experimenting with NOT doing speedwork......

I had a friend of mine over for supper last night and he's a pretty good runner. He had been running for 4 years and did a few marathons but didn't really put in a good amount of distance. His best 10k was 44 min. Well he decided to train hard for a marathon and did no speed work just upped his volume quite a bit. Entered a 10k for fun and ran it in 38 min. He knocked 6 min of his 10k time with no speedwork, just increased areobic capacity from his high volume marathon training. Now these results may not be typical, but what works for one may not for another. Crapped out on the marathon though. Was trying to qualify for boston but bonked and couldn't finish.

Speed work has really helped me improve my run times- including longer distances.  I didn't really notice a HUGE difference in my pace until I started speedwork. 

IMO, you need to work on BOTH speed AND endurance  (long slow runs).  I woudn't completely eliminate speedwork, I would just incorporate some tempo runs and long, slow runs.  If you only train long, slow runs/rides, you'll just be able to go to the distance at a slow speed.  That's really not going to help you in a 5K or a sprint tri.  I'm sure there's others who can tell you more on this topic.

Another question- how long have you been tri-ing?  Some people are really gifted and go out there for the first time and have awesome times.  For the most of us, it takes time.  You don't get results overnight.  You only get faster with time and getting some training under your belt.  And- if you don't train right you won't race to your fullest potential.

I was just re-reading my post and didn't want to send the message that I think speedwork is a bad idea.  I do speedwork (tempo runs, not track workouts), and since I've started I've noticed a difference.  I was just sharing a story of my friend.  I think that you need to experiment with your body and see what works.  Thats why keeping a log is so important.  You can go back and quanify what you did against what you got out of it.  Being my first year I'm not sure what works for me but next year I'm going to try something different and compare.