Tips for a First Timer @ Sprint TRI

Follow a check list of what to bring to race.

Smile for cameras.

Go at your pace, even though it will be hard at beginning of swim with crowd.

Especially with swim, relax (and swim outside to avoid as much contact as possible.

Enjoy the expirience.

#1 - Read the rules at USAT and know them inside and out! Also read the "etiquette" section there.

#2 - Don't change anything on race day; race the way you practiced

#3 - Use a  checklist so that your brain doesn't ponder all night long about "what am I forgetting?"

#4 - Follow your race plan (which implies that you HAVE a race plan) and don't get suckered into racing someone else's race.

#5 - Remember that you are there to have FUN!

If you smile, you're not pushing hard enough!  

1.  Don't think about it so much.

 What will get into trouble is sweating the details and losing focus of the big picture.  This is a sprint race and your first.  If your transition isn't 100% the way you practiced, or you are 2 min slow out of the water, its not the end of the world, so stop thinking about it.  You know how to swim, how to ride and how to run, so do them to the best of your ability.

2. don't fear pain

I'm not going to lie.  It will hurt.  Suck it up and run.

3. Don't rush through transitions

Similar to #1.  If you rush transition to get out 2 seconds faster, you will waste 2 minutes when you drop stuff or forget stuff and have to go back.  It also increases the chance you do something stupid like put your helmet on backwards, or never take off your goggles or start running with your helmet still on.  Also don't think just because you practiced it at home that you will have no problem doing it in a race.  Coming out of that water, your heart rate will be up, your hands shaking and a desire to just get the hell out of dodge as fast as possible.

4. Don't look around and see what others are doing and assume you should be doing the same

This is a highly individual sport.  Some stuff works for some and not for others.  Just because you see someone who looks fast doing something, doesn't mean it will be fast for you.  If you want to try it, do it at home, not in the race.  Also remember that there are a lot of people who don't know what they are doing.  As I mentioned earlier, you know how to swim, ride and run, so just do it.

At my first race someone in my bike row had tied a big Happy Face balloon at the end of the rack.  I was so grateful for that balloon when I entered the transition area.  Depending on how large your race is, there will be at least dozens and dozens of bike racks and having that balloon made my row much easier to spot.  Especially if you are nervous and don't remember your race number.  I have seen this done at all of my races and keep wishing I would bring a balloon for my own rack!

Have fun and smile for the cameras! 

In the swim take the buoys wide.  i got hung up on the rope my first tri.

 Don't do anything you didn't plan.  I added nutrition on my first tri and ended up dry heaving throughout the ride and run.

 Have fun.

 Practice your transitions and treat it like a race.  Many times I stand at transition wondering if I have everything I need.  

 Don't be afraid to ask questions, if you have a question, when setting up transition.  Everyone had a their first race, so most people will be willing to answer a question or help out.

A grimace can look amazingly like a smile...

Based on my first race a year ago...

1. Practice transitions a lot in the week leading up so that you don't have to overthink it on race day.

2. Know how to change a flat and do basic bike maintenence. A blown tire on race morning almost derailed my first race! Along those lines...allow way more time than you think you'll need to get ready and get to the race. That buffer zone allowed me the time I needed to fix my bike and still make it to the start line!

3. Swim in conditions similar to your race so that you know what to expect.

4. Bring a camera or a person to take pictures of your incredible day! Along the same line, throughout the race, take note of all the great people and scenery around you. You only do your first tri once and you want to soak up all of it!

5. Focus on the task at hand. I found that thinking about the entire race was overwhelming. But if I could focus on what I was doing at that given moment and block out the rest, I did better. In other words, when you're at the startline, don't even THINK about the bike, run or even transitions. Think only about the swim. Toward the end of the swim, start to think about transtion...etc.

GOOD LUCK!

1.  As others have said, don't sweat the small stuff.  If you are not finishing top 3 in your age group, 5 mins slower or faster is pretty much immaterial to you when you're new.

 2.  Figure out if you're ditching socks or wearing them.  I am fine to bike without socks, but got a huge blister when I did the run w/o socks.  I have learned I prefer to put them on in T2 b/c my feet are mostly dry by then, as opposed to dripping went in T1.  If you're planning to put them on in T1, practice putting them on when you are soaking wet.

 3.  Enduralytes have helped me tremendously with calf cramping.  I take them before the race and then when I'm on the bike.

 4.  Start hydrating a good day before.  Don't forget to get a fair amount of water in the morning of the race.

 5.  Throw a role of tp in your bag.  Portopotties often run out.

All good tips, here are some that I think are good anytime:

1) Get there early, find a spot in transition then learn where you enter and exit for the bike and the run. Figure out where your bike is from the swim entrance. This will help your nerves and speed by being familiar with the layout.

2) Nothing new (food, drinks, samples). Don't worry about your calories so much. Sprints are short enough you may feel tired but you won't bonk. This includes mindless sipping at your beverage bottle and then hitting the water feeling bloated. Trust me, a little thirsty will feel better than bloat and cramps.

3)Keep your transition area clean and neat. No lotions, potions tool boxes etc. just your bike and run stuff.

4)Remember how you got there early? Don't be afraid of a long warm up in the water. It will help, Swim out from the swim exit and then look at it to see how it looks from the water. It may not make you faster but familiarity will help keep you calm.

5) leave yourself plenty of time for oopsies (lost swim cap, popped tire, etc.)

Make sure you taper your workouts and rest up.  Get plenty of sleep two nights before the event, in case you don't sleep much the night before (always my problem before a big event).

Don't try anything new on race day or even before the race.  This is not the week to try a new Yoga class.

And don't be intimidated by all the experienced folks on their $5000 tri-bikes.  If they were really great they would be in Beijing right now.