1) Like, for real, how does the race really work from start to finish? I know this sounds stupid, but I really don't understand things much like the transition areas and how you manage your gear and shoes and stuff like that. So, just the most basic of primers.
Someone mentioned the logistics of transition before (I think it was
@croach?), so I won't go into all of that.
I spent about three weeks in total practicing transitions as part of my brick workouts - I would refine what I would need (I started out with too much crap) or figure out things I would need (going minimalist never worked for me). For my first sprint tri, I just used my swim bag as my "transition bag" - it's a big net drawstring bag that's hot pink! I also used that as my towel to set everything up on in transition. You'll see some people use a bucket from Home Depot or a paint store to carry their gear - it gives them something to sit on in transition, which is nice if you don't want to sit on the ground.
At BASE LEVEL, all you need to do a sprint triathlon is:
Swimsuit
Goggles
Bike
Helmet
Water Bottle
Running Shoes
I like to swim with a swimcap, but at both of my tri's there have been plenty of women and men that don't (women will swim in braids, men are usually bald/shaved head).
As far as other gear goes - I chose to buy my own swim gear (kickboard, fins, STUPIDIHATEYOUSOMUCH pull buoy and paddles), and I'm very happy I did. When I started doing 4xweekly swim workouts, it was nice to have my own stuff - especially at group swim workouts when I was the last person to show up (because I don't get up early for anything). It also made it nice to have my own gear to do swim workouts on my own!
I also bought an open-water buoy that can hold my phone and keys and keep them dry when I do a lake swim by myself. I've used it twice, and at $24 on
Amazon, I feel like it's been worth it.
I also bought a tri suit, which I'm glad I did. I do not own a wetsuit, but I'm probably going to get one of those for Christmas because I'll need a wetsuit for my relay in May and for 70.3 next Fall.
2) What did you do for your first tri? How'd it go?
I chronicled my first training cycle to get to a tri on my (since abandoned)
Training Journal here on DIS.
Including a four-part breakdown of my
First Sprint Tri.
3) Like what do you wear? A trisuit? Swimsuit and then bike shorts? Pros/Cons to various options? I know like cycling shoes, helmet, running shoes, a bike obviously are necessary, but what other equipment should you have?
I wear a trisuit! I bought a cheapie one off Amazon (it's a RunBreeze ... and man, it's tight like Spanx once it gets zipped up, but it held my boobs in place better than a normal sports bra. I was VERY pleased with it! I'm looking forward to upgrading to one at the Pearl Izumi outlet once I get to Orlando.
I also have various cycling jerseys (short sleeve and sleeveless) because I like the pockets in the back. Most have been handed down from friends when I was trying out what worked for me, so that's a bonus.
I mentioned swim gear for training up above, but I'd definitely say a watch that can handle swim laps and cycling would be beneficial. I had the Garmin Vivoactive for my two tris and it was great - except it couldn't handle open-water swimming unless I put the watch in my swim cap so the GPS could always connect ... which means it's moot for a solo open-water training swim. The Vivoactive worked GREAT for cycling - especially after
@FFigawi gifted me a set of speed and cadence sensors for my bike. They're tiny little things, but they make a HUGE difference when you're training and want to track progress milestones on a bike without investing in a bike computer.
Also, time for some #BikeTalk.
I trained and did two sprint triathlons with my hybrid. DO NOT LET ANYONE bike-shame you. You do not need a fancy road bike to train for and complete a sprint triathlon. You do not need to be awesome at cycling to train for and complete a sprint triathlon. You just need to have a bike and be able to ride it. You do not need cycling shoes or to clip in if you don't think this is going to become something you do all the time and want to elevate participation in. I bought a pair of snap-in cages for my flat pedals on my hybrid and used those to help spin out my legs on my bike and I was FINE.
One of my best guy friends is a master cyclist, but a TERRIBLE triathlete ... to the point that he won't do one again. The bike portion, especially in a sprint, is to warm your legs up and get loose as well as hydrate and fuel for a GREAT run. My runs always take me 2-3 miles to settle in and get a good pace, but I found that coming off the bike that my legs were loose (almost TOO loose sometimes!) and ready to run and just carry the cadence of the bike leg over into the run. My feet turned over much faster and any of the usual malaise I get early on during a run, I'd already experienced during the bike!
Bike-Shaming is the worst - you don't see in much in the triathlon world, but it's there ... and anyone who tells you that you have to be good at cycling to be successful at triathlons is DEAD WRONG. Look at the Kona winner - a sub-3:00 marathon and he wasn't even top of the group in the bike. Most triathletes were either swimmers or runners, and the elites were both.
4) What was your weak link (swim, bike, run - I assume for most of us here run is our strongest suit)? How did you improve? How often do you do each activity during training?
Before I started training, I thought it would be:
1. Bike
2. Run
3. Swim
After training, it ended up being:
1. Swim
2. Run
3. Bike
I did probably train the most at swimming, but I also ended up liking the swim workouts the most as it took pressure off my joints and was something different. I mean, and it also usually ended with #HotTubTime because C'MON! WHO DOESN'T LOVE A HOT TUB??
I have weekly breakouts of my training on my training journal, so I won't post those here ... but I generally worked out 5-6 six days a week and did each discipline at least twice (I added in more swim on my own, because again, I liked it; and I added in extra timed runs as well on days when I would swim). Bricks are IMPORTANT.
5) I did find a local multisport club that might be smart to join. Their website says they are very beginner friendly. Did you join a club or get a coach?
To start out, I got a coach that was part of a paid training group. I REALLY appreciated the weekly training plans (they went into Training Peaks, a program that syncs with Garmin), as well as group workouts (I would do group swim and group ride, but not group run).
Unfortunately, even though the capacity was there I never truly got feedback from my coach on how I was doing on the training plan (including paces, etc.) - just that it was good I finished a week of workouts. So, there wasn't so much "coaching" as there was "schedule making" on her part. After Week 2 of group swim, I was already lapping everyone in our training group so I got put into the lanes with what I dubbed the "career" triathletes - they weren't training for a specific race, they just train season-round. By the time I did my March triathlon, I was swimming in the fastest female lane and was able to swim 300-meters in sub 5:00.
This go-round, I've joined a club and I've already found it more supportive and beneficial. I haven't really started training for next year per se ... I'm waiting to finish Dopey in January and Little Rock in March, and then I'll say good-bye to that "run only" life for a while and go back into multi-sport training and workouts.
I will say this - I only got better and more comfortable with swimming once I started doing group swims. If your sprint tri is in a pool, it's going to be a s#!+show (to say the least), so you want to know what it's going to feel like when 50-60 people are swimming in a pool at the same time. If your swim is open water, it will be a battle of wills and you WILL get kicked in the face, clawed over, have your ankles grabbed, etc. Best to know how to handle it before race day, and also how to reorientate yourself IF/WHEN it does happen.