One of my closest friends has decided to participate in her first triathlon!! I could not be more excited! When she told me she was going to sign up, I had to stop myself from spewing all of the the race day tips that I could think of. So instead, I've decided to organize my thoughts and share them here. Because, at the end of the day, I'd love for this blog to motivate other badass women to swimbikerun!
1. Make sure you eat breakfast! Something substantial that will keep full but nothing that might cause stomach issues.
1. Make sure you eat breakfast! Something substantial that will keep full but nothing that might cause stomach issues.
2. Get to the race with plenty of time to park, get body marked and get your gear set up. Usually, transitions opens 1.5-2 hours before the race start. I think it's best to plan to drive up to the race site with at least 1 hour before the start. (We did this in New Orleans and the traffic to get to the race site was so bad we had to abandon our car and ride our bikes in with all our gear on our backs just to make it on time! So the more time you give yourself, the better)
3. Set up your transition area with bike gear in the front, and running gear behind it. Make sure to roll your socks off of your feet so you can quickly roll them on when transitioning from swim to bike.
3. Set up your transition area with bike gear in the front, and running gear behind it. Make sure to roll your socks off of your feet so you can quickly roll them on when transitioning from swim to bike.
4. Make sure your number is on your bike, helmet and fuel belt (if no fuel belt, then set up with pins ready to quickly pin on).
5. If it's a wave start, make sure you surround yourself with others in your wave so you know you won't miss it. Go ahead and check out the swim course, make sure you know which side of the buoy you're supposed to swim on.
5. If it's a wave start, make sure you surround yourself with others in your wave so you know you won't miss it. Go ahead and check out the swim course, make sure you know which side of the buoy you're supposed to swim on.
6. Swim buoy to buoy. Don't worry about the entire length of the swim, just focus on getting to the next buoy. Also, go ahead and swim close to others, you can get into their draft zone and save some effort!
7. Take your time in transition. If this is your first race, you're probably not shooting for a podium spot so take some of the pressure off and take your time. Make sure you've got all your gear on. I like to put my gear on bottom to top to ensure that I've remembered everything. (ie. socks, shoes, nutrition in pockets, sunglasses, helmet)
8. Ride comfortably on the bike. Again, being your first race, this should be all about having fun. Get in a comfortable pace/cadence and don't worry about if people are passing you or if you're passing a lot of people.
7. Take your time in transition. If this is your first race, you're probably not shooting for a podium spot so take some of the pressure off and take your time. Make sure you've got all your gear on. I like to put my gear on bottom to top to ensure that I've remembered everything. (ie. socks, shoes, nutrition in pockets, sunglasses, helmet)
8. Ride comfortably on the bike. Again, being your first race, this should be all about having fun. Get in a comfortable pace/cadence and don't worry about if people are passing you or if you're passing a lot of people.
9. Drafting on the bike is illegal so make sure you pass people quickly or ease up when being passed by others to get out of their draft zone. (This is the cliff notes version of this rule, best for you to go to here to read all about it)
10. Be aware of other riders when mounting and dismounting the bike. This can be a chaotic space with volunteers yelling instructions on when you can mount/dismount so just be mindful of those around you to avoid a pile up.
11. Run with whatever pace feels right. You've already completed two of the sports so just put out as much energy and you feel comfortable with, because when you're done running, your finished!
12. Drink at the aid stations if you want (for a sprint only). I tend to take my last swallow of water before I get off the bike and don't really need water for a 3 mile run. However, if you do drink during 3 mile practice runs, you should go ahead and partake in the aid station.
13. Enjoy yourself!! This is all about having fun not piling on the pain factor (that can come later).
10. Be aware of other riders when mounting and dismounting the bike. This can be a chaotic space with volunteers yelling instructions on when you can mount/dismount so just be mindful of those around you to avoid a pile up.
11. Run with whatever pace feels right. You've already completed two of the sports so just put out as much energy and you feel comfortable with, because when you're done running, your finished!
12. Drink at the aid stations if you want (for a sprint only). I tend to take my last swallow of water before I get off the bike and don't really need water for a 3 mile run. However, if you do drink during 3 mile practice runs, you should go ahead and partake in the aid station.
13. Enjoy yourself!! This is all about having fun not piling on the pain factor (that can come later).