2014 Rookies - CLOSED (Page 12)

Looks good overall.  i like to put my sunglasses on before my helmet (glasses sit in the helmet) as I find it a but cumbersome to get them on properly under the helmet.  

As for sockless, that's something you would want to practice before trying it in a race.  What about sockless on the bike and socks for the run?  I almost always ride sockless (unless it's cold) and I find it easier to get socks on in T2 when my feet aren't dripping wet from the swim.

flying mounts and dismounts are something else you will want to spend some time practicing before every trying it in a race.  If you do decide to give it a whirl, you can practice it every time you go out for a ride!

I don't do a full flying mount.  I have my cranks setup horizontal with the left one facing forward.  I run past the mount line, put both hands on the bars, step on the left shoe while pushing off with my right and swing my right leg over the saddle.  It may not be quite as fast as a flying mount but it's a heck of a lot more consistent and no body parts are in danger of being crushed!

The KISS principle very much applies to transitions, you should only have what you need in there.  You can pack for disaster and have it in your car in case you need something BEFORE the race.  

In all likelihood you will have a very small space to put your stuff so no room for extras.  Think about what you will be carrying with you during the race.  You will get out of the water, put on your glasses, helmet, bike shoes if not already clipped in, maybe socks, race number if required.  When you get back from the bike, you will put on your run shoes, hat/visor if you wear one, maybe socks.  Other than everything like that, the only other thing you might want is a small towel folded up to put your stuff on.  I personally don't do this but many do.

You want to set everything up so you can quickly get to it and put it on.  I have my helmet sitting on my aerobars upside down with the straps hanging out to the sides and my sunglasses inside with the arms unfolded.  Shoes are already clipped in and i don't do socks so basically just take my wetsuit off, glasses on, helmet on, grab the bike and go.  Coming off the bike, I rack it, helmet comes off  then if I am wearing socks (longer races) they are rolled up on top of my run shoes.  Socks on, shoes on, grab my watch and visor and start running and put them on while I run.  Basically you want to lay things out in the order you will put them on.

Before the race, while setting up your transition area, you should walk through the whole process from entering T1 from the swim and figure out how you are getting to your bike.  Are you running up the middle and then going down a side isle or immediately going over to your row and then down?  Count the number of rows and look for some sort of landmark you can use - make sure it's something permanent that won't get removed.  The last race I did had a tree at the end of my row and it was the only one so it was easy.  Do the same for when you will be coming back with your bike as it could be from a different direction altogether.

Practice ahead of time!  Before my one of my races my coach had me do a workout where I would setup a full transition area and then practice my T1, go out on the bike and do a short ride at race pace - I forget the exact number but something like 5-10 mins - and then dismount and do a practice of T2 and do a 5 min run at race pace.  Then take a short break and setup the transition area again and repeat.  I think it was 5-6 times through.  It's a tough workout and you get lots of practice at the same time!

Well, I said KISS and then I wrote up a long drawn out message - LOL.  I hope that helps and i didn't forget anything which is highly likely....

Donna, when the wetsuit is wet it will come off a lot easier.  I'm not careful with mine during a race, just throw it on the ground under the bike.  Just be sure you don't put it somewhere that it will be in another competitor's way.

Regular platforms may make things easier with shoes but they will likely make you slower over all (regular shoes lose a lot of power due to the flexing of the sole) and if you haven't trained that way your feet may not like it and cause you some grief (nothing new on race day!).  You just need to practice getting the bikes shoes on and off quickly and you'll be good!

Kelly, there was a post in the regular triathlon forum recently that may help with cleat positioning.

http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/discussion/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=509535

It's good that you are thinking about the etiquette but don't get hung up about it.  The big things are pretty simple.  On the bike,

- don't draft
- stay to the right unless you are passing
- before you move left to pass, do a quick shoulder check to make sure it is safe
- never pass on the right

* most of those aren't just etiquette they are rules but in my opinion they fall under etiquette as well as they can have a big impact on your fellow competitors.

On the run, just be aware of what is going on around you.  Don't make sudden changes in direction without checking to make sure you aren't cutting someone off.

There are likely other etiquette things but that's what popped into my head early on a Saturday before my coffee kicked in.  

On the subject of drafting from my message above, does everyone understand the drafting rules?  They vary slightly for different countries and race organizations but the basics are the same.  I think it's an important rule to understand and often race directors just skim over it (at least around here) and simply say "don't draft".

Can someone explain it to me as you understand it? 

Here is a list of the most common rules violations according to USAT.  http://www.usatriathlon.org/about-multisport/rulebook/most-common-violations.aspx

Looking at #5 - that page says to keep at least 3 bike lengths between you and the cyclist in front of you, the official rulebook says 7 meters from the front of the bike ahead of you.  If you get closer than that, you MUST complete a pass - it's not enough to just drop back, even if you accidentally got too close.  You have 15 seconds to complete the pass and as soon as your front wheel gets past the front wheel of the person you are passing, it becomes their responsibility to drop back out of the draft zone.  

Great questions!  Generally speaking you can (and should) run from the water to your bike and also from your bike after racking it in T2.  It's possible there will be race specific exceptions to this where the RD would mandate walking for safety reasons (I'm not sure what they might be but it's possible).

When you get your bike off the rack in T1, you cannot immediately start riding it.  You have to run it out of the transition area (another good skill to practice) and once you exit there will be a line that you have to cross before you start riding.  There will usually be volunteers at the line indicating where you can mount your bike.  At the end of the bike there will be another line that you must dismount prior to.  Sometimes it's the same line as the mount line but not always, it depends on how the course and transition area are designed.

I can give you a 60% off coupon code for an Xterra wetsuit if you want but if it's a trisuit that you want then it won't be any help to you.

You are right about a trisuit, you wear it for the duration of the race so no need to change anything.  It doesn't provide any warmth for the swim though so I think you are confusing a wetsuit and trisuit a bit.  A wetsuit is for the swim portion of the race only and it serves two purposes.  It keeps you warm but it also provides buoyancy and most people swim faster in one, some people are a lot faster.  Because of the increase in speed, most people will wear a wetsuit in a race if it is legal to do so.  That said you certainly don't have to wear one if you don't want to!