Your essential race day guide

Words: Adam Kelly

So you’ve done the right training for your triathlon and now it’s show time! Or race time to be precise. Outsider’s triathlon editor Adam Kelly offers you this essential guide to race day with 10 top tips your competitors will wish they knew.

While part of the appeal of triathlon is that it is multi-factorial, remember that with more elements, that means a higher risk for things going wrong. So being prepared is key! Also,despite its name, triathlon is actually broken up into five parts, not three as is commonly thought, because of the transition elements of the race. Here are 10 of the most important tips we can offer you – and an equipment checklist courtesy of Wicklow Triathlon Club – www.wicklowtri.com. (You can download your copy here )

1.Checklist

• Equipment: Make sure you are 100 per cent happy with your gear and equipment. It plays mental havoc if you compete knowing something is wrong with your equipment. There is no point putting in all the training only to develop a technical during the race, especially in Ironman Triathlon, when an athlete could have only one peak race in the entire year.

• Packing: Make a checklist at the start of the season and use it to pack your bags pre race. Pack a couple of days before the race to reduce your anxiety levels and so you can fine tune your checklist. You may need to pay a visit to your local tri shop if you need something. If you remember nothing else, make sure to pack your helmet and cycling shoes! Everything else is borrowable.

2. The build-up

• Taper: In other words, don’t try to squeeze a lot of training into the final week before your race. The main aim of tapering is to allow your body to absorb the positive effects of your previous training. You get fit when you rest! That final resting phase will help you get to the start line feeling fresh and injury free. Think of when you see race horses, bouncing with energy at the start line.

• Eating: Ignore the old pasta party trick which can leave you feeling bloated and unwell. Eat as normally as you can in the days leading up to race day. On the morning of the race, eat a small amount of light carbohydrate foods. Your important stocking-up period has been those days of light training and normal eating in the preceding days before the race.

• Sleeping: Often, you will find yourself in a strange bed the night before the race. Don’t worry at all if you don’t get good night’s sleep before the race. The most important sleeps you get are in the full week leading up to the event. Get to bed early at 10pm to give yourself the best chance of this.

• Distractions: The night before the event, try to engage in something familiar and relaxing to distract you from the big day. Spend some time with your family for example. There is no harm in focusing on the event but if you get nervous or excited too early you can get to the start line feeling worn out. This is due to the premature release of performance-enhancing chemicals in the body. I try and leave all my nervous excitement until one hour before any event and then I let my juices flow. This comes with practice and if channelled correctly can massively increase your performance.

3. Race venue

• Get to the race venue in plenty of time. Rushing causes premature chemical release! When you get your number and timing chip, put them both on straight away. These are essential kit items if you want to be included in the final race results. Once you have registered, place your kit in the transition area. Get there early to get to use more space. If you get there late, you might find yourself having to rack up your bike with 1cm either side of you.

• I find it usefully to mentally rehearse the exact route from the swim through transition, what gear I will take off and put on, and what I will take out of transition. Take a mental note of the bike mount and dismount lines too. You will definitely find it useful to mark your transition spot with a brightly coloured towel for example. This makes it easier to find your transition spot amidst the ensuing chaos.

4. Swim

• The swim start: Make sure that you do your water-based warm-up on or in the race course. At this point, take a mental note of landmarks, eg a headland which lies behind each buoy. Often the buoys are difficult to see during the race. Triathlon water starts are notorious for starting prematurely especially if a strong river current is pulling the whole field downstream. If you warm up on the course, you can’t miss the race.

• During the swim: Things can get rough but try to relax. When the race starts, do not to come up for a breath for your first four to eight strokes. You can practice this, in the pool when pushing off the wall. That will help keep you out of trouble because it is more peaceful under the water rather the washing machine above. Make sure to sight (the buoys) regularly and don’t just follow the blind!

• The swim end: Coming towards the end of the swim start to kick your legs a little more to get the blood flowing into them again. When you swim, blood tends to pool in your torso and shoulder area. When you suddenly stand up and start to run out of the water, the blood can flood back down into your legs giving you a dizzy feeling. This can cause great amusement for spectators as athletes appear to drunkenly stagger around transition. Your body will eventually get used to this.

5. Transition One (T1)

• Make it a habit to reach for your helmet first. Triathlon governing bodies are very strict on this so if you touch your bike before your helmet it can cost you a time penalty. I have learnt this the hard way! You can then take your wetsuit off. You should apply a body glide type product to your neck and armpits before the swim to stop chaffing. You can also rub the glide around your wrists and ankles to assist with the swift removal of your wetsuit. Try it in training.

6. Bike

• After mounting your bike, ride on your normal wide handle bars for a short while until you get your coordination in check. Then you can change to your tri bars. Use your time on the bike to drink plenty and eat if necessary as this is not usually possible on the run leg. As an age grouper, you will be cycling alone so you will have to concentrate on pacing yourself. Some people use a speedometer to help them focus on maintaining a particular speed. 40kmph average should do nicely!

7. Transition 2 (T2)

• Waiting for you in transition are your running shoes. You do not need to wear socks in shorter triathlon races up to Olympic distance. Instead, use some talc in your shoes, which prevents blistering and creates an initial effect of smoke coming from your heals! Be calm in the transition enclosure. It will save you time. Don’t throw your gear all over the place. Keep it neat instead.

8. Run

• When you start your run, if you feel very ungainly, it’s not just you. Elite athletes practice this transition constantly in training as a ‘brick session’ which aims to prevent this feeling occurring.

• Fatigue is often setting in at this stage, so your concentration and your mental power are more important than your physical power. Former Irish National Sprint Champion Eanna McGrath once told me a very simple technique to aid concentration. Simply keep picking landmarks or telephone poles ahead to aim for. It breaks the run into mini achievable chunks. This also helps you keep you head up and so you maintain better posture. And it allows you to smile more easily. Have ever you tried smiling with your head down?

9. Post race

• Get some liquid into you immediately when you cross the line. Your recovery starts now and you have only a short 45-minute window to optimise it. Also get a protein and carbohydrate mix into you. I often do not feel like eating solids, so I use a protein shake which also rehydrates me. Once you get this into you, you can relax and have a chat with your mates about the race. Don’t just ingest what is handed to you over the line as a freebie. And you may not get anything, so you need to have your own snack/drink to hand.

• You will often see a group of triathletes standing waist height and chatting in the cold water of the sea or river post race. This is to start the recovery process straight away by reducing inflammation in the legs. The chatting also starts the all important, debrief process.

10. Debrief

• Debrief after the race as soon as possible and write down what improvements you would like to make to your equipment, position etc. This can be done as reminder on your mobile phone. Your preparation for next race starts now. Just like you have that 45-minute window for eating and drinking for optimal recovery, you have a one- to two-day timeframe to learn from your last event.

• The days immediate after the event are mostly easy training days, so this is also a good time to clean and check your bike, wash your gear and then repack it into your race kit bag again.

• The debrief starts the process again. Hone your checklist, and then focus on your build-up to your next event, and the cycle starts again. This then becomes a habit and leaves you with more time and energy to focus on the actual performance itself.

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