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Triathlon Demystified
I went down to the Tonbridge Triathlon in
May 2003 to witness my first ever event and learn some more about the
sport that so many people are doing now. I'd been asking so many questions
of Addiscombe's triathletes that I realised the best way to find out about
it was to go down and see for myself how all three disciplines come
together into one single event.
Addiscombe had 5 agreeables in
the event comprising of Sue and Huw who had never competed before, Max and
Marek who did their first one a couple of months ago and Maria who
has been doing them for years.
The first thing I noticed was how well laid
out everything was - there was large parking, lots of room for spectators
and the transition areas were all secure but close enough for spectators
to watch what was happening in them. There were also police handling the
entrance to the event so that the bikes could race in and out safely and
army cadets controlling the car parking.
As soon as I arrived I headed into the pool
to see if there were any Agreeables about. They were all in there waiting
to be called to start.
It was a normal 25 meter school pool which was divided up into lanes.
Swimmers were called individually by their numbers which had been written
on their arms and set off at what looked like one minute intervals
Each lane had a starter with a stop watch who called you in and also told
you when you had 2 lengths to go. Maria was first off
Huw asked a few questions and the officials seemed happy enough to answer
any queries as he got into the water. The 16 lengths went pretty quickly
for him.
Maria was first out of the pool and ran straight out to where her bike was
parked. All the competitors ran barefoot pretty much keeping on the same
outfit that they wore in the pool. I didn't see anyone doing that Brits at
the beach thing of wrapping a towel around their bottom half and trying
for ages to change their shorts without anyone seeing a flash of their
equipment.
Competitors had to run or walk with their bikes until they were out of the
transition area.
They also had to ensure their helmets were on and done up before they
unracked their bikes.
Back in the pool Marek, Max and Sue were in the queue to set off
It looked like you could pretty much wear what you liked for the
swim.
Everyone was given a swim cap with their number on which they had to wear.
Its probably a good idea practicing with one beforehand to check that it doesn't
affect the fit of your goggles or ruin your barnet.
Max and Marek were pretty even in the swim. Luckily they were in seperate
lanes although all swimmers had to share a lane with a couple of other
people. If someone came up to overtake you you just moved to the side to
let them past and the end of the length. Some people were doing
tumbleturns while others were having a breather at the end of each length.
Sue was the last to set off. It seemed that if you send your entries off
together there is a chance you might get similar start times.
If you don't wear a top in the swim it can be hard getting one on over a
wet body in the transition from swim to bike
Max had an all in one lycra skinsuit for the swim which meant he could
just put his helmet and shoes on and get on the bike quicker to get the
28km ride underway
Wearing a swimsuit meant Sue had to put top and bottoms on as well.
As soon as you passed the marshall at the end of the transition area you
could start riding. Most people stopped and got on their bikes then got
going without doing any fancy running jump type things.
Huw flew round the bike course and said later it was really 'sporting'
rather than a dual carriageway type courses that many time trialers are
used to. Maria was just behind him and the police were on the gate
to stop the traffic and give cyclists priority to zoom straight in without
having to wait.
The run was mostly on grass but looked pretty knackering!
The competitors had to do two laps of the playing fields and at the end of
the first lap collected an elastic band which they put on their wrist to
denote they had already been round once. Maria was flying on the run.
 
Max and Marek came in just a couple of minutes apart. There were so many
cyclists in and out all morning the police were stopping just about every
car on the main road and making them wait. TOO RIGHT!
The riders had to keep their helmets done up in the transition area even
when they were walking or running through it. When their bike was back in
the racks then they could undo it. There was a lot of nice bikes there but
equally there were a lot of hybrids, mtbs with knobblies and also quite a
few shonky old racers that had been put in the shed in 1976 and dragged
out purely for this triathlon.
Once you had your trainers on you could run out of transition area
Huw was first to finish the run and found his supporters amongst the
watching crowds
The 5km run finished with a lap of the track.
 
Max and Marek finished just a couple of minutes apart..
...with Sue coming in not far behind
At the end all of the finishers got a medal!
All in all it looked a lot less
intimidating than I had imagined. As well as a lot of fit looking super
athletes there were a lot of lardies and also a lot of people who really
looked to struggle on the bike. With the swim taking around 10 minutes,
the bike around 55 and the run about 25 it would seem that club cyclists
have an advantage in that their discipline takes up the majority of the
event. Pretty much anyone can run or walk the 5km required and with a bit
of practice or swim coaching 16 lengths should be attainable for most
people, even if it means walking a bit in the shallow end or getting
breath back at the end of each length. The bike bit should be a lot of fun
for an Agreeable as its the time when you are most likely to overtake a
few people, especially on the climbs which had lots of people
reaching for their bottom gear. All in all triathlon looks a lot of fun
and all the people there were really friendly. All I have to do now is see
if I still fit in my swimming trunks that were last used in 1976!
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