What you really need to know for your first Triathlon – Part 1 - Gear

So there I was... at the side of the water clutching my swim cap in my hand and frankly speaking "Bricking It".  How the hell did I end up by the side of the water in a back water town south of Sydney, dressed in a one piece leotard with 300 full grown adults all in a same position?  More importantly, why?

This stupid idea all started when I made a comment that doing a marathon was too common and that the only real remaining challenge for your average Joe was the ironman.  Yep that is right. Who would not want to swim 4 km, bike 180km and run a marathon, all in one 17 hour race. Sounds like kicks.

So, confident that the bike leg would be easy I said that I would like to give it a go one day. Not wanted to jump in too fast, I signed up straight away for the Ironman 70.3 in Yeppoon this Ausgust.

STUPID, STUPID, STUPID

Now knowing that I am a OK swimmer, and by OK I mean I can swim from one end of the pool to the other without stopping I was sure this was going to ok.  Also the fact the up until this challenge I was sure that some people were made for running and others were not.  I knew which camp I was in and had no inclination to question Mother Nature. As such, all I knew, is that I could ride a bike half way decent. This is surely enough to get me though the sport most athletes rate and number one in the ball achingling hard scales.

Still, I was determined to give it and go and was going to get 'race fit'.  So the first thing i did was by a copy of Triathlon Plus and figure out want kit I was going to need.  This is of course the most important part of any race prep.  One can't turn up to the start line, wearing an old pair of gym shorts, and expect to be competitive.  One must look competitive first, and than be competitive second. These is a well know law of nature.

So wallet in hand, I attacked 2XU with a vengeance never before seen.  Although I secretly wanted the whole "Sha-Bang" I limited myself to the following:

THE KIT REQUIRED TO LOOK THE BIZ:

Please Note: You will not look like this!

Tri Suit - One Piece or 2 Piece.  Really all that matters is that you have something that you can swim in, bike, in and run in. But where is the fun in that.  There are a lot of different trisuits that are on the market, but the most common at the start line is 2XU.  They idea is the hyrdo-phobick, streamline, ya da, ya da.  I just got the one that make me look less fat!  The 2XU endurance is always a good bet as it has a bit better padding for the bike.  Although, if you are insistent that you need only the best than the Super Elite is no different to the average athlete and cost 50% more. Still, it looks good and that is half the battle.

Asics 2050

Running Shoes - Vital - Not only are you going to be saving yourself injury, and gain loads of comfort on training runs, but these puppies really do need to have all teh go faster stripes that you can find.  Asics make a good pair of shoes, as to Nike and Adidas.  You will find all sorts of neon coloured race shoes, but in this regard I would go with whatever is going to give you the most support. This matters.

Goggles - Again in keeping with my assault on 2XU thought this was a safe bet.  Also, they came only in mirrored, which I was told was to block the sun.  In reality, I was perfect to hide the fear in my eyes at the start line. This is botha good thing and a bad thing.  In retrospect, I would go for some mirrored for the sunny days and one light coloured ones for the crappy days.



Less is more: This guy is serious about his Fredness!



A Bike - Of course a tri specific bike is not needed. In fact, you would be crazy to buy one until you know if you really like this thing or not.   That being said there are things that can be done to make a road bike more “Tri Friendly”.  One of these is the clip on aero bars.  There is a lot of different ones on the market, but really the best ones are the shorter “Stubby” tri bars.  These give a better position on the bike for a more Aero.  Remember though, there is always the drops.

Please note the "twat hat"

A Helmet – This is a must and the marshals will be quite German about the Helmet rules. You must do everything by the letter or the law.  This means, you are not able to enter transition without wearing (and fasting) your helmet. You cannot touch your bike without your helmet on first and you cannot take it off (or unclip) until your bike is racked. There are no acceptations, trust me.

Please Note: Although you make see it on TV.  Unless you really know your stuff of have the bike the match you do not need a “Twat Hat” AKA an Aero Helmet.  These are optional, and look silly on everyone and even sillier on someone riding a 10 year old supermarket mountain bike going 10kmph.  Trust me I have seen this and it was not pretty.

Race Belt – Often over looked but when you think about it, it makes perfect sense.  You need to wear a race number. At the same time you have to swim first. Unless you are going to spend a few minutes in transition, after drinking half the sea from the swim and feeling like you just took a hit from the world’s biggest bong and carefully pin it to yourself, I would spend the $20 bucks.  Your choice though.

Lock Laces - No self respecting triathlete has time to tie their own shoes. Or knows how. These will save you at least 10 vital seconds on race day. Regardless, your head will be spinning out of the water and you will be thankful not to have to think too much.

Stay tuned for:

Part Two – The Rules

Part Three – What to expect and lessons learnt

Part Four – Try not to sink, crash or crawl