What is triathlon?

Triathlon is an Olympic sport consisting of swimming, cycling and running. The event order is always to do the swim first, the bike next and finally the run – all in one go, as one race. Triathletes change over sports within a triathlon, in what is known as the “transition zone”. The winner is the first person to complete the triathlon course.

If you are interested in starting racing, then you will have to apply for a licence. The licence can either be applied for direct to your triathlon federation, or through your club. I advise you to start off with a club – this way you will gain a lot of extra tips and the necessary support to help you through your first few races.

Standard distances for triathlon :

You will find that there are many ‘in between' distances held in your region. These can be much shorter than the sprint distance races. These are mainly made to encourage beginners to have a go.

But Triathlon is too macho for me!

Triathlon is for anyone who dares!

Triathlon is a sport that is open to all ages and abilities. It is not a sport that is reserved for the super-fit. Many beginners and on lookers believe that you have to be a well muscled, hulking male or female to take part in triathlons.

It isn't your size that is important in triathlon – it is your mental spirit, physical practice (called training) and your motivation that will get you across the line comfortably. So when you go into these races you will find yourself competing against people of all shapes, sizes, ages and abilities! You will find people, called, ‘ triathletes' that are similar to you! Triathlon is therefore a ‘people's sport' and indeed great fun – so let's get started.

What do I need for swim training and racing?

Swim suits: Swim suits must cover the chest for racing, so if you are male, then you must wear a ‘two piece suit' : swim trunks or shorts, with a lycra vest. Your club will probably help you out here. For women, you can wear a one piece swimming costume or bike shorts with a lycra top. Special triathlon swim suits will have padded area to protect your ‘down below' on the bike. It isn't much, but it is better than nothing!

You also need to feel comfortable with your goggles. It may take some trial and error to find the right goggles that don't leak in water – normally novices forget that the reason goggles leak is because you have not adjusted the elastic properly. Make your assessment of the goggles once you have adjusted them and have swum with them for a good two weeks.

Long hair : If you have long hair, then training with a swim hat makes commonsense. Not only does the hat protect your hair from harmful chlorine, but it also keeps it out of your face when trying to swim. The most durable hats are the silicon swim hats. They are quite thick, but they last for years! After swimming put talcum powder in the hat, so that the next time you go swimming, you don't have problems with stretching your hair whilst putting on the hat. Nowadays the silicon hats come with a non-stick inside surface, but this tends to fade after a while.

You may want to buy anti-chlorine shampoo too, to rid your hair of tangles caused by chlorine.

Watch out for new swimming costumes ladies! After doing a good swim workout in your lovely new suit, you may be shocked to discover that you have burn marks under the arms! This is due to the swimming costume chaffing against your skin – to rid this, you must apply Vaseline. The marks don't disappear easily like blisters because they are in fact ‘burns' – be careful!

Wetsuit : the image of triathlon is one of the ‘wetsuit' – all those neoprene animals running into the sea…but you need a wetsuit to keep you warm in cold waters. Triathlons though don't take place in really cold waters, so don't worry too much. Just make sure you do have a long sleeved wetsuit for race day.

Wetsuits for triathlons are different from normal everyday outdoor wetsuits used for sailing, diving or wind surfing. Triathlon wetsuits are specially made for open water swimming. They are made of neoprene but have softer material under the arms, which makes the front crawl action more efficient.

Swim Transition

My advice is to pay for a good quality tri wetsuit – one that is custom made to fit you. It should be tight fitting all around. Triathletes on a budget may want to buy ‘off the shelf' tri wetsuits to start with. If so, make sure there is no bagginess anywhere. It must be a good fit around the neck too. And do double check that it really is a triathlon wetsuit. Some stores don't make a clear distinction.

A wetsuit should last you a long time. Mine has lasted over 10 years. Always wash it out with a hose after swimming to get rid of grit and dirt. If you don't, then you risk getting chaff marks on your skin the next time your swim with it. Never dry the suit in hot sun because the UV rays will eventually damage the suit. Hang it up to air inside-out in the shade. If you don't use the suit for long periods of time, then the best is to lie it flat with nothing over it….under the bed?

Wetsuits will give you an advantage when swimming. This is because the material makes you more buoyant. Most Triathletes therefore like to swim in the wetsuit! But there are rules to abide by with water temperature and the use of the wetsuit. If the temperature is over a certain temperature, then wetsuits are not allowed. This temperature is not really too bad, and all athletes will be very safe and comfortable when the race day ruling for “no wetsuits” is set.

There is some extra information on wetsuits if you click here on the open water swimming article.

Cycling for triathlons

I explain about biking on this site. You will probably get the most benefit out of reading the racing and skills pages for cycling technique, and on the fitness pages there is info. on how to buy your first bike. In addition to buying your bike, you might want to invest in a pair of tri bars. These fit on the front of the bike so that you can get into a more aerodynamic position.

Cycling in triathlon is different from cycling in road races. You will find that the majority of triathlon races today are “non-drafting” i.e time trial effort. But the top elite races are “drafting” i.e allowed to ride in a peloton.

(Drafting means taking shelter behind another rider by cycling in his slipstream – you can save up to 30% energy this way.)

Biking for triathlon

The top elite have drafting races, because their events are on the television. The media believe that the races are more exciting to watch on T.V than to have non-drafting races. As a consequence, the nature of the sport has changed dramatically at the top level: it has meant that you must be a good swimmer to exit the water to be with the main peloton on the bike. The bike section is indeed the weakest link, where top riders seem to just shelter behind each other to ‘take the ride and rest up', then rely on an excellent run. So to succeed in triathlon as a top triathlete today, you seemingly have to be a top swimmer and a top runner. But this could change…

The bike section in my opinion is still under-developed within drafting allowed elite triathlon. With better knowledge of bike skills and tactics, top athletes could use the bike leg to win a top triathlon.

However, allowing drafting for the very best triathletes has caused huge upset for many years within the world of triathlon, because triathlon has always traditionally been about the single effort . All triathletes in my view should be racing the traditional way and not have the media interfering with the sport.

Running: you will need a good pair of running shoes for training and racing. Novices will find that one pair will do for racing and training. More experienced triathletes like to buy lighter shoes for running. You should always ask advice about what type of running shoes to buy. The best advice will be within your club.

Laces and ties on the shoes: you will notice that triathletes have elastic laces, or toggled laces. This is so that you can jump into your running shoes quickly after cycling, so that you don't have to ‘do up' the laces. This would take lots of time in the transition zone.

The transition zone on race day

The transition zone is where you will place all your gear on race day. Once you have registered for your number, you will need to lay out your gear so that it follows from sport to sport.

The bike is normally racked on a railing with your number on it. You should have a chair to sit on and some space to lay out your kit.

Make sure on race day that you are clear about where the course goes for each section. Most Triathletes will be working out which way round buoys they should be swimming, where to exit the water, then how to enter and exit the transition zone correctly. Your club mates should get together and run through the course route, transition exits and entrances.

Novices and even some experienced triathletes can easily forget to remember where their position is, within the transition zone during the race. This can cause lost time and frustration. Make out large objects as your position marker. I say this because in the flurry of effort and adrenalin, you just won't be slow enough to make out your transition place row and number. Also try to look at your position in the transition zone from the exits and from the entrances: your position will look different. So, you have to do your home work!

Novices should enjoy their first triathlon – it really is an exciting atmosphere. Just relax, your goal is simply to finish! When you finish your first triathlon, you can officially call yourself a TRIATHLETE!

End of article...

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