Grabbing a kayak in Ironman

Yes, you can without being DQ'd

Hopefully, this isn't part of your Plan B for the IM swim.   Kayakers and lifeguards are there to assist those that need assistance and guide swimmers along the course, not to attend to those that are unprepared for the swim.  I am NOT saying this is you, but I don't think that hanging onto a kayak should be a part of anyone's Plan A, B or C.  If you have an unforeseen issue, that's something else entirely

Edited by ChrisM 2010-07-28 1:09 PM

I am all for people hanging on to kayaks, bouys, whatever.  As longs as everbody gets out of the water safely. 

But, it seems every race for me, there is somebody hugging the bouy marking the turn.  They block the inside lane around a turn.  Just don't do this and everything will be cool.

I will second what Chris wrote, I hope you don't plan on doing this.  Nevertheless, it might be a comfort to know that you could do it IF you felt you needed to.  My reccomendation is to practice swimming the breaststoke a little in the pool and don't worry about how fast  you are going.  Frankly, I don't really see the benefit of hanging on to something.  You can float and/or tread water with almost no energy.

thanks! i'd call it maybe a "plan w"...definintely don't want to do it and feel completely ready for IM louisville, just looking for a little piece o' mind...

Great.   Good luck!!!

You will not be DQ'd.

I have done it simply because I ended up getting pushed waaaay to close to the front before the start and was trying to make my way farther back when the cannon went off...I was literally being flung all over, so I made my way to a kayak and let the FOP move past, then slipped in and did my(very solid MOP) swim.

I second what others have said, if you trained to this distance, the kayak will help you if something unforeseen happens, NOT cool to use as a crutch because you didn't do the training/are unprepared for the distance.

IMKY?  Why didn't you say so?!  No worries!  That swim is cake!  The up-river part is in an estuary and so the water is pretty calm.  There are no waves to fight and the start is a TT start so you don't have to fight your way through.  After you reach the up-river turn-around buoy it's all downhill!  There is a nice current and the water is pretty flat.  The only thing I would advise to be careful us is, after you round the buoy, head back towards the left river bank.  If you don't, the natural current will tend to take you towards the middle of the river....not where you want to be when you get close to the take-out point.

Have fun.  That's a great race.

~Mike

you can also get pushed back on course by a kayak paddle. 

Just remember that forward progress is not just you trying to kick while holding onto the kayak, but also if the kayak has to move. So, if the lifeguard in the kayak all of a sudden starts paddling to get to someone in trouble, and you are still holding on, you are done (technically).

Not to steal the thread, but here is a question: If you DQ'd in the swim, would they tell you when you got out? Or tell you after you cross the finish line. That would absolutely suck to cross the finish line after hours of swimming/biking/running, only to find out that you DQd hours ago. I am not saying that I wouldnt still attempt to complete the race, but I would definitely want to know!!

While you're interpreting the rules correctly, this should be the furthest thing from your mind. I didn't do an Oly until I comfortably swam a 4.5K. The swim is really nothing, relatively speaking. Biking over 110 miles and running/walking a marathon is the hard part! You should be totally comfortable swimming twice that distance and doing a tough bike or run afterwards before you consider going the distance...just my opinion.

As others have said, you're interpreting the rule correctly.  

I do have to say that at Hawaii 70.3 I *DID* find it reassuring that almost every time I turned my head to take a breath I could see a kayak or a paddleboarder in the not-too-far distance.  I didn't have any need to hold onto them, but it was nice to know they were there if I needed them.

In my experience there is a LOT of course support on the swim.  Nothing to worry about.  Do the training and enjoy. 

That is a little over the top.  You could NEVER apply this "I must be comfortable doing 3x the distance" thinking to:
a) An Ironman
b) The other two disciplines

I am certain that you are a strong swimmer.  My longest continuous training swim has been 2000 meters.  I swam my HIM with no wetsuit in the top third of the field.

I would say that you should not race an distance if you have not comfortably finished THE REQUIRED SWIM DISTANCE a couple of times.



Edited by pga_mike 2010-07-29 6:33 AM

^^^ Agreed, The "2x" rule applies to neewbie swimmers/triathletes, with little OWS experience, and the shorter races. If you can swim 2 miles and still have gas in the tank, you can swim 2.4.

Good post and to be honest I think you could roll over on your back and be alot more comfortable than hanging on to the side of a kayak.  My first year of doing tri's I was very unprepared for the swimming portion and to be honest now that I look back I probablly put myself in danger, but when I got in trouble I never grabbed a kayak or anything I rolled over, collected my thoughts and calmed down.  After that year I got swim lessons hehe.