Miami University Student Foundation Triathlon : Official Thread (Page 7)

How far does the furthest bike have to run with the bike? Closest?

Under 25yards - 25 to 50 - 50 to 100 - over 100?

If it is very short I will not pre clip my shoes.  i have found the the amount of time saved to get out of t1 is lossed again screwing with the shoes while rolling instead benefiting from fastened / clipped shoes to gain power and speed.  If it is a long t1 too much time is lost walking / hobbl running in cleats as opposed to running barefoot with the bike.

about 30 yards at most.

I'm staying at the Hampton Inn on campus on Fri night.  I am too afraid I would forget something getting up at 4am on race day.

This has not come up yet, and is probably the most important item of the day to think about and discuss:

Which local Oxford tavern are we going to meet at after the race to celebrate our PR's? I'm partial to Mac and Joe's myself. It's a dive and hard to find if you don't know where it is, but they do have cheap beer. Last year I got entirely too many pints of Shock Top for $1.75.

Any takers?

I love the social time after the event so I am in - (besides it would be hard to get home without you)

Pool report

Water was 80.2 degrees this afternoon!   Nice!

Weather Report

Weather.com calling for Cloudy Sky 68/46F

My bike is at Bikewise Oxford getting pampered!  She should be good to go on Saturday!

I am starting to practice my   "Passing on your left" call! 

last few tune up practices to see where things were today and yesterday.

yesterday was the bike/run with a 5mile TT/1 mile run ave high 27s on the bike, 5:18 for the mile.

today swam a 400 in 5:10 and didnt kill myself, things are looking solid.



i'm all in for something after the race.

I am in for a few drinks after the race.

How many people wear socks when they race? I am trying to decide if I want to wear them or not. I need to save all the time I can after my slow swim.

i have not worn socks in any race of Half IM or under in two years, and never in a sprint/oly.

I think this depends on your overall goals.  If you are looking to set a PR but aren't going to place in AG then wear the socks.  If your time in a print tri is over 1.5 hours - you might as well wear socks.  The time saved in comfort will outweigh the 15 seconds saved in transition.

The more competitive you are - the more sacrifices you will need to make.

brue pretty much hit the nail on the head, but i'll give my thoughts as well.

in a sprint/olympic, i am going to do anything to get out of transition and out of sight as fast as i can, even if that means going faster there and the start of the run and needing to slow down, why?
because i want to be out of sight/out of mind, you would be suprised at the number of people that will chase down someone they see but wont if they are around the next corner. this is why i like races with lots of turns, in the woods, etc.

as to what to wear for this race, i would love an overall spot, and at thisdistance my comfort is not coming into play. no socks, prob no glasses unless its COLD, no gloves, either a one peiace tri suit or jammers depending on the temps (if its really cold no tri suit, less wet material the better.

My .02-

NOTHING NEW ON RACE DAY!

If you have been wearing socks on all of your training take the time to put them on in T1. Your feet will thank you. I always wear socks. Training, racing short races, long races, whatever. Last year during an oly race one of my socks slipped down below my shoe and I didn't bother to fix it. I had a pretty nice blister for a few days afterwards. It cost me a few running sessions.

BTW, newbz and Brue are right though, the top winners of this race will probably be sockless.

This'll be my 1st tri.  I have no shot at a podium finish.  My only goal is to finish injury-free, with a smile.  Since this is my first, I'm guaranteed a PR!

So...I'm planning out what to wear.  Please tell me if this makes sense - swim in tri shorts and a tri bratop.  Put on a dry tri singlet over the wet bratop.  Have tights and long-sleeved top available if it's between 40-50 at racetime, skip if over 50.  Wear my usual things:  gloves and glasses for cycling, socks for running - just to keep it the same as usual.

I have a nasty head cold thanks to my 3-year-old.  Nothing in my chest so far.  I haven't ridden wet yet.  I'd planned to this week, but figured with the cold, I probably should just skip it.

Given that cold plus my inexperience, is there anything I should change?

Next question:  Tips for my family at our first triathlon

My husband needs to manage a 3 and 5 year old.  I'm sure he's bringing them seperately long after I arrive.  When should he plan to arrive? how far is he likely to have to hike for parking?  Any good family tips, since this isn't a nonstop spectator sport?  How long will this race last from first starters to last finishers? 

I did the Miami tri last year and it was my first tri also. So, here is my advice:

1.) Get there early and get an outside position on the bike rack. This will give you a little more room in your transitions which is nice to have.

2.) Lay your things out in the order you will need them.

3.) I am a very weak swimmer so I was one of the last to get on my bike, which actually was nice since I had a lot of room.

