MM

Thanks for the advice - the event is being organised by a traditional cycling road club, and the bloke in charge has been very disparaging about the group of triathletes, so much so that he keeps trying to persuade me to ride with a different group.
As you say, I think it's pure snobbery on the bike club's part.
No road skills, no team ethos, no idea how to collectively fix a puncture fast, etc. etc. However I did point out to him that a collective group of women will instinctively look out for one another, pull together and work as a team, which is apparently what the leader of the triathletes said to him too!
I'll bear in mind the top tip about the freewheel.