Why you shouldn’t learn from the pros
Triathlon demands mastery of logistics, but don’t worry when you're just starting out, you’re probably more focused than those who do it for a living…
One of the overriding concerns of the novice triathlete is properly navigating the amount of faff required before their first race. Kit laid out meticulously the night before with a ‘I’m sure I must have missed something’ vibe will feel familiar. So too the ‘What the hell do I do now?’ emotions of arriving slightly stressed at Ironman registration to be handed different coloured plastic bags and a sheet of stickers.
But you shouldn’t give yourself such a hard time. I’d wager that it’s precisely because newbies believe they’re so prone to mistakes that their diligence results in comparatively few. Of course, there’ll be learnings through the event, a chance to do this or that better next time. Generally, though, it’s nothing too calamitous. In contrast, as I’m increasingly coming to believe, to the professionals.
Pay more attention to detail
Perhaps because it’s their job and they compete so relatively frequently, auto-pilot kicks in. But given they’re racing for their livelihoods, I often think they should pay a bit more attention to detail.
I was in Lanzarote recently for an early-season Ironman race and it wasn’t the first time I’ve seen the pros line up with little to no idea about how the turn buoys are laid out. Post-race chatter was that not everybody swam the correct route.
Given the pros race for their livelihood, they should pay a bit more attention to detail
Know the race rules
Then as the lead men emerged with a potentially critical gap on the chasing pack, more than one athlete stripped their wetsuit to reveal a bare chest and be greeted with a shrill blast from the technical official’s whistle – followed by a struggle to haul up the tri-suit from the waist and all those hard-earned gains in the water lost.
Do a course recce
Out onto the bike, and within the first half-mile there was a cobbled incline that proved the graveyard of aero bottles as all the nutrition was bumped out of its holders and showered across the road. An issue that would’ve been prevented with the slightest hint of a course recce.
The hydration issue was repeated at Oceanside a few weeks later by popular Canadian pro Lionel Sanders. He explained how he lost his supply of maple syrup early on the bike leg then found the bottles handed out at aid stations weren’t the correct size to fit on his Canyon TT bike. Sanders’ mea culpa also started with only bringing tinted goggles on an overcast morning and being able to see very little in the swim.
Don’t get hung up on the detail
These are just a handful of examples as space allows, but the point is not to show how ill-prepared the professionals of this sport are, but rather that if you’re just starting out, don’t get too hung up over every little detail.
Even the best make mistakes and as long as you have a wetsuit to swim in (when needed), a bike to ride and some trainers to put on for the last bit, you’ll muddle through. It’s when you start getting good at this sport, that you really need to worry.
Illustration: Daniel Seex
Tim Heming
Freelance triathlon journalist 
