a couple more sprints this year.

Sounds tough - great job sticking it out.

I had a similar freakout in a tri last summer under MUCH easier conditions (i.e., no rain). I knew it was a triangle course where you head out, round a buoy, parallel the beach to the next buoy, and then turn back in. When I got to the first buoy I turned but everyone else went straight and I flipped out. What I hadn't seen from shore is there were midpoint buoys along each side of the triangle. The distance was totally doable but it was tough mentally. And as Yogi said, 50% of the game is half mental.

Hang in there. It's a lot more fun the second time and especially when the sun shines.

Lessons learned
Being a poor swimmer - I didn't give the swim its due respect. There's a huge difference between 800-1000 meters in a pool, and 750 meters in a lake. I plan on attending all of the open swim clinics in my tri-club.Let me give a plug for this DVD:
http://www.amazon.com/Open-Water-Swimming-Skills-Techniques/dp/B000BTSCW8/ref=pd_bbs_sr_2?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1208786949&sr=8-2

Also, check for you local Masters swim club:
http://www.usms.org/

Congrats! Enjoy the next one!