Reluctantly signed up for a Triathlon

imaircooled · 05-12-2010, 12:44 PM

Help. What was I thinking? Ok. So I signed up with a group of friends for a local triathlon. For this triathlon, we will be canoeing 6 miles, running 5.5 miles and finishing with an 18 mile bike ride. I'm not in shape but I always thought of myself as an ok runner. So I've been running 3 to 5 miles a night for a few weeks. Any of you guys have tips for my first tri? Also, below is my bike.

It's a decent bike even though it's getting up there in years. I don't have a road bike. You guys think it would be ok to buy road bike wheels and tires or rent/borrow a road bike. Anyone know where I could rent a road bike for a couple days?

Thanks in advance for the tips.

RKC · 01:18 PM

A lifetime ago I did a fair number of Tri's, including half- and full-Ironman distance races. The major worry for newbies not from a swimming background was the open water swim. That looks like it won't be a worry for you.

The run is toughest on your body, so if you're already running the distance, just bike and paddle a bit, and get through it with a smile on your face. Your first race should be fun. A mtn. bike is fine - don't buy anything until you know you might do more races. If you borrow a bike or other equipment, make sure you train on it enough to make sure you're comfortable for the distance.

If you've got time, do a few "bricks" - run/bike combos, or even a 50%-75% distance run through of the whole race. If you can get more than halfway in practice, the excitement of the day will carry you the rest of the way.

Make sure to have a flat kit for your bike too - nothing worse than not finishing because of mechanical troubles....

And make sure to take it easy in the few days leading up to the race. Tapering is more important than you'd think to get that "snappy" feeling in your legs.

Depending upon your age and fitness, you might want to dial it back to running every other day. Rest makes things work better too. Do a longer run or paddle or bike (or brick) on the weekends, and take it easier during the week to keep your life commitments in order.

Enjoy!

JFK713 · JFK713's Garage

18 miles on knobbies is doable for sure, but if you are competitive.........

ask for some Specialized Fat Boys at your local bike shop. 1 1/4" slick tires for your mountain bike, pump them up to 80-100 psi and you can hang with most roadies

Jagshund · 05-12-2010, 04:22 PM

How tall are you? There's probably someone around here that can loan you a road bike. That's worth a few minutes over 18 miles compared to the one you have. Of course, you can always put drops-n-hoods with some bar end shifters on that bike and swap out the knobbies for some Ritchey Slicks (26 x 1.0) and it should ride pretty well. I have a full suspension mountain bike (Specialized Stump Jumper) that I gave the road treatment to so I could venture wherever I wanted to during my rides.

imaircooled · 05-13-2010, 05:45 AM

RKC,
Great advice. A group of us are actually going this weekend to run the toughest part of the course. I'm 38 and in ok shape so that's why I was running everyday. I agree that maybe I should cut back a little. I'm just trying to get in better shape and in a hurry since I only have 4 weeks until the Tri. Thanks again.

John,
I'm competitive but for this race I only care about beating my co-workers! I will be the oldest out of our group so I want to do well. I think I will just use my bike and put on some road tires. Thanks for the advice on the psi.

Scott,
I'm 6 foot 1 inch and I've been trying for about a month to find a bike to borrow. I understand that they cost a lot but I'm familiar with biking and would take care of the bike as if it were my own. I'll still try to find one to borrow but will likely purchase slicks for my bike. I assume I should set my front shock to the stiffest setting? Thanks for the tips.

Thanks again,

Schrup · Schrup's Garage

I trained & did my first sprint Tri on a 12 year old MTB. I put on road tires & solid forks. It's not that much slower than the road bike I now have.

Jagshund · 05-13-2010, 07:17 AM

You're probably going to want to lock the front if possible. First time I took mine out as a road bike I threw my right arm out to signal a turn and clamped down on the front brake with my left hand. Needless to say, the bike took a serious dive due to the shock and sent me over the bars onto the asphalt at over 25 mph. Fun!

The shock will also impair your climbing ability- rather than transferring all of your power to the drivetrain it will have you bouncing up and down- and can also disrupt your cadence.

imaircooled · 05-13-2010, 10:53 AM

Paul,
Looks like that's what I'll do to my bike. Doesn't look like the cost would be much for tires. I probably should buy a new rear rim because it's pretty much beat up from mountain biking. What would the solid forks cost me?

Scott,
My bike came with Rock Shox. Do you know if they are able to be locked? There are some hills so I don't want to waste my energy going up and down while climbing.

Thanks again,

Jagshund · 05-13-2010, 01:14 PM

Hmmmmmmmm. It's been some time since I've dealt with the issue; if you'd asked me two years ago I could have talked about it until your ears were bleeding. I know how to lock out Fox Shox rears pretty easily but may have to defer to the peanut gallery here. If no one else has the answer, I'll take a look at my bike tonight and figure it out.

Schrup · Schrup's Garage

Quote:

Originally Posted by imaircooled

Paul,
Looks like that's what I'll do to my bike. Doesn't look like the cost would be much for tires. I probably should buy a new rear rim because it's pretty much beat up from mountain biking. What would the solid forks cost me?
Thanks again,

Here's the fork I installed.

Kona Project 2 Rigid Mountain Bike Fork (440 a-c) - eBay (item 250572188988 end time May-30-10 08:19:40 PDT)

This is the venders website.

Bikeman: Rigid Mountain Forks

Don't skimp on your tires, get some that you can inflate up to 90 PSI. I went on a 35 mile ride yesterday on my roadbike. I need a new wheelset & tires for it. I'm fixing to order them from Performance Bike today, $550, ouch. Performance has a 20% off sale going on today.

I noticed you have a quill stem, you'll need a stem to clamp between your forks & handle bars. You should put some spacers in there too, for future adustability before you cut the fork stem.

imaircooled · 06-07-2010, 05:53 AM

I took your guy's advice and used my bike and purchased road bike tires and pumped those things up to a little over 80 psi. I set my shock to the most rigid setting and finished my first triathlon!! Thanks for you help. I finished 391st out of 1148 people...so not too bad. We had to canoe 6 miles, then run 5.5, and finish with an 18 mile bike ride. The wind was brutal and the hills were frustrating but I didn't give up and finished in under 3 hours! I've attached some of the pictures at the finish.

My kids waiting on their Daddy.

the finish. I'm in the red shirt.

Co-workers and I.

John Rogers · 06-07-2010, 06:11 AM

Congratulations on finishing and now you will want to do another one for sure. A really great rule of thumb on the cycling part is "never use the lowest gear you have until you are about to die right near the top" that will get you over it. That was told to me by the great John Howard many many years ago at the old Willows Road Race near San Diego.

imaircooled · 06-07-2010, 07:14 AM

John,
That is great advice. It was a lot of fun. We may sign up for one in a couple months. By the way, I was stationed in San Diego aboard the USS Kitty Hawk. Had a great time there.