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Original poster

Summer 2015 triathletes….

208 replies

pootlebug · 04/03/2015 10:43

Anyone else? We had a thread last summer so thought I'd start a new one. Please join in whether you're just contemplating your first one or a seasoned triathlete!

Did my first season last year - 2 sprints and 2 olympic. I am panicking as signed up for half ironman in June. Winter was plagued with injuries and now although I'm back to training I'm not nearly as fit as I was and it doesn't feel like long enough to get there. Will give it a good go though. Planning a Sprint in early May and an Olympic end of May as warm-up races.

Come and join me!

OP posts:
Original poster
pootlebug · 06/03/2015 19:51

Hi and welcome, June2008 and Misslaydclare

June….I was in your position this time last year….convinced I hadn't done enough, not really sure at all how it was going to come together, etc. FWIW I still feel a fool in a tri suit but it is a very practical choice tbh - much easier than faffing with clothes changes in transition. Is your swim pool or open water? If the latter, it's important to practice in a lake/sea beforehand as it is a totally different experience to the pool (CMOTD and I can both testify to panicking in open water in our first go at it last year). Practicing bike-to-run transition is also worthwhile….your legs feel like lead. But the adrenaline & training should get you through on the day.

MissladyC - Which half ironman are you doing? Injury sucks, doesn't it? I am soooo hacked off at how much time I've 'wasted' being injured this winter.

Twink - I'm going to save Wimbleball for never when I'm fitter. I hate hills on the bike!

OP posts:
Missladyclare · 06/03/2015 17:47

Hi all. Hope you don't mind me joining in.

I completed 2 sprints last summer, then got injured and stupidly didn't give myself time to get over it. Really only fit again since Christmas. I've signed up for half ironman in August and hope to do a sprint and maybe two Olympics beforehand but have nothing else booked.

June2008 · 05/03/2015 21:54

Can I join in too? I am signed up for my first sprint tri at the end of April, a second in May then depending on how those go another in Sept.

Seven weeks out and I am starting to worry! I know I can do the distance, can do the cycle then run, or the swim then run but am yet to put it all together.

How much training is necessary? At the moment I am swimming twice a week, 30-40 fc lengths, running twice between 2 -3.5 miles, and cycling once approx 10-12 miles. Is this going to be enough?

And what to wear? I have a tri suit but feel a bit of a fool in it! Are there any alternatives? I have a large derrière and cannot find shorts to fit hence the suit but just wondering what others do?

I have some health issues so this is a real challenge for me, alongside being a teacher and having a six and four year old!

It's all becoming a bit real!!!

Twink · 04/03/2015 16:36

Anything would be flatter than Wimbleball!! I'll probably sign up for a couple of local sprints with dd but I'm not good at front crawl, can breastroke for ever but get really claustrophobic with crawl. Only managed to beat the Half ironman cut-off by 6 minutes which put quite a lot of pressure on in the bike but hey, I did it! That makes me nervous about doing Olympic distances despite my biking and running being ok. We've got a local Duathlon coming up soon so I might give that a go again too.

I rode the Wimbleball course before the event so I knew what to expect and was very glad I did, despite the horrendous logistics! It gave me confidence on the day and I knew that once I got off the bike then nothing was going to stop me finishing, even if I had to crawl....

I spent most of my training on the bike, my background was running so didn't do more than about 8 miles but lots of 'brick' sessions

PiggyB, it's important to have a Tri-specific wetsuit as they allow the shoulders to move properly. They give you extra buoyancy so swimming feels easier. If you don't want to buy one yet lots of places rent them

Loving the spreadsheet idea CMOT!

Original poster
pootlebug · 04/03/2015 12:39

Hello all!

Twink I'm doing the new Ironman 70.3 Staffordshire….should be flatter and easier than Wimbleball. Have you any event in mind?

CMOTD good to 'see' you again on the tri thread. Hopefully the training day helps with the open water thing. It's the bike that is scaring me just now on the half ironman, but you are a better cyclist than me I think. The swim is not after all that much further than Olympic. Sounds like your DS is really getting into it! My DS (5) and DD (7) are very keen to do the kids Scootathlon at Dorney if I do an Olympic there at the end of May. Quite how we'll get my bike + DS's bike and scooter, + DD's bike and scooter and all of us to the other side of London is something I haven't sussed yet.

PiggyB - don't worry, it's ages til September….plenty of time to train. You shouldn't have to modify your stroke in a wetsuit if it fits well. The main thing to get your head around is open water swimming and the lack of visibility and black line to follow. Practice transitions - especially bike to run, as it feels like your legs are made of lead for the first km or so of the run.

OP posts:
PiggyBeekman · 04/03/2015 11:40

Me! Hello. I entered the Brownlee Triathlon at Harewood House in September.

I've never done a triathlon before. I don't know what possessed me to enter but here we are! Will be watching closely for tips...I've done a lot of running events in the past but nothing like this.

Am full on busy with my other hobby until the week after next at which point tri training starts properly. I can do a respectable front crawl but first thing is to have a swimming lesson I think as my technique is shocking. Do you have to modify your stroke much when wearing a wetsuit?

CMOTDibbler · 04/03/2015 11:00

Grin. For better or worse, I'm back in!
I've booked a women only training day at Dorney to deal with my open water fears (and will book some local open water coaching) as I want to do the new para tri thats going to be there.

I haven't entered anything yet (apart from my welsh velothon), but have a spreadsheet of our assorted cycle, run and tri events that have been identified, so need to get a few more things booked!

The half ironman sounds sooo far in some ways, but in others I think, oooh, not that bad, maybe...

I've also got dh running and in the pool for the first time in 20 years, so he may be giving tri a go. DS is going to do a duathlon the day I'm at the training day. His main target is to do a 50 mile cycle event by the end of the year apparently.

Twink · 04/03/2015 10:51

Which half ironman are you doing, Wimbleball? I did it a a few years ago. I need a kick up the ass at the moment, fitness levels are through the floor following a climbing accident (and now suffering from full-on flu ??) Last year was the first in about 10 when I didn't do a Tri, just supported dd through her first and I think I need to get something entered asap as a motivator.

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