need some basics on the bike!

Hi!

Welcome to the wonderful world of triathlon.

Sounds like me when I started riding for the first time as an adult 18 months ago.  I didnt have a bike so decided to go on my friends road bike with clipless pedals.  Re-learning to ride a bike and using clipless pedals for the first time was frightening!

Theres really two ways to go with this.  You could either build your confidence gradually by getting used to riding a bike, then a road bike with flat pedals, then pedals with the strap and finally clipless pedals.  Or you could go clipless form the start, it would be terrifying to begin with but you would get to the end result faster.

I went for a road bike with flat pedals but that was more a fiscal decision than anything else.

Good luck in the marathon!

My first piece of advice would be get away from "crazy" beach road!  I've been riding for a number of years and you just get to many different sorts of riders that make it unsafe... Plus cars.... Plus parked cars....  I've had a lot of close calls on that stretch of road and I consider myself a very good bike handler.  Drive to Mordi and then ride to Frankston (16km each way) or start at Mordi and then to Patterson Lake (8km each way).  I do that with my club, but because I'm training for an IM I ride a lot futher than Frankston and it is generally a lot safer.

Like triste said you can do the slow approach or the fast approach (straight into clipless).  My ex did the later, and fell off 4 times in the first 2km (we both couldn't stop laughing because it was in a controlled environment - I was teaching her)..  She had never ridden a road bike before or clipless, on top of that she hadn't been swimming for years and had only 2 half marathons under her belt (no triathlons).  In 9 months from that first ride, she now has IM Canada under her belt.  Now that is what I call the fast approach!  Will be 7 years from my first tri to attempting my first IM.

In regards to getting bike skills.  I would recommend joining either a triathlon club or a cycling club.  Cycling club would make sense just to get the bike handling etc down then you could transfer across.  Carnegie, St Kilda etc are some examples.  If you were to go straight to a tri club, be careful because some clubs assume a certain amount of skill already and a lot of the sessions, particularly the riding are uncoached.

I'm a bit of a tri club S..t!  Having been a member of tri-alliance and currently a member of Tri-bal and Yarra Tri and know a few people in other clubs.  So my advice/tip/recommendation for just getting started if you were to join a tri club would be tri-alliance.  They have a very good beginner program, and a great bunch of coaches especially for when just starting out.

Good luck with the riding and practice the clipless on the grass and/or no where near traffic to start and make sure you dial down the clipless pedals so that your foot releases very easy for when you are just starting!!!

And to add to the above the other big benefit with joining a club and getting a coach for cycling is as you mentioned to get confidence stopping, starting, handling traffic and with a club like tri-alliance, tribal etc. they will also teach you transitions.  Lots of time can be saved here trust me!

BUT THE OTHER BIG THING IS being taught good bike riding technique.  Body position, flat feet, stable upper body, complete pedal stroke etc etc etc.  This will all help you especially in half IM - stronger on the bike and fresher going into the run!!

Thanks to everyone for the tips!  I do have a lovely Giant Road bike with cage pedals and I did a few rides on it last year including three tiny tri's!  Beach Road all of them but in a controlled no traffic environment  I also did ride 20kms out and back along Beach Road a couple of times (yikes!)  The traffic and parked cars weren't too bad it was the other riders who would shoot past me without a yell!  Don't assume everyone is an expert please!

Anyway - I will definitely try the Mordialloc down to Frankston (do you go along Station st or Nepean Hwy?).

I am going to invest in the clipless pedals and just get on and off a million times in the local park on the grass until I'm sure I can do it!

The jury's out on whether I join a tri club or not - if I do it would definitely be Tri-Alliance, saw them at the Xosize series and what a lovely friendly bunch they were!

Thanks guys - I'll repost how I go - and let you know if the marathon is a success

MELBOURNE MARATHON - a resounding success.  I did my first marathon last year on the Gold Coast and hobbled home in 6.06.  I was kinda hoping to do a 5.30 on Sunday but the conditions were most unkind!

Wind/rain/sun you name it Melbourne threw it at us.

BUT - I finished in a respectable 5.06!  Shocked!  Second half I really was quite slow and still I didn't get pulled off the course and given a map to follow!

Training really did pay off and next year I'll be doing the Gold Coast again in July.

The best thing of all is that I only really ached Sunday afternoon and Monday - by Tuesday legs were back to normal and I'm back in my training routine.

That's a great effort on the run mate, well done!!!!

Look forward to reading all about your bike improvements now!

Nigel

Great result!

Good luck with the continued training!

If riding solo or in a small group, stick to station street, otherwise Nepean Highway is better for bigger groups.  When you get to the end of Station street (a bit past Bonbeach station), go straight instead of going over the railway tracks back onto the Nepean Highway and you will see a small bridge to go over Patterson River.  Take it and you will come out near the Carrum shops, go straight through past the lights and you will come to a T intersection.  Turn left and down to the roundabout just over a small creek which becomes Railway Parade.  Gives you another 5kms or so before you need to go back onto Nepean Highway and if you know the back streets after Railway Parade you can avoid the Nepean Highway all the way into Frankston

Thanks Cotton Eyes!

I do know most of the back streets so I shall get down there this weekend - looking forward to getting back on the bike.  still don't have bike shoes so the cage and the runners will suffice for now until I'm steadier!

I like training solo (do all my running solo along Beach Road), gives me time to think things through!

First triathlon (probably the short distance) will be 6th November - wish me luck!

Jo

Hi! Are there any interested in riding around the surfcoast area? Ie. Barwon Heads, Torquay and even a lil bit towards Geelong.  I would love to cycle with people so as to improve BUT my routine changes a fair bit.  HOWEVER.... work mainly school hours so around those times might work!!??

An update if anyone's reading.  so today I just woke up and decided it's time to get back on the bike.  and off I went - no drama!  Still in runners and cages but that will change soon enough.  I ventured along Beach Rd - warrigal rd to Black Rock.  Yeah only 20km and it took a good hour to do but I enjoyed it. 

Managed to stop and start without too much wobble.   got overtaken by lots of peloton riders but didn't care.  Even managed to do a right turn - yeah it was a quiet day on the roads.

But I've been given a huge confidence boost so watch out I'm back!

jo

x

ps - first triathlon is not 6th November - I'm not crazy!  4th December I think....

Congratulations! I know how much Ive struggled with confidence on the bike over the years.... especially when Ive been off it for awhile (like at the moment... and being summer i should at least try a ride!)

I hope your race goes well! Just the confidence boost of that ride should keep you training