what to take to a triathlon

While most triathletes picked an early season sprint race as their “rust buster”, I kept training. I haven’t done a sprint since my very first TRI, in 2005, on my Wal-Mart mountain bike. To be honest, getting all my gear together for a sprint AND paying the fee for something “short”, just isn’t appealing to me. If I have to gather the gear, pay a ~~ridiculou~~s fee & leave my family behind, I want it to be big. At least big to me. So my first triathlon of the season is a 70.3 event, the Cutting Edge Half Classic in Effingham, IL. A 1.2 mile swim, 56 mile bike & a 13.1 mile run. Now that’s a triathlon.

Since I haven’t busted any rust, I’ve gone over a few of my old posts as a refresher course. I want to show up with the proper gear. I want to feel calm about the swim. I want my transition area to be on point. And I’d REALLY like the weather to cooperate (forecast is for a “feels like” temp of 98 degrees!) but I can’t control that. Here are a few of the posts that I’ve reviewed in case you too need a refresher.

Overall, I’m excited to get my TRI season started. I’ve put in a decent amount of training since January. I’ve already ridden over 800 miles. I’ve been swimming 2x a week. We all know that I’ve already ran a few miles too. I know this won’t be an amazing race but I’m hoping it will be a solid start to my season. So until Sunday, I’m just going to focus on being calm. I know I can cover the distance, I’m just anxious to see how the splits turn out. My overall TRI goal for the year is to go under 6 hours for the half iron distance. Big goal. I have to cut my swim time and put my run back on the map. I haven’t busted out a decent half marathon for the 70.3 distance in a long time. I need to fix that.

Any tri tips that will help me fly with the wind on Sunday? How are your 2016 goals coming along?

Whooha Gear Giveaway is still live til June 15th. Enter HERE.

** Happy TRIing ** Amanda – TooTallFritz

Whether your heading to a sprint or a long course triathlon, the list of “what to take” can be daunting. So daunting that I have in fact shied away from shorter races with the reasoning that the packing, traveling, hauling of gear is more of a ~~PITA~~ chore than the reward of the race itself. Next year, that will change. I will be delving back into the world of sprint and Olympic distance TRIs and it will be fun, Fun, FUN for me! However, the list will be virtually the same for any race distance. The single best piece of advice I can give for hauling the gear would be to invest in a transition pack. I did it for years without one, which means I used a regular back pack, then carried whatever wouldn’t fit and also attempted to push my bike along to transition all while not dropping anything or crashing my bike. This plan is a total FAIL though if you are at a location like Pleasant Prairie where you need to get on you bike after the race and ride it, along with your gear, back to the car.

Transition packs are expensive ~~in my opinion~~. I waited until I had a coupon, found a discount, saw a special for free shipping, etc. then read a billion review and still didn’t know what to buy. I basically decided that as long as my gear fit in the pack and it held up over the course of time, then I’d probably be happy. I picked the DeSoto Transition Pack (retails for $119) because it has a specific spot to hold my wetsuit, bike pump & helmet. Then it has a giant compartment & several zippered pouches for whatever else I need but those 3 things were my biggest issue because they never fit into my regular backpack. I think with all my discounts, I paid about $80 for this thing and I really do like it. I have an older model but these are stock photos of the current DeSoto Transition Pack VI. Love it!

THE LIST

PRE-RACE

Directions to expo, hotel, race venue
$$ (cash) – you may need to pay to park at the expo or on race morning.
USAT card & ID
Confirmation to hotel & event
Snacks & Water – Stay hydrated and fueled leading up to the race.

TRANSITION

Bright colored UNIQUE towel to help you identify your spot.
Transition pack (or backpack) to carry your gear.
Good attitude because it might be “a little” hectic in there.

SWIM

Goggles
Swim Cap (not for the race but in case you want to test the water at check in)
TRI Kit (I like a 2 piece in case I need to hit the potty)
Wetsuit (optional but highly suggested)
Body Glide, TRI Slide or Mission Athletecare Anti-Chafe to put anywhere and everywhere the wetsuit or TRI kit might chafe.
Sunscreen (sport specific spray that is quick dry, like the Mission Athletecare Sun Defeated continuous spray)
Throw away flip flops – Hopefully you won’t need these but sometimes you get to a venue where you just can’t walk around without your shoes. Or maybe you will have to walk a mile to the swim start and are you going to do that barefoot? Are you going to go back after 6-7+ hours of racing and get your flip flops?

BIKE

Bike – Sound elementary but if we are making “the” list, don’t forget the bike.
Bike shoes
Socks (if you use them)
Tire pump
Fuel for on the bike
Water bottles (freeze your fluids if possible)
Sunglasses (with a fresh coat of anti-fog or Johnson Baby Shampoo to prevent fogging)
Helmet
Tire repair kit: tools, tube, CO2 canister for tire inflation

RUN

Running Shoes
Socks (if you use them)
Toe protectors (if you need them)
Fuel for on the run
Race Belt
Hat/Visor

THE RIDE HOME

Change of clothes
ShowerPill wipes to clean up
Flip Flops or Keen Bali Sandals (my favorites, the cushion & support is so nice on my feet!)
$$ – You are going to be hungry. You will be stopping for food.

That’s my list! I take the above to every triathlon I run. Do you have anything that you take that might not be on this list? Tell us!! We need all the help we can get and we value your input!

** Making A List & Checking It Twice ** Amanda – TooTallFritz **