Another new person question - equipment

[teigyr]

I just registered for my first triathalon! It's a sprint one by Reebok/Subaru. I know it is more casual than some and my objective is to experience it, not compete unless it's just to push myself.

My bike pedals/shoes are look/look cleats. I need new running shoes so that's a given. I've seen threads on cycling and what equipment is necessary for a new person so I put that out for the triathalon! I'm not adverse to buying a wetsuit because I would use it for kayaking also. Do people buy tri suits and wear them under the wetsuit or are they used for different circumstances? Goggles seem to be a requirement also. I wouldn't be too comfy on my bike (or running) wearing something too skimpy just out of modesty and respect for those people unfortunate enough to be viewing me.

Anything I will need, I will get because I'm sure I'll use the items again. I just don't know what is needed and what is overkill!!!

Lastly, I've read tons on training so I feel mostly ok with it. My concerns are how the whole thing works. Do I carry my cycling shoes with me? Or are they waiting for me? If I take off my wetsuit, someone packs it away for me? I see there are bags to carry stuff so I wonder how much I will have to carry. I'm happy to train but I have no idea how this transitioning stuff works!

Thank you -- this forum is invaluable for finding information and I enjoy reading all your experiences.

[KnottedYet]

If you go to the Danskin Tri site, it answers a lot of your questions (in the general sense.)

I have a kayaking wetsuit by NRS that I bought at Northwest Outdoor Center for $110.

I don't have a trisuit. I swim in my sportsbra and a pair of UnderArmor compression shorts (aka underwear) under my wetsuit. Good open-water goggles are a must! When I finish the swim I go back to my bike and bag of stuff, take off the wetsuit, put on my bike skort (over the underwear) and my team tank-top (over the bra) my socks and my bike shoes. Add helmet and gloves and glasses.

If you don't put your wetsuit back into your bag, you will p.o. all the other racers who are trying to get to their bags and having to climb over all your stuff. They will have to push it out of their way. I did not put my wetsuit INTO my bag last year. I left it ON TOP of my bag. My suit ended up quite far away.

After the ride, I come back to the exact same spot and take off the bike stuff, re-rack the bike, put on shoes and baseball cap, and do the run.

All your things are in one assigned spot, and you just keep going back to the same spot between legs to switch gear ("Transitions) so you don't carry anything with you while you are racing.

I'm thinking of doing the Subaru Tri too, cuz so many of my friends didn't get into the Danskin and are doing the Subaru instead. It's a month or so after the Danskin. I should be recovered by then....

[teigyr]

Is starting to make sense now.

I will definately check out the Danskin site. I did look at the Subaru one as I registered along with other tri sites. I see lots of training information but the basics, a'la Tri for Dummies was sorely lacking unless I just missed it. I like the idea of the skirt! Now that I'm more knowledgeable, I can look at it at that angle. I didn't know if tri suits were instead of wetsuits but I did get the impression that what you ride in is what you run in.

What's the most tiring thing or is it simply the combination of things? 12 miles on the bike is nothing and three miles of jogging/running/walking is not much either. I'm thinking it has to be the swimming??

I am bummed about the Danskin tri. I guess I learned my lesson and next year I had best be on top of it!

Thank you again for all your help --

[KSH]

WOW! Those were a lot of questions... Let's see what I can come up with for ya.

What to wear?

Well, I wear tri shorts with a tri top. It goes from water to bike to run. I don't ever change clothes. I don't like wearing shorts that tight in public... but shoot, I'm racing. If they don't like, they don't have to look.

When I go to wetsuit swims... I will wear my tri shorts and top under my wetsuit.

Where will I put my wetsuit? I always have a towel under my bike with all my stuff on it. I suspect my wetsuit will go on this towel. I think my bag might take up too much space in the transition area.

Tri Wetsuits (these are made specifically for swimming- other wetsuits may not have the flexibility needed in the shoulders and other areas for swimming). Well, that's were it gets confusing as far as I am concerned. I honestly just went for one that cost around $400, and figured I couldn't go wrong. Luckily I found a 2006 2XU Elite that was $475 marked down to $330.

Here is generally how a race will go:
1) Setup your transition area. You will lay out your biking shoes, socks, race belt with number, running shoes, bike helmet and maybe glasses. It's best to put all of these items on a towel under your bike. I also put a small hand towel with my stuff, so I can dry and clean my feet out of the water.
2) You put on your wetsuit (if it's wetsuit legal), and then start when you swim wave starts.
3) Out of the water you go to the transition area and put on your biking shoes and helmet,and race belt with your number on it. Here is where I use the small hand towel, so I don't have stuff stuck to my feet and inside my socks for the rest of the bike and run.
4) Take your bike to the red line, mount and ride.
5) After you have completed the ride, dismount at the red line, and go to your transition area. Take off your helmet, and your bike shoes. Put on your running shoes and go.
6) Run and then cross the finish line.

What's the most tiring thing or is it simply the combination of things? 12 miles on the bike is nothing and three miles of jogging/running/walking is not much either. I'm thinking it has to be the swimming??

Swimming can really tire people out, if they have a poor stroke and are not trained for it. The swim won't win the race, but you can drain yourself in the swim enough to not finish the race.

The bike is pretty easy... but going from biking to running... is a challenge.

This is why when you train for your tri, you will need to do some bricks. A brick workout is when you bike and then run immediately afterwards. This will prepare you for the "legs of jello" for the first 1/2 mile or so.

Well, good luck! And who knows... you might actually like it and want to do another one again?

[teigyr]

KSH,

Thanks! That was an excellent real world scenario. I would have never thought of a small towel to dry my feet but that makes sense. The belts are just so you don't have to pin your number to whatever you're wearing, right? I can see the benefit of adding multiple activities to my training, I hadn't really thought of that. What about swimming then going on my bike also? Or swimming then a spin class? Thanks, also, for your wetsuit advice. These are things I hadn't thought of either.

I can see myself enjoying this tons. When I first started cycling and doing centuries, I was doing about one a month! This was years ago and the last real distance I've done was the Aids ride in Calif (580 miles) in 2001. Each new ride or activity is an adventure and I like taking myself out of my comfort zone. I actually started taking a pole dancing class last year for the same reason...I never would have thought 5'11" me would be tottering around in 6" heels!!!

I'm so excited but am really kind of nervous also.

[KnottedYet]

I pin my number to my team shirt rather than using a race belt. Since my team shirt is definitely going on me, that works fine for me. I draped my shirt and skort on my bike so I could just throw them on (also my wild Hawaiian print skort made my bike easier to find on the jam-packed rack!)

The Danskin gets pretty crowded in transition, no really no-one puts their stuff out on a towel. Some very smart folks used 5 gallon buckets for their stuff so they wouldn't have to root around in duffel bags. You are packed cheek-to-jowl (which is why my wetsuit got kicked and pushed and prodded so far from home) with no room to spare. I wonder if the Subaru is less crowded?

[Grog]

What about swimming then going on my bike also? Or swimming then a spin class?

Hey Teigyr, congrats on signin' up for your first triathlon!

I'm with KSH on the bricks. It's important to do it at least a few times before the race so you KNOW that your legs feel funny (read: quite bad) when you start running after the bike, but you also KNOW that it will go away in 5 minutes.

However swim-bike bricks seem pretty useless to me. Maybe because the two sports use very different muscle groups (I almost don't use my legs for swim so YMMV). They might be useful for practicing transitions though. But if your goal right now is to finish, not to improve on your personal best, it's probably not the most important area for you to work on. Save your efforts for the bike-run bricks.

Enjoy!