Common mistakes made during first tri (Page 2)

Don't forget to take your wetsuit off completely before trying to get on your bike!

Good luck,
Jen

Bear: Why is this? Putting on a shirt seems so simple to me. Am I not understanding something or do you mean some kind of bike shirt that I am unaware of?

I'll give you my reason for this. At my second tri, I put my shirt on in T1. The air temp was cold, in the low 60's. I took off my wetsuit and with shaking hands started to put a tight shirt on over a wet body. Wouldn't go. Couldn't figure it out. Turns out I pinned my number through the shirt. I then had to repin that tiny little safety pin with wet, cold, shaking hands. Not fun and not efficient. I then try to put the shirt on over my head and discover a second safety pin through to the back of the shirt. Repeat microsurgery with the safety pin. All this while attempting to race.

Chances are you're nowhere near as much of a dork as I am, but the lessons here are 1) in a short course race, minimize the work you have to do in transition. 2) buy a race belt 3) Listen to the bear and think twice before taking my advice

Try it and see. Go take a shower in your tri shorts. Without toweling off, go outside and run around your house three times. Then try to put a skin-tight tri shirt on while you're still damp and out of breath.

Took me well over thirty seconds, much to the amusement of the T-area spectators.

Just wondering if you've tried this, Jen, and if you have pictures.

I was picturing a regular cotton T-shirt. I suppose the tri shirt is smaller and tighter. Any reason I shouldn't run my first tri in a cotton T?

Comfort, perspiration wicking, evaporative properties, cooling, style, so you don't look like a newbie...

Even with a cotton shirt, practice putting it on after the swim. Not the easiest thing to do. I certainly wouldn't have the cotton shirt on during the swim.

Yes I've tried this. Unzipped my wetsuit, pulled it down, didn't step out of it, put my bike shoes on and then tried to step over the top tube of my bike. Besides looking like a dork, I had to take off my bike shoes, step out of my wetsuit and then put my bike shoes back on. Thankfully there are no pictures. At least not that I know of.

Jen