triathlon advice please...

[juicychops]

Hi everyone. Ive recently started running after a long break since the end of last summer.

today i have been offered a place for the london Triathlon which im so excited about. However, i have never even run a marathon let alone a triathlon so am extremely nervous and dont know what to expect.

obviously lots of training is involved which is fine as i have 6 months to do that.

ive been wanting to buy a bike for a while and now im doing this, i will need one suitable for a triathlon. and a wet suit!

please help!

what sort of bike will i need for a triathlon? racing bike with the thin tyres?or a mountain bike? i would prefer a mountain bike but if i have to have a racing bike then thats what il have to get i suppose..

also, wet suit. what type of wet suit will i need? long sleeves? short? long leg? short leg one?

im completely cluless

any other tips would be greatly appreciated

im going for the long distance one - 7500m swim, 40km bike, 10km running

What fun! My first tri was also London 2007 but I did the baby distance.

Bike: it really doesn't matter, assuming you are not trying to win. Mine was my commuter bike with back rack and panniers (blush)......nowadays I have a light racer. Nobody cares. Oh, not usually mountain bikes though as they are very hard work, but if that is what you have then it will be okay.

Swim: you DO need a specialised tri suit as they enable much more movement and (joy) are very floaty. Full length sleeves and legs. You can hire one if you don't want the expense of buying and this is not going to be a habit. You will need to find somewhere outdoors to practise as most pools don't allow wet suits.....The Serpentine swim club is good if you are in London. FWIW I spent ages practising my front crawl but then found the water in the docks so black that I didn't want to put my face in and did breaststroke instead......which was fine.

It's a great atmosphere so have fun.

thanks for replying notsocrates. I really am excited. ive not got a bike yet so when i come to buy one (soon) i can get one suitable for the triathlon.

il have a look on ebay and places like that to see if i can buy a wet suit rather than hire one but il have to make sure its a proper tri one then. don't live in london so will have to find somewhere to practice my outdoor swimming. there are a few local lakes so im sure they have something at one of them.

im not in it to win it, but really don't want to be one of the last stragglers. want to come at least in the first half.

If you buy any tri magazine there will be plenty of adverts for wetsuit hire...and I seem to remember that the London Tri organisers will send you a handbook and that too has ads in it.

My advice is to buy a bike that you generally want to use before and after. If you want a mountain bike then that is what you should get. Personally, I reckon road bikes are much more fun.

Remember that competitors go off in "waves" so that nobody will know if you are in the first half or the last half unless they look at the results table, so you won't look silly even if you are slow.

Why not enter a local sprint tri between now and then to get the hang of the transitions (changing between events eg putting something bright on your bike so you can spot it in the rack and having your towel laid out). You will find that there are many many first timers and lots who are very slow indeed (like me.... at my age I should know better).

The Thames Turbo Tri is in May and is very laid back....there are lots though (not sure where you live).

DH did a team Triathlon a few years back and he did the swim. I seem to remember, once he signed up, he had loads of e-mails with sites he should and could go on for loads of advice about things.

One thing that sticks in my mind, is that he had to go to the doctors for some jabs! The Thames ain't that pleasant to swim in!

thanks for your replies i feel a bit better now. i wouldn't mind doing a mini tri before hand ... one that isn't a charity event. im quite nervous about the actual charity part of it too.

Is a road bike the ones with the thin tyres?
Think il get a tri mag and have a nose. will need to find a good training plan too

If you haven't ridden a road bike before the drop handlebars and gear levers take a bit of getting used to - I've had mine 18 months and am still struggling - perhaps try different types before you buy. I'm hoping to do sprint tri this year 400m swim, 25km cycle and 5km run - gotta learn to run for more than 5 mins at a time first though!

Ooh, good luck. I've heard that it's a great event.

Regarding swim practice, have a look for a local tri club as they often run open water swimming sessions in places where you otherwise would not be allowed to swim.

I would recommend chosing a bike that you are most like to use regularly rather than getting one just for the event. Find a decent local bike shop and they will be able to advise on everthing from a £10k full carbon TT to a sit-up step through complete with granny basket. There is a big choice, but there are some fast hybrids, which are essentially like road bikes but with flat bars, so they're easier to ride.

Have a look on www.bikeradar.com/ or www.tritalk.com for training tips and classifieds.

I also recommend entering a couple of sprint events, where the swim is usually done in a pool, just to get used to the transitions and the rather perculiar sensation in the legs when you first set off running.

And don't worry about making a fool of yourself, there will be plenty of spectators there to remind you if you forget to take your helmet of or something.

Lots of good advice here, but I would second logging on to www.tritalk.co.uk

It's very friendly, lots of banter and will be able to get you in touch with people in your area if you want to.

Don't be put off by all the Ironmen/ladies - it's only a matter of time before you become one yourself now ;-)