So I bit the bullet and registered for a sprint triathlon in October. I am hoping that having a looming race date will help motivate me to train for something I have wanted to do for a long time. I am also training for a half-marathon in November, so hopefully the training will coincide at least a little bit, and my cross-training days for the half will suffice as my swim/bike days for the tri. The sport I hate the most is running, but I have been in pretty good running shape before and I am just pushing to get back to that point again. I am pretty good with the swimming and biking portions. This race is 1/4 mile swim, 9 mile bike, 3.1 mile run, so a pretty short race.
I am hoping that the October race date will give me plenty of time to get my splits down to a respectable time, even though this is my first triathlon I have done a few road and bike races. This will be my first swimming event though. So for those of you who are current triathletes, any advice for me? Training tips? It’s a non-refundable entry fee so there is no backing out now. Did you finish your first tri and feel on top of the world, ready to take on Kona? Or did you finish and say “forget that nonsense, never again!”?
Am I stupid? Crazy? Both?
First time at a new distance or new sport - don’t worry about your time. A sprint is short enough that the transitions will have an impact on your time so definitely work on those. Lots of confusion during the transitions - practice exactly what you will be doing and check out the transition areas well in advance.
You’ll do fine, the distances are short enough and you’ll be well trained enough to ace it!
Transitions do have me worried. How early should I start training for full-length splits back to back to practice transitioning? It’s a lake swim, so luckily not as much sand as if it were open ocean as most triathlons in Florida end up being. I am really excited about the biking portion, that’s where I feel the strongest anyway.
I agree, don’t worry about your time for this one.
Practice your transition. When you set your spot up, have your shoes open, towel to quickly wipe off your wet (and probably sandy or dirty) feet, helmet open and sitting on your handlebars, race number bib on whatever shirt you’re going to pull on (if you are wearing one) or on your strap, lots and LOTS of water/electrolyte mix and some nutrition at your spot.
You hydrate and eat on the bike.
I also had to learn how to not push really hard - leave something for the run.
Will you be in a wetsuit for the swim? Have you ever done serious swimming in open water? The swim was the most intimidating for me. Plan to be at the back of the pack or risk an elbow to the head. Swimming in a pack can be scary and cause panic - I’ve seen it in every race.
I am always, always nervous before any type of race, and during the race I often wonder WTF I’m doing there, but I always feel awesome afterwards (mentally, not physically) and am excited to do another.
Temps should not be cold enough to warrant a wetsuit, so I will probably be swimming in my sports bra and nike dri fit shorts. I have never done any swimming in open water, and it is the scariest leg of the race for me! I am going to be doing swim practice at the olympic-sized public pool near my house. Maybe I will even bike to and from there
As you get closer to the date of your race, say 4-6 weeks away, do a number of brick workouts and practice your transitions just as you would do them in a race. Doing a transition for real is the only way to get better at it - you’ve got to practice. You really don’t need to do full-length legs to get the feel for the transition, although with a sprint tri, it wouldn’t hurt.
There are lots of tips and tricks to improve times, although many of them are a bit silly for a short, sprint tri. For a sprint tri, just train. For the tips and tricks, head to Google and Youtube. There are enough tri “experts” out there to make your head spin.
I would suggest doing some of your swimming in the open water. A pool is not the same thing, and you want to be used to open water the day of.
We only have cold water tri’s here, so we wear wetsuits. Let me tell you, putting your face in that water is a shock! It takes a quarter of the route to just get to the point where you aren’t gasping for breath and single side breathing! I’m sure it’s much easier in your warm water, but all the same, try it out a few times before hand.
You’re right, that probably wouldn’t be a bad idea. The only problem I have is my perception of distance in the water is very off. So I could be swimming for a mile or 1/8 of a mile, I really have no idea. I guess the best bet is to just keep swimming.
There usually isn’t any problem with finding people to lead you around the course on the swim - just look up every ten strokes or so, or follow the bubbles.
