Tips - Little things you never think about (Page 2)

Use a plastic grocery bag to easily get your wetsuit on your legs and arms (put bag on feet and hands, one at a time obviously, and slip suit over said limb). Works like a charm!

After learning the hard way

Sunblock !!

I don't know if someone mentioned this ---

Practice sighting in OWS or in the pool - it will change how your breathing works, and if you are not used to sighting, you will definitely swallow some water!

Take two pair of googles.. nothing like the strap breaking while lining up for race..

also a spare set of clothes and flip flops.. oh the flip flops are so comfortable after a race..

actually i carry two of everything.. (almost).

As a public service, I will pee in your wetsuit for you if you'd like. I'm here to help.

Throw away the little round washer that comes on the valve stem of your tube--it can cause a flat. Also, always pump up your tires before every ride.

Put everything you need for the bike ON the bike.   This includes gels, water bottles, spare tubes, etc.  Don't waste time trying to stock up the bike in transition.  Attaching gels with electrical tape at the top, allowing you to tear them off with one hand is AWESOME.

Make sure your race number belt lives in your transition bag.  I have wasted time every single frickin night before a race looking for that thing.

Bring wet wipes, deod, and fresh clothes for after the race.  Nothing feels better than a quick wipe down.

Edited by BikerGrrrl 2009-04-29 1:27 PM

Oh

If you can't eat your powerbars that you put on your top tube during the race and it gets hot later in the day and melts. Besides being a mess, Bees really like melted powerbars.

Couple that haven't been mentioned / or I'll reinforce:

Pre-race, walk the swim exit to your bike, find a landmark. Some parked next to you may move your stuff, so you need pretty a clear idea of where it is (or was). Like someone mentioned, your bike isn't the landmark (x racks, righthand side or similar). 

Also pre-race, igure out if the transition area is suitable for running in bike shoes. If it's muddy, consider putting them on the bike or carrying them. No shortage of folks trying to dig mud out of their speedplays because they couldn't clip in. 

Also pre-race, walk the bike in to run exit. On the bike in, look at how it's laid out...that'll tell you whether you can come in 'hot', or whether you'd be better served to ease on in, especially if it's narrow or has a turn close to the dismount line.

Don't trim your race number for the bike unless you talk to an official. They can be picky like that.

Make sure you've got bar-end plugs, and some spares if you've got a unique aerobar. Nothing like showing up and finding out one fell out at home, and you've got no spares.

Learn how to run with your bike. Know whether you need one hand on the stem, one on the seat, or both. It's an art, and you need to practice it to know how.

Check your spare tire to see whether it holds air. Nothing like changing a tire to find out that 2-year-old spare has a hole in it.

And here's one that's personal for me...make sure you double check that your quick releases on your skewers are tight. Nothing like wondering if you cinched 'em down as you're going downhill at 45 miles an hour. I get this thought REGULARLY.

Run your bike through it's gears in transition pre-race. The world is full of folks (me included) that started the ride for a race only to find out the small chain ring was 'not available' because something changed while the bike was in my trunk. 

If it's a chip timed event, once you put that chip on, DON'T go back into transition if you forgot something, and don't walk over any kind of timing mat. The mats may pick it up and foul up your results. The RD will giggle and say 'tough'.

Avoid bringing all your worldly possessions into transition. I've seen people with milk crates, picnic blankets, changes of clothes, foot baths, and they're the first to get angry when someone moves their stuff or it's gone, most likely because it took up 3 rack spots in transition.  It's a race, not a campground.

Warm up for the swim.  2-300m to get used to the water temp and get blood flowing. Gets rid of that 'take your breath away' moment, minute, or hour if the water is chilly.  If I had to guess, I'd say that seizing up in a mass start, cold water swim is the biggest cause of DNF's for new folks.

Then during the race....

Be conscious of the bike traffic at the mount line. Some people are gonna come flying there without the abilty to steer because they're doing a flying mount, or trying to get their feet in their shoes. If you're taking your time, get off to one side.  But some people just stop because they think you've got to mount exactly on the line....You don't.  Lots of accidents here, especially at low speed.

If you drop something on the mount line, DO NOT try to go back and get it while till on your bike. I've seen people in reverse, doing u-turns, etc. If it's essential, move your bike to the side, get off, walk back, and pick up the item when it's safe. If it's non-essential, leave it.

On the bike dismount, make sure you're clipped out. Seriously. The bike effort is hard enouugh that you're tired, and from what I've seen volunteering, lots of accidents here - most of them at hi-speed. 

---------------

Seriously, though, for any event, it's awesome to read other people's race reports for that venue, you'll learn quite a bit.

If you wear sox, roll them up before the race so you can roll them on wet feet easily.

Don't put sunscreen on until after bodymarking.

If the weather's cold, have a thermos of hot coffee in the car for after the race. 

I do some wind sprints to get the lungs opened up before getting in my wetsuit.  If I'm going to have an asthma attack, this triggers it and gives me time to recover before the race.

Edited by skarl 2009-04-29 1:50 PM

Keep a roll of black electrical tape in your gear bag.  Use it to tape together the edges of your bike number, especially if you put the number on your seat post.  Usually they give you some large garbage bag ties to put the number on your bike but that is lame.  Or, they give you numbers that have self-adhesive strips which are not bad but I don't trust them to stay stuck together.  I put the electrical tape around the entire border of the number that extends past the seat post.  Also, I'm sure it cuts off at least 0.46 seconds of my bike split due to the aero benefits

edit: I just noticed you can see the black tape on my bike pic on my blog

Edited by Birkierunner 2009-04-29 1:52 PM

Oily sunscreen removes sharpy markings.

HOw is it causing a flat?

Wondering about that myself. How can "the little round washer " cause a flat?

And...don't forget it's converse: Make sure your skewers are not on TOO tight. Nobody wants to ride 25 miles feeling like crap only to realize later it wasn't that they were fat, out of shape, and exhausetd...it was that they overtightened their front quick release skewer when they put their wheels on and it pinched the hub.

I mean, not that I've done that or anything. Recently.  More than once. This year. Never. Not me.

Along that line, the little lever that loosens your brakes to be able to slip your wheel out. If you loosen it, tighten it again. Not that I've ever forgotten that and hit something because of it. Nope. Never happened, there were no pics.

John

I've tried putting sunscreen on before bodymarking and after, and it never matters--my numbers are gone by the time I get through T1.

Blue goggle lenses absorb orange light and can make orange buoys hard to see on overcast days.

Yup, I was told at the bike shop that the little washer can cause a weak spot on the tube every time you pump the tires and eventually cause a flat. This just happened to me. I got a flat immediately after pumping up my tire and there was a little tear right by the stem.


Edited by sarah927 2009-04-29 2:50 PM

If you don't have a race belt, be sure you don't pin your race number through the front AND back of your shirt....which will cause you to have a hell of a time putting it on in T1.  Talk about a time killer!

I'd recommend a race belt and a tri-top that you can wear the entire race.  Putting a shirt on in T1 while you're still dripping is hard enough.  Better to skip it altogether.

(edited to finish my thought)

Edited by hamiltks10 2009-04-29 2:52 PM