4.) There is a hill early on in the bike that is a tremendous challenge. Put it in low gear and PEDAL!

5.) Don't overthink things. As much as you will hear this you will still OVERTHINK things.

6.) Have FUN! It is such a great feeling to have all the other participants, family mebers and students cheering you on. I give the MU community a ton of cresit. They put on a great event and support it very well.

As to what to wear-wear what you think will make you comfortable. Just remember that the more you put on the longer you will be in transition. If you get cold easily then the long sleeves make sense.

Question 2-When I supervise the kids (2 and 4) and my wife races I make sure that I have plenty of snacks and drinks and games. If the kids like to throw balls there is plenty of room in the quad by the finish line. The bathroom is not too far away from the quad and transition area either.  
I'd say he should get there about 7 so he can find the place. I have no idea how far he'll have to walk. I'd plan on a long distance, maybe a mile.
Tell him how long you expect to take for each leg of the race. Write it down for him, ex:
Swim 8:15
Bike 55:00
Run 26:30
That way he'll know when to head over to the transition area and start looking for you. He'll like that because then he can go play with the kids and not have to keep an eye out for you the entire time as well. My kids really like to learn new cheers for mom, I try to teach them one at each race. I also encourage them to cheer for other people as well.

The entire time from the first starter to the last finisher may be greater than 3 hours. It's nice to stick around and cheer for the last athletes coming in but not necessary. My kids are usually good for 30 minutes or so after mom or me finishes up. Stick around as long as you are all having fun but when they get whiney -go, be with your family.

Remember, after the race you're allowed to talk about it only for as long as it took you to complete the race. No longer. A one hour 45 minute finish gets you one hour 45 minutes of telling you husband all about it.
Have a great race!

From what I hear they are expecting a huge turn out. He should be able to find decent parking depending on what time they get there. It has been a LONG time since we have had a 3 and 5 year old (my daughter is a sophomore at Miami). His arrival time depends on your swim time. If you are a strong swimmer and start early he will want to be there accordingly. However, if you are like me (a weak swimmer) he can get there a little later. I didn't get in the pool until about 70 minutes after the start time based on my swim experience.

The good news is the swim, bike start and finish and run start and finish are all in the same general area so they won't have to go far.

The best advice I received that I will pass on is 1) Have fun 2) smile!

Can anyone tell my wife is out of the house, the kids are in bed and I'm bored?

YES! 

There is a large parking garage next to the transition area, so parking should not be a problem.

The event is capped at around 650 participants, and I understand that it is sold out, so given that the swim starts one person every 5 seconds, it should take a good hour or more to get everyone in and out of the pool (not doing any math here... sorry).   so there will be some folks going out of the TA when some people are coming back in to start the run.  I guess what I am trying to say is that there will be enough activity going on in the TA to entertain a 3 and a 5 year old for about 15 minutes...     Good news is that there will be plenty of college students around, and they LOVE kids, so bring some toys and the students will likely play around with them.  My 6, 5, and 1.5 year olds will be there, so I am glad to hear there will be other kids there as well.

Ok, to help a little with the timesheets that David suggested, here are some numbers based on last years results

Swim
Average = 9m 27s
Minimum = 4m 41s
Maximum = 24m 07s  (I thought this was an error, but that is the actual number... the guy ran a 20 min 5k though)

T1
Average = 2m 47s
Minimum = 27s
Maximum = 16m  50s (someone pulled out a blow dryer)

Bike
Average =50m 39s
Minimum = 33m 52s
Maximum =1h 22m 39s

T2
Average = 1m 27s
Minimum = 21s
Maximum = 7m 45s

Run
Average = 27m 05s
Minimum = 16m 39s
Maximum = 48m 12s

Total
Average = 1h 31m 07s
Minimum = 59m 49s (Only one person finished less than 1 hr)
Maximum 2h 19m 47s

Top 10% finish < 1h 12m 46s
Top 20% finish < 1h 18m 33s
Top 40% finish < 1h 25m 55s
Top 60% finish < 1h 33m 22s



Can you tell that my wife is already asleep?

that min bike time looks familure.....

Hope you can beat it this year.

Hey now, watch those remarks towards slow swimmers! I wasn't the 24:07 guy, I was the 18:15 guy! However, I had one of the greatest moments of my life. As I am preparing to swim my final 50 meters I looked up in the stands that were packed 90 minutes earlier to see my daughter standing there alone cheering me on! I didn't care if I had to dog paddle, I was going to finish. As I left the pool I took a quick look back and there couldn't have been more than 5 - 7 people left.

My bike time was 49:52 and my run was 30:30. So, if you suck at one of the three disciplines, don't worry about it. Get through it and try to make it up on the other two. Most of all have fun!