Sorry to all the bike purists who wouldn't fancy running or swimming, but you're missing out. If you think you're fit/fast on the bike, try those sports, you'll be painfully surprised.
Backgroundy stuff:
There are a few guys in my office who do a few tris. I figured I know how to swim (well I did lessons when I was young), I used to be able to run, and I ride most days (commuting), so it shouldn't be too bad. The Corporate tri is a relay format - each team member (of three) does a complete short tri (400m/10k/4k) before handing the timer to the next person. I got to go second in my team.
Spent the summer training, usually lunchtimes with the workmates, particularly swimming (discovering I suck pretty badly) and running (intervals/sprints, did alright there as I used to run - at school, many years ago!). Had some hip pain problems a few weeks ago and got a bit worried by that, but my running pace was reasonable on the day, and going to a physio a few times helped.
Got a wetsuit for Christmas (cheapest one at wiggle) and it was great, barely needed on a warm Melbourne day following a week of hot weather, the water temp was very pleasant, but I figured a bit more floatation wouldn't hurt and should cancel out the time to remove it.
Picked up a one-piece tri suit cheap from the 2XU online outlet ($280 down to $108), very tight but very comfy (better than another pair of cheap tri shorts I got earlier from wiggle). Didn't get a chance to fully test it before raceday (apart from a brief run) but it's a very nice piece of kit and gave me no issues.
Found some 3T aero bars on ebay and bolted them up to my road bike, slammed the stem, jacked the saddle forward, up, and dropped the nose a bit. (SMP Glider, not the greatest for comfort in this position as the edges are a bit sharp, but the cutout made it better than with a flat saddle.) Mounted my Garmin 500 to the right extension just back from the grip, it doesn't get in the way there just twisted in a fraction, no need to buy a special tri bar mount. Maybe not the perfect setup, but it felt alright. I made sure to ride as many commutes as possible on the aero bars to get as familiar as possible.
Raceday:
Got there nice and early to get parking not to far away. There are something like 5000 entrants, so car space is pretty scarce but we got a good spot at 5:30 am.
Set up transition. Decided to leave my bike shoes on the ground and pull them on before running out with the bike (rather than clipping them to the bike). They are Shimano RT-32 touring shoes, actually pretty good for tris as they have two velcro straps only, and a recessed SPD cleat so you can actually run in them.
Running shoes and socks (maybe not needed but I got blisters last time I ran without socks), extra water bottle, gel (didn't use it), all on a bright orange towel.
Turned the bike computer on so it wouldn't wait to find a satellite (and I have it set to NOT auto-power-off).
Remembered at the last minute to go back and put my bike on the big chainring and a suitable sprocket so I could jump on and pedal off effectively.
Then met up and hung out with the workmates til the sun came up.
Walked to the beach and watched the starts, which looked like mayhem; glad I wasn't going first. Got my wetsuit on, cap and goggles, and hung out at the team transition area for my leadout man to arrive. Quick change of timing band and off we go!
A long run down to the beach, already puffing by the time I hit the water. Luckily it's only a 400m swim. Felt fast out to the first buoy, but then felt my ankle band (timer) coming loose. Paused, tried to strap it up, eventually waved for assistance and had a rescue boat assist in strapping it up again. Veered off course in the mid section as my goggles fogged and I forgot to keep sighting. Definitely not like following a line in the pool. But made it through to the beach.
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A loooong run back to the transition area (like about 800m), trying to undo the wetsuit all the way. Eventually got the velcro and zip undone, but managed to pause my watch (technically my wife's but she let me borrow it) in the process, so the timing messed up a bit. Shoved my first foot into the bike shoe, strapped it up, then realised I'd not taken the wetsuit off...
Shoe off, wettie off, shoes on, helmet on, HR armband on, sunnies on, (all of which were all over the place thanks to someone knocking my bike down), grab the bike and run for the exit.Made a brilliant flying jump onto the bike, thanks to the shoes mentioned earlier. They have a full rubber sole, so just stand on the upside down left pedal (which I had made sure was forwards), no slipping, swing the leg over, clip in the right, clip in the left and away. I passed two people who were stationary and trying to clip in with road pedals
Cranked off on the bike and got into a rhythm. Realised the watch was paused and had to restart it and trigger the transition point. Luckily I also used my bike computer so it gave me more reliable data and something I could actually see on the bike.5 ks out the turnaround and 5 ks back, all essentially flat. Had one rider pass me, but passed several others myself. Started feeling uncomfy downstairs on the homeward leg thanks to the sharp saddle, but not too bad. Otherwise, the aero bar setup was working well, stable and relaxed.
Following a tip I read on the web (so it must be true), for the last few hundred metres I got out of the saddle and cranked it standing. The aim is to start activating your hammies and glutes before the run, but when you've been tucked down for 10 ks, standing up results in jelly legs. Still, better to do it at ride pace than run pace. Unstrapped the shoes and pulled the feet out with 150 metres to go, rolled to the dismount line and hopped off pretty smoothly.
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Another long run back to the bike rack, nearly forgot to take the helmet off. Decided to go for socks (20 second penalty), shoes on, race number belt on, and set off again.
Followed a couple of similar pace people out, one lady at about 5'nothing" just ahead at about 200 cadence doing well (I'm 6'1" and do long slow strides); pulled ahead of her and spent the rest of the run with her on my heels. Good motivation to have someone of similar speed with you. Tried to grab some water on the run, but no go swallowing it when you're breathing too hard to drink... Oh well, it's only 4km, not much need for hydration. The last 1.5 km you can see the event flags in the distance down the beach front, easy to gauge how far to go. Pushed the last of my speed out (well, didn't get any slower anyway), dodged the swimmers coming out of the water in the crossover area, and on to the team transition area to hand over the timer.
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Drinks and rest time. Urgh this sponsor's sports drink is awful... Catch the breath, wander to the timing tent and print out some time slips, then down to the serious business of comparing to the workmates, giving excuses, giving cr*p, trying to calculate total times for each person, trying to work out the time delay of not starting your swim on the beach if you don't do the first leg, and generally relaxing as the sun picked up in heat and the third leg racers brought it home. Finally down to the finish line to find the team mates recording their final times.
All in all: A fantastic event, well organised and run (given the massive numbers), heaps of fun. Couldn't have asked for better weather.
Learnings for next time:
a) there will be a next time! Lots of fun, and lots of improving to do.
b) Gotta find some more bike speed; but fairly happy with run pace, and get a bit better in the water
c) Practice transitions (or learn from silly mistakes!). Easy to lose valuable time there.
d) get a more suitable saddle and a straight/forward seatpost.
e) organise a team kit so you can recognise each other.
It's a great event for first timers. There is a huge array of talents and speeds, but everyone was having a good time, so little tension. Most of my gear that I got isn't at all necessary for this event if you just want to have a go, but like good riding gear it just makes everything a little nicer and more comfortable, if not a little faster and easier.
Cheers!
