Source: Quintana RooBio, More Articles
by Jamie Cleveland
People spend hours in the pool and log thousands of miles on the road trying to get faster but often overlook the easiest way to take time off - transitions. Shaving a minute off your T1 time in an Olympic distance race, is the equivalent of going from 1:35/100m to 1:30/100m without any extra effort! Why wouldn't you want to take advantage of that? In an Ironman race with transitions times in the double digits it's even more significant. Imagine if you could suddenly go from swimming 1:10 to 1:05. How big of an impact would that have on your race?
The most common mistake people make in transition is getting lost. Take the time to walk through the entire transition (from swim exit to bike exit and from bike entrance to run exit). This will show you the flow of the area and will save you valuable seconds on race day. Ask questions of volunteers and support staff to make sure you know what tent is what. Find out where your bike will be, how congested the area will be and where the bags will be. Think about which direction you want to rack your bike (from the front on your bars or from the back by the seat) so that you won't get stuck trying to turn your bike around in the chaos of the race. Decide which side of your bike you want to set your gear up on so that you can mount your bike from the preferred side.
Consider every action that you will take on race morning and plan them out so that you can combine as many of them as possible. Is it a long run from the water to the bikes? Can you get a gel down in that time? Do you have time to put your helmet on as you run from the change tent to your bike (Ironman racing)? Every year in Ironman New Zealand, I pack my helmet and arm warmers in my first bag. Because there is a 400m run from the tent to my bike I put these on as I run to the bike and save about 30 seconds in the process.
Learn to put your feet into your shoes on the bike! I know I'm going to hear grief about this one but it is a fact that the fastest way to get going on your bike is to have your shoes mounted. Just look at the Olympics - every single athlete had their shoes mounted on their bikes. By having them on your bike you can bypass the press of bodies at the bike mount line and wait until things thin out before putting your feet in your shoes (making forward progress as you do!). It is also a safer because your bare feet have much more traction than your stiff shoes and cleats on the pavement that comprises most modern transition areas. I can't count the number of times that I've seen athletes wipe out as they tried to slow down or turn a corner in their bike shoes on pavement. Also, there is the issue of breaking a cleat or getting something stuck in the mechanism. If you break a cleat, your race is effectively over. Cleats don't like rocks, mud, dirt or grass and anyone who has ever stopped at the side of the road to answer a call of nature will attest to the fact that dirty cleat do not click in! Of course all of this requires that you practice getting your feet into your bike shoes on the bike BEFORE race day. If you wait until the race to try this, you will run into problems and quite possibly end up on your backside.
Another area where most people can shave off time is with the clothing they wear. If it is a wetsuit swim, then wear what you plan on racing in. When you come out of the water you are soaking wet so it matters little if you are putting on dry clothes or not. Under your wetsuit you won't feel any drag or discomfort from your racing outfit and you can simply add arm warmers or a jacket to accommodate cold mornings.
In non-wetsuit swims try and get a body suit that you can swim in or at least a top that you can wear over your race singlet that you can remove after the swim. It is one thousand times easier to take clothes off a wet torso than to try and put them on�especially a form fitting Lycra top!
In T2, make sure that you use elastic laces or lace locks to speed things up. Taking the time to tie your shoes will leave you in your competitors dust.
At your bike, the sequence you follow to get ready can mean as much as 30 seconds. When starting the bike make sure that you put your helmet on first. I like to attach my glasses to my helmet or bike so that I don't have to stop and put them on (2-5 secs). If it is a wetsuit swim, use the tear-away zipper of the suit and get it down over your thighs as soon as you reach the bike. Thrust your knees up in the air as you put your helmet on and use your feet to pull the suit off your legs. By the time your helmet is clipped, you are ready to go or at least only in need of a small tug to get it off your ankles.
Coming off the bike, rack it and immediately start putting on your shoes/socks (assuming your bike shoes are still attached to the pedals). Have your race belt ready with the number attached and a hat (if you wear one) waiting with a shot or two in it. As you grab your belt and hat and stand up and unclip your helmet. You can drop it as you head out on the run. Starting with your helmet usually costs athletes 5-10 seconds and if it's a sprint finish, that can mean the difference.
In Ironman racing, I usually take my helmet off as I run through the transition in search of my bags. I like to include a towel in my T2 bag to wipe my feet before donning my socks. A clean pair of sunglasses can also make all the difference in the world.
Transitions are no mystery. They are a fast, easy way to take large chunks of time off your PR. Prepare for them properly, practice them, visualize them and you will soon be leaving your rivals in the dust!
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Posted: March 26, 2003