Transition Practice

I can't believe it's almost race time again. I had originally signed up for the LA triathlon to be my "A" race, with the previous Malibu tri 3 weeks ago as my practice race. However, in the aftermath of Malibu (which went ok), I've been slacking a bit on training, as both the desire to not overdo it in the few weeks prerace as well as life activities have gotten in the way. Next thing I know, the LA triathlon is literally tomorrow. Yikes!

There actually was one single thing I could do to significantly improve both my performance and comfort level on the course in one day.

TRANSITIONS.

These are the oft-neglected segments leading from swim to bike, and then from bike to run, which take place in staging areas. There are two transitions: T1, and T2, which I will describe below. These transition areas are huge, as 1000+ competitors are the norm nowadays. Before the race even starts, you will have racked your bike on a long metal A-frame rack in a designated spot corresponding to your race number.

T1: Out of the swim (which comes first), and onto the bike

There is usually a 200-400m run from the waterfront/shoreline to the transition area, with a timing mat at the entry to the transition area. You immediately begin stripping off your wetsuit at the upper body level as you exit the water, then run up to your bike. Actually, most people walk or jog to their bike, and in the Malibu triathlon, I picked up 60-90 seconds alone on most people by running to my bike, which is how the pros do it. It's legal, and you all know that running is my thing, so I intend to fully maximize that! At your spot, you strip off the rest of your wetsuit, throw on your helmet & goggles. Now, the experts grab their bikes and run it to the "mount line" at the exit of the transition area - their shoes are already clipped onto their bike, and they waste no time putting their shoes on. Rookies like me usually put on our shoes while we're still standing up, then walk our bikes to the start line (it's hard to run in bicycle cleats) and then clip in and go. I intend to change this for this upcoming race!

T2: Off the bike and onto the run

The pros/experts get their feet out of their cycling shoes even before they finish the bike leg. They ride with their feet on top of their shoes for the last half mile or so, and then do a speedy dismount at the transition entry line. Rookies like me have been riding all the way to the line, then dismounting with bike shoes on, and then running through the transition area with bike cleats, which isn't as fast. You then throw your running gear on (easy) and go.

Practice makes Perfect

How important are these transition, anyway? If the average competitor takes 3 hours to finish a triathlon, these transition usually comprise 6-12 minutes of race time. I do the race in about 2hrs 30minutes, with 4-8 minutes of transition time. This doesn't seem like a lot, and indeed, for most folks who are there to either just finish the course or to test their ability on the bike/run/swim, you can neglect the transition without significantly harming your overall time.

However, even at my nonexpert level, it is extremely hard for me to cut off one lousy minute off my run or bike. I would have to train at a whole different level just to knock that minute off the race segment, whereas in transition, since I'm a beginner level there, I can knock of 1-2, if not more minutes with no additional physical conditioning.

So, today, the day before my triathlon, was transition cramming morning. I just got back from spending an entire hour riding up and down my block, mounting, dismounting, strapping in, strapping out - the works. It's not as hard as it looks, and I already feel MUCH better about the whole affair. A few tips for myself that I did learn en route that I'd like to not forget:

1) When running with the bike in hand, it's crucial to keep the pedals horizontal. Once you've got the pedals horizontal, you can run like crazy with the bike.

2) Running with your hand on the seat works better than on the handlebars

Seems totally counterintuitive, but it's true in practice - but it does take a little bit of practice to get it to work. When you run with the bike holding the seat, the pedals are out of the way of your legs, and you also have good maneuverability by leaning the bike. When you hold it by the handlebars, the pedals run smack into your legs, and you need big motions up front to steer the bike left and right. Considering that most transition areas involve at least one corner turn, it's good to practice turns while on the run. I can now do relatively small circles with full control of my bike while just holding the seat. It's really a coordination thing with your hand balancing the bike, as I can't do it at all with my unpracticed left hand.

3) Be CAREFUL on the mount if your pedals are clipped on the bike

I got good enough at the bike transitions to do most of it at race pace, but there is one area where I've learned that I absolutely must be careful and go slow and easily - the bike mount. With shoes clipped on the bike, you have to get both feet on both shoes simultaneously before pedaling. If you "miss" one of the shoes, it will flop upside down, and then get caught on the ground, which can lead to a lost unclipped shoe (happened twice to me in practice) or a total wipeout. This is the most critical thing for me tomorrow, as the bike exit is down a parking lot ramp, and if I miss the shoe entry on the downhill, I'm totally toast. Very tricky, and not at all a place for me to rush things.

4) Scoot your butt back on the seat as far as possible to manipulate the shoes on the bike

It's really hard to reach down and manipulate the straps on the shoes while cranked forward in the aero seat position. It helps a lot to scoot back as far as possible until all the way at the back of the seat to get more room to reach down.

5) The rear loop on the shoes is key for getting in/out on the bike

I never knew what that rear loop on triathlon shoes was for until I watched a youtube video that showed that it was the "key" to not having your shoes flop down the wrong way (while at speed, no less). It takes some practice to coast with one hand while reaching down and holding the rear shoe loop, but it works great and after 5 minutes, I was comfortable doing it. After an hour, I think I do it as well as the pros.

6) I still cannot even begin to do a flying dismount!

The flying dismount is the term given to dismounting the bike while it's still moving slowly by swinging one leg over the back wheel and coasting with your weight on one pedal while standing. I can't do it at all. Part of the problem is definitely my rear hydration rack which requires some serious acrobatic leg raising to get over it, but it's also pretty tough coordination wise for me. I will have to start easy by practicing on my mountain bike with regular shoes before I attempt the real thing - I felt really unstable riding with all my weight on one foot which wasn't even in the shoe.

I'll throw in another practice session later this afternoon, and hopefully I'll be good to go for the race. Not hoping for a huge PR tomorrow - just a respectable swim, no transition wipeouts, and no bike mechanicals. Although a sub 2:30PR would be nice. =)