Transition tips for your next Triathlon
Twenty years ago, I raced in a triathlon for the first time and I had no idea what I was doing. Especially when it came to transitions. I had barely pieced together swimming, cycling, and running and I had just learned how to clip in and out of my new cycling shoes on my new bike with skinny tires. Leading up to the race, I was given advice to fill up a pail of water to rinse my feet off, use lots of towels, and ride in cycling shorts. I can’t even stand watching the video of my transition my parents kept because it is so embarrassing!!! I had to shimmy on my cycling shorts onto a wet body over my swim suit and I somehow didn’t think to fill up the water bin prior to the start so I’m dumping out water from a plastic water bottle into the bin, it was such a time suck. I also had to shimmy off the cycling shorts and pull up running shorts and fully lace up my running shoes! To think of it now, I just look back and laugh. I want to save you this embarrassment and precious time off your first triathlon race. Follow these steps to improve your transitions.
Wear a Trisuit
What do you wear!? Don’t be like me having to shimmy shorts on and off. Invest in a good trisuit. A trisuit is either a one piece or a two piece suit that is meant for swimming cycling and running. The chamois pad is very thin and light so it is comfortable while cycling but also not too thick for swimming and running. There are strategic pockets for your gels and nutrition (which you pick up from your transition area) on the sides or zipper on the back. If you are part of a triathlon club, they often have trisuits that you can purchase at the beginning of the season. Some of my favorite features for a trisuit include zipper pockets vs. open pockets (decreased drag in the water), a very light chamois and sometimes non-existent (personal preference), and coverage in the shoulders to shield from the sun. For women, finding a bra to go under the trisuit can be a challenge. I purchase a racing swimsuit top from speedo or TYR and wear that underneath because it is tight, supportive, and is meant for the water.
Let’s talk shoes
So you’ve got cycling shoes and running shoes and you’re running up from the swim barefoot with wet, muddy, grass filled feet! What do you do? Don’t fill up a water bin that takes up all of your space- that’s a waste. Instead, make sure you have a good sized towel for your transition that you can wipe your feet off quickly while standing. Some people (like myself) are comfortable cycling and running without socks. This is dependent on what your feet can tolerate so I recommend practicing this in your training first to make sure you won’t blister in your shoes. You’ll want to put elastic shoe laces on so you don’t have to waste time tying shoes. With elastic laces, you can just slip your shoes on and go. If you use the same shoes to cycle and run, you’ve got it easy. Just slip on your shoes and go and don’t change them after T1. If you use different ones, you’ll have to slip into your cycling shoes in T1, then off in T2 and slide on your running shoes.
Here’s an advanced tip for those comfortable with bike handling. When you’re setting up transition, clip your cycling shoes into the pedals. When you arrive in T1, grab your bike and run barefoot out of transition, hop on your bike with your feet on top of your shoes for the first few pedal strokes. Once you gain some speed the first 200ft, start getting your feet into the shoes, one by one reach down for the shoe lip, slide your foot in, then pull the velcro lever over and do the next. You will need some good balance and familiarity with your bike for this skill. On the way back, start taking your feet out of the shoes about 500ft away, leave your shoes on the bike, and dismount your bike. If your shoes are too large and hit the ground, they may pop off. I recommend tying them back with rubber band to start. Coming back, it can be a gamble bc the speed of the shoe hitting the ground may pop the shoe off. I recommend practicing to see if this happens and if so, just keep your shoes on to run back to T2.
Race belts
You’re given a race number to wear for the run and you’ll need a place to quickly pick it up and place on you while you run. You do not need it for the swim or the bike- you’ve got number markings elsewhere. I recommend you purchase a race belt that you can keep in transition until T2, grab it when you put on your shoes and clip it onto your belly while you run through transition. I like spi-belt because I can pin my number to it and I can fit my phone in it. I actually use 2 spi-belts. One for the bike with the phone in front without a race bib, and 1 for the run with the race bib. A little overkill, but it works for me. You’ll find what works best for you. Whatever you do, do not ride with your race bib on. It will cause so much drag on the bike and you’ll definitely look like a newbie!
Tricks to find your set up in transition
How do you find your transition area when you run in from the swim? There are thousands of other racers and all of their gear looks the same! For one, choose a really bright colored towel to put down in your transition area so you can easily spot it when you get close. Before leaving transition set up, count the number of racks from swim to get to your bike and look for your race number listed on the racks. Also, count the number of racks coming in from the bike to get to your spot. These numbers of counting can help you as you run into transition to find your spot.
Follow the Rules
Rules? Yes there are rules for what to do in transition. There are officials going around transition to make sure your bike is facing the correct way and that your stuff is not impeding on someone else’s spot. If you have questions, find an official the morning of the event to help make sure your bike wheel is down on the correct side and that your towel and gear is in the correct place. Your bike must be racked by either the seat or the brake hoods and the majority of your bike placed on the number side. Your gear should be on the number side. Only equipment for transition stays in transition. Your bags must come out of transition. Keep your helmet on at all times that you are handling your bike, including the chin strap. Mount after the mounting lines and dismount prior to the dismount lines coming back into transition.
Race nutrition storage
Line up your gear and nutrition in order you will use it. For longer IM events, you will have a gear bag filled with your nutrition along specific part of the course. For each race, pay attention to the details and make sure you mark your things correctly. You will carry a lot of nutrition on your bike and it will vary for each person. Look into getting a “bento box” for the top tube of your bike to store food, you can place some gels into your side pockets of your trisuit, water bottles on the down tube and behind the seat, and bottles that fit in between your aerobars. On the run, when you grab your hat, also grab your gels, hydration pack, water bottle or whatever you’re using.
If you are already doing some of these, then you are ready to speed through transition! I recommend practicing your transitions at least 4 weeks prior to your next race to make sure your equipment is working correctly and that you have everything you need. It may take time to order specific equipment that you’ll want.
